The Sonetka (this is the eldest daughter of the Annalucia) was married three years ago in the strapless pale-blue gown, and though it was a great shock to see her in something other than the T-shirt and the jeans she nonetheless looked lovely. She also had the pale silk shawl (oblong, unfringed) which she wore during the church ceremony lest anyone be shocked by shoulders and upper arms, and which she put aside during the reception. A very good look as it turned out, though not at all her usual style.

And the Annalucia agrees with the bride about cap sleeves. They are an abomination to any woman who is not built like the underfed eleven-year-old boy.

Why don’t the designers make gowns without sleeves? It’s a question that my mother brought up while looking through catalogues, and it’s a question other brides have mentioned too. So seeing it here, I know, there are lots of people out there wondering!

I wish designers could understand that ’sexy’ isn’t the same thing as ’showing as much skin as possible.’

As a matter of fact, I look almost exactly like the wicked stepmother in Snow White. Doubtless why I find the Anu Pam dress perfectly acceptable - as a dress. I am also in favor of dignified and ceremonial - I’m at my most comfortable that way. I just am not in favor of severe, or columnar, or strapless, or plain - so many of the adjectives that seem to accompany descriptions of dresses for the “mature” bride (and which, IMO, could often be replaced with the word “drab.” Or “dreary.”)

As a matter of fact, both the gowns which I made for the Wonderful Bride and the Bad Bride had sleeves. The Bad Bride had Elizabethan sleeves (white velvet trimmed in gold, with the upper puff slashed with green and gold brocade). The Wonderful Bride … she wanted to dance later, but was self-conscious about her arms. So I wound up designing an overdress of silver-embroidered organza, which incorporated the sleeves she wanted (the top of the sleeve was bishop-style, with a gauntlet that ended in points over the hand, the whole thing mounted on a sheer peach organza undersleeve) into the train, which buttoned down the front, jacket style, over the gown. It had a small standing half-collar, and a two-yard train. I designed it so the train looked like one piece with the gown (it had the same sweetheart neckline), but the gown looked complete when the train came off. The gown had a sleeveless satin bodice, covered with the silver-embroidered organza, and a silver organza tablier front on the satin skirt. Nothing more entertaining than invisibly boning a sheer organza garment, let me tell you. Plus endless yards of silver-embroidered scallops, which I carefully cut off and then sewed back on. Aggghh.

I just would like a happy, celebratory dress that didn’t look as if it could stand in for a government function.

That I didn’t have to make myself.

http://www.eternitygowns.com/assets/bridal/2005spring/8109.htm
http://www.ldsbrides.com/gowns/gown_info.php?id=109&pg=0&style=16
http://www.allurebridals.com/modest.asp?ID=20

Some of the gowns just look like white prom dresses to me, but considering how many Mormon girls get married right out of high school that’s probably understandable.

Me, I’m Catholic and not yet officially engaged, but my boyfriend and I have discussed getting married in Rome, and some of the Roman churches have very strict dress codes, a la St. Peter’s–no sleeveless, no backless, no visible clevage, etc.–so I’ve been checking out Mormon wedding dresses, since they’re the only ones that seem to live up to the standard of modesty of some churches, and still manage to be relatively pretty.

This is a problem you might address in future, Never teh Bride: the bride whose church/religion won’t let her wear whatever she wants, but who still wants to be gorgeous on her big day. Not a big audience, perhaps, but she’s out there.

That being the case, I wonder if the majority of the current hot designers are laboring under the assuption that every girl wants a summertime wedding? And, of course, that we’re all 5′10″ and 116 pounds.