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Mirror Mirror London: Celebrating 29 Years of Beautiful Brides

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This is a guest post by Maria Yiannikaris, co-founder of Mirror Mirror London 

It’s a family affair!

Jane, my business partner, and I look at each other and smile, not actually believing so much time has passed since we first hatched the idea of starting a bridal design company. We had both trained at The London College of Fashion, but our paths didn’t cross until some years later.

Being raised by a very talented mother in the clothing industry it seemed only natural for me to go into clothing design. My parents were originally disappointed as they would have preferred I became a lawyer!

I had worked as a commercial designer (technical pattern cutting and turning a flat design into a beautiful 3-dimensional form is still one of my favourite things) both in high street fashion and luxury evening wear when I took a sabbatical to raise my young family.

I was still working on private commissions from home when I made my first wedding gown, a beautiful labour of love for my younger sister. Working with beautiful evening wear fabrics had left me with the idea that if I was to stay in design I only wanted to work with the most beautiful and the very best quality fabrics.

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From Sketch to Dress: A Q&A with Master Bridal Designer Caroline Castigliano

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So you’re a newly engaged bride — yaaaaay! What’s the first thing on your mind (after sharing the big news with your family and friends, of course)?

If you’re like us, it just might be the dress. It may even have been on your mind way before you got engaged — how many of us can truly say we’re not guilty of sneaking the occasional peak at a favorite designer’s website, or in their shop window?

Your dress is such a huge component of your wedding style, and we know finding one that’s the right fit for you is of the utmost importance. So what could be better than having a bespoke gown made? And by master wedding dress designer Caroline Castigliano, no less?

One of our absolute favorite designers here at STG, Caroline Castigliano has been working at the forefront of British bridal design for 27 years. She’s known for her ultra-unique bespoke gowns, featuring all kinds of fantastic details from the finest fabrics to the signature hidden corset (designed to define and balance your figure to perfection).

Every Caroline Castigliano gown is a one-of-a-kind piece, and each is handcrafted in the UK, and the dreamy Knightsbridge store is one of the world’s ultimate bridal destinations.

That’s why we’re so thrilled to bring you a Q&A with the Caroline Castigliano team on what you can expect from Caroline Castigliano’s bespoke design process. Read on for some serious bridal fashion inspo.

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*SCREAM* The Browns Bride SALE boutique is now open!

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Galia Lahav Alexandra wedding dress I  £10,700.00  £5,350.00

OK, so we can’t quite believe this but one of our all time favourite bridal boutiques Browns Bride have opened up a SALE boutique. We have wished for this for so long — we can’t quite believe it’s actually here!

The Browns Bride Sale Boutique gives all brides an amazing opportunity to purchase a beautiful designer gown at a price within your budget.  With up to 70% off dresses by dream designers such as Galia Lahav, Mira Zwillinger,  Peter Langner and Reem Acra (permanently!) get your skates (or your Jimmy Choo’s!) on and visit the Sale boutique.

Just like the Browns Bride flagship store, their  sale boutique is  by appointment only, offering the same personal service (including a glass of bubbly!) that they renowned for. Each appointment is an hour long, with an appointment fee of £20.


Mira Zwillinger Kate wedding dress I  £12,850.00  £6,425.00

We do recommend that you have already tried on bridal dresses before you visit so that you have an idea of what shape and style suits you best.

Sample sizes generally are UK8 to UK12, but there is always a selection of both smaller and larger sized gowns.

Oh — and Browns Bride also offer a fabulous selection of sale bridal shoes and accessories at their sale boutique.Continue ReadingContinue Reading

What’s It Really Like to Buy Your Wedding Dress at Kleinfeld?

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Image from The Knot

Hey everyone, Emily here! Today I’m so excited to be talking about one of NYC’s most iconic wedding businesses: Kleinfeld. You may know the bridal boutique from Say Yes to the Dress, but though it’s possibly best known as the place to pick up a five-figure Pnina Tornai, Kleinfeld is so much more.

But what’s it really like to shop for your wedding dress there, once the cameras stop rolling? I know from personal experience that some brides-to-be are intimidated to shop at this bridal behemoth based on what they see on the show.

Full disclosure: when I was engaged, I visited, had a fantastic experience — despite tending toward styles pretty different from what you see on the show (ALL the Temperley!) — and very nearly purchased a dress (though in the end I didn’t), and now whenever I’m talking to a newly engaged NYC bride  I always encourage her to see what Kleinfeld has to offer.

In the interest of demystifying the experience, we picked the brains of seven Smashing The Glass brides who purchased their gowns at the bridal institution. Read on to hear their thoughts on the selection of gowns, the customer service, and individualized experience the store offers — and reveal some surprising differences from what you see on TV.

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10 Bridesmaid Dresses We Can’t Get Enough Of for 2018/19

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Jewish wedding Acacia Ridge Winery in Yarra Glen, Yarra Valley Australia_0005
Image by Jeremy Blode from Lori and Josh’s wedding

Happy Thursday! I’m Emily, Smashing The Glass’s new(-ish) features writer, and I’m so excited to be officially introducing myself to all you lovely readers. I’m a New York City-based writer, editor, and food blogger with a passion for baking, books, and barre class. I’ve been a fan of Smashing The Glass since 2015, when I was planning my own Jewish wedding (which ended up getting called off, but that’s a story for another time – if you know any eligible 30-something NJBs, hit me up!).

Since February, I’ve been working with Karen behind the scenes on blog content, planning some exciting projects in NYC, and hanging out in STG’s Brides Club where Team STG offers round the clock support and advice on any and all things wedding.

Speaking of all things wedding – bridal fashion is one of my absolute favorite wedding topics, so I’m thrilled to share some of my top bridesmaid dress picks for 2018/19.

We get so many brides asking for bridesmaid inspo, so we wanted to share some of our favorites with you.

These days we’re lucky to have nearly infinite options when it comes to our ‘maids attire, from long and romantic to short and sassy, with a pantsuit thrown in for good measure!

Read on for some fresh looks that your best girls really will like enough to wear again (yes, I’m going there).Continue ReadingContinue Reading