Over the years, Say Yes To The Dress has featured some very beautiful dresses and some very questionable choices. When it comes to women finding their dream dresses, Kleinfeld Bridal's one and only dress designer, Randy Fenoli, has truly seen it all. As a fashion pro, he knows what to look for from a dress... and a bride-to-be. He judges how they feel about dresses by watching their body language. With the experience of watching years of trends and styles pass by, he's the person to talk to about wedding dress designs and trends.
Fenoli has been designing wedding dresses for quite some time. Teaching himself to sew at age nine, he went on to graduate from The Fashion Institute of Technology. Immediately after his graduation, he designed and released two bridal dress collections, sealing his fate as a wedding dress aficionado. Later on, he became an integral part of the whole Say Yes To The Dress phenomenon. On the show, he presents... and helps women to find the bridal gowns of their dreams.
People Magazine recently sat down virtually with Fenoli. This interview was regarding his latest feelings on trends... and the future of bridal gowns as we know it. His favorite trend that he's seen in recent years is that brides are being original. They are referencing their personal style when it comes to picking out their wedding gowns. In his words: "My favorite trend is the fact that if you look back at wedding dresses from the 80's, the 1980's, they all look the same." There's so much variety these days that it's almost hard to come by a cookie cutter dress. Fenoli continued: "Today, though, you can truly express who you are as a bride with the choice of your dress." His least favorite trend is brides-to-be who wish to be overtly sexy on their wedding days: "I have so many brides that come in and say look, I paid for these. I want to show em off on my wedding day", said Fenoli, referring to cleavage. He cautions that: "Your in-laws, and your grandparents, and your loved ones really don't want to see them." His overall advice is that weddings are about family. With that in mind, modesty is a must as it is the respectful thing to do.
Fenoli's also has predictions for Say Yes to the Dress trends in 2021. These predictions are based on how Covid-19 is currently affecting the world. In his opinion: "I think brides again are going to be a little bit more mindful of their choices. I think that price points will probably come down a bit." With most of the United States experiencing loss of employment or reduced hours, many brides-to-be will struggle to come up with the cash for buy Say Yes to the Dress-style dream dresses. "I think brides are going to be more wanting to show just love, and be true to themselves and not make it such a spectacle." Fenoli remarked.
With Covid-19, it seems that most of the country is realizing what's really important. It's about their loved ones, not fancy dresses. It will be interesting to see how the future of bridal shakes out. Not just for trends but for the process of finding a wedding dress, as well. With so many couples experiencing changes to their weddings and having to cope with postponing or going virtual, it's hard to tell what will be important in the future. One thing is for sure - the overarching themes for weddings and dresses this year will be individuality and love, so it should still be easy to Say Yes to the Dress. Say Yes to the Dress airs Saturdays at 8 p.m. EST on TLC.
Source: People, Randy Fenoli