Iconic fashion designer Vera Wang spoke on Monday about her first black-colored wedding dresses, which have become extremely popular among brides during the coronavirus pandemic.
Speaking to Harper’s Bazaar ahead of the presentation of her new, lower-priced bridal collection, Wang noted that she always has been encouraging diversity, as she doesn't want women to “conform or dress a certain way.” The designer admitted that she has “broke every rule” in “the world of weddings.”
“One year I did a black and nude lingerie-inspired collection because that’s what all my girlfriends were wearing,” Wang said. “A lot of people were shocked – they said it was depressing to have brides in black. I said, ‘Not at all, it’s sexy.’ Then of course a lot of brides embraced it.”
The designer added the black color to her past collections in 2012 and 2019, before other couturiers, including Maggie Sottero, Leanne Marshall, Galia Lahav and Marchessa, followed her example. Once Wang even made a bridal collection all in red, inspired by Chinese culture.
“We are definitely seeing an increase in brides considering alternative styles or colors, like black gowns, tying into the trends that we’re seeing during the pandemic of non-traditional styles," said Laura McKeever, the bridal senior manager, brand PR, philanthropy & communications at David’s Bridal.
She told Fox News that black wedding dresses in their search terms “doubled in the last 12 months,” with “a 3.7x growth year over year in black bridal gown sales.” She explained that the pandemic “has moved many brides towards smaller events and more casual or non-traditional cuts and styles.”
“We launched a Little White Dress Boutique and expanded our color assortments last year to provide more of those options for weddings and pre-wedding events. Dozens of our styles come in a number of colors so that brides have options to have the wedding dress they love in a color other than white,” she said.
Wang has made wedding dresses for many famous personalities such as Chelsea Clinton, Karenna Gore Schiff, Ivanka Trump, Campbell Brown, Alisha Keys, Mariah Carey, Victoria Beckham, Avril Lavigne, Jennifer Lopez, Jennifer Garner, Sharon Stone, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Hilary Duff, Uma Thurman, Holly Hunter, Kate Hudson, and Kim Kardashian. Michelle Obama also wore a Vera Wang evening dress for a state dinner in 2015.