Spring 2024 Bridal Trend: The Special One
While the demand for modest wedding day fashion remains strong, the spring 2024 season of New York Luxury Bridal Fashion Week proved that once the weather begins heating up, skin is definitely still in — even at the altar.
Amid a mix of runway shows and showroom appointments, the shoulder proved this season’s erogenous zone du-jour.
More from WWD
Right on trend is Sofia Richie, who wed fiancé Elliot Grange in Antibes Saturday at Hotel du Cap-Eden-Roc in France. The influencer and Nudestix beauty director covered up with a custom high-neck dress embellished with beaded fringe by Chanel for her rehearsal dinner before flashing her collarbone in a scalloped halter-style at the outdoor ceremony. Richie later donned a low-cut two-piece, also by the French fashion house, featuring a boned corset and a Camellia flower to the after party.
Designers, too, zeroed in on the bodice as a way to modernize traditional dress silhouettes in their collections. Cat-eye and single-shoulder necklines were especially prominent with corset-style details adding extra va-va-voom.
Here, WWD takes a closer look.
Cat-Eye Necklines
A not-so-sweet alternative to the sweetheart, the cat-eye is defined by points at either side of the neckline resembling a feline’s signature flicked eye shape. At Wtoo by Watters, they were the single design element for a satin ballgown while the likes of Katherine Tash and Jenny Yoo used them to up the sex appeal on ruched A-line dresses with thigh-grazing slits. In her debut bridal collection, Cinq designer Macye Wysner, added a center point to better frame the shape of the bust. “I am always conscious of what is going to be the most flattering on our brides,” she said, noting her customer prefers a cat-eye because of how it, “scoops and hugs the bust and highlights the décolletage.”
One-Shoulder
For brides wishing to show off some décolletage without going completely strapless, a single-shoulder dress can be “a super glam statement,” said designer Mark Ingram, noting how the style “accentuates a long lean line, yet keeps the the element of bareness.” Ingram described the one-shoulder floral embroidered tulle gown from his collection as elegant and sensual. Similar options were seen at Rita Vinieris and Mira Zwillinger, who used a delicate trail of floral lace to add support to a sweetheart bodice. Elsewhere, Safiyaa and Houghton toyed with stiffer fabrics for a more structured take on asymmetry while Sachin & Babi and Vivienne Westwood’s options featured Grecian style draping.
Corsetry
As the innerwear-as-outerwear look continues to dominate on the runway and the red carpet, it should come as no surprise that it would infiltrate the bridal market too, as many bridal dresses incorporate boning into their construction. Designers from Viktor & Rolf and Justin Alexander Signature to Danielle Frankel made their workmanship visible with sheer bodices that dramatized the hourglass shape of their dresses. Lihi Hod, meanwhile, contrasted masculine and feminine by pairing a corset top with tuxedo trousers and Jackson Wiederhoeft got cheeky with a trompe l’oeil embellished design on a bateau-neck mini. “The reality of good corsetry is that it’s a collaboration between the wearer’s body and my architectural lines, supporting, distorting, and enhancing the body,” Wiederhoeft said.
Launch Gallery: Spring 2024 Bridal Trend: The Special One
Best of WWD
