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 Image by Juliet Elizabeth Photography; sketch courtesy of Anne Barge
March 1, 2013
 Welcome, Anne Barge!
One of the country’s top designers will headline the Charleston Weddings Magazine’s Spring Bridal Show
Get ready for the big time, brides. This year, our Spring Bridal Show will host one of the grande dames of the wedding world: Anne Barge. Based in Atlanta but known, published, and lauded hither and yon,the doyenne has been named the featured designer for the March 23, 2013 event.
In an industry full of luminary designers, Anne shines among its brightest. As a girl, the Atlanta native made dresses for her dolls, and by college she had filled scores of sketchbooks with gown drawings. Years later, when Anne saw an ad for a nearby Priscilla of Boston trunk show, she rushed over with her portfolio to show it to the fashion house’s then-lead designer, Priscilla Kidder.
That bold move netted the belle an apprenticeship under Jim Hjelm, after which she began her fashion career in earnest. Milestones have included opening her first boutique in Atlanta; being acquired by New York’s Kleinfeld; buying for Saks Fifth Avenue bridal salons; acting as managing director of London’s Virgin Bride for Sir Richard Branson; becoming the licensee for Badgley Mischka; and launching The Anne Barge Collection, which comprises four lines.
Through the years her work has been lauded in The New York Times, Brides, Martha Stewart Weddings, Town & Country Weddings, and on TheKnot.com, The Today Show, and many more. Celebrities, too, have taken note, with everyone from Julia Ormond to Nicole Scherzinger donning her eveningwear for the red carpet. So what draws all the attention? In a sea of classics, Anne creates truly timeless, feminine, standout gowns for the ages. A scholar of costumes and historical fashion, her silhouettes are built on iconic elements, and her frocks are accented with museum-quality beadwork, lace, and detailing. A name since the 1990s, Anne’s star power has only gotten brighter with her 2013 collections, earning more praise and coverage from national titles than ever. To say we are excited to have her at Charleston Weddings Magazine’s Spring Bridal Show is as big an understatement as a girl who whispers “Yes” to her bended knee beau.
Charleston Weddings: What are you looking forward to about visiting Charleston?
Anne Barge: Charleston is one of my favorite cities in the world and you certainly have the best restaurants in the world!
CW: What should we expect to see in your show?
AB: Lace gowns, detachable overskirts, non-strapless gowns with unique necklines, color, and tulle
CW: What will surprise attendees?
AB: Ombre lace gowns that go from ivory to blush
CW: What’s exciting you in bridal fashion these days?
AB: The variety of traditional necklines and sleeves interpreted in modern ways
CW: Where are you finding inspiration?
AB: In opulent ball gowns like those in “Anna Karenina”
CW: What are your signatures? Any new zingers?
AB: Classical trains and covered buttons—always. Lace, tulle, silk taffeta, silk organza, and silk satins are favorites. And narrow gowns with overskirts are my newest innovations. Â
CW: You’re a designer with Southern roots. Is there a Southern aesthetic for brides today?
AB: A family heirloom veil, perhaps Brussels or rose point lace with initials and wedding date of all the brides who have worn it
CW: Whom should a bride take to shop for gowns?
AB: Her mother or her ONE best friend
CW: What are the must-haves for every bride on her wedding day?
AB: An embroidered handkerchief, a garter, and a sixpence
CW: What celebrity would be at home in an Anne Barge gown?
AB: Anne Hathaway
CW: Brides and grooms seeing each other before the ceremony—yay or nay?
AB: Nay! There is nothing to equal the groom’s expression when he sees his bride coming down the aisle! That is a “moment.”
Click here for a chance to win two tickets to the show!
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