Gown

The bride-to-be who wants to look like a movie star on her wedding day can order the very same dress that appears in the new version of "Father of the Bride" for $4,500.Designed by the film's costume designer, Susan Becker, the gown plays a leading role in the Touchstone Pictures film."It's a sweetly demure dress, perfect for the all-American girl," says L.A. bridal shop owner Renee Strauss, who worked with Becker on creating the gown. Becker says it was Grace Kelly's own classic gown that inspired the film's gown, rather than the one worn by Elizabeth Taylor in the original movie.

Remember in Clueless when Dionne asked Cher if she were suffering from buyer's remorse and, looking horrified, Cher said no? Well lucky you, Miss Horowitz, because I certainly am.  Knowing nothing about wedding dress shopping, I was surprised when in February, a week after my engagement, my stepmom insisted we begin the search. We visited a total of two places, and I had my dress deposit down in less than a month.  I love my dress. I can't really detail it here because my fiance wisely reads this blog (Hi, Rob!

A Westminster woman, preparing for her wedding at the end of the month, returned to her car on the Cranberry Mall parking lot Sunday to find that someone had stolen her wedding gown.City police said Sherry. E. Janocha, who lives on Liberty Street, left the gown in the locked vehicle on her way to a fitting.She found that the door was unlocked when she returned from the mall and that the gown was gone.The gown was in a J. C. Penney garment bag and was valued at $300, police said.Ms. Janocha said she is hoping someone returns the gown because it is of little use to anyone but her.POLICE* Westminster: An employee of the Exxon gasoline station on Route 140 reported someone drove off without paying for gas Monday.

Stacy Keibler parted ways with the colorful frocks, which have brought her red carpet success this awards season, and opted for a rose gold Marchesa gown that left one Baltimore fashionista gushing. "You can't go wrong with Marchesa," said Zoey Washington, head of LittleBird, a Baltimore-based styling and image consulting business for teens. "What's so wonderful about the look is that even if he (George Clooney) doesn't win, he's walking away with a gold trophy. " Keibler, a Baltimore native, who is Clooney's main squeeze, accompanied the best actor nominee in an a symmetrical one-shoulder gown that gathered at the hip with a flowery embellishment.

ACTRESSES GET ALL THE BREAKS. If they follow the winds of fashion when getting dressed in the morning, they're congratulated for being so on-trend. If they break away from the trendy and do something different, they're avant-garde. Nowhere was that more obvious than at last week's Academy Awards. Gown after gorgeous gown on the red carpet either exemplified a trend or went against the grain -- and, for the most part, it all looked fabulous. "I thought it was in very good taste, fashion-wise, this Oscar season," says Avril Graham, executive fashion and beauty editor for Harper's Bazaar.

It was her first time on a boat. Last Friday, 17-year-old Latoya Gough stood on the deck of the Bay Lady, cruising at a nearly imperceptible pace through the Inner Harbor. She and 280 of her classmates at Carver Vocational-Technical High School were bound for the Key Bridge. Three levels of the boat were rocking with the sounds of the long-awaited junior prom. The clear spring night marked an evening of firsts - memories Latoya would forever share with her best friend, Kenika Walker. Not only was it her first prom, but also her first fancy event.

Last fall, when the "World Famous Pearl Gown" first came to the International Gem & Jewelry Show in Baltimore, it was displayed near the front entrance, a glamorous and poignant lure for visitors anxious to feel the sympathetic magic of the dress' former owner, Princess Diana, who had died three months earlier.Yesterday, the show returned, as did the pleated, beaded winter-white gown, purchased last summer at a Christie's charity auction in New York. This time, it was relegated to the convention center's most remote corner.

Shades of Grace Kelly, Marilyn Monroe and Veronica Lake. What this year's Academy Award fashions lacked in hip edginess they made up for in retro glamour. The Academy Awards' red-carpet styles paid homage to just about every fabulous leading lady who ever graced the silver screen. Best Actress winner Charlize Theron, with a wavy bob and a pale, glittery slip gown by Tom Ford for Gucci, was only the most obvious example of siren appeal. THE TRENDS Why do we care? (Other than pure voyeuristic delight, of course.

The phone's been ringing off the hook at Betsy Robinson's Bridal Collection in Pikesville. Since word got out that the upscale wedding boutique gave away free dresses to military brides Sunday, those who missed their chance have called to inquire if, by any chance, Robinson would repeat the event. The answer, she said yesterday, is yes. This Sunday, from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m., Robinson and her staff will again open their doors to members of the military - or their fiancees - who have served abroad in recent wars.

A mall is as good a place as any to see a relic. You can venerate what is left of the dead, grab a sandwich, check out Crate & Barrel and pick up that watch that was in for repair, without ever moving the car.And so they came yesterday to the Grand Court on Level 1 of Towson Town Center, to behold a gown that once belonged to the late Princess Diana and to pay tribute to her as part of the "Legacy of Love National Mall Tour," sponsored by Romance Classics, a...

An assessment of Stacy Keibler's attire this awards season reads like a children's bedtime story. Her Snooki-esque poofed hair and simple black dress lacked sophistication at the Palm Springs International Film Festival Awards Gala on Jan. 7. Her updo and crystal embellished gown screamed "too matronly" at the National Board of Review Awards gala on Jan. 10. But fashion critics said she hit her stride at the Golden Globe Awards on Jan. 15 with...

Considering the extent to which art defines everyday life in Italy, it's not surprising that some Italians wanted to go out in style. That's an art-historical lesson imparted by the photography exhibit "A Legacy of Love: Italian Memorial Sculpture" at the University of Maryland Baltimore County's Albin O. Kuhn Library and Gallery. Photographers Robert W. Fichter and Robert Freidus collaborated on this documentary project shot at cemeteries in central and northern Italy. By photographing funerary monuments that were sculpted from marble between the early 19th century and the 1940s, they are able to show how different stylistic trends in the art world are reflected in this architectural world of the dead.

Six months after her wedding, Danielle Wright still chokes up when she talks about her search for her dream wedding gown. And that's not because it was a bad experience, but because it was a wonderful experience she didn't expect. As a plus-sized woman, shopping for clothes was always difficult for Wright. “It always brought up emotional trauma,” says the newlywed. She dreaded traveling from one store to another, female family members in tow, to watch her try on one white dress after another.

Bethany Shurer took one look at her drab graduation get-up and knew exactly what it needed — a flashy pair of shoes. The Stevenson University senior's lifeless black robe covered most of her body, leaving her feet as the only place for something sassy. So she added some sparkle: a pair of eye-catching Kenneth Cole rhinestone-studded platforms. She wouldn't just walk across the stage — in those metallic navy pumps, she would shine. "Everyone else was going to be wearing the same thing," said the 23-year-old, who lives in Forest Hill.

Michelle McGinn took three weeks to complete her gold-and-fire-red dress — aptly named "The Phoenix. " Briana Angel found her dress at a bridal shop only to dismantle it and piece it back together to reflect her personal flair. Sarah Lewis designed her prom dress and recruited the owner of a local fashion house to produce the elaborate frock. Years ago, many teens would have scoffed at the thought of wearing a homemade dress instead of flaunting a stylish store-bought number. This year, a number of prom-goers will don their own creations as they show off their knack for needle and thread.

From her years living near Towson University students, Trish Mayhugh has come to expect conflicts — over raucous parties, parking snafus, dented vehicles and the occasional stolen lawn ornament. But the Riderwood Hills woman hasn't given up hope for a more peaceful coexistence. Mayhugh and others are looking to a new task force, the Greater Towson Residential Task Force, which met Wednesday for the first time, to help provide long-term solutions to the strained relations between the school and its neighbors.

Helen Hunt, Renee Zellweger and Marisa Tomei led the posse of A-list actresses who showed up in simple black gowns. The evening's stunners tended to be feminine and flattering instead of revealing and risque. And obscure fashion statements like Bjork's swan frock from last year were noticeably absent. As Hollywood's glitterati sashayed down the red carpet at the 74th Academy Awards last night, the plethora of gorgeous ballgowns and ooh-la-la slinky dresses gave some hint that things have crept back to normal in post-Sept.

An assessment of Stacy Keibler's attire this awards season reads like a children's bedtime story. Her Snooki-esque poofed hair and simple black dress lacked sophistication at the Palm Springs International Film Festival Awards Gala on Jan. 7. Her updo and crystal embellished gown screamed "too matronly" at the National Board of Review Awards gala on Jan. 10. But fashion critics said she hit her stride at the Golden Globe Awards on Jan. 15 with...

June brides remain the majority, but when it comes to wedding fashion, many traditions are long gone, according to Betsy Robinson. "Everything used to be basically the same dress," says Robinson, owner of Betsy Robinson's Bridal Collections in Pikesville. "Now, the great thing with bridal fashion is that anything goes." "Anything" this season includes lighter fabrics, splashes of color and shorter lengths. And as wedding fashion takes its cues from street fashion, one of the biggest trends is a bit of a surprise.

Ashley Ingram and three of her girlfriends stayed up all night, giggling and talking and dreaming about one thing: prom. The foursome from Baltimore's Polytechnic Institute will make it to the dance - and be as glamorous as they'd always hoped - thanks to the free dresses they claimed Saturday morning. The Priceless Gown Project, in its sixth year in Baltimore, offers dresses to high school girls who might not otherwise be able to afford them. Hundreds of girls line up each year to search for their selections, which are donated by stores and individuals.