Real Weddings, Advice, & Inspiration

Catalyst Wedding Company highlights weddings by and for game-changers. We seek to amplify and empower voices and viewpoints that are usually missing from the Wedding Industrial Complex. We're a community of badass wedding professionals who love all things funky, fresh, diverse, unique, and personality-driven; we convene twice yearly for (un)convention, a collaborative workshop, styled shoot, and dinner party. We're also the publishers of Catalyst Wedding Mag, a resource for couples looking for inspiration and affirmation that doing things differently in wedding-world is not only ok, it's wonderful!

It’s New York Bridal Fashion Week again, commonly known around these parts as NYBFW. Every Fall and Spring bridal designers show off their newest collections for buyers and media outlets, and while the fashion is always innovative and stunning, it’s rare that I feel like a brand is making an effort to be inclusive. So many designers only use white models in their look books and runways shows, and a consideration for size is always missing. I’m sure there are some great designers pushing boundaries, but I shouldn’t have to dig for hours to find a collection that is inclusive.

Enter Anne Barge. Anne Barge has been designing gowns since 1999, and the attention to detail is always phenomenal. I was so pleased to see that this year that her entire collection’s campaign images featured a black model. More often than not, when we see a runway show, we see a few nonwhite faces on the catwalk, but as soon as the formal collection images are delivered it is once again a sea of white faces. I’m so pleased that Anne Barge didn’t take that route, and as a result her designs TRULY shine.

The Anne Barge SS 2020 Collection

Anne Barge SS 2020 Bridal Collection from NYBFW

Vendors

Photography: Seiji Fujimori
Creative Direction: Driver Creative / David Yassky
Media Relations: ODA PR
Hair & Makeup: Marcello Costa Studio
Floral Design: Flowers by Special Arrangement / Shula Wiener

We’re also pleased that Anne Barge has a “Curve Couture” collection, with designs up to size 22.

So, my request for the designers of Fall/Winter 2020 Collections? Make all your collections inclusive in terms of race, gender identity, and body size! PLEASE!

JEN SIOMACCO

Jen Siomacco is the CEO and Editor-in-Chief of Catalyst Wedding Co. She works to mesh together her love of feminism, love stories, accessibility, equality, and design into the Catalyst brand. When she’s not traveling the country working to make the wedding industry a more inclusive place, she’s writing on her couch and snuggled up with her husband and SUPER lazy cats.

Photo by Tiffany Josephs Photography