How To Find Your Perfect Wedding Dress: Shopping Tips From Lazaro

If you want a wedding dress that boasts major wow-factor, a design from Lazaro Perez would be the obvious choice. The American designer is renown for his dazzling, hand-embroidered and beaded gowns that make women look and feel like red carpet dreams. “I find so many of my clients want a dress that has it all—volume, detail, drama,” Perez says. “I am definitely seeing a trend towards more is more.”

Perez was recently in Toronto for a trunk show at Kleinfeld Hudson’s Bay and we caught up with the designer to learn more about what inspires his designs.

Q: You are known for your gorgeous dress detailing but also for your pretty pastel-toned wedding dresses. Would you say you're a forerunner when it comes to the coloured wedding dress trend? “I have been producing gowns in very soft shades for many seasons and one of my most popular colours with brides is one we call sherbet, a soft peach colour which is the result of layering fabrics in shades of pastel pink, yellow and orange. It’s a gorgeous hint of colour that is for a bride who wants something a little different than white but doesn’t want to go big and bold with a statement colour.”

Q: Where do you find design inspiration for your gowns? “I actually get a ton of ideas from my brides! I am very lucky because I do a lot of events that allow me to meet brides and hear from them what they love in a dress. Sometimes they will customize details from two or three different gowns to create their dream dress—I find their feedback invaluable and very inspiring.”

Q: You have been in the bridal industry for 30 years, what have you seen change over time? “Of course fashion changes and evolves and there is so much more choice available today to brides when it comes to dress styles. I find lately I am revisiting a lot of older styles and updating for today’s bride. All trends go full circle and that includes bridal gowns. Two years ago, lace was really not something that was so popular and now it’s one of the biggest trends happening. Women today are also much more aware of their bodies and want to look a beautiful and sexy on their wedding day.”

Q: What’s the most important thing to remember when shopping for a wedding dress? “Keep an open mind! When you start looking for your dress, you may think you know exactly what you want, but you may actually be surprised that a style you would have never thought about is actually the one you end up falling in love with."

Q: Finish this sentence: A bride’s perfect dress is…. “One that makes her cry! It should make her feel gorgeous and super-special.”