CityView Magazine

CityViewNC.com | 37 dresses that start at $300 all the way up to $5,000." 2015 is a big year for Blush Bridal with booming business and a store opening. ey won $75,000 through the Dream Big Small Business Start-Up competi- tion sponsored by e Support Center in Raleigh. Bridal on Bragg One can't help but notice the stand- alone location of the Bridal & Formal Center on the corner of the energetic Syca- more Dairy Road and Bragg Boulevard intersection. Formal elegance glitters in the window and the store is always full of kinetic energy, much like most businesses catering to this sort of clientele. Elaine aine and her husband, Garry, started their store in 1996 aer selling their art gallery, based in Haddonfield, New Jersey. e former Jerseyites settled in Fayetteville in the early 1990s and now make their home downtown in a spacious lo on Hay Street. Although Garry had a prior career as a Registered Nurse, he caught on quickly to the dress fitting industry and began doing pinnings and eventually, altera- tions. Perhaps he found a great teacher in his wife, because her father, who was the president of the International Association of Clothing Designers in the 1960s also designed for many celebrities during that era. Needless to say, Elaine has been con- structing dresses since she was a pre-teen. "I actually designed my own gown and my classmate needed a project for her de- gree in fashion design, so she made my gown!" said Elaine. She continued, "Now, white is our most popular color for bridal gowns, but my preference is ivory. Lace is romantic, but the simplicity of a plain gown with a small accent of adornment or a blingy belt just adds enough interest to make some of them my favorite." Many memories are made in the Bridal & Formal Center where so many of their clients find the gown of their fantasies. Time and time again, Elaine has experi- enced seeing women look in the mirror and burst out crying. And it is always the cliché, "is is it! is is my dream dress!" Elaine and her ten person staff thrive on making the dreams of brides come true. Elaine Thaine of The Bridal & Formal Center

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