A limited amount of free copies of this issue are available for you - just stop by and pick one up!

(Definitely pick up an issue of The Veil as my scans hardly do the magazine justice and the magazine is packed with great articles specifically tailored to meet the needs of Wisconsin brides.) 

**Thank you to Denise of The Veil for use of the photo published on our behalf in Wisconsin Bride.  The photo was taken on site for The Veil by Front Room Photography with hair and make up provided by The Ultimate Spa and Salon.

Nicole chose Justina McCaffrey for her bridal gown and veil, Christina Garcia for headpiece and jewelry and Vera Wang for bridesmaid dresses.

Julie chose Melissa Sweet for her bridal gown, Christina Garcia for headpiece and jewelry and Lynn Lugo for bridesmaid dresses.

We'd like to thank both Nicole and Julie for choosing Premiere Couture and for being such great brides to work with.  You're both beautiful and we were so honored.  Congratulations and best wishes!!

As seen in Wisconsin State Journal June 15, 2006    

Hot Off The Shelf, Madison Magazine, April 2006 issue   

As seen in Anew Magazine December 2005 issue   

As seen in Anew Magazine December 2005 issue   

As seen in Madison Magazine's April 2005 issue   

SOMEWHERE IN TIME

Photography by Michael Haug
Styling by Gina Hessburg, terra productions, inc.

'Bruce' chiffon gown with embroidered crystal bodice and train by Melissa Sweet from Premiere Couture, $3,366.
Bracelet by Givenchy from Marshall Field's, $75. Silver rhinestone choker (worn here as a head piece) by Regalia from Zita Bridal, $375. Earrings from stylist's collection. 

Rosemary Williams, co-owner of Premiere Couture, helps adjust the headpiece on Sarah Maifeld as she tries on different wedding dresses at the Monroe Street shop. (MICHELLE STOCKER/THE CAPITAL TIMES)

It's a long way from the church basement to the frothy and expensive world of couture bridal fashion.

But Rosemary Williams has never forgotten the fundamental joy she took in her own wedding as a small-town, teenage bride, and she's used those memories as inspiration in 10 years of wedding-related business ventures.

Now she and partners Laura Evenson and Mary Johnson aim to bring their passion for beautiful brides to a new bridal wear shop at 1921 Monroe St. in Madison. The shop, previously located in Janesville, offers a rarefied world of designer wedding fashion.

The small store with the feel of a Parisian boutique opened the first weekend in December and celebrates its Grand Opening at an open house on Saturday from 3 to 5 p.m.

Premiere Couture sells designer wedding gowns that are unique, and expensive, ranging from around $1,000 to about $4,000. As a comparison, typical prices for non-designer gowns range from about $400 to around $1,200, Williams said.

Evenson and Williams travel regularly to New York to meet with designers, place their orders and study the latest trends in wedding fashion. Couture dresses are created individually and are known for extravagant fabrics, their attention to detail and craftsmanship as well as offering high fashion.

"Obviously, couture wedding gowns aren't for everyone," Williams admitted. "Generally, our customers tend to be older, better educated, and they are willing to spend more to make certain they are wearing something very different and very individual. We also pride ourselves on providing lots of knowledgeable hand-holding."

Premiere Couture offers designer lines that are not available through other stores in Madison and, in many cases, not available elsewhere in Wisconsin. The shop carries five lines of designer dresses, including Melissa Sweet of Atlanta and Canadian designer Justina McCaffrey.

"To a large extent, in this business you get what you pay for," Williams said. "The fabrics are incredible and when you look at the way the dress is created, it's a work of art, designed as something to be passed on for generations."

Williams began her first wedding-related business in Brodhead 10 years ago, doing specialty engraving on sterling silver cake serving sets and champagne flutes. Originally, she worked for her mother's trophy business.

"I was interested in weddings, and wedding accessories," she said. "I had an idea about taking some of the running and hassle out of planning a wedding, so I made house calls in the early days. I don't miss that part of the business.

"The goal, then and now, was to help make brides' lives easier and more fun."

Williams and Evenson were childhood friends, growing up in Edgerton, and reconnected when Williams helped plan Evenson's wedding. Evenson went to work for Williams, and in 2000, she and her mother, Mary Johnson, joined Williams in the partnership.

"Over the years, we've learned what we love and what we don't like as much in the business. It's a refining process. We've discovered a real passion for fashion," Evenson said.

The partners, who both have young children - seven between the two of them - have a down-to-earth attitude that contrasts with the exclusive atmosphere often associated with couture design.

"Even though some see this as a dream job, it is like any business, with lots of hard work and long hours, and some high stress because weddings mean so much to people," Williams said. "But we love our brides, and we love going to New York to meet with the designers. When we watch the Oscars, we turn off the volume so we can concentrate on what everyone's wearing."

The movement toward designer fashion began when the partners started selling wedding dresses, and were among the first Midwestern shops to carry an Australian designer who quickly became the rage.

"We were ahead of that curve, and we loved it," Evenson said. "We prefer carrying designers before they become well known. Their ideas are so fresh and interesting at that point, and I think it helps differentiate our business."

That said, both partners quickly agree there are many dresses in a range of prices that look beautiful, and that every happy bride is lovely.

Sometimes, the partners admit, the dresses they find most unusual and inspiring are not the things that are selling in the Midwest.

"Occasionally, we have to wait for our market to catch up with the trends that are the most interesting in the design world," Williams said.

"Our brides have in common an interest in high fashion, but beyond that they come from diverse fields. They've included a professor from Berkeley, Olympic athletes, even someone who studied skeletons for the State Historical Society. We have many professional women like doctors and vets and attorneys. But we also have bartenders and waitresses and dental hygienists who love fashion and are willing to pay for it. In a little shop like this, we work very closely with our clients, and get to know them very well," Williams said.

"I was a very different bride from the women who are our customers," Williams noted. "I was 18 when I was planning my wedding, and my husband and I were married in the church where we met, years before. Our reception was in the church hall. I was madly in love with my husband, I was totally happy and I never felt more beautiful. I want every bride to feel that way."