Cheryl Shops

When I first got engaged last year, I thought, I'm not spending a lot of money on my wedding dress--I'll only be wearing it for a few hours. After several rounds of hearing, "OMG, Cheryl, you're going to have the most amazing wedding dress ever," however, the pressure was on--I guess being a fashion blogger does raise expectations. My next thought was to get a designer evening gown in white--not a bridal gown per se, but something unique. I soon gave up on this for several reasons: One, designer evening gowns (I was looking at Lanvin, J Mendel, and Donna Karan, among others) are often more expensive than bridal dresses. Two, tracking one down requires a lot of work--I probably went to five or six stores before realizing it was an effort in futility. Finally, I actually fell in love with a gown in the bridal salon at Saks Fifth Avenue; I was entirely surprised by this, as was my wallet, but as the saying goes, the heart wants what it wants.

For brides-to-be with more willpower, shopbop.com has introduced a Wedding Boutique, featuring everything from traditional (and non-traditional) wedding dresses to accessories and honeymoon clothes. Lots of stores, from Net-a-Porter to Nordstrom, have recently introduced similar mini-shops, but it's the wedding dresses that really set Shopbop apart. You'll find chic alternatives to the traditional dress by top designers like Thakoon, Temperley London, and Halston Heritage, as well as shorter versions by Ports 1961, Doo-Ri, and 3.1 Phillip Lim. Most are white or ivory, but there are light pink and dove gray options as well. Almost all of the dresses are under $1500 (most are under $1000), which considering what traditional gowns cost, is really reasonable, especially for such in-demand designers. There's also a great bridesmaid section, and while we've all heard "You can totally wear this again," I think that old chestnut could actually apply to the styles here (most are in the $200-$400 range). I also recommend checking out the accessories section, stocked with lots of sparkly headbands (the cool-girl alternative to veils) and jewelry from the likes of Tom Binns and Dannijo. If you need help with any of the above, you can contact a wedding specialist during regular business hours, and like the rest of Shopbop, you can "heart" your favorite items and save them in a special bridal section. It's all basically a bride-oriented version of regular Shopbop, but in these high-stress times (and believe me, planning a wedding is stressful), shopping a familiar site is kind of like shopping with your maid of honor: nobody knows you better than she does.