Meet a Wedding Vendor: Annette Pinkston
This week in our “Meet a Wedding Vendor” Series, we’re talking to Annette Pinkston, bridal stylist. Annette has spent several years working with brides to make sure that they find the perfect gown for their wedding day. Her emphasis is on making sure that the brides shines through the gown, not that the gown overwhelms the bride. She prides herself of walking her brides through the full process, from the helping them to select the first dress they try on, to their very last fitting. She uses her background in clothing construction to ensure that each gown looks as if it was designed for that bride.
And yes, she’s my Mom.
Let’s meet Annette.
Tell us about the work you’ve done as a wedding stylist
My job is to get an overall idea of what’s important to the bride, pull different gowns, and look at different designers to help fit her vision
Who is one of favorite bridal gown designers?
My favorite is Lazaro. I’ve met him several times, and he’s very personable. He’s redesigned one of his dresses for one of my brides, and did this just for her
When looking for a gown, what should a bride have in mind?
They should think about what they want their look to be – elegant, princess, whimsical, boho, so that we can go from there
What’s your best advice for brides going through the process?
First of all, take a deep breath, and then visualize herself looking back at the pictures of her wedding. Who is it that’s looking back at you? That’s the person that we want to find.
What’s your coronavirus advice for dresses with brides?
First of all, realize that you might have to be a bit flexible in where you get your gown. Consider shopping for your gown online. The biggest challenge to try to overcome is to have it properly tailored to your body; this is going to be the trickiest part.
What’s one of your favorite moments from over the years?
I was working with a local bride, and we were going through several fittings. On the final fitting she got a little emotional because we’d spent several months together. She asked me for any advice I had for her, and I told her to be true to herself. In our fantasy of what is means to be a bride, we forget to be regular people. And when we’re not perfect we have to be able to forgive ourselves. You have to focus on the reason that you’re doing this – you’ve found the One and you’re sharing becoming one person with your family and friends.
Once you say yes to the dress, what comes after that?
After you say yes to the dress, a contract is written up stating the dress is being made for you, the measurements, etc. It takes about 12-16 weeks for the dress to come, depending on the designer. Once the dress arrives, about 60 days before the fitting process starts
Annette and Sareh Nouri
Why are there three fittings?
The first fitting establishes the hem, determines the bustle and cups, and everything is pinned. It’s important that you have your shoes. At the second fitting, about three to four weeks later, the hem and bustle are done, and everything has been basted into place. On the third and final fitting, everything is done.
How do you determine what’s the best type of dress for you?
As a stylist, I first determine what the best fit is for the body type – whether fitted, an a-line, or a ballgown. It’s important that you can still see the figure.
Interested in working with Annette to purchase your wedding gown?
Reach out to her at annette.pinkston@gmail.com
In our next "Meet a Wedding Vendor” video, we’ll be interviewing Adam Mason of Mason Photography. He'll be offering advice on how to find a photographer the jives with. Stay tuned!