On the breathtaking beach of the Great Guana Cay Island in the Bahamas, Britten Shea floated down the aisle to marry her true love, Jay Shea on May 27, 2017. In an ethereal ball gown reminiscent of white clouds against a blue sky, one could not help but watch and be in awe of this gorgeous bride on her wedding day.
Although Britten was picture perfect in her ball gown, it was far from how she envisioned herself on her wedding day. Arriving at Kleinfeld Bridal in search of her dream wedding dress, Britten thought she would be leaving the salon that day with a sleek and sexy sheath gown complete with illusion sleeves. While Britten was sitting in the waiting room, she spotted a ball gown on display on the showroom floor. However, since it was not what she was looking for, Britten tried to put the gown out of her mind and began her appointment.
Britten's consultant pulled gown after gown for Britten to try on, sticking to the vision that Britten had in mind. However, after trying on a multitude of dresses, Britten had still not found what she was looking for. Unable to forget the ball gown that she had seen earlier that day, Britten threw her previous vision out the window and asked for her consultant to pull the gown that had caught her attention. Britten's consultant came back with the gown and Britten proceeded to try on a whimsical yet elegant, Pnina Tornai ball gown with an illusion deep-V neckline and full tulle skirt.
This gown would be the very last dress that Britten would try on. She glowed in the gown and all of her previous worries about wearing a ball gown to a beach wedding faded away as everything just clicked.
“I just kind of knew it was it,” Britten recalls of the moment she knew she would be saying yes to this dress.
Since Britten had visited the bridal salon during a Pnina Tornai trunk show, none other than Pnina Tornai herself emerged from the Pnina Tornai Boutique to greet the bride and take her measurements. After sizing the gown and discussing how she would like the final gown to look, Britten got a glowing seal of approval from the designer on her chosen wedding dress.
“She said when she designed the gown she had someone like me in mind to wear it,” Britten gushes!
The magical ball gown turned out to be the perfect match for Britten's elegant beach wedding. The contrast between the upscale feel of the ball gown in the relaxed beach setting worked out wonderfully. The dreamy dress even had the sexy illusion components that Britten was wanting for her wedding day look. To accessorize the look, Britten kept it simple by wearing her grandmother's earrings. Wearing her hair half-up and half-down in loose beach curls brought her whole look together.
When her special day finally arrived, Britten knew she had chosen the right gown. It was all over her soon-to-be husband's face from the first moment he saw her. Fitting in like a dream with her “cocktail dress and sandals” vibe, Britten's gown was the ideal combination of upscale and whimsical. It was a timeless look that completed the magical feeling that Britten was hoping to have on her wedding day.
Britten reminisces, “I felt like the dress was just the perfect touch to what I was wanting to achieve that day.”
If Britten was hoping to achieve looking effortlessly bridal and beautiful on her special day, we say mission accomplished!
Written by: Jazmine Keels
Photography by; Christina Karst Photography