How to Brand Your Wedding

Gather expert tips from a renowned bridal boutique and tabletop company.

Carine Krawiec, owner of Carine’s Bridal, Maison de Carine, and Carine’s Aisle, shares tips on how to brand your wedding day.

By Maddie Kaufmann for Carine's Bridal Atelier

Photo: Courtesy of Maison de Carine

Some would call Carine Krawiec, owner of Carine’s Bridal, Maison de Carine, and Carine’s Aisle, a “wedding expert” as she has participated in over 10,000 weddings since opening her trifecta of wedding businesses beginning in 2007. Carine’s Bridal is a luxury bridal boutique located in the heart of Washington, DC; Masion de Carine is the newly buzzed about tabletop company making a quick name for itself, serving high-profile clients and setting the table at the most exclusive events; and Carine’s Aisle is a sample sale store featuring discounted gowns from boutiques and designers across the world. With years of experience, countless clients, and seeing everything and everyone in between, Carine explains why “branding your wedding” is so important today.

“In today’s world of social media, blogs, and published weddings, many brides worry about getting lost in the shuffle of endless content on one of the most important days of their lives,” Carine says about wedding planning in 2020. “I always try to remind my clients that ‘your camera eats first’ to encourage them to provide an experience for their guests, with personal touches and creative approaches to otherwise traditional elements of a wedding.” According to Carine, an exceptional wedding always has a clear “brand”; even if the brand is unintentional or less obvious in the original planning process, the brand evolves and exists and is seen or felt the day of the event.

In order to create a memorable event, Carine says that the concept of “branding your wedding” should be considered throughout all elements of the planning process. For example, while in New York City for Bridal Market this season, Carine saw gowns from designers like Oscar de la Renta, Monique Lhuillier, and Mira Zwillinger to bring to her DC bridal boutique. Later this month, Carine will head back to NYC to see pieces for Maison de Carine – her new business venture featuring a curated collection of tabletop pieces of chargers, dinnerware, glassware, flatware and more. Inspired by so much beauty in this industry, Carine suggests marrying (no pun intended) design elements together – for example, combining a wedding gown found at Carine’s Bridal with a tabletop pattern found at Maison de Carine. “It is exciting to think that one of our plate patterns can inspire the invitation suite, florals, gown, and more! These are the design details that help a branding story unfold,” she shares.

For a brand to become established, Carine notes that communication between all vendors is crucial. “Be sure your vendors communicate and are comfortable collaborating,” she suggests. “In bridal and in tabletop, it is important to know the overall vision, or brand, for a bride's wedding day. With strong teamwork, design will become cohesive and your guests will leave with memories of the day for years to come.” Carine explains that a simple petal pattern on a plate from Maison de Carine can then translate into a petaled embroidery in an Oscar de la Renta gown and can then inspire a similar floral arrangement as a ceremony backdrop. If your vendors are all on the same page and understand the different dynamics that evolve throughout the planning process, you are more likely to get a cohesive design result.

To provide examples, Carine selected new Fall 2020 gowns from some of the designers available at Carine’s Bridal Atelier and paired them with new patterns from Maison de Carine to paint a picture of a branded wedding. Check out these images to get inspired for your big day!

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