The VdV Edit: Have I Got Shoes For You!

Let’s talk about one of the most unexpectedly stressful parts of bridal dressing:

Shoes.

If I had a dollar for every bride who stood in my studio saying,
“Darcel, I still haven't found my shoes…”

I would personally fund a footwear vault.

And shoes are one of the things we discuss at the very start at consultation, so it can feel a little panicky to be halfway through the fittings process and still not know, or be able to find, the perfect fit.

Finding the right shoe is easily one of the most difficult parts of finishing a bridal or special occasion look. The dress gets all the glory, but the shoe? The shoe has to work. It has to support fittings. It has to carry you through photos. It has to survive a ceremony, cocktail hour, and a reception where you absolutely will be dancing.

And here’s the first thing I tell my brides:

Your wedding shoes do not have to be white to be bridal.

(Read that again.)

White is beautiful. Ivory is classic. But bridal is about intention, not colour. Champagne, blush, gold, blue, even a statement tone — all fair game. (We’ll dive deeper into adding a pop of colour in your wedding ensemble in another post soon.)

Now, after years of fittings, hemming, bustling, and watching brides test-walk across my studio floor, I have seen too many beautiful shoes not to share the ones that consistently deliver.

So welcome to the very first VdV Edit - shoes that have passed through my studio before my very eyes and earned my approval, or even footwear I myself have purchased and can attest to.

Girl, have I got a link for you.

Affiliate Disclosure: Some of the links in this post are affiliate links. This means I may earn a small commission if you purchase through them — at no additional cost to you. I only share pieces that have passed through the VdV studio and earned my personal approval.

The Elegant Minimalist Heel

These are the barely-there, clean-line, elongating-the-leg kind of heels. Perfect for modern brides, satin gowns, crepe silhouettes, or anything architectural.

One brand that consistently delivers when it comes to special occasion footwear is Badgley Mischka. Known as the go-to footwear for bridal clients, here is one of the top picks from this brand that I have seen brides choose:

• The Cher Pump (the Regal Blue has passed through the studio three times, to be exact!)

  
  

  The Badgley Mischka Cher Pump in Regal Blue and Soft White
  
  Another timeless option, with a platform for some extra height and just enough sparkle at the back to still be elegant but special:

• The Kiara Platform Pump

                 
  The Badgley Mischka Kiara Pump in Ivory (left) and White (right)
  
  
  
  

What I look for:

• Stable heel placement (no awkward wobble during fittings)

• Good ankle strap support where relevant

• Clean finishing — no visible glue or uneven dye

• Cushioning that can survive at least 6–8 hours

If it looks delicate but feels sturdy? That’s a win.

The Statement Heel (For the Bride Who Understands Fashion)

I have seen rhinestone bows, sculpted heels, pearl embellishments, florals - and I support all of it.

Especially when your dress is clean and structured, a statement shoe underneath is such a beautiful surprise moment.

Studio-approved favourites:

• Jessica Simpson Olivine - I mean, just look at her!

• Badgley Mischka Olympia Sandal - this is a classic sparkly strappy heel that can serve you well for any special event!
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  Badgley Mischka Olympia Sandal
  
  

• Betsey Johnson Lorra Heel - this one was definitely the one for a VdV bride in November 2025, and it's so much more beautiful in person, believe me!

                       

Betsey Johnson Lorra Heel

Pro tip: If you’re doing a shorter dress, a slit, or a second reception look - this is your moment.

The Comfort-First Bridal Heel

Now let’s talk about reality.

Some of you are not “12-hour stiletto” women. And that is perfectly fine (I type this with a single tear rolling down my cheek, but it's fine... really, I'll be okay... I think...)

Block heels. Lower kitten heels. Even a beautifully finished bridal sandal.

I have had brides stand in fittings for hours without a single complaint in these:

• Badgley Mischka Blakeley Wedge Sandal - I'll be perfectly honest, I would be the last person to recommend wearing wedges on your wedding day, but these fit the bill beautifully if heels are too uncomfortable and work well for outdoor, grassy settings!

Badgley Mischka Blakeley Wedge Sandal

• Pointed Toe Pearl Wedding Flats - The bride who wore these was perfectly on trend for her Baroque period-themed wedding and was able to dance all night long without complaint!

  
  Pointed Toe Pearl Wedding Flats
  
  
  

• Zzheels Bow Knot Chunky Heel - A stack heel is a great way to get some height without the pain of a stiletto, and super chunky heels are very on trend in recent times!

  
  

  
  Zzheels Bow Knot Chunky Heel
  
  

What matters here:

• Padding in the ball of the foot

• A heel height you’ve actually worn before

• An ankle strap if you’re not confident walking in heels

Your face should glow in photos — not strain because your feet are on fire.

The Unexpected Colour Moment

Listen to me carefully.

Champagne. Soft blue. Blush. Metallic gold. Even something intense like fuchsia or a deep jewel tone. You're the bride. You can do what you want.

These tones photograph beautifully and often complement ivory gowns better than stark white ever could.

Some favourites I’ve seen styled beautifully:

• IvoireCh 4" Pearl Wedding Sandals in Champagne

  
  IvoireCh 4" Pearl Wedding Sandals in Champagne

• DREAM PAIRS D'Orsay Wedding Party Pumps - These exist in white, but the blue pair is currently in studio for fittings waiting patiently for the grand entrance in April 2026.

  
  

  
  
  

DREAM PAIRS D'Orsay Wedding Party Pump

And yes, not to worry... we are absolutely going to talk about how to intentionally add colour to your bridal look in an upcoming post - because bridal does not mean boring, and it definitely shouldn't mean that you can't ever wear them again once you've walked down the aisle!

What Makes a Shoe “VdV Approved”?

It’s not about price point alone.

I’ve seen affordable shoes outperform designer pairs - and I’ve seen expensive ones disappoint.

For a shoe to earn a quiet nod from me during a fitting, it needs:

• Structure

• Balance

• Comfort

• Elegant finishing

• And a silhouette that works with the gown, not against it

Affordability matters. Comfort matters. Style absolutely matters.

And if I’ve watched it survive multiple fittings in my studio? You can trust it’s earned its place here.

This is just the beginning of The VdV Edit.

We’ll be covering:

• Shapewear that actually works under custom gowns

• Bridal accessories that elevate without overwhelming

• Second-look reception pieces

• Special occasion heels worth investing in

• And the foundational garments every well-dressed woman should own

Because if it’s coming through my studio, and it’s doing its job well?

You deserve the link.

Stay tuned - and save this post for when you’re ready to click.

With Love,

Affiliate Transparency: At VdV, I believe in recommending only what I would confidently suggest to my own brides and clients. Some links shared in this post are affiliate links, which means I may receive a small commission if you choose to purchase through them. This comes at no additional cost to you and helps support the continued creation of helpful content, bridal education, and studio resources.

Every item featured in The VdV Edit has either passed through my studio personally or reflects the standard of quality, comfort, and design I look for when dressing my clients.

 

Wedding Planning Is Really a Marriage Rehearsal

I've written or spoken about this so many times. No one tells you this at the beginning, but wedding planning is less about logistics and far more about learning how you and your partner navigate your way through stress, pressure, disagreement, and uncertainty... together.

It’s easy to think of wedding planning as a single event to manage: a checklist of tasks to complete and items to get; a day to execute from start to finish. In reality, wedding planning is one long exercise in communication, compromise, and perspective. In many ways, it is your first real rehearsal for marriage.

During this time, you will be pulled in many directions. Opinions will come from all sides - family, friends, vendors, well-meaning acquaintances, even your work colleagues who aren't invited to the wedding. Everyone will have a suggestion, a preference, or a strong feeling about what you should do. This is usually based on their opinions about how they would do it. Very quickly, it becomes clear that you cannot please everyone.

This is where the real work begins.

How you and your partner decide together matters more than what you decide. How you handle disappointment, budget constraints, changes in plans, and unexpected obstacles will set the tone for how you approach the inevitable challenges of married life. Will you be adversaries, or will you be a team? Is it "my way or the highway", or "us against the world"?

Wedding planning has a way of exposing patterns. Who takes the lead? Who avoids conflict? Who gets overwhelmed by details, and who stays calm under pressure? None of this is inherently good or bad, but it is revealing. And it offers an opportunity to learn and know each other more deeply.

There will be moments where things don’t go according to plan - a vendor may fall through, a timeline may shift, or someone you counted on may disappoint you. These moments are not failures; they are practice. Practice in choosing grace over blame, solutions over resentment, perspective over perfection.

The healthiest couples are not the ones whose weddings are flawless, believe me. They are the ones who can zoom out and remember why they are doing this in the first place, the ones who can pivot with the unexpected and formulate a Plan B together. They understand that a marriage will require far more resilience than a seating chart ever will.

Photography by Kyle Archibald, 2022

Preparing for your wedding should never come at the expense of preparing for your marriage. I don't think I can stress this enough. Make time to step away from planning. Go on date nights where wedding talk is off-limits. Re-centre your relationship often. Water it intentionally.

At the end of the day, the wedding is the beginning of the journey, not the end goal of your relationship. And the skills you build during this season will serve you long after the flowers are gone and the dress is packed away.

With Love,

Why Slow Fashion Matters in Bridal

In an industry driven by trends, timelines, and instant gratification, choosing slow fashion for your wedding dress can feel almost countercultural. And yet, bridal is perhaps the one area of fashion where slowing down actually makes the most sense.

A wedding dress is not an everyday garment. It is deeply personal, emotionally charged, and often the most photographed piece of clothing a woman will ever wear. And still, so many brides are encouraged to rush the process - to chase trends, to compromise fit, or to prioritise speed over substance. And yes, sometimes time or budget requires these things, but slow fashion invites us to do the opposite.

Slow fashion in bridal is not about being anti-trend or anti-choice. It is about intention. It asks better questions:
Who made this?
How was it made?
Why does this matter to me?

When a dress is made slowly, thoughtfully, and by hand, it carries something more than fabric and thread. It carries time, skill, prayer, care and attention. It allows space for conversation, collaboration, and refinement. It honours the fact that bodies are not standardised, that style is not one-size-fits-all, and that meaningful things are rarely rushed. You're not just wearing a generic dress that several other people have worn (quite literally, if purchasing directly from a showroom off-the-rack... in which case, please have your dress dry-cleaned before the big day!), but you know this dress was made for you and with you in mind.

Photography by Francis Chu Foon, 2019

From a practical standpoint, slow fashion allows for better fit, better comfort, and better longevity. A garment that is designed specifically for your body moves with you differently. It feels different. It doesn’t require constant adjusting or tolerating discomfort “just for the day.” And long after the wedding is over, it becomes something you can preserve, repurpose, or simply treasure without regret.

From an emotional standpoint, slow fashion gives you ownership of your experience. You are not just choosing from what exists; you are participating in the creation of something new. You are seen, heard, and considered at every stage of the process. Your dress becomes a reflection of you, not of what happened to be popular that season. When working with brides, I take into account their personality as well as their personal style, and much of that is revealed throughout the fitting process and our journey together, not in a one-time meeting. The dress evolves as the relationship between the bride and the studio evolves.

There is also something quietly powerful about choosing craftsmanship in a fast world. About valuing skill, artistry, and human hands in an era of mass production. About recognising that luxury is not excess, but care.

Slow fashion is not always the easiest path. It requires ample planning, trust, and patience. That said, for many brides, it becomes one of the most rewarding parts of their wedding journey. It teaches you to slow down, to refine rather than rush, and to prioritise meaning over noise - lessons that serve you well far beyond your wedding day.

In bridal, slow fashion is not just a philosophy; it's a mindset. And for the right bride, it feels like coming home.

With Love,

The Foundation Matters More Than the Dress

Before a single bead is stitched or a hemline finalised, there is something far more important than the dress itself, and that's the foundation it rests on.

As a designer, I have seen breathtaking gowns fall flat simply because what was worn underneath was never given the same consideration as the dress. And as a bride myself, I now understand why this detail is so often overlooked. There is already so much to think about, from fabrics and colours to fittings, timelines and opinions (oh, so many opinions!)... it can feel endless. 

But hear me well on this: the right foundation doesn’t just change how your dress looks on you... it changes how you feel in it.

Van der Vlugt bridal corset and mermaid skirt, 2025

The quiet work that no one sees

In a world of highlight reels and dramatic reveals, foundation garments are rarely part of the conversation. They don’t photograph well on their own. They don’t sparkle. They don’t get pinned to mood boards. And yet, in the fitting room and on your special occasion, they do the quiet, necessary work that allows everything else to shine.

The foundation is what supports the silhouette, smooths transitions between fabric and body, and allows a dress to sit the way it was designed to sit. It affects posture, it affects movement, it affects confidence! Whether subtly or significantly depends on how thoughtfully it has been chosen. 

A dress should not be fighting the body. Nor should the body feel like it needs to be restrained in order to fit into a dress. When foundations are right, everything else falls into alignment.

Why are foundation garments so often an afterthought?

Many brides assume shapewear or undergarments are something to “figure out later,” once the dress is chosen. Others avoid the topic altogether, having had past experiences with uncomfortable, restrictive pieces that promised miracles and delivered misery.

There is also a quiet pressure, especially during wedding planning, to believe that the body itself must be altered or controlled in order for the dress to work. This mindset is not only unhelpful - it’s unnecessary. As a custom bridal and formal wear designer, I can tell you that your base garments are quite crucial to the fitting process and will make a noticeable difference. I can't tell you how many brides have waited until the very last weeks or days leading up to their wedding to then go hunting for shape wear, often when it's too late to get the right size in-store or order anything online.

Your body is not a problem to be solved. The foundation is simply a tool in the process to help you look your best.

What good foundation wear actually does

Let me be clear: good foundation garments are not about erasing you.

They are about:

• supporting areas that naturally need support

• creating a smooth canvas for fabric to drape and sit correctly, removing the distraction of awkward panty lines or rolls

• allowing you to stand, sit, walk, dance and breathe with ease in your dress

• helping you feel secure and fitted, not constrained

A well-chosen foundation should feel like quiet reassurance. You shouldn’t be counting the hours until you can take it off. You shouldn’t be adjusting it constantly throughout the day. You shouldn’t feel disconnected from your own body.

If you do, something is wrong... and it’s not you.

The fitting room truth

In my studio, part of the initial conversation with a client involves the topic of shape wear. It’s all about how the dress will interact with what lies beneath.

The same dress can look entirely different on a body, simply by changing:

• • the type of bra or bust support (this one is a biggie!)

  • the cut of the shapewear (thong, panty, brief or long? Decisions, decisions!)

  • where compression is placed (or avoided)

  • the length and structure of what’s worn beneath

  This is why I always encourage brides to finalise their foundation pieces early in the process and bring it with them for every fitting thereafter. A fitting is not the time to experiment with new undergarments or “see how it goes.” A custom fitting is where we refine and lock in the details, not where we introduce variables.

  When foundations are consistent, fittings become calmer, clearer, and far more productive.

  Posture, presence, and confidence

  There is something else foundations quietly influence that often goes unspoken: posture.

  When a bride feels unsupported, she compensates - shoulders round forward, breath becomes shallow, tension settles into the body. When she feels secure, her posture opens naturally. She takes up space with ease; she moves differently.

  Confidence is not just emotional, but also physical. You feel it, we see it.

  

  Van der Vlugt bridal corset and mermaid skirt, 2025

  And while no garment can create confidence where none exists, the right foundation can remove distractions that keep confidence from flowing freely.

Choosing support, not punishment

I always encourage my brides - regardless of shape, size or height - to shift their perspective here. Foundations are not about punishment or control. They are not a last-minute fix. They are part of the design conversation.

Just as you would not choose a fabric that fights the structure of a dress, you should not choose foundation garments that fight your body.

The goal is harmony between the body, the garment, and intention.

So, what's the verdict?

Your wedding dress is important. It carries meaning, memory, and beauty. But it does not exist in isolation.

The foundation is what allows the dress to do what it was designed to do, and allows you to be fully present on a day that will move faster than you expect. Take the time to choose support that honours you.

With Love,