By Mindy Gura + Paula Orlan, The Style Duo

Planning and prepping for your child’s wedding can be one of the most exciting times in a parent’s life. But as any mother of the bride/groom can attest to, it can also be quite stressful, especially when shopping for the perfect mother of the bride/groom dress. While it is imperative to consider what is appropriate and comfortable, it is also important to keep in mind what will make you feel beautiful and stylish.

Some new trends that flooded the designer runways this year for mother of the bride/groom were options with bold floral appliqués, shimmering sequin details and A-line dresses in sumptuous fabrics. And some timeless trends are the off the shoulder silhouettes, column gowns with ruching and dainty and lacy sheaths.

But of course, while considering all the options, you mustn’t forget the most important thing of all is to keep in mind what the bride and groom are envisioning and what their dress code is.

This year, Lynette Barbieri, BELLA Magazine’s Director of Sales + Business Expansion, had the pleasure of working with the fabulous seamstress Nime Jamal of Nime Couture for her mother of the groom dress. Nime’s impressive résumé includes working on dresses for the Grammy’s and Tony’s red carpets, pageant competitions, full wedding parties, and more. Nime’s philosophy is “Every client is a blank canvas. There are no two clients alike so the choices are limitless of what we can do.”

For Lynette, Nime was able to take an off the rack dress and create a one of a kind, exquisite gown with sequins and drapery, that truly showcased Lynette's newly transformed figure. And when the wedding came and went, everyone agreed… it was a special dress for a special evening! Nime says, “It gives me great joy to bring my client’s vision to life.”