Designer puts something special in each dress

NEW YORK -- Whether a bride is sexy (or not), fancy (or not), modern (or not), Reem Acra wants to dress her for her wedding.

Fairy-tale mermaid hemlines, contemporary laser-cut fabrics and glamorous mirror beads represent her current range of design details. "There's so much variety for every bride. I thought about her from the price point," Acra says. "I don't want her to go somewhere else in these times."

In a nod at restraint during the economic downturn, she has toned down the embellishment that had become one of her signatures, she explains.

"I put my heart and mind into this collection. Every time I added a layer, I asked, 'How much?' I asked, 'How much is every pearl, how much is every bead?'"

(Not to say the gowns are cheap: The average is still $5,000.)

This photo taken April 8 shows fashion designer Reem Acra holds wedding gowns from her collection as she pose during an interview in New York. (Bebeto Matthews ~ Associated Press)

The designer says she loves all her creations, and is happy to surround herself with them -- even hug them -- for a photo. "I always ask, 'Would I wear it?' If I make a dress and the answer to that is no, then I don't put the dress in the collection."

She drapes each style on her petite, 40-something frame. "I knew my look way before I had my collection. ... I like there to be something special. There's nothing straightforward."

Acra got started in the bridal market in 1997. Her company has expanded to include evening wear, ready-to-wear and her prized-jewel couture. Jill Biden wore a red Reem Acra gown to the inaugural balls earlier this year, and celebrities such as Eva Longoria Parker and Christina Applegate have recently worn the label on the red carpet.

"She's a major player," said Martine Aerts-Niddam, fashion and beauty creative director of Inside Weddings magazine. "She's not afraid of taking risks. ... Vera Wang and Reem are the two designers who take the most risks in bridal and push it forward."

Acra's tale is more taffeta to tulle than rags to riches. She grew up as the only daughter -- with three brothers -- in a well-to-do home in Beirut; her father was a prominent doctor and professor emeritus of environmental science at the American University of Beirut. A seamstress lived in their home because her mother, who had a passion for luxe fabrics, needed a steady stream of gowns. Needless to say, Acra remembers being very well dressed as a girl -- spurring her interest in fashion.

In college, Acra wore to a party a dress she had fashioned out of an elaborate tablecloth. She was spotted by a fashion editor, leading her down her current career path after a brief detour in interior design.

"Reem's work is very regal and rich," said Aerts-Niddam, who remembers Acra's early creations, sold from her apartment. "You can pretty much put a Reem Acra dress against 10 others and I can almost always tell you which one is Reem's."

On this day, Acra shows her eye for detail right down to the embroidered tights on her legs, worn with Christian Louboutin peep-toes, her belted cardigan, ballerina skirt and chunky beaded necklace (from her new jewelry line).

"I have to look as good as the people I dress," says Acra, who comes across as friendly but also formal in an interview.

For each of her designs, she sketches both the interior and exterior of the garment, which, she says, achieves greater technical perfection. Even if creativity is what drives a style, construction is equally important. She thinks about a bride's ability to move easily down the aisle and on the dance floor, and whether she'll be able to sit comfortably through a meal.

Occasionally, she will get an e-mail from a satisfied customer. Her favorite notes aren't the ones that gush -- and she can't recall one ever making a suggestion or complaint.

The best compliment, Acra said, is when a bride simply writes, "Thank you."