Bara Luxe plus-size bridal gowns

Marimo USA has created Bara Luxe, a couture collection for brides who are size 16 and up. The company also offers sample sizes to fit curvy figures. Now a plus-size bride-to-be now has the freedom to walk into a bridal boutique and try on the dress of her dreams. The Bara Luxe wedding dresses were introduced last fall and the new spring collection will be showcased today through Sunday at Macy's on State Street. Yvonne McClendon, wedding stylist and director of Marimo USA, will be on hand during the trunk show. The collection is every bit as fashionable, sexy and glamorous as that of the missy collections currently available. The bride who is size 16 to 28 can now wear the one shoulder, strapless, scoop neck or halter styles that have graced some of the most elegant red carpet events. These couture gowns range from $1,400 to $4,000.

Marimo USA also offers the Bara Champagne collection, a standard-size line in sizes 4 to 12.

Bara Luxe gowns show on ABC 7:
Amelia
Laura
Paola
Juliet

For more information, call 1-877-655-BARA (2272) or visit www.marima-usa.com

Bara Luxe / Bara Champagne Trunk Show
Macy's, 111 N. State Street, Chicago
4th floor Bridal Salon
January 23 to 25
Friday and Saturday 10am ­­ 8pm
Sunday 11am -- 6pm

Couture design label Bara Luxe is giving full-figured brides everywhere the fantasy moment of trying on several gowns in one sitting by making its creations available in sample sizes ranging up to 28! Bara Luxe is a collection of elegant and thoroughly modern silk gowns designed to embrace and enhance the curvy silhouettes of brides in sizes 16 and up.

Yvonne D. McClendon, Director of Marimo USA, the maker of Bara Luxe and the standard-size line Bara Champagne, has 20 years of experience guiding couples through the precious passage of matrimony, serving as a wedding consultant, radio show host and author of the 1998 bridal guide "Prenuptial Bliss." Rising bridal designer Sakairi was born in Tokyo and traveled the world, earning his Masters degree in fashion design from Nottingham Trent University in England. Come meet these experts as they unveil the Spring 2009 Bara Luxe and Bara Champagne Collections exclusively at Macy's.

Appointments are suggested and can be made by calling 312-781-3545.

About Yvonne D. McClendon, Wedding Stylist and Director of Marimo USA

For 20 years, Yvonne D. McClendon has guided brides, grooms and their parents through the process of creating their fantasy wedding celebration with a practical, yet decidedly distinguished touch. In addition, she has appeared as a guest expert for bridal show events, held the position of bridal consultant in upscale fashion retailers Bergdorf Goodman and Marshall Field's, and worked with couture bridal designers Cynthia C. Manale and Peter Langner.

In the early 80's, she opened "The Brides Day", a wedding consulting, coordinating and directing service, earned the title of Certified Wedding Consultant in 1986, has coordinated the details of grand celebrations of up to 1000 guests as well as intimate affairs for 50 close friends and relatives. For those couples with a desire to forgo the planning of a wedding, designed and opened, the perfect option, the Crystal Garden Wedding Chapel.

McClendon produced and was the host of "Before 'I Do,' " a popular radio program that provided advice about wedding etiquette, budget expectations, emerging wedding trends and stylish entertaining suggestions. She's also a published author, who wrote a comprehensive wedding planning book entitled Pre-Nuptial Bliss: What Every Woman Should Know Before Planning A Wedding, distributed to bookstores throughout the United States. It offers thoughtful recommendations for navigating through the precious season between "will you marry me?" and "I do". Readers discover the genuine meaning of the ceremony, the realities of the wedding budget and more.