Top tips for brides and the latest selection of wedding dresses from one of Ireland’s best-known designers …
The Wedding Salon 2026 at The Merrion, in association with Hyundai, is an annual highlight in THE GLOSS events calendar. On April 19, host and wedding planner extraordinaire Tara Fay will provide guidance for your special day, make-up artist Christine Lucignano and hair stylist David Cashman will showcase the best bridal looks, with wedding dress and mother-of-the-bride looks and tips from Sharon Hoey’s stunning AndTate new spring/summer 2026 collection.
One of Ireland’s best-known designers, Sharon Hoey‘s Merrion Street bridal boutique is the exclusive stockist of beautiful wedding dresses from Jenny Packham, Alice Temperley and Suzanne Neville, as well as her own stunning creations. Enjoy a salon showing of the stunning new collection, which includes looks for wedding guests and mothers of the bride or groom to suit every taste.
5 Top Tips:
1. Be open-minded and try on a few styles to begin with. You may have an idea in your head, but it may not suit you. The in-house specialists can offer alternatives to work with any shape.
2. Sample sizes generally go up to a size 12 in the boutique, but their long openings mean that those above a size 12 can still try them on to get an idea of how they look before placing an order for a custom made dress.
3. Nine months is plenty of time to order a bespoke gown, with the possibility to order six months in advance for ready-to-wear styles in standard sizes, updated in final fittings.
4. Sharon advises brides-to-be against bringing more than one style advisor to fittings. “Choosing a dress should not be done by committee. It can be helpful to have someone who you trust with you for advice, but consider carefully who that is, and definitely don’t bring more than two people.”
5. It’s helpful to bring a pair of shoes or heels that you are comfortable in (both Tara and Sharon agreed that they love the trend for fun colourful heels peeking out from a gown!), and she advises full nude underwear instead of a thong.
The number one piece of advice before an appointment: do not wear fake tan, under any circumstance!
Discover more tips on the day – book your ticket now to avoid disappointment!
