You'd think any bride-to-be would not want to be accused of staging a Mickey Mouse wedding, but apparently Disney disagrees, as the family entertainment giant has unveiled a line of cartoon-character inspired bridal gowns.
The fashion line, developed by wedding-couture designer Kirstie Kelly, debuted Monday at New York's annual Bridal Week. The gowns are inspired by Disney's "Princess" characters that little girls have dreamed of turning into for ages.
"The collection combines a fashion-forward look with timeless elements inspired by the Disney Princesses themselves, including Ariel, Aurora/Sleeping Beauty, Belle, Cinderella, Jasmine and Snow White," Disney's press release says. "Fabrics like organza, chantilly, chiffon, satins and tulle are accented with stunning embellishments, including lace, ribbons, crystals, pearls and gorgeous embroidered beading."
But turning your special day into an homage to imaginary royalty comes with a price that rivals a vacation at Disney World: The dresses retail for $1,100 to $3,500. Frazzled wedding planners will be relieved to know that Disney plans a line of matching bridesmaids' gowns to come out later this year.
But what to wear for the Goofy groom? Perhaps a Donald Duck tux?
Not-so-bad ideas
- They say a rolling stone gathers no moss, but ex-rocker Bill Wyman wants to help you accumulate something much more valuable with his own treasure-finding metal detector.
Now, we know that if you ever put together the combination of the Rolling Stones and buried treasure, guitarist Keith Richard's much-anticipated appearance in the next "Pirates of the Caribbean" sequel would probably come to mind first.But bassist Wyman, who retired from the legendary rock band in 1993, is actually quite an avid amateur archeologist, and he views his endorsement of a magnetic metal finder as a natural fit."Metal-detecting is not just for ... eccentrics; it's probably the best and the most enjoyable way of learning about our history," Wyman was quoted as saying on the Ananova Web portal. "On any garden, country field, footpath, woodlands, beach or moorland you can find a huge variety of historical objects, all easily located with this high-quality metal detector."The $250 Bill Wyman Signature Detector is said to be a "lightweight and adjustable implement and comes with a free informational DVD," and his Web site offers up his top 10 locations in Britain for metal-detecting.We can't wait for Bill to get some hard-rocking competition when the Ozzy Osbourne Heavy Metal Detector debuts.
- Perhaps you got a chuckle earlier this week when you read about Japan’s leading toilet maker offering free repairs for 180,000 bidet toilets after wiring problems caused several to catch fire.
But after Toto Ltd. apologized for putting its customers on the hot seat, porcelain rival INAX Corp. felt burned. So it revealed that it also had seven cases of malfunctioning "washlets" — a combination toilet and bidet common in Japanese homes — that smoked or caught fire from 1991 to 2005.The company said it had reported the incidents to the appropriate government ministry and no one was injured.Now let's hope we can all put this burning issue behind us.