I started collecting petticoats from the 1950s when I was four years old. (Dress-up was and continues to be my favorite pastime.) I was obsessed with wedding dresses throughout my childhood and even went so far as to write my Master’s thesis on wedding gowns while I was in graduate school.
I love great fashion and I love the big moments in life that allow us to wear really incredible dresses.
This love/fascination/obsession landed me at the acclaimed Marina Morrison Bridal Salon in San Francisco where I spent several years dressing and consulting for The City’s most elite brides.
A Reno girl three generations back, I returned to my hometown to bring something fresh to the bridal scene after encountering more and more Reno/Tahoe brides in San Francisco who complained that there was nowhere to shop in Reno.
I believe in Reno. I opened Swoon in 2008 with the belief that Reno was ready for (and deserved) a modern and cosmopolitan bridal boutique. I wanted to build a store to bring the best in bridal to Reno, so that brides could shop locally and not be forced to drive or fly out of the area to find a dress.
In 2011, we were named one of the coolest bridal boutiques by Lucky Magazine. In 2015, were selected by the Deluxe Corporation to be featured as one of 100 of the most compelling small business stories in America through their Small Business Revolution campaign. In 2016, BRIDES Magazine put us on their list of the 50 best bridal salons in the country. In 2017, PureWow named us the best bridal boutique in Nevada. In 2017 & 2018 & 2019 Grace Ormonde Wedding Style put us on their list of top 100 bridal salons. We are honored to be named year after year as the best bridal shop in town by our local publications.
But it’s the Swoon brides from the past 16+ years who tell me that picking out their wedding gown at Swoon was their favorite part of wedding planning that means the most. All the stories of the moments of beauty and love and celebration and friendship and family that will never be forgotten that played out inside Swoon’s pink walls are my favorite thing about this greater Swoon story.
Roots. Education. Experience. A faithful and fearless love of beautiful dresses, personal style, and glamorous settings, and people and their love stories all added up to Swoon and continue to make Swoon Swoon.
The gowns you try on at Swoon have to be Swoon-worthy. We look for interesting. We look for individual points of view. We look for vibes. We look for real women. We look for whimsy. We look for cool. We look for special. We look for the things that make us Swoon. We literally review thousands of gowns each season to bring you the ones we think speak to you and make you feel like the incredible woman that you are.
We offer you really good options and some really talented and kind women to help you through the gown process. It can seem daunting, we know, but it can also be easy and great. We’ve done the hard work of searching for you.
Step into real life with us at Swoon. It can be better than all you see on your screen…if you let it…because this is yours…and we are here to help you make it be whatever you need it to be.
