Events to avoid at all costs when sweetly suggested by your wife or girlfriend: visits to your mother-in-law (goes without saying, really); night at the ballet/opera/alternative theatre/occasion not generally recognised for having beer on tap; January sale at a major shopping mall (hell on earth); and a bridal fair...

The wedding is bigger business than ever, a slew of associated industries leading up to the moment of bliss at the altar, and the happy union thereafter. It’s all a little overwhelming to the uninitiated, florists and caterers battling dressmakers and honeymoon locations to be part of a most extended process. But for a day as special as a wedding should be, it’s understandably involved — and if everything goes according to plan, suitably rewarding.

Cue this year’s Fashion and Bridal Accessory Fair at the International Convention Centre in Cape Town, and in particular, online wedding guide Cape Weddings’ annual Bride of the Year contest. If anything’s symbolic of a wedding, it’s the splendid bride beaming out from a sea of white, celebrating the culmination of what can be a long and arduous build-up.

Just getting to the wedding day without throttling your prospective partner is some achievement (I have an engaged housemate; take my word on this...); but the joy in the eyes of a satisfied bride is almost enough to make you think it’s all worthwhile...

Cape Weddings is my kind of solution: simply put, anything you may or may not want at your big day (from receptions at the Mount Nelson, to a trio of Hungarian musicians, apparently a big favourite with the Rupert family), ideally packaged on one easy-to-use website. Traipsing around for the perfect dress and dream honeymoon location isn’t completely negated, but a good chunk of the legwork can be done (beer in hand) from the safety of home.

And the results, if Bride of the Year 2004 is indicative, are weddings most successful. Yes, there’s an air of the meringue invasion, as the recently married brides parade their particular dress once more (casual word of warning: suggesting to one’s girlfriend that the addition of a bikini section to the competition, once again crosses that ill-defined border of cross-gender humour). But a combination of stunning outfits and newlywed wives recollecting a magical day, makes for ten glowing brides contesting a crown to add to the already substantial array of accessories.

The premise of the contest is simple: by utilising the online guide in planning your celebration, you have the option of entering Bride of the Year, based on your month of marriage. Not everyone’s cup of tea, certainly, but when the winning wife walks off with designer jewellery, designer fashion, and nights at an array of luxury hotels (including Shamwari, recently host to John Travolta), the temptation to jump into your nuptial outfit one more time is understandable.

Lovely winner Danelle
Cheered on by husbands (woe betide the spouse guilty of insufficient vocal support), extended families, and grinning supporters, and marshalled by the ever-glamorous Jo-Anne Strauss, former Miss South Africa turned television presenter, each month’s winner took turn upon turn about the ramp, the Convention Centre transformed into a giant advert to marital happiness. “My husband is just perfect,” gushed one contestant, gazing dreamily into the audience, where perfection may have been slightly balding and wearing a lumberjack shirt, but was clearly matching the requirements of the ideal husband.

What makes a Bride of the Year? Subjective as it gets, that; but under the stewardship of designer Kobus Dippenaar, the judges came up with what seemed to be a fairly popular selection. Tracey Weyer’s simple elegance and carefree approach (sandals beneath a beautifully understated dress) was enough for third, while the more classic look of the striking Lara White secured the runner-up berth. Top of the pile, though, was Danelle Corbett, a figure-hugging satin creation from The Wedding Box competing with an extravagantly interwoven hairstyle, all seductive blonde Medusa in the eyes of admiring judges.

And admiring husband, the applicable groom dragged on stage to celebrate both his wife’s success, and, one would imagine, the succession of holidays that lie ahead. The smiles on the contestants had them all winners, cliché acknowledged; as indeed were those of us who now have the perfect answer when propositioned with a trip to a bridal fair. No need, my darling; simply log on to the net...

  • Visit Cape Weddings at www.capeweddings.co.za

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