What could be better on a weekday morning than going to a bridal shop for a
fitting with two dogs that are about to get married? You're right: very little.
Piper, a black
Chihuahua, does a trick for her entourage before being fitted for a doggy
bridal gown.
In mid-May, at Twenty Four Fifth, a Pomeranian named Boo will take a
Chihuahua named Piper as his blushing bride. The wedding is meant to bring
awareness to animal adoption; it will benefit the North Shore Animal League
America and Waggytail Rescue. The officiator? A radio personality named Valerie
Smaldone, since apparently Cesar Milan was not available.
As anyone who has been married, is on the verge of getting married, or has
watched "Father of the Bride" knows, there is a lot of preparation
that goes into a wedding, even if the bride and groom are small canines. On a
recent morning, Piper and Boo, their owners and their entourages headed to
Kleinfeld to check out dresses and tuxedoes. The whole situation was very
reality-show ready, but of course Kleinfeld already has one of those. "Say
Yes to the Dress" was filming in the basement.
Piper receives a
veil she will wear to the wedding ceremony, which is meant to bring awareness
to animal adoption and will benefit the North Shore Animal League America and
Waggytail Rescue.
There wasn't much time for tail wagging at this bridal mecca. Appointments
would follow immediately downtown to discuss various wedding elements like the
nuptial cake—it will be in the shape of a biscuit—and catering, which would be
totally vegetarian. The wedding will be nondenominational, said Dawn Strain,
the mother of the bride and the president of a company called DJS Events, and
Piper and Boo will bark "I do" under a canopy that looks like a
doghouse. With weddings these days, she explained, "You have to be much
more creative."
Orfeh, who owns
Boo, and Dawn Strain, who owns Piper, a Pomeranian male who will be wedded to
Piper next month.
Will the bride and groom do their first dance to "Who Let the Dogs
Out?" by the Baha Men? "That's funny," responded Orfeh, Boo's
mother, an actress and singer who was nominated for a Tony for her portrayal of
Paulette, the manicurist/confidante in the musical "Legally Blonde."
Piper and Boo became friends through their owners, passionate animal lovers
who met on the benefit circuit. The dogs have had playdates for the last two
years, which, said Ms. Strain, "is a lifetime for dogs." Piper lives
in Queens; Boo lives in Manhattan. It all sounded very "Moonstruck."
"Well, they're both fixed, but in their fantasy it has been,"
said Orfeh. Piper, she warned, might need to get used to Boo's wandering eye.
"It won't be a consummated cheat, but there will be a lot of sniffing
going on. He's obsessed with Yorkies. He'll follow them around the
street." Piper, via Ms. Strain, seemed to be OK with that.
It was time to move into the bridal salon, where Piper and Boo sat on a
long couch and quietly and patiently waited to be shown their outfits.
Champagne was passed out to everyone, including the brushing bride. "She
likes to sneak a few sips," said Ms. Strain.
Tailoring a dress for a dog "is a pain," said Ronnie Rothstein, a
co-owner of Kleinfeld. "It takes as much time as a regular dress."
Mr. Rothstein estimated that wedding attire for a dog can cost around $1,500; a
typical bridal gown for a grown woman is $4,500. "If one of our girls is
fanatical about it, we'll do it. Unless it's a big German shepherd."
"A lot of women walk down the aisle with children now," Mr.
Rothstein went on. "And if they don't have the baby, they have the
dog."
The first thing that was brought for Piper and Boo to try on was a pair of
collars. Instead of rings, that's what they will be exchanging. The collars
will classify as "something new." Bailey, a Shih Tzu that belongs to
Ms. Strain's publicist, Diane Terman, will be the "collar bearer."
"Do we need a certain kind of tray to bring the collar out on?" asked
Ms. Terman.
At that point, Vera Skenderis, the Greek-born alterations manager at
Kleinfeld, brought out the human version of the dress Piper will be wearing so
everyone could take a gander. Made of organza with a satin lining, it was
designed by the furrier Dennis Basso and will be, of course, adjusted to petite
animal size.
"I think it's a beautiful style for the doggy, especially with the
ruffle at the bottom," said Ms. Skenderis. "It's classic bride looking.
Very happy and fresh."
"It's the hottest dress around," Mr. Rothstein chimed in.
"It fits over the hips, the tummies, the tush. Every girl puts that dress
on and feels fabulous."
When Ms. Skenderis put Piper in a temporary veil, Boo started to bark.
"Maybe he's saying, 'Where's mine? Where's mine?'" said Ms.
Skenderis, who removed a tuxedo off of a children's mannequin and placed the
bowtie and vest onto Boo. "Look at how beautiful you're going to look.
Isn't it nice? You look so handsome."