WESTFIELD-Fashion designer Nicole Wzorek has weathered the pandemic by making bridal face masks and designing dresses for brides who did not let COVID-19 prevent them from celebrating a wedding date that has special significance.
“I love being able to work with brides and help them for their special day,” said Wzorek, who describes herself as a “fashion designer helping women feel beautiful in their own skin.”
Wzorek, owner of Nicole Wzorek Designs, said her passion is to create a “one-of-a-kind gown” for a bride.
“I work with brides by creating a custom made wedding gown or by completing custom alterations for them on a gown they already own,” she said.
Nicole Wzorek of Nicole Wzorek Designs in Westfield works on the blue corset back of Nicole Dee Habiger’s wedding gown. (DOROTHY WZOREK PHOTO)
Wzorek also designs and creates custom lingerie, steel boned corsets, special occasion gowns mainly for mothers and bridesmaids, and is currently creating custom bridal masks for the bride and groom.
“The masks are a new component to my business but I have been having fun working with brides to make them a special mask just for them,” she said. “Brides have been asking me to make masks using leftover pieces from their gowns.”
Nicole Wzorek of Nicole Wzorek Designs in Westfield has recently added a bride and groom mask set to her shop offerings. (NICOLE WZOREK PHOTO)
Wzorek said a recent bride had her mother’s heirloom gown deconstructed.
“I took off the sleeves of the heirloom gown and made a beautiful mask from the sleeve fabric and used the lace pieces from the sleeve to add a beautiful lace detail to the white bridal mask,” said Wzorek. “That mask is my favorite bridal mask I have made so far.”
Three brides who recently worked with Wzorek are sharing their stories of why they chose to say “I Do” this year despite the pandemic.
“We met and became friends 20 years ago,” said Nicole Dee Habiger, who will exchange vows with Paul Adams Tuttle Jr. on Oct. 10. “We were sitting on my back porch on Oct. 10, 2015 and I asked him out after years of me turning him down.”
Habiger said they have “so much in common” and made a connection immediately that has “really worked out.”
“It has been great from Oct. 10, 2015 hence the significance of our wedding day,” she said.
Habiger noted at press time that the Crestview Country Club has not made any changes to the reception, however, if that happens due to coronavirus concerns, they will exchange vows at home or at a local park.
“We have received RSVP’s that due to COVID-19 some people cannot attend,” said Habiger, adding she has kept her wedding party small.
“If it looks like we have to postpone the reception, we will send out RSVP’s for next year but we are still getting married this year,” she said.
Habiger said while the planning has been a bit stressful, Wzorek has made the wedding dress process easy.
“Nicole has known Paul’s side of the family for years,” said Habiger, adding, “she is creating the dream dress for me.”
Wzorek explained that Habiger gave her an heirloom gown that needed alteration work along with adding color. The dress had been worn by Tuttle’s stepmother who passed away from cancer.
“The dress is in remembrance of her and with a few alterations by Nicole I fell in love with the dress,” said Habiger. “Paul’s dad will see his wife’s dress but also it’s different for us too.”
“Adding color to gowns is one of my specialties which is such a unique process,” said Wzorek. “I made custom vests for her fiancé and we talked over ideas about how to bring that color into the gown.”
Wzorek said corset backs are one of her favorite items to add to wedding gowns since they make a gown truly unique to the bride.
“If you add a splash of color to it the effect also helps provide a beautiful detail to the back of the gown,” said Wzorek.
Wzorek added her experience working with Habiger was “a breeze.”
“She allowed me to have fun with the details of the gown in order to match the custom vests for the men,” said Wzorek. “I always love seeing Nicole and love being able to visit with her and Paul. The most enjoyable part of working with Nicole is seeing the excitement on her face each time I added a change to her gown.”
For Julia Lavigne, who wed Joseph Vasquez on June 13, they had planned a large ceremony and reception for 200 guests at the Wyckoff Country Club.
Julia Lavigne and Joseph Vasquez exchanged vows on June 13 at Wyckoff Country Club. (TIFFANY CHAPMAN PHOTOGRAPHY)
“When we got engaged in October of 2018 and were thinking of a date, we discussed June because it’s a beautiful time of year and it’s the beginning of summer, which is one of our favorite seasons,” said Lavigne. “Also, the number 13 has been a very special and lucky number in my family for years. When we looked at the calendar, June 13 was a Saturday and it just felt right.”
Lavigne noted last April when the coronavirus pandemic was at its height, they knew they had to make some tough decisions.
“Back in April when COVID-19 seemed to be staying around longer than expected, we decided to postpone our wedding,” said Lavigne, adding that original dates that vendors could accommodate their requests were either Aug. 8 or Oct. 31. Lavigne said they had agreed on Aug. 8 for the wedding.
“As our original date was approaching and there were still many restrictions we figured there was no way by the end of the summer we would even have the wedding we originally planned,” she said. “So we talked a lot about how we planned and looked forward to June 13 for a year and a half and how important it was for us to be married.”
Ultimately, they made the decision that felt right in their hearts.
“To us, the reception was exciting and a way to celebrate with friends and family but the marriage is what was important to us,” said Lavigne, noting they kept their plans under wraps until they acquired the marriage certificate.
“Our city clerk was amazing and met with us on the Cinco de Mayo,” said Lavigne. “We all had our masks on and Joe and I had to sit inside the car while she watched and told us what to do from outside the car. We left feeling so excited and told only our bridal party, siblings, parents and grandparents the plan.”
Lavigne and Vasquez exchanged vows at Wyckoff Country Club on June 13.
“Kyle Kirkland, their coordinator, went above and beyond for us to make it as special as he could,” she said. “We had an outside wedding on the green and the weather was perfect. My cousin, Ashley Kohl, officiated our wedding.”
The bridal party stood up for the couple and their guests were their parents and grandparents.
Lavigne said she didn’t wear her wedding gown because the groomsmen couldn’t rent their original suits and had to dress more casual.
“I picked an entirely different summer dress that Nicole helped me with,” said Lavigne, adding, “Nicole altered my original wedding gown so we could have formal pictures with our photographer. I cannot speak highly enough of Nicole. Her works speak for itself and is perfection, however, what’s super special about her is her heart. She worked so hard to make everything special for me.”
Lavigne noted that she originally came to Wzorek with a dress she had ordered online that was not her style but she liked the “majority” of the dress.
“I had ideas of how I could change it to make it more my own,” said Lavigne. “When I met with her she made me feel so comfortable and I instantly trusted her professional opinion and just felt like I was talking to somebody I’ve known longer than 20 minutes.”
Lavigne said when she arrived to pick up her dress, she was “in shock.”
“I couldn’t stop smiling,” said Lavigne. “Nicole made my exact dream for my dress come true. She’s amazing. I’ve had people ask me where I bought my dress and I’m proud to show them the before and after pictures of the dress and say it’s customized by Nicole. A couple months later Nicole altered my original wedding gown for my professional pictures and again went above and beyond and did way more than I asked for. She’s simply amazing.”
Wzorek said she worked with Lavigne on ideas of how to make the dress a “one-of-a-kind look.
“Julia was open to all the ideas and it was a pleasure to see how excited she got when I pinned the dress to show how it would turn out in the end,” said Wzorek. “This is one of my favorite things to do with brides, talking about changing the style and making it become a reality. Julia’s smile and excitement made working with her a flawless and enjoyable experience.”
Wzorek added that Lavigne allowed her to use her creativity for the custom alteration process.
“Julia was genuinely interested in each step which is what I enjoyed most about working with her,” said Wzorek.
Lavigne hinted that since the reception has not been rescheduled at this time, perhaps a “vow renewal” in a few years on their anniversary will be the perfect way to bring family and friends together.
“Our families love to dance and I could not imagine a wedding without one,” said Lavigne. “We also don’t want to downsize our guest list because everyone invited has a special part of our lives and our journey.”
Ashley (Rivera) Danek and Johnathan Danek also chose to move forward with their wedding date of July 18 because of its special significance.
Ashley and Johnathan Danek exchanged vows on July 18 at the Quabbin Reservoir. (JESSICA SINATRA PHOTO)
“July 18 is our day, our day where a simple text felt/feels like a forever love,” said Danek, adding she was first introduced to Danek by her mother on July 18, 2016, and they were engaged on July 18, 2018.
“Our birthdays are between June and August, we love July, the summer and the heat,” said Danek. “July is also an important month because of John’s side of the family with anniversaries.”
The couple originally had planned to host friends and family at Chez Josef but have since postponed their reception until 2021.
“We will have a one-year celebration of being married,” said Danek.
Since July 18, 2020 was the original day they had chosen, they didn’t want to wait another year to say “I Do.”
In June the couple visited Quabbin Reservoir, taking in the “beautiful scenery,” and made a decision to conduct a small ceremony with only immediate family and their bridal party.
“When the day arrived, we had a quick ceremony, took pictures, and everyone went their way,” said Danek. “Everyone was social distancing, we air hugged but I did hug my parents and siblings.”
Danek said Wzorek designed the dress she wore July 18.
“She’s amazing at what she does,” said Danek, adding “the masks were also her creations.”
Since Danek did not want to wear her wedding gown for the Quabbin ceremony, she spoke to Wzorek about other dress options in her shop.
“When I went to her studio, I saw a dress on a mannequin and started to cry,” said Danek. “She got me in the dress and I felt like a bride. The color ivory with gold and pearls was just perfect paired with a white veil. I fell in love with what she created.”
Wzorek said Danek chose a fitted lace gown that had additional champagne lace details throughout the gown.
“Ashley was the perfect bride to work with,” said Wzorek. “She was looking for a gown that matched my style of custom made gowns perfectly. I was able to make some custom changes and make the gown uniquely her own.”
Wzorek said she enjoyed working with Danek because of her “loving personality and heart which makes working with her even better.”
“Ashley chose one of my custom gowns to be her wedding dress,” said Wzorek, adding, “it is the biggest compliment I can receive when a bride chooses one of my designs over all the gowns in the stores.”
Wzorek said she relishes the time she spends with all of her clients – and brides are an integral part of her business.
“I love being able to work with brides to make them feel even more beautiful in their dress when they look into the mirror,” said Wzorek. “Creating a special bond with my brides is the best part of what I do. I always strive for my brides to feel comfortable with me so they get the best experience I can offer.”
