Best Bridal Shop in Marin

A wedding can be one of the most important days in a person’s life, and every bride needs a special dress — but where to go? What to choose? With every style under the sun available for sale somewhere or other, it’s easy to get overwhelmed by the avalanche of possibilities. More than just a well-stocked store, what every bride truly needs is a skilled designer to guide them through the process, and Marin County has exactly that. The 2023 readers’ choice Best of the County winner is Lea Couture. For the rest of the Marin Magazine‘s Best of Marin County Bridal Shop picks see below.

Our 2023 Shopping category sponsor is California Girl Jewelry.

We’ve broken it down by region: Central Marin and online.

Central | Online

Central

Lea Couture

San Anselmo

Lea will create anything wedding, from a sparkling white wedding gown, to a pastel mother-of-the-bride pantsuit, to a bridesmaid’s dress that smashes the bad stereotypes of bridesmaid dresses. Enter the warm and welcoming store to let Lea guide you through the process. Fall in love with something on the racks? She’ll tailor it to perfection for you. Prefer something custom? Say no more, Lea has you covered. With a wide range of prices, she’s also a great choice for the bride on a budget. Hours are 11 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday.

237 San Anselmo Ave., San Anselmo, 415.461.4804

Sylvia Bentcheva Couture

Larkspur

With more than 25 years of experience in the realm of fashion design, it’s not hard to understand why Sylvia Bentcheva is renowned amongst her clients for consistently high-quality work. In her hands, even the most ill-fitting of dresses can be tailored for any body type. She’s also done snazzy alterations for grooms’ tuxedos, so don’t assume that she only works with the ladies. Another one of her specialties is working as swiftly as possible to produce the best results possible. Even if you’ve only got a couple weeks before your wedding, give Sylvia a call and she might very well pull off a miracle that other designers simply can’t. Hours are 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 11 a.m. – 4 p.m. Saturday.

863 Magnolia Ave., Larkspur, 415.419.6181

Online

Studio REN

Unlike most standard stores where you walk in and peruse the racks, Studio REN has taken an entirely different approach to the world of wedding gowns. The operation is completely online and just as unique. From imagining your dream dress, to consulting with a designer, to finalizing your creation, it can all be done from the comfort of your living room. Don’t worry, they still give you an abundance of fitting sessions to ensure your dress fits like a glove. Hours are 7 a.m. – 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.

408.368.9989

Sponsor

California Girl Jewelry: 2023 Best of the County Shopping

Mother and daughter duo Mariel Baker and Denise Forbes source their own gemstones from all over the world. Specializing in one-of-a-kind pieces, CGJ has over 3,000 loose gemstone and hundreds of finished pieces in their showroom of varying colors and cuts.

What makes CGJ unique?
We hand select the best gemstones available in the world. Even with pavé diamonds, we use the highest quality colorless diamonds.
What inspired you to start California Girl Jewelry?
While working in NYC, Mariel discovered the world of rare colored gemstones. She befriended a jeweler in the Diamond District in New York, and designed her jewelry while adding rare colored gemstones to her collection.
Why Marin?
We operated a very small boutique in San Francisco for over five years and realized that most of our clients were from Marin, and since we both live here, it was a natural choice.