Amal Clooney's Oscar de la Renta Wedding Dress Is for Sale

Now you too can become Mrs. Clooney. OK, not at all. But you can look exactly like Amal Clooney did on her wedding day.
Today, Oscar de la Renta revealed an Amal-inspired wedding gown as part of its bridal fall 2015 collection. It's not the exact dress (Amal's gown was custom-made, after all!), but the copycat design embodies all the elegance and grace of Amal's wedding gown. The same lacy overlay, off-the-shoulder style and romantic silhouette characterize the replica design. In fact, the only noticeably missing details are the lengthy train and cathedral veil.
"It's the most important dress in the life of a woman," Oscar de la Renta told Vogue after working with Amal. "Any girl from any walk of life dreams of that special dress, and I try to make that dream a reality for her."
Mrs. Clooney and de la Renta collaborated on the dress design together, ultimately deciding on an effortless dress with Chantilly lace and hand-embroidered embellishments. The end result? A truly regal gown, fit for a Hollywood royalty wedding.
The 36-year-old's human rights lawyer has evolved into quite the fashion icon since announcing her engagement to George Clooney back in April. She regularly sports designer confections, with Dolce & Gabbana, Giambattista Valli Couture and Alexander McQueen all being familiar labels in her enviable wardrobe. And that crisp Stella McCartney two-piece suit and hat ensemble Amal wore to her official civil ceremony? That, people, was pure sartorial perfection.
But back to Amal's designer du choix, Oscar de la Renta. Mrs. Clooney's worn several eye-catching designs by 82-year-old de la Renta (especially this fierce little frock). And the world -enowned designer is no stranger to dressing fashion icons, even dressing Jackie Kennedy, who many claim is Amal's style doppelgänger. Two bold, beautiful, intelligent women—we see the resemblance too!
As for the designer's Amal-inspired wedding gown? We're not sure if it will spurn a full-on Kate effect, but we're guessing the luxe wedding gown won't stay on racks for long.
Price and release date are yet to be announced.

For a happy marriage, have a cheap wedding

If you're serving burgers and Bud Light at your backyard wedding, don't worry. You and your spouse may have the last laugh.
A new study found that couples who spend less on their wedding tend to have longer-lasting marriages than those who splurge. The study, by two economics professors at Emory University, found a similar correlation between less-expensive engagement rings and lower divorce rates.
The study's authors didn't examine why, although they floated a few theories.
"It could be that the type of couples who have a ... (cheap wedding) are the type that are a perfect match for each other," said Professor Hugo M. Mialon, who co-authored the study with Andrew M. Francis.
"Or it could be that having an inexpensive wedding relieves young couples of financial burdens that may strain their marriage," he said.
The research was based on a detailed survey completed by 3,151 adults in the United States who are, or have been, married. The authors believe theirs is the first academic study to examine the correlation between wedding expenses and the length of marriages.
Specifically, the study found that women whose wedding cost more than $20,000 divorced at a rate roughly 1.6 times higher than women whose wedding cost between $5,000 and $10,000. And couples who spent $1,000 or less on their big day had a lower than average rate of divorce.
The study won't be cheered by the booming wedding industry, which encourages couples to spend freely on everything from invitations and flowers to videographers and Champagne. Couples in the United States spent an average of $29,858 for their big day in 2013 -- a record high -- according to a survey of 13,000 brides and grooms by wedding website TheKnot.com.
"The wedding industry has long associated lavish weddings with longer-lasting marriages. Industry advertising has fueled norms that create the impression that spending large amounts on the wedding is a signal of commitment or is necessary for a marriage to be successful," Francis told CNN in an email.
"Overall, our findings provide little evidence to support the validity of the wedding industry's general message that connects expensive weddings with positive marital outcomes," he said.
Planning a wedding? In addition to slashing costs, you might want to invite those extra co-workers and far-flung cousins, too. The Emory study also found that the greater the number of people who attend a wedding, the lower the rate of divorce.
"This could be evidence of a community effect, i.e., having more support from friends and family may help the couple to get through the challenges of marriage," Francis said. "Or this could be that the type of couples who have a lot of friends and family are also the type that tend not to divorce as much."

Prenuptial protection

JUST as each wedding creates potential business for divorce lawyers, so each engagement gives insurers a chance to drum up business. Future spouses, says Alan Tuvin of Travelers, an insurer, may wish to protect themselves against something going wrong on the wedding day. It is unlikely that your betrothed will scarper on horseback, as Julia Roberts did in “Runaway Bride”, and most insurers wouldn’t cover that anyway. But you never know what might happen. Mr Tuvin launched the firm’s wedding-insurance business; he and his wife were its first clients.
A typical American wedding costs $25,000 or so. This has fallen a bit over the past quarter-century but still seems lavish given how tight American belts are these days (see chart). Weddings are pricey because the rich are more likely to marry than the poor, and the average age of newlyweds has gone up, so couples are more prosperous when they eventually tie the knot. High prices, and the fact that many venues require couples to take out liability insurance, feed demand for wedding insurance. A fifth of couples buy it, says theWedding Report, a trade publication. “If some fat lady slips on a canapé and breaks her hip, she doesn’t give a rat’s ass that this is her boyfriend’s cousin’s wedding,” hypothesises Robert Nuccio of Wedsure, an insurer. “She just wants to get paid.”
Wedding insurance began in Britain: Cornhill, an insurer, wrote its first policy in 1988. But there were few takers. The idea only took off once transplanted to America. In the early days, says Mr Nuccio, there were incidents of couples faking engagements to collect a payout. Since then, most policies have a clause that excludes “change of heart”. Wedsure does insure against cold feet, but its policy will pay out only if the wedding is cancelled more than 12 months before it is due to take place, thereby guarding against fiancés (or their parents) phoning the broker once the relationship is already on the rocks.
This does not mean policies are useless. Common causes of payouts include the venue or caterers going bust after having taken a big deposit. Extreme weather, a spouse being deployed by the armed forces and an absent priest can all trigger payouts. Most policies will pay to re-stage the photos if the snapper fails to turn up or disappears with the pictures. “DJs are flaky. Florists? Flaky. Cakemakers? Flaky. They are all flaky as hell,” warns Mr Nuccio.
For some, even a small risk of something going wrong on a day that has been planned for months is worth paying to avoid. Who says romance is dead?

Boston site auctions outtakes from Kennedy wedding in Newport

Never-before-published outtakes from John F. Kennedy's Newport wedding to Jacqueline Bouvier are being auctioned by a Boston auction house this month.
Taken by Fall River freelance photographer Arthur Borges, the 13 negatives were found in his darkroom after he died in 1993. Borges had been hired as a backup photographer for the 1953 Kennedy wedding.
Bobby Livingston, executive vice president at RR Auction in Boston, said he believes that Borges took hundreds of wedding-day photos "and left behind these few."
Bidding, which started Sept. 26 and reached $3,141 by 4 p.m. Tuesday, has "already surpassed our consignors expectations, and we expect it to soar," Livingston said. The online auction will end sometime after 6 p.m. Oct. 15.
Already in 1953, "Senator Kennedy and his beautiful wife were media darlings," Livingston said Tuesday. "You can see the policemen holding back the crowds. It was the society event of the year. It's mayhem," he said.
Borges, "a blue-collar guy," lived in Fall River and worked at Firestone. "He was there professionally. He's got opposite angles to the ones taken by Life magazine."
The Life photos show the couple cutting a cake outdoors. A Borges photo shows the couple cutting a cake indoors.
"Two Boston-area bakeries still fight to this day over who made the cake for Kennedy's wedding," Livingston said. He believes the indoor cake was for the family and the cake pictured in the Life photo was for the huge reception outdoors.
"The thing that you'll notice, in these outtakes, or whatever they are, they're posing the wedding party on that hill, and our guy is getting them in between moments, where they're laughing. The wind is blowing Kennedy brothers' hair all around. It's just great." In another one, Jackie's eyes "lock right into our photographer, Arthur, right outside the chapel. She's glowing."
The auction house, which has been in business since 1980, has sold other Kennedy memorabilia. The white Lincoln in which the Kennedys rode to the Air Force base in Fort Worth before flying to Dallas on that fateful morning in 1963 was auctioned last October for $318,000.
One lot was a collection of letters from JFK to the family of Harold W. Marney, one of two crewmembers killed when their PT-109 was destroyed by a Japanese ship, as well as the Purple Heart awarded to Marney. "This letter is to offer my deepest sympathy to you for the loss of your son, Kennedy wrote in one of the letters, in 1943. "I realize that there is nothing that I can say can make your sorrow less; particularly as I know him; and I know what a great loss he must be to you and your family." That lot sold for $200,000 in a live, gaveled sale on Sept. 19, Livingston said.
"We have several institutional clients, university libraries, private collectors, people who have an affinity for the Kennedy family," Livingston said. "A lot like this speaks to a lot of different people than maybe our normal typical auction," he said.
"With worldwide attention on these photos," he expected the bidding to be "very vigorous."

Newfound images of JFK wedding up for auction

A Boston auction house is selling 13 negatives from the wedding of John F. Kennedy and Jacqueline Kennedy that were discovered in a photographer’s darkroom after his death, and have likely never been shown before.
“They’re magnificent, unpublished,” said Bobby Livingston, executive vice president of RR Auction, which is selling the negatives in an auction that ends Oct. 15 . “He was a young senator, already a known figure, and his beautiful bride.”
The negatives are still in their original folder, labeled “Pres. Kennedy 1953.” Four show the newlyweds, two show the entire wedding party, and the rest show the cake, reception, and wedding attendees, according to the auction website. Some of the pictures capture candid moments in between posed shots, with the Kennedys talking or laughing or simply looking intently at something outside the frame.
Each negative is accompanied by a print — the first ever made from the negatives.
The pictures were taken by freelance photographer Arthur C. Borges of Fall River, who served as a “back-up” photographer for the Sept. 12, 1953 wedding in Newport, R.I. LIFE Magazine documented the wedding in its pages, and the negatives now on sale were likely outtakes that never made it to the family, Livingston said.
“He shot everything, but from the other side,” said Livingston.
Borges, a World War II Army veteran who worked at the Firestone Rubber Co. and did freelance work in his spare time, died in 1993, according to his obituary. Displayed on the auction website is his old business card, which promises “wedding candids” and shows his face obscured by an old-fashioned camera.
The auction began Sept. 26, and as of noon on Oct. 4, bidding for the set stood at $363. But Livingston said he expected the bidding to rise into the thousands of dollars. The auction house has sold many Kennedy artifacts, he said, including Jacqueline Kennedy’s shoes that went for as much as $35,000.
Last month, RR Auction sold a collection of letters John F. Kennedy sent to the family of a lost PT-109 crewmate for $200,000, and a collection of letters from Robert Kennedy for $31,250, according to the Associated Press.
RR Auction is also selling a 1963 holiday card that was signed by John and Jacqueline Kennedy just days before he was assassinated in Dallas.
“What we have is really rare, and kind of tragic,” said Livingston. “Right before Mrs. Kennedy and President Kennedy went to Dallas, they signed their Christmas cards, basically wishing people a happy new year in 1964. And, tragically, of course, we know he’s killed before the holiday. And so these were kind of left behind.”
Also for sale is a Kennedy presidential document from 1962 that appoints a black woman to the Committee on Equal Employment Opportunity; a twice-signed 1952 JFK letter on an “appointment to the Coast Guard Academy; and a vintage Marilyn Monroe autograph with a personal inscription to a fan, according to a release from the auction house.

George Clooney and Amal Alamuddin's wedding weekend in full swing

George Clooney and Amal Alamuddin arrived in Venice on Friday with wedding guests trickling in around them as rumors that they would marry on Saturday appeared to be coming true.
But here's the trick: The weekend wedding will likely be symbolic, with a civil ceremony making it official on Monday.
Clooney and his betrothed boarded a water taxi dubbed "Amore" with friends Cindy Crawford and Rande Gerber for a trip down Venice's Grand Canal to the Hotel Cipriani on Venice's Giudecca Island.
Alamuddin wore a sharp black-and-white-striped Dolce & Gabbana dress and doffed her shoes at some point during the boat ride, if only to make it easier to disembark upon arrival at their destination.
Clooney's "Monuments Men" and "Ocean's" franchise costar Matt Damon and wife Luciana Barroso hopped a ride on a different vessel, with a friendly Damon waving to those who were watching them on the dock.
Also spotted en route to the festivities were Clooney cousin Miguel Ferrer and his producer wife Lori Weintraub, "Ocean's Thirteen" actress Ellen Barkin, musician pal Steve Lukather of Toto fame and Vogue editor Anna Wintour, because, of course. John Krasinski and Emily Blunt evaded photographers but were reportedly spotted by New York Daily Newsspies.
Alamuddin will be heading to the Aman Canal Grande hotel on Friday night to connect with eight of her closest longtime friends -- some from her university days at Oxford -- for a girls-only get-together, a source told E! News.
At the same time, Clooney reportedly will be hanging with his guy friends at the Hotel Cipriani, where the "Amore" had delivered him, Alamuddin and their pals at the end of their Grand Canal journey.
Then there's the wedding Saturday --expected to be held at the seven-star Canal Grande -- after which the couple will spend the night together, followed by a Sunday lunch with their guests before yet another party, E! said.
Former Rome Mayor Walter Veltroni, a Clooney pal since 2007, will officiate at the symbolic Saturday ceremony, Vogue reported. A five-course banquet by Italian chef Riccardo de Pra, a specialist in European and Asian cuisines, will cap the big night.
On Monday, the city will close pedestrian access to walkways on the Grand Canal accessing the 16th-century Cavalli Palace for at least two hours, with the city order citing "the George Clooney wedding."
The palace is regularly used for civil ceremonies, according to the Associated Press. A city official told the AP that such a closure has been done before and is aimed at preventing crowds from gathering and creating a safety risk.

Couple’s Wedding Day Saved by Strangers from Craigslist

ne Texas couple never imagined they’d find the answer to their wedding day prayers on Craigslist.
Less than two weeks before his wedding, Raul Martinez, 26, was laid off from his job as a boilermaker in the chemical plant industry.
“I knew I was going to be laid off, but not that soon,” Martinez told ABC News.
After paying bills, the couple only had a little bit of money left for last minute wedding expenses earlier this month.
“We used our last $10 on something we had been needing for the wedding that we were missing,” Martinez’ wife, Savannah Martinez, told ABC News.
Even after making and selling tamales and trying to find things to pawn, they still needed money for the groom’s shoes and the bride’s hair and nails, so they listed their bedroom furniture set and television on Craigslist for sale. They were able to sell their television, but couldn't find a buyer for their bedroom set.
Judy Wehrman, 39, who lives in nearby Missouri City, Texas, said she saw Raul Martinez’ listing every day while shopping for furniture on the site.
“I showed it to my husband and said, ‘Honey, take a look at this ad. I think this guy needs some help. He keeps dropping the price. He’s desperate,’” Wehrman told ABC News.
On Sept. 12, the day before their wedding, Raul Martinez still wasn't sure how he was going to get the money they needed.
“That Friday [my wife] was crying because her aunt and everybody was doing their nails, and I didn't have the money to pay for it,” Raul Martinez said. “I told her I would come up with the money, but I didn't know how I was going to come up with the money because no one was buying the furniture.”
Wehrman said her husband wasn't interested in the furniture but told his wife that they could just give him the money. So the night before the Martinez’ Sept. 13 wedding, Wehrman sent Raul Martinez a text message.
“I said, ‘It’s not really the furniture that we’re looking for, but I was wondering what you need the money for,'” Wehrman said. “I didn't know then that he had just lost his job.”
When she found out that Martinez needed the money for his wedding, Wehrman offered to give him money as a wedding gift if he came to her house.
Raul Martinez said he didn't respond to Wehrman's message until the next day because they were busy setting up the reception hall for their wedding.
“I said, ‘If you still want the gift, you have to come to my house,’” Wehrman said.
“I told my wife, ‘Let’s go!' She said, ‘What if they jack us?’ I said, ‘They know we don’t have money,’” laughed Raul Martinez.
Savannah Martinez said she was scared when she saw the messages, but went along with her husband to wait for Wehrman near her home the morning of their wedding day.
When Wehrman finally arrived, she gave the couple $200.
“I took the money. I said, 'Thank you, we appreciate it,’” Raul Martinez said. “My wife started crying, and she said, ‘Thank you.’”
With Wehrman's gift, Raul Martinez was able to pay for his shoes and for his wife to get her hair done. Wehrman declined an invitation to their wedding that evening.
“Our goal was just to help out,” Wehrman said. “There’s a lot of people that’s blessed that can help others.”
Martinez said he’s currently working little side jobs, and the couple is no longer selling their bedroom set.
“God bless the people that helped us. This comes to show there are good people out there whenever somebody is in need,” Raul Martinez said.
“It’s good to know there are good people out there to help.”