As COVID-19 pandemic restrictions have been lifted in areas like Denver, many event industries are starting to recover. For the bridal industry, many weddings that had to be put on pause can finally start coming together.
Bridal designers have experienced the animosity of the industry firsthand. For Enaura Bridal, a brand that brings luxurious gowns to Denver through frequent trunk shows, owner Sohil Mistry said “during COVID, weddings were still occurring via Zoom or online so brides were still getting dresses, but now, they have the opportunity to have that wedding they wanted” before a global pandemic struck.
Enaura Bridal went through the ups and downs of the pandemic and is starting to get back on track. “Since COVID occurred, ‘bridal season’ has become a mix into every season being Bridal Season,” said Sohil.
Alongside his wife Nayha Mistry, Sohil provides brides with 100% hand-crafted dresses. Sohil is the founder and creative director of the brand, while Nayha is the director of sales and marketing.
“Each gown has an accumulation of up to 500 hours of meticulous handwork. This comes with 100% hand-beaded dresses and a gown made perfectly for its bride,” said The Mistrys.
Creating The “Perfect” Gown
Sohil will make sure that the dress is completely acquired to each bride’s measurements, ending with the perfect fit. Enaura Bridal does not follow a size chart – this is something that is not a part of their brand. They will take their own measurements of the bride and go off of this instead of using something simple and not as specific as other brands do like, “size 4” or “medium.”
Sohil and Nayha closely focus on every detail of their products to make sure their brides are happy and satisfied with their gowns. They focus on every detail, down to their company’s name.
The name Enaura has a special meaning to Sohil and Nayha. En is a prefix meaning “within,” while aura is a field of subtly, luminous radiation surrounding a person. “Designed to punctuate and elevate your distinctive beauty and aura,” said Sohil.
Enaura Bridal hosts trunk shows all around the world where The Mistrys are given the opportunity to meet directly with their brides. During these events, brides can pick the dress perfect for their special day and obtain any alterations, special add-ins, or sentimental pieces that will make their gown their own.
Sohil has noticed that in the bridal industry, there was once scarcity in good quality dresses that are still affordable. He wanted to “create a dress that was affordable, with the same quality of expensive beadwork,” said Sohil. This vision is the foundation of Enaura Bridal.
Enaura Bridal takes pride in giving their customer the exact dream dress they would need for this important occasion.
Sohil’s background in fashion design began with his parents, who were both designers. He had been quickly immersed in the fashion industry from the moment he was born.
His parents were known for their beading, as are Sohil’s designs now. Even before he was born, Sohil’s parents were designing bridal wear, along with Indian wear. They would also embroider for many different designers. At the time, designers would approach Sohil’s parents and they would sell them a specific look.
Therefore, “beading has been in my family for as long as I can remember,” said Sohil.
Sohil started his own career in fashion right after he graduated from Rutgers University in New Jersey, where he studied business. Since he was constantly surrounded by his parents, who were designers, he soon became intrigued and wanted to get involved. As soon as Sohil graduated, he traveled back to India to help his dad in the factories. This is when he fell in love with fashion, mainly in the terms of beadings and how the artisans worked.
After seeing all the passion that was put into these pieces, Sohil wanted to take his own approach.
Since India has such amazing beading work and the designer has a connection with the culture, this is where his dresses would be made. Therefore, all of the bridal gowns are getting the special attention they deserve for their brides, as each dress is handcrafted from his factories in India.
Each dress has a special type of beading, and anything can be altered for the bride. Alterations include add-ins of any designs or initials to make the dress more personable.
Shortly after college, Sohil went to India for about four months to learn how to create bridal gowns. “As a designer, it is very crucial to know how they do the beading, otherwise, you won’t be able to design the gown,” he said.
He then went to the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City and learned pattern making. This was essentially how to make the garment.
Following the period in which Sohil focused on the art of beading, his first collection was launched in 2011. This collection included accessories sold through Blossom Veil. After launching this collection, The Mistry’s were shocked with the amazing response, leading them to begin creating gowns as well.
We were one of the few companies designing incredibly intricate beaded belts and veils at the time,” said The Mistry’s. This was their first step in getting their foot into the door in the industry.
Come 2013, Enaura Bridal was launched with a full collection of 20 dresses. Since the Mistry’s already created for Blossom Veil, “we were already well connected with stores to put our new company and collection into,” they said.
Building a Trunk Show
Sohil and Nayha travel almost every weekend around the world to meet their brides during their Trunk Shows. This gives them the opportunity to get to know their brides and speak directly with brides about customizations.
Sohil and Nayha Mistry’s gowns can be found at Little White Dress in Denver. After all, their products are all handmade, not mass-made.
Since the two of them travel frequently, they are able to gain immense product knowledge and work closely with brides in the process.
Sohil and Nayha use a lot of textural inspiration. For example, they just visited the Taj Mahal and developed inspiration for their pieces from the breathtaking architecture there.
Inspiration can even come from a simple everyday landscape or aspects of daily life. “I will sit and look at a book of botanical flowers,” said Sohil.
Enaura Bridal is founded on creating dresses that are all different, ultimately adding personality to clients’ weddings.
As event industries move forward and weddings are happening more now than ever, demand for bridal gowns is exploding. This is the perfect opportunity for brides everywhere to meet with their designer and add any special touches.
As for the future of Enaura Bridal, The Mistrys are currently working on a new bridal collection coming in April.
All photos courtesy of Jackson Davis.