Bridal show comes to Everett

Brides and grooms: What key elements do you need to put together your perfect wedding?

Custom invitations? Perfect flowers? Amazing food? Great music?

Brides and grooms will find vendors selling all of that and more at the eighth annual Northwest Bridal Showcase on Saturday and Sunday at The Edward D. Hansen Conference Center at Comcast Arena in Everett.

The two-day event, featuring about 100 vendors, mostly from Snohomish County, is designed to be an ideal starting point for couples who became engaged over the holidays and have no idea where to start on their wedding planning mission.

Brides who are looking for wedding gowns may want to arrive early.

Very, very early.

MOViN 92.5’s third-annual Dress Dash will kick off the event at 8 a.m. Saturday.

The Bellevue-based radio station’s third-annual fundraiser — an early-bird sale of 500 gowns priced at $150 each — will benefit the Portland-based Making Memories Breast Cancer Foundation.

Last year, brides started lining up outside Comcast Arena at 1 a.m., said Erin Scharf, a public relations manager with the foundation, which provides the gowns.

“You can’t beat $150,” Scharf said. “This is one of those events where people will get in line early, early, early. And then they really dash for the dresses. It’s unbelievable.”

Scharf said the gowns are new and used. All are donated by designers, retailers, manufacturers and former brides who don’t want to keep their beautiful dresses.

“On a lot of them, tags are still attached,” Scharf said. “They’re still in great condition.”

Would-be brides who don’t want to stay up all night to get in line for the Dress Dash can simply shop at the show, where Moments to Treasure Bridal of Mukilteo will sell gowns in a large space outfitted with fitting rooms, said show organizer and owner Paulette Deckers.

Deckers said more than 1,000 people attend the show every year.

Exhibitors at this year’s event will run the gamut from practical (a chiropractor) to whimsical (a caricature artist).

Deckers said the caricature artist, who bills himself as the “fastest in the world,” should be a fun diversion for newly engaged couples or gaggles of young women seeking a quirky, quick portrait.

“He does amazing characters of people,” she said, “and he does them really quickly.”

Sarah Jackson: 425-339-3037, sjackson@heraldnet.com.

Northwest Bridal Showcase

What: The Northwest Bridal Showcase features more than 100 local and national wedding vendors, including gown and invitation sellers, florists, caterers, photographers, videographers, disc jockeys and hair and make-up artists.

When: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday. Fashion shows at 2 p.m. daily will feature all sorts of wedding attire.

Where: The Edward D. Hansen Conference Center at Comcast Arena, 2000 Hewitt Ave., Everett.

Tickets: Admission is $12 at the door. Advanced tickets cost $10 at nw bridalshowcase.com.

Information: See www.comcast arenaeverett.com or call 425-322-2600. See nwbridalshowcase.com for a list of vendors.

Dress Dash

What: Before the Northwest Bridal Showcase begins, MOViN 92.5, a local radio station, will host its third-annual Dress Dash in which 500 gowns will be sold for $150 each to benefit the Portland-based Making Memories Breast Cancer Foundation.

Where: Comcast Arena, 2000 Hewitt Ave., Everett. Participants should form a line near the south entrance of the arena at Wall Street and Lombard Avenue.

When: Doors open at 8 a.m. Saturday. Last year, brides lined up for the dash starting at 1 a.m. Dress sales at the dash end at 11 a.m.

Cost: Admission is free. Brides attending the Dress Dash can purchase bridal showcase tickets for a discounted price of $9.25 and can enter the show at 9:25 a.m., before it officially starts. All sales from the dash will benefit the foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to granting wishes for stage IV breast cancer patients.

Information: See www.making memories.org or call 503-491-8091 for more information about the foundation.