Earleen Garbe poses in front of a collection of wedding gowns in her shop, Revelle Bridal Boutique. Photo by Agatha Rowland.
Earleen Garbe said that her connection to weddings has been a mainstay for a long time in her life. She recalled being a certain age where all of her friends were getting married in the same timeframe.
“I feel like whenever that happened, I did get involved a lot in their weddings,” she said.
Asked what she enjoys about being a part of people’s weddings, Earleen can’t limit herself to just one or two things: “The planning, all the pretty things, the camaraderie that surrounds it. Spending time with your loved ones or your bestie, and then just having the end result of it being such a happy moment,” she said.
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The spark of joy Earleen found in being part of her friend’s weddings is the same one she finds in running Revelle Bridal, a bridal boutique in Westboro Village.
“Just being part of it, the whole journey of being able to be part of these brides’ wedding dress shopping journey and being able to be part of their ‘say yes moments,’ which is a very special and emotional moment,” Earleen said.
“We’re six years in and over 1,000 or so brides and I still get so happy and genuinely emotional for them when they say yes.”
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Earleen recalled one special client appointment that she said still makes her emotional to remember. The bride came in and chose a dress, but kept postponing the alterations appointments, which worried the Revelle staff, said Earleen.
When the client finally came back in to the shop, she shared that she had been in a serious cycling accident and had a long road to recovery ahead of her. That, paired with the COVID-19 pandemic, delayed the bride’s wedding for almost two and a half years.
“Her fiance stuck with her—lovely couple—and she did end up getting married,” said Earleen. “It was just such a touching story because it just goes to show you like the timelessness of that whole experience.”
Earleen Garbe adjusts a client’s wedding gown in her shop, Revelle Bridal Boutique. Photo by Agatha Rowland.
She said the bride still wore the dress she’d picked out years before and was very happy with it.
Later, the designer of that dress asked Earleen to nominate an inspiring bride for something special she was working on. Earleen nominated the bride described here, and the designer named a dress from their new collection after her.
“It came really full circle,” said Earleen. “It was a really touching experience to be part of, and just the fact that we were able to tell her story through the dress.”
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Earleen said Revelle stands apart from other bridal shops in the city for its focus on contemporary wedding gown designs.
“If you were a bride who wasn’t looking for something that’s big and poofy, lots of bedazzling, and that traditional kind of wedding look, then there wasn’t a lot of choice in Ottawa,” she said.
Earleen said all designers featured at Revelle can’t be found anywhere else in Ottawa. “I want to have people that are different.”
Revelle’s exclusive range of designers attracts clients from Toronto, Montreal, and “even as far as Sudbury or Thunder Bay,” she said.
Pictured are the backs of three different wedding gowns in the window display of Revelle Bridal Boutique. Photo by Agatha Rowland.
Earleen said she hopes that Revelle Bridal will be able to offer pieces for a bride’s “wedding wardrobe,” which are pieces not just for the ceremony but for bridal showers, bachelorette parties, or bridal brunches.
“We want to start carrying lines that will capture every aspect of the wedding, not just the actual day,” she said.
To learn more about Revelle Bridal Boutique or book a consultation, you can visit their website, Facebook and Instagram!
