He may be new to the show this season, but Say Yes To The Dress Canada’s newest fashion director Tyrel Abbott is anything but a rookie. Tyrel got his start in the wedding industry when he helped a friend find her dream dress.
“I was opinionated – all constructive, nothing negative – but I was hard to impress,” recalls Tyrel. When it came time for alterations for a dress for the bride’s mother, Tyrel had very specific ideas in mind. Turns out the woman running the alterations appointment was the owner of the store, and after spending a few minutes talking with Tyrel, she offered him a job on the spot. The rest is history.
We had the chance to chat with Tyrel about the upcoming season of SYTTDC, what his tips for brides are and much more.
Today’s Bride: What do you think makes you the “wedding whisperer”, your most recent nickname?
Tyrel Abbott: I don’t know exactly, but I think it’s my ability to relate with brides from all walks of life. To be able to listen and offer support that the bride needs in this journey to find a wedding dress. I’ve not been stumped yet!
TB: As the new Fashion Director, what are some of your main responsibilities?
TA: My main responsibility is to remove doubt from the bride and to manage what’s happening in that appointment. I want to make sure the bride is seeing things that she wants, that she is getting the best level of service, and the best suggestions as far as dresses go. Ultimately, I want to make sure the bride feels comfortable and beautiful. There can be a lot of opinions that come to that appointment, and my job as fashion director is to make sure they’re not negative but constructive; the bride needs to be supported at all times.
TB: What is your favourite part about working one-on-one with brides?
TA: The interaction! Being able to sit and talk with a bride and to be apart of the journey to find this perfect dress (probably the most important dress that a woman is going to wear) is really special. There’s a lot of emotional attachment to a wedding dress, and being part of that journey to me is a great honour. Also, I love that moment when you’ve found the perfect dress, you can see it on their face, their energy changes and it’s really quite special.
TB: What’s the most important piece of advice you give to brides when working to find that perfect dress?
TA: Don’t regret anything and don’t settle for a dress. This dress needs to be what you want. There’s a tremendous pressure to please everyone, and I think that sometimes brides don’t please themselves so I always say be secure in your choice.
TB: Do you have a favourite bridal designer, or bridal style?
TA: I like all of the designers. I think that’s a hard questions to answer because every designer is different, but I think it’s what looks best on the bride. I love wedding fashion period so to me they’re all amazing.
TB: So what can fans of the show look forward to on the new season?
TA: Amazing dresses, some amazing personalities, some truly strong & independent women, and great people with great stories. You’ll laugh, you’ll have some tears and get caught up in the emotion of it all; it’s a peek into the really incredible journey of a bride and that I think is really cool.
Season 2 features bigger budgets, more designers and lots of new dresses as wide-eyed brides from across Canada shop for their dream wedding dress to match their style, image and budget. Say Yes to the Dress Canada Season 2 premieres with back-to-back episodes Wednesday, January 6 at 10 p.m. and 10:30 p.m. ET/PT on W Network.
