What These Say Yes To The Dress Couples Are Doing Now
In the 13 years since Say Yes to The Dress premiered, hundreds of brides-to-be have been welcomed onto the screens of homes across America. Viewers watch in awe as women stroll into New York City's well-known bridal salon, Kleinfeld Bridal, with glistening eyes and hopeful hearts that their dream dress will be found in a sea of tulle, beads, and chiffon. To the enjoyment of the viewer, though, Say Yes to The Dress is more than sliding into the perfect dress. Viewers watch bridezillas stampede through the store, they listen to mothers tear apart their daughters' looks, and they gaze, sometimes with tears in their eyes, as some brides tell their emotional backstories.
With so much emotion left on-screen — good or bad — it's easy to wonder what happens to the brides that stroll across our screens almost as fast as they want to walk down the aisle to say "I do." Some brides get their happy endings, and sometimes a dress doesn't see the light of day. If you've ever felt attached to a bride, wonder no more. Nicki Swift has tracked down some memorable couples who have graced the show. Here's what some Say Yes to The Dress (SYTTD) couples are doing now.
The "Bionic Bride"
"Bionic model" Rebekah Marine was born without a right forearm, and her hyper-advanced prosthetic arm became her brightest accessory when she walked down the aisle. During her season 17 episode of Say Yes to The Dress, Marine explained that she originally struggled with her disability, but now she models and uses her story to motivate others who may be suffering with image issues (per this SYTTD clip from her Instagram). "My whole message is about living with uniqueness and celebrating that," she said.
After working through the classic issue of having a different vision than her bridal party, Marine fell in love with a tulle and lace mermaid dress that Randy Fenoli designed. She completed her look with a stunning gold prosthetic arm. Now, the model and motivational speaker seems to be thriving more than ever. She and her husband are happily married with a baby boy, Jackson, who they welcomed in 2019.
The fired bride
When Emily walked through the doors of Kleinfeld, she only had one thing in mind: her dream dress and her dream wedding to the man of her dreams. Her relationship was different to begin with, as she admitted she met her husband, David Gotterup, when she worked for him at a mortgage company. "He fired me so he could date me," she shared (per Forbes).
Like the Bionic Bride, Emily, too, ran into a classic problem: She had a tough time sticking to her $5,000 budget. She ended up splurging on a $6,500 Pnina Tornai dress, and her wedding went on smoothly. However, that may have been the end of her new dream life.
In 2015, Gotterup was charged on an 11-count indictment for operating a fraudulent mortgage loan modification businesses in which he scammed mostly blue-collar New Yorkers. He made a move on the Small Business Association, too, which gave him a nearly $114,000 loan for Hurricane Sandy damage, which he instead used to pay for personal expenses, including Emily's dream wedding.
It is unclear if Emily is still with Gotterup, and she seems to have no public social media accounts. Gotterup was originally sentenced to 15 years in prison in 2017 but was re-sentenced to 135 months (per the United States Department of Justice), which is just above 11 years.
A Broadway star took the bridal fitting stage
Even famous people get swept away by the idea of finding their dream wedding dress at Kleinfeld Bridal. Singer and actress Sutton Foster made an appearance on season 12 of Say Yes to The Dress, and her experience went as smooth as the notes she can belt. The Broadway star picked a $6,800 Pnina Tornai gown which she instantly loved. While talking about choosing the gown, Sutton told People, "I felt very confident and knew that it was the first dress I had tried on that felt 'right.'"
Since her SYTTD episode, Sutton has made some huge moves. First, she landed a starring role in TV Land's Younger opposite Hilary Duff. The show is still going strong after six seasons. Then, she returned to Broadway after a brief hiatus in The Music Man with Hugh Jackman in 2019. Between Younger and The Music Man, Sutton and her husband adopted a baby girl named Emily. "It was a really beautiful and amazing journey to find her," she told People.
A Boston Marathon bombing survivor had to survive a lot more
Rebekah Gregory may be one of the most memorable brides to appear on Say Yes to The Dress because her story was so emotional yet empowering. Gregory visited Kleinfeld on crutches, as she was still recovering from the 2013 bombing of the Boston Marathon, from which she underwent 17 surgeries (per People). Luckily, she was able to find the perfect dress for her fairy-tale wedding.
However, her happily ever after was cut short when she made the "painful" decision to end her marriage just ten months after tying the knot. A few months prior to that, she had to make another tough decision: to amputate her leg. "After the decision was made to amputate my leg in November, I found myself having to make an even more painful choice — to separate from my husband Pete," she told People. "Over the last several months I've come to realize that going through such a horrific event together put a fast-forward on our relationship that we each handled differently."
Gregory has since recovered from her amputation and heartbreak. She released a book called Taking my Life Back in 2015. She also remarried and welcomed a daughter, Ryleigh, in 2016.
A Cheetah Girl struts like she means it down the aisle
Actress, singer, and dancer Sabrina Bryan turned from pop star to bridal princess during her visit to Kleinfeld in season 17 of Say Yes to The Dress. Bryan knew she wanted to be dressed by Hayley Paige, so rather than staying in Kleinfeld, she spent much of her time trying on dresses in Paige's own design studio. After being wowed by Paige's new two-for-one dress design, Bryan ended up having her favorite bridal designer customize a ball gown and a second fitted gown. "It prolongs the day in a way," Paige told The Knot of Bryan's dress swap. "You get twice as many pictures in two completely different looks."
Since walking down the aisle in 2018, Bryan and her husband welcomed a baby girl, Comilia Monroe, to their family in 2020. "I loved every moment of my pregnancy and having you grow in my belly, but there['s] nothing like holding you in my arms and being your mommy!" she wrote on her birth announcement.