Vera Wang

You don't have to be engaged to appreciate the beautiful gowns seen at this season's Bridal Fashion Week, but if you are, there's no time like the present to start looking for that magical dress. For Fall 2012, we spotted a number of gorgeous wedding dresses to fawn over ranging from beautifully embroidered mermaid silhouettes from Monique Lhuillier and Oscar de la Renta to short and chic renditions from Carolina Herrera. For the experimental bride, we spotted some gorgeous black and patina-tinted gowns from Vera Wang for you to consider. Just click the slideshow to see more extraordinary wedding dresses from Bridal Fashion Week now.

>> Vera Wang has been known to work some dark references into her ready-to-wear collections, and Spring 2012 was no exception. Citing Alice in Wonderland, the designer's show notes riffed on the idea of "tailoring and transparency" — and there was plenty of both. A series of all-white looks opened the show, cutting a sharp silhouette in perforated piqué, organza, and tulle. Waists were nipped with drawstrings or boning, and juxtaposed by full-flared peplums galore. Softness came in the form of whisper-weight chiffon; in graduated-hem skirts it was drawn up high in the front and left to billow smoke-like behind. While most of the collection flowed from one monochromatic look to another, Wang did give us one print: a psychedelic take on 18th-century wallpaper that swirled ethereally in grey, violet, and jolts of pink. The effect was trippy and intense — and at times even beautiful.

With an eclectic front-row crowd that included Kim Kardashian, former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, Serena Williams, and a dramatic last-minute arrival by Beyoncé, the Vera Wang Spring 2012 show already had a buzz going by the time the first ethereal white look strode down the runway. It was a collection inspired by Alice in Wonderland — Tim Burton's version, no doubt — that mixed Vera's skill for soft feminine touches with an edge; chiffon dresses had drawstrings, floral prints seemed to morph into something totally trippy and neon-hued, and the skirts were cut away to reveal the models' long legs clad in gladiator heels. Some of the more fanciful looks included a yellow corset with peplum boy shorts and techno cotton eyelet cropped vests layered over corsets. We remain most entranced, however, by the first series of white looks, as the play between transparency and tailoring, between softness and edge, seemed most natural and truly channeled that Alice in Wonderland magic. This can be no coincidence considering Wang's reign as one of the world's top bridal designers.

>> After announcing yesterday that she's going into the engagement ring business with Zales, Vera Wang has complete another, more personal transaction: She's bought herself a home in Beverly Hills, as she's spending more time in Los Angeles, according to her real estate representative.

The midcentury modern home was listed in March for $10.9 million; Wang bought it for about about $10 million, the Wall Street Journal reports. It was completely renovated by the previous owner, real-estate investor and designer Steven Hermann, and has four bedrooms, a home theater, and glass walls. There's also a pool and spa.