I attended my first bridal market last weekend in New York city and it was quite exciting!

Check out the photo: I'm on the left standing beside Vatana Watters of Watters designer gowns. She was incredibly friendly. This shot was taken after her runway show at the WeddingChannel Couture Show Interntational Bridal Market. I waited after the show in the hopes of handing some information about BridesmaidEssentials.com to a member of Ms. Watters' staff. But she turned to me and I introduced myself -- we got the chance to chat a bit about the site and her latest Watters and Wtoo lines for bridesmaids. She was thoroughly charming.

I was even more stunned, though, when later in the day I ran into her again outside the suite where she was showing her lines to a small group of retailers.. Vatana greeted me with a "Hi, Kathy!" (she remembered my name) and invited me to take photos during a mini-runway show for the retailers.

I was already a fan of the Watters brand but after meeting its chief, I'm impressed with her depth as a businesswoman -- that she can direct a runway show, oversee the debut of dozens of dresses to retailers, and yet still take time to make a connection with someone she didn't know.

Stay tuned for images from the Watters runway show for the fall 2008 collections...