Vera Wang on her revolutionary work in bridal after 30 years

No one can deny that Vera Wang has spearheaded the bridal industry.

After 30 years in the bridal market and creating 59 (soon to be 60) full collections, Wang's skill level is unmatched. During a recent conversation for the designer's White by Vera Wang partnership with David's Bridal, Wang detailed her decades-long experience as a bridal pioneer.

"I think we are part of the reason --In fact, we are the main reason -- that bridal fashion has changed in the last 30 years. This is our 30th anniversary this year of doing bridal and I think during that time if you just look back to the '80s and since then what has happened and transpired in bridal has been nothing short of a revolution," Wang says. "I have to say that we are very much part of that. In all honesty, we were the first to work in color, the first to do tuxedos, the first to do pieced lace dresses. When I first started, bridal was very much a commodity."

"There's almost no technique that we have not exhausted in bridal for 30 years. Considering that's two collections a year, I believe I just finished my 59th collection about a week ago. So my 60th will be in October which will really mark the anniversary of our company."

Beyond Wang's global bridal business -- creating wedding gowns for everyone from Sharon Stone, Kate Hudson, Alicia Keys, Khloe Kardashian, Chelsea Clinton (the list goes on) -- what the designer really wants people to realize is that bridal is just one facet of their fashion conglomerate.

"We really are a fashion company. I think thats one of things people may not realize because we dress so many people on the red carpet for the Golden Globes, the Oscars, The Emmys -- every single award show. We have always been a presence for 30 years. Starting with Sharon Stone and in recent, Constance Wu," the designer explains. "I think what we really are is a fashion house that also specializes in bridal. There's a very big difference. We are not truly a bridal house but we are people that have invested enormous time, attention and energy to weddings."

"Every wedding we have done for a celebrity has been an expression of their trust in me to do something they really feel is unique and to them," she added.

For someone that's seen every wave of the fashion industry change and evolve in recent decades, Vera Wang is constantly challenging herself to reinvent and innovate collection after collection, since 1989. She notes that straying away from traditional white gowns is nothing new for her and that 'freedom' is the key word for the 2019 bride.

"You want to know what it's really about for the 2019 bride? It's about freedom. It's about being yourself. It's your day. You should be able to express your own originality and who you are, whoever that is. And the diversity of not only the brides, but how they chose to look, how they chose to celebrate. Whether it's destination (which seems to be a huge trend right now) or whether it's something simplistic or earthy or highly sophisticated."

"This year it's about looking at the bride from 360 degrees. At every angle it's a different shape which is fascinating to me. I think that kind of freedom came this year because I'm always trying to challenge myself to shake it up. So that freedom is what's so new. And the use of color -- we've been doing color for 28 years. So, color or black or nude are not new vocabulary for my house. It's how I play with them and how I use them and how I make white look less traditional."

The American designer is also making a case for the groom, noting in today's era importance of equality, weddings are not just about the female.

"I think it's about the bride and also the groom. Let's not forget him today anymore. He has a lot to say. It's much more of a shared experience than simply the bride. It's very much a couples affair and they share that experience together. That did not exist as much four years ago."

The one thing Vera Wang wishes brides would stay away from? "I always had a problem with overly made up."

"If the dress has a lot going on and is hyper-romantic or hyper-extravegant, then maybe you downplay the makeup and the hair--and vice versa. If you are getting married in a more minimal architectural statement of shape, like Meghan Markle, than you can take a chance with hair and make up. It's a tension and a balance you are trying to create in the overall look," Wang explains of the juxtaposition brides should discern.

"We are always about reinventing that vocabulary and offering brides alternatives to what's out there. That has been our whole reason to be in bridal. The day I can't do that anymore will be the day I stop," Wang says.

"And I always say, don't forget the flowers. A bad bouquet can ruin the entire image like a bad veil"