Press Reviews

This news release was distributed on March 27, 2007 by the PR Web Newswire on behalf of the organization below.
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TeKay Designs Gowns Featured At 2007 Virtuous Woman Pageant

(PRWeb) March 27, 2007 -- TeKay Designs will feature three unique pageant gowns at the 2007 Virtuous Woman Pageant on March 30, 2007. The event will be hosted at the Ezekiel Cullen Performance Hall within the University of Houston Main Campus. Doors open at 6:00 pm CST.

This occasion briefly traces the history of Powerful Women in our society that has created a platform for the Women of today's age. The Virtuous Woman Pageant will display key attributes and quality characteristics that dictate the essence of a virtuous woman. The positive retrospect of the female gender in its most eloquent fashion will demonstrate the necessities in a woman of a Virtuous caliber. These women are no longer girls but have matured and are continuously maturing into the ideal woman that younger generation of women can admire. These types of women know the meaning of hard work, dedication, educational prestige, and humble traits which personifies the essence of a Virtuous Woman. More information about the pageant can be obtained at: http://www.tk-designs.com/virtuous-woman-pageant

The fashions of TeKay Designs are characterized by unique designs, quality fabric, impeccable workmanship, and affordable pricing. "The 2007 collection incorporates a fascinating variety of pageant, prom, bridal/formal, maternity, African & Ethnic collection made of gorgeous satins, organza, chiffon, embroidered laces, brocades, and Aso Ake fabric." notes Designer Kimma Wreh.

About TeKay Designs Inc.
TeKay Designs Inc. is a manufacturer, mail order and internet retailer of unique, custom and ready made bridal, formal, maternity, casual, African, and ethnic clothing. The company diligently seeks to reveal various styles and textiles from a diversity of cultures and traditions worldwide. In addition, the company provides quality, elegant, and affordable clothing with timely delivery and excellent customer service.

TeKay Designs Website
www.tk-designs.com features stylish and affordable apparel that are custom tailored and ready made for weddings, bridal and formal, prom, pageant, evenings, casual, and special occasions.

TeKay Designs Contact Information:
Kimma Wreh
P.O. Box 692454, Houston TX 77269
Order Line: 1-877-293-2496
Local: 281-807-0589
Customer Service: 832-483-4864
Address: P.O. Box 692454, Houston TX 77269
URL: http://www.tk-designs.com

About B.T.R.U.E.
The B.T.R.U.E. Non-Profit Organization whose acronyms stand for Believing Truly Really U Exist is an organization that incorporates the principle that you as an individual make an impact in your environment and the world that exists solely around you. You are the light of the world the salt of the earth through which lives can be changed for the good or alerted for the empowerment of your community.

B.T.R.U.E. Contact Information:
Kennedy Bosco
Phone: 832-657-9825

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Press Contact: Kimma Wreh
Company Name: TeKay Designs Inc
Phone: (832)4834864
Website: http://www.tk-designs.com

More Information: http://www.prweb.com//releases/2007/3/prweb514207.htm

African Vibes Magazine
Designer Spotlight
December 2006 - January 2007 edition
Link to PDF version of editorial

 March 13, 2005

Here Comes the Mother-to-Be

By MIREYA NAVARRO

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/03/13/fashion/13PREG.html?pagewanted=print&position=

LOS ANGELES

FOR her wedding last year before 100 guests at the historic Mission Inn in Riverside, Calif., Neomi Padilla, 32, wore a sexy spaghetti-strap dress from L'ezu Atelier in Newport Beach and four-inch heels.

Then she held on for dear life.

At the altar, she was unable to kneel comfortably. "My husband held me because I thought I'd fall," she said. Making her way down a staircase to the reception things got more precarious. Being seven months pregnant, she couldn't see her feet.

Only a few years ago, women planning simultaneously for a wedding and a due date would beg designers and bridal stores for dresses that would camouflage their growing bellies and - if they told anyone at all - would insist on silence. These days, however, brides are not only not hiding their pregnancies, but they are showing them off, celebrating the upcoming birth in vows and toasts, wearing gowns that flatter their bump, and, in short, refusing to give up any elements of a traditional wedding just because there is a baby visibly on the way.

Some bridal gown manufacturers are rushing out maternity designs and officiants are blessing more and more unborn children.

"It is a growing trend," said the Rev. Christopher Tuttle, a nondenominational minister who presides over the National Association of Wedding Officiants - with about 200 members. "It's all become, 'Hey, look at me. I'm pregnant!' "

The Rev. Scott Carpenter, a Unity pastor who presides over another national group of officiants, the National Association of Wedding Ministers, said that eight years ago he never had a bride openly announce her pregnancy, but now those brides account for about 20 percent of the weddings he performs.

At a time when pregnancies are obsessively chronicled and celebrated in celebrity and fashion magazines, it is perhaps not surprising that they are being showcased even as women walk down the aisle. But there are larger cultural factors at work as well: women are getting married older, and many are living with their husbands-to-be for years before exchanging vows.

"They're older, they're more confident," said Carley Roney, editor in chief of The Knot (www.theknot.com), a Web site devoted to wedding planning information. "Oftentimes couples are paying for the wedding, so they don't worry about what people think."

Mrs. Padilla, who runs a family food business in the Los Angeles area and is now the mother of 8-month-old Sophia, said her attitude was, "Why can't I have it all?' " She said she became pregnant after plans for a big wedding were under way, and she decided to stick to them.

"I'm 32, my husband is 34," she said. "We wanted a family, so we weren't embarrassed."

The timing of baby and wedding is not always coincidental. Even though increasing numbers of heterosexual couples live together without marrying, Americans still lean toward marriage once a baby comes because people think it will provide greater security for the child.

But if pregnancies have often led to marriage, they have not always paved the way for full-blown weddings if the bride was far along.

With today's pregnant brides, Ms. Roney said, "It's the flaunting of it where things are taking a turn. We're talking about seven months pregnant."

Or eight. Laura Taylor, 21, of Terre Haute, Ind., said her only concern about her Feb. 12 wedding was that she was cutting it so close to her March due date that she feared she might have the baby before the husband.

Ms. Taylor, who until recently worked as a cashier in a tanning salon, said she had been engaged for more than three years and, upon learning she was pregnant, debated for a week and a half whether to have a big wedding. She decided on "this huge blowout," including a Baptist church ceremony and a reception for 125 guests.

"I just decided, what the heck," she said. "I do things out of order anyway." "I thought about an ivory dress and my mom was, no, you're getting white. It's 2005."

Those who shared the limelight with their unborn babies on their big day say the pregnancy made an emotional occasion even more intense. Jane E. Smith, 38, a director of training and development with InterContinental Hotels and Resorts in San Francisco, said even her guests cried at her wedding last November outside Palms Springs when the minister mentioned her yet-to-be-born son, Miller Michael (who was born Feb. 12).

"It was so unique and so special," said one teary-eyed guest, Jeff Rogers, 38, an information specialist with Nike in Portland, Ore. "I just sort of went, 'Oh, my gosh, there's so much more going on here than just two people getting married.' "

But being pregnant for your wedding is not necessarily the easiest way to go, what with swollen feet, queasy stomachs and multiple dress fittings. Some brides wear fabulous gowns with white sneakers or slippers because they would be too unsteady on heels. Many avoid evening weddings so they do not tire out.

The brides toast with apple juice and switch or postpone honeymoons because they cannot scuba dive or sit on a beach drinking piña coladas. They also don't want to be too far away from their doctors.

Trying to finding the dress, of course, can be a nightmare.

"The most stressful thing I've ever gone through," Ms. Taylor said.

She first went to the store where she had gotten her prom dresses and, she said: "They told me there was no way they could put me in a dress. I felt they didn't want to help me."

At a second shop, "the dresses looked terrible; they were five sizes bigger than what I wear."

Ms. Taylor said she finally found a satin dress with lace overlay that she loved from TeKay Designs (www.tk-designs.com), an online clothing retailer based in Houston that specializes in maternity wedding dresses in the $150 to $800 range.

The company started out in 1998 selling wedding, bridesmaid and prom dresses, but in recent years maternity wedding gowns have sold so briskly that they have become TeKay Designs' specialty, accounting for 60 percent of all sales, or about 300 dresses a year, said Joseph Okyere, director of operations. He said the demand is largely because of the company's wide maternity bridal selection - more than 100 designs - and its relatively low prices.

"In 2000, we started getting calls from pregnant women saying, 'I saw this dress on your Web site, can you custom make it to fit a pregnant woman?' " he said, adding that now the company has "orders coming from all over the world."

Ronald Rothstein, principal owner of Kleinfeld Bridal, the large bridal salon in Brooklyn that sells up to 8,000 wedding dresses a year in the $2,000 to $4,000 range, estimates that 6 to 7 brides out of every 100 who come to his salon are pregnant and will show when they marry.

"It used to be that the bride would call us in advance and say they wanted to talk to us privately," he said. "Nowadays, the bride comes in and says, 'I'm pregnant. What am I going to look good in?' It's just an extra level of excitement."

While pregnant brides say they have found overwhelming support from bridegrooms, parents, friends, officiants and wedding industry vendors, some said social acceptance is not universal.

Joy Lynn Leech, 31, who was seven months pregnant at her wedding last August, said most people were "extremely supportive" but among her 200 guests she noticed some people conspicuously "quiet about the whole thing."

And when she called her Roman Catholic Church she was told that one priest would not marry her but another "would most likely not have a problem."

Mrs. Leech, a volunteer firefighter who owns a pony ride business in New Jersey, got her church wedding - along with a beaded, double-silk organza gown by Jane Wilson-Marquis, a New York designer; horse-drawn carriages; and a big party at Nanina's in the Park in Belleville, N.J. - but she said she was "slightly disappointed" that the baby was not mentioned in the ceremony. She said she did not push it for fear that the accommodating priest would balk at marrying her altogether "because Catholics are so strict."

Christian conservative groups that promote abstinence before marriage, like the Family Research Council and the Christian Defense Coalition in Washington, said that they found it positive that these pregnant brides were getting married, yet they objected to the message they may be sending.

"On one level it is sending the message that sexual activity before marriage doesn't have the kind of harmful emotional, social and economic consequences that can happen," said the Rev. Patrick Mahoney, a Presbyterian minister who heads the Christian Defense Coalition.

Carmela Pampillonia, a restaurant manager in Staten Island who was five months pregnant at her wedding Feb. 13, found her Catholic parish "very accepting" but waited three months for her priest to submit her request for review by his archdiocese. "I couldn't plan anything until they accepted me," she said.

But for brides like Ms. Pampillonia, however, etiquette was not on top of the priority list. "Marriage is supposed to be a symbol of love and unity, and a child brings you more love and unity," she explained. "I showed that belly off all night long and I felt great."

This news release was distributed by eMediawire on behalf of the organization below. (January 27, 2005)

http://www.emediawire.com/releases/2005/1/emw201484.htm

Athletique Inc. Introduces Their “All About You" Bridal Package Featuring Select Bridal Gowns from the TeKay Designs Collection and Sterling Silver Jewelry from Say It In Sterling

The company will feature three unique designs which are available custom and made to order. These new offerings complement the custom made dresses, tuxedos and tails that Athletique already offers to its clients and enables Athletique to completely outfit an entire wedding party. Clients who order their bridal gown and bridesmaids dresses by July 1 will receive free customized sterling silver bracelets for themselves and their bridesmaids from Athletique, provided by Say It In Sterling, Inc.

Brookfield, IL (PRWEB) January 27, 2005 -- The company will feature three unique designs which are available custom and made to order. These new offerings complement the custom made dresses, tuxedos and tails that Athletique already offers to its clients and enables Athletique to completely outfit an entire wedding party. Clients who order their bridal gown and bridesmaids dresses by July 1 will receive free customized sterling silver bracelets for themselves and their bridesmaids from Athletique, provided by Say It In Sterling, Inc.

“This is an excellent opportunity to offer TeKay Designs bridal styles to Athletique’s customers” said TeKay President, Kimma Wreh. “The fashionable and affordable bridal gowns selected by Athletique from the TeKay Designs bridal collection are absolutely fabulous and designed for brides who want to look and feel special with a custom fit.”

"We are very excited to be adding exclusive TeKay Designs to our offerings” stated CEO Terry Peters Cawley. "We chose them because of their unique designs and their ability to meet the custom made needs of our customers. By adding these styles, we are now able to offer a full line of custom clothing to bridal parties at affordable prices”.

Athletique is an innovative new company which offers custom classic and business casual clothing designed and manufactured for its clients. The company provides clothing, made to order for athletes and others who need or want a custom design and fit.

The clothing is sold online as well as by independent consultants and retailers. Their apparel is designed by pairing dozens of styles with hundreds of different fabrics and colors. Athletique is a privately owned company located in Brookfield, IL. More information can be obtained about the company by visiting their website at www.myathletique.com.

Started in 1998, TeKay Designs Inc. is headquartered in Houston, Texas with manufacturing facilities in the U.S. and overseas. TeKay Designs Inc. specializes in custom and ready made bridal, formal, maternity and ethnic clothing. More information on TeKay Designs can be found by visiting their website at www.tk-designs.com.

Say It In Sterling manufactures and sells custom made jewelry based on customers specifications. The jewelry is made from genuine sterling silver and gold filled accents. More information on Say It In Sterling can be found on their website, www.sayitinsterling.com

This news release was distributed by the PR Web Newswire on behalf of the organization below. (December 8, 2004)

http://www.prweb.com/releases/2004/12/prweb186074.htm

TeKay Designs launches the Gold Collection - a fashionable ensemble of unique ethnic and Afrocentric bridal and formal wear. The new ethnic wedding gowns are made of gorgeous dupioni silk, Guinea brocade, embroidered laces, satins, beads and trims designed for brides who want a European cut with ethnic appeal.

(PRWEB) December 7, 2004 -- Established in 1998, TeKay Designs has been designing ethnic and African-American wedding gowns, ethnic formal and bridesmaids dresses, and ethnic men’s wear. Seizing the opportunity to showcase custom made ethnic wedding dresses, the company has added the Gold Collection in addition to their original ethnic bridal and formal designer line (The Sankofa Collection). The recently released Gold Collection features European bridal styles complete with matching headpieces including ethnic accents and fabrics made of Guinea brocade, kente, dupioni silk, jacquard, crepe satin, silk chiffon, hand woven embroidery, embroidered lace, beads and decorative trim. The Gold Collection is appealing to the bride or groom who prefers a more fitted Western style with ethnic appeal. Appealing to a global audience, we source rich and hand made fabrics, lace and beaded trim from Africa, South America, and Asia to produce fabulous designs for special occasions.

According to designer and CEO, Kimma Wreh, “Our vision is to display Afrocentric and ethnic wedding gowns, bridal and formal wear for women and men in conjunction with African arts and crafts to the U.S. and international market. Too often the image of Africa is one of civil war and famine that overshadows the positive image of extraordinary creativity and artistry passed down from generation to generation.” From the streets of Ghana (the former Gold Coast) to the markets of India, Brazil and Mexico, Ms. Wreh has been exposed to diverse ethnic cultures and fashions where she worked with talented local tailors and artists.

The company has received numerous positive feedback from customers including Steven who commented that “Your Afrocentric clothing is truly beautiful! Flexible for multiple uses, yet completely stunning in any social situation! Thank you for allowing me to dress in a manner showing pride in my heritage at a reasonable cost.”

TeKay Designs Ethnic Website
http://www.tk-designs.com/african features an extensive collection of authentic African clothing, ethnic apparel, ethnic arts and crafts, and afrocentric accessories. The stylish ethnic apparel include custom tailored and ready made attire for weddings, bridal and formal, evenings, casual, and special occasions.

Contact Information
TeKay Designs Inc.
P.O. Box 692454, Houston TX 77269
281-807-0589
Alternate Phone Number: 877-293-2496
URL: http://www.tk-designs.com

This news release was distributed by the PR Web Newswire on behalf of the organization below. (August 3, 2004)

http://www.prweb.com/releases/2004/8/prweb146041.htm

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