It was almost a wedding. There were bridal gowns, flower girls, and Chez Alice Gourmet Cafe and Bakery’s signature framboisier wedding cake topped with raspberries, all in the ballroom of the Nassau Inn, under glittering chandeliers. Only it wasn’t a wedding. It was the second annual Palmer Square Fashion Show, held on Sunday, October 29. And the bridal gowns, from the Bridal Suite of Hamilton, were worn by models — just one part of a four-hour fashion marathon that showcased everything from children’s clothing to eyeglasses to lingerie and edgy, fashion forward dresses, accessories, and shoes with sky-high heels.

The audience, packed into the ballroom on all three sides of a T-shaped runway, nibbled on wedding cake, as the models — little girls and boys for the children’s show and “real” women such as Robin Williams, senior regional director of advocacy for the New Jersey chapter of the American Heart Association, strutted their stuff, all dressed up with somewhere to go. The models’ hair was styled into long bouncy curls or flipped out layers by Salon Vis a Vis. Makeup stylist Laurie Serenkin used Laura Mercier makeup provided by bluemercury. And an apt charity was chosen — attendees were invited to bring gently-used business attire to benefit the new Trenton chapter of Dress for Success.

— Jamie Saxon