PORT ANGELES — Port Angeles bridal gown merchant Belva Bodey has two dresses in her downtown shop that has customers flocking from around the globe.
Call it the Twilight effect.
Bodey’s Black Diamond Bridal Shop at 109 E. First St., Port Angeles, has an exact copy of Bella Swan’s blue prom dress — as worn by actress Kristen Stewart in the movie version of the best-selling novel, Twilight, which was released last year.
The shop also has a copy of a green, silk taffeta dress that Stewart, as Bella, wears in the upcoming sequel, “New Moon,” which is to be released in November.
That dress has only been glimpsed in the movie trailer, but orders are already coming in from around the world.
Twilight saga fans have flocked to Forks and Port Angeles in search of the sites mentioned in Arizona author Stephenie Meyer’s four-novel series of vampires and teen love set in Forks.
Meyer — who, it was learned last week, bought a house on Marrowstone Island, on the other side of the North Olympic Peninsula from rainy Forks — has her characters run into Port Angeles to shop.
Bodey said her dress shop — which she moved from her home-based shop on Black Diamond Road to the downtown location two months ago — is the one that Meyer describes, since Bella bought her prom dress from a bridal shop run out of a home.
“I was the only one,” Bodey said.
A sign in Bodey’s window — which is located just a few doors down from “Dazzled by Twilight” a store specializing in Twilight memorabilia and souvenirs — proclaims the store as “Bella’s Official Prom Shoppe.”
Bodey said she had the dresses made by a company in China, and was impressed by the quality and accuracy.
Delivery of the dresses took about four weeks.
The blue, halter-style prom dress, which has three rows of ruffles, is made from sheer cotton jersey.
The green party dress is silk taffeta flocked with black roses, and topped with an elbow-length black velvet jacket.
“It’s really exquisite,” Bodey said.
Bodey donated one blue dress to be auctioned off for charity at the recent TwilightFest in Port Angeles, raising $160 for the Olympic Peninsula Chapter of the American Red Cross.
She has three more blue dresses, priced at $139, and four green dresses with jacket for $229.
Bodey said she’s been getting orders for the dresses from around the world, after her story ran on several Internet news sites.
“It’s been a really successful venture,” she said.
And Twilight fans have been flocking in.
“They’ll stop and try to take pictures of the dress in the window,” Bodey said.
“But the flash makes that difficult. They are surprised when I tell them they can come in.”
And it’s not just young girls.
Bodey has a guest book that has been signed by Twilight fans from around the world, including a father and son from England.
While Internet sales may be brisk, Bodey plans to order more of the dresses for in-house sales.
“I want girls locally to be able to have them, too,” she said.
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Features Editor Marcie Miller can be reached at 360-417-3550 or at marcie.miller@peninsuladaily news.com.
