Donation protected
My name is Tiffany Kelly, and I’m the founder of House of Ketubah Bridal (HOK Bridal), a sacred, one-of-a-kind bridal boutique located in Mount Rainier, Maryland. I created HOK not just to sell dresses, but to redefine the wedding shopping experience by celebrating marriage, wholeness, wellness, and covenant. HOK Bridal was born during the pandemic in 2021. At a time when brides were grieving the loss of big wedding dreams — going from guest lists of 100 down to 10 — we saw the stress, the disappointment, and the emotional toll it took on women trying to plan one of the most sacred days of their lives.
We decided to take a risk.
We opened HOK Bridal in a 1,500 sq ft apartment-turned-commercial space, and made it feel like a home. Brides walked in and felt peace. They were welcomed with tea, surrounded by their closest loved ones, and celebrated in a space built for rest, reflection, and joy.
We didn’t just sell dresses. We created our Signature Bridal Experience, where every appointment felt like a private celebration — intimate, stress-free, and unforgettable.
That risk paid off. Brides started saying, “I’ve never experienced anything like this.”
And now, we need help to keep it going — to protect the space that protected so many women during one of the most uncertain seasons of their lives. Every bride is still served tea, surrounded by love, and treated like family. But I’ve been quietly carrying the weight of keeping this vision alive, and we are now at risk of shutting down.
I’m asking for your help to raise $20,000 in 20 days to stay open.
In the beginning, I received help from my husband and a few friends to get House of Ketubah Bridal off the ground. But shortly after opening, we fell behind on rent while preparing for a grant opportunity that ultimately fell through. Since then, I’ve personally poured over $35,000 of my own money into this business. At one point, I juggled three full-time remote jobs just to keep the doors open. I still work two jobs today — all while continuing to show up, every day, for every bride who walks through our doors.
In 2023, our business slowed for a deeply personal reason: I lost both of my in-laws just 30 days apart. They had been married for over 50 years; a beautiful covenant that inspired so much of the heart behind what I do at HOK Bridal.
As a wife, daughter-in-law, and one-woman business owner, I had to cancel several bridal appointments during that time to support my husband and honor their lives. It wasn’t easy. But even through grief, I pressed forward, managing the shop, showing up for brides, and holding on to the vision.
I don’t share this for sympathy. I share it because this is the reality many of us carry — grief, family, work, calling. And through it all, I’ve remained committed to building a space where brides can pause, breathe, and prepare for a marriage that lasts. This season reminded me why HOK Bridal matters so much. Life is fragile, and marriage is sacred. And I want every bride who walks through our doors to feel seen, loved, and celebrated — no matter what she’s facing.
That’s why I believe in HOK Bridal. That’s why I’m still here.
Despite receiving three small grants and selling what I can, the rent keeps rising, and nearly all the money we make goes straight to rent and utilities. That leaves almost nothing for new inventory.
Brides LOVE the experience — the tea parties, the warmth, the intimacy, but so many tell us:
“You just don’t have enough dresses. I wish you had more styles to choose from.”
And they’re right. We need help restocking modern, reorderable inventory and paying back rent to survive and grow.
Here’s how your support will help:
Pay off overdue commercial lease and stay in our space
Keep offering jobs to our team and seamstresses
Purchase new designer inventory so brides have more options
Host bridal tea parties, bridal showers, and community mentorship
Finally breathe—and build a business that serves all brides, covenant marriages, and women with dignity
I’ve done everything I can on my own. I just need help now. If you believe in protecting spaces created by and for women of faith, community, and culture, please give, share, and pray for us.
Every gift counts. And every donor will be honored on our “Wall of Honor” at HOK Bridal.
Let’s keep the doors open, not just for me, but for every future bride who needs this Sacred and Signature Experience.
Organizer
House of Ketubah Bridal
Organizer
Mount Rainier, MD