Army Lt. Is "Modern Bride Of The Year"

From the battlefields of Iraq to the cover of Modern Bride magazine.

Megan Robillard is making that unlikely journey.

Robillard, 24, of Georgetown, Texas, was crowned the winner of Modern Bride magazine's second annual Modern Bride of the Year contest on The Early Show Friday.

She plans to walk down the aisle in the mountains of New Hampshire a year from now.

In the meantime, Robillard will grace the cover of the magazine's December issue, as part of her prize.

Robillard is a First Lieutenant in the U.S. Army, and recently returned from a 15-month deployment in Baghdad. She plans to enroll in classes toward her pharmacy degree while planning nuptials.

She topped some 2,500 other brides-to-be, from all 50 sates, who entered the contest.

The five finalists spent the week in New York City, and were judged in part on how they comported themselves, as well as how Modern Bride's judges thought they'd look on the cover.

The whirlwind week in New York "quite a different take from Iraq!" she quipped to co-anchor Harry Smith, beaming with her newly-won crown on her head.

Before the winner was announced, Modern Bride Editor in Chief Antonia van der Meer led the finalists through a fashion show of the latest bridal gowns and dresses.

Robillard modeled this one:

Look: Garden
Trend: Color
Designer: Claire Pettibone
Price: $3,300
Description: Ivory silk tulle empire-waist strapless sheath with embroidered pastel flowers
Antonia says color is in with bridal gowns! Yes, color! This dress incorporates color in the flowers. The body of the gown is an ivory tulle - a great material for a garden outdoor wedding. This look is best for daytime outdoors, but can be pulled off at night also.

The others:

Look: Hip loft
Trend: Short
Designer: Jane Wang
Description: Ivory strapless frayed organza mini dress with pearl & crystal horizontal beading. She'll also wear a Suzanne Millinery raffia cocktail
hat). Antonia says for a hip, loft wedding go for clean lines in a short mini dress. Strapless in and the frayed organza with crystal beading is a huge trend. This looks is added with some feather sandals - to make the entire outfit trendy. Short dresses are in! Many brides will have a gown for the ceremony and then change into a shorter dress for the reception.

Look: Beach
Trend: Lingerie-inspired style
Designer: No Ordinary Bride [formerly Richard Glasgow]
Price: $2,600
Description: Ivory floor-length chiffon crystal beaded slip gown.
Antonia says the trend here is lingerie inspired - light and airy made out of chiffon perfect for a beach wedding. She says sexy is the way to go for Beach!

Look: Historic estate
Trend: Empire waist, antique-y design, cap sleeves
Designer: Augusta Jones
Price: $2,700
Description: Ivory lace empire dress with cap sleeves and pearl and crystal beading at bust
Antonia again points out the details of pearl and crystal beading on this dress - extremely trendy right now. The cap sleeves adds a more covered up feel to the dress and hot right now in bridal. Ivory adds a softer and more antique feel to this dress. Empire waist is also a great trend right now - and fits well on many body shapes. This is dress that should be paired with a veil.

Look: Formal nighttime
Trend: Mermaid silhouette
Designer: Kenneth Pool
Price: $5,200
Description: White duchesse satin strapless mermaid ballgown. Antonia says the big trend here is MERMAID! This is a shape that can work for many body types. This gown is made out of white duchesse satin - which is a more formal material and better for a nighttime black tie affair. Beading and detail is always trendy and is seen on this dress. They decided to go for white instead of ivory bc it looked better against Quiana's skin. This is the classic, formal look in weddings right now. Pair this with a classic long veil for finishing touches!

For much more on Robillard, the other finalists, and the contest, click here.