Hey all,
Haven't updated in a while, Lily and I got busy, and we apologize. However, we expect to pick it up soon, with more interesting research and articles about our experiences with weddings! I've got one wedding to attend this summer, and two in the fall, so you can bet I'll have a lot to say.
As far as my wedding goes, nothing much has happened since we bought my dress last month. It looks like we're going to check out some bands in the next coming weeks--one is already booked for June 4, 2011! I don't think we should panic yet, though. This one we're going to see next week, Chateau, sounds like it'll be pretty good.
Here's a wedding predicament for you to think about. My cousin booked her venue at an outdoor location for this coming September, only now, the Catholic priest who was going to do the wedding has told her that Catholics generally can't get married outside. I knew that was the case, but I assumed the priest knew and just agreed to do it outside anyway--plus, some dioceses are more liberal than others. I know my Catholic aunt was allowed to marry my Jewish uncle in a hotel, and Father Burke presided, saying anything was better than losing a Catholic.
So what do you do in this situation? Should they stick with the venue (Waters Mill, in Dahlonega, GA) and get a Methodist or Episcopal minister (the groom is not Catholic; my cousin is), or move the wedding to a church?
Saturday, May 8, 2010
Friday, April 9, 2010
Wedding Dress Sketches
I was just sitting in my Social Justice class where we were discussing women and marriage. If you know me, you know that I think best by drawing through things, and so, my pen began wandering across the page. The next thing you know, I had a collection of wedding gowns!
The veils at the top and bottom turned out rather poorly, but hey, this is a doodle!
Enjoy the art!
Monday, April 5, 2010
Dresses
It happens all the time in movies. Or at least trashy romance novels. Girl swears she will never have anything to do with Guy. Girl meets Guy, argues with Guy...but then realizes she has fallen in love. Eventually she admits it, and everyone lives happily ever after.
I fell in love with a strapless A-line ballgown. It didn't want to, I swear. It just happened. But you have to admit when you're wrong.
I was wrong. Not in that strapless wedding dresses are overdone--they still are. But I was wrong to care about that. The only thing that matters (other than your budget) is how you feel in that dress. And if it's the most bridal wedding dress that has ever existed, like mine, so be it. I will no longer condemn brides for their choices in wedding attire, though I will still praise those who take the road less traveled (just WAIT until you see Andrea's dress).
I still think that brides should be open-minded about different kinds of straps and silhouettes. It doesn't have to be strapless to be special. It just has to be yours.
My dress is made of white taffeta and is A-line in shape. The bodice is corset-style, with pleats across the bust and a straight neckline. The skirt has a basque waistline, with box pleats in the back that I am WILD about. Because Derek reads this from time to time, I won't post the pictures of me in the dress up here, but they are available upon request.
I do think I'm going to add spaghetti straps to my dress, and take out the tulle underneath the skirt to make it less full, however, my sentiment about the strapless A-line dresses remains the same.
I fell in love with a strapless A-line ballgown. It didn't want to, I swear. It just happened. But you have to admit when you're wrong.
I was wrong. Not in that strapless wedding dresses are overdone--they still are. But I was wrong to care about that. The only thing that matters (other than your budget) is how you feel in that dress. And if it's the most bridal wedding dress that has ever existed, like mine, so be it. I will no longer condemn brides for their choices in wedding attire, though I will still praise those who take the road less traveled (just WAIT until you see Andrea's dress).
I still think that brides should be open-minded about different kinds of straps and silhouettes. It doesn't have to be strapless to be special. It just has to be yours.
My dress is made of white taffeta and is A-line in shape. The bodice is corset-style, with pleats across the bust and a straight neckline. The skirt has a basque waistline, with box pleats in the back that I am WILD about. Because Derek reads this from time to time, I won't post the pictures of me in the dress up here, but they are available upon request.
I do think I'm going to add spaghetti straps to my dress, and take out the tulle underneath the skirt to make it less full, however, my sentiment about the strapless A-line dresses remains the same.
Thursday, March 25, 2010
The chicken or the egg?
My wedding dress hunt has come down to two options. I do like one better, but only barely. The issue is whether to choose that dress, or choose the second dress because it fits in more with the time of year and style of the wedding (do not be alarmed--it is only a very close second 
place; I feel like a princess just as much in Dress #2, notwithstanding my long-held belief that "Princess comes from the inside").
Naturally, I conferred with my friends and bridesmaids, who, on the whole, seemed astounded that I would consider choosing Dress #2. To them, The Dress comes before the wedding, and the whole wedding should be designed to accommodate The Dress.
I loved Dress #1, but it really called for a Victorian-style wedding with its soft style and ornate beading. I can't see that kind of wedding being representative of "Me and Derek." Dress #2 fits in much more with what I had in mind, its clean lines and simplicity aligning with my idea of a summery, fresh affair.
What do you think? Which comes first: The Dress, or your Wedding Style? Or is it personal preference?
place; I feel like a princess just as much in Dress #2, notwithstanding my long-held belief that "Princess comes from the inside").Naturally, I conferred with my friends and bridesmaids, who, on the whole, seemed astounded that I would consider choosing Dress #2. To them, The Dress comes before the wedding, and the whole wedding should be designed to accommodate The Dress.
I loved Dress #1, but it really called for a Victorian-style wedding with its soft style and ornate beading. I can't see that kind of wedding being representative of "Me and Derek." Dress #2 fits in much more with what I had in mind, its clean lines and simplicity aligning with my idea of a summery, fresh affair.
What do you think? Which comes first: The Dress, or your Wedding Style? Or is it personal preference?
Monday, March 15, 2010
More Bridal Shop Reviews
1. Bella Bridal. Date: March 13, 2010. Shopping for: wedding gowns. Location: West Bloomfield, MI.
Wonderful store. The staff was so nice and patient, particularly Sonia and Ellen. I wanted to buy my dress there just because I liked them so much.
But I was disappointed with the trunk show. There wasn't anything to it: they just had an extra rack of dresses, ostensibly from Mon Cheri's latest line. But they didn't even have all of the gowns in the Spring 2010 collection--the one Mon Cheri uses in a lot of advertisements that I've seen, Keegan, wasn't even there. In any event, I didn't find the dress of my dreams (although I think my grandma did).
2. The Wedding Shoppe. Date: March 13, 2010. Shopping for: wedding gowns. Location: Berkley, MI.
This is a nice store. It's a little crowded, and the seamstress had to fill in for my designated consultant for a while because it was so busy, but I did get attention. I found at least four gorgeous dresses. I can't show you, because, according to the consultant, The Wedding Shoppe only uses private collections, so none of them are advertised publicly "because the designers want to spend their money focusing on quality." I know, it sounds like baloney. I did ask the consultant for the designers' names, and the designers do have websites, but the particular dresses aren't on there. Hopefully they're not scamming customers by tricking them into believing their buying a designer dress when they aren't. Next time I will ask for the specific name of the style. It's possible that the designers really do have "private collections" or, as my friend Andrea pointed out to me, those particular styles are just old.
In any event, I loved their selection, and their dresses make up my top two. And readers, I give you fair warning...I may have been wrong about the whole strapless dress thing...but I suppose it's good to admit when you were wrong, right? But let's just say I may end up with the plainest, most-bridal bridal gown of all time...and I might love it. More on that when a purchase is made, I'm going to wait for Bridal Fashion Week this April to see if anything better catches my eye.
Wonderful store. The staff was so nice and patient, particularly Sonia and Ellen. I wanted to buy my dress there just because I liked them so much.
But I was disappointed with the trunk show. There wasn't anything to it: they just had an extra rack of dresses, ostensibly from Mon Cheri's latest line. But they didn't even have all of the gowns in the Spring 2010 collection--the one Mon Cheri uses in a lot of advertisements that I've seen, Keegan, wasn't even there. In any event, I didn't find the dress of my dreams (although I think my grandma did).
2. The Wedding Shoppe. Date: March 13, 2010. Shopping for: wedding gowns. Location: Berkley, MI.
This is a nice store. It's a little crowded, and the seamstress had to fill in for my designated consultant for a while because it was so busy, but I did get attention. I found at least four gorgeous dresses. I can't show you, because, according to the consultant, The Wedding Shoppe only uses private collections, so none of them are advertised publicly "because the designers want to spend their money focusing on quality." I know, it sounds like baloney. I did ask the consultant for the designers' names, and the designers do have websites, but the particular dresses aren't on there. Hopefully they're not scamming customers by tricking them into believing their buying a designer dress when they aren't. Next time I will ask for the specific name of the style. It's possible that the designers really do have "private collections" or, as my friend Andrea pointed out to me, those particular styles are just old.
In any event, I loved their selection, and their dresses make up my top two. And readers, I give you fair warning...I may have been wrong about the whole strapless dress thing...but I suppose it's good to admit when you were wrong, right? But let's just say I may end up with the plainest, most-bridal bridal gown of all time...and I might love it. More on that when a purchase is made, I'm going to wait for Bridal Fashion Week this April to see if anything better catches my eye.
Friday, March 12, 2010
Several Bridal Shop Reviews
I forgot that part of why we started this blog was to review the wedding planning experience! So here are a few shops I've been to recently:
1. Demetrios. Date: early January 2010. Shopping for: wedding gowns. Location: Troy, MI (although they have several other stores around the country)
Demetrios was not too bad. The staff was very attentive, and great at suggesting gowns that I didn't think I'd like, but turned out to be great. I would go again if they had had THE dress, but for the most part my mom and I found Demetrios dresses to be too gaudy, particularly for a summer wedding.
2. Alan Ray Bridal. Date: January 30, 2010. Shopping for: wedding gowns. Location: Columbus, OH.
Very good store, the saleslady was very patient with me, and very attentive. She also let me and Theresa roam the store to pick out whatever we wanted for me to try on. They didn't have a huge selection, but Theresa and I did like the gowns they had, particularly the Maggie Sottero ones (I don't think it's just me--Maggie Sottero makes great gowns that seem to make every girl happy). They take very good care of their store--you are asked to take your shoes off when you enter the bridal salon.
3. Aria Bridesmaid Try-On Program. Date: March 6, 2010. Shopping for: bridesmaid dresses. Location: Lititz, PA (but it could be anywhere--read on an I'll explain).
This is a great program. Aria only has retail stores in DC, Boston, and LA. Since it is difficult f
or some to get out there to try on their beautiful, well-made gowns, Aria has a program where they send a potential customer dresses to try on at $15 each. You get to keep the dress for a few days and then you have to mail it back. Andrea ordered a bigger size so all of the bridesmaids would fit in it (so we didn't have to order two dresses for each girl), and we used potato chip bag clips to hold the smaller girls in. Unfortunately, neither style that we tried on was well-loved, but it's good to know that this program is out there.
4. Enchanted Evening. Date: March 6, 2010. Shopping for: bridesmaid dresses. Location: Lebanon, PA.
Great store! They are very careful with their merchandise; for example, I was not allowed to hold the gown until I had to put it on--the saleslady held it outside the dressing room and then passed it to me through the curtain once I was undressed. This makes sense--as the saleslady explained, when many people try on a dress, it can get snagged or ripped.
Additionally, Enchanted Evening offered a 20% discount if 5 or more bridesmaids ordered from them! On a $200 dress, that's a lot! (For those of you who are interested, Andrea ended up choosing this dress from Avalon Bridal for her bridesmaids, which we really do all love. It will be in dark red, with the sash being the same color).
5. Alfred Angelo. Date: March 6, 2010. Shopping for: wedding gowns and bridesmaid dresses. Location: Lancaster, PA (although Alfred Angelo has several stores around the country).
I wish I had more good things to say about this store. My appointment started almost a half hour late (admittedly, it was a Saturday, and I understand they were busy) and the sales lady was particularly pushy. She kept pushing me to name one dress "THE dress", when, to be ho
nest, none of them were even close. The wedding gowns felt cheaply made; none of them felt right.
The bridesmaid dresses were not too bad, though. No sales lady was needed for my girls to try them on, so I think they had fun, and we found some good dresses. Although--another demerit for our saleslady--we asked her what fabric one dress was made of, and she said chiffon. We didn't believe her, so we looked it up in the catalog, and it was crepe (good job Kristy, sticking to your guns!).
So overall, the Alfred Angelo store did not leave a great impression on me. I liked their bridesmaid dresses,* but their wedding gowns and salespeople were below par.
That's all for now, but there's more to come! I'm headed to the Mon Cheri Trunk Show at Bella Bridal this weekend in West Bloomfield, MI and then I have an appointment at The Wedding Shoppe in Berkley, MI. I'm having so much fun planning this wedding (and helping in all my friends' weddings), and I hope you all enjoy reading the blog and following along.
*I may still end up with Alfred Angelo dresses for my bridesmaids--my sister likes their designs, but she is in Argentina on study abroad right now, and I don't want to make any decisions until she can try something on.
1. Demetrios. Date: early January 2010. Shopping for: wedding gowns. Location: Troy, MI (although they have several other stores around the country)
Demetrios was not too bad. The staff was very attentive, and great at suggesting gowns that I didn't think I'd like, but turned out to be great. I would go again if they had had THE dress, but for the most part my mom and I found Demetrios dresses to be too gaudy, particularly for a summer wedding.
2. Alan Ray Bridal. Date: January 30, 2010. Shopping for: wedding gowns. Location: Columbus, OH.
Very good store, the saleslady was very patient with me, and very attentive. She also let me and Theresa roam the store to pick out whatever we wanted for me to try on. They didn't have a huge selection, but Theresa and I did like the gowns they had, particularly the Maggie Sottero ones (I don't think it's just me--Maggie Sottero makes great gowns that seem to make every girl happy). They take very good care of their store--you are asked to take your shoes off when you enter the bridal salon.
3. Aria Bridesmaid Try-On Program. Date: March 6, 2010. Shopping for: bridesmaid dresses. Location: Lititz, PA (but it could be anywhere--read on an I'll explain).
This is a great program. Aria only has retail stores in DC, Boston, and LA. Since it is difficult f
or some to get out there to try on their beautiful, well-made gowns, Aria has a program where they send a potential customer dresses to try on at $15 each. You get to keep the dress for a few days and then you have to mail it back. Andrea ordered a bigger size so all of the bridesmaids would fit in it (so we didn't have to order two dresses for each girl), and we used potato chip bag clips to hold the smaller girls in. Unfortunately, neither style that we tried on was well-loved, but it's good to know that this program is out there.4. Enchanted Evening. Date: March 6, 2010. Shopping for: bridesmaid dresses. Location: Lebanon, PA.
Great store! They are very careful with their merchandise; for example, I was not allowed to hold the gown until I had to put it on--the saleslady held it outside the dressing room and then passed it to me through the curtain once I was undressed. This makes sense--as the saleslady explained, when many people try on a dress, it can get snagged or ripped.
Additionally, Enchanted Evening offered a 20% discount if 5 or more bridesmaids ordered from them! On a $200 dress, that's a lot! (For those of you who are interested, Andrea ended up choosing this dress from Avalon Bridal for her bridesmaids, which we really do all love. It will be in dark red, with the sash being the same color).
5. Alfred Angelo. Date: March 6, 2010. Shopping for: wedding gowns and bridesmaid dresses. Location: Lancaster, PA (although Alfred Angelo has several stores around the country).
I wish I had more good things to say about this store. My appointment started almost a half hour late (admittedly, it was a Saturday, and I understand they were busy) and the sales lady was particularly pushy. She kept pushing me to name one dress "THE dress", when, to be ho
nest, none of them were even close. The wedding gowns felt cheaply made; none of them felt right.The bridesmaid dresses were not too bad, though. No sales lady was needed for my girls to try them on, so I think they had fun, and we found some good dresses. Although--another demerit for our saleslady--we asked her what fabric one dress was made of, and she said chiffon. We didn't believe her, so we looked it up in the catalog, and it was crepe (good job Kristy, sticking to your guns!).
So overall, the Alfred Angelo store did not leave a great impression on me. I liked their bridesmaid dresses,* but their wedding gowns and salespeople were below par.
That's all for now, but there's more to come! I'm headed to the Mon Cheri Trunk Show at Bella Bridal this weekend in West Bloomfield, MI and then I have an appointment at The Wedding Shoppe in Berkley, MI. I'm having so much fun planning this wedding (and helping in all my friends' weddings), and I hope you all enjoy reading the blog and following along.
*I may still end up with Alfred Angelo dresses for my bridesmaids--my sister likes their designs, but she is in Argentina on study abroad right now, and I don't want to make any decisions until she can try something on.
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Wedding Dress Exhibit
For any readers near Detroit, the Somerset Mall is currently showcasing more than 20 dresses from movies set in several time periods; it's a really fascinating exhibit. For example, I learned that these are pagoda sleeves:
The exhibit has all the wedding dresses from the movies made from Jane Austen's novels, my favorite dress being Emma's:
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