May, 2011 | Manolo for the Brides

Archive for May, 2011

Wedding Invitations by David’s Bridal? Huh?

Monday, May 23rd, 2011

It’s starting to look like the David’s Bridal of today and the David’s Bridal of the past are not exactly the same beast. In case you missed it a few months back, Vera Wang debuted a lower-price collection at David’s – the White Collection, featuring a small number of wedding dresses and accessories, with a bridesmaid line to follow. A few years back, they even launched a small online inventory for the bride-to-be who’d rather shop virtually. An inventory that’s grown significantly since. And now wedding invitations by David’s Bridal, shoppable online? Apparently so.

Wedding invites at David's? Well, huh.

And they’re none too shabby, with plenty of fun patterns – including monograms – and lots of color choices. The main omission in their stock of invites seems to be embellishments – there are ribbons, but none of the little string ties and leaves and lace and pockets and charms that are still quite popular. Which I used to love, actually. But the older I get, the more I seem to like simple one-sheet wedding invitations with, say, letterpress printing or something that looks like it. One-sheet invites are easier to turn into keepsakes if you want to scrapbook them, and similarly easier to recycle if you’d rather not clutter up the works with a whole lot of paper.

So, you tell me: Did you know David’s Bridal carries wedding invitations now? Would you consider (or have considered) shopping at a chain for your wedding invitations?

Posted in Invitations, Stationery | 1 Comment »

Wedding Gifts 101

Sunday, May 22nd, 2011

It’s been a while since we’ve talked about that white elephant in the room, wedding gifts.

I know the thought causes an amazing range of emotions from absolute joy to abject terror to… well… whatever it happens to stir up in you. Some people think gifts are the best part of getting married, while others would rather discuss having public rectal surgery than consider the possibility of more stuff in their lives.

Honestly, I don’t care which camp you’re in or whether you’re somewhere in between. This is not my concern. After all, I did my thing. It’s done. This isn’t about how you should feel about wedding gifts or whether it’s okay to want or not want them. This is about the practical aspects of handling this particular part of getting married. If you want pressies, that’s great. If you don’t want them, that’s great, too. But the fact is you will have to deal with the question, and with people who make choices that don’t necessarily match your wishes.

Here’s the deal.
(more…)

Posted in Advice, Etiquette, Gifts, Guests, Registries | 5 Comments »

LOVE/HATE: The Naked Lunch Edition

Friday, May 20th, 2011

As Patrick Stewart might say: "I can see EVERYTHING"

I’d say this week’s LOVE/HATE is pretty self-explanatory. What we have here is a wedding cake that’s naked, i.e., not wearing any frosting on the outside. Naked wedding cake runs the risk of looking messy-messy, but I think this one’s a winner. Personally, I’d hate to see this catch on, because frosting is my favorite part of the wedding cake, but a naked wedding cake would be cute at a casual or glamorustic wedding.

What do you think? Would you ever let your wedding cake go naked?

Posted in Cakes | 4 Comments »

The Easiest of All the Reception Table Centerpieces I’ve Ever Seen

Thursday, May 19th, 2011

Okay, so many not the very easiest, which would just be letting a florist do your reception table centerpieces. But definitely the easiest DIY reception centerpieces that goes one step beyond simply putting flowers in a vase on all of your tables. I love it because it’s easy and simple and pretty in an authentic, easygoing way.

Eating jam, getting centerpieces!

The recipe for this particular low-profile mason jar centerpiece? Take nine mini mason jars per table – easily acquired online or by eating a great deal of jam and cheap pesto in advance of the wedding – arrange in a grid, tie a ribbon around the whole thing, and add water and flowers. DONE. I really wish I’d done this at my own wedding, as the look would have been absolutely perfect and so much better than the messy afterthought arrangements I did have on the tables (boo, hiss!).

And speaking of my own wedding, today just happens to be my and The Beard’s fourth anniversary! Mazel tov to us!

Posted in Decor, Receptions | 2 Comments »

Getting to Know You: Tell Us About Your Reception Meal

Wednesday, May 18th, 2011

I'll take one of those... and, ooh, one of those!

I don’t have to be invited to a wedding to be interested in the wedding reception menu. There are so many ways to feed your wedding guests, which means that a reception meal might be anything from champagne and cake (with a fruit salad) to, like one wedding I attended while in college, a full sit down dinner in addition to hours of buffet station and passed appetizers that were basically dinner. I’m talking multiple carving stations, pasta stations, bacon-wrapped everything… it was actually kind of surreal.

You may not be serving the kind of American outsized tasting menu consisting of full meals, one right after the other, but I am still curious! What are you serving at your wedding reception – or did you serve once upon a time – and why?

poll by twiigs.com

Posted in Food, Receptions, Wedding planning, Weddings | 11 Comments »

A Quick Look at the Royal Wedding Hats

Tuesday, May 17th, 2011

I did promise a while back that I’d have a look at the royal wedding hats before too long. Mostly because I myself love a good hat… and a bad hat, if it’s fancy and flashy enough! The royal wedding hats that played a starring role on the heads of Kate and William’s wedding guests definitely fall into both camps, from Princess Beatrice’s wild Cthulhu number to the Queen’s cheery yellow cake-like hat. If nothing else, some of the more spectacular royal wedding hats were gorgeously over the top and definitely eye-catching!

Would I wear them all? No. Do I love them all? Yes.

And had my own invitation to the royal wedding not gotten lost in the mail – damn the USPS! – I do believe I would have opted for something a bit more conservative than the head wear above. Perhaps something like this:

I'd be the bee of the ball!

Or this:

Maybe the bow of the ball?

Posted in Accessories, Guests, Real Weddings, Weddings | 1 Comment »

Consider the ‘Hows’ When Shopping for a Wedding Dress

Monday, May 16th, 2011

One of the things I think I regret most about my own wedding experience was buying my gown online. NOT, I want to stress, that I think there’s anything wrong with buying online if you’re not one for shopping. I just wish I’d gotten to have that wedding dress shopping experience that is so often cited as one of those special elements of wedding planning that bride will remember forever. Only problem was that in my case, shopping was difficult. My mom was in another state. As a freelancer, my schedule was flexible, but mostly when it came to daytime on weekdays – precisely when my girlfriends were at work. There was something about the notion of shopping for my gown alone that just plain bummed me out. End result, I ended up with something not quite right instead of, say, one of the Priscilla of Boston wedding dresses that might have been my first choice.

Want to know a secret about me? I still imagine myself walking into somewhere like Priscilla of Boston (which just happens to be local to me and just plain awesome all around), and getting the celebrity-style bride-to-be treatment along with my mom and a bestie or two, even though my hope is that I’ll never actually need another wedding dress! (Note: I am not the kind of weirdo who would actually go try on a bunch of gowns, fibbing about being engaged all the while. I’m this shy of being that kind of weirdo, but not there yet.)

Aren’t those just beautiful? …and there I go hypothetically wedding gown shopping all over again.

Indeed, if I had my whole wedding to do over again, I’d probably actually hit up an actual real live luxury bridal shop this time around after figuring out a day and time that worked for those of my loved ones who are ladies instead of just going it alone. Not that there’s anything wrong with gown shopping alone if that’s what you want to do, but I personally didn’t find my wedding gown shopping and wedding gown alteration experience all that jazzy. (Did you know that P of B – can I call it that? – can make a muslin before making your gown so it fits your body perfectly? Would have saved me a lot of hassle, that’s for sure…)

So that’s my sob story – no one to shop with, no pre-wedding pampering in the bridal salon. Now I’m asking you: What was the best part of your wedding gown shopping experience? What, if anything, do you regret about your wedding gown shopping experience?

Posted in Designers, Dresses, Wedding Dresses | 5 Comments »

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