When it comes to placating a ready-to-brawl bridezilla or an overwhelmed bridesmaid, there is nothing like a trip to the spa. But while we’d all love to grab our best friends and head off to Canyon Ranch for the weekend, it’s not always possible. If you’re me, it’s only possible when someone else is footing the bill. The next best thing, of course, is buying The Beard a ticket to the big game (in a totally obvious ploy to get him out of the house) and inviting everyone over for facials and frozen margaritas.

Someone–you know who you are–was recently awesome enough to buy me the
Joey New York Hawaiian Spa Body Kit It’s full of good stuff like Seaweed Body Wash, Coconut Oil Body Moisturizer, Hawaiian Pineapple Hand, Elbow and Foot Cream, and White Chocolate Body Shimmer. Uh, yum? Why can’t they make these things edible? Anyway, it would make a super sweet gift for bridesmaids-to-be or for a future bride who wants a beauty pick-me-up but isn’t quite solvent enough to take a weekend trip to Canyon Ranch.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to go get my spa kit and my blender ready because it’s Friday, baby!

I’m a big fan of Watters & Watters. Their bridesmaid dresses are innovative yet classically inspired, and come in supple fabrics and gorgeous colors. They’ve got long dresses, short dresses, flowing dresses, fitted dresses, modern dresses, and classic dresses. I’m in love with this dress (boringly named ‘Style 7742‘) in the apple silk organza and mist floral silk organza with an apple satin ribbon. It combines a strapless look with a beautifully embroidered overlay that gives modest coverage. Brides can choose between knee length and floor length versions, and 17 different hues. And, wonder of all wonders, it’s not meant to be too tight on top, so hungry bridesmaids can eat without busting the seams.

I think a lot about my future wedding. Okay, I’m obsessed with my future wedding. And I’m not even engaged yet. Go figure. I kept getting distracted today wondering what I’ll toss to all the single ladies if I decide to carry a fan instead of flowers. Anyway, since I’m an organic kind of gal, I often think about organic wedding options. Earth-friendly birdseed. Free range chicken. A natural fiber gown. And, of course, natural beauty solutions.

I really, really like Juice Beauty stuff because its made with organic ingredients – you know, stuff you can pronounce. I happened to stumble across this hydrating facial kit that can help brides-to-be prep their skin for the big day. It could also make a fabulous “little something” for future brides to give to their best girlfriends when the wedding is on the horizon and tensions are getting hot.

Do your bridesmaids wish that they, too, were sporting big bling? Buy them these faux-fabulous princess-cut replica diamond key chains from My Divine Wedding and they’ll feel as iced-out as the richest rap star.

Can’t afford the wedding day jewels you’d really like? Lease ‘em! Adorn Brides lets brides drape themselves in luxurious diamond jewelry for thousands less than retail price. Of course, you have to return them after the wedding’s over.

People who don’t wear their wedding rings are more likely to neglect their children, according to a social psychology expert at the University of Alberta. Dr. Andrew Harrell lead an experiment in which 862 caretaker-children combinations were observed in fourteen supermarkets in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. “Caretaker neglect was measured as per how often the caretakers or their charges, estimated to be between one and seven years-old, wandered out of sight or were more than 10 feet away from each other.”

(I’m not sure I buy this. People have a lot of different reasons for wearing and not wearing rings. And it’s not unreasonable to let an older kid wander ten feet away.)

Not sure what being the mother of the bride entails? It’s Her Wedding But I’ll Cry If I Want To: A Survival Guide for the Mother of the Bride helps mothers help their daughter be the best brides they can be.

I love perusing the pages of Siri’s online catalog of bridesmaids dresses on days like today when the weather is crummy, I’m tired, and my to-do list is pages and pages long. Looking at their gorgeous dresses for the maid-of-honor and the bridesmaid (and even the alternative bride and fun MOB!) cheers me up in no time flat because going through their selection is like feasting my eyes on a rainbow. They have wonderful patterns and fabrics, of course, but, oh, the colors! All those vivid greens, oranges, blues, yellows, and pinks – it’s springtime in bridesmaids dress form!

As an added bonus, their styles tend toward the kind of classical patterns that work on a variety of figures. The halter, A-line, tea length dress above (known as the Siena Sundress) is summery and definitely re-wearable. While I like it in the creamy yellow Venus & Mars, this particular bridesmaids dress comes in a variety of other absolutely fabulous fabrics and colors.

I’ve been a bridesmaid once and a maid of honor once. Of course, when acting as the former I was something like eight years old and, when acting as the latter, I was doing so for an out-of-state future bride whose mother was handling all the arrangements. There are apparently a great number of things that I should have been required to do. To this day, I still don’t know what any of them are. If you have been called upon to act as a maid (or matron) of honor or a bridesmaid, there are a few good books out there that will help you navigate the world of showers, dresses, bachelorette parties, and your wedding day responsibilities.

If you know a bridesmaid-to-be or are a future bride trying to wrangle bridesmaids, these books can make great, stress-reducing gifts.

In The Bridesmaid Guide, author Kate Chynoweth covers everything from how to throw the perfect bridal shower, create a touching speech, wear an awful bridesmaid�s dress with style, or support the bride on her big day.

For the hipper bridesmaid, The Bridesmaid’s Guerrilla Handbook is a funny how-to tome that will help make the pre-wedding responsibilities seem more fun than frantic.

This book – part of the Everything Series, which I absolutely adore – is practical, down to earth, and covers just about…you guessed it…everything.

Though I’m not enamoured by the color of this organza and satin After Six bridesmaid dress, I love, love, love the style. Actually, the color doesn’t matter since it comes in fifteen other colors including a lovely dusty blue and a dashing dark lilac. Yum. Being that I’m in a hurry since I’m traveling to Manhattan to be there for the Pajamas Media launch, I’m going to list the reasons I love it and see what you, my faithful readers agree with and disagree with.

1. The halter-style top can flatter both the busty and not-so-busty ladies.

2. The A-line skirt will not reveal the true cuvature of the bottom or the hips.

3. The ribbon faux belt sits below the waist in order to give the illusion of waist where there is none.

4. Tea length = not too flashy

5. This dress need not be so tight. One size up to give the girls some room to move won’t necessarily make it look like a sack.

6. Finally, this dress does not scream, “BRIDESMAID!”

And there you have it. There only real problem is that one’s arms are entirely exposed and not everyone cares for that. Of course, I am talking about my ideal wedding here…and I still haven’t decided whether I will be a good bride or a bad bride.