Archive for the ‘Bridesmaids Dresses’ Category

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Wedding In a Winter Wonderland

Wednesday, November 28th, 2012

There’s nothing like a winter wedding. Snow (if you live in an area where it’s common) makes a pretty backdrop for a wedding. And since winter is a far less popular time of the year to marry than spring or summer, it’s quite possible to get extra good deals on halls, catering, and flowers. And with all the decorative items on sale for Christmas, Hanukkah, New Year’s Eve, etc. it’s easy to get all kinds of pretty sparkly things to make your day beautiful on a budget.

Of course, there are some practical issues to consider, too. Weather is more likely to be stormy. One unexpectedly heavy fall of snow could spell the difference between a full house and lots of empty pews at your ceremony. Since many people travel for the holidays at this time of year, it’s also possible that you’ll wind up with less guests than you’d hoped due to family obligations or used up vacations days that won’t allow people to come out your way.

Once you’ve looked over the pros and cons and decided to set your wedding in the winter months, here are a few ideas to make it extra pretty and seasonally suitable.
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Posted in Accessories, Advice, Bouquets, Bridesmaids Dresses, Catering, Decor, Dresses, Food, Wedding Dresses | Comments Closed

What Price a Bridesmaid’s Dress?

Monday, July 2nd, 2012


(Image via Emily the Professional Bridesmaid)
We all know that bridesmaid’s dresses are expensive, and ugly, and not something you can ever wear again… unless you get an amazing break from a very special friend. But The Awl decided to ask whether the price of bridesmaid’s dresses has really increased significantly over the years in real money.

After all, you may have paid $35.00 for a bridesmaid’s dress in 1972, but after adjustment for inflation, how different is that from spending $200.00 on a Desigual dress today.

Oh, they also asked whether people re-wore those gowns. The answers ranged from women who wore bridesmaid’s dresses until they literally fell apart to one colorful tale I’ll give a highlight from:

As for wearing it again, I would fish clothes from a foetid river before wearing that dress again. I hung in the back of my mother’s guest room closet, and refused to even bring it home to Boston. You can’t cut up stretch knit for cleaning rags, after all. They don’t absorb. Although, against my usual environmental sensibilities, I hope it is in a landfill. I hope that in 300 years or more, it is excavated more or lest intact, causing the people of the future to acknowledge fashion travesties of the past that they must not repeat.

But don’t hold back. Tell us what you really think.

As for the results of the poll… well, they aren’t terribly scientific, based as they are on whoever happened to see and answer the poll, assuming they’re telling the full, unvarnished truth about the price tags, and realizing they didn’t get even one response that concerned any wedding in the eighties. Still, what they did come up with is kind of intriguing. Go check it out and learn more.

Then come back and tell me the worst horror story you have about a bridesmaid’s gown. Was it something you were forced to wear? Did you inflict it on someone else and now wish you hadn’t? Dish, folks! Let’s hear it!

Posted in Bridesmaids Dresses, Dresses, Fun stuff | 2 Comments »

Treat Your Bridesmaids Well

Monday, April 23rd, 2012


(Image via WedLoft where you can see some great photos of and thoughtful advice for dressing pregnant bridesmaids)

I’ve spent a lot of time over the past couple weeks catching up with a bridal reality show I’d managed to miss for a long, long time. Say Yes to the Dress Bridesmaids is yet another spinoff of the original Say Yes about shopping for wedding gowns at Kleinfeld in New York City. This one, though, is a spinoff of a spinoff and takes place at Bridals By Lori, featured in Say Yes to the Dress Atlanta.

The series is on par both in production values and general sorts of message offered with the other shows in the franchise. The search for a dress is presented as a power struggle with a villain, a damsel in distress, and the heroic members of Lori’s team arriving to save the day… or at least the appointment. And most often, in the episodes I’ve seen, at least, one or more bridesmaids take on the role of villain.

This can happen. I have actually been in a wedding where one bridesmaid ran amok and tried to change the entire wedding to suit her rather than the bride.

But my experience has been that the vast majority of bridesmaids, like the vast majority of brides, mean well and honestly want everyone to be happy. It’s just that not everyone may have precisely the same priorities and needs. Taking a moment to really think about your bridesmaids’ needs and priorities might just avoid some awkward situations along the way.
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Posted in Advice, Attendants, Bridesmaids, Bridesmaids Dresses, Bridesmen, Dresses, Junior Bridesmaids | Comments Closed

LOVE/HATE Where Do You Put a Bra?

Friday, March 2nd, 2012


Let’s take a look at this bridesmaids’ dress.

Attractive color, check. Pockets, check. Choice of knee or floor length, check. Rewearable? Pretty decent chance, check. Comes in sizes up to 24, which is great.

But that’s a mighty low plunge in front. Well, maybe if I find a plunge bra with a transparent front closure…

… whoops! I guess that won’t work, either. Better hope all the maids are A cups who don’t fear a wardrobe malfunction! Either that, or give all the girls wedding cardigans to cover up the dresses you chose.

So while I love nearly everything about this dress, I still have to go with HATE here, because of the impracticality and strong probability that at least one girl will spend the entire wedding desperately trying to rein in her girls.

Posted in Bridesmaids Dresses, Dresses, LOVE/HATE | 5 Comments »

Inspiration: Neon

Saturday, February 18th, 2012

When thinking about wedding colors, many of us tend toward pastels or deep jewel tones. Neutrals also have a strong following. But what about neon?

I know, it struck me – child of the sixties and Yellow Submarine fan though I am – as possibly a bit scary and OTT… until I saw it done right.

The key, as shown in this fabulous photo of a real wedding featured at Design Sponge, is restraint. Keep the backgrounds to stark white or black, and use the neons sparingly. Stick to just a couple colors, but don’t fear them.

As you can see here, a bright white background and carefully considered touches of neon pink, neon orange, and lime green make for a festive, fun, yet surprisingly sophisticated look.
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Posted in Accessories, Bouquets, Bridesmaids Dresses, Cakes, Colors, Dresses, Flowers, Inspiration | 4 Comments »

Lhuillier’s Lulu of a Bridesmaid’s Collection

Friday, February 10th, 2012


At long last, it’s here! Monique Lhuillier’s much anticipated bridesmaid’s collection has been unveiled, and I have to say I’m liking a lot of what I see.

For instance, I love this crinkle chiffon one shoulder gown in eggplant. It’s perfectly on trend for today, but will look classy in a wedding album for decades to come.

Overall, there’s a lot of chiffon and a lot of taffeta in the collection, and a nice range of mostly rather deep or muted shades ranging from plum and eggplant to sage and leaf green to a very zen sky blue to a soft, warm yellow that makes my mouth water. Both short and long looks are shown, mostly either strapless or one shoulder looks, though there are a couple with two straps. No sleeves, alas, but at least it’s a line designed with spring in mind.

In fact, the lowest note I saw in the collection was a strapless, leaf green column dress that reminded me a bit too much of tossing on an oversized towel on leaving the shower. Still, even that one I believe could be saved with the right accessories.

Prices range from $275 to $395. Not chump change, but pretty sweet prices for such a big name designer. All in all… yeah, I think Monique did a pretty great job on these.

Posted in Attendants, Bridesmaids, Bridesmaids Dresses, Designers, Dresses, Monique Lhuillier | 1 Comment »

LOVE/HATE: Bridal Party Prints

Wednesday, February 1st, 2012


(Image via Brides.com)
When thinking about what the wedding party will look like, many brides have a clear vision right from the start. Some imagine matching dresses, shoes, jewelry, make up, and hairstyles for all. Some think of a single-color free-for-all where she says ‘blue’ and everybody just goes out and gets what they want, and then styles it their own way.

One thing both generally have in common is the assumption that these dresses will be in a solid color… but that’s not in any way required.

I’m not personally all that wild about this particular Betsey Johnson dress worn by the bridal party above… but I really like the idea behind it. I think it might be fun to see more weddings where the bridesmaids wear stripes or floral prints or polka dots. It’s festive, and my guess is that a lot of women who will never, ever, ever on pain of death wear that shell pink chiffon evening gown or the emerald green taffeta ballgown again might actually haul this little sundress out of the closet and wear it for a variety of occasions.

So, yeah, I’m going with LOVE on this trendlette. I’d like to see a lot more of it.

Posted in Bridesmaids Dresses, Dresses, LOVE/HATE | Comments Closed

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