White as an Evening Gown

DISCLAIMER: This post is not aimed at you as a bride but as a wedding guest at someone else's wedding.

You may have noticed that more and more celebrities are wearing white colored dresses at formal events, such as the Oscars, Golden Globes and Emmy Awards, and while these events are not weddings the fashions inspire both designers and women shopping for a formal gown.

If you're shopping for a dress - formal or casual - for a wedding you're attending, again not your own wedding, it's not a good idea to wear a white dress.  Unless the bride asks guests to wear white because she wants a "white wedding" it is never appropriate to wear white, and the bride will probably be pretty upset if someone other than her shows up in white.

Bachelor and Bachelorette Party Scheduling Tip

I recently watched The Hangover, about a bachelor party gone horribly wrong. Anyway, I wanted to share a related tip that I think is very important.

Don’t plan a bachelor or bachelorette party the week, and especially the day or two, before the wedding. Unlike the film, I don’t think the groom or bride will disappear and possibly miss the wedding, but it’s possible that a flight can be delayed, someone can get a horrible hangover and be sick on the wedding day, someone could get in a fight or land in the hospital.

The week of the wedding is a very busy time putting the final details together and preparing for the rehearsal dinner, wedding, post-wedding brunch and the honeymoon, so plan your bachelor and bachelorette parties a few weeks or even months before the wedding so that you have time to recover before the big day.

Marchesa, Angel Sanchez, Amy Kuschel (and More!) Sample Sale

Gabriella New York Bridal Salon (400 W. 14TH ST. STE. 2A) is hosting a designer wedding gown sample sale with upto 70% off some of the most amazing designer gowns.

You'll find wedding dresses by Marchesa, Angel Sanchez, Sassi Holford, Amy Kuschel, Matthew Christopher and more.

The sale is one day only: Friday, February 25th from 12noon to 7pm

No appointment necessary!

Before you go make sure to read my sample sale shopping tips!

Vera Wang Sample Sale Next Week

I just got in from a movie screening and got lots of ideas for new blog posts, but I'm tired so I thought I'd share this announcement instead:

Vera Wang is hosting a sample sale on Sunday, February 27th (12noon - 6pm) and Monday, February, 28th (9am - 6pm) at the Vera Wang Bridal house (980 Madison Avenue, 3rd floor, NYC - 212-628-9898).

You'll find wedding gowns, evening gowns, shoes and accessories at a huge discount!

Here are some of my sample sale shopping tips to help you make the most of the sale:

1. Go to a sample sale with an idea of what you are looking for —- ball gown, strapless, lace. The best way to do this is to have already visited some salons and have tried on wedding dresses.
2. Sample sale dresses are not used, but they will be need to be cleaned. Ask the salon for the name of a reputable wedding gown cleaner.
3. Bring your mom or a friend with you. You'll need the extra help grabbing dresses from the racks and you'll also want their opinions.
4. Bridal salons may not offer alterations on wedding dresses sold at a sample sale, so ask the salon for the names of recommended seamstresses.
5. Sample sale dresses are listed as "Final Sale" so you can't bring the dress back for a refund or exchange. Make sure the dress you're interested in is really the dress.
6. Above all, trust your instincts. If it's truly the right dress you'll know. If you're not sure, keep looking. You don't want to end up having to sell a sample dress on your own.

Don't Force a Veil on the Bride at Her Shower or Bachelorette Party

When bridesmaids are planning your bridal shower and bachelorette party as the bride you have to let them know if you do or don't want certain elements included.

The bridal shower and bachelorette party are both thrown in honor of the bride so they are not under her watchful planning and style eye like the wedding.  While I don't want to suggest you bully your bridal party into planning the exact party you want, especially if they can't afford it, I am saying that it's okay to give hints on the type of party you'd like and the type of party and details you detest.

Tips on Handling Your B-List Wedding Guest List

I was talking to a bride and groom a few weeks ago about their guest list. They wanted to know how best to handle mailing invites to their B-list guests.

The venue could only hold 100 people but they had about 125 people they wanted to invite to their wedding so they put 25 people on their B-list.

I told them that the best way to handle it is to mail the wedding invitations about 10-12 weeks before the wedding and when they start getting “not able to attend” replies they can send the B-List invitations. Hopefully the regrets will come in sooner than later so when the B-lister gets an invite at the 6-8 weeks before the wedding point they won’t think that their invitation was late because most people send wedding invitations at the 8 weeks to go mark.

Now there are a few points I’d like to add to this post:

1 - Do not send a save-the-date card to anyone on your B-list because anyone who receives a save-the-date card is expecting a wedding invitation.

2 - Do not invite people to your bridal shower if they’re on the B-list because they’ll be expecting a wedding invitation to follow.

3 - Most RSVPs to come back first are the “attending” cards so you may not get a lot of “regrets” until several weeks after invitations have gone out, which makes it harder to send your B-list guests invites in a timely manner.

4 - Wedding experts agree that 10% of your invited guests will not be able to attend your wedding but that doesn’t mean you should add 10% to your guest list. Your wedding could be the one where everyone who is invited can make it.

Budgeting for Going Over Your Wedding Budget

So over the last few weeks I’ve become a fan, Dave would say obsessed, with the show Bones. It’s a crime drama. In this week’s episode a wedding planner is murdered and there’s a scene where the father of the bride and the bride are arguing about money. The FOB is explaining to his daughter that there’s no more money for a certain wine she wants and expensive orchids for the centerpieces. The bride is not happy with his answer.

When you’re planning your wedding budget I always recommend reserving about 10% of your budget for emergencies. Now, I’m not saying that fancy orchids or wine is an emergency but it’s quite common to decide at the last minute that you must have some detail that you hadn’t thought of before -- a bridal fashion accessory, wedding favor, floral detail, entertainment, etc…

By having that money on reserve you’ll be sure not to go over budget or have to stress about not being able to have something you really want on your wedding day.

Your Bridal Bouquet: What To Do With It After the Ceremony

You may have read that Kate Middleton will continue the Windsor family tradition of placing her bridal bouquet on the tomb of the unknown soldier.  Queen Elizabeth II and Princess Diana took part in this tradition.  I don't know if she will do it herself or if it will be placed there by someone else, but it got me thinking about what you can do with your bridal bouquet after the wedding ceremony.

Since the bouquet toss isn't as popular as it used to be, a new tradition of presenting the bridal bouquet to a special guest - mother, grandmother, couple who have been married the longest - has been gaining momentum.  But what if you don't want to give your bouquet away?

Some brides will have the bridal bouquet with them at the reception, lying on the table they are seated at.  Others may have the florist use it as decor on the cake table.  I've seen wedding cakes surrounded by a "wreath" of bridesmaid bouquets with the bride's placed at the center of it.

Or if you want to keep it in pristine condition you can ask your florist to have a vase filled with a small amount of water for you to place your bouquet after the ceremony so one side isn't crushed flat.  Best to keep it in the bridal suite so it doesn't get damaged by a guest by accident.  This will allow you to save your bouquet and either have it mounted in a frame or dry it out and save it as a keepsake in your home.

For brides who don't have room at home, or don't want to save the whole bouquet, take a few petals from each type of flower in your bouquet and place them in the pages of a heavy book to press and dry them.  Then you can store a few petals (the best ones) in glassine bags or envelopes and paste them in your wedding scrapbook.

Wedding Dresses at a Discount

I'm sure you've heard by now that Vera Wang just launched White by Vera Wang at David's Bridal.  Urban Outfitters, Inc. just launched BHLDN.  Both join a long list of designers and retailers (Ann Taylor, J. Crew, Black House|White Market) selling wedding dresses for a few hundred and no more than $1500.

I've heard too many stories of women buying discounted wedding dresses at sample sales because the price was right, not because the dress was right.

If you buy a wedding dress - even for a few hundred dollars - but you're heart's not in it you may find yourself buying another dress and losing  the cost of the first dress because the store won't take it back and you can't sell it.

When planning a wedding, on any budget, a few hundred dollars is a lot of money.  So whether you're shopping for a wedding dress off the rack, at David's Bridal, at a sample sale or at a bridal salon, make sure the dress you're buying is really the one you want.

Plan a One-of-a-Kind Wedding With the Help of Brooklyn's Best Vendors

Whether or not you live or are getting married in Brooklyn you’ll want to attend Wedding Crashers, a wedding fair designed for couples looking for unique wedding details.

The annual event is being held on Sunday, February 27th from 11am-4pm -- so you can stop by Williams-Sonoma’s special wedding planning and registry event first -- at the Bell House (149 7th St., Brooklyn 11215).

In addition to checking out wedding cake bakers, photographers, bands, wedding dress and bridal accessory designers, videographers, caterers, stationers, bands and DJs, there’s a fashion show by Gabriella New York and several wedding planning and wedding style talks - moderated by Vané Broussard of the blog Brooklyn Bride.

Following the wedding fair is a must-attend after party at The Green Building (452 Union St., Brooklyn, 11231).

Tickets are priced at $30 per person or $50 a couple for both events or $15 per person for the after party only. You can register for both events here. Or register for just the after party, here.

The first 100 guests wil receive a fabulous goody bag!

As with any wedding event you attend, don't forget to bring a notebook to jot down ideas and a tote to store all the business cards you collect!

Special (FREE) Event With Me at Williams-Sonoma

If you're still working on on your wedding registry - deciding where to register, what to put on it - as well as looking for some wedding planning tips to help you plan your big day, and live in the New York tri-state area, you may want to sign up (it's free!) for one of these upcoming events at Williams-Sonoma.

On Sunday, February 20th at 9am I'll be at the Williams-Sonoma store at the Time Warner Center, and on Sunday February, 27th, also at 9am, at the Williams-Sonoma store on 59th Street between Lexington and Park Avenues, sharing both wedding planning and style advice as well as wedding registry and entertaining tips.

These two special events are part of their Store is Yours series and is open to 40 people before the store opens, so brides and grooms will be able to create and/or edit their wedding registry as well as enjoy some treats!

To RSVP for the Sunday, February 20th event at the Time Warner Center (10 Columbus Circle), call 212-823-9750.

To RSVP for the Sunday, February 27th event at the 59th Street and Lexington Avenue store (121 East 59th Street), call 917-369-1131.

Hope to see you at one of these events!

Proofs are Important

I got the proof for the baby announcement today with an email that any changes and additional proofs made may cost me money.  There are a few changes I want to make and I was on the fence if I should order a proof or just send in the changes and send them to the printer.  And then I thought about it.

What if there's another error in the second draft that they don't see and the 200 cards are printed with an error?  I'd pay another few hundred dollars for the new print run, when a second proof may cost me at the most $100.  So I'm going to pay for the new proof to be safe.

When it comes to your wedding save-the-date cards, invitations, programs and other printed items I highly recommend getting a proof and checking it twice.  You may also want to have a parent, sibling and/or friend review copy before you even send it in for a proof to make sure that all spelling and grammatical errors are caught.

A New Kind of Buffet

I was at an event this evening and the caterer, Marcey Brownstein, had food served both by passed waiters and buffet style.  But instead of the traditional buffet, she set up these cubed bookcases, which I'm pretty sure are from IKEA, and created an "Automat."

The party's theme was the 1920s so an automat fit the theme well and guests were able to help themselves and waiters refilled the cubes from behind as needed.

There were several cubes with votive candles and there were signs next to the food so you knew what you were eating.

When working with your caterer ask them about alternatives to stations and traditional buffet set-ups.  They may have a creative idea that you'll love!

T-Minus # Days to the Wedding

The Knot created a royal wedding ticker (shown above) featuring the countdown to the royal wedding.  When I got married there were no online countdown clocks, but I had a clock that sat on my desk at work with the days, hours and minutes to go to our big day.

It's sort of weird when it reads "238 days to go!" because it seems like a long ways away, but as the days get to double and then single it's actually quite exciting.

By Googling "wedding countdown clock" you're sure to find dozens of websites with widgets that you can embed on your wedding website or blog, and while it definitely isn't a wedding must-have, it's free and fun so why not countdown the days?

If you know of a great countdown widget please email me or comment with a link to it and I'll update the post with your suggestions.

Thanks!

It's a Boy!

So sorry for neglecting the blog but I had a baby boy last week and blogging just skipped my mind!

I'm hoping to get back to the swing of things this week, but please forgive me if I skip a day here and there.