The shoes I ordered for Samantha's wedding have arrived!
I ordered the shoes from David's Bridal and within a week they were on my doorstep. Michelle and I will both be wearing these adorable white heels with a bow detail and the bride, Samantha, will be wearing the same shoes in Malibu.
The last few weeks have been filled with some fun bridal time, which the girls (my fellow brides Samantha and Holly, and Samantha's maid of honor Michelle) have termed "Bridey". As silly as our name for it might be, celebrating, discussing our weddings, and planning has been really fun with these ladies.
Not too long ago Samantha put together a "Bridesmaid Day" to hang out with Michelle and I.
Samantha picked up two bottles of champagne from her wedding venue, a wine tasting center called Appellation California. Here is Michelle with our yummy Sunday afternoon treat.
Michelle brought chocolate and I added some fresh strawberries for us to enjoy with the delicious champagne. We spent the afternoon catching up on the newest details of Samantha's wedding planning, looking for bridesmaid shoes online, and watching the first Sex and the City Movie. It was such a fun afternoon. Thank you Samantha for having us over. :)
A few days later we attended a vendor event hosted by David's Bridal. Our friend, co-worker, and fellow bride, Holly was in attendance as well. The vendors included a florist, a bakery, a dj, and a candy buffet table service to name a few. Dawn, a photographer from Composure Photo and Video was there as well. She snapped this photo of all of us girls and a few days later it appeared on her website. Samantha and I look like we're headed to our first day of school with our binders. What can I say, we're organized brides.
Michelle also captured this photo of Holly, Samantha, and me.
The shot definitely reminds me of the old Saturday morning cartoon, Captain Planet. Anyone remember that show?! This picture is very "Let our powers combine!" Ha ha. If you have no idea what I'm talking about check out this clip:
The vendor event was a fun experience, but since Zac and I already have a photographer (Van's Studio of Photography) and the dj in attendance was not on the list of approved djs for our venue (Wolf Lakes) it was more of an enteraining experience than a productive one. Afterwards, Samantha, Michelle, and I headed over to Elephant Bar to get some dinner and cocktails. (Holly was unable to join us.)
It was a fun night with the ladies, getting our Bridey on. :D I'm definitely looking forward to several more days/nights like this in the future. Michelle and I have a few nights like this ahead of us as we have a bridal shower and bachelorette party for Samantha that needs planning! We're going to have a lot of fun creating some special events for the bride to be.
This week has gone by so fast and I realize that I have become a bit of a blogging slacker. I have been a busy girl this week and unfortunately I haven't been able to keep the blog updated with all the happenings lately. In addition to entering my third week of training for my new position at work, Zac has been working hard to cross items off of our Project Wonderland list, Jim is learning some new tricks (our little man can now high five/paw), and we have made a little change to the inside of our house as well. I'm looking forward to posting an update on our backyard project as well as our little indoor redo. Zac and I are pretty happy with the way that everything is turning out and we're eager to share.
In the meantime I have other exciting news to share...
You might remember my friends and coworkers Matt and Samantha from this post.
Matt and Samantha got engaged back in April and Samantha and I have been bouncing wedding planning ideas off of each other ever since. It's so great having another budget bride to talk to and figure things out with.
It doesn't hurt that Sam is a real sweetheart. (No I'm not talking about Jersey Shore's 'Sammi Sweetheart'. Sam is truly sweet minus all the reality tv, sassy, drama, fighting nonesense.) I really like hanging out with Sam and we have a great time together.
Recently, I was completely delighted when Sam asked me to be in her wedding!!! The invitation was such an honor and I happily said yes. Hearing that Samantha only intended to have two bridesmaids (her maid of honor Michelle and me) made the invitation even more special. I'm excited to be one of the two ladies standing by Samantha's side next summer as she says 'I do' and gets married to Matt.
On Sunday, I met up with the bride to be and her MOH Michelle at David's Bridal to pick out our bridesmaid dresses. Sam had done her research, looked through the David's Bridal website and already had an idea of what dress would be the perfect one for us to wear. We picked out a few other dresses to try on just for the sake of comparison, but in the end Samantha's internet choice turned out to the be perfect dress in person. Here we are with the final choice:
Aren't the dresses cute and fun?! Samantha's wedding dress also has pick ups in the skirt so our bridesmaids dresses will coordinate well with her gown. The colors above are not what Michelle and I will be wearing come next summer. Samantha's wedding will be a beautiful mix of blue, black, and white with a mix of polka dots. Our dresses will be in a David's Bridal 's shade of blue called 'Malibu'.
After we picked out the perfect bridesmaid dresses to wear at Sam's wedding, Samantha presented Michelle and I with a little gift from Victoria's Secret as a 'thank you' for being a bridesmaid. (See what I mean about being a sweetheart.) Just check out the cute "Sexy Little Bride" tank that Samantha picked up for me! So adorable! I can't wait to wear it as my wedding day gets closer (just another nine months to go). Thank you so much Sam!
I look forward to getting together with Samantha and Michelle a bunch over this next year as we celebrate and help plan to make a perfect wedding day for Samantha and Matt. I'm excited to be a part of their big day. Congratulations again you two!
As you might remember from this post, the bridesmaid dress situation was still being considered and I decided that it was best to wait until all of the girls were in the same place to choose the dresses that they would wear. This would give us a chance to see what dresses they liked, what dresses would look good together and next to my dress, and what colors were the best choices. The color decision (which you can read about here) was between a variety of yellows and a dark gray. I had some reservations about asking all of my blonde-y bridesmaids to dress in yellow. I was positive that it was not a color that frequented their wardrobe, but it was still worth trying out.
After looking through color swatches at David's Bridal, I found two shades of yellow (Canary and Sunbeam) and one dark gray color (Pewter):
Canary, Pewter, and Sunbeam
As you can see from the picture above, Canary is a much softer yellow while the Sunbeam color is a more vibrant shade. I decided to check out what the yellow colors looked like on a whole dress rather than just a small 2x3 color swatch.
Sunbeam
Canary
Pewter
The Sunbeam color was just a little bit bright for me. In person it definitely gets your attention, but I'm not sure it does in the best way. I could only imagine the look that Amanda would give me if I told her that I wanted her to wear this bright yellow dress! Although the color might make it's appearance in our decorations, there was no question that Sunbeam was out of the running when it came to the dresses. Instead, we would be looking for dresses in either Canary or Pewter.
So, two weeks ago when the girls and I went shopping for my wedding dress, we also chose their bridesmaid dresses. Since all of my bridesmaids were in the same place (something that might be difficult to accomplish later without some travel planning) it was the perfect time to take care of their dresses, too. While I was in the dressing room working my way into each dresss (the dress with the corset back took a while to tie up) Sarah, Amy, and Amanda walked through the bridesmaid dress section and picked some dresses to try on.
After I chose my dress the girls started trying on some dresses of their own. Before I changed back into my regular clothes, we thought that it would be a good idea to check the possible colors (Canary and Pewter) together to see how it looked. So the girl's all tried on a yellow dress and stood with me for a photo. *There will be no pictures of my dress until the big day so for now I'm a pixelated blob.*
Don't mistake those smiles for happiness....we were laughing at this image. The girls looked like baby chicks next to me. The all yellow dresses had an Easter-y look that just wasn't the look we were going for. It was clear that Pewter was the way to go. The look of relief on Amanda's face was comical. It made me wish (just a little) that I had strung her along for a little while longer and made her believe that I loved the yellow color. :) Also, seeing all the girls next to each other in the same dress really confirmed for me that I wanted them to each wear a different dress. They each have their own personality and character and seeing them all in the same dress just didn't seem right. So with those two decisions made, the girls continued on with the dress search. In the end, these were the dresses they chose:
Sarah's Dress
Amanda's Dress
Amy's Dress
We were excited to have found the dresses however we had neglected to refer to the David's Bridal color chart during our search. Though David's Bridal offers 42 different shades, not all of their dresses are available in every shade. Some of the dresses are only available in 20 shades. Unfortunately, Sarah's dress was not available in Pewter.
This seemed like a bummer situation. It was such a pretty dress and it looked so great with the other dresses, so it would have been a shame if Sarah couldn't wear it. We looked through the racks of dresses to find another one for her to wear. While we did find some that were nice, they weren't the same fabric as the dresses that Amanda and Amy had chosen and consequently they didn't look as nice together. Double checking the dress color chart, we saw that the original dress that Sarah chose was available in Canary. Sarah said that she had no problem with wearing a yellow dress. Having one yellow dress next to two gray dresses eliminated that Easter-y look that we saw when the girls were all wearing a yellow dress.
So in the end we decided that Sarah would wear a dress in Canary while Amanda and Amy would be dressed in Pewter. Not only would both of the wedding colors be represented now but Sarah would also stand out a little which is fitting as she is Maid of Honor. It was a successful shopping day! I'm so glad that my girls were able to find dresses that they liked and I can't wait to have them by my side on the big day. :)
On Friday May 20th, I had an appointment to go wedding dress shopping at David's Bridal. After getting a taste for dress shopping just one week before at Luftenburg's with my mom, I had an idea about what I liked and what I might be looking for. After my shopping trip to Luftenburg's I browsed through the David's Bridal website once again to narrow down the list of dresses that I wanted to try on. I chose 5 dresses from the website and made a list to take to the appointment. Here are the 5 dresses that I put on the list:
So on Friday, my maid of honor Sarah, my bridesmaids Amy and Amanda, Zac's mom Tammie, and my mom Roxanne joined me at David's Bridal to look for the perfect dress. I am so disappointed in myself. I neglected to bring my camera while dress shopping. This could have been a seriously huge mistake, but luckily I went with a group of ladies who came prepared with cameras in hand. A big thanks to these ladies for snapping pictures of each dress I tried on.
Amy, Sarah and Amanda waiting while I tried on dresses in the fitting room.
Kim, the consultant in charge of my appointment, was really great. She listened to what I was looking for and in addition to pulling the dresses that were on the list I brought in, she helped by suggesting a few other dresses that I might like. After taking a quick look around at the racks of dresses, it was time to start trying some on.
I tried on seven dresses and in the end there were three that really stood out. The votes were divided for a little bit until I tried the third dress on for the second time and the decision was clear. It was the only dress that made me hold back tears (I hate crying in public), and the dress that made my mom start crying and snapping pictures like crazy. The other dresses were both beautiful but there was just something about that third contender that made me say "This is the dress!".
I won't be posting any photos of me in THE dress. That will have to be a surprise for everyone to see on the big day. As it is, Zac will be avoiding my blog and my Facebook page until after the wedding. When I returned from dress shopping I asked him if he wanted to see the pictures of the dresses that I didn't choose. He very quickly shook his head and smiled. He told me that the only dress he wanted to see me in was the dress that I chose and he was excited to see it for the very first time on our wedding day. Of course this will make the next year pretty difficult for me. When I get excited about things I like to share it with everyone, especially Zac. Keeping this dress a secret, especially since I am so excited about it, is going to drive me crazy. Thankfully, I have a few saving graces out there who have offered an ear and have so generously agreed to listen to me blabber on and on about the dress whenever I feel the urge to show it to Zac. (Poor things might not realize what exactly they've agreed to!)
So here are the two dresses that caught my eye and held strong in the top three until THE dress found me.
Dress #1
This dress was the first dress that I tried on at David's Bridal. It was one of the five dresses on the list I brought in with me.
I loved the simplicity of it. There were small touches of bling and shine that made it feel special. The light weight fabric was definitely a bonus. Some of the dresses I tried on were SO heavy. Just walking around in them felt like a work-out; dancing the night away certainly wouldn't be an option.
This was the only dress I tried on at David's that had a corset back. The corset certainly did wonders for my figure but it took a while to get situated. I'm sure had I chosen this dress that my girls would have had quite a time putting me in it the day of the wedding.
Dress #2
The second dress was still elegant but added in a little bit of fun to the mix. The whole bust was covered in fabric flowers and the silk chaffon laid lightly on the top of the dress; the pleats floating to the side.
The dress did a great job at maximizing my bust and properly accentuating my rear. Not surprisingly, not too many dresses were able to do this. :P I have a smaller chest but JLo has nothing on my booty. Finding a dress that didn't "hug" that specific curve too much was slighltly challenging...at least in my eyes. A few of my girls were all for showing off the ba-dunk-a-dunk.
I tried it on with the cathedral length veil and it was almost the one. The only problem was that I didn't get emotional in it. I didn't have a special connection, that unique "this is it" feeling when I tried it on. Don't get me wrong, it was certainly a contender for a reason. All the girls thought that this dress had Teeny written all over it. For the most part it really did. I loved the fun, less traditional aspect of the dress, but it just didn't scream "wedding" to me. It felt too much like a party dress. If I could find it in a shorter version it would definitely be a cute dress to wear to the rehearsal dinner or maybe even to the bridal shower. Cute is not the look I'm going for, but if it was, I'd be all over this dress.
So what does my dress look like? Well, with my three wonderful ladies, my two amazing mamas, and one helpful bridal consultant, I was able to find a dress that was just what I was looking for. I wanted to find a dress that was exactly like my ring: simple, elegant, with sparkle.
When Zac heard that this was what I told Kim, he got excited. Since the day he proposed, he has assured me that if I am not in love with the ring he will happily exchange it for something else that meets my fancy. I wouldn't dream of it! I love the ring he chose for me. It's perfect in so many ways. The thin band is so elegant and dainty. Just knowing that he deliberated over which ring would be perfect for me and decided on this one makes it a pretty special ring. It makes me feel like I'm wearing a piece of treasure on my finger. I definitely think that the dress I chose compliments the ring nicely. I can't wait until Zac sees me, walking down the aisle towards him, on our wedding day. Only 343 more days to go, right?! :P
Since dress shopping is coming up pretty soon, I thought that it would be a good time to look through bridesmaid dresses as well. Sarah and Amanda live in Vegas so getting the girls all in the same place at the same time is going to take some planning this year. Everyone is going to be in town the weekend of my graduation (:D) so its the best time to get the girls in some dresses. We'll be making a trip to David's Bridal while all the girls are together, and we'll be able to see what the girls like and what dresses look good together. I would love for the girls to all wear different dresses. The color is still to be decided. I think that yellow dresses would be nice against the guys' suits. I've considered having them all wear different shades of yellow as well. In the end we'll just have to see what they all look like together and how the girls feel about them.
I've browsed through bridesmaid dresses on the David's Bridal website and sent a message to the girls telling them which dresses I like. I also sent them a few additional options. This way if they don't like the top three dresses, or if two of them like the same one, they have other dresses to choose from.
Hopefully the girls will all be able to find something that they like and will feel comfortable in. While all the dresses come in a shade of yellow, they don't all come in a shade of gray, so yellow might be the way to go. Of course the only way to know for sure what dresses we'll choose is to wait and see what they all look like in person. At least we have a selection of dresses narrowed down which is a great start.
I couldn't help but indulge in this moment. Who doesn't love a little My Best Friend's Wedding to make their day better?! :P (I'm sure Zac just immediately raised his hand somewhere!) No this post is not going to talk about how much it would be great to have a sudden singing outburst in a restaurant. (After the flash mob post I can only imagine what thoughts might be going through people's mind.) Nope, sorry to disappoint, but I am not crazy...well at least not that crazy.
One thing that has been going through my mind lately is the dress. Senior-itis has officially set in and during moments when I should perhaps be concentrating on class work or school projects I find myself thinking about wedding details. Lately, the dress has been sticking out more than the other details.
I kind of know the look that I would like to have on the big day but I am definitely keeping an open mind. I know that liking a picture of a dress in no way guarantees that I will love the way the dress looks on me. I've also heard that often you go in with a particular look in mind and end up buying a dress with a completely different look and feel.
I plan to go dress shopping with my girls when they are all in town at the end of May. I am so happy that they will all be in town for graduation! The day before I receive my diploma we're all getting together along with my mother and Zac's mom to find me a wedding dress. I am so excited. From now until then I'll be looking at dresses to get an idea of what I would like.
This dress by Alfred Angelo has been my favorite so far. After a little research I've discovered that they have the dress at Luftenburg's downtown. Our dress shopping adventure is scheduled to take place at David's Bridal but I think I might have to take a trip to Luftenburg's to try on this dress.
I love the details on the flared skirt. I wouldn't want anything that is too full too high on the body because I am a short girl. The top of this dress will make my torso look longer and not make me look like a big, old school cake topper.
The Alfred Angelo dress is probably at the very top of my dress budget. As there are a bunch of other things to take care of for the wedding I'm definitely keeping my options open and seeing if I can find other dresss that are equally beautiful but for less money.
Since the girls and I will be heading to David's Bridal to check out dresses, I started looking up dresses on the David's Bridal website.
1. This dress has a very similar bottom detail as the Alfred Angelo dress. I just love the simplicity of the top mixed with the fun detail of the bottom. The only concern that I have with this dress is that the flare out starts up at the waist. The skirt might be too full for my frame.
2. I really like the top of this dress as well as the detail that the belt adds. I'm not a huge fan of the small pick ups on the bottom of the skirt. I think that I would prefer that if the skirt is plain that it be not be too fussy.
3. This one is a little more flowy than the other dresses. I don't know how much I will love the flowy skirt but I think that it would be worth trying on.
4. This dress is very elegant. I would definitely need to make sure that I am in crazy good shape for this dress. It fits so close to the body that there is no way of hiding any areas that I might be concerned with. It is very pretty though.
5. Vera Wang now has a line of dresses available at David's Bridal. This was not really the feel I originally thought that I would like but I love the way it looks. The one shoulder is an unexpected glamorous look. The belt is an extra special little touch.
6. I really like this dress. It's simple and elegant but has a little bit of glam with the beading detail on the top. It's closer to the body which shouldn't make me look too wide the way a big flare would. I'm not a super huge fan of the bow on the side of the dress but I might love it once it's on.
We'll see what happens when the dress shopping day finally rolls around. Maybe I'll try on these dresses and totally hate all of them, maybe I'll love one that I didn't expect to....however it happens I am just so excited to be trying on dresses. I'm sure I'll find the perfect dress to marry Zac in.
