Update! 2009 Wedding Trends are Rocking!

The trends in weddings are changing just like the times are changing for all of us.
We are seeing smaller weddings, nontraditional weddings and destination weddings as a response to the economy.

• Colors: From the Wedding Report, the brides in the next 18 months are choosing cool colors over warm colors for their weddings. Blue dominates over any other color, we are seeing a lot of brides leaning toward Tiffany blue . The next hot cool color is the purple family followed by greens.

• Cost: The average cost of a wedding has dipped 12% to $19,212. Demand is lower for limos, with many couples choosing to rent a luxury car for the day instead of a limousine. Demand is also down for videographers, with many people choosing to have a professional photographer take their wedding pictures and have their family or friends video the wedding.

• Eco Friendly: Many weddings are "going green" with eco friendly invitations, organic foods and eco friendly favors.

• DIY weddings: Many brides are doing it themselves. She is tackling jobs herself instead of paying to have it done in order to save money. It can range from printing her own wedding invitations, to making her own centerpieces and anything in between.

• Destination weddings: A lot of couples are foregoing traditional weddings and having destination weddings. The trend to destination weddings is because many couples have blended families, don't want the hassle or just want a quiet wedding in an exotic destination. Read more about destination weddings here.

• Fashion Trends: Ready to wear influences what is happening in weddings and the trends trickle down. Here's what is hot in ready to wear that you can expect to see in weddings soon.
  
• More tiaras, yes, tiaras for everyone in your wedding party.
  
• Scarves worn with the dresses. Scarves are everywhere, even in the summer.
  
• Textured footwear: Animal print shoes or animal embossed shoes for the bridesmaids instead of satin dyed to match shoes.
  

Wondering About Your Wedding Day Weather?

Are you stressing out over the weather on your wedding day, especially if you are planning a destination wedding or an outdoor wedding? Do you want to know when the sun sets on your wedding day so you can exchange vows at sunset?

I came across a cool tool on the Weather Channel called My Wedding Weather.

This shows you the history of the weather on your wedding date. You can also compare the weather at different locations and there are tools to help you set the date according to the weather at that location. Very cool and very helpful, but remember no one can fully predict Mother Nature.

Wedding Makeup Photography Tips

Put your best face forward in your wedding
pics and we have some tips to help you from
a wedding photographer. We interviewed her
and here are her observations:

"Brides tend to either over do the makeup
as in clown makeup. Some hire makeup artists
who go heavy on the kohl makeup. Avoid
charcoal eyeshadow for the wedding. It looks
smudged in the photos.

Instead, go for a more natural look. Use pinks
instead of harsh reds..pink blushers, pink
accents on the eyes. Pink opens up the eyes.

Avoid sparkles on the face and body. They
pick up the camera flash and don't look good
in the pictures.

Mascara is a must, it frames and opens the eyes.

Keep the makeup natural, match it to you skin tones,
but you HAVE to wear some makeup. Brides that
think they want to go completely natural are
missing the boat because they fade in the photos."

So I asked my beauty maven what she thought
and she said that all the tips are excellent.
Here's what she said:

"To keep makeup in place all day, use a face
primer. It really does the job.

Great makeup starts with a great complexion.
If you don't have a perfect complexion, start
working on it months before the wedding.
Drink lots of water, get rest because it
really works. And avoid stress. (As IF
that's possible during wedding planning!)

Start on a facial program. Any program including
the ones from the drug store are better
than not taking care of your skin. Moisturize,
use a sunscreen, exfoliate to get rid of dead,
dull skin and brighten your complexion.
Go to a dermatologist if your skin is acne
prone and uneven. Or visit a good skin esthetician
who will give you facials and advise you
what to do to care for your skin.

I advise facials and if your skin is dull, blotchy
and uneven, go for microdermabrasion treatments."

All great tips and I have to admit I've been going
for microdermabrasion treatments and the results
are good...so far. It does hurt the first time and
my face was a bit touchy and tender, but I didn't
have red blotches and I was able to put on makeup
and go about my day without anyone knowing. It
has evened up my skin tone and I love it.
Just know if you are thinking of having this done,
you need to start a few months in advance to
get the maximum benefit.

Are Wedding Registries Getting Ridiculous?

Wedding registries has been a hot topic with brides discussing their registries with the reverence of one talking of the birth of their first child. Makes me wonder if they are getting married to furnish their homes instead of making a life long commitment to their life partner.

I am beginning to think that wedding registries are created by corporate America to sell, sell and sell some more useless items to pad their bottom line.

Case in point: I got invited to a wedding where I know the grooms parents, but haven't seen the groom since he was little and couldn't pick him out of a police line up. I don't know anything about him or the bride. How we got invited is beyond me since I haven't seen his parents in two or three years. Since work is conflicting and the wedding is two hours away, we politely declined the invitation and set about to send a gift.

OMG...after a lot of head smacking and screaming WTF a few times, I make my husband look at their gift registries, no less than four of them. The couple registered for a 52" flat screen TV, a Canon SLR camera with a discounted price of $749, a deluxe outdoor gas grill to make any man break down in tears of joy, a wii with the wii fit bundle, a home stereo system, a Garmin GPS, a sofa bed, end tables, crystal lamps, an entertainment center, sterling silver flatware (didn't know anyone but my Grandma that wanted that!), high end luggage, a beer refrigerator with door tap AND a beer cooler, a wine refrigerator, a sterling silver tea set, 1000 thread count Egyptian cotton sheets, a camcorder with 42X zoom, an Aero garden with accessories, a Kitchen Aid mixer with ravioli attachment (the attachment is $149.00!!), china, crystal, a food dehydrator, a juicer, convection oven and expensive artwork and paintings.

Needless to say, no one has purchased anything high end. Seriously, what were they thinking when they registered? Do you really need a 52" wide screen TV? My husband says yes. Will they use the china and sterling flatware? Probably once or twice because people don't host dinner parties where they break out the good china unless you travel in high society. This couple doesn't. My own china is gathering dust in the cupboard, I've chalked it up as a big waste of my $$$$. When you have kids, you don't want to use it. Its pretty, but not useful. Are you listening brides? You PROBABLY WON'T EVER USE IT...you'll use nice everyday dishes. Register for a a good set of everyday dishes.

And then there is the really ridiculous. A close, repeat close family member was cajoled into registering. They had a brand new house full of new furniture and gadgets and didn't need anything. Her future mother in law insisted they register for what they want. So they registered for Doritos and salsa, video games, hand crafted beer, tampons, paper towels and paper plates. Mind you, these people have PHD's! And they did get the Doritos and were thrilled. I gave $$$.

So, I'm back to the usual...a gift card. Buy what you want. I have a headache from reading the registries. You figure out how to make it cover what you want.

I want to create my own registry, just because. I want a hard top convertible, a cruise through the Greek islands, some spa treatments, a nip here, a tuck there, a new wardrobe and a date with George Clooney. Think anyone will help fund my fantasy?

What Happened To Isaac Mizrahi For Target Wedding Dresses?

What has happened to the much hyped line by Isaac Mizrahi wedding dresses that he designed for Target? They seemed to have disappeared from the radar.

Issac Mizrahi designed a very simple, inexpensive (cough, cheap) wedding dresses for Target that were hyped as THE wedding dress that was going to take the country by storm. I personally thought the dresses were glorified out dated brides maid dresses cut in white or ivory. The fit on the models was bad. I saw several of them and the fabric left a lot to be desired. (cough, cheap fabric).

Now, I like Target for deals on huge boxes of laundry detergent. And I'm not questioning Isaac Mizrahi's design talent. I just think its darn near impossible to deliver a quality, good fitting dress for under a $100.00. Brides shopping in this price range want style...they want more than Target offered in these dresses.

A few weeks ago, I found several on clearance, but they seem to have disappeared. Hey, Isaac, the next time you decide to do a cheap wedding dress line, call me. I have some ideas to share. In the meantime, it looks like this idea sunk.




Isaac Mizrahi with one of his wedding dress designs. Here's what I see as wrong with this dress....the straight across neckline is not flattering when you add the sheer panel. Sheer panel tops have not been popular in years. The fit of the skirt on the hips is bad and there isn't enough flare in the bottom of the skirt to balance the dress. And the flare is too low for anyone shorter than model length.

And why am I am expert? I've sold wedding dresses for eons..and my mother is a dress designer who taught me everything she knows. I can do pattern making, I can slope, I can tailor, I can and do any bridal alterations. Isaac, take away the sheer panel. Cut the dress strapless with a sweetheart neckline and add minimal beading, adjust the fit on the hips and flare out the skirt higher than the knee area and you have a winner on different body types. Call me Isaac or call me Target.
There IS a market for inexpensive wedding dresses.

Hero Bride

In my post about the hero bride, Georgette Clemons, I asked if anyone would step up and offer to clean her wedding dress...and this is what I received:

Wedding Gown Preservation Company said...

Kudos to the heroic bride.

We own Wedding Gown Preservation Company and would like to clean and preserve Georgette's wedding gown free of charge.

Please contact me at sues@gownpreservation.com

Sue Schapiro
Wedding Gown Preservation Company
707 North Street
Endicott, NY 13760
www.gownpreservation.com

NOTE: We've used Wedding Gown Preservation Company to clean wedding dresses for many years and they do an amazing job. They cleaned my mom's dress that had been stored away for many years and made it look like new. Thanks, Sue, for your generous offer! If you know Georgette, please pass this on to her.

Bride Hero: Georgette Clemons

Our kudos go to bride hero, Georgette
Clemons of Bridgeport, CN. Georgette
ran into a burning house to alert the
residents of a fire dressed
in her wedding dress. She was on her way
home from the reception when she saw
the smoke and instructed the driver to
stop.

She ran into the home when she saw
someone inside who was trying to save
her pets. She managed to get them to
leave and the residents and pets were
all saved, but the house wasn't.

Her dress was blackened and her shoes
were ruined, but all our hero said was:
"It's been an eventful day." God love her,
we salute our fearless bride.

Here's hoping someone will step up to
the plate and replace her shoes and
clean her dress. Read the entire
story here: Connecticut Post

I LOVE reading about awesome
brides and Georgette is the
most awesome of the awesome.
Her hubby is one lucky guy!

Combining Wedding Themes To Make A Statement

OK, its hard to pick a wedding theme
that expresses your style. Some wedding themes
are almost there, but they miss by a few
degrees. Why not combine wedding themes
to make a personalized statement and
make your wedding stand out from
everyone's wedding?



Combine a sunflower theme with
an animal print. Use favors in an
animal print, use vases of
sunflowers on the tables and in
the bouquets of the bridesmaids.
Incorporate the same animal print
in your invitations or as table
toppers.

What about combining an
eco friendly green wedding with
an Out of Africa theme? Use
eco friendly favors, top the tables
with an African theme table topper,
use animals like giraffes and elephants
for centerpieces grazing in pots of
live grass. Decorate with lots of
tall grasses.






Combine a Tiffany blue theme with a starry
night theme. Use Tiffany blue as your main
color, silver stars as accents. Use silver as
the accent, hang silver stars from the ceiling
on fishing line so they seem to float.



Here's more ideas:
A military theme with a 4th of July theme.
Color scheme is a no brainer. Top it off
with a fireworks display.

Use a cottage theme with wildflowers and
peonies and combine it with a butterfly
theme. Stencil a butterfly on your
aisle runner, put little white wire
bird cages with flowers and butterflies
in them as centerpieces.

Any other imaginative ideas?

Total Sweetness: A Candy Buffet At Your Wedding Reception

The last wedding I attended treated the
guests to a candy buffet. It was a hit with
guests of all ages.The bride used the colors of
the wedding in the candy, presented them in
glass containers and used frosted Chinese take out
boxes with bride and grooms name and
wedding date on labels on the boxes. She had
flowers on the table, personalized cookies bought
from a favor store and it was sprinkled with
flowers and petals. It was total eye candy!
Sorry for the bad pun, I just felt it coming on
and ran with it.

Since we were from out of town, the bride
packed us up some extras for the plane
trip home...and you could hear our candy
jangling every time we hit turbulence.
We enjoyed the candy more than the yummy
dinner at the reception.

So how can you put together the perfect candy
buffet for your wedding reception?

• Plan it in your mind, map it out on paper or on your computer.
  

A candy buffet should be a feast for the eyes and
part of the decor. Choose clear glass containers,
unusual shapes, vases, oversize martini glasses,
anything to give it a good visual vibe. You'll need
scoops for the candy and containers or candy bags
for your guests. Do you want to get really creative
and create a visual scape with candy ponds, green
paths and a gingerbread house? Its only limited
by your time, budget and imagination.

• Budget enough money to give it a great visual impact.

Don't try to gauge the amount you need to by
calculating how many ounces you need per
person. When it comes to candy, throw that
out the door. Your goal is to have more than
enough candy to have an interesting presentation
and not to run out of candy.

• Match the colors of the candy to your wedding colors.

This will give it a great visual impact, you can layer colors
of the same candy in your clear containers to make it pop.
Vary the kinds of candy on your buffet. You can use some
colorful foil wrapped chocolates in your wedding color with
some colored M & M's, white Good and Plenty, colorful
lollipops, you get the idea.

• Kick it up a notch.

Vary the heights of the containers by using risers,
boxes or milk cartons covered with fabric (like a
tablecloth) to give it more visual interest. Caterers
do this and it also makes it easier to get the candy
you want without knocking down some of the
containers.

• Finish it off.

Add flowers in vases, floral arrangements, a picture
of the couple or flower petals to give it some
visual interest.

• Enjoy and enjoy the kudos from your guests.

Don't forget to pack some extras in your carry on
to enjoy on your honeymoon. It will be a sweet
treat to remember the sweetest day ever!

How Long Can You Live Off Wedding Cake & Champagne?

I came across this on Favor Ideas
and it cracked me up. The premise
is how long you can live off your wedding
cake and champagne if you and your
new spouse were on a desert island.

You plug in both of your height, weight
and age and the type of cake and the
number of slices. It will tell you how long
you can live without extras just by feasting
on your decadent wedding cake.
This is so fun....check it out here.
I scored a month and a bottle of champagne,
but come on, I'd have it gone in a week.

How To Make Your Bridesmaids Hate You and Ruin Your Friendship FOR FREAKING EVER

I would like to hear the statistics on how
many weddings end with one or more of
the bridesmaids never speaking to the
bride again. Sadly, it happens.
Sometimes its the fault of both, sometimes
the blame goes on the shoulders of the
bride or the bridesmaid. It shouldn't
happen, but it does.

I was the victim of a Bridezilla myself.
I stepped in as a bridesmaid when her
friend got pregnant. Barbie, the
bride, wanted to keep the girls symmetrical
both in height and weight. That should have
rang a bell, but it didn't. She was my good
friend, I thought I was helping her out.

She started by insisting we wear matching
bras and she checked them out so they
were adjusted to her liking. No cleavage,
no boobs bigger than hers. The dresses
were hideous, a mint green (gag) and we
had to wear matching GREEN eyeshadow.
She made us line up for inspection before
we got dressed for the wedding. Barbie
inspected our makeup. She had everyone in
tears when she started smearing our makeup.
Then she made us remove our nail polish.
She wiped off our lipstick and made us all wear
the same shade off the same tube. Yuck.
Her mantra....you are representing me and
you will represent me the way I say you
will represent me. We weren't allowed to
eat or drink even before we were dressed
and before we walked down the aisle, she
rechecked our bra straps and our teeth
for lipstick. Her mother kept saying
"Its her day, you do what she says".

Oh, and we had scheduled bathroom breaks.
She had a breakdown of when we were
ALLOWED to go to the bathroom.
And did I mention she did all of this with
a cigarette hanging out of her mouth
while she was dressed in her wedding
finery?

We weren't allowed to eat at the reception
until she and the groom ate and we were only
allowed to dance with our groomsman partner
and not our SO or dates. It was misery.
I don't think anyone has ever spoken to
her since. The groom is a great guy, we
should have helped him escape. ;)

So if you want your bridesmaids to hate
you forever, here's what to do:

• Damn their budgets, this is the dress I want them to wear.

• Tell them the dress deposit is due tomorrow.
  

• Choose a dress that is unflattering on them.

• Choose a color that is hideous on their complexions because you like that color.

• Choose a wacky theme that forces them to wear costumes.

• Insist they accompany you to every dress fitting, every wedding shopping spree whether it involves them or not and bitch because they just aren't into your wedding.

• Spam them with text messages and emails about the wedding plans.

• Talk nonstop about your wedding and get ticked off at them when they aren't excited to hear about it.

• Plan your own shower and tell them they owe you for it.

• Plan your own bachelorette party and make them pay.

• Start wedding projects, like printing your own invitations and making centerpieces and make attendance mandatory.

• Make hair and makeup appointments for them and forget to tell them that they have to pay for it themselves.
  

• Schedule a spa day on them.

• Make them take time off of work for dress fittings so you can be there to supervise.
  

• Forget that it is final exam week and they have to study.

• Complain about them to anyone who will listen.

• Make remarks about their weight at their dress fitting.
  

• Insist upon matching updos even if she has short hair.

• Buy them matching shoes and then give them the bill.

• Assign them tasks that they don't have time to do because you don't want to pay someone to do it.
  

• Keep repeating to them "Its MY day".

• Forgetting to thank them for all they've done for you.

Yes, these have all happened in various
weddings and we heard it from the maids.
If you want to ruin a friendship, do any
of the above, and trust me, its a done deal.

Moral of the story: Be nice to your maids,
keep them in the loop, keep their budget
in mind and shut up about your wedding.
They are shelling out considerable cash
to do YOU a favor and they are your
friends and family. You won't get a
do over, and a wedding is supposed to
be a joyous occasion. The bride sets
the tone. Make it a good one!

Lets Hear it For Unusual Wedding Dresses? Would You Dare?

Runway couture wedding dresses are dresses that the
designer makes just for their live runway shows
to create buzz. They don't mass produce these wedding
dresses, they are one of a kind wedding dresses made
to shockand awe the guests and to get their pics in
the magazines. Translated into our world,
these are dresses you could never afford and
wouldn't be caught dead wearing. Its fun to see what
lurks in the mind of the designers.




Yves St. Laurent designed this floral confection,
made to express your inner gardener. I imagine
if you wore this dress to your wedding, your
mother in law would drop dead on the spot.
I love the color combos and this would make
a gorgeous wedding bouquet,



This dress is by Christian Dior and is called
Oragami. It does look like folded paper. I've
always liked Dior, but I think I'll stick to
their eyeshadows and mascara.


Another head smacker from Chinese wedding week.
I can't figure this out, it reminds me of a Space Oddity
with some chicken feathers trailing. This would make a
great a do it yourself project...get a white pillow case,
stick some feathers in the chest, pin together,
attach an old Mardi Gras feather boa and your kids
Star Wars helmet...and voila!



This dress doesn't really qualify as couture.
Its a dress full of LED lights. I wonder where
you store the battery pack. Actually, a few years
ago we did have an LED dress in the bridal shop
by Bonny Bridals, but it was in the lace and very
subtle and pretty. This looks like an auxiliary
backup power source in a power outage. OMG..this
is scary!

Loving That Unique Wedding Cake!

I've come across some really unique wedding
cakes and I have to confess, I'm loving some of
them, shaking my head at others. But, couples
thinking outside the box is what is important
when personalizing your wedding.

The wedding cake is the centerpiece of the
wedding reception, and some of these couples
are showing their fun side. Some of these cakes
are works of art. I'm totally up for cake!
I'm ALWAYS up for cake.




How would you like to have Miss Piggy lounging
on the top of your wedding cake surrounded by
all of her Muppet pals encircling the cake.
So darn cute, this definitely isn't for everyone.
By Essex Wedding Services.




This cute travel trailer cake with a beach
twist is just adorable. The VW van shows shades
of the 60's and 70's hippie vibe when people
traveled around the country in their van and
saw the world on a shoestring. This is one of
a group of great cakes by Divine Wedding Cakes.






From A Matter of Taste, how perfect is this cake
for a reception after the destination wedding?
Or for the couple planning on traveling after the
wedding. Either way, its unique!



OMG, I love this cake. I applaud the
imagination of the cake artist and the
couple who were lucky enough to land this
cake. Who says purples are out of style?
By Karen Lindsay.



A Beatles Yellow Submarine wedding cake
for the ultimate Beatle fans. I love love love
this cake, probably because I'm a longtime
fan who even flew to Vegas to catch concerts
by the remaining Beatles. Anyway, this is such
a fun, happy, bright cake, complete with little
John, Paul, George and Ringo and a yellow submarine
on the top. Photo info here.



This is the one cake that does not
ring my chime, probably because its not
make of cake and iced with sugar...
this is a sushi cake with a rice base.
It looks amazing, but the thought of it
gags me. Ironically, I own the exact set
of rubber duckies they used as a cake topper.
I got mine in a gift shop called Desert
Dancer in Sedona, AZ and mine swim around in
the bathroom of the bridal shop.




The big mama of all wedding cakes, this one
really DOES take the cake. This bride decided to
have herself duplicated in her wedding dress in
cake. Creepy! I wonder how much teasing and trash
talk the groom is still enduring. And if you save the
top layer of cake for your first anniversary, can you
imagine having a severed cake head in the freezer
staring back at you? I guess it would be one way
to watch your calories...open the freezer, freak out,
leave the room.