Vote for WPP in the Bridal Blog Awards

I know I haven't posted in a while, and shame on me, but it's wedding season and I get a little busy this time of year. I think about blogging all the time, though, does that count??

Anyway, I just wanted to throw this up here because I know there are loyal fans out there who log on and follow this blog (even when I go a week or two between postings!). I have listed my blog on WeddingChannel's Bridal Blog Awards and I need people to go on and vote for me. I know I'm not going to win but it's fun to be nominated (even though I nominated myself :) and I'd love to see who of you out there goes on and seconds or thirds my nomination. Please vote for me!!

It's easy to vote, just click the link below and write a reply to my posting. That's it!

http://forums.weddingchannel.com/main.aspx/bridal-blog-awards_blog-nominations_vote-wedding-planning-plus-blog

Thank you all for supporting Wedding Planning Plus' blog!!

Bridesmaids dresses

The reception venue, the photographer and DJ, the groom :)... these are all big decisions you have to make when planning your wedding. Another big decision is the color and style of your bridesmaids dresses. This can be a tough choice when you have a large bridal party, have girls of all different sizes, or if you have some vocal ladies who speak up about what they'll wear or not wear. There are lots of options, but make sure you go with a decision that you're comfortable with first, and one that they are comfortable with second. Hey, you're the bride! :) Here are some weddings I've done where the brides have gone in their own direction in terms of style and color and, as you can see, each way works!

(Photo by Holly Greene, Out of the Ordinary Photography)

This is Kim and her lovely bridesmaids. Kim chose to go with a deep red color for her fall wedding. She chose the same style dress for each girl so they were all wearing the same thing. This works well when all of your bridesmaids allow you to choose their dress and they don't give you any grief about it! :) These ladies look beautiful and the style of their skirts matched the style of Kim's dress to pull the whole look together.

(Photo by Shannon DeCelle Photography)

Lindsey went with all the dresses in the same color and length but let the girls choose the style they liked best. You can see there are halter tops, strapless, and strapped tops all in this group. This look can only be pulled off when you choose dresses all from one line from one designer, because going with too many different variables will come of as mismatched and awkward. But here in this picture the overall look is still cohesive because all of the fabric is the same and the skirts all match.

As an added note, Lindsey also pulled in the secondary color of her wedding - the Tiffany blue - in her junior bridesmaid (see the blue sash?) and her flower girl. Too cute!!

(Photo by Jill Kaiser)

Nancy was definitely someone who fit into my "practical bride" category. She had a beautiful vision for her wedding but she kept costs and convenience in mind for a lot of her decisions. This includes the dresses she chose for her bridesmaids. Or should I say "not chose"? Nancy wanted to keep an all-black theme for the girls but allowed them to pick and wear whatever black dress they wanted. And the girls got to shop at department stores instead of bridal shops which made the whole process easier and less costly for them. Even though they are in different styles from different designers the common color and skirt length keeps them looking cohesive in these pictures. These were some happy and comfortable bridesmaids, and girls who will definitely be able to wear their bridesmaid dresses again!

(Photo by Hillary Harvey)

Christie planned a fall wedding and decided to go with four different colors and three different styles of dress for her bridesmaids. Keeping with a fall theme she chose the shades of red, tan, brown, and orange that best suited her elegant and simple affair. Going with a combination of styles AND different colors has the potential to go terribly wrong, but as you can see from this picture they all match quite nicely. This is due to the sheen in the fabric, the length in their skirts, and the fact that they are all wearing the same shoes. Keeping these elements the same in each girl allowed the whole group to match quite well.

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So I guess the morale of the story, if there is one, is that there really is no right or wrong way to select your bridesmaid dresses as long as you keep a few rules in mind. If you choose to go with different styles or colors just make sure you maintain some commonal elements to tie the girls together. Skirt length is the biggest element to keep the same (since this is what you will see first when you look across your group) so try to keep all the girls with the same length dresses. After that look to keep them the matching with identical jewelry, shoes, sashes, hair styles, etc so they can be recognized by guests as a part of your bridal party and look similar to each other in pictures.

Have fun with it and make sure your girls are going to have fun with what they wear, too. You can stay with all one style and color like Kim did, you can go with the same color but different styles like Lindsay, same color but completely different dresses like Nancy, or one designer in different styles and colors like Christie. The choice is yours! Enjoy!

Happy planning!

Shannon

Planning the wedding that is YOUR wedding

I hear it all the time. "My sister says that my favorite color is no color for a bridesmaid dress so now I'm thinking of going with [insert ugly color here]"... "Even though I hate polka dancing my mom said I have to play a polka song so the family can all dance to it"... "My future mother-in-law said her favorite flower is the carnation so I guess I'm going to have to do all the bridal party in carnations"... "My dad wants to invite all of his work friends and they are all people I've never met"...

Weddings are big events. Especially for you and your fiance... And for your parents..... And his parents... And your extended family... And your friends... And, and, and... But wait!! Who is this wedding for?? Is it for all of them? And how do you please everyone and keep it meaningful to you?

Don't misunderstand me, I fully understand that there are a lot of people involved in this, and a lot of people who care about you, and maybe a lot of people who are paying so the decisions need to consider all of the above... But ladies (and gents), just because your family is vocal doesn't mean they have to decide everything to do with your wedding. You are the bride (or groom)! And it is YOUR day! This is one of those moments in your life when you need to make decisions based on what is going to make you most happy, and stand behind those decisions when others oppose. If they love you they will support you and do what is best for you. Whether your centerpieces have carnations or calla lilies. Trust me.

My best advice when parents/siblings/friends/future in laws start to make you feel like you're going to unravel? Tell them you'll think about their idea, and then... politely... change the subject. Don't say no and insult them, but don't say yes if it's not something you want! Pick a solid planning partner, whether it is your fiance or best friend or your wedding planner and use them as the sounding board to bounce all of these ideas off of. It's important to have a neutral party or one who knows and supports you so you can vent to them and wipe that stress away.

In the end you only get one chance at your perfect wedding and you don't want to look back at your day and think it wasn't exactly yours. These people will love you in the end but they will not be the ones who have to look back on the day and see the polka dances, ugly colored dresses, or the carnations. Stay strong, brides! Keep the peace as best as you can and keep your vision in tact despite others' pressures. And find a kind ear to talk to whenever... things... get.... ya know. :)

Happy planning!

Shannon

More favor ideas

In my last post I talked about some ways to do favors, but I left out one major category - the end-of-the-night-cool-experience-or-goodie-treat kinda favor. Yay!! This has become a popular way to go out with a bang, by leaving your guests with some kind of delicious and fun tasty treat that they can take home with them and continue to enjoy your wedding even after they have left. How have I seen this done lately? The Gilchrist wedding on May 16th (see details in a blog post below) gave out cookies and milk in to-go containers as their guests exited the reception. A wedding I have coming up this fall is doing a full candy bar where guests can fill bags with sweets (in the wedding colors, of course) to bring back home with them. And possible my favorite idea so far? An October wedding I'm working on where they are thinking of hiring a team from Cold Stone to mix up ice cream sundaes on the premises at the end of their reception. Bringing a marble slab with them. And their full Cold Stone uniforms. And all the yummy toppings and fillings. How fun is that???

Or if food isn't your thing, why not go the route of a photobooth? That's right, the old school seashore carnival kinda thing where you go in and the bulb flashes and your get a strip of funny pics of you and whoever you pulled in there with you. These are not just memories from your past - these photo booths are available locally and can be rented for your reception! Your friends go in and act all silly and they leave with these vintage-feel pictures at the end of your reception. And what they don't know? Is that you get a whole set of all the pictures taken in the booth so you also walk away with all the silly pictures of everyone you know. How fun is that???

So, like I said in my last post, there is really no right - or wrong - way to do guest favors, but if you're going to spend the money on something, why not make it something that they're going to say to their friends, "Hey, I went to a wedding this weekend and you won't believe the kind of cool stuff they had there..."

Happy planning!

~ Shannon