Hair

I want to talk about the importance of hair trials, wedding hair and hair in general.  I have a friend who was really disappointed with her wedding hair, so she stressed to myself and my friend who got married this weekend that make sure you love your hair.

I had a hair trial for my wedding. BUT it wasn't with my normal hairstylist. GASP!  My hairstylist was pregnant and due around the time of my wedding.  Total bummer since I have been going to her for almost 9 years.  She promised me that I would love her back-up and wouldn't be disappointed.  Especially since we had been using a technique this girl made for my wedding hair color leading up to the wedding.

I asked my bridesmaids to have their hair done in an updo (I said I would pay, but they declined), any updo of their choice that would compliment their face shapes.  I am happy to say my girls did an amazing job.  I set up appointments with the best girls in the salon, recommended by my normal hairstylist.

Make sure you do a trial to get an idea of what you want and make sure you give feedback to the hairstylist.  If you don't like the trendals, ask they be put up in the hair.  If you don't like the amount of volume, ask for it to be less.  Key is, make sure you love your hair.  And make sure you love the color.  We worked on the color for 2 months prior with me going in every 4 weeks for color touch-ups.

This is my maid of honors hair.  I loved her style.  She added in her own extensions and it looked romantic, just the look I was going for.

This is my sisters hair.  Very classic with a braided twist.  Goregous.

Here is another bridesmaid's hair.  She got her hair done by the same girl who did mine and I love it.

Bridesmaid Kristina's hair.  She loved the back, but wasn't happy with her bangs, but we fixed them and she looked beautiful.

Last but not least, is my hair.  I absolutely loved my hair.  It was romantic, fun, stayed in all night and the flower just made it stunning.  Kyra rocked it.

Lesson: Make sure you do a trial, love your hair, be a bit picky and pick something that suits your facial structure.  Look around on pinterest, bridal magazines, other friends pictures and pick something you love.

Life After Being a Bride

I have a confession to make....I was sad to have my wedding planning end.  I have been reading blogs, posting about weddings, stalking Pinterest for wedding ideas and going to the ends of the moon to do DIY projects for my wedding.  I didn't know what to do with myself after the wedding.  But I made do and looked at photos and videos everyday.  Yes, almost 4 weeks after getting married, I look at them everyday.

I had a co-worker get married this last weekend and she got a few teasers.  I was jealous (not about her wedding), but her getting some photos.  So I did what any irrational bride would do, I begged for photos.  Ok I didn't beg, but politely asked.  And she sent us 14 teasers.  After looking at them, I was in awe.  I said thank you and got an update on when our photos would be ready.  And they will be ready two weeks ahead of schedule it is looking like.  And she informed us that these were very lightly edited and when we get them all, they would be fully edited.  So without further ado, here are some wedding teasers.

 This is one of my favorites. LOVE.

 Stunning.

 Best day of my life.

 Goregous.

 Isn't he handsome?

 I dreamed about this day since I was a little girl.

 We opted out of first look for a first touch. Best decision EVER!

 My beautiful mom and I.

 Myself and my beautiful bridesmaids.

My groom and his men. So dapper they are!

I can't wait for the rest of the photos. Such an amazing day.  Now I can get excited about my honeymoon which is in 16 days!  And my beautiful friend Stacey is getting married next weekend!  And we hope to get pregnant in the next few months!  Life is going to be amazing after being a bride.  I am going to enjoy every last second of being a newlywed!

Bridesmaid Dresses

I have looked at tons of bridesmaid dresses being a bridesmaid myself and for my wedding.  I wanted something the girls could wear again.  I know, everyone says that, but after being a bridesmaid, I can say that I have two dresses that sit in my closet that I will never wear again.  Ok, maybe if someone has a bridesmaid dress/groomsmen suit party, I can, but probably will never wear them again.  Those dresses cost me around $200 to $300 for the dress, alterations and accessories (as in a sash, flower, etc.).

I searched all the common websites (david's bridal, pinterest, etsy, local bridal shops, weddingtonway, Nordstrom's, watters.com ).  On pinterest I found a picture of bridesmaids wearing taupe lacy dresses.  Hello, we have a winner.  Alas, they were from a different season and not available.  So I looked at other dresses that were similar on Nordstrom's website, and I found none to my liking.  At least I had an idea of what I wanted.  I found the dress I loved on watters.com.  It comes in several cuts, but these two were my favorites.

Watters Dress Camillia

Watters Dress Iris

I used their locations search and found they had the dresses at the shop I bought my wedding dress, Swoon.  I met up with the bridesmaids on a Saturday afternoon and had them try on the different cuts to see what their favorites were and if these were dresses they even liked.  They loved the dresses and said they could and would wear them again since they are not the "classic" bridesmaid dresses.  Well at least I hope they are being honest about that.  After all four girls tried on different cuts, I asked them to pick out their favorites.  I told them if there was one, two or four different cuts they liked, we could work with that.  After asking each of them, they decided they all wanted to wear the Iris dress.  They will be navy lining with navy lace.  I am so excited to see them in the dress!  They tried it on in white which was not a good color for the dress, so hopefully navy is better.  Plus they are adding bra cups in them and they will be their size.  I will spare them the classic photos of them in each of the dresses.

Super excited and I wish it was June when I get my dress and they get theirs too! 

Yes to the Dress

On March 9th, I went wedding dress shopping with three of my bridesmaids, my mother, my future mother-in-law and two amazing friends.  We went to a local shop, Swoon.  I have been dreaming about this day forever...since I was a little girl.  This was definitely been one of the best moments of planning a wedding.

Swoon was having a sample sale, and I couldn't pass it up.  I came in with an open mind, though I had ideas of what I would like to try on.  I have watched my fair share of Say Yes To The Dress, and knew that I should be open minded because I may not know what looks best on my body.  I along with my consultant picked out 6 dresses.  The first was gorgeous and the most beautiful top, but the bottom was way too big to dance in, walk down the aisle in, or do anything in, well at least for me.  The second dress was lace and beautiful.  I loved it, other than it need to have alterations for a more dramatic sweetheart neckline.  The third dress was all of the things I wanted in a dress, but simple.  Ok, let's "jack me up".  That did it.  I cried.  I told myself if I cried I knew it had to be the one, but I still wanted to try more dresses on.  The forth dress was very similar to the third dress just a different bottom which was too plain jane for me.  The fifth dress was a blush color with a line down the center of it.  Though it was beautiful and I could have gotten it in white or ivory, it was not me.  The sixth dress was one the consultant picked out and it just wasn't me.

I went back to the third dress, tried it on again, and added a sash and necklace.  Wow.  My future father-in-law told me I looked stunning in it.  He only saw a picture for a brief second.  I cried once again and knew this was my dress.  Now my mom wanted me to try on veils which I did, but didn't think I wanted one.  Then I tried on three different ones and I loved them.  Like it completes the look.  I did try on a floor length one with a train, and I hated it.  The consultant asked me to describe myself in it, in one word.  I came up with virginal.  The look on my mothers and mother-in-laws face was priceless.  I explained that I look like a 16 year old bride from the olden days and it just wasn't me.  I didn't buy a veil yet, but plan to.

My mom and dad bought me my dress and all of my accessories.  So blessed.  I can't show you my dress because my fiance checks on here every so often.

Asking My Maids

So during my first and only wedding dress shopping trip, I asked three of my potential bridesmaids if they would be a part of my wedding party.  I have pinned tons of wedding ideas, so I decided to use one of the pins I found as part of my asking.  Now I am not the best DIY person, though I am trying to be more into it for my wedding.

I went to Michaels and bought wooden boxes, bunches of bridal stickers, glow rings, tissue paper and pens.  I think they turned out pretty cute.

What you can't see is the sides where I added my wedding date and my fiance's and my names.  Here is a picture of the Maid of Honors box up close (get your mind out of the gutter).

I am happy to report that all four of my girls have said yes!