Goin back to Cali

Ok. Really, it's my first time to Los Angeles (outside of LAX anyway)... but am I the only one who still gets LLCoolJ in my head?


:-) Sorry, couldn't resist.

I will be in LA for the remainder of this week, and the beginning of the next. I'll be visiting with bridesmaid *K (aka Minnie Mouse),

(Bridesmaid *K, Stitch, and Me at DW a few years ago)

house hunting, hoping to talk my way into UCLA grad program, and of course - going to Disney Land!Who would have thought LLCoolJ and Disneyland would be in the same post?

Anyway, this obviously means that blogging will PROBABLY be limited. (I saw probably because I am taking my computer and who knows?) But just for fun... look what will be coming up soon!!

My Foot, with *A's too small for my foot barefoot sandal!

I made bridesmaid *A 's barefoot sandals last weekend! And this time I took pictures so I can post a how-to DIY!!! AND....

3 of the 5 bridesmaids dresses arrived yesterday!! I go to see them in T minus 1 hour!!!! I'll take pictures and post a review of the dresses and the shop I've been dealing with.

Stay tuned!

But in the mean time.... stalk THIS blog.. I just love it!

Any LA advice or must-see's as an intro to the city? (I will be moving there this winter, so it's not imperative that I see and do it all now... but advice and suggestions always welcomed!!)

Unveiling the Veil

I ordered my veil!

This is an Adam-free zone!!
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*And it doesn't work as a threat since the stuffed bunny is mine.
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*Point being - GO NO FURTHER ADAM!!!
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Ok. We should be safe now. =)
Except for all the *'s, this is actually kinda of a short and simple post. When I found my dress originally, I thought I knew which veil I wanted to. It was a simple finger tip length veil with silver beads around the edge that matched the beading of the dress.

Simple and pretty right? Cool. Call it a day. Except that I was wearing it on top of my head, and I think I look silly like that. But it'll look the same when I wear it back further right?
WRONG! The beads were just heavy enough that when I put it further back on my head it all gathered together in the ponytail o' tulle.... not exactly what I was going for. So when my dress came in and we figured out the beading just wouldn't work. The dress shop owner stuck an angel cut fingertip length on me. We liked it. Then I tried on every other shape and size in the store, and found out that Yup - the angel cut looked best. (My mother and one of my bridesmaids were in control of the cameras and decided that since none of the other veils looked very good, pictures weren't necessary. So, I have nothing else to show but my pretty veil - sorry!)

So, here's my veil! (Again, don't know about the hair bling yet.)

See the little curly edge on the right? I hate that. Apparently its just an ironing/steaming/pressing or whatever thing. (See the camera the Momma Duck is holding? Its a hostage! I half expected to get a ransom note.)

I found this quick info on Angel Cut veils for anyone who wants it.

Angel Cut Bridal Veils

1/19/2008

The back tapers to a soft point while the sides gently cascade down Requires an edge finish for the distinctive cut to stand out, therefore not offered with a plain "cut" edge Offered in 1 layer only--a second layer would hide the cascading sides Available in elbow, fingertip, waltz, chapel, cathedral, and regal lengths Can be worn on top of or behind the head, whichever you prefer If a blusher is desired, a detachable version can be added as a custom order	Angel Cut Style 35" Petite Fingertip Length	Angel Cut Style 52" Waltz Length
	The longer the veil the more pronounced the cascading effect, as seen in the comparisons above
	Can be worn on top of the head, as seen here	Or behind the head, as shown here

Whatcha think? Anyone else have a pretty simple veil finding experience?

Decisions Decisions! Pt6: My Dress!

For obvious reasons certain people cannot scroll down on this post. If any of these conditions apply - go find something else to read (Russian McD's knockoff McDuck, or Chinese Kid named "Olympic Games" or whatever else you like - but no scrolling down!!! If you want to read older posts click here and go backwards from there.)

Post Restriction Conditions:

• Your name is Adam and you plan on marrying me next April.
• You are a guest of the wedding who wants to/should wait to be surprised.
• You cannot keep your mouth shut when it comes to talking to anyone who fits the above conditions.
• You have a fear of wedding dresses.

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Ok then. On to the dress!

MY DRESS!!
Kind of... mine will have off the shoulder neckline which I'll tell you about below.

How fun is the back??

Lovin' the bodice detail.

This is where my tips from Lessons Learned really come from. This was a shop that I didn't initially plan on going into, but I figured I had been every where else, might as well really cover all my bases. Cute shop, great people. They had just received the dress and no one had even tried it on. She told me it was blush, strapless, and fitted over the hip. All three of which were NO GO's for me; but I said I'd try it on - what the hell? Its only one more dress to the (I counted this once and couldn't believe it) 40 I had tried on THAT DAY. As it turns out, blush from this company = "glowing ivory." Fitted over the hip = funky fun! Strapless = I LOVE CASABLANCA!! They allow you to custom ORDER your dress. I could mix and match the beading, the bodice, the neckline, the skirt, or the fabric from any of their dresses IN MY MEASUREMENTS!!!!! How awesome is that??? So I ordered this dress, with a deeper dip in the back (not a lot, but an inch or so), with an off-the-shoulder neckline with a slight "V" in it, to my measurements. Oh- and all this customization cost me an additional $105 - that's it!

Ok. Now to anyone who has the impression that I had a "choir of angels from above "ahhhh"" moment of this is THE dress.... notsomuch. I had on the dress, decided I really liked it, and then tried on a few more. Then I put the dress back on, stuck a veil on, my mother cried, and I refused to take the dress off... for an hour. I was just be-bopping around the store, talking to other customers, waiting for my Dad to get there to toss in his opinion, and called my MOH to come see it.

Me and my MOH celebrating!

So there is us looking all kinds of happy and celebrating. I still went to another 4 stores the next weekend and waited an addition 3 weeks before ordering it. I went to other stores and tried on some other dresses, but I realized that nothing was really striking my fancy. A few weekends later, my fiance went out of town on a weekend flight and I stayed home and got creative while watching tv. This had two outcomes. 1 - I made shoes! And 2 - WAAAAYY too much "Say Yes to the Dress" t.v. shows (it was a marathon and I watched them alllllll). While watching all these other brides go through their shopping process and paying Umpteen Zillion dollars on them, they all kind of blurred together in a sea of tulle and white with nothing standing out... except "my" beautiful dress with a splash of sass. I called my mom and told her to make an appointment to measure and order the dress! Since then it has mentally become my dress that I can't wait to come in! (Which should be in the next few weeks!)

Ok... now I've got to dress my bridesmaids!!

Anyone else go through lots of dresses AFTER finding the one that you ended up with?

Decisions Decisions! Pt5: The Good and the Beautiful!

Some people have told me that they don't even want to see the dresses I was seriously considering because it might spoil their opinion of my dress. If you agree, don't scroll down! Everyone else....
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On to the dresses!

This one was uber soft material and could have been really fun when fitted to me instead of the feeling of disappointment the top seems to give off. It's all prepared to support a large load!

This one looked great on, but at this point I was told no cameras, so I snuck a rack shot in when no one was looking. (I wouldn't recommend this shop at all and I'll cover that in my bridal shop's of the gulf coast review later on.) The band of beading around the hips was great. It was a beautiful dress that I felt a little renaissance in (In a good way). Unfortunately it was really a bit blah everywhere else. No train detail, no skirt edging, just 'meh.

I liked this one. Same belted renaissance feeling, cool pleated skirt. But, heavy fabric and no good way to add straps.

This one I really liked. It was one of my favorites. (And I'm in my favorite shop.) It was light and airy, NOT STRAPLESS, flattering, and had little sparkles randomly on the bodice. But it wasn't quite "it". I just didn't really feel special in it.

This was more along the lines of the kind I had clipped out of magazines, and while I loved it as a dress, I didn't feel bride-ish at all. (Excuse the weird stance, I had to holy my arms like that to snug in the extra fabric since this was about 8 sizes too big for me!)

NOW we're getting to the bridal bit! It was a b-e-a-utiful dress! And it was very "me". And yes, thats my MOH making an odd face in the background... of course, my face doesn't look so normal either!

Same dress from the back. Beautiful. Sexy but not slutty. Sparkly but not garish. But MAN was it heavy. It was a lot of train and elegant but thick fabric. For a spring wedding in the sand, this just wasn't it. But if I were going to be in a church... and have a separate dress for dancing.. yup.

I was a big fan of this dress. It was by far one of my favorites. I loved the detailing on the bodice, and the pleating on the neckline. It was still heavy fabric, but less skirt. The kicker was the heavy price tag I didn't see before trying on. In the world of wedding dresses, it was not outrageous. In the world of what I was looking at in dresses, it was double the price.

Same dress, different view.

I wish I have a picture of me in this one, but I don't. I was actually in to be measured for ordering my dress when I saw this and wanted to try it on, just in case. Wow was it pretty! But there was something I couldn't put my finger on that I wasn't a fan of. Then the shop owner point out that with the pleats in the skirt, it looked like an azalea trail dress!! (Southern Antebellum!) I realize you can't see it in this image, but trust me that was the end of this dress for me.

This one I really loved. It was one of my top dresses. Its also my biggest "go home, look at pictures, and think it over" proponent. It was BEAUTIFUL creamy taffeta fabric that was comfortable and beautiful. Unfortunately, it was still alot of skirt, and didn't look nearly as "wow" in pictures. None of this occurred to me when I was there.

So we have been through them all... the good, the bad, and the EWW! That leaves us with... MY DRESS!!

.... which will be in another post because this one is too long as it is. =)

Decisions Decisions! Pt4: I was RIGHT!... Lessons Learned

I don't to say this very often, so bear with me...

I WAS RIGHT!!!!!!!!!!!

Ok, I feel a little better now. :)

So in my dress shopping I learned a few things. Some were practical, and others more personal.

I was pretty sure right off the bat that I did not want a white-white dress. If its an airy cotton dress in the middle of summer when I'm tan, no worries. I don't know how tan I will or won't be come next year, and I feel a little sickly looking in white when I am pale. (Note - I understand pale for me is still tan for others. For instance, My fair-haired Adam looks almost clear when he's at his palest. And having come from Antarctica, he was CLEAR when he came to Hawaii for the first time. I'll have to see if I can find a good picture of me all Hawaii tan and him Antarctic white. :) ) The other downfall to white white is the "I dont feel skinny today and the diamond white aint helpin!" potential. (Don't believe me? Scroll back down to my "eww" dress post.)

The other thing that I was pretty sure of was that I am not a strapless girl. I am a mover and a shaker and in a strapless dress that equates to a tugger and a flasher... neither of which I want associate with my wedding. No "wardrobe malfunctions" risk for me!

The other major cause for my strap requirement is the football factor. Let me explain. I grew up as a gymnast and a dancer, but its the gymnastics background that really shaped my muscles and body type. (I look soo out of place in ballet class! Oh well!) This means 3 things. 1 - My thighs are pretty thick. Granted, I can squat more than most people I know, but chicken legs I have not. 2- As previously discussed, I have a bubble butt that isn't going anywhere; which is fine by me, I like my butt just fine. And finally 3 - My shoulders are a bit broad. I am not going to be mistaken for an Olympic swimmer, but they aren't exactly narrow. Normally, this is no big deal. In a strapless dress? It means I run teh risk of looking like a football player. Granted its only 1 out of ever 10 or so photos of me in a strapless that really exemplify this fact, but when we are talking 1000 - 1500 photos? We are talking 150 football shots! No, thanks.

As anyone who has been dress shopping in the past few years knows, strapless DOMINATES the stores like Michael Jordan used to dominate basketball! This meant that this was the typical conversation when I went into a bridal shop:
Salesperson: Welcome! I have 18 bazillion dresses that will look fantastic on you! What style are you looking for?
Me: No strapless.
Salesperson: hahahah! What a sense of humor!....uhh....Oh, you are serious.....uhhh.. (often accompanied by a panicky confusion of trying to remember if or where the strapped dresses are!) We have a few.... uhh... and we could add spaghetti straps to any dress.
Me: Not a fan of the added spaghetti straps because to me it looks like they were added just because the bride didn't want to be strapless.
Salesperson: ....uhhh... they were added because the bride wanted straps...
Me: oof. Pretty please show me the dresses that were meant not to be strapless.
Salesperson: Ok. That wont take long. (Usually then started making a mental note of what other things she's now going to accomplish in the time she'll have left over because clearly I wont be there that long.)

Ok - now for a few (quick!) things every dress shopping bride-to-be should know:

• Always wear underwear you don't mind someone else seeing if they are helping you in or out of the dress. (Pink elephants might make the salesperson giggle which will make you feel awkward.)
• Don't be a pushover, but be open to options in case the salesperson brings in something you might not have picked out for yourself.
• Always take at least 1 sound opinion you trust. Don't take a friend who thinks you look great in EVERYTHING, even when you don't.
• Wear a little make-up and brush your hair. You will be staring at yourself all day and its not the dress' fault if you hate the way you look without mascara.
• DO NOT try on dresses outside your budget. You might fall head over heels for that Vera Wang, but if your budget is $500, you are always going to feel disappointed in any other dress and will feel like you are settling. (Again, not a feeling you want associated with your wedding.)
• Mentally prepare for the number game. Bridal sizing is NOT equivalent to normal clothes. Most of the time you will be several sizes up from what you normally wear. This is not a reflection of you or your weight and means DIDDLY-SQUAT about your health. Mentally prepare for that so you aren't heart broken when they tell you what size you are in.

Ok - so that was a long wordy post.... but the next one will be full of pretty dress pictures!!! =) Any other words of wisdom for dress shopping?

Decisions Decisions! Pt2: The "eww" and unflattering

Disclaimer! I am...uhh.... not at my finest in several of theses photos (in case you missed the "unflattering" part of the post title) be nice with comments!! No laughing if I can hear you! (Hooray for blog-o-sphere deafness.) Also, I am not trying to dog on the dresses or the companies that make them. So if I say "ewww" to a dress you love, I sorry. I hope it looks better on you than me! Also, I said in my previous dress post that I am going through the good, the bad, and the eww. Well, I am a bad news first kind of person... and some of these are just funny. So we are starting with the "eww" and oh-so-unflattering dresses! I'll start with the "uhh... notsomuch" dresses and move on the the "you might fall out of your chair laughing" dresses.

Ok, so this is a picture of the model wearing the dress on the tag. Cute, right? She looks thin and its a flowy fun dress.

Ok - then its on me... and leaving a little something to be desired. I feel like a white square with sparkles..... moving on...

Ok, So this one is kinda cute from the back. I like the layer/pleating detail at the top. (Anyone noticing the great white snow beast to my left?)

Hello Madonna Boobs! This was one of those dresses that would have been great for a drag queen. The underside was incredibly padded and the pleated edging just cut right down to it to give an uber "perky!" look, regardless of what was or was not underneath! (oooh - Anyone else really want to watch To Wong Foo now?? For anyone wondering what I'm talking about, follow the link, and then put it in your netflix list because its hilarious!)

Ok, here we are from the back view again. Not bad, right? Its actually a little slimming! (...wait for it...)

Wham! Still think this is a slimming dress?? Yeah - me neither! ooof - ok. Can't look at that one anymore... moving on...

So this one had some fun details on the backside that made me think I was really going to like it on. It turns out, it has magical powers... it made my butt completely disappear!!! (And in full disclosure, it should be pointed out; my butt is no small thing. It bubbles right on out there! So this was an impressive disappearing act.) Looking at it again, I notice that my waist has also wandered off into la la land. Oh - and the front gets even better!

Schazaam! All of a sudden I rival the bra sizes of Queen Latifa! And for my 36B's, thats and impressive jump. (Wow, blogging is an interesting thing. I kind of can't believe I just posted my bra size. Oh well!)

Ahh... and for the pièce de résistance! I went to David's Bridal in Mobile... which was a nightmare experience I will post about later... and the HIGHLIGHT of the dresses is below.




(read this with the "who wants a treat?!" voice you would use to speak to a puppy)
Who wants to be a ballerina bride?!

HOLY COW! It was a ballet nightmare of pink and white tulle!! (I am covering a HUGE satin pink rose on the butt that I couldn't even bear for the pictures!)

One more shot - just for laughs!

hahahahhahah.... That one still makes me laugh! Stay tuned as the dresses get a little less humorous, and a little more towards potential candidates.

(All photos courtesy of my Mother and my friends who attempted to keep the camera still while laughing their tails off.)

On second thought, feel free to post laughing comments!! :)

Like Wedding Dresses Don't Already Cost Enough???

I saw this article, via Blue Orchid Design's Blog (one of my favorites that will soon be featured under Blog Bliss) and I wanted to throw something at these people!!

This is from an article in The New Zealand Herald last month:

"Just when you thought weddings couldn't get any more expensive, bridal stores are charging women for the privilege of trying on dresses.

Designers and bridal shop owners say charging for a fitting has become the norm and claim brides are more than happy to pay a "try-on" fee.

Some charge $20 for each dress a bride slips on and others set a flat fee of $60 an hour to stop school girls and "brides without grooms" wasting shop-owners' time.

Some stores include try-ons as part of a $300 consultation fee but most refund the costs if the bride buys the dress.

Bridalwear staff surveyed by the Herald on Sunday said the fee paid for dry cleaning, fixing damage and covering the time staff spent helping women into dresses.

The fee deterred women who weren't serious and ensured sample garments remained pristine."

"More than happy"???? I don't think so!!
I realize that dress shop owners want to deter the "school girls" or anyone just goofing around, but punishing the rest of us aint it! I know that Bridal shops today are vying with the issue of loosing customers to buying dresses online, but again, this is not the way to handle it! Some people go into a store to try a dress on so they can order the right size online - that's sad and not considerate of the people who do that. Don't punish the rest of us though! If I walk in and you treat me like I am going to do that or steal the design or anything to that effect, I am going somewhere else! I am not paying GOOD MONEY to be treated like that. There is one store in Pensacola that cuts of the tags and will not let you take pictures or tell you who makes the dress. My sister-in-law found the dress that she wanted online, found out that this store was the closest dealer of that company and when she went in to try it on and buy it - they would not let her take a picture to send to her mother (who lived in Maryland!!). I understand that the no picture policy is because some of the dresses are "in house" designs, but this one obviously wasn't. She was so turned off by the whole thing that she ended up driving an hour out of town and paying $200 more for the dress just to deal with a different store. Shop owners should think about the message they are sending.

hahaha - I just added it up in my head. If I had paid for trying on all the dresses I did, I would have paid more for searching than I did for the dress.