Bedazzled Bride

Remember before I blogged about trying to make decisions on jewelry?
Here and here and here.

Well, its now a few days prior to the wedding, and I still haven't decided on anything - oh, and I've added two hair flowers to the mix from Lauren Lee Designs.
(Click on the flowers for links.)

Oh, I've also added a necklace that I got from a great Etsy seller:

And my sisters-in-law have brought along their collections to see if there is anything out of it that I should wear. Too many options!
So it ended up being me, my mom, and newest sister-in-law trying to figure out what combination of hair thing, earrings, bracelet, hair flower, and necklace would work best. I wanted to wear something of my mothers, but as you saw before, we have very different tastes, and her necklaces end up being chokers for me. I wanted to be beautiful bridal, but I still wanted to be me.

So I donned my dress and veil and let mom and Ang play dress up with me. They came up with some very beautiful combinations.

Feather + Etsy Necklace +Mom's Pearl Bracelet +Sentimental Sapphire earrings

Feather + Mom's diamond solitare necklace + Sentimental Sapphire earrings + Mom's diamond tennis bracelet. Obviously, I'm feeling dramatic and silly.

Those combination (and a few other elegant ones I don't have photos of), looked beautiful and put together and elegant. But for the most part, I just kept thinking, can I take this off now?
So then we decided to see how things did with the orchid flower instead.
Orchid + Etsy necklace + Sentimental Sapphires + Mom's pearl bracelet + Sparkly veil comb

Same as above but without the sparkly veil comb thingy.

And then we started trying a few to see what would go best with Mom's wedding dress that would become my after-party dress.

So we left it with the options narrowed down to fancy and well put together, or mishmashed combination of things I like. Little did we know, Adam would make that decision easier for me!
Stay tuned!

Mom V Bride: The Hair Trial

*****WARNING! Photo laden post!******
**ADAM Alert!!!! These are photos of me with wedding hair and veil. To venture beyond is risky to your health and it considered to be AMA (Against Medical/Michelle's Advice) because I kill you!!**


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Sorry - we have a large screen that Adam's computer is hooked to, so i dont want this to accidentally pop up before he reads the warning
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Just a little further
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OK!
Here we go!

More small town fun to be had here. One of my brothers is just 2 years my senior and good friends with the daughter of the most talented hair guru in Panama City. Small town, small schools, much to my brother's dismay, we were all friends. Fotula (the hair guru) does not work on Saturdays... unless one of "her girls" really needs her.. say for prom or weddings. For every prom and high school formal, I and a small group of "her girls" would go to her for getting our hair done. All the other girls were real particular about their up-do's. She was always excited when it was my turn cause I'd say "whatever you want to do works for me - funky is fun", and she'd create some great hair that while pretty, looked nothing like anyone else's hair at the dances.

Well, obviously, I'm a bit grown up now and wasn't sure what she'd say about doing my hair. She was thrilled and asked my mother when we could do a trial because she was so excited! So just a few saturdays ago my mother and I went to Fotula and had a wonderful hair trial. I showed her a couple of picutres (below) and talked about the feel of the wedding and said - have at!

My inspiration photos:
(First two from Jasmine Star photography, second two from Bumatay Studio)

Can you tell I like the flower idea? Simple beautiful, beachy fresh and beautiful.... with the veil set at the back of the crown of the head. Other brides look beautiful with a bountiful amount of tulle atop their head.... I look like a ridiculous 5 year old playing dress up... not how I want to be described on my wedding day. My mother, was terrified that I would just pull my hair into a half pony and call it a day. (Unfounded fear, I never had ANY intention of doing my own hair. A successful ponytail is a good hair day for me!)

On to the photos of me!
All by me... or Mom anyway.=)

Note: I had no where to go after this, and I would be seeing Adam in the next few hours so we decided not to do anything full out just so it would fall out soon. I highly recommend doing your hair trial when you have somewhere to go after! Unfortunately, schedules did not permit this good idea to pan out for me.
Its hard to see, but I've got a sparkly hair comb in here (and above). My mother is desperately worried that I wont have enough sparkles.... ummm.. did you see my dress mom!?

Mom also thought I should take advantage of being a bride and wear a tiara of some kind because, when else would I wear it? (Don't ask me why that means I want to wear one at all, but somehow my mother thinks life might be incomplete without it.) This sparkly band was as close to a tiara as I was willing to go, so I brought it for the trial.

Ok, my favorite photo - look in the background at Fotula's expression (in the brown). Very telling of what we all thought. It looked nice but "meh" and certainly not me.

This was a flower comb thingy I made the night before so I'd have something to try. (Hooray for Hobby Lobby and Weddingbee! 1 fake flower, a plastic hair comb, some beads I already had, and some thread and voila! Good enough to get an idea.

Ok, so we are unanimous that the flower is the hair adornment of choice, and while my hair looked very nice, we all felt it wasn't quite right.

Back to the curling iron!

Getting better! And more me, which made above smile grow.

It'll have more body on top, but in general - this is it! Pulled back by the flower on one side, and let loose on the other!
Random note: It'll actually be the mirror image of this. My right ear normally has 2 earrings in it... sometimes 3. But my left always has 6. (You can see a couple shining through in the top photo.) They are simple studs, but I love them, and the few times I've been without them, people comment that I don't look like me. AND my hair can part on either side, so as of tomorrow, I'm switching sides to have my earrings show a little. Its silly and small but I don't care.

At this point, I am totally happy.
I need to buy/make a better flower thing (cheap plastic comb would not stay put), but other than that - Done.

My mother disagreed. She thinks I didn't have enough sparkle. So back to The Glass Slipper we went to check out sparkly comb things for the veil.

Its hard to tell, but its sparkly star beachy.

My mother absolutley loved it, I didn't hate it - so we bought it. We'll see if it actually gets worn on the day of, but at least its an option.

At this point, I am sooo over pictures! As you can see on my face.

Whatcha think?
Anyone else give their hair guru free reign, or succomb to mom's wants?

Noteworthy Noaki!

Part two of my new favorite Etsy jewelry queen Noaki! Lots of great stuff at her shop and on her blog... but as the obnoxious mind numbing song goes.... These are a few of my favorite things! And all photos are from Noaki and if clicked, lead back to her!

(Yes, I really do find that song annoying and yet Its a Small World or the Gummi Bears theme just make me smile. Deal with it.)

How fun is this? I can say I've seen a bazillion bridal photos and never seen anything like this; and frankly, thats just a shame.

Lovin this comb!

Something oh so beautifully blue

Me? Post a star shaped piece of jewelry? Only every chance I get! I just might rock this bracelet come next April.

For the pearl girl who's only stud is the one she's marrying!

And the perfect earrings for all those brides going with the bird theme. I hate birds, and I like these.

Don't forget to check out the Zenadia contest for Noaki's jewelry!
Also, if you see something you like, and you have a blog, post about it! Unleash the power o' the bridal blogs! =)

Anyone else up to their eyeballs with favorites marked in etsy for potential wedding day jewelry? Any tips for how in the world to make a decision!?

Blog Bliss: Zenadia Design to Noaki Jewelry

I was scrolling through my blogs on day... in the very marry month of August....

hmm - ok doesn't quite have the same ring to it, but oh well. (That is my absolute favorite video clip from Apollo 17. Actually, I think its my favorite clip ever... and it happens to be from Apollo 17. It and other video clips are available here. Did I mention I am an astro-geek?)

My google reader alerted me to a new Zenadia Design post. So I read, commented, followed the links, and ended up falling in love with some beautiful bridal jewelry options.
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Monday, August 25, 2008

Giveaway by Noaki Jewelry

I am so excited to announce that Noaki Jewelry is sponsoring a giveaway here on Zenadia Design's blog! One lucky reader will win a $70.00 credit to Noaki's online shop. Good for one of her beautiful pieces of jewelry, or a custom made item!
If you are not familiar with Noaki's jewelry, you are in for a real treat. Each piece is handmade using heirloom quality vintage pieces which are recycled into beautiful works of art. We featured Noaki a while back here on our blog, and since then, she has added so many stunning pieces to her collection on etsy.


To enter the contest, all you have to do is leave a comment here and answer one, or both of the following questions:

1. What kind of wedding jewelry are you as a bride looking for to match your dress (Chandeliers, Tiny drops, Pearl necklaces, Bracelets, etc.)?
2. Any suggestions on how Noaki might better reach out to brides.

If you are not a bride, or are a past bride, answer the question(s) with your own advice. Maybe what kind of jewelry you look for for everyday wear. The contest will be open until Friday, August 29, at midnight. We will then draw a winner at random and announce the winner here on Zenadia Design's blog on Monday, September 1. Good luck!

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She has so many B-E-A-UTIFUL options, and this post is getting long, so I'll start with some of my favorite necklaces.

With partial thanks going to Carrie of Sex and the City, peacocks and feathers seem to be all the rage. I will be going for a slightly more traditional bridal necklace, but I know there is some bride out there to rock this necklace in high fashion style.

This just seems like a GREAT destination wedding necklace. All the makings of a traditional bridal necklace with a fun funky twist.

I've said it before, (and I will probably be bridal blog flogged for saying it) but I am not into the vintage trend. Even my "something old" doesn't exactly fit the vintage category. That being said, I still think this Deco necklace is a BEAUTIFUL addition for anyone going the vintage route.

Loving this one. Old Hollywood meets something blue. It wont work for my dress cause I've got a lot of beading going on up top. But I've seen so many beautiful brides to be with bead/adornment free dresses that this would look so beautiful with!

Another beautiful deco style unique beauty. With green and white being such a popular color scheme I can imaging this could be STRIKING. ooohh... striking - that is definitely a word I want associated with my overall look!

If anyone is surprised that this is my favorite.. you apparently missed the title of my blog. LOVE LOVE LOVE the shooting star. Hate hate hate that it would definitely be too much for my dress.... which leads me to LOVE LOVE LOVE etsy! Noaki does custom designs so soon something like this will become my hairpiece! (But the hairpiece search is a WHOLE other etsy filled post.)

In case you are too impetuous to wait for my further posts on Noaki's creations... add her to your blogroll too! www.noakijewelry.blogspot.com

Stay tuned for more great jewelry!

No Naked Necks!

You know how you are supposed to wear the jewelry and under britches that you will wear on your wedding day to your first fitting ? You know how I tend to plan everything a little backwards, be a tad scatter-brained, and somewhat lacking in the ability to accessorize well? At the intersection of those to realities was me picking up my dress and thinking... hmmm.. I have no idea what jewelry or under britches I am going to wear with this.....


In case you haven't deduced from the above... NO MORE READING ADAM!!

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*Sorry for all the asterisks but for anyone who has Google Reader AND stalks..err... reads WeddingBee... you know that the one line of "Mr AppleMuffin No More Reading" doesn't keep the picture out of the frame.
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*I actually trust that Adam doesn't scroll on these. He's the one that is insisting we not see each other before the ceremony.
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*But in case I'm wrong... Adam - SCROLL BACK UP DAMNIT!
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So what we realized was that I didn't (and still don't) know about under britches, hair ornaments, or jewelry. I like the idea of wearing a family heirloom (aka my mother's) but our tastes aren't actually the same. But we thought we would check 'em out to see.

Ok - no mocking the pictures! My mother (aka camera-dingus-batticus) took them and I only knew that some of the pictures were being taken. BE NICE!

Me in Mom's Mikimoto Pearls (theres a matching bracelet hiding somewhere in the depths of her closet.) I am NOT a pearl person, but I actually thought they looked nice. Maybe not enough oomph though.

Oy. Ignore from the necklace up please!
Thats a solitaire on a gold chain. It actually sparkled and showed up nicely in person.
Did I mention Momma Duck will never make it as a photographer?

I think I'm laughing. Or maybe sneezing.
This is a diamond V necklace. I liked the V part but I'm thinking it was a little much on the gold and a little tight on my neck. (Momma Duck is a whooping 4'11 so she has a smaller neck.)

And this is a bad picture of the pretty necklace in the store. It had a angled bottom edge that I liked. (There are matching earrings but it didn't occur to us at the time to try them on to. Did I mention I can be scatterbrained?)

So this last picture brings up the next question. What am I wearing in my hair? It should probably be taken into consideration when picking my necklace.... but the options I've come up with so far are a wide variety from flowers to stars to headbands.... and will all be shown in another post.

Anyone have a hard time with the accessories?

Anyone have opinion on the ones above or new suggestions?

Oh Holy Cow! The earring thing just made me realize something. I might want to build my jewelry around the earrings he gave me our first Christmas together... that match my ring!


They are sapphires with 4 little diamonds at the corners. And MAD points who recognized that as one of the photos taken just after he proposed! Anyone who didn't, click HERE and watch the slideshow.