pretty dresses

I can't get over these dresses from Eshakti (why have I not heard of them until now?)

Just take a look!

(click on the picture to see it on the site)

Also...

The site appeals to me because the prices are reasonable and because the reviews are so much better than ModCloth (which I think has a similar collection).

I spent my discretionary income for this month on makeup, but you can use this code for 15% off: Na46FY, or this one for $12 off your order: ESHAKTI2010.

(found via The Bobby Pin)

We've got a Latte Love: Getting Pretty

When my alarm went off at 7am, I nearly hit the snooze button before I realized what day it was!

I rolled back the covers, stretched, looked at my calendar and smiled. For the first time in months, there were no more days to check off. Today I was getting maaarrried!

I surprised everyone, including myself at how calm and zen I was. After a quick shower, I double checked my packed luggage and joined my dad in the kitchen for a cup of coffee before the madness began.

At 8am, the girls arrived. Toffee's and Frappuccino's sisters all agreed to help us with our hair, so we set up a beauty salon right in my parents basement.

We enjoyed breakfast compliments of papa latte, in addition to mimosas and sparkling apple champagne.

I had created a girly playlist that included everything from Rhianna and Britney to Norah Jones and Corrine Bailey Rae

The set up:

photo by Toffee, text added by me

Blow-drying, curling, and pinning commenced

Vanilla Bean

photo by Toffee

baby sister Caramel with more than her fair share of hair

photo by Toffee's sister, edited by me


photo by Vanilla Bean, and edited by me

at 9am our photographers arrived as the last of the bridesmaids' hair was being finished and we moved on to make up.

Sister White Choc

I wish I had invested a little more time and money in research and makeup for the wedding day. I loved how I looked early in the day(like me, but with improvement), but I think I was a bit melted by dinner time.

a touch of mascara to complete the look!

I love this moment caught between me and mama latte with her hair half curled. (too bad it's right in front of my dad's office!) she was probably telling me to double check my lists.

Mama Latte wasn't sure she wanted her hair done, because she really doesn't like to be too gussied up. I was glad when she agreed to do it that morning!

Sister Caramel is such a heart breaker!


I loved how crowded, chaotic and fun our morning was. It was nice to be home--no worries about forgotten items, or making it to appointments. I felt excited, comfortable, and surrounded with love.

And then it was time...

I slipped into the dress that was a long time in the making

and finally, it fit me like a glove.

In an instant, I became a bride

all photos by Chris and Sara of Little Hands Photography unless otherwise noted

2nd Fitting: The Bustle!

I have about 40 pictures from my fitting on Saturday, but I wanted a fairly easy post...so before I get to showing the progress (but not completion :-( ) of my dress...i'll show you the few bustle options that my seamstress gave me.

Because I cropped these to only show from the waist down, I think I can still keep the style of the dress a secret from E, in case he peeks in on me. (which means actual pictures...not links!)

My dress is pleated at the back and has a very short train, so I didn't have a whole lot of options for the bustle.  essentially, there is a 1 point over bustle (with two variations), a 1 point under bustle or a 3 point under bustle.

They are all fairly easy to do, but the over bustle is the least stable becuase there is only one point and it has to be a hook and eye or tiny button, for minimal visbility.

this my dress' train

Bustle 1: Three point underbustle

Bustle 2: I think this is one point under bustle..just kind of messy?  hmmm...I should have written them down.

Bustle 3: One point over bustle worn low 

Bustle 4: one piont over bustle worn high (at hips) with the pleats pulled out

Bustle 5: One point over bustle at hips, with the pleats tucked behind.

There's not a dramatic difference between them all, but I think I'm going to go with the last one because it's the cleanest look.  I like the pleats in my dress with the train is down, but it seems funny looking to me to have a pleated bustle.  It is the least secure of the bustles...but I'll take my chances.  

But I certainly I wouldn't want my bustle to slip.  Someone might step on my dress, and I could end up with this!

leaving in 3 hours for Cali.

I have as many pieces of luggage as the airline allows, and I'm out of here!

Shower-wear: I found it!!

One of my great friends and I met last night for dinner, tanning (for just a few minutes and just for the wedding--I'm not going for wrinkles and skin cancer at age 40!), and shopping for a dress for my bridal shower...

After 3 department stores, and drooling over lots of Calvin Klein dresses (oh how you tempt!) I found her. And after the dress' discount I didn't know about, and opening a Macy's card because I just couldn't justify spending $80....

Here is my $58 shower dress that I'm totally thrilled with!!

And here is a photo of me in it in Macy's dressing room, on the crackberry.

Yay! Glad to check that off my list, and add this cutie to my collection.

Have a great weekend, and don't forget to enter my giveaway!

the fitting

...was not what I expected. When I stepped out of the dressing room, it wasn't quite the "magical moment" I'd been dreaming of.

It's a custom made dress. It was my first fitting. There's supposed to be some tweaking...right? My seamstress is a rock star. I have full confidence that she'll pull the dress together exactly how I want it. But there is some work to be done.

E, don't you dare keep reading.
not kidding.
love,
me.

*photos are all linked to prevent fiance peeking!

She said she erred on the side of modesty and made the top with a LOT of coverage. One of my biggest fears with the neckline of my dress, was that my teeny little chest would be swimming in the space left for it. I want it fitted, sleek and tiny. It was not. It was also pretty lopsided. I think she saw that immediately when I put it on.

The custom back wasn't quite as low or wide as I wanted. I think this is probably a quick fix.

Lastly, the straps were too thick. (see first photo)

I'm sure I must've sounded like quite the bridezilla when I stepped out of the dressing room, with nothing but things that needed to be changed, but I was dissapointed that the dress didn't look exactly like i'd been imagining and I couldn't help but blurt it out.

It truly does have all the right elements though, and I know it'll turn into something beautiful!

And as BM Rae, and my sisters and mom said, "Katie, it's really not that bad!" (did I mention we got there right when she opened on a Saturday morning? we were armed with starbucks, but the sleepiness still shows)

Also, I did a pseudo make-up trial that morning. I felt like I was heavily coated. Sis K1 and Rae said it was barely noticeable. (And the only photo that barely shows the unnoticeability is an awkward mid-sentence, confused, dark, and shadow-induced double chin shot. Aren't you bloggers lucky I have no shame?)

In an effort to not be dissapointed again, and to let Richelle know how happy I am with the dress overall, I sent an email to her this morning thanking her for all her hardwork and sending her some more inspiration photos of the specific tweaks I wanted made.

Here are the photos I sent her:
Mrs. Cherry Pie
Romona Kaveza
Anne Barge


Here's to hoping it will all come out in the end. :-)

it's only fitting

WOOHOO!

I finally heard from my dear, patient seamstress, after I bombarded her with "are you done yet? I'm so excited! What does it look like? When can I come?!! EEEEE, I'm SO EXCITED!!!" emails about the status of my wedding dress. My dress is ready for a fitting!

She was open Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday...and it's just my luck that I have a [rec]vollyeball game on Tuesday night (I feel like I have to clarify that I'm not still in school and playing competetive sports. ha.) and I have my baby sister's sports award banquet on Thursday night.
So Saturday morning, the moment the shop opens, my mom, sisters, and my BF/BM are heading over for the big reveal and my first fitting.

I'm very excited, but nervous--as I have no concrete idea of what the dress will look like, after my last-minute-changed-my-mind bridezilla moment.

I'm also concerned about how my very teeny assets will look with the neckline I chose...but a post on that to come.

How nervous were you for your first fitting? (Or am I the only one?)

the dress, part 2

Hi, my name is Katie, and I can be very scatterbrained. I just realized I never finished the saga of my wedding dress! (Part 1) But first...

Dear E,
If you click on the photo links in this post, you will be sorry. Not only will you not be surprised on our wedding day, I will probably have your hide. So do us both a favor, and don't peak.
I love you!
Katie

All photos in this post are linked in order to protect the anonymity of said wedding dress from inquiring fiance eyes.

When I last left this story, I had signed the contract for a seamstress to make my dress...a strapless dress I had convinced myself I liked. But something was missing. After the craziness of the holidays, I started going through the pictures of my dress shopping experiences, andI found the first dress I tried on with my mom and sisters.
I will always remember the look on my mom's face as I came out of the dressing room in a Casablanca 1831, 8 sizes too big, and stepped in front of the mirrors. She was crying!

I felt gorgeous in this dress, and looked so happy. Here is Sis K2 taking a photo of me in the dress.

But I had some concerns.
First the beading. If you look closely in the designer pic (the first link) you can see the little crystals scattered all over the bodice. This was a bid no-no for me and it was hard to look past.

Second, the back! Oh, i just couldn't get over how ugly the back of the dress was. The straps didn't seem to fit with the style of the front, I thought they looked like bra straps and the back was SO plain.

Thirdly, the buttons. Now, I don't hate buttons. In fact, a lot of the time I like buttons. But not only did they go down the back of the bodice, the back of the whole dress...they went the length of the train!

At the time, I couldn't get over my issues with the dress, but now that I was having the dress custom made, I couldn't imagine wearing anything but a v-neck.

So, 6 weeks after signing my contract with the seamstress I gave her a frantic call, explaining the situation and my change of heart and begging her to see what she could do to change the style of the neckline, back and bodice (I liked the strapless dress' skirt best) She had already started cutting the material and sewing the dress! She asked for some pictures which I promptly emailed to her, and then I spent the next hour refreshing my email to hear her response. It was worth the wait.

"Hi Katie,
I looked at the pictures, this should be fine to make these changes, I just have to recut a few things. How low do you want the back to be?
Thanks,
R"

What?! I was in shock. I knew this woman was a master seamstress, but this was unbelievable to me. And no extra cost? I owe this woman big time.

I sent her the following pictures for inspiration for the back of the dress

Back 1
Back 2
Back 3

Soooo much better than the back on the Casablanca!

Her response:

"Sounds good, I will probably start those changes on Monday or Tuesday, I have to finish up some stuff for [a local high school's] Homecoming. Let me know if you think of any other changes before then.
Have a good weekend,
R"

In other words--don't change your mind again, bridezilla!

But I couldn't be happier with my decision and I can't wait to see the dress finished!!

Designer photos: source 1, source 2

Why I am the indecisive bride

Because, literally, I cannot make a decision and stick with it (or be happy with one that can't be changed) for anything! And I've been like this for as long as I can remember. After this weekend, I decided that the very best title for this blog is the The Indecisive Bride.

A long time ago I posted about wedding dresses I was looking at. (yes, I just ended a sentence with a preposition...it's been a long day). It's too bad that I haven't blogged about the whole journey of finding my dress, so I'll try to break up this long story into two posts. It's been a [self-imposed] nightmare because i just cannot make up my mind!

So here's the story:

Over Thanksgiving, my aunt and grandma mentioned to me about a seamstress in my area who makes wedding/prom dresses out of her home. They said I should check her out just in case she'd be able to make the dress I was interested in for cheaper than the boutique offered it ($$ was the only reason I hadn't purchased the dress at that point). About a week before Christmas I gave her call and set up a meeting with her. At this point, I was pretty set on a strapless dress by Private Label by G.

It had all the right ingredients.
Show off my shoulders/collar bones.
Fit my teeny chest without looking awkward.
A-line skirt.
Ivory.
No beading, sequins, glitter or lace. NONE! (how not girly is that!)...

Here she is (So not this veil!):

It wasn’t love at first sight. I’m not sure what it was. The look on my face in the other pictures where I am actually looking at the camera is kind of tired, and complacent. Later I tried to remember what I felt like when I had the dress on (like, did have the “moment”?) And as far as I can remember, I don’t think I did.
But I had the support of my family and friends.

Here’s what I learned. Don’t show your family and friends options and let them pick for you. This was my big mistake. Everyone like the strapless dress, including my mom. They commented how it showed off my assets (collarbone), I could wear a pushup bra for support and voila! The decision was made.

I called the seamstress and made an appointment with her to get some pricing information. She said she could make the dress for $500 including alterations (vs. $900 + alterations from the bridal boutique) I was sold, but trying to be cautious (ha. Who am I kidding! I don’t even know what cautious is. Just ask my fiance)

Nonetheless, I flipped through her portfolio, and talked to my friend and BM who had her prom dress made by the same seamstress (she’s been making dresses for 15 years!!) who gave her raving reviews.

Then I took a deep breath, wrote a check, signed a contract and checked "order wedding gown" off my to do list. Sigh of relief!

Is this story over? Course not. Stayed tuned for more :-)

something old, something borrowed

Last night I convinced my mom to take out her old wedding dress for me to try on. We both knew it was not something i might consider wearing, but it was still a sentimental moment for us.

You see, my great-grandmother made the dress for my grandmother, who got married in 1954. My mom wore it for her wedding 29 years later.

But this is what I saw when we took it out of the box.

Yuck!

It looks so yellow. It's lacy and long sleeved and has sparkles (my one vice when it comes to wedding dresses!)

But my mom is pretty laidback when it comes to wedding things and did not mind the dress at all. Wish I had the picture of my grandparents to show you the dress for it's orginal wearer. Here is the dress circa 1983--see how cute they are?!

and.....here is me in it in 2008!

Not so my style, but so much better than i thought.

The bedroom lighting made the dress look much worse than it looks on. I am thinking of doing a pre-wedding shoot with this dress just to create an album for my mom and grandmother. I can't believe how well it is doing for being 54 years old!

Fast-forward to vintage dress #2. Another dress, another story.

My dad's older sister, my Aunt Dee, died of luekemia when I was in high school. She had a son, my cousin, who I have always been close with and I spent a lot of time over at their housegrowing up. When I got into junior high and got very crafty, she would have me over and we would cross stitch, knit and quilt together.

She made BEAUTIFUL quilts (I'll have to post one on another day) and I'm so sad that I won't be getting my dream wedding ring quilt from her for my wedding. I asked her for it when I was 11 years old.

Isn't it cute? I just love the homey feel it has. But I don't think one not made by my aunt would be the same.

My uncle remarried a couple of years later and cleaned out a bunch of old stuff from their house. He knew how close Aunt Dee and I had been, so he asked me if I wanted to have her wedding dress (he has a daughter, but she is much too big to wear the dress and is already married) So I took it, having no idea if I would ever like it or fit into it, and promptly forgot I had it. We found it when I searched for my mom's dress in the basement and I decided to try it on too!

Here it is, in the box, unopened since 1978.

And here it is on me! Yikes, check out those sleeves! Believe it or not, I like the neckline. (my mom thinks it's terribly ugly) It's so vintage and fun, but it is too big everywhere and it's again, not me. (I'm not sure anything vintage is)

But I had a blast trying on these dresses!

Did you try on any vintage dresses, or wear your mom's dress for a photo shoot? How did you honor your mom or grandmother (or aunt!) with using/wearing their vintage wedding things?

Dress Quest (i.e. Dress Mess)

I still have a hard time admiting i am an impulse shopper, because I always budget my money. I just spend it on the wrong things.

Anyway, take that habit to wedding dress shopping. Of course, the first dress i try on is the perfect one. It is classy and Jaqueline Kennedy styled and simple. I love it. And it is exactly my budgeted cost. I tried it on twice and got rave reviews by everyone in the store (moms and other brides)...but my family and my BM's still weren't convinced.




Fast forward to one week later. I found a new favorite dress that looks entirely different, and is roughly 1/3 more $$ than the first. But this time I am convinced this is the one! I find out I can get a much better deal on dress #2, if all my bridesmaids purchase their dresses from the same boutique (which will cost about $15-25 more per bridesmaid)




I am having a hard time not purchasing dress #2 yet, but I wait, because this dress is one thing I can't splurge on...and I feel a tiny bit guilty about making my bridesmaids pay more.

Then, I search the bee boards again and find the website http://preownedweddingdresses.com/
I find a dress similar to the "one" that is pre-owned but never worn. So dress #3:

Now I am stuck. Do I save a couple hundred $ for dress #3 that I haven't seen in person or tried on...or do I go with the one I've pretty sure about, which will cost myself and bridesmaids a bit more, or do I start over and visit more places? (I've been to 4 stores by now....but there are plenty of others)

I am getting impatient. I just want to have this dress decision done!

How have found the dress of your dreams and still gotten a deal?