My first look at Wedding Dresses

My friend Beth sent me a link to Bella Bridesmaid to get me started on my wedding planning mission. We don't have a date or a location set yet, but it's still fun to look and get ideas for when that day comes. I've been flipping through some of my bridal magazines, and I am learning that it's not so easy to find dresses that aren't strapless. Or, at least they don't put them in the advertisements. I'm headed to Chicago this weekend, where I'll be seeing Tom Petty (woo hoo!) and trying on my sister in law's wedding dress. As long as I don't look like I am wearing a sausage casing, I might just go with it. She wore it well on their wedding day, and it would be pretty awesome to share her dress. :)

Because I will need to have some backup, I went on an online search of my own.

Here are some of my favorites:
I love this short dress from Simple Silouettes. And it's only $630. With the addition of a cute birdcage veil, I think you could feel like a total bride in the Aster Dress:


Another short dress from Jenny Yoo, the Joceylyn is only $450. I love the keyhole cutout in the front of this dress:


While I like the idea of having a "party dress," like the two above--I am still obsessed with this dress (DU6556) from Saja Wedding for $790. I blogged about it before.


I have no idea what style dress I will go with, as I am sure that will depend on when/where we get married. I do know that I want something simple. I'm new to everything other than paper, so if you have any recommendations for designers--send them my way!

It's that time again!

Brides across the US wait for the Running of the Brides at Filene's Basement. It happens only once a year (twice if you are in Boston) and brides to be can score a designer wedding gown from $249 to $699 (regularly $900-$9000! Dresses have original tags).

If you haven't been, and there's one in your area--GO! It's an adventure. Brides put teams together and line up early. When the doors open, the girls bolt to the racks of designer dresses. In less than a minute, the racks are empty and girls undress right then and there to start trying on. For extra efficiency, many brides are seen wearing spandex--so that undressing isn't even necessary. If modesty isn't a problem for you, you won't be alone in your bras and underwear...I promise!

While I am sure there is some catty behavior within the walls of Filene's on this day, there's a great sense of camaraderie with the brides. If a gown doesn't suit their liking, they are happy to pass it on to another bride--which could be the gown of her dreams. It's also a great environment to get lots of opinions, if you want them. ;)

Running of the Brides isn't for everyone. But if you love a bargain and you have one in your area, or are willing to travel--go! Make team t-shirts and have fun with it. Most of the times, there are radio and tv stations doing live broadcasts at the event. If chaos isn't your thing, you can still find a dress later in the day. I know girls who have gone to The Running of the Brides, only to be overwhelmed by it all and then returned later to find a dress.

Visit Filene's online for more information. Ready...set...go!

Wedding Collection at The Limited

I've been waiting for months for the launch of The Limited's wedding collection and here it is.


Head on over to The Limited's web site and see the collection for yourself. You'll be amazed by the prices! I'm excited to see this collection grow and offer up some competition for other retailers. Unfortunately, it looks like the wedding gowns are an online exclusive--but most of the other dresses can be tried on in store by your bridesmaids.

I'll definitely be taking a trip over to their store. My fingers are crossed that because I'm in the land of their headquarters, they'll have a great selection.

Happy shopping!

Did you know?

...that White House Black Market will be joining the Limited by announcing the sale of bridal gowns? This is an exciting new trend in retail!

For more information on their limited edition gown (seen below!) here.

Coming in June

Did you know that The Limited will be offering a line of bridal gowns on June 3rd? This is pretty exciting, especially for the budget conscious bride. They will be offering two gowns and two bridesmaids dresses. The bridal gowns will retail at $298 and the bridesmaids dresses at $89.50. You can outfit your ENTIRE bridal party for what you might normally pay for a wedding dress!

This is my favorite one, I love the color and cut--the little belt is a great finishing touch:


Ruffles are big this year, and this dress sure knows how to use them:


I will be on the lookout for these on limited.com and I hope that they will put some in the stores here in Columbus, since we are the headquarters. Fingers crossed!

Running of the Brides will be in Columbus!

Here is the 2010 schedule for the Running of the Brides® at Filene’s Basement stores:
Aventura, FL January 15
Columbus, OH January 29
New York City February 5
Boston February 19
Atlanta March 19
Chicago July 23
Washington, D.C. July 30
Boston August 20
Cleveland, OH August 27

See the full story here.