Debra Jane Bridal

I Went to…Debra Jane Bridal Wear

Debra Jane Bridal wasn’t one of my first choices but when I saw the wide range of different dresses I knew that I’d gone to a good bridal shop.

I’d made an appointment a few weeks ago because I wanted to ensure that I had someone to help us. Both Debra and a nice lady called Tina were able to help us however I was incredibly indecisive!

Tina was very friendly and chatty as I tried on dress after dress after dress. They had a fantastic range and even let me try on a huge dress! I didn’t try on any fish tail or sheath dresses as that style doesn’t suit me, but I experienced a range of their full skirt, A-line dresses. They were beautiful!

In the changing rooms, the information on the wall says that on booking of a dress, a 50% deposit is required with the remainder of the balance to be paid within 7 days of your dress being delivered to the shop. Alterations are done by recommended seamstresses and they will supply you with the phone numbers for them.

I really enjoyed walking out and showing my chief bridesmaid and mum the dresses I tried on, as they sat on super comfortable sofas. Both my mum and chief bridesmaid commented on what a wide selection of dresses they had.

Definitely worth a visit!

Princess Brides

I Went to… Princess Brides

I didn’t realise this until I got home and looked at the photos, one of the dresses I’d tried on at Princess Brides (and really liked) was one I’d picked out from a photo a few weeks ago!

We had a great time at Princess Brides. I booked an appointment a few weeks ago because I wanted to make sure they had time to help me for as long as we needed.

The lady who helped us, Ann, was so helpful and patient with me. I’m normally a very decisive person but choosing a wedding dress is difficult!

I chose some dresses with the help of my chief bridesmaid and my mum. My mum is good at saying what suits me and my chief bridesmaid and I have a very similar style, the best people to help me choose a dress!

I think I tried on 6 different dresses, one a fish tail and the rest were A-line dresses. Ann understood the style I liked and was able to find different dresses to suit my personality. She offered loads of advice and really helped us to make some decisions. She was also very kind to let us take photos of the dresses which I did look at when I got home.

Looking at the photos when I got home was brilliant because I think I got a bit confused by all the choices. Looking at the photos at home, when I was relaxed, meant that I could pick out some dresses I’d like to take a second look at.

We had a wonderful time at Princess Brides and I’m looking forward to going back to try on my favourites!

Wedding Shoes

Wedding Shoes

This week I have been breaking in my wedding shoes in preparation for the big day. My big day is still 11 months, 23 days away but I believe in being prepared. 

I bought my wedding shoes about four years ago. My friend was getting married in China and I saw a fantastic opportunity to save a few pounds by buying my shoes at the same place. They were custom made to the design I chose. They measured my feet to ensure my shoes were a comfortable as they could possibly be. I have kept them in their box ever since.

Wedding shoes can be a touchy subject. Some girls out there just want comfort for their big day while other fashion conscious ladies want something stylish and beautiful. I’m going to admit that I sway more towards comfort because you will need to stand up in these shoes for almost the entire day.

Here’s some tips on pleasing both types of shoe shopper:

• Make sure the shoe is comfy in the shop!
  If you can’t stand five minutes in these shoes you’re never going to last the whole day. Walk around the shop in the shoes. If you’re buying your wedding shoes at your wedding dress shop, try them on with your dress. Look for problems areas where the shoes may start to rub if you’re in them for the whole day.
  
• Shoe colour…
  More and more frequently, brides are buying shoes that match the colour scheme and stand out particularly under a white dress. This can be a very striking look and really stands out.
  Alternatively, if you would like your shoes to match your dress you can ask for a swatch of the fabric to look for shoes to ensure you get a close match.
  Then again, your shoes are going to be hidden under a long dress, does it really matter what you wear? You could even sneak some trainers under there if no one is going to look. I don’t think wedding guests pay too much attention to the tiny details so if the colour of your shoes is slightly different to the colour of your dress, will anyone notice? 
  
• Heel size
  Often, more petite brides choose a tall heel but remember you are going to be stuck in these shoes for the entire day.
  A few things I’d recommend for heels:
• Make sure your heels don’t make you taller than your groom, unless that kind of thing doesn’t bother you, then have the heel size that suits your figure the best.
• Also, have some flat shoes on hand hear by. You may be able to leave some with your venue or ask your bridesmaids to carry some in their bag.
• The best fold up shoes by far, in my opinion, are Red Foot. I have a pair of Red Foot fold up shoes and on a night out they have saved my life! I take them with me every time I wear my going out sandals! They fold up small enough to fit in your handbag so if your feet do start to hurt during the night, you can quietly slip into some fold up shoes and be in complete comfort.
  
• Outside wedding?
  If your wedding is outside, where will you be standing? If it’s on grass it might be better to go with a wedge heel.
  Alternatively, there is a new invention out there: The Soul Mates. They work by clipping onto the bottom of your heal and act as a wedge for the bottom of the heel. It will mean an end to sinking into the grass or slipping on gravel.
  I went to a National Trust house last weekend, in heels, and I think I brought back half the lawn with me! If I’d used these soul mates it would have been a lot easier. Also useful for garden parties!
  
• Check the refund or return policy
  Just in case anything happens or you change your mind, check the return policy. Obviously, you can’t return anything you’ve worn outside, but if a bridesmaid drops out or anything else happens, you want to make sure you can return the shoes.
  
• Party Feet
  The best invention for shoe comfort in the world! There are cheaper alternatives but I swear by my Party Feet!
  They have full sole gel inserts, sling back strips, heel cushions, sore spots, heel shields, gel pads for under the ball of your foot, blister plasters, ultra thin pads, and much much more. I swear by them. I bought some that are glittery!
  
  I think the blister plasters are the best because you can stick them to your foot in your problem areas. Fantastic!
  
• Can I see your toes?
  While I do think that the small details aren’t so important, I would suggest a pedicure if you’re wearing open toed shoes or sandals.  It just looks nicer and gives an over all polished look to your wedding.
  
• Should the bridesmaids wear the same shoe?
  Not necessarily. If your bridesmaids are wearing short dresses then it does look better if they are all in the same shoe, or at least the same colour of shoe.
  If your bridesmaids are wearing long dresses, your guests will not be trying to see their feet. It would be sensible to ask them to wear the same colour shoe however you want your bridesmaids to be comfortable for the day.

Whatever your shoe decision for your wedding, make sure you really love your shoes. I love mine and I’m really glad I bought them when I did because now they remind me of my friend’s wedding – plus they can be my something old-ish!

Little Problems

What More Can Go Wrong?

It’s our invitations this time!

What happened is, we saw the invitations we liked roughly 2 years ago at a wedding fayre in the Himley House Hotel. I instantly fell for these cute, quirky, unique and simple invitations. They were perfect for our spring wedding. I had my heart set on them despite the lady who made them warning me that they little flowers that feature on the front may discontinue.

They discontinued.

It is entirely my fault for not ordering the invitations in time but I can’t help being disappointed. After watching the awful Bridezillas programme, I know a Bridezilla would march down to the people who make these little flowers and demand them to start making them for me. However, I am not a Bridezilla so this is not going to happen.

What’s going to happen instead is that the invitation making lady has made some suggestions for us, some alternatives and ways round it. I’m not going to get the invitations I have set my heart on, but we will have some wedding invitations. Who knows, we might even like these ones better!

Wedding Hair Styles

Finding the Style that’s Right for You

Sometimes all you need is to look at a picture of the hair styles that you like to show your stylist.

Up Do’s

picture from towedding.net	picture from weddingdresscolection	picture from wedding teen.com
picture from deleted blog	picture from wedding hairstyle gallery	picture from meisshin’s blog
picture from hairstyleschats.com	picture at arabic-mehndi-designs.com	picture from flikr

Down Do’s

picture from mardinifashion.com	picture from mardinifashion.com	picture from weddinghairgo.com
picture from project wedding.com	picture from project wedding.com	picture from project wedding.com
picture from project wedding.com	picture from project wedding.com	picture from project wedding.com

I used google to find the hair styles featured here however I would complete recommend Project Wedding.com to check out the hair styles they have on there. I only picked out 6, but they have 17,000 and more on their website when I last looked. You are bound to find a style that suits you from all those!

Best of luck!

Adding Wow to Your Wedding

Keeping Secrets: Adding Surprises

I am hopeless at keeping secrets! Even when it’s something good, like a surprise for our wedding guests. Personally I love secret surprises. I’ve asked for my hen do to be a complete surprise and my h2b is organising our honeymoon in secret to surprise me. I like surprises, I look forward to them!

One of the best wedding surprises is in Love Actually where the best man arranges for a band to pose as wedding guests and asks singer Seal to sing as the couple walk down the isle.

I know it’s just a film but it’s a really good surprise!

Dancing Down the Aisle

Another wedding surprise that looks fantastic is Jill and Kevin’s wedding, a You Tube sensation.

The wedding party including the bride, groom, all the bridesmaids and ushers dance down the aisle to  Forever by Chris Brown.

So popular was this idea that the video went viral with 64 million views as of April 2011. The bride and groom from this video were on Good Morning America, which just goes to show how well a wedding surprise can be!

Bridal Party Dance

Popular in the States and Canada is the bridal party performing a dance. Not so popular over here in the UK, this could be an option for adding a bit of a surprise to your wedding.

In this video, the grooms men enter the stage area walking like zombies, get into position on the dance floor then perform the Thriller dance from the Michael Jackson video as the music clicks in.

It’s a really effective dance and would definitely surprise your guests. In the video there’s a scream from the guests, so it definitely surprised someone!

Fireworks

Fireworks add a bit of pow to your wedding and break up the time between the wedding breakfast and the evening reception.

This fantastic display from Marc and Maria’s wedding in July 2007 looks amazing. If you book something like this your wedding could go viral on YouTube!

Your guests won’t know your wedding itinerary and everything that happens will be a surprise to them! These beautiful fireworks will surprise your guests.

Don’t Tell the Bride

If you opt for going with Don’t Tell the Bride, everything in your wedding will be a surprise to everyone –  even the bride! That the wedding even happened could be a surprise!

To appear on Don’t Tell the Bride, you must be over 18 years of age. The principal of the show is that the groom organising everything so I imagine that to appear on the show you can’t have already booked any parts of your wedding.

This year, the closing date for applying to Don’t Tell the Bride is 30th June 2011.

Personalised Wedding Favours

A lovely surprise for your wedding guests would be a personalised wedding favours. Depending on your budget and your taste, personalised wedding favours would be a lovely touch to your wedding. Stones with your guests names on for place settings, home made cookies with your guests names in icing writing or small tokens with engraved names.

Our Surprise

I have managed to write this whole blog post without revealing my wedding surprise, or even vaguely mentioning it! We wanted to surprise our guests to so that they’d enjoy our wedding as much as we will. Plus, it will give us something special to remember when we think back to our wedding, although the whole day will be memorable!

What was your wedding surprise for your guests? Or do you think that they could be considered a waste of money? Share your opinion in a comment.