MARIAELM

Kashmira, I'm glad to help. I can't wait to see some pics of you in dresses. You're going to find something just perfect for you.

Quote: Originally Posted by JPMO OMG Maria everything came together perfectly. I can't rave enough about the floral arrangements and how beautiful the reception area appeared at night. I know that your other pics are just great. You and your new hubby looked fabulous. Congrats again! Thanks Jenetta!!!

Often times the photo size is the culprit. Reduce the size and you will often reduce the file size. If that doesn't work, you can e-mail them to me and I can reduce them for you and post them. [email protected]

This was my dress (very simple from J. Crew), but in Aqua. I wore a really cute chocolate ribbon belt with aqua beading at my waist.

Christa, Wow - you look GREAT in that dress!

Quote: Originally Posted by A10CALGAL Thanks Tammy! I really like Bluefly.com because you can get designer dresses (or whatever) at a discount. Also, they have an easy return policy. The dress I got was expensive, I won't lie, but it was 50% of retail, so in my mind it made it ok! I've been trying to step outside of my usual fashion comfort zone lately - and this dress has opened my eyes big time! I'm not normally a dress girl. Anyway, also try ebay for great deals on attire. What kind of dress are you looking for for the AHR? I'm an expert internet shopper, so if you tell me what you like, I'll keep my ninja shopping eyes open for you!! Christa, you're a girl after my own heart. I love blufly and ebay too for dresses I couldn't normally afford. My friends call me the internet shopping queen. Your dress is going to be beautiful on you!!!

Quote: Originally Posted by gkashmira Thanks ladies - but really it's an illusion! I just happened to have picked a pick for my avatar where I look thin (which is why I picked it actually!). And Sarah - you are certainly no whale (but maybe you're as crazy as one for thinking you are ) Seriously - have tried on some white/ivory dresses and I have to say there is nothing more unflattering on me! To be honest it's not that I'm huge - it's just that I have a thick waist (basically NO waist!) and it seems like every dress I try on seems to emphasize that fact (instead of reduce it) I feel your pain. When I went to try on dresses, nothing could be zipped up all the way and I felt huge. I thought the mermaid (or tight bodice dresses) were awful on me. I too normally gravitate towards empire waist dresses. I was determined to go with a halter or strapless. Strapless actually ended up feeling more comfortable (also remember how many times you'll be reaching up to hug people and dance on your wedding day) and drew less attention to my arms. I found the corset back on mine to be really good for cinching in and giving me the appearance of a waist (my mid-section is my most hated body part). The v detailing on my bodice and a-line cut also gave the illusion of a smaller waist. Anyway, I hope this helps.

Quote: Originally Posted by NABUMBAH looks like this is where we'll be honeymooning. Chris just won a charity auction for four nights here. Looking forward to it! how exciting! it looked great to me when we passed it. i think karla might be honeymooning there right now. i'm excited to hear about it!

i think it's funny. no harm done to post other people's wedding pics as long as you aren't dissing them. we actually had a few people try to crash our cocktail hour. my husband let them eat and everything. he's such a softie! my brother went upstairs to use the restroom a few times during the reception and said he caught several lurkers trying to check out the party. they were enjoying the music.

Quote: Originally Posted by RAENJAY MariaElena - I love that dress, it looks so comfy.... And I love the color. I can't wait (did I just say that?) for my mom to come down for Thanksgiving, and we can look around. Stephanie, it will be a lot of fun for you to go shopping with your Mom. It's her big day too. My mom found her dress very comfortable. I didn't want her to be too hot. Plus, the color went with the pink, yellow, and green that the bridal party wore. My mom lives out of state too so I understand how logistics can get complicated.

beautiful dress!!!! i really like alfred sung! it looks like it won't be too heavy either.

Quote: Originally Posted by BEACHBRIDEMA Hi Maria Elena I went to the web site where you bought the starfish. I tried to order some, but it wouldnt let me, it said my order was under 50.00. Do you have to have a minimum order? Thanks Sarah I'm sorry, I forgot to mention that. There is a $50 minimum order.

Quote: Originally Posted by NABUMBAH Sorry, I was editing down the GINORMOUS phots... they should be fixed now! I agree that #1 is a little busy. That's probably my least favorite, although when I sent them to Chris he said he liked it the best because they spelled his name right - HAHA. My colors are shades of blue and green, a la this photo (I'm going to recreate this for my wedding) and thanks Sarah for the compliment on the frond. I also used it on my STD... I figure it'll kind of tie this stuff together. this looks great - what a beautiful look for your wedding!!!

This is what my mom wore: Designer: Alex Evenings (my mom really likes this designer and and wore it for my brother's wedding as well) Store: Nordstrom.com She had a hard time deciding on a dress so I took the liberty of ordering several online for her and then returned what she didn't like.

edyta - wow, your mom's dress is gorgeous!!!

they're all beautiful! what a tough choice! i like # 4, then #3 becuase i like the simplicity of those. i think # 1 is a little too busy. good luck with your decision!

thanks everyone!

We had 4 checked bags, 2 carry-on garment bags (my dress & his suit), and a small carrry-on backpack. It was a long travel day toting all that stuff. Continental was a real stickler about the 50lb rule. My FI was adament that he didn't want to pay the fee so he kept rearranging until we were good. So, I know your pain. When we explained it was our wedding, the gate agents did try to help us repack though. My advice is to get to the airport early.

i bought a garment bag from the bridal store. it was only $12 & pink so we got plenty of attention. my FI (now husband) carried it for me through the airport. most people (except the continental flight attendants) were nice about it and interested!

As a follow-up, the OOT bags were very well-received. I walked around with my bridesmaids to hand them out at the hotel on Friday. For those who weren't there, we handed them out at the rehearsal dinner. We kept it simple and filled them with a welcome letter and some bags of chips we bought at Costco on arrival. The chips were a great snack for people between meals.

I'm really late - but FELIZ CUMPLEANOS to you both!!!!

Quote: Originally Posted by gkashmira Maria Elena - can I hire you to make my wedding an exact replica of yours? It seriously was amazing! You are fantastic! What a nice compliment - thanks! You don't need to hire me. You can have my help and steal my ideas for free.

i LOVE those! BCBG is great. I have several cocktail dresses by them. They'll look great on your wedding day and for other occasions too! Exciting stuff!

I would have the H&M people come to you. We went to the salon at the Hilton only because it was downstairs. We did our own make-up and ordered room service together afterward. It was nice to have some fun time just with my bridal party before the whirlwind of activity the rest of the day. BTW, I'm glad I get married at 3PM and had an evening recetion as opposed to my brother's 11AM wedding and afternoon reception. It felt less rushed. I know Dave enjoyed some relaxing pool time earlier that day.

Quote: Originally Posted by JANET1111 I've finished buying gifts for all the wedding party, but I'm stumped about what to buy our parents (both mine and his) to say thank you. How do you thank someone for something SO HUGE? How do you thank people who already have most every material possesion they want? (at least that I can afford!) Here are some ideas: embroidered keepsake handkerchief (for the moms) weekend at a B&B (not too $$ but still somewhere nice) ?? (Can you tell I am stumped?) We plan to make nice photobooks but those will be Christmas gifts. Do you have any ideas for nice but affordable and/or meaningful gifts that we can give them at or right after the wedding? What are you all doing? Thanks in advance! This is a hard one. I got my mom a really pretty silver dollar pendant from a religious jeweler near us. She loves jewelry and will always remember that I got married at the beach. Dave took the Dad's on an ATV ride with the rest of the wedding party. He wanted them to have an experience, not a thing. Other than that, we'll give them a picture book.