BillysBride

I live in a relatively small town (albeit the state capital..Springfield) about two hours south of Chicago. We don't have any MAC counters anywhere around here...which is something that irritates the hell outta me. But I'm thinking of just taking a leap of faith and ordering from their site and doing a little trial and error. That can get expensive, but oh well. I've always wanted to try it, and can't see any way to do so without a major drive in my future. We do have Prescriptives here in the mall...BFB, what do you like specifically about it? I have oily skin...a few patches of dry, but believe me, I feel like I could fry a chicken on my forehead by the end of the day.

Just wondering what everyone was planning to use as far as product for their wedding. I know as women of color we have a unique challenge finding a line of products offered in the diverse color spectrum we require. So I'm hoping to get some input from everyone on what they use, what they want to try, what they've heard about and what they KNOW works! I figure we're already discussing hair...lets work our way down. I'm hoping to find the right base/foundation that will be light enough for the Mexico heat and hold up in high humidity. Any suggestions?

hahaha...ya, Hartyt. I'm gonna let my mother go after her. Lock them in a room together and just walk away. LOL Heres another lil' tidbit to get ya laughing. She calls this afternoon. I'm at my kid's new preschool, so I don't answer at the time. But what message does she leave? "Oh, girl just wanted to call and let you know that Deal or No Deal is holding auditions close to us. Just thought this was something that might be your cup of tea!" Umm...ok. My WEDDING is my "cup of tea" right now. I'm over it. I sent out emails to everyone including her today saying "Hey, here are the two dress options, final cut. For those of you who fell in love with the first dress, plan to wear it. For anyone who objects, dress #2 is your option. If you like it better, feel free to order at any time this next couple of months. If you don't like or feel uncomfortable with both dresses, I completely understand and won't hold a grudge if you fee strongly enough about it to not want to participate in the ceremony. By all means, come to the wedding and enjoy it all as a guest. Either way, its going to be a blast. My other maids know the issues I'm having, so they will know just who I'm talking about. lol. Oh well.

Thanks for the back up ladies. Oh, and I forgot. Wanna know the kicker? She calls me right back Saturday night and says "Well, are you busy tomorrow? we can try for tomorrow." I'm thinking, ok..redemption time. Well, she DID IT AGAIN. Didn't call yesterday, didn't show. There is a word I'm thinking of...but I won't use it. But here's a close duplication. @#*% her!

Quote: Originally Posted by Tlseege I'm bringing in my photographer, I mean "best friend with a camera " So I will be using the same photographer for both. We aren't really sure of where we will be going though. I've flown him in two days early so he can scout stuff out and get some ideas. I'll be doing the TTD in two weeks, so I'll post and review when I get back. Hopefully that will help you at least with locations! Thanks so much! That WILL be a big help.

Celina- you're right. I calmed myself down the other day, and gave her a call. I asked if she was busy Saturday afternoon (yesterday) and said "Lets do some lunch and hit Davids. There are at least a couple of other dresses that are similar enough to work that you might like if you tried them on." After a brief hesitation, she says "hmmm, ok." That was Thursday. Fast forward to Friday. She calls me, on her lunch break to tell me that both her son and mother had called her cell phone several times and not left messages that day. She was "worried" and couldn't get an answer when she tried calling either of them back. Now, her son is 21. Grown. But I'm not going there yet. I tell her, "well, if something serious were going on, they would call your work number, not do four hangups on your cell phone. Let me know what was goin on tonight after you get off and don't worry." Anyway, I said to myself right then and there (and to FH) "This smells like the buildup to bailing." Call me a pessimist, but thats the first thing that came through my mind. And in my defense, this person has a history of things like this. When I initially tried to introduce her to my circle of girlfriends years ago, she would agree to go out with us or whatever, then mysterious things would always happen the day before or day of. Finally, a few years ago, she told me that she felt "Like the oddball around all of you guys together. You're all so put together and everything." Ofcourse, this was the beginning of me trying to boost her self esteem and change how she saw herself. Its never worked. Fast forward to that evening...no call. Friday..no call. Saturday late afternoon (around 4:30 ...when she KNEW the appt I set was for 2:30) she calls. Laughing. All about the "sex toy party" she went to that day. Ladies, I bit my tongue til it damn near fell off. Didn't say a word...just let her talk, til she was running out of things to say. I barely even grunted acknowledgement. Finally, she's like "Oh well, sounds like you're busy or whatever, so I'll talk to you later." I tell her, "Ya, we can try to come up with a time to go get you into some dresses." Her response? "Oh..ya. mmk. " NO acknowledgement of having blown off the appt (which, thankfully I cancelled that morning because I knew she wasn't going to show) If it were truly the boob thing, I'd be more understanding. But trust me when I say that after knowing this broad for 8 yrs, I know her body issues and her own personal preferences. Its not the bra issue. Its the fact that she doesn't want to wear that dress. Period. She thinks its too..whatever. She believes in "big women" (and by that, I mean anyone over a size 12) should only wear certain things. I'm to the point where I'm just over it. She can participate or not. its not worth getting the other girls annoyed and its surely not worth my time trying to fix this ...problem she has with herself. She can either wear the dress I chose, or the other one I found thats similar. OR she can stay her ass at home and not attend. If this is how she wants to behave, then I'd rather not have her there anyway. My mother (who has other issues with the girl) was livid. At this point, I'm not even going to start making excuses for her. She's an adult, ya know? I expected better.

Well, good to know I'm not alone. Never thought I was, but its good to get all this validation! JamaicaBride- I have seen the EXACT same thing. I usually buy a L straight off the rack and it fits fine, but the very first internet search I did (couple weeks ago) for wedding tees, I found out I'd have to get a 2X, COMPLETELY leaving out the girls in my wedding party who are larger than me. Its insane. And they wonder why women have such body image issues. Oh, and try here: Plus Size Wedding Party Attire - Bride T-Shirts, Wedding T-Shirts, Bridesmaid T-Shirts, Bride Tank Tops, Bridesmaid Tanks They aren't too far off the mark. They go up to a 3X which is a 22/24. I'm planning to buy my girl's shirts from here since they have the full range of sizes we need.

Quote: Originally Posted by CourtneyV I bought my dress in diamond white. I thought it'd be WAAAAY more ivory than it is. To me, it looks stark white. They tried to show me the difference and I couldn't really tell. Diamond white apparently is just a very little, tiny bitt less white than the White dresses. It's white, not ivory! I don't think it'd look weird or bad, etc if your FH's shirt didn't quite match your dress! Stop stressin'! Thanks. I'll do just that! Its amazing how we brides can get hung up on one detail til it makes us insane. I gotta chill. I'll never survive the next year otherwise. LOL

Quote: Originally Posted by Morgan I'll get him some angel wings while I'm at it. Oh ya...get some for me too while you're at it! So, you have faith that the pure alongside the light ivory/diamond white will be ok? I know I'm over thinking this. But damn. I'm sending something to IslandImporter.com where I found the shirts I want for the guys. They are good about customizing orders, and they do have an "off white" version of the pants I want for them, so I'm going to ask if they can do the shirts in that same color and material. The off white that the guy is wearing in the pic looks like what I am imagining for the Maggie Diamond White. I NEED to be more worried about how I'm going to fit into this dress without putting somebody's eye out.

Abbie- I think EVERY bride who ever encountered the Maggie gowns for the first time wondered the same thing. My initial thought was the same as yours. Diamond White should be a brilliant, pure white. But not according to this manufacturer. Oh well. I'm all for cream/ivory/off white..WHATEVER. But it sure seems hard to match.

To add yet another dilemma to the whole thing, I'm really wanting to use a stephanotis and red rose bouquet. Now I'm worried about having cream/ivory stephanotis against my Diamond White gown look too off. I'm dark (obviously) and I know people always compliment me wearing white with my skin tone, but I really prefer the less stark cream or ivory color if given the choice. I want the Diamond White dress, mostly because I just feel it will be more flattering overall. But will ivory stephanotis as accents in my bouquet look strange with diamond white? Grrrrrrr.

Ordering some in bulk from some Ebay distributers but need to know which width to buy. It may not matter, but I'd like to be sure. I keep thinking 5/8.

Quote: Originally Posted by Morgan Mike used to read Men's Health & I felt like it gave him a negative body image. I got him to switch to Maxim. I felt like it was better for him to look at airbrushed women than airbrushed men He can be really hard on himself. And therein lies the problem a lot of women have with their men-folk reading "skin rags". I know Maxim is far classier than many. But for some women...it gives them, a negative body image. You know what I'm saying. Many women see their guy looking at something like that and they feel as though THAT is what he wishes he had. Afterall, he's looking, right? Don't beat me up...I'm just saying how it is for a lot of ladies out there. We are already our own toughest critics. These are the same women that have issues with their men watching porn. "What, I don't give you what you need?" Me? Like the other ladies here, I wouldn't care. Hell, I've been known to point out beautiful women to him. But I do know lots who would. Especially if they come in from the beach wearing their bathing suits and see their men sitting on the bed reading Maxim.

That is about the sweetest, most creative thing I have EVER seen. They will love it. Great job!

You just GO girl!!! You looked great! FH is going to be a very happy boy.

Thank you, BFB. Girl, we as women need to get over this constant comparing ourselves with what we see on t.v. Those heffa's have been nipped, tucked, airbrushed, peeled, suctioned and augmented to the nth degree and here we all sit looking at them, then in the mirror thinking we are unnatural. Something is VERY wrong with that. I refuse to starve myself. Am I happy with my body? Ofcourse not. It needs some tweeking, but I'm not about to tell myself I need to be a size 2 to be gorgeous. Some women are simply not meant to be single digit sizes, and I'm one of them. I ain't been a size 6 since I WAS six, so I'm not sitting around the house trying to figure out how to go back to that. I had some medical issues about a year ago, and got down to a loose fitting size 10...people kept asking me what was wrong with me. I looked gaunt, emaciated and just plain unhealthy. This was the weight loss, not the medical problem that caused it. Once I gained about 10lbs back, everyone noticed and stopped even worrying about me even though I still had problems with my thyroid (mine was HYPERactive instead of sluggish, so my metabolism was in overdrive). I've always thought the Marilyn Monroe's of the world are far more beautiful and womanly than the Twiggy's. I hate it that America has done this to the female population. Its mass brain washing I tell you! Not that theres anything wrong with being skinny. If thats your body type, then rock it. If its natural for you, then chances are you look good that way. I've just never understood the entire mentality of DYING to be "thin" or "skinny." In fact, I remember someone calling me that in college, and I got offended! I need my pumps and a bump....as Latifah says, "Its a curvation nation!". I'm a 14 now, but a 12 dress size. Its my hips that keep me outta of 12 pants, and they are not going ANYwhere, ya here? So I'm trying to tone up, and lose this damn pooch I have. I can't even blame my kids for it, I had it before. They just made it a little bigger, so not really their fault. hahahahaha My wedding goal is to have SOME type of abdominal definition. You know, that outter rim women get even when they don't have the six pack? Ya, thats what I'm going for. Pooch reduction and a little ab definition as well as having thighs that do not jiggle when I run scantily clad down the beach. Because, honey, let me tell you..I WILL be running scantily clad down the beach. With no shame. And my man will love it. Y'all all need to do it. She'it, have you been to the beaches outside of the U.S.? If you see what some of those European women are working with, and showing off, you will stop feeling so bad about yourselves. ((shudder)) Y'all stop dogging yourselves. For real. Please. Obviously, you have men that think you are the cat's meow and sexy as hell or they wouldn't be tying themselves to your "fat" asses in the first place. I guarantee you, the only person thinking you are fat (other than Hollywood) is you.

Quote: Originally Posted by LadyP I feel so fat. I believe that I am an emotional eater . I find that I eat when I bored. I eat when I am lonely, upset, tired and want to stay awake and most importantly if I know that I will enjoy it and its here. I have tried healthy snacks but it works the same. But I eat because I want to eat. Now I am 5'5" and I weigh about 165lb. I am very top heavy 36DDD with a 31in waist. I would love to get down to 130 but will settle 145. I will start a new eating regiment on a monday and do good all week. Then the weekend it is over. I AM A FAT COW Any words of wisdom on how to beat the gorging Now wait just a damn minute woman...you are about the same size as me, and I am NOT fat...I'm fierce dammit! hahahahahaha!! Seriously, I don't think you need to do much other than tone. You can lose some inches and still enjoy the food you love. Adding excersize and cutting your portions is the key. I'm realistic. No way can I deprive myself long term, so I find its easier to compensate by working out a little bit more. I'm just now getting into my excercise regimen, but its coming along and I'm being patient with myself. Also, keep in mind...as Afr. Amer. women, some stuff is a given. We tend to have more dense muscle mass, and as we all know, muscle weighs more than fat. From your pic, it looks to me that you carry your weight beautifully and no one would ever guess the actual lbs. Thats the only important thing. Stop looking at the scale. It is not your friend, in fact, its a downright enemy to all of us trying to get a better body. Stick to a tape measure and moniter your progress every two weeks instead of every week. You'll be boosted by the results you're getting because they will be more dramatic opposed to if you were checking every week. Above all, stop dogging yourself! You are beautiful, you are sexy, you are FIERCE. Screw that damn scale, girl.

Awww, Martha. I'm just so very happy for you. I know the feeling of that first ultrasound, so I know you're on Cloud 9 right now. Enjoy it Mama!!

Quote: Originally Posted by azhuskergirl I'm showing how long I've been watching the show with this comment, but: Does anyone remember when Lauren was a singer? Or when Brad was the pool boy at the Abbott house? My favorite thing on the show is when the childen age 10-15 years simply by going away to boarding scholl (or something along those lines) Hahaha..S.O.R.A.S....Soap Opera Rapid Aging Syndrome. They go away 10 yrs old, and come back a year later, hot and in their 20's. Adam IS creepy. I had read somewhere that his character was supposed to be gay when he came in, but now they are going with the Phyllis obsession thing. I dont find him all that interesting, but its nice to see someone give Victor hell sometimes. JT and Victoria...better than Excedrin PM for putting me to sleep. I'm thinking its something about them being a couple in real life. I feel a little wierd even watching their love scenes like I'm spying or something. JT is a cutie though..just doesn't have that raw animal magnetism like Big Daddy Cane. Daniel and Amber...oy. I don't even know what to say. She gets on my last achin' ass nerve. But its always fun to see her get whats coming to her in the end. LOVED that whole wig snatch thing that Cane did to her a while back. Now THAT was good t.v. Daniel is such a little hobbit. I mean, he's good looking and all, but so...fantastically stylish that its hard to take him seriously. He seems more like one of my girlfriends than a male lead. And he's kinda tiny....add to that the whole porn addiction-lying to his wife for months about EVERYthing under the sun, and now I'm pretty much done caring about him. I wish they would utilize the character of Adrian more. He's a hottie and a good actor, but they've had him on the back burner ever since he hooked up with Colleen. I do like the new Colleen too, though I know a lot of people don't. Didn't realize she's Australian though til I read it in a magazine. She does a good job of covering the accent. Oh, three of the guys from the show are touring this spring/summer. Making a big deal of it because Y&R doesn't send their people out like other soaps do, so its being publicized a lot. Three dates announced so far, Jacksonville, Fl. then Dallas, then Vegas. Its going to be Daniel Goddard (Cane), Thad Luckinbill (JT) and Christian LeBlanc (Michael). Can y'all tell I'm a fan? hahahaha. I just love that man (Goddard). As my grandmama would say, "I'd drink his bathwater"I think me and my girls are going to go to the Dallas event and treat it like a girl's getaway weekend. Two of my bridesmaids and myself. They are doing a lunch, then a breakfast both with question and answer periods, schmoozing with the fans, and autograph signings and pics. Should be fun. I'll post a pic if I get one. Oh, I did hear about Drucilla coming back. If it happens, it will certainly shake things up! Wonder how Mama Dru will react to her hubby shacking up with another woman....and still wearing his wedding band whilst he's doing it! Not to mention her baby girl dating an "older" man.

Quote: Originally Posted by Just Martha I think just about everyone on here that hired an outside photographer had them do their TTD pictures also...in fact, I don't know of anyone that switched and used the resort photographer. Oh, I wasn't clear enough (but that tends to happen a lot LOL). I don't mean switched to the resort photog, I just mean switched to a different photographer period. I've seen some mention that they used one outside photographer for the ceremony and another for a ttd shoot...because of cost, or other reasons. Just looking into it as an option.

I posted this in the other forum, but think it may need to be here instead. Mods, please feel free to move. For those of you who did a trash the dress shoot, who was your photographer? Did you have the same photographer for both the wedding, and your ttd session? As always, pics are appreciated. I'm having Claudia Rodriguez photograph our wedding, but still trying to figure out what to do about a ttd. Location as well as photography. So please share your location for the shoots as well. Not to mention, if you had a seperate photog for the ttd pics, what was the price like?

Well, I think that if you truly hate them, then you are TOTALLY within your rights to have more made. If its something you are going to look back on and regret, fix it. Thats the general rule of thumb that I'm using myself going into the wedding. Its just too big an event to be remembered with any type of regrets that you can avoid. I'm so sorry they didn't turn out the way you hoped!

For those of you who did a trash the dress shoot, who was your photographer? Did you have the same photographer for both the wedding, and your ttd session? As always, pics are appreciated. I'm having Claudia Rodriguez photograph our wedding, but still trying to figure out what to do about a ttd. Location as well as photography. So please share your location for the shoots as well. Not to mention, if you had a seperate photog for the ttd pics, what was the price like?

LOVE Michael..and glad I was taking a break from the show during his rape stint. LOL Lily...well, they are playing her true to life. She's showing her age. The whole not a girl not yet a woman thing. All I know is that Cane would mature ME real quick. hahahaha. Me and my girlfriends call him Big Daddy Cane!

Just wondering. I love Y&R and my favorite character right now is Cane Ashby (Australian hottie Daniel Goddard). Hoping to find some ladies to dish with about the show.