clgriffi7

I don't think there is any way for your guests to know it is not a legal wedding. I remember reading a post recently where a bride and her fiance left the resort to pretend to get their blood drawn. Personally, I plan on getting legally married at home before my wedding in Mexico. If people ask, I will tell them the truth but I don't plan on broadcasting it to all of the guests. I can't imagine that it matters when you sign the papers - when you say your vows and celebrate with loved ones is when it is for real.

Another option: if he saves $150 by booking by himself, you could offer to pay that difference to him as it will save you $500 + a free room. So it would be financially worth it for you to make that offer. That way you are telling your Dad the benefits to you without asking him to pay more. And HOPEFULLY your Dad will tell you to just forget the $150. Either way you come out on top and you haven't had to be confrontational with your Dad. Worth a shot? Courtney

I just responded to your PM about the designer, but in case there are any other ladies out there wondering: this mermaid with ruffles is Allure 8705. I don't think the Allure website pics with the model does the dress any justice. They only photograph the dress from the side... Courtney

I am inviting everyone to the AHR. I hope to have a slideshow at my AHR with pictures from the trip to Mexico. It would be that much more fun if the people in the pictures are in the room watching.

I noticed your wedding will be in Rome, so it may not be as big of a concern for you - but a lot of DW brides wear their hair up do to the heat (sweat on the back of the neck and such) as well as the wind. If those things aren't a concern for you, then you should wear it the way you feel most attractive. This will be THE most photographed day of your life, so you should look and feel beautiful without regard to what is the norm. Good luck deciding.

Looks like I am the latest NC bride - from Raleigh. We haven't picked a date yet because we are looking at November 2011 and it is too early to book a resort. I am looking at either Dreams Cancun or Dreams Puerto Aventuras (each of them have the more private gazebo overlooking the water for the ceremony). I am looking to have an AHR (more like an AHP - at home party), so I will need to try and find a location for that this fall. I am hoping to put the AHP date on the STD so there are no excuses :-) Courtney

I just bought a garter with two college teams since my fiance and I went to rival universities. Cost was $14.99 + $4.50 S/H. Sports Team Rivalry Wedding Garter House Divided I doubt we will end up tossing the garter because I am wearing a mermaid dress and that could lead to some difficulties in the groom kneeling and pulling it off during the ceremony (take a moment for a mental image). I hate to think this way, but if it is a hot day in Mexico there is also a good chance the garter could be a little sweaty :-)

I recommend looking at the Dreams resorts online - there are 4 locations in that area: Cancun, "Riviera Maya", Puerto Aventuras (south of Playa del Carmen) and Tulum. Each of the resorts offers either a beach ceremony or a non-beach location (either a gazebo or a chapel). All Dreams resorts are family friendly and they are relatively budget friendly too. Each of the 4 Dreams resorts are less than $1000 per person for 5 nights including a flight from North Carolina (not direct) when looking on Expedia. In fact, Dreams Puerto Aventuras (which I will likely choose once the date is close enough to book) was ~$750 pp for 5 nights. However, one of the best things about these resorts is that the website has a ton of wedding package information posted, so you should be able to make a quick yes/no decision prior to a visit or before talking to anyone at the resort. Good luck. Courtney

For those ladies having casual BBQ's for your AHR, an option for favors would be personalized koozies. My fiance and I are thinking about doing that... (we aren't doing a BBQ, but we are certainly having more of a bar party than a reception) Economy Collapsible Koozies | Custom Printed Koozies with Logo Prices look to be $95 for 50 koozies or $114 for 100 (can you tell they want you to buy in bulk?)

Thank you so much for this post - I just got 2 pairs of the black (one for me and one for my only BM). The total with tax was $5.40 and I have having it shipped to the nearby Lane Bryant store (no Fashion Bug stores nearby). The estimated ship time is 4-8 days. This is great - thanks!!!

My fiance and I are both sports fans, but we went to rival universities. So, I could be completely selfless and give him a great surprise by wearing a garter for his university. But my blood curdles at the thought, so I decided to search for a "house divided" garter. I didn't find anything with that kind of wording, but I did find a dual university one... purchase price of $14.99 + $4.50 S/H = $19.49 Sports Team Rivalry Wedding Garter House Divided

From all the reviews on this forum, your best bet is to go with the travel agents associated with this site. Scroll up to the top of this page and click on the banner in the header. The different agents specialize in different resort brands, but I am sure any one of them could help go through your criteria and pick a resort that works best for you. Just an FYI: I am interested in the Cancun/Riviera Maya part of Mexico and am pretty sure I will go with the Dreams resort brand (it is just too early for me to book a date). If you get a chance, go to the Dreams website and check out their wedding package info - I was hooked right then (well, the pkg info and of course the resort pics). Good Luck. Courtney

Sorry - my last link was to the item I purchased. It has been reposted with this link. 50 Business ID Card Badge Holder w/ Zipper Vertical ZH - eBay (item 130407774777 end time Aug-06-10 03:57:19 PDT)

I bought the following for room key holders, but they could possibly work as luggage tags as well: ID badge holders from ebay: lot of 50 for $5.00, S/H for $5.99, total of $10.99 50 Business ID Card Badge Holder w/ Zipper Vertical ZH - eBay (item 260615313718 end time Jul-06-10 07:03:20 PDT)

I think the fan idea is great, but personally I would only cosider it for the bridemaids. I would still want to have my bouquet (more for pictures than anything else). I do believe that another bride on this forum had her girls carry parasols instead of flowers, so the idea isn't too far out there. Good luck deciding. Courtney

Our wedding will kinda be our honeymoon. We are hoping to stay in Mexico for about 9 days so we should have a few days after the rest of the guests leave (I will be recommending 5 night stays for guests :-). We then plan to save up more money after the wedding (in conjunction with the honeymoon registry) to have a honeymoon/1 year anniversary trip. Right now our goal is to get married Nov 2011 and then take a Mediterranean cruise Sept/Oct 2012. Courtney

Depending on what time of day your ceremony is, how would you feel about the guys going out for a round of golf while you are getting your hair and makeup done? I will be in Mexico for a full week (so it obviously a different situation) and our plans are roughly as follows: day 1: bride and groom arrive day 2: guests arrive, welcome cocktail hour and then guys night out (not a repeat of the bachelor party, but more innocent bartime) and girls night out day 3: day before the ceremony (excursion for whole group if we can afford to spring for it) day 4: wedding day - guys play a round of golf while ladies get nails, hair, makup done for a start time between 4 to 5 pm. Courtney

I would love to ask a question to you eyelash gurus! I have never worn fake lashes before and think it would look great for wedding day/TTD pictures. Can a strip of lashes be applied one day (ceremony day) and still be in place for the TTD pictures the next day? Or should they be removed at night and reapplied? Also, how many times can you apply a single set of lashes? I am definitely thinking that I should practice ahead of the wedding (I have plenty of time). Can you recommed a cheap set to practice with and then a more moderately priced set for the actual big day? (assuming you think spending more is worth it) Looks like antz21 recommends Ardell for the ones to practice with... Thanks in advance Courtney

My men will be wearing a long sleeved linen shirt (rolled up) and linen pants. The groom will be wearing a white linen shirt with khaki linen pants, the groomsmen will be wearing light blue linen shirts with the same khaki linen pants. We just got the shirts and pants at a great Banana Republic outlet sale over the 4th of July weekend. I believe the shirts were $15 each and the pants were $20 each. My fiance and I picked up the clothes for all the guys while we were there to make sure we didn't run into any problems. Good luck deciding. (I may have preferred a suit for my fiance, but he really didn't want to wear one and I had to tell myself it is his wedding too) Courtney

I think I am a little confused. If you have already signed a contract to pay her a certain amount of money, then why in the world should she care what kind of pictures you want?! I agree with jerseykitten that you should try and kill her with kindness. If she is upset the day of the event, then the pictures will show it.

I just bought the following dress on ebay for my legal ceremony and AHR (which will just be a party). If you ladies are interested in a flowy tea length dress I would suggest checking them out. $49.99 + $9.99 S/H Short Party Dance Cocktail Prom Bridesmaid Dress 301 White S - eBay (item 170478395841 end time Jul-25-10 22:21:24 PDT) (I hope that link works, if not look for store Golden Studio Fashion Boutique and their "Short Party Dance Cocktail Prom Bridesmaid Dress 301") If you want a full length gown, think about ordering a knockoff. There is an entire thread on this site of ladies who have ordered knockoff gowns. I got a quote for a Maggie one-shoulder destination gown for $180 including shipping. (I was thinking of this one for my TTD, but it could easily be a reception dress) Good Luck. Courtney

I think #1 shows off your shape better. The way you were posing makes it look like you know #1 has a little bit of sass to it :-) Do you have a picture of you in the dress you already bought? Maybe we can help you decide to keep the dress you already have or encourage you to choose one of these new dresses.

I am not a bling girl, so I agree with leaving it off. I do think that your idea of a flower would be great though (a lot of them have a tiny bit of bling in the middle that would be a good accent but not too much) - a way to tie it in a bit with the outdoor/destination theme. Congrats on finding THE dress. Courtney

Congratulations!!! Every girl needs that reassurance when it comes to THE dress...we all need to be told how great we look in it.

#1 is more "beachy", but #2 by far shows off your figure the best. I am not going for a flowy dress myself as I still wanted my dream dress regardless of the wedding location. Remember that you will be the one looking at these pictures for years and years to come so choose the one that makes you feel the most beautiful.