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Just wanted to add my experience: I contacted both Marvin (http://www.mayafloral.com/) and Cherry Blossom (http://cherryblossom.com.mx/) and emailed them pictures of the same bouquet and centerpieces. They both responded promptly, Marvin within a few hours and Cherry Blossom one day later. Both companies seemed professional and friendly. Their prices are not that different — for the bouquet I want, which is made of dahlias and garden roses, Marvin quoted me $165 and Cherry Blossom $140. For the centerpieces, I wanted 2 or 3 small vases of roses and dahlias for each long rectangular table. Marvin quoted me $75 and Cherry Blossom $69 per table. I'm going to have a hard time deciding, but based on my experience so far, I would totally recommend either company.

Hi ladies, What's the best bra to wear under a strapless wedding dress, particularly if you are petite and want a little boost? I'm looking for something that will bring my 32B to a C-cup or so, and (most importantly!!) will stay put all night through the dancing and hugging and jumping up and down. I'm considering the Victoria's Secret Biofit as well as The Little Bra Company's Sascha — anyone have experience with either, or other recommendations?

P.S. Sorry if I sound harsh. I don't mean to berate you, as I'm sure you're a lovely person, but sometimes even the best of us needs a little honesty.

I have to disagree with the two above posters. Honestly, you should be mature enough to handle being around someone you don't click with, especially if that person's family is important to your fiancé's family. This is not about your fiancé not supporting you, it's about you being inflexible. From what you described, it sounds like it would be majorly awkward to invite her parents and NOT invite her. If your dislike of her is mutual, then she may not even attend. Even if she does attend, you can just stay away from her for the week of your wedding. Sit next to other people at meals, don't engage in conversation beyond polite small talk, etc. Just choose not to engage. You will be in a beautiful vacation spot, why would you ruin that by letting yourself be annoyed by someone? For my destination wedding, there are a couple of people invited that I either feel neutral about or flat-out dislike. I am really, really hoping these people choose not to attend. But they are important to either my fiancé or our families, so no matter what, I will put up with it and be a gracious host.

@Trace2013: Whoo hoo! Yay for gorgeous, frugal wedding dresses. Honestly, whether a dress is a "wedding gown" or a "bridesmaid's dress" or even just a normal white dress all comes down to what the retailers put on the label. A lot of places will actually charge more for the EXACT SAME DRESS in white than in other colors, because they know women are willing to pay so much more for their wedding gown. Your dress is simple and stunning, and everyone who sees you in it is going to think "bride" because guess what... you're going to be the bride!

Thanks ladies! @TheWolferts: your gown is beautiful! I love the way it folds around, so old-Hollywood.

Thanks so much for all the help, everyone. You all are too sweet. I went in and tried this Nicole Miller gown today, and totally fell in love. It's a very simple silk trumpet dress. I don't have any pictures of me in it, but here's a picture of a different bride wearing it: The first dress (the grecian one) is definitely beautiful, but I realized that it's just not me. I'm a very modern, minimalist kind of lady, and I just wouldn't feel right looking "goddessy" on my wedding day. I will be selling the grecian dress though, and hopefully it finds the right home!

Description from the designer: "You'll be goddess-like in this chiffon Grecian style wedding dress with beaded cut out collar. It has an empire waist and flowy skirt. The collar is an intricate cut-out style heavily beaded in pearls. It's so perfect for a destination wedding as it is lightweight and cool." I bought this dress in a giddy fit during one of my first shopping trips, and have since changed my mind and decided to go with a completely different style. The dress is still brand-new, with tags attached and in the original garment bag, never been altered or worn. It's a really gorgeous dress and for the price, the material and beading are very high-quality. I still really love this dress, but it's just not for me. I hope it finds the right home! If you live in NYC, you are welcome to come try it on. I can also ship to anywhere as long as you pay the shipping.

Yes, keep in mind that your ivory / "candlelight" dress will probably look much brighter under sunlight. Also keep in mind that for the most part, men do not know or care about the difference between white, off-white, ivory, etc. Maybe your fiancé is different, but I know that I could hand mine a shirt in any shade of white or ivory and he'd call them all "white".

You made the right choice! Dress #1 is stunning and by far the best of the options you posted. Congratulations!

Thanks for all the positive comments about my current dress! That makes me feel a lot better about my original choice. However, I still can't get the trumpet silhouette out of my mind... it just looks so sleek and glamorous. Sigh.

Hi ladies, So I bought this Camille la Vie dress a little while ago: but now I am having serious doubts. With the beading and the flowy A-line skirt, it just looks a little too "princessy" for my tastes, and I'm thinking I'd prefer something more sleek. When I went dress shopping, I've also really loved the look of the trumpet or fit-and-flare silhouettes. I am thinking of having the following dress custom-made by Jasmine's Bridal Shop: bodice: Tara Keely 2205, skirt: Nicole Miller Eo009 It will cost me about $350 to have it made, and I can of course sell my current dress (though the price tag is not really an issue since my current dress was only $400). What do you think — should I keep my current dress, or get the new custom dress made?

+1 for the non-traditional, not-wedding obsessed brides!

My wedding planning process has looked much like most of yours — in the beginning I went a little crazy with the details and the researching, while my fiancé just chimed in with his opinion when he had one. We decided all the big things together (venue, date, guest list), but I was on my own with the details. Honestly though, I think the men are smart. Wouldn't you like to have someone doing all the research for the venues, photographers, decorations, music, etc., and then present you with three or four great options? I know I would. They know that if they don't do the work, we will. Sneaky! After I realized this, I decided to chill out, do nothing, and see what would happen. What happened is that my fiancé started getting nervous about sending out the STD's on time, and he finished them up and sent them out while I looked over his shoulder and had a glass of wine. Awesome! So ladies, if you want your fiancé to do more work, I recommend that you take the initiative and do less.

You could make a beach day out of it and hang out with your guests by the ocean for the afternoon. You can wear a bikini that says "just married" and have a margarita toast to your new status. Or, go off with your new husband for some alone time and let your guests fend for themselves for a few hours. They're in paradise, they'll be just fine. If you're really worried about them being bored, you could ask your maid-of-honor / best-man to plan a group activity for the afternoon.

Send out electronic save-the-dates with link to our wedding website 13 months in advance. Planning to send out invitations 3-4 months in advance, with RSVP deadline 2 months in advance. We are not doing our wedding at a hotel though, so we have no group rate deadlines or booking deposits to worry about.

Quote: Originally Posted by cinnagirl We're also been given some flack for having a DW too. People need to realize it's an invitation, not an obligation. We aren't twisting anyone's arm! You know, this is what I thought too at the beginning of the planning process. But after many conversations with my family, I came to realize that while I may think this way, my fiancé may think this way, and most of our generation may think this way, the older relatives just don't. For them, it would be rude to not attend a wedding, even if it's far away and expensive to get to. I can explain to them all I want that it's an invitation and not an obligation, but somewhere in the back of their mind they'll still be feeling a little uncomfortable. That said, this may be particular to my culture or my family. And no matter what you do, you're never going to make everyone happy. But I just wanted to say that it's not always as simple as "people need to realize it's an invitation, not an obligation".

We are having a symbolic ceremony in Mexico officiated by a family friend. If it's a symbolic ceremony, there's no legal requirements and don't let the hotel tell you otherwise.

Kleinfeld's is close to Chelsea Market at 16th and 9th avenue. There's tons of little restaurants and shops in there, and you can buy something and then walk over to the beautiful High Line park afterwards to eat outdoors.

1. I had the exact same goal as you: to invite people so that they would feel included, but also to give them another option in the likely event that they don't want to travel. We sent out save-the-dates with a link to our wedding website, and here's the wording I used on the website: Wedding Ceremony & Reception The ceremony and reception will be at the Ana y Jose Beach Club in Tulum, Mexico on the evening of Saturday June 8th, 2013. The ceremony will be held on the beach, with dinner and dancing to follow. At Home Reception Because travel is not possible for everyone, our parents will be hosting a reception in Maryland on Sunday June 23rd, 2013 (location TBD). If Maryland is more convenient for you than Mexico, please come celebrate with us there instead. 2. I can think of two options here. Option #1: Address the invitations to "The Smith Family". On your RSVP card, write that "2 seats have been reserved for you". That way, the aunts, uncles, and cousins can choose amongst themselves who wants to attend. Option #2: Invite all the aunts, uncles, and cousins, but make it super clear to everyone that there will be a get-together at home and that they are under no obligation to travel to your destination wedding if they don't want to. Whether or not Option #2 will work depends on the culture of your family — in some families an invitation to a wedding is practically a mandate to attend, and in others people feel perfectly find not attending if it's inconvenient. You'll know best.

Oh my god, thank you THANK YOU for posting this. I just got off the phone after an hour and a half of fighting with my mother about the AHR, and this is exactly the wisdom I need right now. Even if she's planning a horribly expensive and tacky event that makes me wince just to think about, I'm going to be zen, show up, greet guests, and go home. Ommmm.