Thursday Shoephiles: Ruffles and Romance in Red, Golds, Blush, and Pink
top LtoR: Luichiny Women’s Gettin Hitched Sandal $69.95; Joan & David Collection Women’s Demille Pump $146.88; Badgley Mischka Women’s Randee T-Strap Sandal $200.00
bottom LtoR: Steve Madden Women’s Toppazz Platform Pump $99.96; XOXO Women’s Romance Sandal $78.95; ZiGiny Women’s Bloom Pump $99.95;
I have such a love for shoes, especially fluffy, ruffly, romantic shoes with flowers, bows or embellishments on them. I was in Nordy’s last weekend eyeing the Badgley Mischka sandals for an outfit I’m planning to wear to a special event and had to share them.
Vendor Spotlight: Beneath the Gown
On Sunday I attended a great party put on by White Dress by the Shore and several vendors who’ve moved into wedding row. One of my absolute favorites is Beneath the Gown, a fabulous company developed by master seamstress of White Dress by the Shore, Josie. Beneath the Gown is a bridal lingerie boutique presenting an exquisite collection of exclusive designer lingerie labels featuring french European couture fine laces and hand-made silks perfect for honeymoon, special events or everyday. Josie’s services include complimentary, professional bra fittings and in-house custom design service where we can customize or custom create bustiers, night gowns, and wedding gowns.
I have to admit — I was doing a lot of window shopping for myself while I was in Josie’s beautiful shop. She had some of the most delicate and stunning pieces of lingerie I’ve ever seen. I love the custom aspect too. In our chat we talked about how we can take a piece of my wedding gown and incorporate it into a custom piece of lingerie. Amazing!! I would love to be able to slip into something special that has elements of my wedding gown.
Visit Beneath the Gown on the web to learn more about scheduling an appointment. They are located in Clinton, Connecticut at The White Dress by the Shore. Be sure to tell Josie we sent you!!
xoxo
Stella & Dot Jewelry
I was introduced to Stella & Dot Jewelry and I really LOVE their designs and styles. Their pieces are bold and fashionable. They’d look fabulous on a bridal party – and are perfect for a bride who wants to infuse some of her daily personal style into her look! I love the big necklace “bibs” (as they’re dubbed) especially. It is such a dramatic look!
Pearls are ultimately my favorite jewelry on a bride, with bling being second. I really love colored pearls (I try to wear them as often as possible) and some big colors for spring are yellow, pink (papaya especially), and turquoise.
Big things to come on the blog! Be sure to check back through out the week.
xoxo
Wedding Boleros by bonzie
I came across bonzie and instantly fell in love with their style. I knew I wanted something to change my look from ceremony to reception and their rococco antique stained tulle wrap was perfect! bonzie is an independant fashion designer located in Ireland. They often using “upcycled clothing, thrifted trinkets and vintage inspired fabric in an artful blend of tattered chic neo-victorian, steampunk and deconstructed elements!” bonzie is best known for their bridal and fashion bolero’s, wraps, jackets, corsets, and skirts (yes, skirts!!)
Here are some of my new favorites from their collection… they are definitely for the bride who wants to bring a fun fashion element to her bridal look. Be daring!
New fall lovelies at jcrew
Today I discovered some new beautiful pieces at jcrew while looking for a new dress to wear to an upcoming wedding that I am a guest at.
Silk gazar Channing gown… I love the black ribbon! Although I think it could be accentuated even better with something by Emerson made.
Gwen dress… has jcrew heeded my call for a short wedding dress? Kind of, but not really. This will have to do! I love this. It’s very winter to me with the layers of chiffon, organza and soft French tulle, and a hand-stitched collage of glass beads, sequins and feathers. But for $2,000 you’d have to bury me in it.
strapless silk taffeta Gracen dress, slub silk Betty dress, and confetti flapper dress…. I love these options for your maids!
and last but not least, my favorite accessories! Love the shoes, but love the jewels more. I don’t really like a heavy shoe with a bridal gown so there wasn’t much to choose from with fall on the horizon.
Happy shopping!
A vintage hankie from Brass Paper Clip
The other day I was cruising etsy.com to be inspired or find something we might need for our wedding. I love etsy because it supports local and national small businesses, artists, and craftsman and in my book, those are the best businesses to buy from!
I realized that I didn’t have a hankie to carry with me down the aisle. Neither of my grandmothers had hankies to loan and my mother didn’t have anything either, so I decided to purchase my own heirloom. I came across this really beautiful hankie from Brass Paper Clip which specialized in vintage items for brides. They have so many cute vintage purses, gloves, hankies, flowers…. heaven! I purchased a beautiful Schiffli Lace hankie and received it yesterday. The one thing that I absolutely love about most etsy.com’s shops is how personable and detail-minded the owners are — just look at how she packaged the hankie that I bought!
Dita Von Teese Launches New Lingerie Line
One of my favorite fashion icons, Dita Von Teese, has launched a new 40’s & 50’s inspired lingerie line through Wonder Bra. Can you say Old Hollywood Glamour? I can’t wait to see the rest of the line — no doubt they are going to be nothing short of sexy and sassy. You can purchase them soon through ASOS.com
Vendor Spotlight: Adorn Bride
On Wednesday I attended The Wedding Salon in Manhattan and while there, I met the lovely ladies behind Adorn Brides. I hadn’t heard of the company before our meet and greet, but the concept behind the company has been around for awhile. Adorn Brides lends fabulous jewels to brides for their wedding day and they are the only company I know of that deals exclusively in wedding jewelry rental. Their collection is gorgeous and I got to try on one of their $20,000 vintage diamond bracelets! The representatives of Adorn also mentioned that they do buy specialty pieces for brides and are not limited to their current inventory. Isn’t that fabulous? They do carry a wide variety of styles but I love that they will purchase jewelry on a brides behalf.
There has been so much press and buzz surrounding them, too. They’ve been in Grace Ormonde’s Wedding Style Magazine, InStyle Weddings, Inside Weddings, and on The View!
They offer a generous program for Jubilee brides where they can receive very special promotional offers.
Wedding Gown Style: Old Hollywood Glamour
For the past few nights I’ve been entrenched in finding some old hollywood glamour inspired wedding gowns. I really love the classic silhouettes of screen sirens past, and fully believe that it is every woman’s right to channel Rita Hayworth or Marylin Monroe on her wedding day! Some elements you should look for in a gown if you are planning an old hollywood based soiree are sweet-heart necklines with mermaid, drop-waist, and curve accentuating gowns. Stick with satin, Silk-charmeuse and Chantilly lace. Delicate bead work and crystals are also a signature component of this style. I also recommend a faux fur or feather shawl to add an extra bit of glam!
For more inspiration, read our post on Dita von Teese , the ultimate fashionista who infuses the glamour of the 40’s and 50’s into her style.
Your Something Blue: My Picks & Ideas!
I love this tradition and I’ve found that most brides do as well. Here are my picks for items to consider as your something blue.
Your Bouquet
This may not be easy to do if you’re wedding color scheme doesn’t compliment blue. But, if it does, this is a nice way to incorperate the tradition. Image courtesy of TheKnot.com
Your Bridal Clutch
I think your bridal clutch is a chic way of adding something blue into your day. I love this satin fluer clutch from J. Crew. It also comes in a variety of other colors, including white, for all you traditional gals.
Your Bridal Shoe
I’m a huge fan of brides wearing colored shoes on their wedding day. It shows off a bit more of your personality, and the chances that you’ll wear the pricey shoe again? Pretty good. I love this blue shoe from Nine West, especially the jewel embellishment and the ruffle on the top. It reminds me of the crumb catchers that are gracing the 2008/2009 bridal gown collections. So pretty!
Blue Handkerchief
This detail is probably my all time favorite. I love the personalized blue stitching on this vintage handkerchief by stichberry on Etsy.com. The best part? It’s only $13!
Blue Rosary Beads
So many brides carry rosary beads with them on their special day. If you don’t have a rosary that is sentimental to you or your family, consider carrying the one above by BeadsofHeaven. You can carry them with you to the alter by hand, tucked in your dress, or like our bride Michelle who had her rosary wrapped around her bridal bouquet.
Blue Gown Embelishments
With the right dress, a little splash of color makes all the difference. I love this dress by Monique Lhuillier. Her Spring 2009 collection is simply gorgeous!
Blue Jewels
Another one of my favorite picks: choosing to wear a blue piece of jewelry on your big day. This broach, from Tiffany, is the perfect blue accessory. Also consider blue inspired earrings, a necklace, or bracelet.
Fabulous Find: Kate Spade Clutch @ 60% off!
Sometimes grim, rainy mornings are the best mornings to get your to-do list accomplished. So, what was on my to-do list this morning, you ask? To research a new fabulous bag for myself! I’m leaning toward the Louis Vuitton Manhattan PM bag or a traditional Burberry handbag (I know there is a world of difference between them!) and during my search, I decided to hit up bagborroworsteal.com to see if they had any new inventory in their outlet section. No, I am not an advocate of renting a purse… because my motto is if you have to rent it, you still can’t afford it! I do enjoy their outlet section of never used or gently used hand bags. Why? Because the discount is amazing, the bags are in excellent shape, and it is a much better and safer alternative to eBay.
Regardless, the point of this post is to share with you the AMAZINGLY discounted “Olivia” clutch by Kate Spade in both chocolate and ivory. This clutch screams glam and is now super affordable to all of us regular folks (marked down 60%!). Enjoy, and happy buying!
