The Perfect Dress for You!

Okay, so now that we’ve found “the one”, it’s time to find “the one” wedding dress! This is the dress that we, as girls, start thinking about at age five and don’t stop thinking about until we hand the cashier at Kleinfeld's our credit card! This is by far the most important dress that we will ever wear, so it has to absolutely perfect! The key, however, is to wear the dress, not let the dress wear you! Here are a few tips for each body type and what looks best on what!

Petite

For petite body types, it’s important to choose something that accentuates your body. Dresses with a slender silhouette are your friend, ball gowns however, are your foe. Ball gowns tend to overshadow your body and take away from your small figure.

Larger Bust

To help take away the focus from your chest, larger busted brides should go towards the fuller skirts. This draws the eye more towards your waist than your chest. This also helps to balance out the contrast between your chest and lower body. Straps and sleeves are another great idea when picking out a dress. This helps give support while also giving the illusion that your chest is smaller than it really is.

Smaller Bust

Completely opposite from woman with a larger bust, woman with smaller bust want the illusion that they have more than what they actually have. To do this, it’s important to look for dresses with texture! Bodices with things such as rushing is perfect for this body type and help make the bride look well in doubt, even if she isn’t!

Lean and Straight

For this particular body type, the key is to create curves! To do this, it’s important to look for dresses with flared skirts, diagonal draping, and daring necklines! Ball gowns are another great silhouette, due to the cinching at your natural waist and hiding of your lack of hips. This silhouette also helps accentuate your natural slender build.

Hour Glass

A-line dresses and waist defining sashes are hourglass figures best friends. The A-line silhouette is great for this body type because it cinches the waist at its smallest point and shrinks the hips. Mermaids are also a great look for this body type due to the slimming of the waist!

Pear Shape

For this body type, just think the letter A. It is key to highlight the narrowness of the midsection and take the attention away from the hips and thighs. To do this, it’s important to look for dress that has a skirt that gradually flares out in an A formation. Necklines that accentuate this body type are v necks and spaghetti strap bodices.

Unique Wedding Exits

In the wedding world, it is very easy to fall into a routine of similar traditions and trends. You go to your best friend’s wedding and see something you like that they did and the next thing you know you and her entire bridal party are doing it too. This is where creativity and individual uniqueness comes into making your wedding day the most special to you and your significant other. One of these traditions that are nice to change up is the exit. There are so many ways today that it can be done to switch it up and do something that represents you as a couple. Not to mention, get some great photos:) Here are a few ideas to help end your wedding with a bang!

·    Sparklers

·       Bubbles

·       Glitter

·       Glow Sticks

·       Rose petals

·       Colored Pom Poms

·       Lavender

·       Sports Shakers

·       Silly String

·       Ribbon Wands

#Wedding Etiquette

Photography: Vue 

In today’s society, an average person can’t go five minutes without checking their twitter accounts, Facebook walls, or Instagram new’s feeds. Social media is running our lives, and we’re addicted to it! And with this new internet infatuation, comes new technology etiquette, especially when it comes to weddings. This etiquette is not only for the happy couple, but also for the guests of a wedding. Here are a few tips on making this tech savvy phenomenon a do and a don’t!

                             For the Bride & Groom

•  Call your closest friends and family before you post pictures and status on social media! 

So you just had the man of your dreams get down on one knee and tell you he wants to spend the rest of his life with you, obviously you're going to scream it from the rooftops, not to mention show off the gorgeous rock sparkling on your finger! But let’s wait. For starters, this is the time you need to soak up every detail you can so you can always remember this wonderful day! Secondly, how would mom and dad feel if they found out the news on their Facebook news feed! Oh, they’d be crushed! So, instead of immediately running to your “followers”, lets call our mom and dad and listen to them cry all over you and your new fiancé!

•  Post pics of that skating rink on your finger!

Like I said earlier, everyone wants to show off that gorgeous ring on their finger, and everyone else wants to see it! But there are very specific guidelines to doing this the classy way! A picture says a thousand words, so you don’t have to. This being said, there’s no reason to tell the details of the ring, such as the carrot size and price. That is between you and your fiancé, it’s not anyone else's business. Let the ring do the talking for you!

•  Assign a specific person to narrate the day!

On your wedding day, you’re not going to have time to worry about tweeting what’s happening and taking pictures of everything going on around you. For one, that’s what you’re paying that fancy photographer for and two, that will be the farthest thing you’ll be thinking about doing. With that being said ,however, you’ll still appreciate someone else doing it for you and your new hubby to go back and look at. This is why it’s a great idea to designate a person to do this for you. As long as it’s in moderation, it’s a great contribution to your day!

For the Guests

•  Wait for the bride or groom’s permission to put things on social media.

This can be said for a multitude of many different scenarios. It’s all out of love and eagerness, but sometimes can get people into trouble. Let’s start with the engagement. If the groom asks for the brides friends or families help with proposal, they need to keep it a secret and not put anything on social media! This could ruin the surprise and the proposal for the upcoming engaged couple. This goes for pictures of the proposal before anyone else knows. As said previously, mom and dad might still not know. Moving forward to the day of the wedding! Don’t put any pictures up of the bride or groom before the wedding. This could ruin the whole “Wow” moment of the bride and groom seeing each other for the first time! I’m sure the groom would rather see his blushing bride in person for the first time, rather than a tiny little screen. When in doubt, always ask the bride or groom whether it’s okay to post something!

•  Turn off your phones for the ceremony!

This is one of the most serious and important etiquette tips I can give. While the lovely couple are saying their wedding vows and committing their lives to one another, they don’t want to be interrupted by a “It’s raining men” ringtones in the back pews. This day is already stressful enough, the bride and groom don’t want to have to worry about their friends and families phones constantly going off. If you’re worried about an emergency, put it on silent or vibrate. This is also to be said for the reception! Go have fun, take your heels off, enjoy this day of two becoming one. Lets keep it in our purse or pocket!

                                                                   What's a Groom To Do? 

Alright fellas, this one is all about you.... So pay close attention and take notes!:) The old saying goes, “A man never knows how unimportant he is until he goes to his own wedding.” Though this may have been true a decade ago, it is far from the case today. Long gone are the days that the groom is only responsible for popping the question and being on time at the church. Today’s couple is all about compromise and collaboration! So the ultimate question is, what’s a groom to do?

I feel like this question is asked a lot today. What’s appropriate for the groom? How can he be involved and add his own personal touches? The answer, anytime and everywhere! This day is about two people uniting and starting their knew life together, while also having some fun and drinking some bubbly! So why shouldn’t this be the same for the collaboration of the bride and groom. This should all start when the happy couple sit down to first discuss their ideas and expectations for their special, once in a lifetime day. This is when that pesky compromise comes into play! This helps distinguish exactly what the bride and groom want right off the bat without any confusion. Once it’s been discussed and a vision’s been made, the fun really starts!

The lovely and timeless Emily Post has taught us that there are specific things that a groom is required to do. Here are just a few….

•   Choosing the groomsmen

•   Choosing the groomsmen attire

•   Selecting thank-you gifts for the groomsmen

•   Arranging (and paying for) lodging for the groom’s wedding party

•   Picking a gift for the bride

•   Compiling the groom’s part of the guest list

•   Planning the honeymoon

•   Giving the officiate the fee for conducting the ceremony

•   Buying the marriage license

•   Planning the bachelor party

•   “The Groom’s Toast”

•   Dancing the first dance with the bride, dancing with the couple’s mother and maid of honor

These items are just a few of the many things that Miss Post tells us is correct form. But what we are learning today is that there are so many other things that the groom can do. He can attend the vendor appointments, pick out wedding colors, hire the band or DJ, choose the cake, and etc. If the groom loves to play golf, then lets get him a big golf club groom’s cake. If he is in the military, let’s have a Saber Arch. If the groom is very outdoorsy and loves to be on the river, let’s have a canoe be a place to hold drinks. These are all just a few examples of how the groom can be represented throughout the wedding with his own personal touches. Even if it’s something small, your groom will appreciate it and love that you incorporated him into the wedding. Remember, it’s the thought that counts!

Amy Little Photography 

Finally, all weddings are different and unique, just as are the grooms in them. With that being said, every groom has the decision of how involved they choose to be in the wedding planning process. In the end, all that matters is both the bride and groom are happy and enjoy their special day!