Wedding Recap: Part 1

It is hard to know where to begin when it comes to wedding recaps. Do I post chronologically starting from our drive to Michigan? Do I do all the wedding week recaps first and the honeymoon recaps second? What about all the other pre-wedding things that I still haven’t posted, do I just forget about those altogether? This was a tough decision that I had to make, but I am confident that you all will be happy with my decision of where to begin. I give you the DRESS…..ES!

That’s right! I am bringing out the big guns.

It is amazing how different a dress feels on your wedding day. At my final (and only) fitting that took place just 4 weeks before my wedding day, I felt the same way I have felt every time my brother let’s me try on one of his runway masterpieces. I feel like a super model and can’t believe that he created this amazing gown. But I wouldn’t say that I felt bridal. The dress fit perfectly and didn’t need any alterations, so I just tried it on, walked a few steps and then the fitting was over. At that time in the NYC studio, it didn’t really feel like my dress. I left excited to be wearing it at my wedding, but didn’t necessarily feel a connection to the dress itself. All of that changed when the huge box arrived at the Marriott in Detroit. While I was checking in to our room, the head of the concierge desk approached me and said, “I have your dress.” Butterflies. They wheeled it up to the room and I unpacked it carefully in the spare closet, making sure Evan could not to see it. I stood in the closet and thought to myself, “This is the most amazing dress I have ever seen and it’s mine”.

At that moment I felt that if a wedding dress could be a person’s soul mate, this was mine (other than my husband, of course). The white satin and tulle masterpiece created by my little brother was more beautiful than I could have ever imagined in my wildest dreams. On my wedding day, my brother held it open while I stepped into it in a room full of my best friends in the world. It was a stop-and-remember-this-moment moment that I had been advised to relish in. I felt like I was wearing a cloud.

After I was dressed, my brother helped me walk through the hotel to meet Evan on the bottom level. Taking that dress down 3 escalators was truly a laughable task. I was asked several times if I was a Bride which I responded to, “No, I’m not.” which really threw some people for a loop. Evan and I spent the afternoon traipsing around Detroit City with our photographers of Inspired Art, taking the most beautiful pictures I have ever seen. I mastered the art of holding the dress up, so it wouldn’t drag on the ground. And then it was time to get married to my best friend, in my dress, my beautiful wedding dress that my little brother made for me.

After the ceremony Evan and I rushed upstairs to have a moment to relax and realize what just happened. It was another stop-and-remember-this-moment moment that was captured by our photographers in my favorite picture of the day.

Then everything went in a whirl, cake cutting, toasts, first dance, and the first two hours were gone. After a few dances and a few drinks I decided it was time to get busy and changed into the party dress. The party dress was what I had been keeping as a surprise, but when it came down to it, I didn’t have time to make another entrance. I just casually walked in the room and hit the dance floor. The short flirty dress still felt bridal, but bridal in a fun, let’s dance all night, kind of way, and dance I did, all night with a few short breaks to mingle with guests.

Photo by Uncle Terry

The dresses played a big part in my day as a bride and I can’t imagine the day in any other outfit.

More on the attire of the day coming soon. Wait till you hear about those bridesmaids.

**All photos provided by Inspired Art Photography unless noted otherwise

Fashion Week Tried to Kill Me

New York Fashion week is a dangerous place for a bride to be. I am usually a very decisive person and rarely second guess decision I have made quickly. I thought I had the whole female side of the bridal party taken care of. I picked out the bridesmaid dresses without effort during the last visit to New York. I knew the dress that would inspire my wedding dress from the moment I saw it in Bride Magazine. All of these things were certain, until I saw this…

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It was sitting in a lump on the cutting table in my brother’s studio the night before his fashion week show at Bryant Park. I saw this pink mass of a dress just in a pile and thought to myself, I bet this one is an incredible piece. Then they unfolded it and hung in on a hanger. Oh my goodness! My mother said, “You should get married in that.” Then my brother’s head designer and long time friend, Sam, said “I’m getting married in it.” Sam, this might be war.

After the quick visit to the studio, we went to the hotel and went to sleep. I didn’t dream about the dress. I really didn’t think about it at all. I was excited for the show. Excited to see all the clothes come to life on the runway.

The day of the runway show is always a whirlwind. We got up, wandered around the city and then got dressed to go early to hang out backstage. All the clothes are lined up around the perimeter of the backstage area and everything looks beautiful on the hangers, but there is still a lot of anticipation to see the clothes on the girls. The pink dress was getting a lot of interest from the photogs, but I didn’t pay much attention as photos are snapping all over backstage as the celebs arrive. It wasn’t until that moment that it came down the runway that I was certain I had to make a plea for it. I heard Mike Meyers from Wayne’s World whisper in my ear, “it will be mine, oh yes, it will me mine.” Here is one more photo to oogle….

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This dress is not a realistic option for a wedding dress. First of all, it is really heavy and difficult to walk in. The model who wore it in the show, Sessilee Lopez, is a super famous couture runway model and even she had a tough time getting down the runway and back in this monster of a dress. Second, there would be no way that I would be able to move in this dress other than down the aisle and back, meaning it would probably take more hours to make the dress then I would actually be wearing it. I would definitely need a second party dress to switch into immediately after the ceremony. And finally, this is a very difficult and time consuming dress to make. Sam already said he wasn’t making it again, so just forget that I ever saw it. That would mean that either I/my brother would have to force him, or I would just have to wear the pink one. This dress will definitely be the death of me.

Would it be totally insane to consider just wearing it as is?

Double Dress Dilemma

I know it sounds extravagant, but I am seriously considering having two wedding dresses. Having two dresses may be something often seen on Bridezillas, but I just can’t help wanting a formal dress and a party dress.

I am 100% wearing a long dress for my ceremony and for pictures. I must have the traditional long white dress. What I am still debating, is having another short party dress (still white) to change in to in the middle of the reception. This poses a lot of extra things to coordinate. At what point during the reception do you make the change? Who is responsible to bringing the party dress to the reception site? Who is responsible for bringing the long dress back from the reception site? We aren’t having a seated dinner, so do I change right after the ceremony, after the cake cutting or after the first dance?

I have come across some really adorable short wedding dresses, or as I like to call them, wedding cocktail attire. These are not helping. I just love the short sweet styles of Amsale, Oscar De La Renta and Casablanca Bridal.

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I am a very spoiled Bride and I know this. Not many people get to have a wedding dress custom made for them by their little brother who happens to be an up and coming fashion designer. For this reason, I wonder if I am getting a little greedy wanting to have two dresses. I have gone back and forth on this decision a number of times, so I’ve decided to list the pros and cons of having two dresses in order to make a final decision. Also, I need to figure this out with enough time to have said little brother make me another dress. And to answer the question that I’m sure you are thinking, “No I don’t care if he minds making two dresses, he is my little brother and he has to do what I tell him or I will put him in a headlock.”

Pros to having two dresses:
:) You don’t have to decide on long vs. short, you can have both!
:) It is easier to dance all night in a party dress.
:) A costume change can be impressive to the guests.

Cons to having two dresses:
:( You have to take time away from the party to change.
:( It might not seem like enough time in the formal dress if the ceremony is short.
:( I will have to designate someone to help me change and make sure the long dress gets home safely.

Ok, ok, so this little exercise hasn’t lead to a conclusive decision on whether I should have one or two dresses. Did you think about more than one dress? How did you decide?

Golden Globes to Wedding Dress

At this past Sunday’s Golden Globes, actress Christina Hendricks of Mad Men, wore a dress designed by my brother that is very very similar to the style we agreed upon for my wedding dress. Obviously I don’t have hooters like Christina and my dress will be white instead of peach, but I am excited to see the design come to life. The bodice on my dress will also be different than this, but I like the look of the slimmer skirt with the flounces wrapped around. What do you think?

Wedding Dress Consultation

As I mentioned on my blog, Mom and I headed to New York this weekend for a two day trip to spend some time with my brother and have a wedding dress consultation. Monday, we went to my brother’s studio to try on dresses! I had already sent him pictures of dresses that I liked and he had put together a couple sketches.

I got to try on a handful of dresses from his most recent collection to see different style bodices, dress styles and get an idea of a fit. I tried on one of my favorite dresses from the collection, the Satin organza side-ruffled cocktail dress in Oceanic print. I tried on two dresses that were recently shown on Oprah, the Black tiered chiffon dress and the Satin-faced organza draped flounce gown, which is going to be the inspiration for my dress. My dress is going to be essentially this dress (first and last dress shown), with the side panels removed so that it is straight. It is going to be white with ivory flounces. I can't wait to see it in real life!

Bridal Nightmares

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I guess that it is pretty common to dream about your wedding day and even have a nightmare or two when the stress is high. I am not particularly stressed at this moment, but definitely had my first shocking bridal nightmare.

I dreamed that it was the day of the wedding. I was getting ready in my suite at the Omni Hotel in Detroit, bridal party all around chatting and getting beautiful. Then for some reason, I had “misplaced” my dress. Everyone in the room went frantic. Hotel employees and assistants were running around trying to find it, phone calls were being made to I don’t know who explaining that we might be late. Then, in walks a guy who very closely resembles Donnie Brown, one of the wedding planners on “Who’s Wedding is it Anyway”. He was holding a large garment bag up high like a trophy. A sigh of relief comes over all the other people in the room as he announces proudly, “I have it right here, everything is going to be ok.” Then he unzips the bag and reveals a gold sequin nightmare of the dress. I plead with him and try to tell him, “this is not my dress!” He looks at me calmly and says with a southern accent, “Well, honey, it is just too late and your just gonna have to wear this one.”

Ahhh! I need to get my designer on the phone, quick!

The Dress

(Oscar De La Renta)

For most brides, the dress is one of the most important aspects of the wedding. They spend hours trying on dress after dress. I've seen those Bridezilla shows. I know what goes on at a dress fitting. There is almost always a meltdown at the dress shop. Mothers and daughters can't agree, the bridesmaids get bored and act annoying. I am so happy that I don't have to go through all of that. Don't get me wrong, the dress is very very important to me and I always love a shopping day with my girls. I simply do not have to stress about a dress. At least that is one thing that I can mark of my list of wedding things to stress about.

I feel that I need to announce officially that my brother is making my dress. We were supposed to talk dress at the Engagement Party a few weeks ago, but things were really hectic, so last week I sent him this email:

So I know you are busy, being on Oprah and everything, but when is it going to be all about me? lol I'm kind of kidding. Actually, I wanted to talk dress, since I don't know when I will see you again. Here are the pictures of the dresses that I would like to inspire my dress....

Not many girls can email their dress designers with dress-spirations when ever they feel like it. I am a very lucky bride. The little joke in this email came from something my brother said right after he won Project Runway. He told Sweet Pee (fellow PR Contestant) "My sister better not get engaged or anything because this year is all about me." Well, he had 2008 and 2009, so I put dibs on 2010! He can have the spotlight back in 2011.

(imagine this in white, from my brother's new collection as seen on Oprah!)

(imagine this longer and in white, also from my brother's new collection)