Wedding Wednesday: Bridesmaid Dress Shopping

Isn't it every bridesmaid's worst fear that they will be shoved in to a hideous bridesmaid dress? Something ugly and unflattering, and in the most atrocious color? I can't imagine wearing some of the styles of the past: hats, gloves, matching umbrellas, sometimes even weird bridesmaid veils.

Needless to say, I wanted to give my girls as much control over their dresses as possible. I had already decided on the color, fabric, and length, so the girls could pick a variety of necklines and waist designs. I like the idea of every one showing off a little bit of their personality while still maintaining a cohesive look as a group.

It's always interesting to watch people try on dresses they've looked at online. Most of the time, the online representation and the actual reality after trying the dress on are two totally different things. There was a mix of that in the group, but I think everyone finally decided on dresses that they liked. I loved playing dress up with my friends and my mother too, who was bound and determined to not get a "matronly" Mother of the Bride dress.

If you're in the Statesboro/Savannah area, J'Adore Bridal in Brooklet was a great location to try on and select everyone's dresses. They're very accommodating, have a large selection, and are priced competitively. I think everyone got a better deal on their dresses than the sale prices was online! Being a bridesmaid can get pricey, quick, and J'Adore is able to set up payment plans and other arrangements to make it easier for everyone involved.

A special thanks to all the girls {and the mommas!} who were able to make a trip to Statesboro to spend time with me and experience this time together. I can't wait for all of us to get together soon.

Decisions, decisions. 

Missing two of our lovely Peony Princesses!

Thankful to share these experiences with my mom. 

How I Asked--Bridesmaid Edition

Asking your closest friends to be a part of your most important day is kind of a big deal. There was a lot of thought put into the selection process for me, and I think I've got the best girls around. They're all super busy being amazing career women and traveling the world and all, so I'm thankful for special times throughout this year where I'll be able to spend a lot of quality time with them.

I found these beautiful cards on Etsy, and thought they would be perfect--the color scheme definitely works with the wedding, and it's fun and feminine. I found some mini bottles of Iced Cake Smirnoff to give everyone near and far a little toast to kick off the celebration, and had beautiful bridesmaid dress cookies made at a local bakery with their role piped onto the skirt.

Inside each card, I wrote a note to each girl and slipped a picture of the two of us as well. I had to mail a few of the gifts and it was so exciting to wait for them each to arrive. I'm thankful to have each one of my #peonyprincesses in my life! We're going bridesmaid dress shopping this weekend, and I can't wait to kick off this time with them in style. 

Wedding Registry: Recap

Our Wedding Registry date was postponed a week, due to an overly-exciting night out in Savannah that rendered my useless and lying in bed with Zaxby's all Sunday afternoon. But I digress...

We did get to do the bulk of our registering last Friday, thanks to summer staffing, and my half day off. I met Christopher in Savannah and we talked Target before dinner, and Belk after. What "they" always say is right--don't go hungry. We were starving, but couldn't figure out what to eat for dinner so we just pushed through. I knew Target wouldn't be where we would register for our bulk items, but we did find some very nice home decor pieces, as well as a few trendy kitchen items that I loved.

Also, the best part about registering at Target is their registry app! No tricky scan gun to worry about, just download the app, and scan the bar codes with your phone. This made keeping track of the list super easy while we are shopping.

It's pretty common knowledge how obsessed I am with all things white and gray. I love it all throughout my home because I find it so peacefully. We're using the trendier gold/metallics, as well as shades of blue as pops of color in our decor together because it works well with both houses.

After delicious pizza (Southwest Baja, and Balsamic, Mozzarella, and peaches from Uncle Maddio's) we headed into Belk. Luckily, it was a rare Friday night when the mall wasn't busy. After some trouble logging in to the Wedding Registry kiosk, we got our bar code and scan gun ready to go and got to work. I'd already picked a few things out...okay, all of our china...but had told Christopher to pick out all the cooking things since he's really the chef between the two of us.

 

Christopher really surprised me by picking out the prettiest bedding! I of course had to stock up on cow things, hence the cow-shaped cutting board. We decided to go with the French Perle White Lenox pattern for every day, and my family's Old Country Roses for our fine china pattern. I made sure to scan lots of nice picture frames, because I want to display our engagement and wedding pictures all throughout the house. And of course, we picked beautiful Biltmore bath towels, that felt more like throw blankets.

The best part of the registry process was how much we laughed. We literally had the absolute best time doing this together. I know so many couples fight during this process, but luckily we didn't. We're really looking forward to registering at one local boutique in few weeks to round out the options. It's so easy these days to register at 15 different places with everything being online, but I wanted to make it as simple as possible for me to keep track of and not duplicate too many items!