Vendor Spotlight: Something Old Designs

Although I've already featured Sarah Mallory and her rockstar alterations skills, I'd like to introduce you to her new business venture, Something Old Designs.

Who wouldn't want a personal stylist for their wedding day? Someone who is solely responsible for making sure your dress is perfect, pressed and take care of any last minute "mishaps"? I know I do because my dress is a huge pain to get into! Enter Sarah and Something Old Designs. Sarah is an experienced clothing designer who has come up with the next-best-thing in wedding services: concierge service! She will come to you to do your alterations, custom design your dress or re-design your mom's wedding dress to fit your modern tastes! Something Old also features custom jewelry design, bridesmaid's dress re-design and many other services.

Go check out Something Old Designs and look for my post-wedding review of Sarah's concierge service! If you'd like to see some of Sarah's work in person, join her on Sept 11 for Nashville Fashion Week where her Spring 2011 collection will debut.

The Dress - Part 3

I HAVE A WEDDING DRESS!



It is much sooner than I had anticipated, but I found "the dress" at the Elegance Bridal Gala in mid-August. I tried it on while I was there and loved it. I made a few appointments and planned to put a deposit down at a trunk show and order the dress later, however, Cherished Memories Bridal and Formal is closing its doors in October.

My parents came down today to go with me and after I was laced up, we determined that the sample actually does fit ... but a few more pounds won't hurt me. It wasn't dirty or worn, so I felt comfortable buying the sample. The dress seems quite easy to alter and I'm confident that my mother or aunt can do the alterations for me for free!

Hoping to get the dress for a bit more than 30% off, I asked about the Elegance Bridal Bucks card, which she will not honor now that her dresses are clearance priced. Just wanted to throw that out there for anyone going out to the shop to look around.

All of the above aside, Lisa is very nice and reasonable. I ended up offering her a cash payment in exchange for a small additional discount and took my dress home with me. However, she is still offering deposits/payments and short term garment housing.

Now my dress is hanging in an upstairs closet, waiting for our wedding day. Next year. 58 weeks. 407 days.

The Dress - Part 2

Elegance Bridal Gala was held in Mt. Juliet on August 13. It was my first bridal show (the big ones scare me) and I was invited as one of Ashley's (of Ashley's Bride Guide) Fab Five VIP brides.

I arrived early with my friend, JT. We went into the Cherished Memories Bridal and Formal room/booth first to look at the pretty dresses. All the dresses were lovely, but one caught my eye immediately. I told JT that it looked like a cross between the Pronovias and the Allure I liked at The White Room.

Throughout the night, I kept going into the room to look at this dress and before leaving for a quick bite before the fashion show, I asked the store owner about it. I found out that it is a little known brand called "Ella" out of Australia and it was $$$. Ouch. Not super ouch, just ouch.

I scheduled two appointments with them - once to try it on with my Mom and for their trunk show in September, at which I would purchase the dress for 15% off and order it closer to our wedding date.

And then, I put it on. And I loved it even more. Great! I was super excited about this dress, even though it was a bit more than I had budgeted for. It is a combination of all the things I loved about the others, but definitely more "me" than the one Mom & Dad liked.

And then, I got a hair up my arse today to check the bridal events on Ashley's Bride Guide. Thank goodness she is on top of everything in Nashville! The store is CLOSING.

CLOSING!?!

O-M-G. I called them immediately and they confirmed this, but they still have my sample and she has put my name on it. Not really sure if that's insurance, but its all I've got. The sample *almost* fit and the dress is a lace up, so I think even if I buy the sample, I'm in the clear.

Big gulp. Stay tuned for the next installment of "If the Dress Fits".

Break

Little Spoon is going on a wedding planning vacation. There is really nothing else truly pending for us to plan at the moment - we have the big things under control and I need to do some organizing of the household sort.

I won't be blogging until mid-September.

When I get back from my virtual vacation, I will tell you all about how I found THE dress (because I have and I'm going to buy it next month!).

The Dress: Part 1

I tried on my first ever wedding dress on July 15 at David's Bridal in Madison, TN. I posted about the dress I hoped would be the one here.

It wasn't.

Nor were any of the other half dozen or more dresses I tried on that day. I hated them all ... except one that I felt mildly interested in and when I got the snap shots home, I almost cried. It's not that the sales associate was bad or that anything was wrong with the dresses, per se, but I felt very foolish in most of them ... and fat. The florescent lights are not flattering and to say the least, I came home quite discouraged that day.

Fast forward to today ... I planned an entire day of dress shopping with my parents. I made two appointments and planned to visit four shops. We began our second shopping excursion at the White Room in Lebanon, TN. The consultants there were lovely, attentive and intuitive. I liked almost everything I tried on.

Yes, the opposite problem than I had had previously. To make matters more confusing, I liked two different styles in Lebanon - this ethereal, beaded beauty and a lovely, minimally embellished A-line.

After stopping in at a consignment bridal shop and having lunch, we realized that the third store had already closed for the day. We called to get directions to the White Room's sister store in Murfreesboro.

Another great experience, the consultants were again attentive and helpful. I walked in without an appointment and they saw me right away. I tried on a few more dresses before realizing that they had this one in a much much larger size. I tried it on and did the clamps in the back to help me see how it would actually look on me. I even tried on two birdcage veils and a "bubble" veil with the dress, both of which look fine.

I then tried this dress. Now I was torn again. Three dresses, all equally flattering - and all different. In total, I've had on the first dress five times today.

At this point, it was time to wrap up our shopping for the day and I headed over to David's Bridal with my parents. I had set up the appointment several weeks ago after discussing with a sales associate that I was looking for specific style numbers that the Madison store did not have in stock. She assured me that they would have anything I wanted from the Fall 2009 line.

They had two. Out of six dresses on my list (that Madison did not have), they had TWO.

So I tried on the Galina dress again. I felt more comfortable in it this time, but I'm still very undecided. I think it will be best for me to actually secure the venue we have been "penciled in" at and then make a decision.

PS. I forgot to mention that I ran into Little Miss Southern trying on wedding dresses at the White Room on Saturday morning. Check out her lovely blog! I can't wait to see what dress she picks!

The Devil Is In the Details

This week, my brain has been racing on a daily basis, round and round the wedding planning racetrack. I'm beginning to confuse myself because I can't concentrate on one thing at a time. Linen rental, no invitations ... no wait, table runners ...oooh, flowers - NO! linen rental ... ebay? ...

All day, every day and it is getting quite tiring. So, I'm writing down (or typing down) my goals for this weekend:

1) Shop for and possibly find my wedding dress Saturday. 2) Organize (completely) my wedding planning binder.

If there is time for anything else, awesome. I just hope I can stay focused on the organization part.

Ah! *Squeek*

I'm going shopping for a wedding dress tomorrow! My mother, grandmother, little sister (bridesmaid) and one of my best friends (the genius designer turned flower expert) are all going with me.

First up: David's Bridal. I kinda have my heart set on this one.

non-matching BM dresses

I would like to direct my sister-bridesmaids to {this} post about non-matching dresses. I think blush pink or light gray would look great with the eggplant dress we have already purchased.

bridesmaids dresses

I'm not sure why, but I've been really into bridesmaids dresses lately. I purchased a clearance Calvin Klein dress over the weekend. Its a lovely eggplant color ... and there is no way I'm going to find another one. Sigh. I thought I was going to be laid-back and trendy about the dresses, but maybe the "matching" bridesmaid trend was about convenience.

My sisters don't have to have the same dress, but I also don't want them to pay an arm and a leg for them! I'm hoping David's Bridal will be a close match. Otherwise, we'll be doing "opposites": one purple dress, one gray dress. Or, I'll change the color palette. I really like coral and gray. I like dark purple and gray. I like everything! Its a problem ...

Favorite Bridesmaids Dresses ... so far

My favorite bridesmaids dress via {J. Crew} shown in Spiced Wine.

From Left: Juliet $180; Sophia $165; Sydney $225

Um ...

{Jessica McClintock} wedding dress.

Add this to my lists of favorites under $500.

Gown Shopping

I have been asked more than a few times now when I am going gown shopping. The short answer is "I don't know." For as much as I have enjoyed the pre-planning and detailing thus far, the gown freaks me out just a little. I've never been an easy fit (and I recall with a shutter the hours and days and tears of prom dress shopping) and I'm more than a little afraid that all the dress I think I like will look terrible on me.

From what I have learned through research, most boutique bridal shops place their samples on sale in March and/or August. I also have read that November/December is the best time to buy because everyone is looking to make a sale during the "down" months and there will be sales.

Firstly, I'm not sure I can wait until November to look, but it probably wouldn't kill me considering our wedding isn't for another 17 months. Secondly, I'm waiting for the fall lines to come out (David's Bridal gets their newbies in June).

In light of all of this, I am posting my current favorite dresses. Feel free to leave comments and tell me which is your favorites!


"Sophia" from {J. Crew}


{Mori Lee} #2201


{David's Bridal}