Confession: When it comes to lace, I can’t resist. So I was super excited to see this new collection of lacy little numbers from Watters. From the slim and sexy one-shoulder to the sweetheart neckline with a flowing A-line skirt, there’s a silhouette for every body shape in your bridal party. There are even separates! The best part? The colors, including the lining, lace and ribbons, are completely customizable. Pick and play on Watter’s website. Perfection.
1. Camilla and Gardenia 2. Hydrangea 3. Iris
Category Archives: Bridesmaids
A Zombie Bachelorette Party
Uhm, these people are my heroes. After attending what seemed like a million bachelorette parties with the same theme, Sara decided to throw a different kind of party for her sister Melissa—a zombie bachelorette party. The boys got in on the action too, and the two groups spent half the night apart and reconvened at Minneapolis’s very own zombie-themed bar, Donny Dirk’s Zombie Den.
Sara shared some of her tips for creating your own zombie a-party-lypse. (Admittedly not my best pun.)
To start the evening, everyone got ready together at my sister’s apartment. All of the females dressed up as “Zombie Bridesmaids” by using old bridemaid dresses we thought we’d never wear again. Everyone destroyed their dress in their own unique zombie way—spray paint, shredding, dirt, fake blood, etc. All of the males dressed up as “Zombie Groomsmen” and similarly, they took old tuxes, suits, dress clothes and destroyed them in their own way zombie way. My sister and her (now) husband, dressed up as a “Zombie Bride & Groom.”
Everyone went all out on the zombie makeup. Most of us painted our faces with grey paint, had dark eye makeup, spray-painted grey hair, fake wounds and fake blood.
Here is Zombie Makeup 101:
Q&A: Writing a Speech for Your Parents’ Vow Renewal
Q: My parents are renewing their wedding vows and I will be the maid of honor and my brother is the best man. I’m having a hard time writing my speech as I am a little shy in front of crowds, and also because my parents (obviously) are so very close to me. I want it to be a very special moment.
A: Even though you are feeling a lot of pressure, I actually think you are really lucky to be giving a speech to your parents, and you have a lot of options! One of the hardest things about giving a good maid of honor speech is that sometimes we don’t know enough about the groom or the couple’s relationship to make the speech truly personal. We tend to have lots of memories with the bride, but not a ton of true insight into her relationship with her groom. But you’re in an amazing position—you’ve been around for many of the special moments in your parents’ lives! That said, I totally understand that making speeches can be intimidating. Here are a few ideas to help customize your speech and make the moment special for your family.
1. The first thing I would do is jot down a few notes of special memories that you have of your family. Think about the things that make you unique as a group—your traditions, your quirks, your favorite vacation, a famous mishap that you always tell at holidays. Then think about why those moments are special to you.
2. You can talk about what you’ve learned about marriage from your parents. As we grow up, we often subconsciously look to our parents to find out what makes a good marriage—and sometimes what doesn’t! This could be a heartwarming ending to your speech after sharing a story or two, to turn it back to what those stories taught you and how your parents have inspired you.
3. You could also team up with your brother and give a joint speech. It may take away some of the jitters to have him talking as well. Challenge each other to tell the sappiest story about your parents—or the silliest.
4. If public speaking is really freaking you out, or you just want to take a different route, you could also make a photo slideshow and narrate. You can pick funny or sweet photos of your parents that show their relationship from the beginning, including yourself and your brother. Everyone loves looking back at old memories and since all eyes will be on the images it might take a little of the pressure off you!
A Bellydance Bachelorette in Cape Town
I very rarely get to share real bachelorette photos, so imagine my joy when I saw these colorful, sassy images from an Arabian Nights theme bachelorette party held for twins Aa’isha and Aneesa by their older sister Raihana at her Cape Town home. The twins’ weddings are only two months apart, so she decided to combine the parties for double the fun. Candlelight and sequined pillows set off the gorgeous jewel-tone scarves and carpets draped into a hideaway to enjoy cakes and a hookah. The best part? For me, it’s a toss-up between the bellydance lesson and those silly and surprisingly sexy fake boobs. Those girls know how to rock a look!
Host Raihana dreamed up the Arabian Nights theme for her sisters and pulled it together with the help of her whole family:
We wanted the theme to be very sensual and sexy—my bachelorette party’s theme was “sexy exotic dancers” and we had a pole-dancing tutorial. We wanted the twins’ party to be as fun and it only made sense to have a belly dancing tutorial. My husband, father and uncle helped me decorate our living room area, and our cousins brought along some sweet treats. I found the fake boobs at a party shop in Kenilworth Centre, Cape Town.
Photographer and friend Shafeeqa captured all the action during the bellydance session…and the surprise dancer who showed up later:
The bellydancer was performer and teacher Tenille Lindeque (Feminine Divine Studios), one of the finest in Cape Town. I did photography for her previously and also joined her dance studio for a while so I was pleasantly surprised to learn that Raihana had asked her for the evening. Tenille gave us a memorable performance followed by a tutorial, having us collapsing in laughter, pain, and breathlessness from her difficult moves! Snake arms, shimmies, hip circles, and more. About an hour later when everyone finally recovered, there was a knock at the door. Surprise, twins! It’s the next dancer, and he means business…
Photographer: Shafeeqa Effendi | Bellydancing Performer and Teacher: Tenille Lindeque, Feminine Divine Studios | Catering: Alhambra Caterers | Decor: Rosy’s Event Design and Decor, and host’s own pieces
A Backyard Garden Bridal Shower
I’m so excited to share this beautiful backyard shower, complete with vibrant greens, pastel blues and plenty of chalkboard paint. I especially love the idea of personal photos with each bridesmaid commemorating the year you met! And I’m super-impressed with the newspaper bridal gowns. All of the bridesmaids pitched in to help pull off this DIY garden shower for bride PT, with plenty of personal touches—even a batch of adorable fondant pups.
Bridesmaid Kathy describes some of the preparation, much of which included finding creative ways to use thrifted pieces or items they already had on hand. (Kathy is also behind the amazing desserts!)
The bride and I drove around to various thrift stores and bought vintage frames to paint and turn into chalkboards days before the shower. She had the idea to add chalkboard frames to the disposable cups too, so that guests could write their names on them—luckily I even had cups available from a previous party. The cake stands for the dessert table were also thrifted. Another bridesmaid, Grace, provided flowers that were leftover from a friend’s wedding from the night before. I used those to fill my milk and sugar jar (also thrifted). PT had wanted a dog-themed cake and I thought, why not have her own dogs, Belly and BamBam, on it? Shih Tzu’s are not easy to sculpt from fondant! I also added sugar flowers to the cake since the theme of the shower was a backyard/garden style. Her wedding theme color was Tiffany blue, so I added a fondant bow in that color as well as in the trimming for the cake.
Photographer: Esther Huynh | Baked goods: Glenwood Bakehouse
Fashion Friday
This week’s Fashion Friday brings you one dress…sort of. We’re all familiar with the concept of the wrap dress—a one-size-fits-most style that can be tucked and tied to create unique silhouettes for each bridesmaid. Generally quite flattering on any body type, the wrap dress is versatile and a dress you’re likely to get a bit of use out of since it can styled to fit your occasion. But not all wrap dresses are equal. I was struck by the gorgeous color palette and added textures and patterns in these “octopus” dresses from Coralie Beatrix. She knows just when to sneak in some ruffles or flounces and lots of the dresses come in two-tone options that make them feel special and singular. The lovely photo shoot didn’t hurt, I admit. The dresses start at $79 and run to about $100, with some exceptions.
Save Our Heels!
We’ve all had the experience of sinking heel-deep in the grass at an outdoor wedding. You want to rock your cherry-red heels, but you don’t want to lose a shoe while walking down the aisle or spend the entire ceremony balanced lightly on your toes. Well, problem solved!
This Arizona couple set out stepping stones for each member of the bridal party. Brides take note! This is a fantastic idea—and it looks pretty cute too! You can check out their full wedding shoot here, complete with some darling personalized bridesmaid champagne flutes.
Photography: Danielle Daigle Photography