Category Archives: Bridesmaids

DIY Bridesmaid: Thumbprint Tree

My friend Nicole should be the poster girl for DIY weddings. She arranged a sunset ceremony in her backyard right on the St. John’s River, and we were surrounded by sunflowers while two of her friends strummed guitar and other friends snapped photos. Nicole even made all the food herself, with the help of her aunts and Mom (more on that later). One of my favorite projects from the wedding though was her Thumbprint Tree Guest Book.

You can find lots of trees on Etsy, but they’re a bit expensive. Nicole’s fiance Brenhan is a great artist, so he painted this one himself and I added the calligraphy. Then we set it out on a small table with four different shades of green ink (found at Michael’s) and paper towels and water to clean your finger after leaving your print. We also set out a pen so that guests could sign their name next to their print. At informal receptions, bridesmaids can be a huge help in getting things like this done. I offered to take charge of the guest book, circulated and asked guests if they’d had a chance to “sign” it yet and helped show them what to do.  The result was absolutely gorgeous!

Fashion Friday

It’s really hard for me to pick a favorite J.Crew bridesmaid dress, but for summer I’m loving the Anita dress in cotton cady.

The cotton is lightweight and breathable, so it’s perfect for outdoor weddings where other fabrics might cling or show sweat. A bridesmaid’s nightmare is being stuck in a dress that doesn’t fit the season or the location. The neckline is classically chic and will look good on everyone (I’m partial to dresses with straps) and the colors are all fresh and happy. The included sash fancies it up just a touch, so I think it could swing formal to casual depending on color.

Anita dress by J.Crew

Fabric: Cotton cady

Colors: Bright hydrangea (shown), black, cypress, graphite, sweet papaya, spiced wine, dark navy, sweet orchid, fresh tangerine

Price: $235

Wear It Again factor (1-5): 5! The silhouette is so classic that it will never go out of style and the fabric makes it completely versatile so it can easily go from day to night.

Bonus: J.Crew updates color palettes each season, so if the colors aren’t thrilling you now, check back in six months (or less) for a whole new crop.

Savannah Bachelorette Night Out

We’re already enumerated the many benefits of Savannah as a bachelorette destination, but I wanted to share some of the specifics of our weekend for those who might be planning a trip. You can find details from our bridal shower in Forsyth Park here, including our shower theme and catering info. This time I’ll focus on our nighttime activities.

For our first night, Alyssa scheduled a ghost tour/bar crawl with Tara’s Tours, which turned out to be an awesome idea. It’s called Boos and Brews (though can I suggest Boos and Booze?) and it was easy to schedule a private tour just for our group, which I highly recommend. Marisa loves ghost tours (we’ve been on a few in St. Augustine that are wicked scary) and we loved that this one included lots of bar stops and encouraged beverages on the road. Our guide, Andrew (also known as Drew or Drewby) was fun and told us a good mix of tales, some about the history of Savannah dating back to the Civil War and some about events that had only happened in the past few years (including one horrific story about a demon child in the Marshall House…won’t be booking a room there!). He even shared some paranormal experiences he’d had himself in apartments in Savannah or on the tours. Don’t let that scare away the faint of heart though. The mood was really lighthearted and though I’m one of those people who closes their eyes during previews for horror films, I was perfectly fine on the tour. We passed lots of other ghost tours and got many envious stares at our light-up cups. Apparently not all tours are the drinking kind.

We also got to see a ton of Savannah and stop in at all kinds of bars. Our tour included McDonough’s (karaoke all night long), Hang Fire (the bathroom is particularly apropos to bachelorette parties here…just trust me on this one), 17Hundred90, and Moon River Brewery (where we toured the very spooky old hotel portion), to name a few. Afterward, we stopped in at Abe’s on Lincoln, which was another chill place with friendly bartenders. We’d all definitely recommend Tara’s Tours and Drew (seen above with the bachelorette herself)!


Our second night out, we decided to dress it up a little more. I’ve seen all kinds of costume themes for bachelorette parties (wigs, tiaras, penis wands) but one of the simplest things to do is have all the guests wear black and the bride wear white or a color (Marisa chose red). You can find her cute little veil here. We originally decided to throw in wigs as a theme too, but only a few girls got on board (see photographic evidence). Before going out we all gathered in the hotel suite to play The Fiancé Quiz and then we decided to hit River Street. This turned out to be a great balance between the two nights because the first night was more small dive bars, which fit our casual theme, and the second night we went to a rooftop bar (top of the Bohemian Hotel, highly recommended), a country Western bar with line dancing and bull riding, and a dance club (309 West). All of these bars were along River Street and our hotel was only a block away from our final stop, so we were able to keep our heels on for at least part of the night (backup flip-flops are a must because of the stairs and cobblestones!).

If you have specific questions about planning a bachelorette party in Savannah, leave them in the comments and I’ll reply!

Fashion Friday

I recently discovered BHLDN (Anthropologie’s wedding line) and I’m now obsessed with their Tracery dress.

The detailing around the neck is absolutely gorgeous and draws all the attention to the face, and the silhouette looks comfortable and flattering to all body types. I love the drape of the silk and the pleating at the bust as well. Everyone talks about wearing dresses after the wedding (we’ll call it the “Wear It Again” factor), but this one truly passes that test. I’d definitely wear it to a fancy restaurant or office holiday party. The only downfall is that it’s only available in three colors.

Tracery dress by BHLDN

Fabric: Silk blend

Colors: Grey, shell, night

Price: $260

Wear It Again factor (1-5): 4, only because the fancy fabric won’t lend itself to everyday wear.

Bonus: The shell version would be a perfect rehearsal dinner dress for the bride!

Shop all of BHLDN here.