Our Aruba Wedding

For the beach part of the wedding I wore these high heel wedge flip flops from Advantage Bridal (made by “Elegance by Carbonneau”). They worked great for the ceremony – I had no problems at all walking down the aisle. After the ceremony I changed dresses and put on my Jimmy Choos. As much as I love the Choos, by the time the reception ended, I needed a break and put the flip flops back on. We decided to walk down to Sopranos Piano Bar for a little after-party. Its a 10-15 minute walk. All was good until the next morning until I realized how bad the flip flops tore apart my feet! I had a blister between my toes that was ripped open! I was so uncomfortable for the next two days. I couldn’t easily wear any of my other flip flops and walks on the beach drove sand into the broken blister. So be careful if you intend to purchase these or others similar, especially if you plan to wear them for any decent amount of walking!

Even though my wedding is almost here I still can’t turn down an episode of Say Yes to the Dress. Right now one of the girls is wearing a Romona Keveza gown I love. I had never heard of Romona until a consultant at Macy’s Bridal Salon in Chicago went and grabbed what she insisted was going to be ‘the dress’ I was looking for. She was right although it was probably 50% more than the budget I had given her to work with. Ugh!

But I was in love. Love doesn’t care about practical — I have a totally impractical dress and also fell in love with who might not be the most practical guy. Its funny sometimes how the things that might not make obvious sense are perfect! See – I can give up a little control now and then! Here is Romona’s more affordable Legends line and here’s the Couture / Collection line that got me into trouble. I wish I could show you mine but can’t take a chance of the groom checking in on the blog!

Ahhh… and now I’m laughing — on now is another bride that wants her dress tighter and tighter! I went to the salon yesterday for my next to last fitting (now they’re just finishing up the hem). Its fitting perfectly though I am wishing it was a little tighter. Of course a smart alterations person will put you through the ’sit test’. It can fit like a glove while you are standing but if you want to be able to sit down at all, you need some wiggle room. (Mine has kind of a mermaid shape, (good for the beach, right?). It’s not tight at the knee though – its softer and starts to flare more gently. I wish they could bring in the hip a bit more, but I’m going to trust the pro on this one. After all, I will have to sit and do plan to eat!

I’m running out of time to order things so I really need to make some product decisions. I’m considering some that I’ve read about but haven’t tried. I’ve collected some links of some products I’m thinking about trying. Anyone used any of these? And I don’t know what it JUST occurred to me, but I need to find some good waterproof items. I’ve been thinking that my wedding day make-up is being done for me BUT there is the sailing excursion and (hopefully) the Trash the Dress!

For “Melt-Proof Make-up,” Real Simple suggests this mineral foundation primer by Becca. They say: “TheBECCA Mineral SPF Primer  keeps your makeup in place regardless of heat or sweat, due to an oil-free, water-resistant formula that leaves skin matte and protected with SPF 30. It also contains antioxidants, including vitamins A, E, green tea and Enzyme Q10.” It pricey but might be worth a try.

“To Stay Cool,” they suggest LaRoche Posay Thermal Spring Water . “On hot days, toss a bottle of LaRoche Posay Thermal Spring Water into your purse and use it on the go. The light mist instantly refreshes skin without disturbing your makeup (quite the contrary; experts often use it to set makeup), and its water is rich in minerals to help reduce redness and irritation.” I was thinking about getting this travel size to put into my girlfriends’ welcome bags. Amazon has the best price.

I really should be in bed right now but “Say Yes to the Dress” is on and rooting me to the couch. Its interesting though – I woke up so down and haven’t been sleeping well at all. I’ve had a bit of a headache all day (please don’t be the beginning of the flu!) and was totally burned out on ‘anything wedding’. Well, as soon as I vented here, I started actually getting some things done! Just little things but right now every little bit count! I revisited the sailing excursion issue, looked into my chocolate bar favors and find out I still have time to order them, contacted a company about a shirt for my groom and am hoping we have time to have it shipped (from India). I also started on the design for the CDs (the software they provide to design with is junk so I’ve found a template I can work with in Photoshop). And, I dug the printer out of the spare room, changed the ink and am hoping it will print without a fight.

Anyway — I just wanted to follow up on our trip to NYC. We visited the famed Kleinfeld to look at accessories. The windows were so amazing – gorgeous! It was kind of funny walking in there though. We walk in together and there is this light blue carpet and this high counter / desk and behind it are 4 or 5 women, all with dark hair and a LOT of make-up, ALL looking at us. We were directed downstairs to accessories and as we are on our way down he leans over and says something like “I feel like we just walked into a brothel!”. (Actually his wording was more colorful than that but I don’t need to repeat it.) Part of me wanted to elbow him and tell him to behave but I could only laugh because I was thinking the exact same thing! ‘Come on in my darlings… we have lots of nice girls for you…’ (Of course their girls are dresses but it was still funny. No one actually said that but it seemed like they could have.)

I looked mostly at some earrings and bracelets and geez they were expensive. What looked like simple crystal earrings were $180. Seriously? A simple bangle with a single row of rhinestones, $105. I also saw a cuff that was nearly $300 that I swear I recognized from Overstock.com where it’s being sold for just over $100. While I wouldn’t pay that much for costume jewelry, I was hoping to at least get inspiration. There were a couple of pairs of earrings I did like. And wouldn’t you know, I found one of them on eBay for $18 vs the $160+ at Kleinfeld. I’m not sure they’re right for the dress, but for $18 I bought them anyway. At least now I have backup.

I’ve been through planning highs and lows which shoes have not escaped. While I wish I could be comfortable barefoot or in a simple flat flip flop, I’m just not. I’m 5′2″ (almost) and chose a strapless dress with a bit of a mermaid shape, flaring at the knee. You know, one of those dresses that looks great on a 6′ model or even on you when you’re standing on that 10″ pedestal at the salon? But you know what – even without the excuse of that dress, I’m just one of those girls that LOVES my high heels.

I ended up falling for the most amazing pair of Jimmy Choos! Getting them was an ordeal but I have them now, no matter how ridiculous they are. Problem is they will totally not work on the beach or on the lawn where dinner is. So, I needed back up which will be a pair of high heel wedge flip flops. I shopped around and ended up choosing the high heel wedge flip flops from Advantage Bridal (made by “Elegance by Carbonneau”). At first they shipped me the wrong pair, but they were wonderful when it came to handling the return / exchange.

Two days ago, the correct pair arrived and I’m a little disappointed. The crystals are attached to a loose mesh which is then cut and glued to the sandal. They aren’t evenly spaced and in places that thread mesh shows through. It also isn’t glued as well as it could be so I may add some more glue. I might not have thought too much of it if I didn’t already own a pair of really nice wedge flip flops by Lady Lanell that are MUCH better made with each crystal glued into place. I did pay a lot more for the Lady Lanell’s ($160 vs $45), but I was thinking maybe that was because it was a couple of years ago before we were seeing so many crystal flip flops.

Well, I think this is a case of ‘You get what you pay for’. Advantage Bridal also sells Lady Lanell’s for $145, yet I chose these others for $45. So, I should have known better, but others might expect them to look more like they do in the picture on the website. Something tells me that when they are on my feet they’ll be fine. Who’s going to notice uneven crystals and mesh shining through? No one. I tried to take pictures to show you what I’m talking about but all I have handy is an iPhone so I’m not sure if you can see what I’m getting (click on the picture for a larger image – actually, click the pic to go to the detail page and then click on that pic – sorry, I’m not good at this blog stuff). Since I was at it, I thought I’d also take a picture of my beloved Choos!

As a side note – the ivory Jimmy Choo Macy is sold out worldwide (at least in a 37). We finally found a pair in London and had them shipped to the US. After we got them we were slapped with $200+ in duty from customs! If you make a purchase overseas and carry it back with you, you can bring in up to $800 without duty. However if you have it shipped, the limit is $200. If you exceed the $200, you pay duty on the entire amount, not just the amount that exceeds $200. We’re disgusted by this charge and were going to return this pair and purchase them in the US but they are still sold out. They don’t expect to receive replenishment until the end of November. Something tells me I will be buried in these shoes!

So we’re going to NYC this weekend and wouldn’t you know, last night I receive an email from Kleinfeld. It was just an email newsletter announcing they are now partnered with Adorn Brides, the company that rents real diamond jewelry. Well, one of my tasks for the weekend is to get my wedding jewelry figured out. One item on my list is a pair of chandelier earrings . I’m thinking good costume CZ or crystal isn’t going to be cheap, so should I just rent the real thing? I wonder if they’ll have any of the actual pieces in the store.

I had actually emailed Kleinfeld last week because I wanted to know if I need an appointment to look at accessories. I found out they are a distributor for Haute Bride – I’m in love with the rhinestone bangles. When I had just about given up on their reply I get one today – no appointments needed to look at accessories on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays. So, now the question is can I walk in there without getting myself into trouble? I don’t have a veil yet either. I was just planning on picking up something inexpensive on etsy. Over and over I have read about veils being the most overpriced item brides buy. And, I kind of want two. I’d love to have a long one for some dramatic pictures, but then a short one (elbow length) which is recommended for their wind.

So really, my intentions for contacting Kleinfeld are innocent enough – I just wanted to look at some costume jewelry. But I’m not sure how well my discipline is going to hold up. It could be so easy to get caught up in the excitement of being in New York. So far I have at least resisted the temptation to contact Agent Provocateur (I LOVE love love the Kate corset). I have not yet even looked at how far away they are from where we are staying.

If you’re looking into J Crew bridesmaids dresses you might be finding the fabric samples difficult to get. I sure did but I’ll spare you the details. After 5, maybe 6 weeks (and a couple phone calls and a couple trips to their retail stores), I finally got my samples. I no longer need them and would be glad to pass them along. For the trouble, I’m asking $1 each plus $2 for shipping. Just send an email with an address I can send a Paypal invoice to and include which samples you would like. I’m guessing they’re maybe 1.5″ x 3″ each and mounted onto a card stock. (Sorry – color of my photo is way off – Its the best I could do with an iPhone.)

I have one each of:

• Cotton Cady: Peppermint (a light pink)
• Cotton Cady: Azalea (a dark pink with a little bit of a purple tint)
• Cotton Cady: Tea Rose (a bright medium pink – this is the color I chose -
  be sure to look at it in the sunlight – its so pretty!)
• Silk Tricotine: Champagne
• Silk Tricotine: Deep Rose (a dark pink – mulberry?)
• Silk Taffeta: Light Flamingo (fushia?)
• Silk Taffeta: Champagne
• Silk Chiffon: Deep Rose (a medium dusty rose?)
• Silk Chiffon: Tea Rose (medium pink)

Here’s J Crew’s Swatch Page»

Well I’ve lost track of whether I’ve posted on this or not but one of my biggest ordeals has been (comfortably) getting into my wedding dress! The dress is too big almost everywhere but too small for my bust! You know how hard it is working like crazy to lose weight and hoping you’ll lost enough for your chest to get smaller? While I know some girls would love to have that problem, believe me, its not fun! And the dress dips in the front and back so finding the right lingerie for underneath it has been a major chore! I’ve exhausted local options and have ordered 4 or 5 different items online that have not worked. I need structure but can’t have too much molding and need that dip in the front.

The good news is I’m within 2-3 pounds of where I want to be for the wedding and think I’ll be able to pull it off but I’ll still have to work hard. The odds are stacked against me right now. Last night I missed a workout for a meeting and this weekend my fiancé is coming into town. He lives 4+ hours away so we don’t see each other nearly as much as we would like. So, when we are together we want to be able to enjoy ourselves and I can’t bring myself to obsess over food. Then, I’ll also miss next Thursday’s workout because we’re going to NYC for the weekend. In fact, I postponed next week’s dress fitting because I am hoping to find the right bustier in NYC. And I’m sure most discipline will go out the window in NYC so I’ll probably come back bloated, just in time for that fitting.

So, when I’m here, home alone, I’m doing awesome these last couple of weeks. But missed workouts and our little NYC adventure is going to be hard to make up for. And his parents are coming over from India in a few weeks. His mom will be making awesome food (some of which I’ll hopefully learn). There’s also Diwali coming up which we’ll be celebrating two weeks before the wedding. And I’ll likely get in no workouts in the week leading up to the wedding.  These days I keep thinking about those herbal wraps that are supposed to help you lose inches. I know its short term ‘water weight’ loss, but might it work?

Oh my gosh – RueLaLa is running the Nicole Miller bridal clearance again! Today only! There are only two styles left. One is selling for $399, the other for $499 (there had been other styles starting at $119). Please know that Nicole Miller runs truer to size. I’m a street size 4 and fit a size 6 in their dresses (where other wedding dress makers tell me I’m an 8-10). Imagine how cute the middle one would have been for a beach wedding! Only $119 (down from $575) and sold out of course.

The highlight of my month!?!? My Jimmy Choos have just arrived! I am so in love with these shoes (and of course the wonderful man that bought them for me)! I have to admit that I just picked probably the most impractical wedding shoes given that we’re having our ceremony on the beach and dinner on a lawn! I tried these on when we were in London this spring and couldn’t stop thinking about them. By the time I finally decided I had to have them, they were sold out worldwide. I had even emailed them through their website hoping they’ll notify me if they get a pair of this Ivory Macy. I’ve also been searching eBay and have googled til I couldn’t see straight. Then, Friday morning, there it is… an email from a London Jimmy Choo boutique! It was meant to be, right? 

Getting them here wasn’t as easy as we thought it would be though. Shipping was expensive (over $50) and then they were held hostage at US Customs! My fiance got the call and had to become an ‘importer’? Really it just amounted to a form he had to fill out for FedEx, and I’m sure more $$$ for duties.

I have a nice totally practical pair of Cole Haan “Ceci Mid Air Heels“. (Well, not totally practical because they are still heels, but more practical than a 4.25″ stiletto.) Beautiful shoes but I just wanted something sexier! Is it wrong that I am more excited about my shoes than my wedding dress? I love my dress but agonize over that last few pounds I have to lose to feel confident in it. The shoes are sexy even if I don’t lose an ounce!

So — I have a couple of options for the walk down the aisle. One, my planner has a white carpet runner that could let me wear my shoes. The catch — no real rose petals allowed on the carpet. Darn! I had wanted an aisle of real pink and orange rose petals. So, option 2 – a high heel wedge shoe for the ceremony and dinner, saving my fab shoes for pictures and dancing. Here’s the problem with that option — the wedges are 3-1/2″ tall, the Choos are 4-1/4″ tall. So do I tailor to the wedges and then have a dress that’s a little too short when I put on the Macys? Or do I tailor to the Macy’s and have a dress that’s a little too long when I wear the flip flops? Am I crazy for even putting this much energy into thinking about this?

Do you have a ‘totally impractical but gotta have it’ thing?