Finding a fun, fabulous gift for your maids can be a challenge. Most of us buy matching items for our wedding party (no jealousy = path to nuptual nirvana) but finding something everyone will love is tough. Enter My Favorite Mirror.

Give your glam squad a custom-designed pocket mirror for those who need to primp in style. My Favorite Mirror offers fun and pretty stock designs but also has a custom design service. They’ll put your design on one of their mirrors. Cool! Prices start at $6.50 (where else are you gonna find an original BM gift for under $10.00?) and discounts are given for bulk purchases.

My Favorite Mirros is offering DIYBride readers 15% off any DIY or Favor Order. If you spend over $50, US customers get FREE ground shipping (USPS), too. Use code: diybride
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Posted in Swell Products at October 9th, 2006. No Comments.

A hearty thank you to the lovely folks at Bridal Depot!

Sal Tenorio, store manager of Bridal Depot, has offered to help brides in and around the Houston area who’ve been affected by the Bridesave.com closure.

Sal says:

” We would like to help those we can in the Houston and surrounding areas.
They can bring in their recepits and we will gladly extend a 20% discount in addition to any other sales in the store. Come and see us for more details or call us at 713.668.3100″

Bridal Depot : http://texasbridaldepot.com/
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Posted in Industry News at October 3rd, 2006. No Comments.

For those of you affected by the sudden closure of Bridesave.com, David’s Bridal is offering to help you. (Way to go, David’s!)

Here’s the press release:

David’s Bridal to Offer Additional 20% Discount to Brides Affected by BrideSave.com Closing
Wednesday September 27, 9:16 am ET

 

Close of Second Major Online Bridal Discounter Within Fourteen Months Highlights Benefit of Shopping In-Store vs. Online

CONSHOHOCKEN, Pa., Sept. 27 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — To help brides impacted by the sudden closing of BrideSave.com — one of the major online bridal discounters that had been frequently recommended by consumer advocate groups — David’s Bridal is offering BrideSave.com customers a 20% discount, in addition to current sale prices, on all off the rack dresses* found at David’s Bridal locations nationwide.As the nation’s leading bridal retailer with over 260 stores across the country, David’s believes in making all brides’ dreams come true and decided to help when they learned about the difficulties that many brides and their bridal parties encountered due to the closing of BrideSave.com this past weekend.

In addition to providing the incremental discount, David’s Bridal carries a large assortment of gowns in every size — including plus size — that can be tried on and even taken home that day. This service will likely benefit brides who now face considerable time constraints due to the abrupt closing, as most bridal salons carry only “sample sizes” of wedding gowns, requiring a lengthy ordering process.

“With the ever-growing popularity of online shopping, people are becoming accustomed to getting anything and everything with the click of a mouse,” says Cindi Freeburn, Vice President, Public Relations for David’s Bridal. “While there may be advantages to shopping online for some products, for others, there are significant risks, which has been demonstrated by the closing of two of the major online bridal discounters within the last fourteen months. We want to caution brides-to-be to make informed choices when purchasing their bridal and bridal party gowns — some of the most important items of the wedding — so that they are not left in the lurch.”

David’s Bridal recommends consumers purchase their gowns from a well-established bridal retailer with a local storefront to insure the best service. In addition, most retailers have a specific consultant dedicated to each customer, making it easy to follow-up either in person or via phone. Working with a trusted retailer with many years of experience greatly minimizes the chance of the store going out of business.

“A wedding should be one of the happiest times in a couple’s life,” adds Freeburn. “If we can help get a wedding back on track and make a bride feel her most beautiful on that special day, we are happy to do so.”

Starting today, anyone who comes into a David’s Bridal store with a receipt from BrideSave.com will be eligible for the 20% discount, which is in addition to the sale currently running at all David’s Bridal stores nationwide. The offer will be available through Tuesday, October 10, 2006.

To find the location nearest you, consumers can logo onto www.davidsbridal.com/findastore.jsp or call 1-800-877-923-BRIDE.

* Special order merchandise is excluded from the offer

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Posted in Industry News at September 27th, 2006. No Comments.

Bridal Bargains is reporting that Bridesave.Com has closed its doors.

“Bridesave.com, one of the largest internet sellers of bridal apparel, is closing, the authors of the book BRIDAL BARGAINS have learned.Bridesave.com sent emails to its customers late Friday announcing the closure:

“We regret to inform you that we have closed our business. Since 1999, BrideSave has faithfully served thousands of brides and their wedding parties. We extend our sincerest apology. We cannot fill your order.”

Repeated calls and emails to Bridesave.com’s headquarters were not returned. A notice on Bridesave.com’s web site says the site is “temporarily unavailable” but there is no mention of the closing.

In the email to customers, Bridesave.com provides details about customers orders and directs brides to contact dress manufacturers to obtain their gowns.

Bridesave.com is headquartered in Midland, Texas and was one of the most prolific sellers of bridal apparel online.

To help brides get info on refunds or dress deliveries, we have established a special thread on our message boards. Click here:

http://www.windsorpeak.com/dc/dcboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=22&topic_id=810&mesg_id=810&page=

Also: two dress discounters in our book, RK Bridal and PearlÂ’s, have offered to help out stranded brides. Contact these stores directly for info.

We will post info on our message boards as it becomes available,

Alan & Denise Fields
Authors, BRIDAL BARGAINS
http://www.bridalbargainsbook.com

(Please feel free to post this message on wedding message boards in order to spread the word about this situation).

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Posted in Industry News at September 23rd, 2006. No Comments.

Have you thought about calligraphing your own invitations and stationery? For my own wedding, I whimped out and used a script font on the computer instead of attempting to learn calligraphy. It wasn’t a bad solution, mind you, it just wasn’t the same as hand calligraphy.

I’ve been trying my hand at calligraphy (and knitting and screenprinting) in my non-weddding crafting time. I love it — sorta. I’ve never met an ink or paper and I didn’t like, so this is a fun experiment. I’m not very good yet (frustrating for an instant gratification girl like me) but am finding calligraphy to be easier than I expected. My tip: get the right tools for the job. It’ll make your life much easier.

Here are some resources I collected to help you get started on your journey to a beatifully penned invitation:

Online Calligraphy Instructions from Chuck McGavern: http://cmcgavren.home.sprynet.com/chiselpt.html

Quick tutorial on some basic letter formations and some information about pens.****

The Sun Never Sets - http://www.thesunneversets.fsnet.co.uk/planning.htm

Great introduction to calligraphy plus an awesome resource list.

****

Calligraphy Centre’s Basics - http://www.calligraphycentre.com/begin.html

Basic intro to calligraphy plus resource list.

****

Calligraphy Resources From About.Com - http://drawsketch.about.com/od/calligraphy/

****

Jim Bennett’s Downloadable Calligraphy Book - http://www.studioarts.net/instruction/calligbook/

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Posted in Invites + Stationery at September 19th, 2006. No Comments.

Today’s Swell Product find is a neat alternative to the tiara: Crystal Hair Pins by tobyDESIGN. Priced affordably at $20.00 for a set of 4, these pins feature 4 crystals wrapped with silver wire. Perfect for the bride or a bridesmaid, these can be customized with different colors of crystal or pearls.


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Posted in Swell Products at September 7th, 2006. No Comments.

Finding an inexpensive, fun, and unique gift for your maids can be a challenge. As I’ve scoured the internets, I’ve found a few awesome products and will be bringing those to you in the coming weeks.

Today I kick off the Swell Products with:

Bridal Charmer Clips by A Planet 4 Creation

Bridal Charmer Clips are silver clips adorned with Swarovski crystals and your choice of 6 adorable pewter charms. You can further customize them with your choice of crystal colors. AP4C offers 30 colors. Use them as cell phone charms, handbag adornments, attach them to the maids’ bouquets, or present them as-is.

Priced at $15.00 this is a swell gift you can give that won’t break your budget.

Bridal Charmies by A Planet 4 Creation
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Posted in Swell Products at September 5th, 2006. No Comments.

Though it was just announced, you may have missed your chance to buy the tiara Madonna wore at her own wedding.

Mrs. Ritchie donated her tiara to raise money for Katrina relief and the Kazanijan Foundation who provide education and opportunity to underprivileged youth through the sale of donated jewelry. The tiara was to be auctioned on eBay. At this writing, the auction page states bidding has ended for this item though there are no bidders. (Bids start at US $225,000).
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Posted in Pop Culture at September 4th, 2006. No Comments.

For those of you old enough to remember the 70’s, you’ll be surprised to learn that terrariums are making a huge comeback. They’ve been featured in many of the upscale decor magazines lately in all sorts of shapes and sizes. If you don’t already know, terrariums are small containers, often enclosed, for growing small plants.
I brilliantly thought making a tiny terrarium in an Xmas ornament would be an incredibly fun favor or table decoration. But, alas, the fine folks at Cottage Living already beat me to it. (Well, the terrarium part anyway…using them as favors is mine, darnit!)

I bring you the Tiny Terrarium tutorial by Cottage Living.

  • Be careful about ordering ornaments online. Fragile little balls like these break easily in shipment.
  • These can be used as favors (would look lovely sitting atop each placesetting) or grouped in bunches as table decor.

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Posted in Decorations at September 3rd, 2006. 1 Comment.

You’re a free spirit. Fun, a little (or a lot) out of the orindary. You want a gown that’s made exactly for you and your unique style. Maybe you even have a design in mind and want someone to make it happen for you.

Well, today’s your lucky day, muchacha. I present a list of individuals and companies that will custom design and/or make a gown especially for you. Enjoy!

Anyiam’s Creations - Afrocentric creations
http://www.anyiams.com/

Bridal Corset - Corsets, cloaks, and gowns in the UK
http://www.bridalcorsets.com/cloaks.htm

Kindred Spirits - Period-inspired and contemporary gowns in the UK
http://www.bridal-originals.co.uk/

D’Ante Designs - Alterations and custom accessories
http://www.dantedesigngallery.com/

New Creations Designs - Contemporary gowns
http://www.newcreationdesigns.com/

Custom Bridalwear from Andrea Zax
http://www.studiosofandreazax.com/

Anna’s Couture
http://www.annascouture.com/about.htm

The Needlewoman
http://www.needlewoman.com/wedding_gowns.htm

Sunny Nelson Custom Design
http://www.sunnynelsondesigns.com/

Sharazi Bridal Couture
http://www.sharazi.com

Best Value Bridal Dress
http://stores.ebay.com/Best-Value-Bridal-Dress-and-Gown/Frequently-Asked-Questions.html

Perizone Custom Formal Dresses
http://stores.ebay.com/PERI-ZONE

Annette Cohen
http://annettecohen.com/

Annique Couture
http://www.anniquebridal.com/

Custom Bridal Wear by Mary McCarthy
http://www.custombridalwear.com/

Embellish
http://www.embellishdesign.com/

CoutureSF
http://www.couturesf.com/

Treasures by Tina
http://www.treasures-by-tina.com/

Virgina’s Custom Gowns
http://www.gownsbyginny.com/Custom.htm
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Posted in Attire + Beauty at September 1st, 2006. No Comments.