ED Hardy Blog

Weddings are always special. It’s a time when everybody gets too look beautiful in their wedding dress and bridesmaid dresses. But if you’ve been the bridesmaid for eons, then its time to pack up a wallop.

Everybody dreams of having a fairytale wedding and all girls want to feel like a princess on their wedding day. Imagine yourself as a blushing beautiful bride leisurely walking down the aisle and everyone is staring at you in your lovely and remarkably attractive gown awaited by the guests and the groom to be. Such a dream in mind will soon become a reality for brides to be and so they are planning and spending much of their time preparing for their dream wedding dress or gown.

In selecting a wedding gown, it takes more than just having a picture perfect dress from a well-known designer featured in a magazine spread. You have to keep in mind that in choosing or deciding for a wedding gown, it has to fit your needs, demand and your personality.

Most brides start their wedding gown search by looking through thousands of pictures of wedding gowns. The second step is knowing where you can find some of the lovely wedding dresses you have seen. For your convenience, we have compiled below a list of different locations you will want to consider when looking for your wedding dress. Also, ask your friends or others you trust for referrals of local bridal salons in your area. Finding sales people who are knowledgeable, accommodating and helpful will make your wedding dress purchasing experience much better. You’ll also want to ask for references of any seamstress you are considering to determine if he/she is an honest person. Our list of where to find a wedding dress includes.

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It is always practical to not spend so much for your gown. A custom fit wedding gown comes with an expensive price as compared to those hanging on the rack in department stores. The price of your wedding dress also depends on the fabric used, the intricate details, the style and the designer. Before purchasing a wedding dress always make sure that you already have your budget in mind and make sure that you don’t go way over the budget you have set.

Bridal Salons:

Bridal salons are local shops specializing in wedding gowns and apparel. They are generally small boutiques that offer many little perks, such as free drinks, personal attention, large dressing areas with comfy chairs, on-site alterations and more. With the perks come higher price tags as well. While you might pay a little more at a bridal salon, you should be benefiting from a knowledgeable sales staff who can help you find the right wedding dress for your wedding. Because these shops specialize in wedding gowns, the sales staff can give you advice on the most flattering wedding gown styles and their “expert” opinions on jewelry and other accessories, such as veils and head pieces. You will most likely need an appointment to come and view the wedding dresses, so call ahead and try to book a time when you will get the most attention. Remember the shops will most likely be busiest on the weekends.

Bridal Warehouses:

If rolling up your sleeves and “digging” through hundreds of wedding gowns for a wonderful bargain interests you, a bridal warehouse is for you. They are generally large discount stores filled with wedding gowns you can buy off of the rack. If you don’t have much time before your wedding, you might be interested in this because you don’t have to order a wedding dress and wait for it like at a salon, you take the wedding dress home that day. Of course, you most likely give up the personal attention from a bridal salon sales staff and the convenience of on-site alterations, but the monetary savings can be significant (over 50% in some cases).

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There is the opinion that “the suit makes the man,” or, in a woman’s shoes, the power suit makes the successful woman. Although fashionable attire is always appropriate in certain situations, it quite often only gives the look of success but not the measure of it. This is the radical change that is happening within the home business landscape. If you go to any home business conference, brainstorming session, or meeting, you will not see the full business suit that was once required. You will look upon some of the most successful entrepreneurs in the world, that were once a part of corporate America, walking around in Hawaiian shirts and sandals. The leap from the big business world, where the suit was only window dressing, to home business gives you the opportunity to reach a desirable and fulfilling place. A place where a suit is not the benchmark of who you are.

For every season, for every motif, for every person and for every color symbolism, there will always be the right wedding dress. Choosing what to wear in your wedding is as critical as choosing the the man you will be spending your sunset days with.

There’s a multitude of wedding dress styles to choose from – in some countries that have veered away from much of wedding rituals and traditions, dress styles number in the thousands. With this dizzying array, how do you choose yours? How do you make sure that your dress will be a reflection of the real YOU, not the fashion model on the glossy cover of magazines that grace bridal boutiques and corner stalls in the metropolis?

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Finding a prom dress that is trendy and fashionable  and makes you feel beautiful is only half of the battle. Once you find your dress, you should immediately begin thinking of all the finishing touches it will require. A prom dress is not complete without the make-up, shoes, and accessories to accompany it. If you are feeling a little overwhelmed or would like some suggestions on how to add the extra details that make you worthy of the prom queen title, check out the make-up, shoes, and accessories tips below. If you are a little too old for prom, remember that many of the tips below directly relate to wedding dresses and other formal gowns.

Buying a Wedding Dress: Style
The style of your wedding dress will depend on about four factors. There may be more but these are the most common ones we can think of:

• Type of wedding
• Your personality
• Your budget
• Your culture and that of your future husband

If you write down your thoughts about these four factors including any other detail you can think of, you’d have a good starting point for discussions with the boutique consultant. By rattling off your preferences, she can already come up with a short list and show you the styles immediately. This will save you time from browsing through voluminous catalogues and the sometimes crowded store racks.

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Type of wedding: are you going to be married in a church and will the reception be inside a hall, OR are you going to be married in the beach, garden or in some enchanted island where guests will be free to roam around and then gather in an outdoor tent to offer their best wishes and congratulations?

An outdoor wedding would narrow your choices. You will certainly want to consider not wearing a gown that would require you to wear high heels, unless you want to leave permanent marks on that beautifully manicured lawn. Wear a gown that looks right with a pair of sensible but stylish flats to keep you from boring holes on the ground. For practical reasons, you may want to seriously not wear a long, down to the ankles type of dress. This will spare you from having to deal with a muddy hem. Make sure the hem is heavy enough not to fly up at the first sign of a sudden gust of wind.

Make-up: The shades of make-up you purchase will depend upon your personal coloring and taste, as well as the color and style of your prom dress. In general, you should choose make-up shades that are a bit more glamorous than what you would normally wear, but not so wild that they will overwhelm your date and friends. If you are new to the world of make-up, find the color of your dress in the list below to determine the best shade of make-up to match:

• Pink to Red: Rosy pink and light brown shades will best complement pink or red prom dresses.

• Yellow to Orange: Look for shades in soft peach or rusty brown to complement your dress.

• Blue to Green: Lavender, aqua, and dark sapphire shades will bring out the color in your dress and give you a fresh look.

• White or Black: Lavender and light brown shades will soften the starkness of a white or black dress and add some color to your face.

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For the same reasons, a train is not ideal for an outdoor wedding. You will likely find it covered in mud and grass stains by the end of the reception. If your dress comes with a veil, keep it weighted to keep it from blowing around too much, unless again you’d want your groom and pastor to chew on the lace by the end of the service, or risk the veil pin landing on someone’s cake.

Your personality: “tell me what you wear to your wedding and I’ll tell you what kind of person you are” may ring true, but remember that you need not be forced into wearing anything because it’s tradition or your rich mother-in-law has done the cherry picking in some designer’s rack. Your dress is you, inside and outside. Let it bring out the message on this special day.

• Metallic: For a metallic dress, use light shades of cream, silver, or brown to highlight the shine of your dress.

• Once you purchase the right shades of make-up for your dress, follow these tips to add a touch of extra glamour to your face:

• Apply a double coat of dark mascara on your upper lashes and a single coat on your lower lashes to bring out your eyes.

• Try using a bright shade of lipstick with a coat of gloss on top to create sexy, appealing lips.

• Even if you do not normally use it, apply a soft cream blush to your cheeks to bring out a feminine glow.

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It doesn’t matter whether you are looking for an informal beach wedding dress for your poolside ceremony, a sunrise or sunset ocean front ceremony, or if you are planning to wed onboard a luxury cruise liner…

The destination wedding dress is perfect for every wedding style!

One more thing…

When traveling to your wedding destination, do NOT entrust the safe keeping of your wedding gown to airline attendants. Not long ago, as I stood in the Jacksonville airport, I watched one young girl break down as a baggage handler, presented her with her wedding dress accompanied by an apology. The garment bag was torn open and there were black tire prints on her lovely silk gown. It had apparently slipped off the side of the baggage trolley and been driven over, then dragged back to the terminal from the plane.

Don’t let this happen to you!

Another way to get comfortable heels is to choose wedge-heel shoes. Even if the heel is high, they are easy to walk in and you probably won’t even feel the height. By the way, wedge heels are quite fashionable this year.

About 50% of evening shoes are made from fabric but, if you can afford it, always go for genuine leather shoes. Quality leather has an amazing ability to adjust to the shape of your foot and always feels better than synthetics.

Get your outfit first and match the shoes to it; don’t do it the other way around. It will be very difficult to find a color that would match perfectly, though, so go for a color that is complementary. Black evening shoes are classic - they work with any dark colored outfit. If your dress is in a pastel color, try ivory shoes; soft, warm ivory usually works better than pure white.

Avoid straps; they might be sexy but they’re also a pain.. Instead, choose dress shoes with a longer, enclosed toe. This style always look very elegant.

Go for shoes with a soft, cushioned upper lining. A leather lining is preferable. If your perfect shoes have a very hard sole, get cushioned comfort inserts; they’re sticky on one side, for attachment to the sole of your shoe. Most online and traditional shoe stores sell them.

Make sure the shoes are your correct size. Shoes that are too small or too big will never feel comfortable on your feet.
So you see, it’s possible to get and wear beautiful evening shoes without suffering. Keep these tips in mind, when you shop for dress shoes, and your next purchase should make you very happy.

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Styles range from truly elegant full length gowns to romantic tea length. Sexy slip dresses and halter styles are also very popular and beautiful. For a casual beach wedding dress, consider a sarong or a Hawaiian holoku.

The cost for such a dress itself warrants consideration, especially for the frugal bride on a tight budget. You can easily keep the cost of your beach wedding dress under $300.00 without sacrificing style at all!

Remember…

Dollars do NOT dictate beauty! Some of the prettiest wedding gowns I have seen, both casual and formal, have been right on eBay… at a fraction of the cost!

Some Additional Tips

Play up your best feature. If you have heavy hips and waist, keep the focus on top. Wear great makeup so people will look at your face. If you are top heavy but have great legs, play that up. Wear a skirt with high heels or shoes with the new pointed toes. Wear dark colors in skirt, hose and shoe for an unbroken, long, slinky line. Alter your skirt to where it just brushes the knee, never shorter or longer. If you insist on boots, make sure that they are long enough to just hit your leg below the knee. No mid-calf or ankle boots for this look. Here is a trick I learned many years ago from an actress friend of mine in London. When you are fully dressed, stand in front of a full-length mirror, now close your eyes for a minute and then open them. What is the first thing you see, your face or your outfit? You always want to see the face first. This is important when you’re making an entrance. Are you wearing the clothes or are the clothes wearing you?

The Awful Truth

The average American woman is 5 foot 4 inches, 140 pounds and wears a size 12. The average model is 5 foot 9 inches, 110 pounds and wears a size 2. Think about that the next time you read a fashion magazine and wonder who designers are designing for anyway. Fashion magazines should be read for suggestions. Not as the bible.

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The late Carrie Donovan (no relation), who was the voice of fashion for the NY Times, always wore black. It was her signature.

The Body of Evidence

If you want to appear slimmer avoid pleats, flashy fabrics, busy patterns and textures and avoid, like the plague, anything big or tent like. A tent only belongs in the circus and on a heavy woman, it only accentuates the body and makes her look even heavier. Flowing skirts are another “no-no.” They’re great for period movies, but most women cannot carry that much fabric. Now I’m not suggesting that you wear anything tight and skimpy that will only blueprint all the flesh that you are trying to disguise because, fit is everything. I cannot say enough about fit when it comes to clothes. Whatever your body style, the fit of your clothes is paramount. Fit is more important than cost. Things that pull, sag, droop, and constrict, add pounds to everyone. When you get dressed, “try on” your clothes. Can you walk, turn, sit, stand, and bend comfortably? Hug yourself, to make sure your jacket doesn’t pull or tug when you have it on. And how are the sleeves? Are they too long or too short? Pants should not be tight in the crotch nor snug around waist. If you spend nothing else on clothes this year (impossible I know, but let’s pretend) spend the money on alterations. Those special pieces that you have that are classic and that are the backbone of your wardrobe should have an impeccable fit and if they don’t fit perfectly have them altered or replaced.

However, these informal wedding gowns are nothing less than spectacular with sleek lines, and simple designs. Today, more and more brides-to-be are choosing to stray from the multi layers of frill and lace in favor of the simplistic beauty of a destination wedding dress.

Lightweight fabrics such as chiffon, organza, silk, rayon, crepe or crinkle cotton are extremely popular and practical. They are cool, elegant and comfortable. The lightweight, wrinkle resistant qualities of such fabrics make your precious wedding gown very “packable”.

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Just as destination weddings are fast growing in popularity, so are destination wedding dresses.

What exactly is a destination wedding dress? It is a trendy, sensible, cost effective alternative to the traditional wedding gown.

You don’t have to be leaving town to choose a destination wedding dress. The name lends itself to the fact that these bridal gowns are usually made of softer, lighter fabrics that pack easily and travel well.

The reason most women think of wearing dress shoes as a sacrifice for the sake of beauty is because 80% of special occasion shoes really are uncomfortable. But since they want to look their best for the prom, wedding or evening banquet, most women will put up with sore feet. You don’t have to, though. Here are several tips that will help you find the “perfect” evening shoes.

All dress shoes have heels. Of course - high heels make your legs look longer and slimmer, make your feet look sexy and force you to keep good posture. However, you don’t have to wear 4-inche heels to get all these benefits. Go for kitten style heels - about 2-inches high. They are more stable and comfortable.

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