Blog Love

A few weeks ago Shi Shi Events asked us to participate in a photo shoot at the beautiful and glamorous Tudor Arms Hotel and the photos debuted on The Bridal Bar today! Check out our Lela Rose gown The Shore and our Amy Kuschel Dietrich gown! And can you believe that huge, regal dog cooperated the entire time?!

Wedding Day 101 Workshop

Last night we hosted a Wedding Day 101 Workshop to go over some essential skills and tips for the big day. Thanks to all of the lovely ladies who attended!

Each bride got a Survival Kit filled with all kinds of essential supplies!

 Thanks to Julie, owner of Blush Weddings & Events for providing our Bouquet Tips

and Independence Flowers and Gifts for our lovely silk demo bouquets.

We also went over different types of bustles (shown here: underbustle in the foreground and overbustle in the background) and how to mend a broken bustle.

Of course we also had to go over my personal favorite - bow tying! 

 The sashes we used for practice.

For those of you who missed it, please see our tip sheets below (click to enlarge if needed):

 

Hustle and Bustle

You found the perfect wedding dress, paid a pretty penny for it, prayed that it arrived on time and now it’s time to start thinking about how to bustle your wedding dress. But what type of bustle should you choose? If you’re anything like me, you probably didn’t even know there was more than one type of wedding dress bustle. Each type  accomplishes the bustle’s main goal, to hold up the train, but the style you choose all depends on the size and shape of your train and of course your personal taste.

French Bustle: One of the most traditional and common styles, it can also be referred to as an under bustle, because it hooks up under the skirt. You can also have a double or triple French bustle that adds more “tufts” to your bustle. With a French bustle your seamstress will place ribbons throughout the underside of your skirt that you tie together to pull your train off the floor. Talk to your seamstress about how the bustle ribbons are organized (i.e. color coordinates, number coordinates etc).

American Bustle
This style is also called a pick-up bustle as you pick up the longest part of your train and using buttons or hooks, tack the train onto the back of the skirt; this style is best for dresses that have less of a train or not a lot of poof. This bustle will require buttons and hooks to be sewn onto your dress. Ballroom Bustle
Also called an over bustle because the train is tacked over itself in such a way that your dress looks like a traditional ballroom gown. Hooks or buttons are sewn onto your dress bodice and your dress train, when the bodice hooks/buttons come together with the train hooks/buttons it gives the illusion of one length.

Varied Ballroom Bustle I used this type of bustle at my wedding and I loved it. This bustle takes the train and completely tucks it under your dress to give the illusion of a uniform hemline. This bustle is best used on dresses that have small, short trains. For additional information regarding bustles be sure to ask your seamstress or check out this website http://www.leanna.com/Bridal/Bustles.htm. One last tip, be sure one of your attendants is armed with needle and thread as even the most secure bustles have a tendency towards technical difficulties!

~Rebecca

The Wedding Dress Bustle

I was in a wedding a few years ago where the bride's wedding dress was bustled when she picked it up. She kept the bustle in place in the days up to her wedding and all the way to the church, only taking the bustle down about 30 minutes before the ceremony. The result is something no one would have expected: the train of her beautiful dress was hopelessly wrinkled!

While the other bridesmaids thoughtfully tried to convince her that it was not that bad, my mind raced for a possible solution. Suddenly it hit me - the bridal shop where she had purchased her dress was just down the street. I called and the proprietor said that he could easily steam the dress. The bride, not wanting the guests or her husband-to-be to see her was reluctant to make the trip, so we took the dress without her.

While the bride waited, her slip hiked up around her chest, another bridesmaid and myself dashed through the church, myself holding up the front and she running behind with the outstretched train. I could only wish that one of the gawking guests had had the presence of mind to take a picture! We practically assaulted an unsuspecting guest in the parking lot to give us a lift down the street. Despite the last minute glitch all ended well and the bride, and her dress, looked beautiful when she walked down the aisle.

Lessons learned: some fabrics are more prone to wrinkling. When you bring your dress home, if it is already bustled, take the bustle out to ensure that it has not and will not wrinkle. If something does go wrong on your big day keep a cool head - there may be a solution!

~Karin