If you are in the mood to start wedding planning, or have a few details left to wrap up, you can head downtown to check out two upscale bridal shows this Sunday. They are right around the corner from each other so if you are extra ambitious, you might be able to do both in one swoop.
San Francisco Wedding Fair
Four Seasons Hotel San Francisco
Sunday, January 10, 2010
11AM – 4PM
Modern Weddings Luxury Bridal Event
The Ritz-Carlton, San Francisco
Sunday, January 10, 2010
11AM – 4PM
“Don’t do it,” she said. “Do not buy that dress.”
With one proclamation, I was back to square one in the wedding dress search. I was in Alla Prima on Hayes Street, being advised by Maggie, the owner, and by many accounts, the lingerie queen of San Francisco.
A couple of months ago, the nice and knowledgeable gals at Alla Prima had given me a proper bra fitting. Turns out Victoria’s Secret is wildly misguided and woefully understocked. I’d been wearing a 36D my whole life, and walked out of there as a 34F.
So when my first round of dress shopping produced a backless sheath dress as the winner, I wanted to make sure that everything would look great. And I knew exactly who to ask.
Apparently, for those of us who are well-endowed, there is no “foundation garment” that will support the girls but allow for a low-backed or backless dress. It just doesn’t exist.
“I have so many brides in here crying their eyes out two weeks before the wedding because the foundation garment is the last thing they think of,” says Maggie. “Sometimes they’ve even had their final fitting – how could someone possibly do a fitting on them without knowing what bra they’ll be wearing under the dress?” She went on to point out that if a bride is a B or A cup, she can certainly get away with the NuBra or some other such contraption. (I know, I know, the grass is always greener.) And I know from my own shopping experience at several Bay Area bridal stores that most bridal dresses are cut for a woman with a B cup.
So consider this post part public service announcement, part call to arms. Shouldn’t there be more options for the many, many women who’ve got their junk in the front? Ideally, there would be a foundation garment specialist working with every wedding dress shop. “There is a huge market out there that has been completely ignored,” Maggie pointed out. “They’re just waiting with baited breath…” Myself included. And please, ladies, no matter your bra size, think about the undergarments before you buy the dress. No bride should be in tears over a bra.
Local wedding photographer Aurora Meneghello is giving away a free engagement portrait to start the New Year and to celebrate Valentine’s Day. With 2010 wedding budgets ever tighter, here is a great way to enter for some great 2010 freebies!
Click here to learn more: http://www.aurorameneghello.blogspot.com/
I was trying to come up with a cute and personal gift idea for my friend’s engagement party when I remembered the video her fiancée took of their engagement. He managed to prop his camera in a window and hit record without her noticing. The camera was pointed toward a fountain and after a few minutes shows them walk into the line of site, with him getting down on one knee and proposing. The video is a little grainy, but worth treasuring.
My first thought was to turn one moment from the video into a photo. Unfortunately, it seemed as though choosing one shot was just not enough. Finally, I came up with the idea to make a flip book. I planned to print out a bunch of successive shots and have them bound together. Fortunately, when I searched online for ideas and tips, I came upon a website that could do it for me!
There are a number of sites that come up when you search for flip books. The one I used (www.flipclips.com) seemed the most straightforward and required only three steps!
- Upload your video
- Pick the cover, size, and quantity
- Enter your billing information
The only downside to this site was the limited amount of choices for the cover. Instead of allowing me to create my own, I had to choose from a limited number of pre-made designs. It worked nicely for mine because there was a wedding option, but if you want to add in your own photo or design you may have to search for a different site.
It took five minutes to upload my video and place my order. Two weeks later I showed up at the engagement party with the ultimate in personalized gifts! In addition to a great gift for the bride or groom, a flip book could make a cute shower or wedding favor. Not everyone has a video of their engagement, but I’m sure any couple would appreciate personalized flip books made from videos captured throughout their courtship.
Welcome to Bay Area Bride Guide, our very own community wedding blog!
Bay Area Bride Guide aspires to become your resource for local bay area wedding tips, advice, and a place for you to interact with other brides-to-be. Our group of inspired and active bloggers includes recent brides, local vendors, brides-to-be, and even a maid-of-honor.
We hope to inspire and introduce you to Bay Area wedding resources and hidden gems.
