Getting back to life after the wedding can be overwhelming, but this new Mrs. is still making time for her fellow Blogger Brides. Check out the latest from Born to be Mrs. Beever...
I’m not gonna say much in today’s post. Honestly, I have had some major stressful things happening at work lately. I don’t want to go into all of it but it means I haven’t been able to spend much time on the net browsing through all of your lovely blogs I follow. Don’t dismay – I am totally still here! Those of you who have noticed I haven’t been commenting much lately, please know that I will be back over there to more thoroughly digest archived posts and catch up as soon as things are resolved here in the office
Thankfully, I schedule most of my posts months in advance so I have still been going regularly over here. And I can honestly say that the wedding recaps will finally be ending this month! Five months after the wedding, I will be wrapping it up with a few more pics and videos to share with all of you as I finalize my memories of our big day. Thanks for hangin’ in there with me.
Today, I wanted to share this cool little recap video that our videographer included in our wedding video (note that the song is not the song used in our wedding video, I had to change it due to YouTube copyrights). It is a recap of the cocktail hour but I love it because it shows a few of the little details of our event, specifically the reception tables. So after the video, I’ll share a bunch of photos as well:
You can explore the world like the Honeymoon Testers - today they share some great advice on how to get married in Malta...
What really impressed us the most about Malta was how set up they are for weddings. Weddings are big business in Malta, with the Maltese weddings averaging 400+ guests. Of course, most destinations weddings won’t necessarily be as big as that, but there are so many different options, no matter if it’s just the two of you, or everyone you know.
Malta is wedding island, and the best way to get value for money is to go for a wedding package, which will include your venue, accommodation and your choice of wedding suppliers like luxury cars, professional photographers, florists and more. It’s only a few hours away, everyone speaks English, there is a lot to do on the island and it’s great value for money. Everything you need for the best destination wedding, in fact – I can’t believe we didn’t think of it for our own wedding.
We toured some of the best 5 star hotels, villas and unusual wedding venues on our trip, so check out our video review and be inspired!
Wedding options
Of course, it’s Malta so you can take advantage of the sun and have a Mediterranean style beach wedding, but don’t stop there, there’s so much more you can do too.
The Grand Hotel Excelsior is a stunning 5-star hotel situated adjacent to the magnificent sixteenth-century bastions of Valletta. The outdoor terrace in particular is extremely popular for spectacular weddings and receptions, and the pool complex is gorgeous.
Hotel Phoenicia is a classically beautiful hotel founded in 1947. Frequented by stars, socialites and the crowned heads of Europe and boasting a large and romantic garden, this hotel is a beautiful place for a wedding.
The Hilton overlooks the fashionable Portomaso waterfront, and offers a unique underground entrance for a dramatic arrival by boat. It’s a beautifully versatile hotel with stunning restaurants, 4 outdoor pools, a grand ballroom and the Quarterdeck bar terrace.
Another unique option is to rent one of Malta’s many private villas for an intimate and exclusive gathering. Villa Arrigo is a stunning private property with beautiful dining rooms, outdoor gardens with olive trees and hanging lights.
We also recommend the gorgeous Corinthia and Radisson Blu hotels in St Julian’s Bay, and we visited some Catholic church options too, so check out our recent reviews.
Make your wedding dreams come true in Malta, and if you’re still not convinced you can, we’ve got some bonus footage of our magical week in Malta! See video on the original post.
She has finally found the one! And by the one, we mean the perfect wedding dress of course... Read this bride's journey to finding the dress she loves.
After a 6 month search and 8 months before the wedding, I HAVE FINALLY FOUND AND ORDERED MY WEDDING DRESS
For me, finding the right dress was not just about the dress that I cried in when I saw myself, it wasn’t the dress I always pictured myself in. I had other things to factor into my decision that although unimportant for some brides was very important for me.
Start from the beginning:
Back in Feb when I started trying on dresses I thought i was looking for a halter dress. I didn’t think strapless would be for me, but I was told by someone at Davids Bridal that with my chest size i shouldn’t pick out halter dresses, so I took her advice and I didn’t. Well I didn’t find any dresses there but I fell in love with a dress from the next shop we went to. And for the next 6 months I stayed in love with it, picturing myself walking down the aisle in it, it was perfect. Well the only problem was that i wish the beading stood out more
Factor #1: I wanted a dress that the beading stood out more
Another time I went with just my mom and let her pick out dresses she wanted me to try on. It is quite an experience dress shopping with my mom because we have opposite taste in.. everything. The best one she picked soon became her favorite but I still didn’t really like it. I hated the material it was so heavy and I had a lot of cleavage with this dress. But she would not give up
Factor #2: I really liked the tafetta material because it was lighter and I felt like I could move in it
Finally to the present time: I went dress shopping this past Saturday with my mother, FH’s mother, and my sister/MOH. The first appointment I made was at the shop where these two dresses were located and they were the first ones I tried on. I started in the first dress that I liked and I walked out still knowing it was the dress for me but the whole time everyone was ooo-ing and ahhh-ing at me in the dress my mom goes “Wait til you see you the dress i picked” “The dress I picked is better” “I still like the dress I picked” at that point I wanted her to leave, except she was the one paying for the dress so I put up with it. I put on her dress and I still hated it, I knew that was not the one but she would not stop going on about her dress, and it’s not even just me who liked mine over hers because so did the manager from the shop, my sister, and soon to be mother in law. I tried on 2 more that they picked out and I hated. Then my sister found a dress that was a little different than what I tried on but had what I liked and what my mom liked about a dress. I tried it on and loved it. It was a halter dress! The one dress that I tried on as a halter turned out to be my dress.
Red carpet fashion is a great place to get inspired for your wedding day look. We are counting down the top 5 best looks from the 2010 Emmy Awards!
We love looking to the red carpet for fashion inspirations and the 2010 Emmy Awards definitely didn’t disappoint when it came to gorgeous gowns. We caught up with wedding gown designer Annette Thurmon of Chaviano Coutoure to talk about her favorite looks of the night.
Have you done a boudoir session, or is it something you’d consider? If so, what advice do you have for brides and newlyweds thinking about giving it a go?
Boudoir photo sessions seem to be all the rage this year, with brides-to-be and newlyweds alike surprising their grooms with stylish and flirty photos that run the gamut from sweetly sexy to boldly risqué.
The more I read about these sassy shoots, the more I’m impressed by the number of women who say that although the session was first intended as a gift to the groom, in the end, it was a gift to the bride, instilling a greater sense of confidence and empowerment. Still, as a fairly modest girl, I’m not sure how comfortable I’d feel going before the camera for a shoot like this, or whether I’d be able to loosen up enough to allow the photographer to really capture the best shots.
What do you say, girls? Have you done a boudoir session, or is it something you’d consider? If so, what advice do you have for brides and newlyweds thinking about giving it a go?
So far, for me, I guess this is about as daring as it gets…
Picking you wedding invitation theme is hard enough, let alone deciding how to word the invite. Brides, share your experience with this bride who, at the moment, is at a loss for words.
Invitations are an important step to set the tone for the type of wedding you intend to have, whether it is fancy, casual or something in between.
Nowadays, we have so much to choose from; printing techniques, paper style, colors, sizes, new trends….
I haven’t found yet THAT perfect invitation…but I am almost there (I guess).
My biggest dilemma at this moment however is the wording. I am having a hard time trying to figure out which idiom to write on my invitations. As most of you might know, I will be having a destination wedding in Brazil. Some of my guests understand English and Portuguese pretty well. However, some, can only understand/read English and others only Portuguese.
A friend of mine suggested me to have the invitations written in Portuguese as the wedding will be held in Brazil. Besides, the guest flying out of US will be contacting me anyways for travel arrangements and I can always explain the details.
The other day I was reading about a bride who is currently living in London and her wedding will be held in Costa Rica. To avoid any misunderstanding, she had invitations written in English and in Spanish. (Maybe a little too much??).
I was also told to choose one or the other and have a little card attached with the translation…
Have any of you been through a situation like this? Any ideas??? Suggestions??
This newly married bride found her wedding fashion savior in Alfred Angelo. Which designers have you fallen in love with for your bridesmaids' dresses and wedding gown?
I’ve always loved the Alfred Angelo line for its beautiful styles and affordable prices. Whether romantic, classic, trendy or sassy, I truly believe this line has something that would make just about any bride happy.
As you know, Alfred Angelo came to the rescue at the last minute when I was on the fence about my original dress, and I quickly fell head over heels for a romantic mermaid silhouette with cascading tiers of lace, a gorgeous semi-cathedral train, and an elegant grape sash beneath the bust.
And earlier, while on the hunt for bridesmaid dresses that would flatter a variety of body types, my sister and I found the perfect formal and flattering grape gown, which featured white embroidery and crystal detailing on its sash.
Of course, I was excited about these picks before the big day, but looking back at our photos afterward, I’m even more in love. In the end, I’m so glad I ordered my dream dress before it was too late, and that the girls also loved their dresses, which paired so perfectly with mine. I truly can’t imagine our wearing anything else.
Will you and your bridesmaids wear dresses made by the same designer, or closely matched in style? Whether you’re now looking back on your day or are still waiting for it to arrive, have you ever had any second thoughts about your dress choices?
(Photo Credits: Damien Smith Photography & Alex Neumann Photography)
How much input does your bridal party have in their wedding day attire? This newly married bride shares a story of dressing her bridal party and their opinions...
This is an image of the dress I originally wanted my bridesmaids to wear (and in this color, too):
Isn’t the back adorable? It’s a Dessy (After Six) dress (from their web site).
When I took my six bridesmaids with me to a shop to try it on, I was so excited to see them all fall in love with it. Perfect for our spring April wedding and to match our turquoise/aqua color. Unfortunately, they all HATED it! I mean, not just, “Uh, we’re not thrilled about it.” But rather, it is totally unflattering…the bust is horrible…I hate the color…please don’t make us wear this, hated it!
I was so bummed. But I wasn’t going to let the attire issue come between me and my girlfriends and relatives. Then they started going on about how they didn’t like the blue colored dress and wanted to go with red instead (the other color of our wedding). They said they would more likely wear red again and it would be flattering on all skin tones. I was really bummed out about this because the blue was what I wanted to go with my color scheme! The red was only the accent color. So I asked them to show me some options of what they liked. They came up with two choices:
After almost seven weeks of touring luxury hotels around the world, the Honeymoon Testers are trying out their luck in hostels. Check out their adventure through Ireland!
I have to admit, I was sceptical about this tour with the world famous tour group, Paddy Wagon. After almost seven weeks of touring luxury hotels around the world, how would I cope with the real world and…youth hostels!?
In fact, on our way to the airport a week ago for our Malta trip, we actually stopped at a red light in front of the Paddy’s Palace youth hostel and I said to Mark, “Remember, when we used to stay at hostels? Those were the days…!”.
When our boss told us that we’d be joining a 3-day coach and hostel trip with 50 others on a Paddy Wagon tour, I was a little daunted. However, the idea of getting to see more of Ireland and meeting some other people was pretty cool so we were well up for the challenge!
Well, I have to say that I’m completely won over. We had a fantastic time and in these recession times, it would be a very cost-effective and really fun holiday for the cash-strapped bride and groom. Definitely a honeymoon with a difference, but if you’ve ever wanted to see more of Ireland, then I can highly recommend it!
We joined the Ring of Kerry tour, a very popular tour visiting Blarney Castle (yes, we kissed the Blarney stone!), Limerick city, Slead Head/Dingle Peninsula, the Cliffs of Moher, Killarney National Park (with an amazing horse drawn tour of the park) and many cute little towns along the way for real Irish hospitality.
The very last tour is the Guinness factory tour, complete with a free pint of Guinness. It’s one of the best designed museums I’ve ever seen, really fascinating seeing the story behind this Irish success story.
The scenery along the way was simply stunning – the best of the “Emerald Isle”, incredibly beautiful mountains, cliffs, farms, parks, ruins, churches and quaint fishing villages. There were plenty of stops for photo ops too.
There are many other tours to choose from, from 1-day Dublin tours, to 3, 6 and 10 tours all over Ireland. There’s even a Christmas tour!
There’s some great extras as well – breakfast is included every morning, all entrances to the parks and other attractions, free wifi at the hostels and a free shuttle bus to and from the airport (14 daily departures).
The buses are immaculate, brand new Mercedes coaches painted a bright green with leprechauns all over them (very hard to miss!). The tour itself is fantastic – complete with a knowledgeable and charming Irish tour guide to really bring the tour to life.
The great thing about being thrown on to a bus with a group of new people looking to have fun is that everyone is up for the “craic”. Jokes, banter and songs keep the bus drives entertaining and anything can happen on the Guinness fuelled nights. Karaoke at the Randy Leprechaun Hostel near Dingle was a lot of fun, surprisingly there were some pretty good voices on show from the travellers and even a couple of locals. If you are up for it you can of course socialise into the small hours, the Irish are wonderfully charming, funny and welcoming, but unlike some tours the partying is not compulsory but definitely builds great camaraderie.
The hostels are what you’d expect, youth hostels are pretty much the same the world over. You can opt for a shared room to really get to know others, but if you’re feeling flush, spring for a private room and bath, or better yet upgrade to the luxury B&B option. We had the middle option – a private hostel room. The tour is exactly the same for each level of accommodation, and you still join the group for all of the entertainment. The only difference is that you sleep in a different venue, which will be really close to the hostel but might not be as noisy at night.
We even renewed our vows three times during the trip: at the Cliffs of Moher, at the Lough Inn in Killarney and at the Paddy’s Palace in Dingle. We also christened the new building next door with a bottle of champagne! Our great guide “Fitzy” and everyone on the bus really participated in our vows making them a lot of fun and very memorable.
If you are on a budget, then it would be a fabulous and fun way to celebrate with a lot of relaxed and travel-minded people. We met a huge variety, from Sam – the second year nuclear physics student from Arkansas, a gang of late twenty-somethings from Canada, a whole bunch of Aussies on their way to live in London and plenty of other interesting people of all ages from all around the world, even families and 50 somethings.
Thanks to the team at Paddy Wagon for taking such good care of us, giving us such a good time and always giving us the “honeymoon suite” along the way!
Wanna see me dancing like a leprechaun? Watch this video till the end…
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