Wedding Wednesday: Attire

Have you ever considered how many decisions have to be made when planning a wedding? What kind of cake? Which flowers for the bouquet? How many invitations to order? What kind of music? Solid or patterned tablecloths? What color chairs? How many menu choices? What color scheme? Where to hold the reception? Which videographer? What to gift the bridesmaids? Tuxedos or suits?

Besides the choices, we had to consider the way Daisy wanted things, and the way Jared wanted things. Then there is the way I thought things should be, which isn't what my husband wanted to pay for. Then there is the way the groom's mother and father wanted things, and the way the grandparents didn't want things. 

It is a miracle that weddings happen at all. It makes me admire Elizabeth Taylor.

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The decision about the clothing was one of the hardest. It felt like we were planning the Academy Awards. It was a big deal. It dominated all of our conversations.

One day when Daisy's brothers were visiting from college, they admitted, "we are glad we have moved away so we don't have to listen to this everyday."

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At first Daisy wanted the bridesmaids in orange dresses and the groomsmen in linen colored pants and vests. Like this....

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We scoured the world for bridesmaid's dresses in orange, dresses that were modest and didn't cost a fortune.

No such thing exists.

So we hired a seamstress to make them, and started to search for fabric.

Meanwhile....

We couldn't find linen-colored suits or vests or tuxes, in a modern-cut, either locally or on the internet. (And now... da da da da da da....the color LINEN is a 2013 Pantone Color of the Year. There will be no more problem finding creamy off-white suits now).

Plan B was gray. Gray is hot hot hot right now. You will believe me if you look at any wedding blog. But Daisy wasn't too hip on gray.

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One day we were sitting in Adrian's watching Jared try on tuxedos. Daisy leaned over to me and said,

"I think we ought to do black, mom?"

I gasped. "Black?"

Black is the color of spiders. And WIDOWS.

"Black!" she confirmed.

How could this happen? Where did I go wrong? How could my daughter, who usually had a sense of style and good taste, want black?

I started to feel guilty about letting her eat so much macaroni and cheese as a child.... (was she showing latent signs of chronic malnourishment?)

Then one day I thought about Audrey and Cary. They look good in black.

I turned to Google and searched 'wedding parties in black.'

The more I looked, the more I liked.

I was starting to warm to the idea of men in black.

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 Then one day, Daisy made another startling announcement.

"I think we should have the bridesmaids wear black too."

Plan E

I could see the slippery slope where this was headed. Next thing you know, Daisy was going to want me and my husband to wear black.

Plan F

Wear black to my daughter's wedding??!!!


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What do five girls - one short, one tall, one buxom, one flat, and one who gave birth a month ago - have in common? A bridesmaid's dress they all hate."  - Ilene Beckerman

Daisy was thoughtful and sensitive about doing what would be best for her bridesmaids. After deciding against orange, she decided against custom-made look-a-like dresses. Instead, Daisy asked the bridesmaids to choose their own LBD (little black dress). This allowed each girl to showcase her personality with a dress that reflects her style. And that way, the girls would want to wear their dresses again.

And not hate us their dress (see above quote).

Celeste (far right) seized the opportunity and made her black dress (that she loved and rocked).

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Women look good in black. It slims and smooths. And every girl needs a LBD, right?

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Since we didn't use our seamstress for the bridesmaid's dresses, she made my dress instead.

I designed a dress, drawing my inspiration from a couple of different McCall patterns as well as other dresses. Stacey took my design, created a pattern, & made a sample dress out of muslin. Then sewed and measured. And re-sewed. And re-measured. She was amazing. It fit perfectly.

Since Daisy's dress was 100% lace, I wanted to incorporate lace into my dress.

So I could show my support of Daisy.

So I could be like Daisy.
 
You see.....I've always wanted to be like Daisy.

And as it turns out, I wore black.




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four beautiful bridesmaids

handsome mr fish rockin' his orange tie

my three sons: wearing ivory, orange and black

Buddies

Mom and son

Fisher fam

even my dad bought an orange tie - true devotion!

the groomsmen in ties, groom in bow-tie

my whole family except one brother (sniff, sniff). they all joined in the fun of wearing matching colors. what a great family!!

my sisters. all wearing pearls given to us by my parents.

groomsmen wore black tuxedos with black tone-on-tone striped ties

3 generations

Amy made all the nephews these adorable orange bow ties

my mom looked stunning in black



Jared looked so handsome in his modern-cut black tuxedo


I LOVED how everyone looked and I ended up LOVING the black: classy, elegant, timeless. Just the way Daisy wanted.

No worries afterall.

About Daisy's judgement.

Or the mac n' cheese.

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Sources:
Ties: Dillards, Nordstrom and Cheap Neckties
Tuxedo Rental: Adrian's St. George, UT
MOB Black heels: Nordstrom
Photos by Allen Hackworth (my daddy)
MOB dress - custom: Stacey King

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Thanks for listening!

xoxo
Ms Fish

Next week Wedding Wednesday: Gifts

Fun Friday Finds: Christmas Inspiration

Hope you are having a delightful December. Here is some fun holiday inspiration I would like to share. Enjoy!


HOLIDAY RECIPES

 

Counteract the sweets with this holiday waldorf salad full of colors and tastes of the season.

Don't be intimidated by this Chocolate Peppermint Roll. It's easy.
Take Junior Mints to a whole new level with this homemade hot chocolate




FOOD GIFT IDEAS

Share Christmas warmth with these DIY holiday hot cocoa packets






GIFTWRAPPING

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I never tire of simple white paper.
Am LOVING the simple bold monogrammed tags.
Try painting a single doily on plain paper for impact.




CHRISTMAS ART

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CHRISTMAS GIFT IDEAS

Sweet red crocheted earrings for your party dress
Give the gift of art with this fir tree watercolor print
Monogrammed leather jewelry roll
Smell like fresh homemade pizza dough

CHRISTMAS MUSIC

Wedding Wednesday: The Dress

We all know how important the dress is for a bride....shows their personality and taste, makes them feel like a million bucks... yada, yada, yada.

That is a lot of pressure and precisely why I was NOT excited to go shopping for one.

You see, Daisy (aka Janessa) and I have been formal dress shopping before. Daisy is *cough cough* selective when it comes to important clothes decisions. We both had no illusions at the challenge before us.

On the brighter side, it is always wonderful spending time together.

So on the first Saturday after becoming engaged, my mom, Daisy and I headed out to the local bridal shops, determined to savor the moment.

I was excited to have my mom come along. This brought back memories of the time we went shopping for my own wedding dress......

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circa 1987

My mom had been tipped off about a lady who rented custom designer-type dresses which she herself sewed out of her home. It was like a secret underground wedding dress cartel that you learned about only through a gossipy mom network across picket fences. The rumor was that the dresses were amazing, and so were the prices. This place was three hours away in Tremonton, UT. But, we justified, if the rumors were true, it was worth the trip.

We found the address (WITHOUT a GPS!). It was an older, run-down looking home in a humble area of town. A candycane thin lady with curly hair three times the size of her head and dark red lipstick opened the door and welcomed us in. She led us through a narrow hallway which then opened up to a larger area. "Here we are," she said, pointing to the showroom. We stood frozen in awe... the site took our breath away!!

There...among the the kitchen / dining / living room area.... were piles (literally) of ruffled, bejeweled, dazzling wedding dresses, strewn about. Some of the dresses were hanging on makeshift racks, but most of them were splayed out on the floor, heaped onto chairs or sprawled across the kitchen table right next to a mustard bottle and the crusty remains of a turkey sandwich.

There were several other girls and moms gingerly tiptoeing about trying to find a rare section of bare floor to step on while looking for treasures.

"Let me tell you how it works," said the owner. "We will make you any dress you want. You can pick a pair of sleeves you like from one dress, the bodice from another and the skirt from another. Or we can design and make you one from scratch if you have a picture. Or you can rent any dress we have here as is, and we will alter it to fit you perfectly."

It was like playing with real-life paper dolls.

My mom and I said, 'unbelievable' silently to each other with our eyes and began carefully sifting through mounds of dresses to find my perfect one (or pieces of one).

It wasn't long before I fell in love with a dress full of sequins and a cascade of fluffy ruffles down the back. It was perfect except for the sleeves, which we picked from another dress. I was measured, and we paid $100 while the lady scribbled my name and dress request in a worn-out notebook. In 2 weeks, my dream dress was ready for pick-up, hopefully without a mustard stain.

my wonderful grandma and grandpa Gee!

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circa 2012

My mom, Daisy and I arrived early for our fitting appointment at Lauren James Bridal. We were greeted by our personal shopping attendant who explained the pricing structure and the way the sizes were organized. She then left us to browse while she hovered in the background waiting to carry Daisy's selections to her large, plush dressing room. Once gowned (with the help of the attendant), she stepped out into a spacious room with a pedastal and floor-to-ceiling three way mirrors.

Wow. Wedding dress shops had come a long way.

Imagine...

Dresses
Neatly hanging
Ironed
Organized
Protected in plastic
Completely separate from condiments

We felt a little spoiled.

And then we got a little giddy.

Because we found the clever dress pictured below. It is a long flowing dress for the reception....THEN, you can unzip the dress (where indicated below), and strip away (always something a groom likes to hear) the bottom three tiers of ruffles... and voilah, a short party dress for dancing!! We laughed and schemed and planned a grand stripping act during the reception to the tune of....

And then Daisy realized she didn't like the top of the dress.

Daisy tried on several more... ruched, mermaid, strapless... pretty but not perfect.

Then we went to another shop called Boulevard Bridal. We ALL loved this first dress she tried on!!

Until she tried on this one.....

THE one

and then........it was unanimous! Mission accomplished.

It is a little reminiscent of Pippa Middleton's dress, don't you think?

This dress totally fit Daisy's style: classic, simple, classy and clean lines. Although all of us, including Daisy,  were surprised she chose an all-lace gown. That was a fun and unexpected twist.

photo by justin hackworth

The dress is two distinct pieces... a satin underlay with a completely separate lace overlay.  It is from a designer whose name I can't remember (sorry, if you are someone who cares about knowing that.. )

It was the easiest, most successful (daisy was so, so happy) dress shopping trip we have ever had. A good omen and a great start for the rest of the wedding preparations, plus a fun, fun day.

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Want to cast your vote? Which wedding dress do you like best on Daisy? Have you had a hard time finding the perfect dress? 

Thanks for reading another installment of Wedding Wednesday.
Until next time,

Ms Fish
xoxo

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Next week Wedding Wednesday: attire