Reception Dresses: Hot trend for brides who want two dresses

This season we are introducing 3 dresses that we have affectionately dubbed "reception dresses". We love the concept of having 2 wedding gowns; your formal church gown that you get married in and do your professional portraits in and then the party dress for your reception and casual photos. You only get to have your "Big Day" once in a lifetime so, live it up! These dresses have an amazing, affordable price tag so...go ahead be a 2-dress bride!

Style 7124 - MSRP $255.00

A strapless short dress with pleating wrapping around the empire waist to the beaded bow accent.The pleating continues asymmetrically down to the rolling floral rosettes adorning the hem. It comes with detachable spaghetti straps. As well as coming in the standard white and ivory, this gown also comes in the following colors: Olive, Chocolate, Black, Midnight, Purple/Green, Green/Purple, Lilac, Amber, Plum, Wine, Silver, Seafoam, Red, Holly Berry, Hot Pink, Aqua, Sapphire, Lavender Pink, Orange, Cranberry, Pewter, Magenta and Blush Pink

Style 7125 - MSRP $215.00

A one shoulder strap dress that is highlighted with embroidered beadwork. Pleating drapes from the shoulder down the fitted bodice into pins and tucks along the short length hem. As well as coming in the standard white and ivory, this gown also comes in the following colors: Olive, Chocolate, Black, Midnight, Purple/Green, Green/Purple, Lilac, Amber, Plum, Wine, Silver, Seafoam, Red, Holly Berry, Hot Pink, Aqua, Sapphire, Lavender Pink, Orange, Cranberry, Pewter, Magenta and Blush Pink

 Style 7124 - MSRP $255.00

A strapless dress with a ruffled edge trimming the neckline. Bands of pleating wrap around the dropped waist fitted bodice with rhinestone and beaded appliques adorning the side. The short skirt is made up of layering ruffles. As well as coming in the standard white and ivory, this gown also comes in the following colors: Olive, Chocolate, Black, Midnight, Purple/Green, Green/Purple, Lilac, Amber, Plum, Wine, Silver, Seafoam, Red, Holly Berry, Hot Pink, Aqua, Sapphire, Lavender Pink, Orange, Cranberry, Pewter, Magenta and Blush Pink

A New Take on an Old Trend: Ruffles

We love the romantic ruffle trend that continues to sweep you away! There is something ultra feminine about them and they fit right in with a romantic wedding theme. 

The Horizontal Ruffle

Essence Styles 8102 (L) and 8105 (R)

Ruffled skirts add shape that creates a wider silhouettes - this type of dress would be perfect for the tall, thin figures. Horizontal lines tend to make petite brides smaller and shorter and these types of ruffled skirts tend to make the curvy bride appear wider. 

The Vertical Ruffle

Bonny Style 104

Vertical ruffles stream down the length of a skirt to create long wavy lines. This shape is perfect for pair shapes and petite brides because it creates an illusion of length

Wedding Trends for 2011

We got this email today and found it pretty interesting. According to the theweddingreport.com these are the trends for 2011 couples - do you agree or disagree?

• Many couples will pay at least 60% of the total wedding cost.
• The average number of guests will be between 140 and 150.
• The average age of a bride will be 27 and the average age of a groom will be 29.
• The most popular wedding months will be September, October, July and May.
• The most popular wedding colors will be blues, purples, pinks and greens.

The pantone color of the year for 2011 weddings has been revealed: Honeysuckle

Leatrice Eiseman, executive director of the Pantone Color Institute states: “In times of stress, we need something to lift our spirits. Honeysuckle is a captivating, stimulating color that gets the adrenaline going – perfect to ward off the blues. Honeysuckle derives its positive qualities from a powerful bond to its mother color red, the most physical, viscerally alive hue in the spectrum. Honeysuckle emboldens us to face everyday troubles with verve and vigor. A dynamic reddish pink, Honeysuckle is encouraging and uplifting. It elevates our psyche beyond escape, instilling the confidence, courage and spirit to meet the exhaustive challenges that have become part of everyday life.” (We love this! And we love the color!)

• We will continue to see friends and family members help out.
• We will see couples booking closer to the wedding day or on off popular days.
• Designer labels will continue to gain market share by creating more affordable lines.

Our dresses are pretty affordable! Like style 041 - Retail Price $505.00

• Low cost, personalized favors and details will become even more popular.

We prefer using homemade items that people will use, you can do the most fun thing EVER! The Candy/Treat Table Guests go goo-goo over them

Convertible Bridesmaid Dresses

Convertible dresses are all the rage! I just finished watching an episode of WE TV’s hit show My Fair Wedding with David Tutera and he took the bridesmaids to the Two Birds dress shop in New York, to get their new dresses. Everyone is getting into this trend because it is easy, creative, and it gives your bridesmaids a dress they can wear over and over and over again.

I actually came across the idea of a convertible dress while strolling through the mall in Charlottesville one afternoon. There was a kiosk that had really pretty dresses on display. I went over to speak to the lady at the register and was amazed when she told me that it was actually one dress, made out of two pieces of fabric that you could wear almost 100 ways!
Later that week, I was flipping through a popular wedding magazine and saw an ad for what I again thought was a line of dresses that looked similar, but were not the same dress. I was floored when I saw that it was a convertible dress by Two Birds.

I immediately went to the website to look at the prices and colors available. Two Birds has a wide range of colors and ways to wrap the dresses with a style to fit each and every body type. They offer tea length ($270)and floor length ($290) dresses. There are other versions, such as the twist by Dessy and the one I found to have the largest choice in colors, Butter by Nadia. They have an amazing selection of styles, colors and fabrics. But, with all of these styles running $200+, they may cost more than what bridesmaids can afford.

On a further search, I found that Victoria's Secret has a more affordable dress coming in at around $110. If that price is still too much. Another option for the more crafty bride is a DIY convertible bridesmaids dress that you could give to the girls as their gifts. There is a simple guide making this dress at rostitchery.com that almost any bride can make in an hour or two.

In the Richmond area, you can soon find convertible bridesmaids dresses at Tiffany’s Bridal.

Happy dress hunting!

Ruby and the Lovely Ladies of R&P