After living in Seattle I just can’t shake my love of all things Nordstrom. I was recently down at the Park Meadows store and discovered the Wedding Suite. The Suite carries a number of lines from different designers with a price range of $160 to $3,300. Plus on top of your gown they can help you with bridesmaid dresses, suits for the men, and accessories.

This dress is by Tadashi Shoji. Just gorgeous and only $548.

This simple textured gown from Nicole Miller is also fabulous!

And my personal favorite …

Congratulations to Rachel and Moe who tied the knot at The Four Season Denver on September 2, 2011. It was such a beautiful wedding with soft romantic details!

Swank Stems and Denver Design Works created a romantic setting for their vows on the poolside terrace.

Love N Joy Photography caught the fun and love that was part of this wonderful day!

Enjoy their highlight reel from 1321 Studios!

Rachel & Mohamed’s Wedding Highlights from 1321 Studios Videography on Vimeo.

Wedding Planner: A Touch of Bliss

Ceremony & Reception: Four Seasons Hotel Denver

Officiate: Kate Bernell

Lighting & Decor: Denver Design Works

Florist: Swank Stems

DJ: Rock Candy DJ

Photographer:  Love N Joy Photographer

Videographer: 1321 Studios

Linens: Chair Covers & Linens and Wildflower Linen

Rentals: Colorado Party Rentals

Hair: Affordable Wedding Hair

Makeup: Blush Artistry

You probably saw a few of Matthew Williamson’s designs adorning the guests at Prince William and Princess Kate’s wedding, but did you know about his bridal collection?

Beautiful does not sufficiently describe his gowns! Take a look for yourself at his wedding and bridesmaids dresses.

All images from Matthew Williamson

“A woman truly feels beautiful when she recognizes that she is exquisite the way she already is: a wonderful, unique, and exceptional individual.” – Yuliya Raquel, owner and designer of IGIGI.

I was recently watching a rerun of Say Yes to the Dress: Big Bliss, and couldn’t help feeling so upset for the bride who couldn’t find a dress that fit her properly. It got me to thinking about designers who specialize in dresses for the curvy bride, and I came across Yuliya Raquel’s IGIGI designs which can be found in several stores across the country. Not only does she make everything from everyday wear to bridal gowns, but her designs are SUPER cute and it’s featured on real plus-sized models!

Take a look at what she offers.

Or are we returning to our roots?

Red has been popping up everywhere as an alternative to the white wedding dress.

Here is a little history lesson on the Red wedding gown thanks to Luxurious Wedding Style Report.

Throughout the ages, Red was the traditional wedding dress color. Red is the color of good luck and auspiciousness. White was never even considered until 1840 when Queen Victoria had a white wedding gown made to incorporate some white lace she owned. Wanting to be like the Queen, women soon adopted the White Wedding Gown.

Roman brides wore fiery red veils. Today, Greek, Albanian and Armenian brides wear red veils. Chinese brides wear red wedding gowns and are carried to the ceremony in a red litter. Then the bride walks on a red carpet and is greeted by the groom who lifts her red veil. In ancient Russia people also loved the color red which symbolized joy, sun and beauty by wearing a red color sundress.

Roman brides wore red to protect themselves from evil. Brides in the middle ages wore red as a mark of the high status and many Indian brides still hold to this tradition. Chinese brides still wear red on their wedding day as a expression of good luck.

This OUI for MATTISON by Malan Breton gown was the finale for the Malan Breton Fall 2011 Collection.

Marina K Couture Isabelle gown from the Diamond Collection.

For the patriotic bride here are some companies that manufacture right in the the US of A.

JLM Couture produces Lazaro, Jim Hjelm, and Tara Kelly among others.  New for Fall 2011 is the Nior by Lazaro collection of special occasion gowns.   This is my favorite:

Inspired by New York City 57 Grand designs and manufactures in the city itself.   The collection includes bridal, bridesmaids, and accessories.  Wouldn’t this be perfect for the bride at the afterparty:

For the groom, Beau Ties has a giant selection of neck ties and bow ties so there is sure to be one that fits your theme.  Winter wedding in the snow: Huge J-E-T-S Jets Jets Jets Fan:

Love Fly Fishing:

Other ideas would include locally produced flower girls gowns, or employing a catering company with “farm to table” methodology!

Vintageous is an online boutique that gives a gal a great alternative to today’s wedding gowns and formalwear.  The site also carries accessories, sweaters, pants … really anything you might need.  The collection is varied so anyone who loves vintage is sure to find something that suits.  Plus this summer there is a wonderful collection of unworn Sarmi attire purchased from the former CFO of the fashion house.  Here are a couple of wedding gown favorites:

Slinky and sexy for the flirtatious bride.

This one sold as I wrote this which
just proves that you should check it out soon.

Attention Ladies (and heck, attention Gents too – this is exciting news after all!), hold onto your seats! I’m about to share some information that may cause extreme bouts of enthusiasm, glee and OHMYGOSHIMUSTDOABACKFLIPIMMEDIATELY excitement!

The love bugs over at Anthropologie have done it yet again! Yes, yes, yes – we all swoon over their embroidered cropped-sweaters, get weak knees from their high-wasted skirts … and their darn statement necklaces will make just about any woman light headed. BUT, they’ve recently shifted their attention to a new endeavor. Druuuuuum roooollll:

WEDDING GOWNS and other yummy bridal accessories! I mean, GET. OUT. OF. TOWN. with these gorgeous numbers!

And a word to the wise,  pay special attention to their FAB-O hair adornments. My inner glamour-girl would give just about anything to go back in time and rock this at my own wedding:

Happy hunting!

Dear Bridesmaids,

Your days of spending way too much money on dresses that are less than flattering and are ultimately doomed to sit in your closet for the next 20 years are over!  Rent the Runway has recently added a bridal section to their website!

Carlos Miele; Rent $300

In 2009, Rent the Runway was launched for women to rent dresses, accessories, and other fashionable products online instead of going out and paying full price for designer apparel.   Customers can currently choose from over 120 designer brands. Joanna Manganaro from Women’s Editor of Stylesight claims that websites such as this one “allow women to maintain a high level of style without breaking the bank.”

Twelfth Street by Cynthia Vincent; Rent $75

With the newest addition of their bridal section, brides can choose from a great variety of bridesmaids dresses and accessories without asking her beloved friends to fork over a large chunk of change for a dress they are not likely to  wear again.  Brides can browse by color, style or through the collections of designers such as Nicole Miller and Missoni. It also allows them to mix-and-match a variety of dresses that can be uniquely and better fit to each individual woman in their party.  Every designer will “offer up to four styles in up to four seasonal colors”.

Soshanna; Rent $50.00

At this time only bridesmaids dresses and accessories are being offered.  We are all keeping our fingers crossed for the day when they start renting bridal gowns! Happy shopping, ladies!

I found this gorgeous wedding gown by Pricilla of Boston from my favorite collection “Vineyard”