I rarely wear my hair up, so a structured updo wasn't an option for my wedding day. Instead I looked for pictures with soft waves and curls that felt more "me." But I had been told by a recently married friend that after hours of photos, dancing, and hugging aunt Muriel, the last thing I'd want is a bunch of hair in my face. So I also started looking for pretty headbands that would help with this.
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Hair: My Version
I ended up with my hair mostly down and pulled back a bit with a beaded headband. My hair holds a curl well so it lasted through most of the night (although by the end I really couldn't have cared if it was stick straight I was having so much fun). If your hair doesn't hold a curl well, I would steer clear of this look and try an updo or straight hairstyle. Whatever you choose, make it something that'll likely last at least through the bouquet toss.
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Bridesmaids: The Inspiration
Every bride says it: "You'll totally be able to wear this dress again after the wedding!" And 99 percent of the time, they're wrong. But I wanted to at least try and beat those odds by finding a simple dress that could feasibly work after the wedding as a cocktail or party dress.
I also loved the idea of throwing a cardigan over a simple dress. It's a nice pop of color, and since our wedding was near the beach, where it gets chilly once the sun goes down, it seemed practical as well.
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Bridesmaids: My Version
I lucked out majorly with these dresses. White House/Black Market was having a sale and I was able to buy all of them for less than the price of one "normal" bridesmaid dress. Plus, since I bought them for the girls, they really couldn't complain about not liking it (kidding -- kind of). Once I had the dresses, I asked each girl to buy a necklace that worked with the color scheme, and hopefully one that they'd wear again.
Despite the fact that I'd hung on to my cardigan inspiration pic for months before the wedding, I didn't bite the bullet and order teal cardis until I saw the weather forecast about a week before the wedding. It was going to be overcast and I didn't want my girls to freeze! I'm actually really glad I got them; the final look is a lot more colorful and interesting than the black dresses would have been on their own. Plus, all the girls have told me they still wear their cardigans -- and a few have even worn their dresses again. (Success!)
I also got a lighter blue cardigan for myself to wear after the ceremony and I still wear it from time to time now, which is a fun reminder of my wedding (since I sadly can't wear my ball gown to the office). I would definitely suggest wearing something -- a cardigan, necklace, or shoes -- that you can re-wear after the wedding as well. Who says you only get one day?
Some women dream about their weddings, gather inspiring wedding pics, and practically plan out every detail of their big days from the time they are little girls.
I was not one of those women.
It wasn't that I was anti-marriage or anything, but outside a fleeting desire to end up with Leonardo DiCaprio after I saw "Romeo + Juliet" in junior high, I just never daydreamed much about weddings -- and I certainly didn't spend my downtime dog-earing photos in bridal magazines.
This wasn't really an issue, until, eventually, I got engaged. Suddenly, everyone from my future mother-in-law to strangers at the grocery store were asking about the minute details of my pending wedding. And I had no idea what to say.
To the rescue: The Internet and all its wedding blog glory. I gorged myself on beautiful inspiration pics of every type of wedding imaginable until I gained some sense of what I liked -- and more importantly, what I hated.
Once I had gathered my own arsenal of wedding inspiration, I had a tougher task in front of me. Most of the photos I loved came from weddings or wedding photo shoots that were professionally done -- or done by amazingly crafty people who had (I'm assuming) far more money and free time than I did. How was I going to make this wedding a reality?
Keep reading to see how I pulled it off -- and get some useful tips for planning your own wedding without losing too much of your sanity.
