11 Wedding Dress Shopping Tips

1. Begin shopping early. A special order could take three to six months. Custom dresses can take up to six months. And allow time for a final fitting before the big day.
2. Get it all in writing – the cost and everything the store and seamstress will provide, including all alterations.
3. Ask the store to keep the wedding dress for you until you need it. That way the gown won’t get wrinkled, and your honey won’t see it ahead of time.
4. Don’t buy a dress that’s more than one size too big. It’s too difficult to effectively alter anything bigger than that.
5. Silk is the most popular type of wedding dress fabric. But read the clothing label carefully. Yes, soie means “silk” in French, but peau de soie is actually a synthetic, and its quality varies considerably.
6. To save money, consider buying used. (They’ve been worn only once!) Buying a designer pattern and fabric and going to a seamstress can also save you about 50 per cent of the price of the designer-made gown.
7. Don’t shy away from trying on many different styles. We can’t tell you how many women we know who chose styles they weren’t initially considering.
8. If you’re full figured, try ball-gown styles.
9. A-line dresses are great for hiding heavy thighs and legs. We also like strapless dresses on pear-shaped women. This style draws the eye upward.
10. Sheaths are best for the slim. If you’re very petite, avoid anything that has too much material. You could get lost in all that fabric!
11. To enhance the bust, look for an empire-waisted or A-line dress. Also, if the style permits, you can get the seamstress to sew in breast pads.

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Find Your Dream Wedding Dress

The pre-wedding task most Brides look forward to is choosing a Dress. You may have fantasized about the creation from the moment he popped the question, but the chances are you probably haven't yet considered the practicalities of actually finding your Dream Dress.

So, whether you have a clear idea, or your spoilt for choice and don't know where to start, get loads of inspiration from Wedding Magazine fashion pages and use this guide to ensure that what should be lots of fun, is lots of fun.

Spend a day shopping for ideas, set a budget and then make sure you stick to it.

Allow plenty of time to find your Dream Dress - it may take you a while and most shops expect you to order at least three to four months before your big day.

Try on as many styles as you can. Lots of dresses have zero hanger appeal, but look great once you put them on.

Its a good idea to start out with a general idea of the kind of dress you like: traditional, straight, empire line, princess line, etc.

Remember to look at your rear view! Your Guests will have an uninterrupted view during the ceremony, so it's got to look good.

Think about whether you want a theme to your wedding (color, period, style) as this will make your choice of dress easier.

Be practical - a huge skirt will be hard to maneuver in a tiny Church.

Consider the season of your wedding. Late Spring or Summer Ceremonies call for cool silk, chiffon, pure cotton or lace. Late autumn and winter weddings demand warm, heavier fabrics such as brocade, velvet and duchess satin.

Don't dismiss man-made fabrics - a good quality dress is a cost-effective option which travels well (synthetic fabrics crush less) - important if you've a long trip to the ceremony or are getting married abroad.

Generally, a pure white dress looks better on brunettes, while ivory and cream flatters the traditional English Rose.

If your budget is limited consider hiring you dress. You can pay about the same to hire a designer dress as you would to buy a mass-produced frock.

You could recoup some of the cost of a designer dress by selling it after the wedding (if you can bear to part with it). There are several agencies and exchanges that will help but your gown must be in pristine condition.

Make the most of your natural assets. Tall, slender brides look stunning in long, lean silhouettes, while shorter brides should avoid full skirts and trains, opting for smaller details and trims. A V-shaped waist makes you look taller, you can emphasize a neat waist with a sash, show off good legs with a short skirt, hide plump arms under long sleeves and bony shoulders under high necks. Finally, bustles are a definite no-no for the pear shaped!

Always take at least one other person with you (two is best) when shopping for your dress, so that you know what your wedding finery looks like from every angle.

Ask to try on a veil with the dress so you can get an idea of the complete look - a short veil may well turn a dress from ordinary to special, while a long veil might not work at all.

Choose your Bridesmaids' outfits to match detail or color on your dress. And if you have a theme, make sure you tie in with your maids.

Think about the style of your shoes: whether or not you want a heel may affect the whole look of your dress.

Consider any other accessories that you may need to set off your wedding dress - jewelry, gloves, bags, scarves etc. will all add finishing touches and complete your look, but will they bust your budget?

After the wedding, preserve your dress by having it expertly cleaned and boxed.

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Planning Your Wedding Catering Bill Cost

Maybe you’ve got the details of the actual wedding ceremony worked out, but what about the reception? One of the major costs of the wedding reception will definitely be the food, so you’ll want to make sure you’ll have enough food for everyone without spending too much money. Here are some top ways to cut on your catering bill that will ensure that your guests enjoy your reception—and you save money.

Don’t order more food than you need.

Most couples want to order an extra tray or two of hors d’oeuvres in case extra guests show up. This is fine (and usually a smart idea), but you should still make sure that you’re not order more appetizers than you actually need; use your discretion based on the guest list. For instance, if you know a number of your guests are vegetarian, you may not need to order as many appetizers with meat. Also, ordering two or three types of hors d’oeuvres will help to reduce your catering bill. If you buy more of the same dish, you can usually save money with most catering companies—different kinds of foods will increase the bill, so it’s important to keep it classy but simple at the wedding—even when it comes to food.

Caterers will also try to encourage you to spend more than you may need to on the actual meal as well. You may not need a five course meal if you’ve already purchased three types of appetizers and a salad, or three extra desserts if you already have a pretty large wedding cake. The time of day that you hold your wedding will give you a good indication of how much food to serve; if you’re having the ceremony in the afternoon or early evening, you may want to serve more food.

Pay attention to the types of foods you order.

There are some foods that are always going to be expensive, even if you only order small amounts. So, since you have to order a considerable amount of food, ordering dishes that aren’t so costly will help you to keep your catering bill reasonable. Certain seafood, like shrimp, lobster and salmon will definitely make your catering bill higher, so if you have to have them, try to use them as only one of the course choices for dinner, or purchase these foods as appetizers to save on costs.


Have food stations.

Food stations are a unique way to serve a variety of foods at your wedding reception, and you can be sure that everyone will find something they like to eat. This way, you won’t have to worry about people changing their minds about their meal choices once they arrive at the reception. A food station with different types of pasta is usually a hit with most guests, and can be very economical. You can also include food stations with other types of the ethnic foods, such as Mexican or Indian fare, to celebrate the cultures of the people who will be attending your wedding, or to acknowledge your backgrounds.

You may also be able to cut your catering bill by not requesting an elaborate setup for your food stations and tables. Using a single color for tablecloths, usually white, will cut down on labor costs. To add more color to your reception decorations, you may want to add elaborate centerpieces, so that you can spend as much as you need to on the meals for the reception.

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Titanium Mens Wedding Rings

The wearing of a man wedding ring is a relatively modern phenomenon. So is the use of Titanium in Titanium mens rings.

One of the newest and classiest of the modern jewelry materials, Titanium is setting a standard in the looks of contemporary mens wedding bands.
Despite this, mens titanium rings are reasonably hard to find in your local jewelry store. Unfortunately titanium hasn’t quite made it into the consciousness of your local jewelry merchant. So if you want to find the ultimate in contemporary male jewelry, including men’s titanium rings, you have to look further affield.

Enter the internet. There is a world of choice on the net for the modern couple searching for the ideal contemporary design mens titanium wedding band.

But first, what is titanium?

Titanium is a naturally occurring element, not an alloy. In other words it isn’t just a mixture of two or more different metals to produce a third one, as alloys are. That is not to say that Titanium cannot be alloyed with other metals, just that Titanium itself is not an alloy.

It is in fact often alloyed with other metals for jewelry making to make it harder, although all Titanium including pure Titanium makes a fine jewelry material.
For the more chemically minded amongst us, Titanium is listed in the periodic table as a natural element, atomic number 22. It was named in 1795 after the god Titan.
Titanium can even be found in space rocks. The Apollo 17 mission brought back rocks with up to 12% Titanium in them.

Because of it’s natural properties Titanium has been primarily used in the aerospace industry, and only more recently applied to jewelry making. But why is Titanium such a great material for making mens wedding bands? A number of reasons.

Firstly it is very hard, much harder than traditional ring materials such as gold and silver. It is extremely lightweight, corrosion resistant and very strong. It is so strong in fact that rings are fashioned out of a solid block of metal, so make sure that you get your size right as resizing is usually not an option.

It is hypoallergenic, meaning that it cannot produce skin reactions or allergies as can be found with some other ring materials, though rare.

But the real reason is that it looks great! Titanium can be shaped into a wide variety of styles. It can also be colored into a stunning range of colors which can be mixed and matched.

For this reason the range of choices in mens Titanium wedding bands is much greater than for a more traditional material such as gold for example. Although gold can be altered to offer a small range of different colours, it is basically gold colored. Titanium offers a much wider range of choices in color.

Titanium also offers a choice of finish, most commonly satin, matt or polished.

Black Titanium mens wedding rings are amongst the most eye catching of all the Titanium rings. Black Titanium rings are usually a mix of black Titanium coupled with another color as an all black ring can be overpowering. But a contemporary style mens black Titanium ring is almost the ultimate in chic for the man who wants to make a statement.

Mens Titanium rings can be coupled with a wide range of precious gemstones, including diamonds, to add effect. And as Titanium is so strong it is also possible to buy tension set titanium rings.

What are these? Well the strength of the material is used to suspend a gemstone, say a diamond, between the two ends of the ring so that the gemstone is almost hanging in space in the ring. A totally modern look.

The strength of the Titanium keeps it there.

And for the more creatively minded amongst us it is possible to design your own mens Titanium ring. There are online jewellers who offer the option of making up a design for your Titanium ring that is unique only to you. You decide exactly what style, color or mix of colors you want.

Want to add a gemstone? Or more than one? Where do you want to put it in the ring? It’s all up to you.

There is no doubt that the older traditional materials used for making rings make beautiful rings. Gold or silver rings are still high on the list of choices for many men, and modern ring designs in these materials are also impressive.

But the modern man who has decided to wear his marital status on his finger shouldn’t buy a ring before he looks at the range of
Titanium mens wedding rings.

The only difficulty is making up your mind which one!

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