So, it has been a week -

Since my last post.

I am a bad bride.

Sorry.

In the mean time...

My ladies are now ordering their dresses {yay!}, and I made the trip with my only local maid, here is proof of our trip:

{though this looks close to Navy, it isn't...do not be fooled, K also won my mostfavoritepersonintheworld award that day because she brought me that skinny vanilla latte you see in my happy, happy hand.}

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Dressing the Men

Pretty soon I will introduce you to the lovely people who will be wearing these fabulous clothes, but until then...let's talk about what the men will be wearing.

Ready for a shocker? {she asks with a raised eyebrow}

Tuxes!

Yes, the men will be wearing tuxedos - traditional, classic, tuxedos.

After a recommendation from a couple of people, we decided to head to Men's Wearhouse while we were in Wisconsin to talk over our tux options. I thought it would take a while, we would have the FH put some on, try some variations, etc.

Boy, was I ill-informed.

Just like every other part of this wedding related to men folk, we were in and out in about 15 minutes. Our consultant was super helpful - and very stylishly dressed, might I add - and the decisions were made in no time at all.

Without further ado, the tuxedos that we are going with:

These are the Ralph Lauren Three-Button Super 100's Notch Lapel.
The Super 100's part refers to the weight of the wool, which means that these tuxes will be really lightweight and the best option for men standing out in the heat and hopefully the sunlight.

The vest in this closeup is actually the one that the FH will be wearing at the reception. The tie, if you look closely has stripes on it, and I am not all about mixing patterns, so it will be solid {in his case white} as will the rest of the men's ties {a long tie, not bow tie, much to the dismay of my childhood dreams of a Great Gatsby, white-tie wedding}.

He will be wearing his dress white uniform for the ceremony, but since that thing is white - and so dang expensive - we are not going to chance food or wine being spilled on it while dancing. Therefore, the groom will be a two outfit groom, while I will be a one outfit bride. Ha!

Speaking of uniforms, both of our fathers also served in the military for many years, and we struggled for a while whether or not to have them wear their uniforms, or wear tuxes. Ultimately, we went in favor of the comfort factor and decided that tuxes would be int he best option. Their vests will be in the same pattern as the rest of the men, but in black as shown below, again with the solid black tie.

The groomsmen will be wearing navy vests in the same pattern. I was really nervous about the whole navy and black combo deal, and almost insisted on black vests for everyone, but our consultant assured us that it would be beautiful...and now I believe him. They will wear the vest below, with a solid blue tie {in Marine, which is exactly the color of the bridesmaids dresses}.

{a closeup of the pattern, which is thankfully, subtle and will help the blue and black look smashing together}

Have all of your guy-related choices taken no time at all like ours? Why do they get out so easy?

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Dressing the Maids

Shortly after asking all of my lovely ladies to be a part of the big day - and hearing a resounding yes - we started the bridesmaid dress speculation.

I knew that since we are getting married in July, and I will have them traipsing all over for photo ops in the heat that really does exist in Wisconsin summers, we would go with something short.

One of the favorites off the bat was this Jim Hjelm lovely

{I love pockets on a dress! If my dress wouldn't look ridiculous with pockets, I would pay whatever the amount to have them put in. Seriously.}

While everyone loved this dress, we were not all in love with the around $300 price tag.

Fast forward to Christmas. While hanging out with my sister, and MOH, one day we decided to head over to David's Bridal - one of the only wedding wear vendors in Chippewa Falls - to try on some dresses, just to see.

I wasn't really that confident that we would find anything that we would like. {Also, I was secretly hoping not to find anything so that I could start lobbying for J.Crew}

But much to my surprise, we found this little lovely from their new spring line

Cotton sateen, not taffeta, but the same general shape, and hey, it even has pockets!

Of course it will be in Navy, or "Marine" as David's has named it, just like this picture

The dress on the left comes in the same fabric, and to be honest, I am fine with the ladies choosing either one. These dresses come at a much more cost friendly $135.

Another point for these dresses is that we decided to go with Men's Warehouse for our tuxes who recently took over David's tux line, so the vests will exactly match the dresses. While we didn't plan it out that way it will sure be nice that everything will coordinate well :)

My lovely maids have been running around their respective cities snapping photos of themselves in fitting rooms with the dresses on, and I think we have a winner.

What do you all think?

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Making it work

Remember those Kate Spade lovelies that I was drooling over?

In case you don't, and because hey, I love to look at them, here is a photo via zappos

Well, while I could totally rationalize their purchase for a day of such importance, I was still feeling a little guilty about even thinking about purchasing them.

During one of our many breaks while studying for our huge comprehensive exams, I sheepishly admitted both my desire and guilt to my dear friend Kari. This lovely woman, having the same obsession for lovely shoes that many of us suffer from came up with a brilliant plan to raise money for the shoes!

No, I will not be going door to door selling cookies.

Kari suggested that I take advantage of the fact that we live in a college town and the many "gently used" clothing shops that come along with the territory, much like the franchise Plato's Closet. After marvelling at her brillance for a minute, I was sold.

We are going to be moving soon anyway, and let's be honest - I have tons of clothes in my closet that I haven't worn in quite a while - who wants to move all of that to a new location? I may as well make my clothes work for me. Combine that with a little Christmas cash i have set aside and they are practically at my door!

What are the creative ways that you have gotten around your budget busters?

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