Picking the Colors - AHHHHH so hard!!!

Ok...I think picking the colors is the hardest job yet. But once I get it all figured out, I can decide on the bridesmaid dress color, flowers, theme, etc...

Here are some of my ideas: (based on colors and flowers)

Teal / Dark Green-Blue Dress
Greens/Purples Flowers with Peacock Feather


Teal / Dark Green-Blue Dress
Shades of Orange Flowers

Black Dress & Pink Pumps
Bright Pink Flowers accent with White and Blacks

Black Dress & Multi-colored Pumps (Maybe not ALL these colors...we'll see)
Different Color Bouquet to match the Pumps!




Black dress & White pumps (or white and black polka dot pumps)
White/Teal or Pink (some other base color) wrapped in polkadot ribbon


Here is a new idea:
Brown dresses and flowers to match this pattern...(these colors are so fun and cute together)

Those are my favorite combos thus far...BUT I am open to ideas!!! Any thoughts?!? I would love to hear your opinions

My Maids' Attire

Over fall break I had FOUR WHOLE days to look for the perfect dress for my Maids!! It was perfect timing, because my sister, who lives in Colorado, was in Wheaton for the weekend for a friend's wedding. It was great having her and my mom around to look for dresses...however, since she is already 6 months pregnant I was the one who got to try on all the dresses! :)

We went all over the chicago-lands to bridal boutiques to look at dresses. We went to Wolsfelt's Victorian Bridals and I was treated very nicely there. The only thing that I did not like was that they took off all the tags, so you could not find out what brands the dresses were. Luckily, I was able to find a few of them at other stores though! :) We also went to Veiled In Elegance, Catherine Simms Bridal and House of Brides. After trying on many many dresses I have slightly narrowed down the search. I would like to get a strapless, tea-length dress, and I am also leaning towards getting black (simple, and I could get any kind of flowers I want), but dark green-blues have been catching my eye too. I want the dresses to be under $200 and I want my bridesmaids to be able to wear them again...so nothing too crazy!

ALSO...I decided to get the Justin Alexander 8358 dress, so I have been looking at dresses with a bow to compliment the boz on my dress!! I am soooo stoked. Almost all the stores I went to carry Justin Alexander, so now I have to decide which store to buy from. It may depend on which bridesmaid dress I buy, because a couple of them had deals if I get both at their store.

Anyway....Here are some of the ones I liked: (picture...black though!)

Bill Levkoff 623

I really like the little bow under the bust. I think it goes well with my dress!

Dessy 2058

This dress would fit ANY body type. It has a removable sash that can wrap around the body twice, and was VERY comfortable

or check out the website to see it in TEAL - tell me what you think

B2 B2909

I LOVED the bow in the back. I like that it shows a little skin, is fun, but still modest.

So...I still have some deciding to do, but Check out this fun clip about Duties of the Bridesmaid...

Step 3: DRESS SHOPPING

So, it was the day that EVERY girl longs for (well, supposedly...): WEDDING DRESS SHOPPING DAY! After being engaged for almost four months I decided that it was about time to look for a dress. My mom was planning on coming to Holland over the weekend of September 27th. So while Odd Year was dominating Even Year at the Pull, and everyone was rooting them on, I was standing in a dressing room putting on very expensive dresses! ha ha! I made three appointments for that Saturday: September's Bride (a little boutique about 3 blocks from my house), Bridal Elegance (Bigger store in Grand Rapids) and Diane Keith (pretty inexpensive boutique in Holland). I had already been to September's Bride once before and loved the experience. The ladies there are very helpful and treated me like a princess. My second time there was no different. It was so much fun because Meg Jewelry was there having a trunk show, so she covered me in jewelry, and a bakery was having a cake tasting at the same time, so it was the REAL DEAL! September's Bride had a lot of really unique and pretty dresses. I liked most of the ones I tried on, but I fell in love with TWO of them.

The first dress I put on was a Justin Alexander 8358 and it fit my body perfectly! It did not have any diamonds or extra fluff, but it had really cute cap sleeves and a cute bow. But most of all it just fit my personality!

The other was more traditional and was a Casablanca 1816. It had a beautiful lace cover, with a low v-back and longer train. Both were beautiful in their own way, and which ever one I choose will factor into the "theme" of the entire wedding.

The other two bridal stores were not what I was expecting. They both had HUGE and POOFY dresses which is not my style (However someone else might really enjoy them). I left those stores quite disappointed, but happy that I had two beautiful dresses waiting for me at September's Bride. Feel free to give your opinion on the side bar to which one you like better. :)

Step 2: Photographer

Shortly after making the two biggest decisions (when it comes to planning a wedding) for our BIG day, Brent and I started to investigate local photographers. Who would have known that there are hundreds of photographers who are all dying to take pictures of me!!! ha ha! But seriously, I googled W. Michigan/Grand Rapids area photographers and came across hundreds. However, while browsing through all the website I came across one very interesting photographer, who stood out amongst the rest: Kevin Bosman. Personally, I am a big fan of candid shots. I think it is stupid to pay someone $3K just to take group shots, when my mom could do the same thing! I want someone who has style, is creative, and likes to have fun. I want to be able to look back on my photos and think "Wow! The photographer captured that moment perfectly!" I also want a photographer who is going to catch the little details that I don't even realize are happening. This is exactly what I think Kevin Bosman will do...

After checking out his website, Brent and I scheduled to meet Kevin. We were a little hesitant, because he is from Grand Rapids, and we weren't sure if we would have time or the resources $$ to go that far. Luckily, Kevin offered to meet us in Holland! Brent and I had already met with two other photographers, and when it finally came to the day to meet Kevin we were getting sick of the process. (ha ha we are both impatient, and do not like shopping around). But we decided to just stick it out, so we met him at a local panera. He had his computer set up and he had brought some sample photo albums he had created. It was perfect!! All the other photo albums I had seen were really ugly, but the one he showed us was awesome! He also offered to give us a free engagement photo session...which we plan on taking in the Spring! Brent and I both left very satisfied and we KNEW that Kevin Bosman was the one for us!

It felt so good to have another part of our big day organized! How exciting!!!