Photos: chicBuds (top 3 images), Lipstick Shades (bottom 2 images)

Photos:  Lanvin for H&M dress, Bisou Online~Choker, Aranwen~Boutonniere, Amie Otto Photography~Cupcakes, Dotty About Cake~Cocktail, Cointreau~Handbag, SueJack~Peep-toe, Vera Wang~Wedding Dress, Vera Wang~Peonies, Fos Decor.

How yummy are these super-soft bamboo jersey tunics from Bamjamz? OK, you’ve GOT to slip into them to experience their fabulousness fully. But just check out that soft pink and dove gray. And those lovely lotus and butterfly designs? Our heart rate slows down just looking at ‘em.

We think they’re perfect for kicking back in after a long, hard day of wedding planning. Bamjamz also makes deliciously comfortable leggings and lounge pants. Worn alone, their tunics make great sleep tops and swim cover-ups (honeymoon, anyone?)…and EXCELLENT bridesmaid gifts. Paired with pants, they’re perfect for lazy Sunday mornings at home with your hubby-to-be. They’re eco-friendly, too. And available locally at Neiman Marcus. Love.

And speaking of local loungewear, we’ve got a major crush on Touche Houston’s simple cotton PJs. How do they manage to be so fresh and soft, like a gentle spring breeze? But still crisp, and definitely sexy—bridal sleepwear at its sophisticated best. Sweet dreams!

We Buzzed on Pressing Events’ new CITYCENTRE store last week, but we just couldn’t get to all the stuff we love at AND about the new PE in that teeny, tiny newsletter item. So here we go.

First up, Emilie Sloan bags. How cute are designer Lisa Murphy’s fully lined totes, market bags and carryalls? The folks who put on the Academy Awards think they’re awfully cute, which is why they included Emilie Sloan in this year’s official swag. Pressing Events owner Nancy Billingsley Calvert is likewise a fan, and told us she “expects big things” from the collection, which, she notes, is already attracting brides and graduates in droves. These would make fabulous bridesmaid gifts, don’t you think?

Next: Kaas Decoupage. The renowned New York decoupage studio makes absolutely gorgeous decoupage plates with designs sourced from flea markets, antique shows and estate sales. If you’re a bride with vintage vibe, or a traditionalist with a passion for classic wedding commemoration, Pressing Events’ newly expanded line of Kaas plates is perfect for preserving wedding invitations, photos, collages…you name it. Then press it.

We also adore Pressing Events’ very impressive selection of stationery, which includes all our favorite styles from Crane, Elum, Smock, and Charleston, S.C.’s wonderful The Lettered Olive, among others. But PE’s forté is “one-of-a-kind, singular design,” Calvert points out—“much like a designer-original wedding dress.” If you’re looking for truly distinguished custom invitations, you must meet with Pressing Events’ Amber Anglin Fowler. Calvert regaled us with the story of how Amber searched Dallas without success for a store to produce the exact right custom invitations for her wedding last year…and ended up creating her own. “Though her mother grew quite weary of her quest, I must say she has found her home with us,” Calvert says. “Our brides love her!”

And we do, too.

Slimming A-line gown? Check!
Spanx Hide & Sleek Full Bodysuit? Check!
Chubby bridesmaids? … Huh?!

According to London’s Daily Telegraph, which released results of a recent research survey conducted by diet-shake-maker Slim-Fast, one in three engaged British women admitted they would choose fatter friends as bridesmaids over slimmer pals, as a way to boost their bridal confidence.

We gotta say, we were kinda blown away. It’s one thing to diet before your wedding day—something 50% of surveyed brides-to-be said they did—and quite another to choose your bridal party based on the size of their bodies, rather than on the strength of your bond.

But maybe the survey results shouldn’t surprise us all that much. According to Slim-Fast nutritionist Fiona Hunter, “Women are obviously feeling such pressure to look good on their big day that they’re resorting to selecting bridesmaids larger than themselves … It’s very sad and a real shame. Looking at these statistics, it seems to be a worrying new trend.” This, from a representative of the company that recently targeted engaged women with an ad campaign depicting a wedding-cake topper of an overweight bride and the question, “Need to lose a little weight before your wedding?”

Hmm…disingenuous much, Fiona?

We’re all for looking our slender best on our wedding day. But instead of choosing fatter bridesmaids as flattering accessories, how about choosing bridesmaids who support our efforts to get fit, who graciously wear the bridesmaid dresses we’ve selected for them no matter how they feel their own bodies look in the dress style, and who make us feel beautiful and special on our wedding day just by being our best friends.

RELATED POSTS:
http://houstonweddingblog.com/2010/02/keeping-your-new-year’s-weight-loss-resolution-a-bride’s-guide/
http://houstonweddingblog.com/2010/02/thank-you-bridesmaids/
http://houstonweddingblog.com/2010/03/designer-spotlight-joanna-august/

It’s been ages since we talked about the essential bridal survival kit, hasn’t it? Well, we’re delighted to inform you that we’ve just come across a product that makes making it through your wedding day unscathed just a little bit easier.

Family operation Ms. & Mrs.–mom Georgette Kaplan (Mrs.) and daughters Stephanie and Jamie Kaplan (Ms. & Ms.) launched the biz with the Working Girl Survival Kit, and quickly branched out—offers pre-packaged survival kits for just about everyone involved in your wedding.

For you, Ms. Bride (soon to be Mrs. Wife), there’s the Wedding Day Survival Kit. Packed inside a sleek train case decorated with a white satin ribbon and novelty “diamond” ring (aww…), you’ll find the works in wedding-day beauty, hygiene and apparel maintenance. Items include toothbrush and toothpaste, clear nail polish and nail polish remover, super glue, earring backs, bobby pins and tons more.

Your groom’s gonna love the Groom’s Survival Kit, complete with mints, deodorant, razor and shaving cream, lint remover, boutonniere pins and oodles more vital wedding-day survival items he probably has no idea he might require.

New in the Ms. & Mrs. Lineup is the Aisle Survival Collection. These adorable, affordable, pre-packaged mini-kits are practical AND perfect for gifting. There’s one for brides, one for bridesmaids, and sweet little versions for MOBs and MOGs. Each kit comes with such wedding-day staples as emery boards, blotting tissues, pain reliever, waterproof mascara, safety pins and breath freshener.

We heart these handy kits like nobody’s business! But we also want to remind you that if you do opt for a pre-packed kit, you’ll want to make sure to add non-standard items like your specific wedding-day makeup, and contact information for your coordinator and vendors (especially taxi and transportation services). And maybe, depending on the season, a pop-up wedding tent, a pre-fab hurricane shelter and a couple hundred umbrellas. Welcome to Houston!

Erica

We here at the Houston Wedding Blog do NOT believe that ho-hum bridesmaids somehow elevate the beauty of the bride. And neither, thankfully, does Joanna August. We love that the newbie bridal designer’s line emerged directly out of her own dilemma over sending “her best friends down the aisle in dresses whose beauty ran a distant second to that of the table settings” at her 2008 wedding.

Know what we love even more? Her absolutely gorgeous bridesmaid dresses. And know who loves those dresses even more than we do? Uh, that’d be the lucky bridesmaids who get to wear them—over and over and over again.

Who wouldn’t love flouncing down the aisle (and then turning up at Skybar) in the ultra-chic Erica, with its one-shoulder bodice and flirty skirt? Then there’s the slightly more daring but equally romantic Dara Mini. Like the Erica, this one’s 100% silk, but instead of a solo shoulder it’s got a ruffled neckline, a higher scalloped hem and a figure-flattering wraparound style. Picture-perfect for spring weddings, right? But doll it up with some sparkly earrings and a pair of stilettos, and your maid is dressed for a sophisticated summer dinner date. Yum!

Dara

Planning a formal affair? You have got to check out Joanna August’s Jae Long, with shirred asymmetrical neckline and floor-grazing A-line skirt. You can get this Grecian-inspired bridesmaid dress in any number of vibrant colors, from aquamarine to scarlet, but we think it looks simply stunning in basic black. Wow.

Jae Long

Joanna August also makes lovely, unfussy, sophisticated wedding gowns, all of them 100% silk, all of them under $4,000 (with one, the ethereal Kelly, under a grand!), and each utterly unique in silhouette and style.

All of Joanna August’s dresses can be ordered online, but to see them in person, you’ll have to get yourself to Bella Bridesmaid in Dallas. For now. Joanna, whose hubby hails from Texas, and who says she “LOVES Houston,” is hoping to get her dresses in a local boutique soon. And guess who’ll let you know when she does? Uh, that’d be us.

First up, this Thursday, Friday and Saturday, Feb. 18-20, Saison Blanche comes to Brickhouse Bridal, with its collection of stunning couture gowns. New designs include an ethereal silk organza ballgown with a handkerchief-tiered skirt and rose-appliqué bodice. Breathtaking! Take advantage of free style advice and, as always, a 15% discount off trunk show gown purchases.

Also at Brickhouse, Friday and Saturday, Feb. 19-20, are your dates for a not-to-be-missed Amsale Bridesmaids trunk show. If you’re in the market for maids’ wear, you must pop in to Brickhouse for a viewing of these chic (and very-rewearable) chiffon and taffeta dresses, available in a variety of lengths, in alluring hues like Flamingo, Rhubarb, Wisteria and Peacock.

On Friday, Saturday and Sunday, Feb. 19-21, Maison de Mode hosts La Sposa, part of the world-renowned, Barcelona-based Pronovias Fashion Group. La Sposa bridal consultants will be showing a collection of regal, sophisticated gowns worthy of European royalty (and you, Houston bride). And, of course, there’s that 15% discount to entice you, as if those luxurious La Sposa gowns and Maison de Mode’s gracious hospitality weren’t enough.

Stay tuned for more trunk show announcements, and be sure to check Weddings in Houston’s regularly updated Shows & Events listings.