Weddingbee boards

Dear Brides to Be,

I'm looking for some "expert" input on what dress and color to wear for the big day.  I'm having trouble rationalizing what gown is going to be figure flattering and 100% perfect for our very unique venue.

My fiancee & I have decided to tie the knot in his birthplace and parents' hometown, Kurseong, West Begnal, India.  His whole family is Catholic Nepali and I am white, so our wedding experience is sure to be a wild adventure.

All my choices are slim and simple, because that's what my fiancee would prefer, and they're easy on our young couple budget.

I am 5'6" and won't be wearing heels.  My measurements are bust: 34B, waist: 24.5", and hips 35.5".

The first is a lacy Dessy sheath.(http://www.dessy.com/dresses/wedding/1016/)

The second is a delicately beaded Mori Lee, which I would have made strapless. (http://www.bestbridalprices.com/mori-lee-wedding-dress-2181-p-17420.html?cPath=1_42)

And finally, the third is a raw silk Watters bridesmaid dress I would order in white with 5" extra length so a seamstress could cut the bottom for a sweep train. (http://www.watters.com/product.php?coll=watters&showid=307)

You can see pictures of Saint Mary's Hill, where we're having our ceremony, and the town of Kurseong on my flickr account. (http://www.flickr.com/photos/28728949@N08/sets/72157606220980118/)

Any advice pertaining but not limited to dresses will be appreciated!

All three are lovely.  My favorite is #2, with #1 as a close second.  Really, though, it's all about the fit.  Choose the one that's most flattering on!

wow.  you have some beautiful choices for a beautiful location.  for me 1 and 2 are in a very close race with 1 winning out by the slightest margin.  I think the lace looks soft, romantic, flowy and unconstraining.  this is gonna be a hard choice for you. Good luck!

Hmmm...I'll admit I have thought about going with a silk or beaded sari, but it's very important to me to wear white or ivory.  I'm also conflicted because of the "Catholicness" that's so important to my fiancee and his family.  Maybe a sari would be somewhat too Hindu for their liking.  I guess I'll talk to my guy, but until then, I'd love to hear thoughts and suggestions from more brides!

Well...still haven't brought this up with the mister.  My main concern is, I really want to wear a veil.  I've got this whole "blushing bride" image in my head...because I guess in our case it'll be the real deal!  Lol.  Anyways, keeping away from the awkward topics and sticking to the dress: I don't think veils and saris go together at all!  What does everyone else think?

More dress input would be great, and also if you get a chance to look @ our location pics on flickr, I really need decorating ideas too!

I think the raw silk texture of the Watters dress would look wonderful at your location. But the other 2 are gorgeous as well, especially the Mori Lee. I am a firm believer that brides should wear whatever makes them feel the prettiest.

As far as veils and saris go, I think they certainly can go together. Like these examples:

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.brides.com/images/editorial/2006_bridescom/real_weddings/DC_sraddhaandbenjamin/00_main/002_primary.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.brides.com/weddingstyle/realweddings/135879/detail/135883&h=340&w=340&sz=29&hl=en&start=81&sig2=LJdtuTx9e1ViaH0GLKAFnA&um=1&tbnid=sxt63zJp-bgDFM:&tbnh=119&tbnw=119&ei=sLCASMTiK4yipwSdnsSqBA&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dwhite%2Bbridal%2Bsari%26start%3D80%26ndsp%3D20%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26client%3Dfirefox-a%26rls%3Dorg.mozilla:en-US:official%26sa%3DN

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/32/Indian_bride_in_white.jpg&imgrefurl=http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:Indian_bride_in_white.jpg&h=592&w=757&sz=93&hl=en&start=52&sig2=IwGDwyvuJbPHysBwTNeMdw&um=1&tbnid=zrfMVl39rjfwKM:&tbnh=111&tbnw=142&ei=oLCASK77BqSmpATE6tDMCQ&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dwhite%2Bbridal%2Bsari%26start%3D40%26ndsp%3D20%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26client%3Dfirefox-a%26rls%3Dorg.mozilla:en-US:official%26sa%3DN

http://www.paklinks.com/gsmedia/files/girly%2Bgirl/2811066230095635858jjndJo_ph.jpg

http://www.ghagra.org.in/Ghagra%20partwear1.jpg 

I really like the Watters dress because of the material and the shape. Raw silk seems to be more in keeping with the area than lace or the tulle (?) of the other two gowns, though they're both gorgeous.

Siri has some great gowns that can be done in shantung:

http://www.siriinc.com/bridal-gowns.html

So does Jenny Yoo:

http://www.jennyyoo.com/wedding_alternatives.html 

I'm also a fan of Nicole Miller:

http://www.nicolemiller.com/bridal_08.html

Best of luck to you-- it looks like a fantastic setting! So dramatic and lush. 

Watters, definitely!  The raw silk fits that location so much more than lace and beading (and I love me some lace, so I think thats a pretty objective opinion!).  But you can totally rock a veil and sari combo too :)

i really love #2... the beading is beautiful and i think it would really suit a wedding in india....#1 is a close second, but honestly, all 3 dresses are gorgeous :) your wedding location looks amazing too... can't wait to see pictures of your wedding!

Wow!  Beanchar...what a beautiful, beautiful, stunning idea!  I've always considered myself to be creative, but that trumps anything I've come up with so far, and I l-o-v-e that it would use a local material.  There are a number of groves pretty near there, and FH would really like it.  As a little boy he played in bamboo thickets near his house a lot.

Daydreamer, you are the MASTER of finding pictures!  Those veil/sari combinations are stunning.  I am soaking up all the input gleefully, but the addition of the sari possibility is making this tough choice even harder!  GAH! I guess aside from relations with the mister, there really can be too much of a good thing!

For anyone whose interested, on wedding late afternoon/evening, we'll drive further up into the moutains with our photographer (who I still have to find!  I think we'll need a miracle on that one, considering the remote location) to the hotel where we're spending our big night!  It's a heritage resort in Darjeeling.  There are some decent photos on their website, www.elginhotels.com .  We're not sure what type of pics we'd like there yet, but I think it's more pretty scenery to work with!

One of my girlfriends, who is Indian-American, had a Western wedding dress made from white and gold sari fabric. It was gorgeous and was a fantastic way to meld her culture with that of her southern in-laws.

Ok, so while I'm still sufficiently ensnared in the dress dillema, the stream of supportive, and not to mention fun suggestions continues to help.

I don't think I'll be going with a sari because, although I love the idea 200%, I'm having a photoshoot with my cousins and sister (there are 6 of them total, all girls, all younger, ages 5 to 16) since they can't make it for the wedding, and I really want to wear THE dress during that.  I think a sari would look silly with a bunch of white girls!

So, here's my breakdown based on the remarks I've gotten thus far, combined with my own preferences:

Dress 1:

Lace Design +, Silhouette++

Dress 2:

Bust +, Delicate Beading ++, Buttons Down Back -, Price -, Too Formal of Train for Venue-

Dress 3:

Fabric +, Price ++, Might be Shiny in Pictures- 

There!  It was good to get my ideas out "on paper"!  Now if I could just make sense of what all the +s and -s really add up to!

Until then, more lovely bride conversation dresses, decorations and photos would be splendid.  Also, you can check out a photographer I finally scoped out @ http://www.flickr.com/photos/tamalroy/ .

I think his photos and his self are yummy!  Thats what mister will probly look like in ten+ years.  What a great head of hair...I'd really kill for it...and that gets me thinking about how I should do my hair...it really is never-ending, isn't it?!?

Looks to me like Dress #1 wins, based on your pros and cons list.  And, looking back at the pictures of the dresses and venue, I think Dress #1 will be a stunner.  I hereby change my favorite vote from #2 to #1.

I see you've started another thread on the same topic; maybe a consensus will develop..... 

Uggh.  That post is an older one that didn't show up for a while because of an excess link problem.  I think I should put a note in it to see this post, because this it has really flourished and I like what's coming out of it!

In other news, a lot of people have seemed interested in my crazy EXOTIC story and wedding venue, so I've reluctantly decided to start blogging.  My sappling of webpage is http://bamboo-bride.blogspot.com/ .  Subscribe if you wish and I promise to carry discussions on all things Operation-India-related over to what I hope becomes a great blog.

Thanks for the continued love, and I know help in 1) narrowing down my gown choices and 2) actually getting the perfect dress will lead to more progress the wonderful world of my wedding!  Eek!

Uggh.  That post is an older one that didn't show up for a while because of an excess link problem.  I think I should put a note in it to see this post, because this it has really flourished and I like what's coming out of it!

In other news, a lot of people have seemed interested in my crazy EXOTIC story and wedding venue, so I've reluctantly decided to start blogging.  My sappling of webpage is http://bamboo-bride.blogspot.com/ .  Subscribe if you wish and I promise to carry discussions on all things Operation-India-related over to what I hope becomes a great blog.

Thanks for the continued love, and I know help in 1) narrowing down my gown choices and 2) actually getting the perfect dress will lead to more progress the wonderful world of my wedding!  Eek!