Weddingbee boards

I'm getting married on May 29th and will be wearing an ivory La Sposa Fanal wedding gown.  The dress has a beautiful asymmetrical train.  When I first tried the dress on, the consultant showed me approximately how to create a side-bustle that would work with the lines of the dress.  The entire train would be bustled to the left of the dress (originating at the hip where the train begins).  I was shown how to do this so long ago that I've forgotten exactly how it should look.  Has anyone had a dress with an asymmetrical train bustled to the side?  If so, I would really appreciate seeing some photos of the bustle.  Thank you so much! 

Jordynrose-YES!  Thank you!  That is very similar to what the consultant showed me.  I think it may have been pulled up slightly more though, so there wasn't so much dragging on the ground.  I think it was just flush with the ground all along the back side, then cascading down from the left hip (if that makes sense).  This is such a gorgeous bustle!  Do you have photos of your bustle?  When is your wedding?  I'm hoping these photos will be enough for my seamstress to go by.  I ordered this dress from a different bridal shop than where I first discovered it, so I will be finding my own seamstress.  Do any of you know how difficult the dress was to alter?  I will need to have the bust taken in, the front hemmed a couple of inches and the train bustled.  The hips shouldn't need to be taken in at all. 

I've posted a photo of myself in the dress just to show you the beautiful train.  The sample dress was about 1/2 a size too small, so I ordered the next size up.  The dress in this photo is the color "oyster" which was AMAZING, but didn't work as well with my skin tone as the ivory did.  Look how buttery the satin is! 

I will not be wearing this veil, we were just playing dress up!  I was thinking about a finger-tip length or a cathedral length veil trimmed with satin...possibly.  I will need to have the dress hemmed and if there is enough satin remaining, it would be nice to use that to trim the veil (1/4-1/2" width).  Or, maybe I'll just have a plain cathedral length veil without any trim at all... what are your thoughts? 

@jordynrose: Thanks!  It was slightly too tight in the hips (to the point where sitting down may have been tricky) and my consultant figured it would be easier to take in than out.  She's probably correct, but now the dress slides off of me.  I think the larger size fits much better in the hips, but the innner support system doesn't support much.  lol.  Even on the tightest setting it is way too lose.  I thought it was much more flattering on me when it was a little tighter, so hopefully my seamstress can tighten it up in all the right places!  

My seamstress lives in a very rural area and does alterations out of her home.  I have a feeling that she has never seen the fanal before (I had to try on over 140 dresses in 4 states to find it), but I haven't heard anyone say that it is a difficult dress to alter, which is a relief!  I was most worried about the bustle, but with these pictures she should be able to handle it.  I'm sure she'd let me know if she didn't feel comfortable.  That bustle is so gorgeous.  I had seen those pictures months ago while I was stalking the dress (I'm a stalker too).  I love, love, love what she's done with the back, but wish I could see exactly how it's pulled up on the left hip.  Seeing all the bustle pictures with the dress still dragging on the ground makes me wonder if this was a personal choice of the girls or if it's difficult to bustle the dress so that it just skims the ground?

My dress just came in last week as well!  It wasn't supossed to arrive for another two months.   

It's funny that you say the oyster was too "mature" for you.  I've never thought of it that way, but it is a very mature color.  The ivory is just as beautiful IMO!  I was worried because I ordered the ivory without seeing a sample of the color/fabric. 

That is a gorgeous headband!  Do you have jewelry to match?  I was thinking of going with a veil for the ceremony, then some sort of soft, silk flower for the rest of the day...maybe something with a soft/airy feather, or something that has a vintage feel.  I haven't decided on jewelry yet.  I go back and forth between pearls and something vintage. 

Here is a picture of a hairstyle that I'm considering.  Do you think the braid is too "casual"?  If so, I may be able to achieve a similar look without the braid. 

Thanks for all your help!  I'm so glad I discovered Weddingbee which has been a huge help (and time vacuum!) 

@crebre80: Thank for posting the bustle pictures!  This woman looks amazing in the dress.  I just can't stop staring at the buttery satin and hope my dress shines as well on my wedding day! 

@jordynrose:  That bracelet is perfect with your headband!  So sweet that your fiance prefers your hair down.  I'm glad you don't find the braid too casual.  Your photographer's brooch and necklace are amazing!  I had also thought about a brooch for my hair.  I think I need to begin my search for accessories and soon! 

Have you found shoes yet?  Because my fiance is 2" shorter than I am, I should stick to flats for photos although I adore heels!  I hope I don't struggle with finding stylish flats.  I can't decide if I want to stick with something ivory, or go with a pop of color?

@jordynrose: My fiance is 5'8" and I'm 5'10".  The height difference doesn't bother him at all, which is so nice!  In fact, he didn't even realize I was taller than him until our third date : )  The picture of the couple that you posted is adorable!  The height difference isn't awkward at all.  Maybe I'm too concerned about how the pictures will look.  I could easily do a kitten heel and not tower over him, especially if his dress shoes have a bit of a heel.  As for colored shoes, I'm with you there!  Many brides are wearing colored shoes recently.  I honestly can't remember the last time I wore white shoes either.  Is pink one of your wedding colors?  I've posted one of my wedding colors below.  My guess is that I'll have a tough time finding shoes this color, but there are a lot of cute dyeable shoes.

@jordynrose: Thanks!  We are using a dark chocolate brown, the meadow color I posted and ivory.  I love navy and pink together!  Will you have a mix of pink flowers in your bouquet?  I think you're right about most satin shoes.  The search is on!  : ) 

@jordynrose:  Thanks!  The ladies will be in meadow dresses with brown heels and the groomsmen will be in chocolate tuxes with meadow ties and/or vests (I haven't decided for sure yet).  My fiance will be in a chocolate tux with an ivory tie and vest.  All my bridesmaids tower over the groomsmen even without shoes, so adding heels to the mix should be interesting! Maybe that's just more incentive for me to wear heels to avoid looking out of place. : )  I think I'll have primarily ivory flowers, but I'm not sure what kind yet.  Since it will be in May, I'm hoping that peonies will be ready.  Maybe I could do a combination of ivory tulips, peonies, roses, etc. for my bouquet, then add just a bit more color to the bridesmaid's bouquets.

That's such a beautiful bouquet!  You can do so much with shades of pink!  Have you selected flowers yet or just have the color scheme in mind?  I wish that there were more blue-green colored flowers for our boquets.   

@jordynrose:  Thanks so much for the great pictures and suggestions.  I hadn't even thought about succulents!  I forget how much you can do with accent plants/flowers, etc.  I wasn't thinking past actual flowers!  Fiddleheads are SO neat and would bring in the brown nicely.  I totally understand the "wall".  If it weren't for the fact that it's "crunch time" for me, I'd be there with you. Our engagement has just flown by and it seems that I've been planning every minute of every day since I accepted the proposal.  I'm sure I'm not alone here   

@pepper555:  Originally I had hoped to spend $500 or less, but quickly realized that all the dresses I was drawn to were considerably more expensive.  I then decided I would try to keep it under $1000.  I was lucky to find mine for $969 USD.  Even though I did some shopping around, I realized after I purchased it that I could have ordered it through another bridal shop for $100-150 less.  I was really hesitant to buy it anywhere but from a reputable bridal shop.  I'm usually very thrifty, but when it comes to a dress for an event as important as this one, I wasn't going to chance it.  Call me chicken!  

@pepper555: Wow, that's really expensive!  I wonder what the shipping would cost if you ordered it from the US?  Crazy how it can be so much more expensive there.  As much as I love the dress, I'm not sure I could have spent $1700 for it.  It is very beautiful, but it just wouldn't have been in my budget.  I've never heard anyone say that it's bad luck to wear a second hand dress, too funny.  I know you can find quite a few used Fanal's online.  I would have considered this option, but couldn't find any in my size, and most had been altered to fit shorter women, and I'm quite tall.  If you use google to search for the Fanal, I did see some available through private parties that were new with tags.  Likely the bride just found another dress.  Maybe you could find one of these? 

@pepper555: I would suggest taking your measurements and contacting a dress shop either there or here to see what size you would need.  I've read that a lot of girls take a much larger size in this dress than they do in other dresses.  But, I guess if you tried on a size 10 and it was slightly too big, you'd likely be OK with a size 8.  It's probably easier to take in than let out.  Have you found a place to buy it from yet?  I know, the wedding is coming up way too fast!  I will most definitely post pictures as soon as I have them!  I can't wait for my first fitting. 

@pepper555: How soon before your dress arrives?  How exciting!!  My dress arrived awhile ago.  I had a friend help me try it on, but haven't gone in for a professional fitting yet. I'm just starting to think about shoes, hair, jewelry, makeup, etc.  The end of May is fast approaching and I'm running out of time! 

Hi leahouse,

I wore this dress in Ivory for my wedding two weeks ago, my bridesmaids were all in black - great minds think alike :-). I didn't want my bridesmaids to have to buy a dress they would never wear again, so I told them all to buy what suits their body type, knee length, black dresses. Our other color was green - so they all got green sashes and jewelry to match. It was GORGEOUS! 

I knew I hated the white color - it looks neon on me - and so I definitely didn't want that either. The Ivory was just right - the oyster was just a tad too dark for me and I didn't want to make everything too dark. The white was way too white. The ivory was gorgeous. It went so well with my bridesmaids's dresses. Everyone told me how elegant, simple, but gorgeous the looks were. (Of course they were invited to my wedding and so as my friends and family they love me enough to say that, but I think it's true :-).

Since the wedding was only 2 weeks ago, I only have one pro picture so far, but you can't see the dress as much. The other pictures are taken by my friends and you can see it more clearly. 

Oops, the other non-pro picture didn't post. These are from walking up the aisle with Dad.