Your Dress After the I Do's: Donating Your Wedding Gown to a Charitable Cause

via Brides For a Cause

For a bride who wants to use her dress to make a difference in someone else's life, donating is the perfect option.  There are a plethora of charities that accept used bridal gowns, that are in good condition. My personal favorites are:

The Bridal Garden

www.bridalgarden.org

The Bridal Garden is a non-profit bridal boutique, based out of New York, offering designer wedding gowns at up to 75% off of the retail prices.  All proceeds from gown sales at the The Bridal Garden benefit children's education. 

Brides Against Breast Cancer

www.bridesagainstbreastcancer.org

Brides Against Breast Cancer, utilizes the donations made from brides around the world to provide wellness and educational services to people who are affected by breast cancer.

Brides For A Cause
www.bridesforacause.com
Brides For A Cause is a partner of Wish Upon a Wedding, which is a non-profit, wedding wish granting, organization. Wish Upon a Wedding provides weddings in vowel renewals to couples facing terminal illnesses & serious life-altering circumstances. Brides For A Cause collects used wedding gowns, and resells them at discounted prices, to help grant wishes for Wish Upon a Wedding Couples.

Your Dress After the I do's: Embrace the "Trash the Dress" Trend!

For the bride who is fun-loving, adventurous, and has a bit of a wild side. . . 

via Studio 1250 of Charleston, SC

via Chelsea Nicole

via Conch Creative

via Beachside Brides Blog

The notion of brides preserving their wedding gowns, leaving them in impeccable condition, is slowly fading away. So, why not have a little fun & get a little messy?  "Trash the Dress" is a style of bridal photography, in which a bride is wearing a gorgeous wedding dress, in a rather unconventional location.  The photoshoot can take place on the beach, at the dump, in the heart of the city, or just in a big puddle of mud!  Do what you want! Just have fun with it, and make memories that will last a life time! 

Your Dress After the I do's!

                                                Source: Harris & Ewing via old-picture.com                     Source Munroe Photography

                           

This week I'm blogging about what to do with your dress after the walk down the aisle.  Many brides are completely undecided on what to do with their beautiful gowns, after the wedding is over.  A few generations ago, it may have been more common, and even more practical, for the bride to save her dress, so it may be worn by her future daughter or another family member. Though the sentiment of wearing Mom's dress is sweet, most modern brides often long for their own special dress. So quite naturally, these brides aren't expecting future generations to don their gowns. This situation, quite naturally begs the question: "SO WHAT DO CAN YOU DO WITH YOUR DRESS AFTER THE WEDDING?"

Find out in this week's Blog Series!

Ditch Those Pumps, Don't Bother with the Flats, & Go Get Yourself Some Wedding Wedges!!!!

When putting together their bridal ensembles, brides often overlook the option of wedge shoes.  Often brides go into the shoe search set out to choose between either pumps or flats.  However, wedges should get more consideration.  Most wedges have the comfort and stability of a flat, while still providing the height & elegance of a traditional heel. Whether you're going for a sweet & simple shoe or looking for that "Wow" factor, a wedge might just be the perfect element of your wedding day ensemble.  

via myglassslipper.com

Soirée Luxe's Top 6 Picks of Vera Wang's "Witchcraft" Collection

Every dress in Vera Wang's Fall 2012 Bridal Collection, entitled "Witchcraft", is far from the typical bridal gown.  Nevertheless, I am absolutely intrigued by the whimsy, the darkness, and the sheer & utter romance, that comes across in these designs.  Below are are favorites. . . Enjoy!

View the Full Bridal Collection at VeraWang.com 

Reception Dresses That Won't Break The Bank

Everyone knows that the reception dress has become a must-have for the modern bride.  Unfortunately, for many brides a second high-end wedding dress is often out of the question.  But fret not, budget brides, there are alternatives to those high priced frocks at the bridal boutiques. A swoon-worthy reception dress, that won't bust your wedding budget, may be in your near future.  Here are a few super cute reception dresses we found for under $100.00!

Top Left: One Shoulder Dress- Only $88.00 from London Times, Top Right: Laundry by Shelli Segal Ring Neck Mini Dress-

Only $87.75 at Saks Fifth Avenue,  Bottom Left: Short Taffeta Dress w/ Ruffled skirt from DB Studio, Only $99.99 at David's Bridal,  Bottom Right: Sleeveless flared waist dress- Only $34.95 at H&M.