I Found the Dress

"Whoever said money can't buy happiness simply didn't know where to shop." - Bo Derrick

Over the weekend, I found myself caught up in a marathon of "I Found the Dress"; TLC's newest show documenting brides saying 'yes' to the dress.  The premise of the show is a bridal boutiquenamed Vows offers designer dresses sold off the rack at discounted prices.  Their goal is to find every bride their dream dress with price tags as low as $600.  It was impressive to watch the brides sort through the warehouse of white lace and taffeta and find their desired dress and designer within their budget.  They were able to get the champagne dress on the beer belly budget.

Staying within your budget or finding your dream dress on sale can be quite a tough feat, but luckily for brides, September is the best month for sample sales, trunk shows and sidewalk sales. Below is a list of upcoming sales in Toronto and Ottawa that will definitely be worth checking out. After all, if you are getting married next summer, it is soon time to say yes to your dress.

Theia Trunk Show at Mrs. Bridal Boutique September 6th - 8th by appointment only - call 416-925-1674

Monique Lhuillier Trunk Show at White Toronto September 13th - 15th by appointment only - call 416-849-9196

Rivini Trunk Show at Dina Alonzi Bridal September 14th and 15th by appointment only - call 416-236-0270

Sample Sidewalk Sale at Mia Bridal September 21st - 23rd - first come, first serve.  The sale will include dresses by designers Kenneth Pool, Amsale, Jim Hjelm, and Lazaro. Dresses will be up to 70% off!

Sample Sale at The White Dress September 29th and 30th - first come, first serve. The sale will feature gowns by Vera Wang, Badgley Mischka, Monique Lhuillier and many more and will be up to 70% off!

Don't miss these once-a-year opportunities to find your perfect gown!

Yours Truly,

A

Meeting Monique

"Life is short. Use the good china." - Monique Lhullier

Last night, I had the great pleasure of attending a wonderful event hosted by the talented Catherine Lash of The Wedding Co.  William Ashley's Bloor street showroom was the venue and it lent itself well to showcase Monique Lhuillier's elegant bone china collection, crystal gift ware, silver flatware and her classic stationary.  The room was filled with brides-to-be and their mothers or maids, exquisite crystal, sparkling ivory gowns and pink champagne.  Jessica Smith from Cake Opera Co.  was in attendance with another masterpiece as the room's centerpiece.  She and her team created a stunning 5-tier white cake inspired by Monique Lhuillier's Sunday Rose gown.  It was magnificent, as usual, and their cupcakes were a big hit amongst the ladies. There were models roaming the room in Monique's 2012 Fall collection, sold at White Toronto, and you could not help but be blown away by their beauty.

Catherine hosted an interview with Monique Lhuillier which gave guests advice and tips about how to register and some suggestions from her experience.  Monique was friendly, bubbly and eager to wow the crowd with her pale pink accented china, her rose encrusted crystal bowls and, of course, her gowns.  She talked of her inspirations and the recent popularity of coloured gowns in the industry.  She alluded to using more colours in her next collection but said we would have to wait for it to be released.  Monique also advised young women not to be scared of their china, a lesson my consultant at Ashley's had mentioned when registering.  She said to enjoy serving your food on beautiful pieces and not to lock them away in a hutch.  The highlight was when Jackie, of William Ashleys, took a pen and hit a plate from her collection as hard as she possibly could.  She explained that bone china is extremely durable and chip resistant.  To drive the point home further, Monique invited her husband up (I loved that he was there) and asked him to stand on one of her tea cups! It was quite amazing and a great lesson to everyone not to be scared of your 'fancy' dishes.  They are to be used and enjoyed and life is too short, as Monique said, to have beautiful pieces hidden.  I know I was inspired and can't wait to host my first meal with our wedding china!  It was great to hear Monique discuss fabrics and patterns and the designing process and she graciously helped brides with decisions about jewellery and veils for certain gowns they had purchased.  She was a joy to talk to and was friendly and complimentary of our city.

Below are some photos from last night (they were taken on my blackberry, I need an iPhone!):

The Sunday Rose inspired cake by Cake Opera Co. - you can find the cake topper on Amazon

Stunning tablescape from ML's tabletop collection and flowers from Lilium

Catherine Lash (right) interviewing Monique Lhuillier

Monique's husband on the tea cup!

Me and Monique :)

I am so inspired and honoured that I was apart of such a fantastic event.

Yours truly,

A