Wednesday, January 30, 2013

How My Wedding Dress Came to Be

One of the hardest parts about planning a wedding is finding the right dress. Especially if you intend on getting married in a Mormon temple like me (because dresses must have sleeves). The dress is most important part of the wedding because it sets the mood for everything else. Because of this I was not able to start any other wedding planning until I found my dress!

I bought my dress where I buy many of my clothes, a thrift store. Prior to finding my dress, I had become very  frustrated with my options. I had set aside a whole day to try on dresses at wedding boutiques in the Provo and Orem area, and after that day, I found that I was disappointed and disgusted by all the way-to-expensive-for-how-cheap-and-ugly-they-look Beautifully Modest dresses and other similar brands. If I was going to spend a lot of money on a dress, I really wanted to love it. A few days later when I was driving by the local Deseret Industries I got inspired to look inside. Based on my past thrift store luck, I decided that looking would be a good idea. When I found my dress and tried it on I was surprised by how well it already fit me. I knew that some changes would need to be made, but I loved the dress so much that I bought right away! The dress looked vintage, but it didn't have any tags so I assumed that it was a homemade dress that was made during the 1970's. Read further to see how I changed the dress to make it perfect for me.

This is the dress after I took off the original sleeves, I wish I would have taken a picture before.
 Here is a picture of the original sleeve after I took it off the dress.I actually think these sleeves are awesome but I didn't want to look too old-fashioned.
 I took this lace off the bottom because it didn't match the dress and because it looked a little too cheap.

After removing the original sleeves I had a seamstress make new cap sleeves out of the original fabric and cover the caps sleeves with the extra applique lace that was also on the original sleeves. The seamstress then took the dress in a tad so that it would fit me. It turned out perfectly!

Oh and just in case you were wondering, my dress cost me $210 including alterations and the petticoat that I bought for underneath. 

Tuesday, January 22, 2013

A Shoe Post


Throughout my teenage and adult life, I have always made assumptions about people based upon the shoes that they wear. I know it may seem shallow, but a shoe tells a lot about a person and it can make or break an outfit which can then make or break a first impression. Therefore, shoes (along with a good outfit) are very important.


As the character Jacob Palmer emphasizes in the film Crazy, Stupid, Love, comfort and support are not valid excuses for jeopardizing a polished look – and I agree!  But this is because there are plenty of comfortable yet stylish shoes currently on the market. However, the shoes that I love the most usually are not as comfortable as my striped canvas slip-ons. I am a lover of heels. Pumps, platforms, and stilettos beg me to try them on every time I walk by the shoe section at Nordstrom, even if they cost three times my rent. In my defense, one of the reasons for my love of heels is that I stand at about 5'1" and heels make me feel more powerful. Heels improve my posture, make my calves look amazing, and most importantly, they make it so that I don't have to crank my head up as far to look someone in the eye. If I don't wear heels to an interview or event where a lot of socializing will be done, I know for a fact that I will not be as confident. Therefore, no matter how uncomfortable wearing heels may become after a long period of time, I am prepared to deal with it.

Photo taken from thesartorialist.com
Photo taken from jakandjil.com
Photo taken from jakandjil.com
Photo taken from jakandjil.com
Photo taken from jakandjil.com
Photo taken from jakandjil.com