Missing you...

Source: OliverRoute via Etsy.com

Sorry for the lack of posts during the last few days. Mr. Encore is home for what might be the last few days before I see him next year. As you can understand we are trying to spend as much quality time together as we possibly can. Regular posting will resume on Monday, stay tuned!

The Encore Bride-30 Day Shred Challenge Week #3

Today I'll do a quick post with this week (and previous) stats:

Measurements: (Wk1/Wk2/Wk3)

1. Weight-175/171/171
2. Goal weight-140
3. Bust measurements-38/38/38
4. Waist measurements-32/32/32
5. Hips measurements-43.5/43/42.75
6. Thigh measurements (widest part of the thigh)-29/28.5/28
7. What level you're doing-Level 1 Day 14 (I've decided to do it for 6 weeks and do each level for two weeks)

Changes: Hips and thighs, I'll take that! Weight: Same, that's OK as long as I don't go up!

Thanks for following and keep shredding!!!

The Encore Bride Style File-Fall 2010 Bridal Week II

Reem Acra presented great alternatives for the Encore Bride, her gowns looked sophisticated but easy to wear.

(Click to Enlarge)

Source: Martha Stewart Weddings

I found Jenny Packham's collection to be very sexy and "grown-up", perfect for an Encore Bride. This is the type of gown you wear when you approach your wedding as the "best party" you two will ever throw together.

Source: Martha Stewart Weddings

I love the "bling" on Packham's collection, do you?

The Encore Bride Style File-Fall 2010 Bridal Week

There were beautiful collections presented at the recent Fall 2010 Bridal Fashion Week in NYC. Some were very innovative (for bridal) and others were pretty much "wearable" and as Michael Kors would say "They were clothes, not fashion" in my opinion. It is difficult to do bridal, you loose the color aspect of designing and it tends to be very traditional. Having said that, I will start with my favorites from the Encore Bride perspective.

Angel Sanchez, an architect by trade has been known for his geometric designs and architectural shapes. He presented a new diffusion line called "Angel". His shapes did not disappoint, his dresses were not fussy but were elegant and had a great fit.

(Click to Enlarge)

Source: Martha Stewart Weddings

Claire Pettibone's collection was beautiful, the 3-D flowers, embroideries and use of color made her collection stand out from a sea of plain ivory gowns. I thought these would be great for an informal beach/garden ceremony. Your thoughts?

(Click to Enlarge)

Source: Martha Stewart Weddings

I'm wrapping up the other collections, more to follow! Do you have any favorites?

The Encore Bride Way-78 Ways to Stay in Love

Ah! Staying in love, that's what it's all about. After the party is over, the guests have left and the honeymoon is over the real one begins (don't we know that fellow encore brides?), how do you keep it going? Below are 78 tips I FFFFOUND! on that site.

(Click to enlarge)

Source: FFFFOUND!

Share your tips!

The Encore Bride-30 Day Shred Challenge Week #2

Source: Amazon.com

As you know The Roddy Bride and I started our 30 Day Shred Challenge last week. See below for my current stats:

1. Starting weight-175
2. Current weight-171 (lost 4 lbs wohoo!)
3. Goal weight-140
4. Bust measurements-37.75 (lost .25")
5. Waist measurements-32 (same as last week)
6. Hips measurements-43 (lost .50")
7. Thigh measurements (widest part of the thigh)-28 (lost .50")
8. What level you're doing-Level 1 Day 8

As you can see, there were some changes. Most noticeably my weight, I must clarify that before I started the challenge I had just returned from a long weekend in the deep south where I enjoyed every single plate of good food that was presented to me or even mentioned around me!

Besides the Shred I've also been counting points with Weight Watchers. I believe most of my weight loss comes from the joint effort. Overall I feel much better especially when I workout in the mornings, I seem to be in a better mood throughout the day. My pants are starting to feel better and I don't have that constant "bloated" feeling. I'm really excited and I look forward to catching up with The Roddy Bride and see if she got a chance to workout as I know she was moving. How did you do this week?

As always, you can follow us on twitter using #30DSBride

SCHMATTA: RAGS TO RICHES TO RAGS

I just finished watching the documentary Schmatta: Rags to Riches to Rags on HBO. As you may know my dream has always been to be a fashion designer (ever since I was 6 yrs old, waaay before Project Runway). Watching this documentary just broke my heart. If you can please watch it, do so. It premiered tonight on HBO and it will be aired until around Nov 24.

All I can say is please be mindful of where you invest your money, take the time to ask where the product you are purchasing has been made and please go out of your way to support your local businesses. Sign the Save the Garment Center petition and look for the "Made in the USA" label!

Here is what Blowback Productions company has to say:

"SYNOPSIS | The Garment Center is the heart and soul of Midtown Manhattan and the backbone of the fashion industry. It was the gateway for many immigrants to the American Dream. Now, it’s in danger of disappearing. This HBO feature documentary explores the rise and fall of New York's fabled schmatta (rag) trade as a microcosm for the economic shocks that have changed our lives."

Schmatta: Rags to Riches to Rags Teaser from Chris Walker on Vimeo.

Please watch!

68 Days 'till Christmas!

Yikes! There are only 68 days 'till Christmas, have you started your Holiday shopping yet? Made in England is a cute blog I found some time ago and they design a guys/girls shopping list every year. Wouldn't our shopping be easier if we had one of these for all our loved ones? They just posted the new 2009 version, skip over and download the files. I hope it helps with the shopping, isn't this great?

(I guess it's safe to assume this is the boy version)
Source: Made in England

The Encore Bride Style File-My Inspiration Board

As a follow up to my previous post I've put together an inspiration board focused on my personal style. Even as an Encore Bride I am still going the "traditional route" although I would love more color on the dress maybe a dark Ivory/Gold color. I couldn't help but include letterpress invitations and a beautiful cake. If I was planning a wedding today I would be heading in this direction. Your thoughts...

Sources: Dress: Radiante by Pronovias, Veil: Brenda's Bridal Veils, Earrings and Bracelet: Opheliax, Invites: Bella Figura, Necklace: Strands Of Grace, Paper: Paper Source, Shoes: BCBG Zappos.com, Bouquet: The Knot.com, Cake: The Knot.com via

The Encore Bride Inspiration File-Things I love

With Mr. Encore's upcoming deployment there are many things I have to focus on and a wedding isn't one of them, unfortunately. And yes, even though this is an Encore wedding I am looking at "traditional" gowns. Who knows? Maybe I'll wear two or three on the same day! A girl can always "window shop" though and I have been doing plenty of it. Right now I am loving these Pronovias gowns. I love the lace, the shirred detail in the bust area along with the pleated chiffon at the bottom of the skirt.

Pronovias-Radiante

This one is from the current collection, I love the detachable train that comes out from the back.

Pronovias-Evasion

Again, it has the same ingredients, lace+draped bodice=loveliness

Pronovias-Nerveo

Same formula, love the bolero but not the 3/4 sleeves on it.

Source: Pronovias

What do you guys think? Any other Pronovias brides out there?

How Did I Get Here? Part III

If you are new to the blog welcome, thanks for taking the time to read my blog, I hope you keep coming back! This is the third part to two previous posts I did a while back, they are here: Part I here, Part II here.

As a fashion design student I interned with a major evening/bridal wear designer in FL. Seeing the process of how everything is created is very fascinating. All of the production was done in house, they had about 45 employees on site. They created the patterns, cut the fabric, sewed the dress, sewed the embellishments by hand, packaged and shipped the dress. In fact I was surprised to see him on the Martha Stewart Fall 2009 magazine, you can find his interview here.

His dresses retail around 3k-5k and after seeing how much work goes into it I understand why. Also, they are produced here in the US so they pay US wages along with benefits. Some of his employees have been with him since he started almost 25 years ago! As you select a wedding gown please take the time to research the company and where the dress is made. Every gown should have tags when you try them at the salon (it is illegal to remove the designer tags but many salons still do it!)

After almost finishing the fashion design program I returned to SC and went back to my normal life in hopes of one day starting a girls special occasion line.

Stay tuned for more!

Thank you Roddy Bride!

What a wonderful surprise to read that The Roddy Bride nominated me last week for a Kreativ Blogger Award. Thank you!!!! This makes it all worth it! Now, I need to list 7 facts about myself and then pass it on to 7 other Kreativ bloggers!

I'm keeping it simple:

1. Word: Love

2. Dream: To become a fashion designer

3. Love: Motorcycle rides

4. Hate: Injustice

5. Place: Beach in Puerto Rico

6. Designer (s): Karl Lagerfeld (Couture) Oscar de la Renta (RTW) Pronovias (Bridal) OK that's 3 but I couldn't resist.

7. TV Show: First 48 Hours

Passing it on to (some may already have one but you can never have too many!):

1. Sassy Bride
2. A Bride...Again!
3. Bride on a Budget
4. Cupcake Wedding
5. Foxy Wedding
6. Pink Sugar Desserts
7. Jeanette's Journey

The Encore Bride Fitness-30 Day Shred Challenge

Source: Amazon.com

Jillian Michaels just kicked my butt! The Roddy Bride and I started our 30 Day Shred Challenge today. I barely have the energy to type so here you go, the ugly stats:

1. Starting weight-175
2. Current weight-175
3. Goal weight-140
4. Bust measurements-38
5. Waist measurements-32
6. Hips measurements-43.5
7. Thigh measurements (widest part of the thigh)-29
8. What level you're doing-Level 1 Day 1

These measurements are a rude awakening, I can't believe my thighs are as big as my waist should be! I also took pictures for my personal weekly tracking, I will probably post them once we're done.

You still have time to join us, come on and shred with us! Follow us on twitter using #30DSBride

The Encore Bride Style File-Paris Fashion Week

Welcome to the recap of my favorite Fashion Week...Paris! As an Encore Bride I have been looking for wedding inspiration outside of the traditional "wedding avenues". I have been following fashion week as a source of inspiration for everything to include attire and decorations.

On to my favorites!

First up is the incredible Karl Lagerfeld, his collection was very structured as you can see from the shapes of the garments. He's a master at what he does and I love his work, especially couture. Click on pictures to enlarge.

Source: Style.com

Elie Saab is a bride and celebrity favorite, his couture collection never disappoints and this year's Ready to Wear collection did not either. His use of neutral colors and draping created a timeless collection. Although his collection included more casual looks he did not disappoint in the evening wear area.

Source: Style.com

Lastly, one of my absolutely favorites designers: Valentino. Granted, he no longer designs his namesake collection but the new designers have done a great job at taking his design aesthetic and making it more modern and youthful. I loved their use of sheer fabrics along with ruffles and beautiful soothing colors. In my opinion, these are all timeless pieces.

Source: Style.com

A few of the major trends that you can see over and over in most of these shows were the use of neutral colors and sheer fabrics. Many designers presented an entire collection of casual wear making the search for the next great evening gown just a little bit narrower. Many collections were presented in just two colors: black and white. At times many collections lacked colors we associate with a Spring collection, making many wonder if designers sacrificed their art for sales by making pieces that were "too safe". In the end, it is no secret that the current economic downturn has forced many to re-consider costly purchases and it was clearly seen on the runway.

I look forward to seeing how the bridal designers will cope with the situation when they present their new bridal collections this month during bridal market week. I will be doing my recaps as soon as I can get my hands on the collections. Stay tuned!

The Encore Bride Fitness-30 Day Shred Challenge

Purchase the DVD

I've been struggling with sticking to a workout plan. I mean, at this point, who hasn't? I've done it all (or not), I've purchased different workout videos (that still have the wrapper) and I've counted points but I can never stick to a plan and follow through. One of the blogs I follow, The Roddy Bride decided to try the 30 Day Shred and posted about it the other day (see post here) she's ready to Shred and I am too. Granted I've only had the DVD for 11 months and it still has the wrapper on it (!). Reading her post was all the motivation I needed to dust that DVD, open it and do it with her. If you are motivated go ahead and do it with us, you can follow along and let us know and we'll do a roll call every week. Here's the challenge: we will do the 30 Day Shred for ALL of 30 days. We will post every Tuesday the following:

1. Starting weight
2. Current weight
3. Goal weight
4. Bust measurements
5. Waist measurements
6. Hips measurements
7. Thigh measurements (widest part of the thigh)
8. What level you're doing

Are you game? Come join us and let's Shred together! Follow us on Twitter using the tag #30DSBride

The Encore Bride Style File-Milan Fashion Week

After NY Fashion Week, the party continues to Milan. From the shows presented there are two "wedding inspiration" worthy collections. Alberta Ferretti's collection was dreamy and included tones of blush, lavender and purple, I especially liked the short lavender dress. Click on photos to enlarge.

Source: Style.com

I also enjoyed the collection presented by Gianfranco Ferre, he used more metallic colors as well as white and ivory. I loved the draping and soft fabrics he used, especially the white knee length dress, I love the side draped treatment of the dress.

Source: Style.com

I've been anxiously awaiting the complete collections from Paris. Most of my favorite designers present in Paris every year and I will recap my favorites as soon as they are posted? Do you have any favorites?

The Encore's Couples Session

While planning for our couples session I've been looking at tons of great pictures from awesome photographers, apparently the vintage treatment is very trendy right now. While it looks very nice and I intend to give my photog creative freedom, I do want timeless photos. I don't want them to look dated once the new trend rolls around. Below are a few that I really really like, from the composition, to the backgrounds, color hues and editing techniques. Click on photos to enlarge.

Photo: Allan Zepeda


Photo: Mayfly Photography

Photo: ha! Photography by Heather Ahrens

Photo: KT Merry Photography

I loved this last one, wish I had a barn close by!

The Encore Bride Style File-Ring Beauties

We're having our couples session tomorrow, yes, couples, not e-pics (that's engagement pictures for you non-wedding planning folks!). I'm patiently waiting for "the" moment but in the meantime I keep looking at all these beautiful contemporary rings out there. Aren't these gorgeous? It's amazing what designers can do!

(Click to Enlarge)

Source: 1st Row L to R: Fay Cullen, Fay Cullen, Fay Cullen, Tacori
2nd Row L to R: Tacori, Mark Silverstein, Mark Silverstein, Mark Silverstein
3rd Row L to R: Mark Silverstein, Mark Silverstein, Mark Silverstein, Mark Silverstein

I love them all, especially those with different colors. Do you have any favorites?