Bachelorette Wardrobe

Bachelorette party outfits don’t have to just consist of boas and tiars, they can be chic.

During the day before you girls head out on the town you can wear cute tank tops that have “bride”, “maid of honor” and “bridesmaid” written on them.

At night the bride can dress in white and have her girls dress in black. If you wanted to add something to it like a tiara, veil, or a boa go for it, it is completely up to you. It all comes down to what type of bride you are and where you are going. If you are going with the black and white outfits you can even have little bins that they sell at Party City that say the title of the girls and you can get the flashy, glow in the dark bride one!

Have fun with it, but remember, you can still remain chic while doing it!

The Ultimate Bachelorette

It’s wedding season and that ultimately means that it is bachelorette season! There are so many fun things to do in your city, but if you and the girls want to have a fun weekend away and if you all can afford it, do that. The only thing that you don’t to do is suggest going away somewhere knowing that one of your bridesmaids or friends can’t. As the bride, you can mention it, but try and get your maid of honor or close friend to bring up the idea so that they don’t feel obligated to go.

Planning bachelorettes can be very exciting! This is your night to celebrate with your girls, without making it look like your part of the movie The Hangover. Of course there are some brides that love to party, where others are more reserved and would rather a day at the spa. These ideas will give both type of brides ideas and options.

First I will give you some ideas about what you can do in your city, then I will follow with some ideas out of town.

Being a Toronto girl, we have very few hotels with rooftop pools, however, the ones that we do have are breathtaking!

1) Book a hotel room that has a rooftop pool

The Thompson Hotel in Toronto is absolutely beautiful and they have rooms that will accommodate larger groups, such as the Thompson Suite and the Penthouse Suite. This is your bachelorette, it’s time to go all out — when else will you book a penthouse suite?? NEVER! You can have all your girls stay in one room and you can have the ultimate bachelorette party. The Thompson Hotel is in New York, Miami, Chicago, Los Angeles and London – so this idea could work in many cities and if you don’t have this hotel in your city, don’t stress – I’m sure you can find a hotel in the heart of the city that has a rooftop pool!

 

Check in for all hotels is normally 2-3 pm. If you are able to get this hotel that early, GO DOWN this early. You are paying for the room, why not enjoy it? Go check in with your girls, have a light lunch, and ENJOY the pool. The Thompson Toronto even has a “Girls night out” room accommodation option.

 

Spend the night celebrating with your girls! •Luxury accommodations in a Double Deluxe or King Suite •Welcome amenity •First drink on us! Voucher redeemable at Rooftop Bar or Lobby Bar •Complimentary Internet Access •Exclusive Access to the Rooftop (Excluding Sunday & Monday) •1812 Lounge Admittance (Monday, Friday, and Saturday) •Recuperate from a great night with a complimentary 2pm check out!

 

http://www.thompsonhotels.com/hotels/toronto/thompson-toronto/sleep/thompson-suite

So once you enjoy your complimentary rooftop drink, relax, enjoy the pool. Then when you girls are hungry, go out and have a nice dinner in the hotel, called Scarpetta.

 

http://www.scottconant.com/restaurants/scarpetta/toronto

 

When your done, go back to the room, have a pre-party, maybe some “dancers” … haha.. then go out for a night on the town! There are a lot of Toronto lounges that offer an older crowd and a more sophisticated environment, or if you want to go out and party for the rest of the night you can do that too.

 

Remember there are so many more things that you can do when staying at a hotel. You do not have to worry about transportation or where anybody is sleeping. It is extremely convenient.

 

2). Take a Flirty Girl Fitness class

Flirty Girl Fitness has weekend workshops

CHAIR STRIPTEASE WORKSHOP

POLE DANCE WORKSHOP

LAP DANCING WORKSHOP

BURLESQUE WORKSHOP

VIDEO VIXEN WORKSHOP

COYOTE UGLY WORKSHOP

However, if you do not want to do a workshop you can actually rent out space just for you and your girls. Have some fun and do some pole dancing — It’s your time to let loose.

http://toronto.flirtygirlfitness.com/toronto_html/

 

3). Day at the Spa

There are many spas in Toronto and in every city, you just have to find the one that speaks to you.

 

– Novo Spa

 

This spa is in Yorkville and offers many many spa features. From facials, to massages, to body scrubs, eyelash extensions and manicure and pedicures – this spa is more of a pampering center.

http://www.novospa.ca/

 

– Body Blitz Spa

 

This is a women’s only spa that is surrounded by water. They have relaxing therapeutic waters and they also have body massages, body glows and body scrubs. Anything a bride and her maids need before the big day.

http://bodyblitzspa.com/

 

– Scandinave Spa

 

 

This spa is in Blue Mountain, so if you want to incorporate a spa day as well as a weekend getaway, this is the perfect option. This spa is known for their Scandinavian baths and has been awarded for their services.

 

Guests enjoy the escape from their every day world and enter into the serenity of the natural outdoor environment. The renowned Scandinavian Baths include a Finnish Sauna, Eucalyptus Steam Room, Thermal & Nordic Waterfalls, Hot Baths, Cold Plunges & relaxation areas. Also available are Registered Massage treatments, relaxing getaway packages & an on-site bistro serving healthy local fare.

http://www.scandinave.com/en/bluemountain/

 

4). Drag Queen Club

 

Never been before? This is seriously the bachelorette capital of Toronto. They have world famous shows every weekend and has been standing for 21 years. If you want an up-beat and fun environment, this is the place to go.

http://www.elconventorico.com/

 

5). An up-beat and fun restaurant

Finding a restaurant that has a party vibe can be hard, but there are a few restaurants that have a fun atmosphere.

 

– The Sultan’s Tent

This Toronto restaurant is Moroccan inspired and has a belly dancing show at around 9pm. The whole restaurant is covered in large lavish tents and the food is very authentic. They play traditional Moroccan music and they have separate larger sections for parties, so this would work well for your bachelorette party.

http://www.thesultanstent.com/

 

– Blowfish

This King Street location has a high energy vibe, just what you need. This is the perfect location if you are feeling Japanese food. They offer gourmet sushi and have both hot and cold dishes which have more than enough food for sharing.

http://www.blowfishrestaurant.com/king/

 

– STK (If you live in USA)

 

With locations in Atlanta, Miami, LA, NYC, London this is “Not your daddy’s steakhouse”. I have been to the NYC location in the Meatpacking district and it was phenomenal. The atmosphere is what you are looking for. They play upbeat music and it is a fun environment.

http://togrp.com/togrp-stk/

 

6). Male Strip Club- The guys do it, why cant the girls?

 

– The Foxxes Den

This strip club has been voted the best in Toronto and from the pictures on the website, the men are.. well pleasant to the eye. If you want to go out for a memorable night full of laughs, maybe this is your thing.

http://www.foxxesden.net/

 

If you plan on going away for a girls weekend I have a few ideas for locations.

 

1. Vegas- I think every bride and groom dreams of having their bachelor/ette party in Vegas – It is the ultimate party. You stay in a nice hotel, same thing, maybe a penthouse, or have a few rooms for you and your girls that are connecting. Stay by the pool during the day, and go out at night — There is always something to do in Vegas.

 

 

2. NYC- If I could spend every weekend in NYC I would, I just love the views, the atmosphere and the people. You can go down with your girls for a few nights and stay at the Thompson! Get the rooftop pool top, and they actually have a club on the top of it at night, so you could always check that out. Go for some shopping “exercises” on 5th avenue or in Soho and just have a good time. You would go here if you still want to have a good time with partying, however, you are not party animals like the girls going to Vegas.

 

 

3. Miami or South Beach- Want to soak up the sun and go to some clubs at night, all while getting your tan on? Miami is another option. You could stay in a beach front resort, or even rent a villa on the beach. You would wake up and lounge on the beach and you could go out at night. It’s like an all inclusive vacation.

 

 

4. Caribbean- Sometimes 3 nights in a tropical place is what you all need before the wedding. The bride can relax and so can the girls. And majority of the time 3 nights in, lets say, Mexico, is less expensive than going to a large city for 3 nights.

 

 

Of course, the destination, and the location depends on each individual girls budget. You do not want to pressure your girls by throwing them into a situation that they are not comfortable with. If your dream is to go somewhere out of town, maybe pitch in to each girls trip instead of giving them a bridal party gift. Also, out of town bachelorette parties typically only include a few people, as not all bridesmaids, and female family members will be able to take time off. Have a meeting with your girls and talk it out. Remember, no matter what you do, as long as your girls are there, is all that matters.

 

 

My next post will be bachelorette party outfit ideas! Stay tuned.

Perfect Wedding Dress for Your Body Type

Your boyfriend proposed and now you are engaged! With the hectic schedules of booking venues, florists, invitations, etc, you might be overwhelmed with the different options of a wedding dress. Working at Paloma Blanca in Toronto I saw many different dresses and was even able to try on a few. There are many different styles and even different shapes – there is a shape out there for you. Before you go out looking for a dress, take a look at your body and figure out your shape. Are you shaped like an hourglass, a pear, a rectangle, a triangle, an inverted triangle, a circle or are you lean, almost pencil shaped.

Before I give you the different dresses for each shape, I will give you a description for each shape before so that you know which dresses are for your own personal shape.

Hourglass

• bust and hips are well balanced
• defined waist
• your shoulders align nicely with your hips

Women that have an hourglass figure want to show it off. You can do this with a mermaid dress that is a fit and flare.

A sheath dress that shows off your figure with a streamline silhouette.

Or a ball gown that has a structured bodice.

Standard

• have shoulders and hips that are the same width
• body similar to hourglass, but not as defined
• average body type
• tend to gain weight evenly all over your body

These brides can wear whatever they want, because they have the body to pull off anything. This bride should show off her figure and show off her body with a dress that hugs her but also is stylish. A mermaid or trumpet would be my top two picks for this bride.

Triangle (Pear)

• hips are larger than your bust
• defined waist

A triangle shaped bride wants to either wear an A-line gown, an empire gown or a ball gown. The idea here is to have the bottom of the dress angel away from your hips, showcasing your tiny waist.

This is the a-line option that has a fitted bodice and an angled skirt.

The empire gown is a high-wasted style and draws the eye to the waist opposed to your hips.

The ball gown is always a good option when hiding your lower half, just keep the bodice at the natural waist, we do not want a dropped waist here.

V (Inverted Triangle)

• larger upper body and belly
• broad shoulders, and ample bust and a wide back
• Slim hips and flat bottom
• Shapely legs

The inverted triangle bride will be seen in a mermaid gown, a ball gown or a short gown. The idea here is to create symmetry with the broad shoulders. You want to take the attention off of the shoulders and bring it down the waist or legs.

The mermaid gown with a flared skirt will bring attention to the legs and not the shoulders. If you are not comfortable showing your shoulder at all you can either put on a bolero or have a dress with straps.

A ball gown has a fuller bottom, so this can switch the emphasize from your shoulders to your legs, especially if you have a lot of detail on the bottom of your dress.

A short gown can have the same effect as the other two dresses because it draws attention to your legs and to your shoes. This is only for the bride that wants a short dress though.

Rectangle

• have shoulders and hips that are equal width 
• no definition in your waist
• athletic looking figure
• no curves

The rectangle shaped bride can be seen wearing an a-line, sheath, or empire gown. The idea for these dresses is to CREATE shape that is not initially there.

The a-line gown can create an hourglass shape on the rectangle figure. The bodice and ribbon creates a slimming look for the bride and the a-line skirt creates the illusion that the bride has shape even if she doesn’t. There are different textures in the skirt as well which able it to create that feel of the hourglass.

With the sheath dress you want it to hug your body, but be pulled in fitted to your body, so that it has the allusion of curves.

The empire gown creates a waistline and it allows the dress to be flowy so that it does not hug the body.

Circle (Apple)

• tend to have really narrow wrists and ankles
• arms and legs may be your favorite feature
• tend to gain weight in your middle section
• the narrowest part of your torso tends to be right below your breast

If this brides main concern is her middle area a dropped waist gown would not be the best option. A fitted bodice with corset back will also create a proportioned silhouette. The best options would be an empire or a ball gown.  

This empire dress will create an elongating silhouette with high waistlines and the skirt flows away from the body.

The ball gown has a fitted bodice and a fuller skirt that creates the illusion of a smaller torso.

Although these are the main body shapes, there are also other considerations when looking for a dress. If you are tall, short, plus size, skinny, busty. There is a lot to take in, in order to find the perfect dress.

A lot of brides think that if they are busty then they shouldn’t be wearing strapless, however, the strapless gown is normally the best option for the bustier bride.

For the shorter bride, a ballgown is not the best option, you do not want to get lost in the dress. A trumpet or a mermaid dress really shows off the shape and does not overwhelm the shorter bride with all the material.

Your bridal consultant will be able to show you styles that she thinks will look good on you, but it is always best to go in with a general idea of what you want and what you think will look good on you!

Happy shopping!

-xox

 

Vintage Glam Wedding

I found myself recently talking to a friend about a wedding theme that she adored. She had a great love for the roaring twenties, which was a time period full of flappers, feathers, pearls, and vintage glam. When thinking of  a 1920’s wedding theme, I thought immediately to keep the vintage glam of the time period, but to add a modern twist on it.

This picture was my main motivation:

When discussing centerpieces, she was a not a big fan of flowers and wanted to keep their appearance to a minimum. So I thought of three different options for the big day. The first option would just to do white ostrich feathers on a silver stand. The second option was to do a tall skinny clear vase with a white rose pomander with two large ostrich feathers coming out the top of it. The third option, similar to the second, but instead of two large ostrich feathers, we do 10 smaller ones, here we are also replacing the skinny clear vase with a silver stand. You can also add hanging pearls to the centerpieces to tie in your vintage touch.

With centerpieces comes the table linens and chair options. I thought that with the vintage glam theme the best color options would be black, white and silver.

There are different variations that you can choose from. Your first option would be white table cloths and black chiavari chairs. This option would have the centerpiece with the silver stand, having the tall clear vase on the white table cloths will just get lost, you need to add color to the centerpiece when doing the white linens. Here you can do the pomander with the 10 small ostrich feathers.

The second variation would be the black table cloths, silver chiavari chairs and the tall clear glass vases. The vases will have the pomander with the two feathers coming out the top of them.

The third variation would be using the silver stands with the ostrich feathers. The table cloths are black and the chairs will be white chiavari.

The head table is the focal point of the room and the hanging crystals on the black backdrop show the vintage glam. The color of your backdrop will depend on your linen colors. If you do white table cloths, have the white backdrop, if you have the black table cloths, have the black backdrop.

Going with the vintage glam theme, I thought a bird cage card box would be perfect. It screams vintage and it is completely different from the traditional card boxes.

When thinking of different ideas for the brides bouquet and the bridesmaids bouquet I thought be brilliant to incorporate the vintage glam feel into the brides bouquet. This bouquet is perfect for the bride who isn’t a big flower lover because it incorporates both the feathers that will be in the centerpieces and the glam broaches. We can continue the glam look in the bridesmaids bouquets by having the white and black flowers.

The cake.. there are many options that you can choose from. You can do a white tiered cake with black and silver accents and even add some feathers at the top. Or you can do just a black and white pattern with a silver ribbon. Or you can do a cake like seen in the second picture (top right) but just change the colors to black, white and silver. The top tier is nice because it looks like the bird cage that you will have as your card holder, this cake has more of a softer touch to it.

Finally the invitation. Make your guests excited about your wedding. It’s nice to tie in your overall wedding theme into your invitations. You need to make sure that you are 100% about the theme of your wedding before incorporating it into your invitations, because you don’t want your invitations to say vintage glam and then you end up doing a rustic wedding theme.

 

You didn’t really think I was going to leave out the wedding dress inspirations did you! I used to intern at Paloma Blanca, a Canadian wedding distributor. You can see a lot of their dresses on TLC’s I found the Gown. Anyways, ever since working there I have had such a love for all things wedding, as you can tell, and wedding dresses in particular. There are so many different styles that you can choose from. You can always get a dress that ties into your theme, or you can just pick a dress that you love, a dress that says your name written all over it. You can have one dress for the entire day, or you can have a ceremony and a reception dress.

For this vintage glam theme I chose three different variations of the sheath dress. The first option is an sequin sheath dress with a key hole back and the front is a v-neck. The second Pnina Tornai dress is a v-neck satin sheath dress with a sequin belt under the breast. Finally, the third dress is a high neck lace dress with a satin underlay.

 

The next three options are fuller skirts. The first two are gowns by Pnina Tornai again and are two completely different looks. The first look a deep sweetheart with a rouged bodice in all satin. The second dress a see through sequin bodice with a full feather ballgown with a slit. The third dress is a sweetheart ball gown with a sequin belt under the breasts.

 

I hope you enjoyed this vintage glam wedding inspiration (I know my friend will lol).

 

xox

Bridal Shower Themes

When planning a bridal shower, brides often think that the theme of their wedding has to continue onto their bridal shower theme, but that is not the case at all. Your bridal shower is more of a smaller gathering, well for my family, it is still a gathering of about 150 people, but you know what I mean! It is a chance for you to do a theme that maybe you weren’t too sure about for your wedding, or a theme that is fun.

There are hundreds of different themes that you could do for your wedding shower. Here is a few to get some ideas flowing!

– Tea Party Theme, there is so much you can do with a tea party theme, because there are so many different variations. You can have a traditional tea party theme, also known as a white-gloved affair, or you can do more of a Victorian tea party, which has pastels and vintage inspirations. The colors are soft and so are the decorations.

– Alice in Wonderland, this theme is more of a whimsical tea party. You can incorporate the theme by adding labels to drinks, food and to the dessert table. These labels will say “eat me” and “drink me”. Then you can have “take me” on your favors.The colors are pastel pinks, blues and purples, with accents of gold. This is a theme that can still remain traditional in a sense, but you can have a lot of fun with it.

– Tiffany Theme (with or without the Audrey inclusion), with accents of Tiffany blue, glitz and bows. With this theme you have to make sure that you carry it throughout your entire shower, if you don’t think that is possible, just do a colored theme and incorporate the Tiffany blue as an accent color. With the picture below, you could always use a Tiffany shopping bag as the centerpiece and put white or pink flowers inside of it. Remember, there are always other options.

– Parisian Theme, Paris is a city filled with fashion and beauty so you can really see those two aspects within the Parisian theme. Within this theme there are three different color boards that I have put together.

This Parisian theme is more of a patisserie theme, with big accents of black throughout the theme. The black and white stripes go back to the small Paris patisseries. This theme is not subtle, it shows more of a statement, so if it does not fit your personality, there are two other design concepts that I have come up with.

This theme still has the Parisian theme but it has more of a chic look to it. It still has the black accents but the stripes are not gone and it is replaced with white table cloths and black chairs. The color scheme here is pink, white and black. Again, if the black here is still too bold, I have one last design for you.

This Parisian theme is more of a chic and fabulous sort of design. The black has been eliminated and it has been replaced with the rich gold color. The color combination here is gold, peach, ivory and blush. This theme has a vintage feel to it, but still brings in the beauty of Paris.

– Fashionista theme, Now there are a lot of different looks for this specific theme. There is the common fashion theme where there are either designer bags on each table filled with flowers, or a little flower center piece that has a miniature fashion mannequin on each side. These mannequins are normally made with chicken wire. If you do not want to follow these common ideas or themes, spice it up a bit and still keep similar ideas, just make them your own. Fashionista’s like labels right? So make each table a different designer, if you have 20 different tables, pick 20 of your favorite designers — For example, Gucci, Prada, Fendi, Burberry, D&G, Jimmy Choo, Chanel, Michael Kors, Valentino, Givenchy, Louis Vuitton, Christian Dior, Versace, Alexander McQueen, Escada, Marc Jacobs, Oscar De la Renta, Vera Wang, Yves Saint Laurent, Ralph Lauren, Christian Louboutin and Manola Blahnik.

With this theme I’m choosing the chiavari chairs in white (you can also do black) and making the table linens black. Black has always been a fashionable color and can work as a blank canvas. By using a light color in the flowers, such as ivory, you can really give the room and each table a pop of color. Just because it is a fashionista theme, it doesn’t mean there has to be mannequins or fashion bags everywhere, being a fashionista is about being chic and being stylist, so let that show through in your shower. If you want to throw some fashion into your shower, have your center piece sitting on high fashion magazines, or have the designers labels show through in your cake.

I hope you have enjoyed these themes, and again, these are just a few bridal shower themes, there are many more that you can find online.

All pictures were found on Pinterest.

Blush, Ivory and Grey Wedding Theme

Planning your wedding can be the most intriguing experience ever, it can also be extremely stressful. Picking the theme of your wedding sets the entire tone of your day. Your theme includes your flowers, decor, table linens, center pieces, bridesmaid dresses, bouquets, and much much more. Your theme includes colors and the overall ambiance you want to set on your wedding day.

Picking colors can be stressful, you may not know what looks good together, but your wedding planner, florist and banquet hall manager will be able to help you if you have no ideas, or ideas that are still up in the air.

The theme that I will be showing you today is a sort of regal elegance. It follows a color story board of blush, ivory and gray. If you have a soft neutral-like color, add in a little metallic to make the neutral pop, which is what I am doing with the gray.

This is just an idea of the colors that I was talking about. The chairs are also really fun. For this particular theme I suggest either doing a silver bamboo chair, or the white quilted chair. Whichever chair you choose will have a different vibe and theme. The bamboo chair, a more regal elegance, and the quilted chair, a more chic young vibe. You can still keep the gray with the white quilted chair, just do it in the bridesmaid dresses and you can have jewels or bling hanging from your rose centerpieces. See image below.

If you are choosing the white quilted chairs, two quilted white king chairs would be a beautiful touch to your wedding.

This center piece will work with whichever chair you choose, bamboo or white quilt. This centerpiece is very elegant and chic. These centerpieces are tall and you do not necessarily have to put only one at each table, it depends again on your theme and how grande you want it to be. You can add skinny tall vases beside the pomander one and put a floating candle in it. You can create the grande element in your head table and keep the simplicity in your guests tables.

This is an alteration of the center piece design. This one has the large vase as the centerpiece but sitting on a silver stand, opposed to tall glass center pieces. This picture also showcases the silver bamboo chairs with the white linens. You can always switch up the white linens to a pattern – whatever suits your style. The chairs can also be replaced as well, the decision is completely your own!

This is also a beautiful option, you can just add some pink flowers into the already white centerpiece.

Like stated earlier, you can create the element of grand in your head table. The only concern with having tall vases at your head table is that your guests may not be able to see your entire bridal party. You can always make the vases similar, just shorter, to keep the same decor.

These little centerpieces are a nice alternative for a head table, so that your guests are able to see the bridal party sitting at your head table. The colors still tie into your overall theme, and you can even have larger centerpieces on each end so that they are not blocking your bridal party.

These bouquets are absolutely perfect for this theme. It has the white and the blush roses, and even has the babies breathe, which makes it look a little bit like gray was added to the bouquet. For the brides bouquet you can keep the same flowers, just make it look a little more grande, and around the bottom of the bouquet you can have a band of jewels, or even have jewels hanging from the actual bouquet itself.

Your wedding cake tends to sit on its own table, often near the head table, if not on the head table. You want it to stand out and going with the regal-chic theme you want it to be classic as well. This 4 tier cake is beautiful and keeps your rose theme together and unified. The quilted look is extremely beautiful and can create elegance within your cake. You can always change the piping or the design on the cake, but this cake’s general template is stunning.

Lastly, the bridesmaid dresses. These dresses, found on Pinterest, tie into the theme perfectly. They are beautiful, chic dresses that have a little bit of sparkle, just like your wedding. It is also the perfect gray- you can always go lighter on the gray as well.

Photo Credit: All of these pictures were taken from Pinterest.

Big Chic Greek Wedding, let’s call it Ch-eek!

When my brother told me he was going to propose to his now wife, I was over the moon excited for the both of them. The bride and groom both had a lot of great ideas for themes and designs for the wedding. This wedding had around 450 guests and was held at Paramount Banquet Hall in Woodbridge, Ontario. The venue itself was breathtaking and the room that the reception took place in had a staircase as the centerpiece for the room. The color theme was black, white and blue, and the theme definitely showed in all of the decor. There was a blue under-lighting on the walls in the reception room and each center piece was a large vase that encompassed chic tree branches and white flowers. The head table, which was two rows of bridal party, had a black and white gorgeous backdrop, which emphasized the theme and brought such class to the room. The cake was simple and classic 4 tier cake, with a black pipped design, silver diamonds, a black bow and a quilted look. The wedding turned out beautiful and you could see the love in the couples eyes throughout the entire night.