When Neeley called to make her first appointment at Twirl she was so sweet and I could just tell she was going to be a fun bride!  Neeley was planning an outdoor wedding in July at Talon Winery in Lexington, KY and had a specific color purple bridesmaid dress she was trying to find.  The color inspiration??  Neeley has a super creative mind and found purple pashmina wraps on sale at Pier One and wanted to use them as her table runners.  The end result was beautiful!! 

Neeley chose bridesmaid dresses by After Six in African Violet.  This sweetheart style is so classic and pretty and looks good on many different body types.

African Violet Bridesmaid Dresses

Thank you to Neeley for letting Twirl play a small role in your big day and to Nelson Benton Photography for the gorgeous pictures!  Congratulations on your marriage!

So, over the past month I have had multiple brides come to me with the idea that they are going to have their bridesmaids in white  just like them. At first I was a little taken back by it… but the more I hear the bride’s vision, the more the idea starts to grow on me. Below is a picture of a bridal party that was all allowed to choose their own, white dress. The designer of choice: THREAD.

After hundreds of years of weddings, I think we can agree that it has ALL been done! There is no color scheme that hasn’t been tested. No crazy dress that hasn’t been worn. No venue that hasn’t already been chosen. It’s even hard to come up with a first song that has never been danced to.

So I think the fact that it has all been done before is causing brides to strive even more to bring out their creative side. The couple brides that have the vision of an all white wedding have said to me, “I don’t know anyone that has ever done it before”. And aside from the fact that I currently have 3 brides all with that idea… they are right. It is not common to have the bridesmaids in WHITE!!!!

Aside from being different, it also gives off a very clean, crisp look. In the picture below, they even kept the theme going with the flowers. Again, not as common, but it looks great. And having the guys not wear the traditional tux… also stepping outside the box.

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You have to admit, this wedding party is looking good. They chose dresses from Jim Hjelm, Melissa Sweet and Alvina Valenta.

I’m not going to lie… when it comes time for my wedding, I may not rule this idea out! I would however, choose some fabulously bright colored, fun shoes for the girls to wear and have the flowers match. I mean, I have to at least stand out a little on my big day!

The more I see it, the more it is growing on me! ;)

Happy Wedding Planning!

xoxo *ange

Get excited, ladies of Lexington…Lulubelles Jewelry is coming to Twirl for one day on October 7 from 4-8 pm for a special trunk show!  Make it a girls night out and stop by to check out the fabulous handmade jewelry and stock up on accessories just in time for Keeneland.  Brides will also love Lulubelles for fun bridesmaid jewelry and gifts!

Like what you see but can’t make it to Twirl for the trunk show?  Shop online from the Lulubelleswebsite as well!  Yay!

When we see at great idea at Twirl we just have to share!  One of our Twirl brides had one of the absolute cutest bridesmaid gift ideas we have ever seen!  If a picture is worth a thousand words these paintings say a thousand thank yous .  They are thoughtful, so much fun and something they can keep forever. 

These Twiggy Original paintings are done by Louisville based artist, Carla Terwilleger.  Brides can send Carla a picture of each bridesmaid along with a description of each girl so she can capture their personality in the painting.  The details don’t have to be super specific…for example, she loves dirty martinis, she always wears pink, etc!

Each painting measures 12×24 and the costs are: $150 for one, $125 for two-four paintings, and $95 for five or more.  Half of the cost is due at the time of the order and the rest when they paintings are complete.  Twiggy Originals needs at least two months notice to complete the order.

Twiggy Originals can also do paintings for the bride and groom for the gift table or bridesmaids could even chip in to get one of the bride for a shower gift!  The possibilities are endless!

If you would like more information on the paintings you can find out more on the Twiggy Originals Facebook Page or contact Twirl!

A special thanks to Aesthetiica Photography for these great photos!

Newly engaged brides…do not miss this fun opportunity to tour some great Lexington venues and enjoy meeting some fabulous Lexington wedding vendors!  During the Extreme Venue Hop, brides and their guests be pampered and will ride in style from venue to venue with transportation by Gold Shield. Brides will also get to enjoy food, a wine tasting and will even get to see some of the cutest bridesmaid dresses by Twirl! 

This event is hosted by Simply Love Studio.  Find more details and register before all the spots are full:  http://lexvenuehop.eventbrite.com/

We just received our wedding photo book and CD of files this week and to say that I am obsessed with my wedding photos would be a vast understatement!  I thought I would share the detail shots with everyone for ideas for your own weddings.  Especially the bridesmaid and mothers attire…it is all from Twirl!! 

A special thanks to In Retrospect Photography for the beautiful shots!

Enjoy!

-Ty

Ok, so I’m going to need you ladies to share your opinions with me on this one. I was listening to  a bride and bridesmaid the other day discuss the below “situation”.

We all know money is tight right now in this lovely economy – - so, being a bride… would you rather your girlfriend be an actual bridesmaid and stand up for you on your big day – - or – - would you rather they participate in your bachelorette party weekend and simply be a guest @ your wedding?

vs.

To me this was a no brainier, but I have recently come to realize that I might be alone on this opinion.

Being a bridesmaid can be rather expensive. You have the dress, the shoes, hair and makeup the day of, most likely a mani/pedi will be in order, alterations for the dress, the bridal shower gift, the wedding gift – and those are just the basics. All those things can easily add up.  If you add a weekend getaway to that list for the bachelorette party- that could almost double the cost.

So, the conversation the ladies were having was the bride saying she would rather her girlfriend not be a bridesmaid and just attend the bachelorette weekend. She said those are where the “funner” memories will be made.

This is where you all come in. Do you feel that the bachelorette party weekend will be more memorable than your actual wedding? And if you have a bridesmaid who is tight on money and must choose – - would you rather her choose the weekend getaway? Let me know your thoughts?

Happy Wedding Planning!

xoxo *ange

All you brides and grooms out there in search of a wedding venue in Lexington, I have the answer for you - The Limestone Club.  The Limestone Club is a historical downtown ballroom located on North Limestone in the heart of Lexington.  It is a perfect place for an engagement party, rehearsal dinner or small reception site. 

Our rehearsal dinner at The Limestone Club

The shotgun style ballroom is elegantly decorated and includes tables and chairs in the rental price, which is very affordable.  There is also a two story deck on the back which was a big hit with our guests.  One of the best features is that you can bring in any caterer and your own bar service!  That is certainly hard to find.  The Limestone Club also offers add on features such as linen service, bar tending service and an event coordinator should you need any of these services. 

Two Story Deck on the back of The Limestone Club

We hosted our rehearsal dinner at The Limestone Club and couldn’t have been more pleased.  The owners are so helpful and friendly and are flexible on set-up times.   I would highly recommend this Lexington venue for any wedding event! 

You can reach The Limestone Club at 859-253-1950 or e-mail them at info@limestoneclub.com.

-Ty

Lynn Lugo has been a huge hit with brides and mothers in Lexington, so we are excited to showcase more of her line this week from August 19-22 at Twirl Lexington!  Lynn Lugo has a very classic, elegant, yet fun style that resonates with brides for their bridesmaids.  Lynn Lugo also offers a variety of styles for the modern mother of the bride or groom and some gorgeous alternative bridal gowns for brides.

Make an appointment or stop by and check out the collection this week.  All new Lynn Lugo orders started this week will also receive 15% off!!

I raved about Martine’s a few months ago when we visited her for our wedding cake, but after visiting her again recently I felt I must share more with you about Martine’s Pastries.  

The bakery is owned by Martine and Jim Holzman.  Martine is originally from France, but has been in the US for many years.  Everything is made from scratch and she even imports the chocolate and raspberry used in her cakes from France.  Once you take a single bite of her pastries you will be hooked!  Everything is so flavorful and practically melts in your mouth. 

All wedding cakes are custom made and arranged in advance by appointment.  During each consultation, Martine sits down with you to get an idea of what style and flavors you have in mind.  She has many photo albums to look at and see what styles you prefer.  In our case, we combined elements of several different cakes and Martine sketched it all out for us in front of our eyes to make sure we were all on the same page!  The consultation also includes a complimentary tasting.  Each of the ones we tasted were all so delicious we chose them all:)  Flavors vary from classic white/yellow butter to bourbon to pistachio!  YUM!  We chose chocolate for Brandon’s grooms cake and it was amazing, of course. 

Sketch of our cakes from consultation

  

Martine’s Pastries also has a new addition to their bakery as well.  She now has pastries available daily in the shop such as fruit tarts, cream puffs and cupcakes.  Martine was kind enough to treat me to a chocolate cupcake with peanut butter icing when I visited last week.  Oh. My. Gosh.  It was delicious!! 

Our Wedding Cake by Martine 

Martine’s Pastries is a true treat for a wedding, party or any other day that you need a sweet treat.  You can reach Martine’s Pastries at 859-231-9110 Lexington is lucky to have Martine:)

So – what is your idea of how a bachelorette party should go? I feel like there are two roads you can take.

1) Vegas Style! This is a weekend that will no doubt be hard to forget (assuming you can actually remember it). Fabulous dresses packed- 20′s cashed in for1′s – cell phones turned to silent – cameras charged and ready – human decorations to match each outfit and of course tickets purchased for those “special” shows. The nights start LATE and the mornings are hardly actually seen. You wake up hung-over, crawl down to the amazing buffet and stare at whoever is sitting across from you with a look of  “please kill me know”! Once you regain consciousness – the camera creeps out and the re-hashing beings. The whole day is spent trying to remember what actually happened and who it happened with (or to). Your stomach hurts from laughing so hard and you are literally crying the pictures are so funny! When the weekend finally comes to an end, you are all in need of a vacation from your vacation!

2) Girls Weekend! I’m thinking cabin, beach house or resort somewhere out of town with all your bridesmaids and close girl family members. You spend the weekend cooking, gabbing, drinking wine, shopping, lunching, drinking wine, watching romantic movies, laying by the pool, taking advantage of the spa, drinking wine and of course Girl Talk! This weekend is spent with those closest to you telling “remember when” stories while laughing so hard you are forced to cry. Old picture books are pulled out and no doubt the happy tears being. The girls that are married tell you all about the good times you have to look forward to and the girls that are single gush @ how happy they are for you (while secretly wishing they were in your shoes). It’s a calm weekend full of memories and reminiscing .

Either way you decide to spend your last “single” weekend – make sure you are surrounded by the people you love the most. That is where the best memories come from!

Congratulations Twirl Brides! We are so excited for you and your new adventure! We hope your Bachelorette party is a weekend you will never forget!

xoxo

Since it has been 2 months since the wedding I haven’t had much to talk about wedding planning related, but I couldn’t resist sharing this bit of information with you!

Brandon and I had been procrastinating on returning some duplicate gifts we had received for the wedding, but did you know that most places offer you 10-20% off the items you didn’t get off your registry??  We went to Macy’s last night and they were having a huge home sale AND we got an additional 20% off!  We stocked up on a few higher priced items that we didn’t get for the wedding and some additional things we wanted as well!  It was so much fun! 

The additional savings only lasts for a limited time, so be sure and check with the store and know what you are working with so you don’t miss out on anything.  We used the gift cards we had to complete most all of our silverware and crystal wine glasses.  Those are things that you know you will never buy for yourself, so why not do it now??

It was nice to have a few months to settle in to know what you would need and then go back and enjoy shopping together all over again!  Let’s face it, many brides get a bit down after all the wedding festivities are over, so this is a great way to perk yourself up!

Happy Shopping!

Ty

Amsale G361T

My favorite dress this week is Amsale G361T.  It’s a strapless, floor length bridesmaid dress with a slight sweep train.  There’s also crinoline under the skirt which helps the dress hold it’s shape, but could be removed if desired.  This dress is for the more formal evening wedding. The dress is elegant and has a traditional feel to it without looking like the stereotypical bridesmaid dress. 

What’s really great about this dress is the ruching on the bodice.  It sweeps across the body and cinches at the left side of the waist.  This will emphasize and even create the smallest part of the waist making everyone who wears it look smaller than they actually are.  The fabric is tissue taffeta which feels very smooth and rich.  Another characteristic of tissue taffeta is that it has a lot of dimension to it and light will give it a nice sheen.

The dress is available in 17 sophisticated colors.  It also comes in a short style (G704T) if you’re looking for something a little easier to move around in.  You can accessorize this dress with a brooch where the ruching cinches at the waist.  Amsale also offers a wrap in the same fabric and colors for fall and winter weddings when the weather is cooler or for more conservative ladies who desire more coverage.

View the video to see more of the dress: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PHS-v8NLZiA

Jamie and Emile were married on a beautiful late Kentucky spring day on May 29, 2010.  Jamie lives in Los Angeles, but knew she wanted to come home to Lexington for her big day.  Planning the wedding from across the country was a huge task to undertake, but with the help of Always Planned, the results were stunning!  If you have not been to the Headley-Whitney Museum it is well worth a visit.

Jamie just shared these photos from her wedding with us by her photographer Harper Smith Photography yesterday and I knew I had to share them immediately! Jamie’s navy, green and accents of blue created a very classic, beautiful feel for the wedding.  Her bridesmaids were outfitted in After Six Style 6553 in Blueberry Taffeta.  This style suits many body types and is such a timeless dress!

Congratulations to Jamie and Emile!  We wish you a lifetime of happiness!

Twirl Talk Friends…we are calling you into action one more time!!  You successfully helped us win Best Wedding Vendor Blog and now we are now trying to win BEST OVERALL WEDDING BLOG!

Please take a few more minutes and vote for us again:  http://weddings.weddingchannel.com/wedding-planning-ideas/bridal-blog-awards/articles/bridal-blog-awards-winners.aspx

Voting ends July 23, so you have 1 more day to vote!  Thank you for your support!!

-The Twirl Girls

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