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Something's Gotta Give

If you’re the kind of bride that’s reading this – or any – wedding blog then chances are good you’re also the kind of bride that’s had the majority of her wedding details planned since before even meeting the groom. Chances are also good that unless you are starring in an episode of “Platinum Weddings” you have….a budget.

It’s one of the many dreaded “B” words, but also a necessary word. Be it $5,000 or $50,000 sticking to your pre-determined bottom line can be difficult when vendors are showing you beautiful things and talking fast. As dollar signs float in front of your eyes you may feel the panic begin to creep in – “How can I have the wedding I always wanted and not end up in the Newlywed Poorhouse?” Fear not! Below are our three favorite quick fixes for reducing a budget panic. Picking just one will go a long way to cut costs and may even enhance your special day.

1. Who’s Counting?
Does your babysitter from infancy really need to be invited, and does she even remember you? CUT. How about your 6th cousins twice removed that will undoubtedly get trashed and be obnoxious? CUT. This is the first day of your marriage, so invite people who have seen the journey and can truly celebrate in your joy, not those whom you feel obligated to invite for whatever reason.

Reducing the guest list will allow you to save money on: Less food, less staff, a smaller cake, fewer rentals, a smaller venue, less stationary products, and fewer favors.

2. Season’s Greetings!
Keep the time of year in mind when choosing a wedding date if you’re trying to keep dollars down. We all know the popular (read: most expensive) wedding months: May, June, September, and October, so steer clear of those. Many venues offer deep discounts during the “off” season, which is typically identified as January through March. Be careful with December, though; while it may be an off month for weddings it is usually very busy with corporate holiday parties and won’t help your budget.

Snow makes for beautiful scenery and photography back-drops, and you can use your saved cash for a tropical honeymoon!

3. My Girl Friday
If you can’t handle the snow and MUST be a June bride, consider a day other than Saturday for your nuptials. A Friday night or early Sunday wedding will get you discounts in that your vendors would otherwise probably not have ANY bookings on these days. And think of the possibilities! A late Friday evening ceremony followed by a champagne and dessert reception is undeniably chic and romantic, plus it saves you from paying for a full sit-down meal! Or a Sunday morning brunch reception with a waffle bar and Mason jar mimosas – that’s a wedding not soon to be forgotten.

Step outside the box and you will be remembered as the creative, modern bride. They don’t need to know you were just trying to save some loot!

If after reading these 3 simple suggestions you find yourself thinking “But I WANT to get married on a Saturday in June with everyone I’ve ever known in attendance!”…. well, you might be one of those other dreaded “B” words – Bridezilla. Take a step back and realize something’s gotta give.

Missing in Action....

So sorry to have been a bit MIA from the blog lately. NW has been very busy in May with spring weddings and compiling sales for our new Etsy shop! More details to come on that one, as well as a link, of course.

I thought I would at least pop in and post a Look Book mosaic that also has something missing - the bottom of the dress! Long wedding gowns will always be the "norm", I think, but looking at these 12 dresses makes it hard to not want one. Whether you are a beach-, 2nd time-, garden-, casual-, or just plain chic-bride these tea length and shorter wedding dresses are a beautiful option. Because they are not (yet!) as popular as full length gowns they may be harder to find but there are some definite advantages in searching for a shorter hemline:

1. It's easier to dance.
2. Everyone will see your fabulous shoes (a definite requirement with a shorter dress)
3. The price tag should be light, as the dress requires less fabric and time to make.

Plus, you will be the fashionista bride none of your guests will every forget!

But It's Not Even Summer Yet!

No it is not officially summer yet, but if you're a fall bride then you know that fall is right around the corner! I spent this not-so-summery May Sunday creating two Autumn Inspiration Boards... that's right, two. I could not commit to just one! I always wanted to be a late October bride so I had too many ideas I wanted to include.

This first board has a pumpkin-y theme, with orange and brown tones. These colors are an obvious choice because they flow with nature at that time of year. The leaves are turning blazing shades of gold, pumpkin patches abound, and the weather is perfect for celebrating outdoors in the late afternoon.


The second board is all glamour... deep shades of red and plum, roses, candle light, and dark elegance. This is the wedding I would have chosen in a parallel life. It feels like a later fall reception, maybe November, where you need the warmth of the fire and a handsome groom.


Of course these are just ideas - do not feel like you need to be trapped by foliage colors to be a fall bride! I don't recommend pastels but you still have a lot of options. Your own wedding pictures and inspiration boards are always welcome at Niche White!

What Would Cinderella Wear?

Well first of all she'd probably buy a pair of slippers that fit this time!

Bridal shoes can be tricky business, especially if you are a Shoe Diva. Instinct says buy "the" most perfect pair because this will be your most perfect day.... then Logic kicks in and says "But nobody will really see them under your long gorgeous gown, so save the loot for your honeymoon!". Logic and I have never been the best of friends - he's such a party pooper! So should you follow Instinct or Logic?

Personally, I went with Logic because by the time I got to buying shoes I had crossed "the line". If you don't know what "the line" is you soon will! It's that point in the wedding planning process when you've had enough and could not care less about whatever issue is in front of you. For me, it was shoes and I am the afore mentioned Shoe Diva. I bought a perfectly lovely pair for $40, nobody saw them, and threw them away the next day. (They were dirty and I didn't care enough to clean them).

Here are some of my favorite wedding shoes, no matter which side of reasoning you decide to go with.

These peep-toe pumps are by Nina and retail for $89.95. They come in several colors and if you search, you can even find this shoe that has lace for the folds instead of the pictured satin. They look couture without costing couture. You will definitely be barefoot before the end of the night though - these beauties have 4 inch heels!

While they are a nice compromise between Instinct and Logic, I would be sure to show these off. If you are wearing a tea-length gown I urge you to strongly consider these shoes.

David's Bridal offers these 3.5 inch heel peep-toe D'Orsay pumps on sale! They scream Logic to your purse but don't look like they were from the discount aisle. The ruched knot on the front and arch-revealing cut out make them classy without giving a hint to the low $49.99 price tag.

The other great thing about these heels is that while they look dressy enough to be worn on your special day, they would also go nicely with other less-fomal outfits. Ability-to-wear-again is a definite plus!

Got a short groom? Getting married on the beach? Want to dance the night away? Yes to any of these would make these kitten heels the perfect wedding shoe for you. Colorful Creations sells these bridal flip-flops for $39.95.

Swoon! If I could have afforded these as my wedding shoes, I wouldn't have cared if I wore a white burlap sack! These Manolo Blahnik jeweled D'Orsay pumps retail new at places like Neiman Marcus for about $715. If you are dead set on having them you can usually find them cheaper online or get a really good pair of knock-offs. Made popular by Carrie Bradshow in an episode of "Sex and the City" these Manolos can be worn with a pair of cargo pants or capris well after you've walked them down the aisle.

These are only 4 of thousands of shoe options out there, but no matter which pair you choose REMEMBER!: Buy your pair shortly after choosing your dress so that you can take them to the first fitting/alteration appointment! Happy Shopping!

NW's first Give Away!

Well aren't we fancy?! Starting today, through Saturday April 24th you can enter with Niche White to win a subscription to either Bridal Guide or Cosmopolitan magazines!

How do you enter? Well, we WANT TO SEE YOUR RING(S)! So...

On Facebook: you must first be our friend - naturally!- to qualify. Then attach, tag us, or link a pic to your engagement and/or wedding ring(s). Please feel free to include any details (carats, setting, how he proposed, etc.); we love stories!

And/or on Twitter: you must first be following us to be elegible. Then attach a twitpic or link to your pic and be sure to mention @nichewhite! Again, please feel free to tell us a little story (not required).

We will be picking a winner at random and notifying them via Facebook or Twitter by Monday April 26th, and they can choose which magazine they'd like to see in their mailbox! Very much looking forward to seeing all the beautiful bling and hope you are too!

Wedding Monograms

One of the many A La Carte services Niche White offers to brides and grooms is designing personalized monograms! We take your colors, theme, and vision and turn it into a great way to adorn your Save the Date cards, invitations, welcome bags, and anything else you want to decorate with your new initials! It is delivered in an easy-to-use JPEG file.

There must have been a lot of Valentine's Day engagements because I've spent the last few days creating monograms, as well as designing the invitations and magnets they will go on! It's been a lot of fun so I thought I would share some examples with you here.


Allison and Larry's beach wedding!










Pamela and Brian's summer garden ceremony!









Sophia and Oliver's romantic fall reception!






Then we have Ava and Jackson, who will be throwing a crazy wedding weekend extravaganza in Las Vegas this fall - on 10/10/10! They needed several monograms for all of their festivities and stationary so I designed a 4-pack for them:




The great thing about our A La Carte services is that they are priced at a flat fee or per piece. This means you can more accurately budget by knowing the final cost upfront; there will never be unexpected charges because we assume the risk of the job taking longer or costing more than our original quote. This is a helpful service not only for your monograms but for gift shopping, writing Thank You notes, assembling/addressing/mailing your invitations, or any other odds and ends that will need to be done. Designing the monograms are my favorite, though!

A Few of My Favorite Things

If you've stopped by the website, follow us on Twitter, or fanned us on Facebook then you know we are thrilled to now carry a full line of Kate Aspen wedding favors, place card holders and attendant gifts! We've discounted everything by 10% off the already great prices through the end of March so click on over and take a look. In the meantime, I'll show you a few of my favorites.

"Maison du Vin" Wine cork place card holders, with grape-themed place cards

I love these! Wine lover or not, these are an elegant addition to any reception table and a favor that your guests will enjoy taking home. With the growing popularity of the Running Hare Vineyard here in Southern Maryland as a wedding location, you know you can't go wrong with a Tuscan theme!

Sold in sets of 4, as low as $0.90 each!



Damask Origami Favor Boxes (Sold in sets of 24)

These adorable boxes come in black and white or ivory and white. They're simple to put together and are a classic way to hold your favorite treats.

$29.16 per set of 24






Personalized Glass Favor Jars (Sold in sets of 12)

You can choose from 52 different designs for your jars and include up to 60 characters of personalization! These are great not only as wedding favors, but for bridal showers and luncheons as well!

$15.66 per set





"The Cosmopolitan" Monogrammed Koozie

For your bridesmaids! Carry these personalized koozies to your Bachelorette party to celebrate your last nights as a single lady - I won't tell you what to put IN it!

$2.93 each



More editions of "My Favorite Things" to come!

Green with Envy.... and Purple

My favorite color palette of the week is purple and green. It's such a nice combo for a spring/summer wedding, especially one outside. There are so many beautiful possibilities, I couldn't fit them all on one vision board! I will be lucky enough to see this one to fruition, at my cousin's wedding in early May. It will be outside on the water at a beautiful venue, can't wait!

Something Borrowed, Something Blue

A great way to knock out your "Something Borrowed" and "Something Blue" is with a great piece of jewelry from Bag, Borrow or Steal. I just did a little shopping myself and it's enough to make me want to be a bride again (to the same husband, or course)! Here are some of my favorite pieces from the site but there are MANY more!This is my favorite as I'm a huge David Yurman fan. This is a blue topaz, white gold and sterling silver ring with pave diamonds totaling .24 carats. It rents for $50/week or $150/month.

Ah, another favorite. This is a Vera Wang blue sapphire ring set in 18k yellow gold. It also has 90 micro pave diamonds that total .45 carats. The rental rate for this showstopper is $134/week or $395/month. That may sound a little high but you're no doubt making out much better than the actual retail price!




This is a platinum Tiffany ring with a 1.09 carat aquamarine. I think that's all the description it needs! $135/week, $398/month



OK back to the budgeting reality most of us face; this beautiful Gabriel & Co. ring set in white gold is a much more economical $51/week. That's a bargain!


And last, but never least, are these Vera Wang aqua bow earrings, with 98 pave diamonds set in platinum. The price to wear these down the aisle is $94/week or $275 for a month.

There are many other beautiful and affordable options at www.bagborroworsteal.com -happy shopping!

Headed for The Bitter End...

'The Bitter End" probably doesn't sound like a place most newlyweds would want to be on their honeymoon... but that's only because they are not familiar with the fabulous all-inclusive resort and marina by this name, located in the British Virgin Islands!

The Bitter End Yacht Club is a scattering of villas, restaurants, and beaches along a one mile stretch of the Virgin Gorda coast. It is only accessible by boat and got it's name for being the last outpost for boats before the wide open ocean. Unlike the typical all-inclusive vacation spots, you will not have an on-call butler, a waiter for your beach cabana, or all the Cosmopolitans you can drink for one large price. BEYC focuses on fun water activities and prices their packages to include sailing lessons, unlimited use of over 100 boats in the Club Fleet, and daily excursions and snorkel trips to surrounding islands. In fact, given their beautiful location they often host weddings and cater to honeymooners. A week long Admiral's Honeymoon Package would include:

*Your accommodations in either a Beachfront Villa or more modern suite
*3 meals daily, plus champagne upon arrival and a private dinner on the beach
*A couples massage, either at the spa or in your room
*Unlimited use of Club Fleet boats - take a boat out to explore and they'll even pack you a gourmet lunch!
*An Intro to Sailing course, if you think you need it!
*Hiking trails and freshwater pool
*Daily excursions to islands like Anegada, The Baths, and snorkeling in the caves of Norman Island
*A private daysail with your very own captain
*Cocktail parties, sunset champagne cruises

They also have SCUBA classes and packages if that's your thing. Really, what else could you ask for? I am fortunate to have visited BEYC twice and it was a great time. Given our proximity to the water here in Southern Maryland, ask around and I'm sure you can find a sailor who has frequented the Bitter End.

Visit www.beyc.com for more information, rates and packages. One spin around their website and I'm sure you'll be itching to book your escape.

Ready for Spring and Summer Weddings!

Yellow = Sunshine, and I am definitely ready for some sunshine! As Maryland is headed into yet more snow I couldn't help but look for some warm-weather wedding inspiration. Although "yellow and black" reminds me of bumblebees I think this vision board illustrates how beautiful the color scheme can be for a Spring or Summer wedding.