Strut Bridal

TREND ALERT: Fancy-back Wedding Dresses

We just came back from the Fall Bridal Market (we shop in the spring for gowns for fall, which arrive late summer) and fell in love with some of the wedding gowns with fancy backs on them. Some featured beautiful lace, others intricate beading on a delicate backing. Here are some couture designer wedding dresses that show off this trend in the recent Brides magazine:

These gowns are subtly sexy but can be tough to do as a plus size wedding dress for two reasons:

1. Let's not mince words: back fat. Yes, not all women have those stubborn areas on their sides and back, but if you do, these low back gowns don't offer any support or coverage for those areas. Some backless wedding gowns cover more than others, though, so they're worth trying on. We just want our brides to feel completely comfortable and confident on their wedding day, so if that's an area of concern, then let's stick to a gown with more coverage.
2. Foundations. Proper foundations can make all the difference in the fit of a gown. Putting "the girls" up where they belong can change the whole shape of your body! So these backless gowns can be tough to wear if you're a bride that needs to wear a bra. Some options are finding a very low back long line bra (not impossible, but difficult to find in some sizes) or adding bra cups to the front of the gown for more support. Still, most of us wearing plus size wedding dresses need more support and love the shaping that long line bras give. So just know you'll have limited options in these backless wedding gowns.

But don't despair--we can help you get this look on nearly any wedding dress. We recently ordered a special lace piece that can be added to any dress to give it that keyhole back look--but it works with our gowns that have a higher back to them. We'll be able to get it beaded or un-beaded, and in a couple of different kinds of lace.

You can get that illusion neckline look by adding fabric to the bodice and back of any dress. We can buy matching fabric, appliques and even beading so it matches your wedding gown perfectly.

Brides can even buy a bolero jacket in a variety of fabrics. If you don't want the jacket to look like a separate piece, then your seamstress can sew it right to the bodice of your wedding dress.

If you love the look and want to know how to make it work on your wedding dress, just ask your Strut Stylist for ideas!

Strut Brides Featured on National Bridal Blogs

We always say we have the coolest, sweetest, nicest brides in Arizona. Add to that really creative! Other people think so, too, since we've had two brides featured on national bridal blogs. Woohoo!

Strut Bride Andy H. was recently featured on Pretty Pear Bride. She was married last fall at a beautiful outdoor wedding. Cool fact: her wedding photographer was another Strut Bride, Brianna! They met while both modeling our wedding dresses for a TV news segment! Andy rocked her ruffled wedding dress. Check out her advice at the end of the post--she tells other plus size brides not to lose weight for anyone:

Your advice for other plus size brides: Go to Strut Bridal! Ann from Strut made me feel the most beautiful I had ever felt! She helped set up my bridesmaids with dresses that made them feel just as beautiful as I did. I have found several stories of brides travelling to Strut from all over to find a dress. The dress makes the day and sets the tone of your life together. I met my photographer, Brianna Morris (Brim Photography) through Ann and even had an opportunity to be on the news with them! Also, don’t stress about losing weight for the wedding! You are beautiful the way you are. Your fiancé loves you, your family loves you, and if you will look amazing on your wedding day! (Given you find the right dress and a great photographer). If you end up losing weight, make sure you have a good seamstress on hand and money set aside. Last minute alterations are not cheap and if they are, could cost you looking your best.

 

Another bride, Shannon, was recently featured on Offbeat Bride, a website for brides planning somewhat alternative weddings. We love that Shannon showed how you can customize your wedding dress to fit any theme. We LOVE her clever DIY touches (check out those banner favors!!). 

Shannon also had kind words about Strut, saying, in her advice to other plus size brides:

Bridal Dress: Strut Bridal Salon I was having panic attacks about dress shopping. For a very big girl like me, I expected it to be the worst experience of planning a wedding. It ended up being one of my very favorites and it was all due to this local store. If you are plus-sized and are within driving distance of Phoenix, you NEED to visit this shop

We're so excited to see plus size brides in their gowns featured on these websites--we don't see enough diversity in wedding photography, so this warms our hearts. If your wedding is featured online, we'd love to link to it, so let us know!

And congrats, again, to Andy and Shannon!

3 Tips for Making Any Bridesmaids Dress Fit Your Vintage Theme

We know that finding the perfect bridesmaid dress can be so hard--coordinating all your girls, finding a flattering style for different body types, appeasing different personalities... And on top of that you want them to fit your vintage-inspired wedding theme!

Well, we came up with three super easy ways to make nearly any dress fit your vision. First, a "before" the rules" shot of some bridesmaid dresses. 

 

These dresses are perfectly fine! And they already fulfill a major DO: definitely order a dress in chiffon. If you love a satin dress, ask your stylist if it can be ordered in another fabric for a small charge. But if you want that vintage-inspired look, you should:

1. Pick appropriate colors. If you want a more romantic look, go for soft pastels. Blush pink and champagne are particularly hot. If you want to go more vintage or glam, dark brown and bronzes look great.
2. Go for flowy hair and soft faces. Makeup and hair are key here--think long, flowy locks (or short with soft curls) and natural faces. Avoid formal styles like super-neat updos. If hair is worn up, be sure it's soft and a little messy looking.
3. Pick great accessories. Think GOES WITH not MATCHES for this--use mixed metals and pieces that look a little worn to give it that vintage feel. And when your girls wear different dresses (or just different accessories), you'll get that slight boho-chic look!

The rules are so easy. Check out our after photo--similar dresses but they follow the rules to give it that vintage-inspired look.

There you go! So just pick a dress you love and trust us to help you make your vision come true! Leave us a note if you have any other tricks for finding the perfect bridesmaid dress.

3 Soft Wedding Makeup Styles

With the huge trend toward soft, romantic wedding dresses, vintage-inspired weddings, and lots of long, flowy hairstyles, we thought we'd show you three beautiful faces that pair prefectly with this season's hottest wedding dresses. Be sure to bring makeup photos to your stylist for a trial run to find your wedding day look!

We love the hair, which is loosely pulled and secured in the back. The slightly messy look is great for a backyard or garden wedding; it tends to look a bit less formal. This is great with a dress with layers of tulle, lace, little flowers, etc. Texture on the dress would be great with this textured hair! Think boho-chic! The eyes are a subtle brown with pretty pink lips.

 

The makeup is similar to the first photo, but the hair is higher and slightly more styled. This is great for Grecian or goddess wedding gowns because the more formal hair will give it more the wedding look (and not the nightgown look!).

This one has a bit more of a dramatic eye, so we love it for an evening wedding. Wear this with lace, especially with a v-neck lace wedding gown.

Leave us a note below and tell us your favorite makeup looks for the romantic and vintage wedding dress trends!

Win a FREE Bridesmaid Dress for Your Bestie!

You love her like your sister--you've known each other for years, you've been through thick and thin, and she's a rockstar helper with all things wedding. Pay her back by winning a free bridesmaid dress for her! 

Here's how:

1. Email pic of you and your best friend to service(at)strutbridalsalon.com with a short description about why she's so great. We'll post it to our online photo album.
2. Ask your friends and family to Like the Strut page and Like your photo (they can comment, too, but we'll just count Likes).
3. The bride with the most Likes wins!
4. Get over 200 Likes on your photo and all of your bridesmaids will get 20% off their dresses!

Official rules:

September 2012 Contest
1. Voting begins as soon as the photo album "Me & My Bestie" is posted on Facebook. Voting ends at 11PM Pacific on Sunday, September 30th, 2012.

2. To “vote” for a bride, your friends and family need to “like” the Strut Facebook Page AND “Like” your picture in the album “Me & My Bestie”.

3. The Bride’s Picture that get the most “likes” at the end of the contest is our prize winner. The bride's best friend is entitled to one free bridesmaid dress. Dress may be purchased off the rack or ordered in any size and color available. Customization and rush fees are additional. Social occasion and prom gowns are excluded.

4. All participants that have over 200 Likes on their picture will receive 20% off the retail price of bridesmaid dresses for their entire bridal party (customization, rush and shipping fees are additional). This discount cannot be combined with any other discount or offer.

5. Prizes are NOT transferrable and must be used prior to your wedding date. Prizes not claimed within 30 days are forfeited.

6. There is no cash value given if you decline a prize or opt not to use it.

7. If you wish to comment on your picture, please ONLY comment on your own picture and let’s keep the comments positive. If problems arise between contestants on our business page – any contestants involved will be disqualified.

8. Strut retains the right to modify the rules.

That's it! Good luck, ladies! We can't wait to see those photos of your best friends!

4 Ways to Use Flowers for Big Impact

Wait! We're not talking about expensive, $12-a-stem flowers, ladies, we're talking about CARNATIONS! Once considered a bit "cheap", these blooms can actually be a cost-effective way of making a big statement for little cost on your wedding day. And did you know that your local florist can usually get bulk flowers in for you at a great price?? This is great for DIY brides!

Here are four great ways to use carnations from Martha Stewart Weddings:

 1. As a backdrop. A floral backdrop can turn any wedding ceremony location into a stunner. This would be great under weeping willows and sturdy oaks, inside a gazebo or poolside... Just about anywhere! While the white is classic, try colored blooms for more impact, especially if your wedding gown is white or ivory!

2. Under escort cards. You just trim carnation stems and bunch in a shallow box to make this colorful display.

3. In a bouquet. This beautiful bouquet features mostly carnations with a bit of greenery (which adds a great contrast for texture and is usually inexpensive, too!) for a big punch of color. We love the textured ribbon against the striped ribbon--don't be afraid to mix and match!

4. On top of the cake.  We've had brides buy cakes and cupcakes from Costco or their local supermarket and just have them frost it simply. Then they'll add roses or, for even less money, carnations. Simple and elegant and inexpensive!

Do you have other ideas for low cost ways to use carnations on your wedding day? Leave us a note below!

2 Wedding Updos We Love, and One Odd Way to Wear a Birdcage Veil

We're always looking for great wedding hairstyles to help our Strut Brides with their wedding planning. We recently found this sleek, elegant bun and had to share:

We love the little sparkly pins poked into her bun, and we think the makeup looks so natural and glamorous.

For more of a statement hairdo, try this super-teased look:

Wearing your hair like this will spotlight the tiara or headband you wear. It can also add height, so if you're looking to lengthen yourself (and maybe appear just a bit thinner), a super-high 'do just might do the trick.

We get a lot of brides who want to wear a birdcage veil on their wedding day but aren't sure what the "right way" is. Well, truthfully there is no right way to wear a birdcage veil; that's what makes them so great! But then we saw one poked into a bun:

So brides, we have to know: what do you think about this way of wearing a bird cage veil? Leave us a comment on the blog!

6 Great Questions to Ask a Wedding Hair Stylist

For the last installment in our wedding hair series, we want to give you six important questions to ask anyone you'd like to do your wedding day hair.

1. Do they have experience doing wedding hair? Additionally, if yes, how much? This might seem like a silly question, but ladies, wedding day hair brings additional challenges that not every stylist has tackled. And if you want an up do, keep in mind that not every stylist even likes doing them!

2. Do you go on site or do I come to the salon? Additionally, do you charge extra to travel to a location? This is a great question if you have a tight wedding day time line. If your wedding is in a more rural location, you might not have time to travel to a salon. If you have multiple girls getting their hair done, it might also be easier to have the stylist travel to your wedding location (or wherever you're getting ready).

3. Does your price include a hair trial? You'll want to do a hair trial a couple of weeks in advance. You'll want to test the hairstyle for durability and style, to see if it's flattering, and to see how it works with the headpieces you've picked out.

4. Can I see photos of past clients? And do you have references or reviews? You want to make sure the stylist can do the type of hairstyle you're requesting.

5. Do you book more than one wedding on a day, or do I have you exclusively? This is a great question if you're getting ready later in the day, as a previous engagement might run long and leave you behind schedule.

6. What's your back up plan in case you have an emergency on the day of my wedding? Since life can be unpredictable, you want to know that your stylist has a Plan B in case they can't make it. 

As with all wedding vendors, we recommend securing a contract and day-of schedule.

Help for Short Hair

Our wedding hair series continues with some helpful information for brides with short hair.

First, if you have  a long engagement, you may be able to grow out your hair because, on average, hair grows 1/2" to 1" a MONTH, and even faster during the summer!

Second, if you want super long hair and don't have time to grow it out, consider extensions! Clip in extensions typically cost less and can be removed easily. Others get sewn into your hair, and you may want to get them added about ten days before your wedding so that you can get used to the weight. You'll also want to do a hair trial with your extensions in.

Finally, if you just want to rock your short hair, here are three ways to jazz it up:

• Try a strong side part. Styling most of your hair to one side will make it look fuller. A large hair accessory, such as a sparkly comb or flowers, on the other side will help balance the look.
• Add bling. Try a statement piece like an asymmetrical headband or a large comb to add pizazz to your hairstyle. Just don't add too much!
• Top it off with a bird cage veil, a fascinator of feathers or flowers, or even a pillbox hat!

Check out hairstyle boards on Pinterest or the image galleries on TheKnot.com to find some wedding hairstyles you might like. Another great place to look is in magazines featuring celebrities after major award shows. You can find inspiration in their red-carpet looks!

Wedding Hair 101

Get ready for our multi-part series on how to get great wedding hair. It'll have everything from your 12-month count-down to our favorite wedding day hair styles, like this one:

We love the braid because it adds just a touch of texture. But the gentle waves would go great with everything from a flowy, beach style wedding dress to a fitted vintage-style lace wedding gown. If you're doing a more traditional satin ball gown, that's ok too--just pop in a veil and a sparkly hair comb, and you've glammed it up.

As for our first tip, it's this: don't wash your hair the day off your wedding; wash it the day before. Hairstyles actually hold better with a little texture (you could also call it dirt, but let's not...). And if you have more oily hair, that's ok, too, because today's dry shampoos will soak it right up and leave you feeling squeaky clean!