Strut Bridal

Alex's Ruffled Ballgown Wedding Dress

We love all of the photos we're getting in of our fall 2012 and spring 2013 Strut Brides! If you want to be featured on the blog, just email us your favorite photos!

Today's bride is Alex! Alex and Steven were married February 18th, 2013, at Tre Bella in Mesa, AZ. It was Alex's first time wedding dress shopping, so we were thrilled she was open to styles. Alex worked with Pam to find the perfect wedding dress that highlighted her tiny waist. 

Alex wore an organza ballgown with natural waist and ruffled bottom. It had a sweetheart neckline and just a bit of bling on the side. Her colors were purple and green.

She wrote us to say,

"I just wanted to let you know that I loved my experience at Strut. Growing up every girl dreams of their wedding, and as a curvy girl I had awful experiences my whole life shopping for clothes, especially prom dresses.  After I got engaged I started to dread looking for a wedding dress because I thought I would have same awful experiences I had looking for prom dresses. On the contrary I fell in love with the first dress I put on at Strut. From the moment I walked in to your store you guys made me feel at ease, and after I started putting on the dresses I felt like a celebrity! The day of my wedding I got so many compliments on my dress, and it would not have been possible without you and your store! No woman should feel the way I felt growing up and your store is helping break that cycle! I wish you guys would have been open when I was in high school. Anyways thanks again I will recommend you to anyone I know getting married!"

Thank YOU, Alex, for your sweet words!

We loved working with you and wish you and Steven the very best!

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Megan and Nathan at Boojum Tree

Megan and Nathan at Boojum Tree

Megan and Nathan celebrated their nuptials at Boojum Tree in Phoenix on November 10th, 2012. They had a formal affair for 125 guests. Megan wanted a classic yet romantic wedding dress with a full skirt. Photos by Drew Brashler Photography.

She wore a dropped waist satin ballgown with 3D lace on the bodice and skirt. The skirt also had beading on the lace with a scalloped hem. Megan added a fingertip length veil with blusher and a tiara, also from Strut (we love adding accessories!).

To view more photos from Megan's wedding, check out her album on our Facebook page.

Megan's colors were dark purple, lilac and silver. We love the fresh greenery added to her floral arrangements! Check out the bit of texture added to her cake:

It looks like it was a beautiful event! Thanks, Megan, for sharing your photos with us. Best wishes to you and Nathan!

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Maria's Sparkly Ballgown

Maria and Javier were married July 28, 2012 in Prescott. She came wedding dress shopping and knew she wanted a fitted gown or ball gown with a sweetheart neckline. We found her this beautiful one from Allure Bridals:

It was a taffeta gown with ruched bodice and pickups on the skirt. She loved the sparkle on the neckline and skirt!

Maria's bridesmaids wore classic red, while Javier rocked a Western tux. She also carried an all-white bouquet.

Congrats, you two!

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Ronee and Tyler at Tlaquepaque

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Raina's Traditional Wedding with Vintage Touches

Earlier this week we brought you our first international wedding when Strut Bride Morgan, who flew in from Indiana to try on dresses, got married in Panama. Now meet Raina, who was our first ever Canadian bride! Raina came shopping in January 2012 for her November wedding to Brad. She really liked the idea of lace and tulle on her wedding dress, so Stylist Jill found her a beautiful lace trumpet gown. All photos by Lorelei Hoffarth Photography.

We just loved her bridal portraits! Fitted wedding gowns can be a bit sexy, but the higher neckline keeps it classy.

Check out the buttons, which run all the way down the back and train of her dress.

Raina wrote:

 

We were married on November 10, 2012 in my hometown of Carmangay in Alberta, Canada. The ceremony took place in a 100 year old church, that's no longer a running church, but a historical building. It was -20 degrees Celsius!! Certainly a day to remember. I wouldn't say we had an exact theme... I think if I could describe it, it would be traditional, with a touch of vintage, country, and sparkle! Our colors were different aqua/turquoise blues, ivory and bits of silver.

The bridesmaids were carrying white roses with lots of babys breath. I made my brooch bouquet with the help of my bridesmaids and parents! It probably weighs 10 pounds!

I decided that me and the girls would wear TOMS shoes, because winter wedding in Canada = snow and ice! Broken ankles would not have made our day feel special!

 

I absolutely LOVED my dress. I'm so happy to have found your shop.. In Canada, it's so hard to find young, stylish plus size clothes.. Let alone wedding dresses! It made me feel great that I could actually try the dresses on, and have to get clipped in! 

Thanks so much for making purchasing a dress so easy for me. If I had to do it over again, I wouldn't have changed a thing!

 

Raina G.

 

We thought the fur coat she wore was both chic and practical in such freezing weather! She also provided wraps for her bridesmaids.

 

We were so thrilled to work with Raina. Our challenge was figuring out how to get a wedding dress shipped to Canada, but in the end, it was easy! Thanks, Raina, for being our first Canadian Strut Bride! Best wishes to you and Brad.

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Morgan Traveled the Country--and the World--for Her Wedding

Remember that amazing Justin Alexander tea length wedding dress that set off the tea length wedding dress craze here in the US? Like many brides back then, Morgan LOVED that gown (#8465) and thought it was "the one". But she couldn't find it in a size she could try on. So Morgan, a chef, flew from Newburgh, Indiana to visit Strut and try on the plus size tea length wedding dress. Well, we put her in others, too, just for fun, but she knew it was the perfect wedding gown the second she put it on.

Morgan and Erick were married January 7th, 2012, in Panama.

Morgan wrote us:

As you might remember we got married in Panama....that's why we look so hot.  There is a picture of the church, and also a good one of all the girls in their traditional dresses for the wedding.  Oh and some funny ones too.  It was a blast we were married about 11 am.....and then we got to the party/reception at my uncle's cantina at 3ish in the afternoon....our family had local ladies cook for us, there was about 250 people there (mostly family) and they feed us twice.  We ate, drank, and danced into the night. We left around two in the morning.....the next morning we stopped by the cantina for some beers on the way to the beach and there was still some people there from the wedding still having a good time.  Man they know how to have fun down there.   My dress was perfect....we shortened it about three inchs and took out one whole layer of crinlen (?).....I will have to admit I have put it back on since the wedding just to see it.  It fit who I am and also where we were getting married.....I love telling the story, it was not a typical wedding by any means but it was my favorite...  Thank you so much for helping with my dress. We didn't have a photographer...so these are all family photos!! hope you like.  

Morgan C.
Newburgh Indiana

 

It looks like this wedding was so much fun! Congratulations to you both!

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Elaina's Wedding at the Windmill Winery

Elaina and Brian were married October 28th, 2012, at the Windmill Winery in Florence, AZ. The setting is stunning--couples can get married outside with a backdrop of brick arches.

Elaina came to Strut looking for a wedding gown with lots of detail and that would show off her waist. She bought a dropped waist satin ballgown with fully beaded and embroidered top and detail on the skirt and train.

Elaina's wedding colors were peach and green. We love the sash she added to the flower girl's dress! Her bridesmaids wore sage green, chiffon empire style dresses.

Elaina's reception was held inside at the winery. It's a beautiful rustic building!

To see more photos, check out Elaina's photo album on our Facebook page! Photos are by Carrie Evans Photography and Elaina's cousin. Congratulations and best wishes from your friends at Strut!

Ronee and Tyler at Tlaquepaque

When  bride Ronee shopped at Strut a year ago, she was looking for a fitted wedding gown that would show off her curves. She loved ruching and a sweetheart neckline. Stylist Stephanie found her an amazing gown with organza ruffled skirt with swirled flower.

For their October 27th, 2012 evening nuptials at Tlaquepaque in Sedona, Tyler wore a black tux, and Ronee added a black sash to her gown. Her bridal party wore black dresses and also carried red and purple rose bouquets.

Ronee's cathedral length veil added drama to her stunning gown. We just love seeing curvy women in fitted dresses, and Ronee really rocked hers! Her wedding photographer was Mandy Reed with Mi Amore Photography. 

Congratulations to Ronee and Tyler! Thanks, Ronee, for being a Strut Bride!

Lindsay's Flagstaff Wedding--Cameron & Kelly Studio Pics!

Lindsay was just a dream bride to work with. She was referred to us by Strut Bride Emily O. (thanks, Emily!) and visited us in February 2012 for her September wedding. Stylist Stephanie remembers Lindsay as decisive yet open minded. We were thrilled to get some amazing photos from Cameron & Kelly Studio, photographers that specialize in Northern Arizona.

For Lindsay's wedding at the Forest Highlands Golf Club in Flagstaff, she wore a natural waisted satin ballgown with sweetheart neckline and pockets. We adore the cardigan she wore over her wedding dress--it's the perfect way to ward off a chill or cover your upper arms or shoulders without wearing a more formal bolero, which many brides want to pair with their plus size wedding dress. Plus your sweater is another way to incorporate your wedding colors!

To see Lindsay's DIY touches (as well as her bridal party, which really pulled off different dresses in the same palette), check out the complete wedding day post here. 

We can't get enough of the stunning outdoor photos! Thanks, Lindsay, for sharing them with us. We wish you and Mike a long and happy marriage!

Heather's Custom Tea Length Wedding Dress

We recently posted Elizabeth's beautiful photos from her Tucson wedding on November 10, 2012, so we thought we'd follow it up with photos from Heather's wedding, which was also 11/10/12!

Heather found us on Yelp and came looking for a tea length wedding dress for her outdoor wedding at McDowell Mountain Ranch.

We ended up doing a custom tea length wedding dress in soft tulle with a corset back and beading on the softly ruched bodice. Heather wrote, 

"Attached are a few photos that really showcase my dress. I couldn't be happier with it and appreciated that wonderful service I got while there. If possible, could you let people know who the photographer was? They were very professional and both my husband and I were very happy with the pictures we got. We used Lowe Photos (lowephotos.com)."

Heather and Mike's wedding colors were black and red, so she wore bright red shoes and carried a red bouquet wrapped in a black ribbon.

The tea length wedding gown was perfect for their outdoor ceremony--what a beautiful location! Best wishes to you both!

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Elizabeth's Intimate Tucson Wedding

After a busy February, we're excited to present some awesome images of our curvy and plus size brides. Our first post features Strut Bride Elizabeth. We love her homemade cupcakes (she brought us some!), Etsy finds, and the fact that she wrote her own blog post. Thanks, Elizabeth!!

As a curvy bride on a budget, I had two big concerns when it came to finding my wedding dress! Luckily, with just a little research online, I found Strut. My mother asked me if I might want to try on dresses at a local store first (like a David's Bridal or something similar), but I was very certain that I wanted my first experience in trying on wedding dresses to be at a store I knew would have at least a few dresses in my size. Not only was Strut the first place I went to when looking for a dress, it was the ONLY place I went to and I haven't looked back since! I was so appreciative that my modest budget was kept in mind and I was not pressured to try on dresses over my limit. I'm not sure what I would have done without Strut and the wonderful, caring staff that helped make our intimate (i.e. less than 50 guests!) wedding the best first day of our married life together we could have imagined.

 

Wedding date: November 10, 2012

Bride and Groom: Elizabeth and Adam

Location: Saddlebrooke’s Mountain View Country Club in Catalina (just north of Tucson)

The gown was made all the better with a little bling (courtesy of an Etsy artist) and alterations to create a semi-sweetheart neckline.

Several somethings old (a handkerchief that Rita made for her mother, my grandparents' wedding rings, and a coin from the year that Adam's grandparents were married), something new (the garter and the shoes), somethings borrowed (the handkerchief and the necklace that went on my bouquet), something blue (a Scrabble tile decorated with blue and the initial of my new last name – Another Etsy treasure!), and a sixpence for her shoe...

My mother and my maid-of-honor help me get in the dress.

My proof that the groom cried when he saw me in my wedding dress! (Also pictured, my now mother-in-law.)

 

The groom’s silver suit goes well with the wedding colors… Black, white, red, and silver.

 

 

We even had our own version of a photo booth.

First dance!

I made cupcakes for our wedding guests… Chocolate Overload, Limoncello, and Almond Cake with Salted Caramel Buttercream. Sorry the samples I brought you melted in the Phoenix heat!

For the newlyweds, there was Boston cream pie. (This is the only cake my husband is willing to eat!)

Since we had very few pictures taken of us on our wedding day (as we really wanted to focus on our guests), we decided to have pictures taken a few weeks later…

The end! (And thank you again!)