little white dresses for Everything But The...

Dress by - Diane von Furstenberg (Zarita Lace Dress)

Some girls wait their whole lives to wear that white dress on their wedding day, but when it comes down to picking out the perfect style, length and shade, it can be difficult to pick just one! What if you see yourself walking down the aisle in a fitted, lace gown with a long train but can't deny how fun and flirty a lace mini dress would look?

Not to worry! Leading up to your big day there are plenty of occasions in honor and celebration of your engagement and wedding, giving you an excellent excuse for a little white dress (LWD)!

Dress by - Marchesa (Fall 2012)

Taking a note from the popular saying is the idea of the LWD for "Everything But The" wedding! This white dress is your chance to wear a flirty and fun, non-traditional dress that makes you feel your very best, but might not be the best fit for your actual wedding.

The "Everything But The" dress is perfect for your bridal shower, rehearsal dinner or after party because it makes it clear that you're the bride. Plus who doesn't look amazing in shades of white and creme?

Dress by - Free People (Lurex Starlight Party Dress)

Thankfully many designers and department stores have taken note of this trend and are currently offering some amazing "Everything But The" dress options! Whether you want to look glamorous, sexy or demure at your upcoming celebration, there's bound to be many couture and budget-friendly choices fresh off this season's runway!

Dresses by - from left to right: Nanette Lepore (Ponderous Dress), Watters (Melbourne Dress)

Monique Lhuillier's current Spring 2012 collection is made up of structured mini dresses that are more fitted and flirtatious while her Fall 2012 collection offers playful, pocketed dresses that remind me whimsical springtime sundresses.

Dresses by - Monique Lhuillier, top row, from left to right: Taylor Dress, Pippa Dress (Spring 2012); bottom row, from left to right: Posey Dress, Lili Dress (Fall 2012)

BHLDN, much like their mother company, Anthropologie, is showing dresses with a cool, retro vibe in a number of different styles, from sheaths to baby-dolls.

Dresses by - BHLDN, top row, from left to right: Saturnalia Dress, Dainty Diversion Mini, Tracery Dress; bottom row, from left to right: Spun Sugar Shift, Quatrefoil Sheath, For Esme Dress

You can also check out tons of online stores such as Net-a-Porter and the British shop, Asos, as well as American department stores like Nordstrom and Bloomingdales for other great options!

Dresses by - top row, all available at Asos online, from left to right: Asos Brand (Skater Dress with Lace and Mesh), Whistles (Large Spot Dress), TFNC (One Shoulder Dress); bottom row, all available at Nordstrom online, from left to right: Maggy London (Tie Waist Metallic Lace Sheath), Antik Batik (Ilka Sequined Tulle Dress), Nordstrom BP Brand (En Creme Lace Illusion Dress)

As you can see, the options for fun little white dresses are seemingly limitless! When choosing your dress for your upcoming bridal shower, rehearsal dinner or after party, just make sure to pick something that speaks to your personal style and your beautiful bride-to-be glow will do the rest of the work!

**This post can also be seen on the blog for Stellina Events, a New York and San Francisco-based wedding and special events planning and design consultancy for which I have interned since November 2011. The Stellina Events article, posted on January 26, 2012 can be seen here**

wedding wednesday: california ranch

today's wedding comes to us from the always lovely green wedding shoes and features a breathtaking ranch/desert-style wedding that is straight outta heaven. the backdrop is absolutely stunning and i'm quite obsessed with the color palette. too much good stuff. i hope you enjoy as much as i do!

this is the most creative entrance i've ever seen.
seriously one of a kind and seriously dramatic.

so much to love, it's almost too much.
i especially like the varying bridesmaids dresses.
not everyone can get that right but these are some of the best in their class.
also, v-neck lace can do no wrong, in my opinion.
and those dried flowers--so perfect for the setting.
ok i'll stop obsessing now.

(a kid's table is a great idea. then again, so is not allowing kids at the wedding. that's what my parents did and i think it's genius. just sayin'.)

i am of firm belief that it just doesn't get any better than this.

(all loveliness sparkling here)

wedding wednesday: reem arca bridal collection

i've decided that my wedding obsession can't really be ignored on this blog another moment. (ok. so it wasn't really being ignored before--or here, here, here or here. or here too-- but let's just say it's time for some spotlighting!) thus, from this day forward, wednesday will become... get ready for the originality... "Wedding Wednesday"!!! as you can imagine, i will be posting real engagements, weddings, decorations, invitations, venues, and as i've done today, dresses!

like most girls, i've dreamed of my wedding dress forever, but as this post attests, i cannot narrow it down to one particular style. then again, with gowns this pretty, who could blame me??

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(all reem arca gowns sparkling here)

south african wedding

if i'm being perfectly honest, there are usually only three things that make me fall in love with a wedding: a delightful attention to detail in the ceremony as well as the reception, the overwhelming attractiveness of the couple (you do too, admit it!), or the undeniable beauty of the location. very rarely can i find all three of these factors in one single wedding.

however, the first time i saw this wedding i was dumbstruck. i couldn't figure out why--it contained all things necessary on my "drool-worthy wedding" checklist, but there was something else too. i bookmarked the post and forgot about it until today, and upon reexamination i've realized what makes this wedding oh so special--it's the raw emotion conveyed through the photos. so kudos to rebecca and bruce of love made visible--you guys sure know how to capture the moment. take a look...

love the industrial feel of the barbed wire combined with the sublime beauty of the south african landscape.

proteas! be still my heart!

succulents and proteas and mismatched vases, oh my!

such fun colors here.

colorful garland--a sign of good times.

seriously handsome, right?

the bride's pose here really sets the mood for the relaxed nature of the wedding, i think.

lace dress--so classic. wildflowers and proteas--so fun.

enter: pomegranates. and adorable self-made(!) sandals.

i'm obsessed with this one.

and this one.

here's that emotion i was talking about.

so sweet and personal.

gotta love jumping pictures. got to.

with a dress like that, who could resist sunset shots like these. gorgeous.

i swoon.

the kind of moments everyone wants memorialized through film.

congrats to katrien and marinus!

(all sparkling here via here)

i (clearly) love everything about this wedding. the backdrop, the flowers, the tablescapes, the dress!, everything. this is my rustic, relaxed, diy dream wedding. i think the real glory must go to the photographers here though. thank you, love made visible, for this lovely gift.

ooh la la temperley

to say that i am obsessed with weddings would be an understatement. i can spend three hours straight on weddinggawker, no sweat. and after months upon months of searching through literally thousands of weddings on various blogs, i found my absolute dream wedding.** little did i know that i had also found my dream designer. while i'll wait until later this week to share that gem of a wedding, i couldn't help but investigate further into the designs of alice temperley. i just love the ephemeral, loose, light, goddess-like look of these dresses.

(long cylia dress)

(long aurelea dress)

(long jean dress 2)

(long pheobe dress)

** just to clarify, i am not engaged and there is absolutely no logical reason i should be as obsessed as i am. i think i really scare my boyfriend sometimes.