Rod and Jess’ Blog

That’s right, the dresses are going to be ordered because all of the bridesmaids have gotten measured AND picked out their wonderful dresses!

Here’s the dress Miranda picked, in all “Clover” (no white accents)

Here’s the dress Katie picked in all “Clover” (no pink accents).

Here’s the dress Erin picked, although she might be adding straps.

Finally, the dress that Mary picked.

I think my bridesmaids are going to be looking really beautiful in dresses that flatter each of them.  I’m very happy with going this route of picking a color and letting them pick a dress that lets them shine.  I’d rather my bridesmaids be happy and comfortable the day of our wedding rather than being in a dress that they don’t want to wear.    I had thought about having them just use a general guideline of getting a green dress or just going with black dresses but when it came down to it I really liked the clover color.  I also tried to find a designer that wasn’t overpriced and had lots of options for the dresses.

 I hope my bridesmaids are as happy with their dresses as I am with them - you each are going to look amazing! 

We’re at 217 days to go and it’s been a very productive time at the Harbison-Weaver household. It’s been so productive I haven’t had a chance to blog lately! Rod and I have been working on getting our invitations picked out and sending engagement announcements to the Warsaw, Cincinnati and Indianapolis papers (thanks to help from our parents). We’ve gotten registered at Crate & Barrel (look for a review in another entry); we’ve gone bridesmaid dress shopping; I’ve started my bridal workouts and I’m now looking for ways to look my best on our wedding day.

Since my dress is strapless (and we’re going to Hawaii on our honeymoon), I really need to work hard on getting myself in shape for the wedding (and I want to look great on the beach!). With one of my 30% off coupons from Borders I picked up a copy of the Women’s Health “The Wedding Workout” on DVD.

Let’s hope I can look like the model on the cover - plus I think the “bonus” content is cute!

I like that I can build my own workout using the DVD and there’s customized workouts for “strapless” (arms, shoulders and chest) or “hip-hugger” (abs & lower body) dresses. I also like that there’s segments on eating smart, how to walk in high heels and workouts scheduled for each day of the week. The only equipment the DVD uses is a set of dumbbells. Since we have three pairs I can start with 2-lb and move up as I get better at the DVD. I also figure I can start doing this when I come home from work each day to jump start the process to look my best for the wedding. Once it gets a little warmer I am looking forward to riding my bike to boost my workout level.

Another thing I’ve started to look at for my wedding and honeymoon is working on making my skin look and feel better. By working on my skin now will also fight wrinkles and other signs of aging. I found a great deal on philosophy skin care through their website on their “Makeup Optional” kit.

Here’s an artsy shot of the whole kit. The three items on the right are to be used once or twice a week. The other four items are to be used daily to improve my skin.

I’m trying to target my skin which has always given me problems. I’d like to make my skin much smoother and eliminate a lot of fine lines and wrinkles around my eyes and mouth. I know I’m young, but I figure this will be one of my most photographed days in my life. I should probably try to make the most of the skin I have that day. I’d also like to work against breakouts and work on making my skin look better with as little makeup as possible. It’s amazing what happens to a woman when you put that ring on her finger! haha!

Today I went bridesmaid dress shopping with Erin and she found a really great one, I’m so glad to be down to just one more bridesmaid that needs her dress ordered. We also went ahead and had the shop order the two dresses for the bridesmaids that have already picked their dresses. Since we have dresses coming from all over I’m not worried about the dye lots not matching.

Imagine that in clover - isn’t she going to look great?

It was so good to see Erin and get to discuss some of the plans for programs and all the other paper goods for the wedding. I’m really looking forward to putting together the invitations and starting to work on the programs. I can’t wait for our “retreat” in June with Rick and Pat! If anyone is interested in our first engagement announcement online it’s here (Warsaw Times-Union).

In short, what are some ways you’ve wanted to get in shape for your wedding day or look your best?

One big thing to think about for a wedding is what type of dresses the attendants will wear. Originally I had thought about pink dresses with big green sashes and I wasn’t quite sure about how the maids would feel being put in bright pink dresses. To compromise and also make it so the groomsmen don’t look odd in green (Rod’s opinion is that his guys won’t wear pink, nor will he!) I decided to look for green dresses with pink accents. It’s also very important that these dresses be cost effective as I don’t want to cost my maids an arm and a leg for a dress that I’m forcing them to wear! A few choices would be:

This one is a two piece dress from David’s Bridal with a pink ribbon sash.

This is an Alfred Angelo one piece dress that has optional straps so if the maids want strapless they can do strapless or if they want straps they can have straps.

I’m thinking silver sandals or strappy shoes to go with the dresses, just simple and understated. Haven’t found any pictures yet though!

This would be an option for a flower girl dress. I believe it’s from Ballerina Collection. Haven’t found too many ideas for these yet either.

Any suggestions or thoughts?