Rands and Sense

Rands and Sense

After the excitement of the engagement is over and the wedding date is set the most important task to begin your wedding planning is to calculate a wedding budget.

Do some research on costs and prices of venues, décor and wedding gowns. Be sensible. Work on a budget that is affordable with realistic prices. Once you have come up with a total that is manageable, don’t be tempted to overspend. You want to start married life without loads of outstanding bills.

Here are some tips to keep costs down:

Keep your wedding small by keeping the number of guest down. Singles don’t have to bring partners.

Most venues offer discounted prices during the winter months. Midweek weddings can also beat the budget.

Don’t have a large retinue. Keep the numbers of bridesmaids and groomsmen down. This saves on outfits, bouquets and gifts.

Consider creating your own invites and favours. Ask a creative friend or relative to help.
Get the bridal party together for a fun evening to assemble the wedding favours.

Photography is an essential part of your big day. One way to cut expenses is to ask the photographer to give you your pictures on disc. You can then make up your own album or book. Inexpensive software is available to make up photo-books – a project which can be a fun for you and your groom after the honeymoon.

When it comes to choosing flowers, check out what is in season at the time of your wedding. Flowers that are out of season are far more expensive. Less exotic flowers are also more cost effective Watch out for occasions like mother’s day and Valentine’s Day – flowers are very expensive at this time.

A fun and colourful alternative for table décor is fruit such as lemons, limes or apples placed in large glass vases.

A cash bar is perfectly acceptable today. Provide a bottle of wine and a bottle of champagne per table. The guests can then use the cash bar facility for any other drinks. Just remember to state on your invitation that a cash bar will be available.

Have the wedding cake as dessert. Just check that the venue are happy to do this. A fun and economical alternative to a traditional wedding cake is cupcakes.

With all the costs covered don’t forget about your honeymoon! Why not sign up for a Honeymoon Registry. Instead of guests buying you another toaster or kettle ask them to contribute to a honeymoon registry. You choose your destination and your friends and family can contribute to a memorable start to your new life together.

Happy planning!

NEW ARRIVALS

We at Blush Weddings are so excited! Our new Bonny Special Occasions dresses arrived about an hour ago. We couldn't wait to unpack the box.......and we weren't disappointed!

These sophisticated styles can be worn by bridesmaids, matriculants, debutantes and even the Mother-of-the-Bride. The elegant designs offer affordable and quality options for any formal occasion.

Please pop in sometime to see our fabulous new dresses!

Know the Shapes


Walking into a bridal boutique can be quite a daunting experience for any bride-to-be. All those white and ivory gowns hanging beautifully on the rails! But where and how do you begin?
It is useful to know the shapes, or silhouettes, of the wedding dresses as well as your own shape and body size when considering which style would be best for you.

The Gown Shapes:
Wedding gowns and dresses fall into six basic silhouettes, namely Ball Gown, Empire Line, A-line, Sheath, Mermaid and Trumpet.

Ball Gown: this gown has a fitted bodice and waistline with a very full skirt which usually has numerous layers of petticoats.
Empire Line: a high waist, just under the bust-line, with a slim-line skirt is the characteristic of this style of dress.
A-Line: An A-line or Princess shape is cut close to the hip with a slight flare at the hem creating an A-shape.
Sheath: This slim style closely follows the lines of the body
Mermaid: A body-hugging silhouette that flares below the knee.
Trumpet: The fit-and-flare trumpet skirt gradually flares at mid-thigh.

To get a wedding dress with the perfect fit, it is important to choose the most flattering shape for your figure. Not only will you be more comfortable on your wedding day, you'll also look and feel your best.

Your Shape:

Hourglass
Hourglass figures have curves in all the right places! You have a big chest, big hips, and a thin waist
Wedding Dress Dos: A dress with an A-Line has a dropped waist will show off your figure. Together with a sweetheart neckline to show off your chest. For a more curvaceous look, try a fit-and-flare gown like a mermaid or trumpet style
Wedding Dress Don'ts: A ball gown or Empire-waist silhouette may make you look out of proportion.

Short Waist
Your body is naturally proportioned, except for the small distance from your ribs to your hips.

Wedding Dress Dos: An A-line silhouette -- fitted at the bodice and opening up gradually to a full skirt -- elegantly elongates your figure; if you love your shoulders, try a halter neckline. A slightly dropped-waist gown will also lengthen your torso.
Wedding Dress Don'ts: A sheath will make your short waist more obvious.

Thick Waist
This shape has an undefined waistline

Wedding Dress Dos: An Empire Line weddings dress will take the emphasis away from your waistline and give you a long, lean look.
Wedding Dress Don'ts: An A-line or basque waist will draw too much attention to your middle.

Full Figure
A voluptuous figure with full breasts, a bit of a tummy, and round hips and butt.
Wedding Dress Dos: A ball gown will hide quite a bit, and an A-line silhouette looks great on everyone.
Wedding Dress Don'ts: A sheath will make you look heavier than you are; avoid spaghetti straps.

Pear Shape
You're small on top and heavy on the bottom.

Wedding Dress Dos: A basque waist or strapless ball gown will cover your bottom half and put the focus on your better half; an Empire dress will hug the tiniest part of your body and disguise your lower half.
Wedding Dress Don'ts: A sheath will be unflattering and a trumpet- or mermaid-style gown will draw attention to your bottom.

Thin
Short or tall,. You boast that certain kind of ballerina beauty whether you are tall or short.

Wedding Dress Dos: A ball gown will make you look like a fairy-tale princess, and a sheath would be perfect for you.
Wedding Dress Don'ts: Almost all silhouettes will flatter your figure, but stay away from off-the-shoulder or halter necklines if your collarbones are too bony.

Petite
You have a tiny frame and are not very tall.

Wedding Dress Dos: It's best to keep it simple -- when you're small, a big, elaborate gown can sometimes look as if it's wearing you rather than the other way around. A sheath or A-line dress will work well.
Wedding Dress Don'ts: Almost all silhouettes will flatter your figure, though a big ball gown may be overwhelming.

But the most important thing to remember, whatever your shape or size, is to have tons of fun picking out the perfect wedding gown for you!

Source: TheKnot

Don’t Compromise on Your Wedding Gown.


The wedding gown you choose says so much about your personality and the style of your wedding day. Whilst your wedding day is only one day, it is possibly the most important day of your life with memories that will last forever.

It is best to choose your venue and decide on the theme of your wedding before choosing your dress, For example a bride getting married on a beach should choose a classic and informal style whilst an indoor, more formal venue would suit an elegant or vintage gown. But don’t leave choosing your gown to the last minute! Most gowns are imported and can take up to four months to arrive in South Africa.

Spend as much as you can on your wedding gown – the bride is the one thing from the day that everyone remembers. A rule of thumb is to spend not less than 15% of your total wedding budget on your dress. Even if you are on a budget (like most modern brides are today) remember not to skimp on the one wedding gown.

The best ways to get ideas of styles you like is to search wedding and designer websites on the internet as well as local and international wedding magazines. Certain styles flatter some figures more than others. Try on various gowns to get an idea of what suites your body type and makes you feel most confident. Don’t get locked into the idea of having a white wedding dress. White doesn’t suite all skin tones and a “boob tube” doesn’t suite each bride – to – be!

If possible, don’t shop alone. Take someone with you, like your mom, maid of honour or bridesmaid whose opinion you value completely.

But most of all - have fun choosing your wedding gown!

It's Sale Time at Blush!

It's hard to believe that we are already in February! January ended well with the Blush Sale which started on 28th. ALL our wedding gowns are marked down anywhere from 10% to 50% Accessories & shoes are discounted by 25%. Blush Weddings is making way for our new 2010 wedding dresses which we can't wait to show you all.

The 2010 styles are vintage, elegant and very feminine. The 2010 catalogues arrived towards the end of last year and we spent hours looking at the new gowns on offer. A new collection of bridal shoes will be arriving at Blush at the end of February. We have seen a sneak preview of these too and they are wonderful - still the same comfort and quality. Some of the firm favourite styles like Gwen and Saskia are also available. After listening to comments from brides, the heel heights of the new range are a little lower, offering even more comfort.

2010 Promises to be filled with many new and exciting happening at Blush Weddings with beautiful new gowns and many other new developments. Watch this space!

REMEMBER: THE SALE ENDS ON SATURDAY 6TH FEBRUARY SO HURRY ON DOWN TO LINKSFIELD TERRACE CENTRE, LINKSFIELD ROAD, EDENVALE, JOHANNESURG GAUTENG (JUST OFF THE N3)

A Dream Job

Penny says:

"The past six weeks have been fantastic! We are delighted with the response to our shop and more importantly to our beautiful gowns!

Claire and I can't believe that this is called "work". We love meeting the brides and helping plan their day to remember whilst sharing in the excitement. Each day is different and every bride that visits our boutique brings new and fresh zest.

Trying on wedding gowns can be quite overwhelming. We recently read that a bride should try on no more than 10 dresses. Trying on more dresses only creates confusion and uncertainty. So often brides end up buying the gown they tried on first anyway.

We like to give our brides all the personal attention they deserve in selecting their dream gown. We truly do enjoy assisting in their choices and the brides have been relaxed and friendly too. We are yet to find a bridezilla!

If this is a dream job..... I think we have found it!"

Winston Churchill said:
"We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give."

The Transformation

" But what was this he saw mirrored in the clear water? He saw beneath him his own image, but it was no longer the image of an awkward, dirty, grey bird, ugly and repulsive - he himself was a swan!" Expert from The Ugly Duckling by Hans Christian Andersen

BEFORE


Our "ugly duckling" has been transformed into a beautiful, graceful swan! It is hard to believe that in a relatively short space of time our shop went from this green apparition to an elegant bridal boutique. The toil, sweat and some tears, have been worth all the effort.



Blush Weddings officially opened it's doors on the evening of Wednesday 30th - celebrated by a gathering of friends and family. Claire and I truly feel blessed to have such a wonderful boutique and our first few days of trading have been evident of that blessing.



We opened our doors to the public on Thursday morning and throughout the day well wishers, from the centre and the public, popped in to give us their support. We were thrilled at the response and the tremendous support has not waned since.



Our first four days have been filled with brides-to-be calling on us to view the beautiful gowns, to look at the catalogues, enquiring about shoes and some just to browse. Even just interested passers-by have dropped in to see the boutique. We have been so busy that the days have flown by and we are thoroughly enjoying the experience.



Claire and I would like to thank everyone who played some part in getting the boutique ready for the opening, but most of all we would like to thank Clive (husband and dad) for the many long hours he spent working in the dust to transform our ugly duckling into the swan it has become.