Wedding Stuff

For some reason, I feel compelled to apologize whenever I talk about my wedding here. I don't know why. I mean, this blog has no express purpose than an outlet for me to discuss what comes to mind and, as a person planning a wedding, wedding stuff comes to mind frequently. Still, I feel bad. Oh well.

This weekend was good for wedding stuff. I took my dress to a wonderful seamstress on Friday who, for $275, will be able to shorten the gown without losing any of the beading. It isn't heavily beaded, but there is a lil' something on the bodice (where the only horizontal seam is) and at the hem. I was worried that they wouldn't be able to shorten it without losing some of the sparkle, which would really change the look of the dress.

$275 seems like a lot, but that includes all the fittings and other alterations that come with a wedding dress. I've heard horror stories of being told it will cost X and then finding out, too close to the wedding to do anything about it, that there's an extra charge for x, y, and z. So, I'm cool with the $275 since it is a flat rate.

The people who are doing it are really nice too. I like them. The woman's mother started a shop and she has taken over and turned it into a boutique - they sell bridesmaid, MOB, MOG and prom dresses there and her sister runs a tux shop next door. They have the only brown tuxedos in Chicagoland. This works out well for me since I was planning on doing very dark brown - like espresso - dresses for the bridesmaids with lavender/light purple bouquets.

I saw the color combo in an issue of Martha Stewart Weddings and loved it. I was so happy when I saw their brown tux, and then the tie selection that they have. They had a lavender striped tie that was just different shades of lavender. "Perfect!" I thought.

I brought home a brochure for Mr so he could see what I was planning. He was ok with the brown tux - it's very dark - but not at all ok with my choice of tie (this lilac one). "You can't make the guys wear purple. You might as well put them in dresses." Ugh. So, I'm not sure what to do. I don't want them in the brown tuxes if they're wearing all brown (ie a brown tie, too). I don't really want to change the color scheme and lose the brown altogether, but since the shade I like and wanted is super-dark brown, I think it would look bad with black tuxes.

So, my mom called me to catch up. I told her about the shop and the tuxes and her reaction was... not what I was looking for. She basically laughed at the idea of brown tuxes, saying that she "always" liked black tuxes because they are classic and won't look "silly" years from now. She said that my brother's wedding had brown and black and it looked fine. Which is true, but the bridesmaid dress I wore in that wedding was a much softer, lighter brown, not an almost-black. They got married in June. I'm getting married in October. I feel like it has to be richer, more saturated colors.

For the past three years I've been working in Marketing. I don't have a design degree, but a lot of what I do is design work. I've developed an appreciation for a well-executed color scheme and I'm a little more sensitive to how things are carried through. When I found this color palette in Martha Stewart, I thought it was great. I want it carried out through the whole wedding - dark brown, with punches of pale purple, accented by white. I don't want the brown too light because it is a fall wedding. I want the dominate color to be a rich, fall, hue. I don't like red or shades of red in weddings. I feel like a) red bridesmaid dresses are a little overwhelming on a large scale b)it's over done.

But I digress. My mom just doesn't get that to have the men in black throws off my color scheme. I mean, I was planning on invitations in dark brown ink, just to keep things unified. I know most people won't notice or comment. That isn't the point. I will notice. I didn't get too into it with her, because I know that she doesn't get it. She's not going to get it. But I wish she did.

So, now I'm wondering what other color combos I can use. I want a fall look, but I'm not crazy about jewel tones. I suppose I could do the chocolate/espresso and blue instead of purple. It would be the same effect, or pale green. But that means that Mr will have to like the brown tuxes and be ok with his guys wearing something other than black tux, white shirt, black vest, back tie - which is apparently what he's worn for every wedding he's been in.

If you got this far into the post, what do you think? Am I crazy with the brown tux?