Someone, Quick, Get Married!

Cause I really wanna wear this to a wedding. Or a cocktail party. Or...dinner? Can I just buy this JUST BECAUSE? And/or just because Rachel Roy is having a 30% off friends and family/people on the Internet sale? Cause I really like it.




Rachel Rachel Roy pleated dress with crossback, $109 - 30% = $76.30. Yeah, I think I can buy it.

Also, can I pull this off?




Rachel Rachel Roy lattice drop-waist jumper, $129 - 30% = $90.30.

A final safe bet:


Rachel Rachel Roy lattice top, $89 - 30% = $62.30.

The Most Expensive Outfit I Ever Wore

So, yeah. I'm married. So, wanna see what I wore? I didn't get a $5 wedding dress, or a $50 thrift-store wedding dress, or even a $250 Running of the Brides dress (my bridesmaids REFUSED to go with me!), so basically this ended being the titular Most Expensive Outfit I Ever Wore. It's sort of sickening, really, but I do plan on selling the dress, if possible, so I can buy, like, some boots or something. I'm keeping the shoes, though. Anyway, drum roll please!

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THE DRESS!

I was absolutely thrilled to find my dress at the Bridal Garden, a New York City shop that sells dresses that have been donated by designers and brides and whose proceeds benefit New York City children's education (currently a charter school in Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn). I was even more thrilled with my dress, an Anne Barge trunk-show sample from her spring 2008 La Fleur line that had never been worn. I got a ton of compliments on it. Love those little bows! Here's how it looked when I was getting ready:






And here's how it looked swishing down the aisle with my dad:



THE SHOES

I have talked at length about my shoes. Anyone who doesn't know I wore rubber Vivienne Westwood for Melissa shoes with red hearts on the toes hasn't been paying attention. People adored them. I didn't even get one "different," although my mom did laugh in a way that suggested she wasn't 100% in favor of the decision. You can get them, and lots of other Melissa shoes, via Epaulet in Brooklyn, online or in person.




THE HAIR ACCESSORY

I got this fantabulously fun ostrich-feather hair piece from New York City milliner Artikal:



The designer, Holly Slayton-Chance, does lots of cool fascinators as well as veils and hats. To me this piece sort of echoed the freedom and movement of the bows at the bottom of my dress, and just screamed FUN! You can get her pieces for reasonable prices direct from her (either at her East Village studio or online), or pay a gigantic markup at Kleinfeld's. Yeah.


THE JEWELRY

I'm not really a jewelry person, and I didn't know for sure what I was going to wear for jewelry until the day of the wedding. The necklace was from Etsy seller Tree and Kimball, made of vintage lace with a little blue bead (something blue!):



Looking at the photos, I realized it doesn't photograph that well, but whatever. We all liked that the bead sort of nestled in my cleavage. I borrowed my bridesmaid Randi's grandmother's watch for my something borrowed as well as her diamond studs even though I never wear earrings. And that was that!

THE BAG

Yep, Etsy again. Gotta love it! I got this to-die-for vintage crystal-beaded purse for $25:



It came with two matching clip-on earrings and a great shoe clip (sadly, only one, because it would have made a great earring itself). I barely used this all night but I DID need to reapply lip gloss, after all, so. There. I DID need a bag! Take that, naysayers! Plus, it's gorgeous!


THE SECOND DRESS

Yes, that's right, I had a second dress. For dancing. ("What a DIVA!" they said.) It was a short little Betsey Johnson number that I simply couldn't resist. I'd discovered while dress shopping that I unexpectedly loved lace, and this was a really interesting type of open-work lace:





Also, it was $50. And I was really happy to be able to change into it before the cake cutting, because it was hot and humid that night, and we were dancing our faces off.


DRESS #3 and HAIR ACCESSORY #2

Oh yes I did! I had a dress for the afterparty, too.



I actually bought it before the Betsey Johnson, intending it as the dancing dress, but then I couldn't resist the Betsey Johnson and felt it was fancier, and so this became the afterparty dress. It is vintage and sweet and easily the most comfortable dress of the three. I got a ton of compliments on it, with some people even voting it their favorite of the three (by a hair, I think/hope!). Not too many people were still taking pictures at this point (our photographer had left), so this is the best I've got so far:



The headband is from Forever 21. Loved it, too.

THE BRIDAL PARTY

You've all been patiently waiting to find out what I made Tamron and the rest of my ladies wear. I chose J.Crew dresses: easy and cute. I wasn't really sure about the color (fresh mint, in the Crew's parlance) until the day of the wedding, when all my girls looked so beautiful, especially against the backdrop of the lake.



Eagle-eyed readers will notice that Tamar sluttily shortened her dress and later paired it with silver Toms for dancing (of which I was profoundly jealous). All the bridesmaids wore silver shoes of their own choosing , and I got them all different silver bow necklaces from Etsy, to echo the bows on my dress. Here's Tamar and her fiancé — how do they make their eyes sparkle like that??



Moving on to the boys: They wore black suits and stripey multicolor-blue ties (see the pic of my brother, above).



We didn't want to spend a lot of money on ties, so we got stripey aqua ties for $15 each at thetiebar.com. Don't judge. The colors were perfect and complemented the groom's tie, too.


THE GROOM

The groom wore a windowpane-print Hickey Freeman suit that (even on sale) cost more than my dress and still needs to be cleaned. He looked absolutely fabulous in it, even when he'd sweated through to the pits. (Note to future brides: Make sure he wears a V-neck T-shirt underneath if he's a schvitzer—wife-beaters not so classy in this situation!)



And that's all she wrote as far as my wedding fashion is concerned. If you'll excuse me, I'm off to take a totally normal walk in a meadow with my husband!

New Tournaire Engagement Rings

Check out these brand-new super-architectural (obviously), thoroughly modern-paradoxically-ancient-accented engagement rings by Phillipe Tournaire. They're inspired by the first-ever engagement rings from the Merovingian dynasty, which sounds cool because no one cut their hair.

And instead of a bloody bloody blood diamond, you get the loaded-with symbolic structural imagery of a united couple's new home and family. They're 18K gold, and if you simply MUST have a diamond, you can do that too. They start at $1,100, which isn't so bad for a really cool alt- engagement ring, you know? Jews, you should dig it too because they've got a very Jerusalem/ Havdallah spice box vibe too. And if you just like trends (guilty), the second ring is basically a glorified pyramid stud. Win!

Rebecca Taylor Cutout Bootie I Am Totally Trying Very Hard Not To Buy Right Now

For WEEKS now I've been trying DESPERATELY not to buy these SWEEEEET-ass Rebecca Taylor perforated platinum boots. They're leaving a perforated spot in my heart.

($239, Rebecca Taylor, Shopsheboutique.com)

Also, two things: FIRST OF ALL, my totes apologiezorbots for not BLOGGING more. I've been straight blogging my DECK off at Le Job, and ALSO, CATHERINE IS GETTING MARRIED in like 72 HOURS! EEEE! So we've been bridal/bridesmaiding up a storm. Speaking of STORMS, let's hope it does not RAIN, so please do an anti-rain dance for Saturday, kay?

BTW, I'll wearing these Fornarina Daisy heels, except in silver. I got them on Yoox for $28. Not kidding here.

OKAY, so the other thing I was going to share was that today I accidentally closed Firefox and lost probably over 40 tabs I'd been collecting for like MONTHS. Devastating computational mishap! It didn't even warn me or anything. I'm basically like one of those people on that show Hoarders with the way I squirrel away links. Ugh. So sad. Don't let careless computer use happen to you.

Michael C Fina Wedding & Engagement Ring Sample Sale! HOLLAR!

Dudefaces. Are y'awl in the market to be buying up a wedding ring or engagement ring? Yah? Mkay GREAAAAT because Michael C. Fina is having a sample sale in-store at 545 Fifth Avenue.
It's August 4 - 6, 11a.m.-8p.m, and the sitch is you get can save up to 70% off brands like Vera Wang, Scott Kay, Tacori, Jeff Cooper, Verragio, and several other brands I've never heard of because I don't sit around reading about wedding rings all day. But I do know what 70% off means, you know? Okay, that's as much as I know.

Maison Martin Margiela 22 Wedding Shoe Abortion

I found these absolutely stunning Maison Martin Margiela 22 heels, which I ordered for potentially for my wedding dress. They turned out to be an absolute abortion of a shoe effort. Which is unfortunate because they are absolutely the most beautiful shoes I've ever held in my hands, which were the only body part that got to experience them since they were too narrow to fit onto my foot. I felt like Cinderella's step-sister, all shoving my oar of a foot into 'em.

($190, Maison Martin Margiela 22, Yoox.com)

These photos do them no justice whatsoever. The white part is actually this stunning nude-colored (if you're me) mesh, and while they look really delicate, they're made so well. I cried putting them back into the box and sending them back to Yoox. I tried them in a 9, which I never wear, but they were just too narrow. Bew! Oh yeah, big shoutout to Yoox, because they're on their returns like white on rice. Hate when returns take like 2838348 years. Theirs take like 10 days. Super speedy, and I'm lovin' on their customer service.

Also, um, check out these bizarre-ass money shoes by Maison Martin Margiela 22:

($190, Maison Martin Margiela 22, Yoox.com)

They're like the classiest hooker heels EVER. Also, if you give me $190, a pair of old heels and some Monopoly money and some Crazy Glue, I will recreate this look for you. Win!

Binge Lust: Tarina Tarantino Electric KoolAid Bib Necklace + Tarina Tarantino In-Store Event In NYC Saturday July 25

($740, Tarina Tarantino)

I fully endorse EVERY single piece of Tarina Tarantino's Electric Kool-Aid collection, but her bib necklace is the standout. This piece is like tasting every color of the rainbow -- like doing acid, minus the nasty flashblacks and 40-pound spiders crawling up your face! Win!

Oh yeah, and check out her subtle but stunning, wedding-worthy 1930s Art Deco Lucite drop earrings, which come in a handful of flavors. If they matched my wedding dress, I'd absolutely wear these day ofs.

($55, Tarina Tarantino)

ALSO, if you're in NYC, stop by the Soho store TOMORROW -- Saturday, July, 25 for Tarina's book signing!

FINALLY, THANK YOU, Sparkle Factory, for the FashionBinge shoutout! RAWX!

The Most Perfect Patent White Wedding Heels

($55, Nadia Grilli, Yoox.com)

Remember when Jermaine Stewart said "We Don't Have To Take Our Clothes Off (To Have A Good Time")? Well, that was definitely the type of lie boys tell because they want to take off their clothes with other boys. But you most certainly do not have to spend the equivalent of a down payment on a new car to get a pair of perfect shoes for your wedding, mkay? If these patent white peep-toe pumps made any sort of sense with my dress, they'd be mine mine mine. Maybe they're perfect for you?

Sample Sale SCORE: Notte By Marchesa Gown!

DOOOODS! I was g-chatting with Lani of Sugar Rock Catwalk (g-chatting makes us sound like we did something DIRTY... or like we're gs...), and I was SO MAD at her because she posted this HUGE round-up of New York City sample sales --- gr gr GRRRR!... And I showed her the result of the Marchesa sample sale I went to back in February. It's the reason I REALLY shouldn't go to sample sales... Because...
I got THIS amazing Notte By Marchesa leopard-print dress (last one in my size -- and it fit, but barely) for $250... Now that is a LOT of fucking cash, don't get me wrong/ believe you me, whatevs, BUT, um... it was originally $1265, so I mean, technically I saved $1015... Right? Right? I also will probably wear it to my rehearsal dinner. Which might be at a pizza place. So?

Bridal Binge: Ring Edition, Vol. 3

With less than three months to go, I really need to get a wedding band up in this piece. I keep going to stores and finding things that would probably work but that I'm not 100% in love with. And oughtn't one to be entirely in love with the one piece of jewelry they'll wear forever? (Unless you're like my friend Alison, who keeps buying herself new engagement and wedding bands, which seems like a perfectly acceptable and fun option also.) Here's a few I'm thinking about right now, although I plan on hitting jewelry stores both at lunch and after work today. (I wore comfortable shoes.)

Oh, but first. So you know. Here is my engagement ring:



It's by Sholdt. I love its modern simplicity and feel so lucky that Carl got it so right.



Piaget mini "Possession" ring, $1,500 with diamonds in 18k white gold; $900 sans bling. That top part spins! I like this because it seems different but is still classic, with clean modern lines. And there are seven diamonds for good luck. And Eva Longoria has one!

Yesterday I went to one of Alison's favorite jewelry haunts, DVVS in Chelsea. The woman who helped me was very nice, and they had some nice rings for very reasonable prices. For the first time I think I had reverse sticker shock. This ring, for instance:



A modified version of this is currently a serious contender. I'd want it a lot slimmer, with the line centered, and maybe more and smaller diamonds more spread out. Or not. They do custom work so it's all up to me. This ring is only $450, looks great with my engagement ring, and is supercomfortable.



Kevin Plunkett organic twist band, $455. Now, I know this looks extremely "organic," as in it looks like the gold version of what a child might make with a snake of clay, but I swear it looked pretty good with my ring in the store. This picture is TERRIBLE and in person the ring really doesn't look anything like it does here. I liked that it had interesting lines and texture but didn't compete with my ring. It's still sort of in the running.



Links of London Triple Ring, $190. It's in sterling silver, though.



This Ritani eternity band is kinda cool, too.



I don't think this one is quite me (not so into mixing metals), but I wanted to point out that I think Nina Dinoff's alterna-eternity band is very cool. It's $195 for sterling silver and 18k gold dots.



Finally, I love the idea of this ring, Hearts On Fire's Felicity pointed wedding band. The pointed tip echoes the notched setting of my engagement ring. But there's a lotta bling there, and it would almost certainly compete with the e-ring. I think.

I'm almost afraid to say it, but what do YOU think?

Two Great (Bridal) Shoes, Two Very Different Prices

Recently I thought I found the absolute purrrrfect wedding shoe: The Stuart Weitzman "Oboe."



Wedge so you don't sink in the grass, extremely cute bow, dyeable to any color your heart or shoe man can dream up...just utterly best. Except for the price tag: $360. That could pay for, say, a second reception dress! Sadly, the Oboe was not a play I could make.

Turns out I'm gonna be sinking in the grass (hopefully not too much), because I did just go ahead and buy those oft-discussed Melissa Anglomania shoes with the red hearts (from Epaulet, of course). But if I was getting married inside? I'd totally go for these:




Nina Electra pump in ivory, $80. Again: $80. Someone, please, get married in these!

Then go on your island honeymoon and wear these wherever you go:



Steven "Bianna" sandal, $120. (Or purchase the identical knockoff at Alloy, as I will. Thanks to Cheap Chicas for the tip!)

In other shoe news, I think I'll get these huaraches for the summer:



Jeffrey Campbell "Gloria Tie" sandals, $84.

Ariel Gordon: Not-Boring Wedding Rings For Not A Fortune

($1,240, Ariel Gordon)

Check out L.A. jewelry designer Ariel Gordon's wonderfully modern geometrical 14-karat gold "Hex" ring with diamond points. I'd definitely wear this as a wedding ring (except I'm going to try to uphold the Jewish tradition of wearing a solid, unbroken band with no ornamentation or stones.) Of course, I'd wear it ANYWAY as a REGULAR ring if someone would like to purchase it for me, say, as a gift for being an awesome blogger. The Hex ring also comes in 10-karat gold for $880.

I love how modern and clean it is but also quietly chic AND kind of looks like a nut. Not like a squirrel nut but like whatever people who use tools use for things.

Also, Ariel won Shopstyle's emerging designer competition, so if you enter "SHOPSTYLE" on Ariel Gordon's site, you can get 25% off your purchase!... Of the Hex ring... for me!

... Plus, check out Spike pendant:

($315, Ariel Gordon)

Which would look positively smart AND menancing with... EVERYTHING (on me!)

I Bought It Files: Pade Vavra Cat Stud Earrings, Other Stuff I'm Wearing In A Weddng This Weekend

($138, Pade Vavre, BlueLuxe.com)

Oops. Accidentally bought these: 22KT gold plated cat stud earrings with sapphire eyeballs. I may or may not wear them to the wedding I'm in this weekend. I WILL not, however, wear them with THIS belt, if I wear it at/ in the wedding:

($136, Moss Mills)

I got it on sale at Epaulet. (Remember when I was losing my mind over this Moss Mills horse bracelet? And, speaking of horses, RIP TRAGIC FLORIDA HORSES!)

BTW, the dress I'm wearing in the wedding is...
... A Christiane Celle fuchsia satin dress -- the bride found it for me on eBay for a song! Can you BELIEVE how great that is! I actually factually WILL wear this again. And I'm wearing these vintage gold heels from Olive's Very Vintage in Brooklyn -- Gorgeous, perfectly curated and preserved dresses, skirts, tops, shoes and jewelry. Definitely vintage and not thrift. you should go. It's great.


That's new kitty, Sim. I adopted her from Beauty Blogging Junkie's Amber! BTW, this completely out-of-sequence, highly unedited post brought to you by Gruner Veltliner!1!!