NOVEMBER BRIDES

We had a couple of small brides come in this morning. Both were size 2 and could see what each gown looked like on someone else, and both are getting married in November. We still have size 2's and 4's and everything up to size 30 in stock ready to walk out the door with you. However, we are a little surprised at the number of brides we are seeing in our new location (3211 So. Highland Drive). If you have an inkling he is going to pop the question, come in as soon as you can. Call us at 801 463-1799 for an appointment.

CHICAGO MARKET

Sarena and I returned last night after spending 4 days in Chicago. I must admit that after I spend 3 days in Las Vegas buying earlier this month, we did play a little hooky and did some fabulous Chicago site seeing.

We have ordered lots and lots of beautiful gowns for the Spring and are so excited to see them start coming in. We have already received some really fashion forward gowns. LACE, TULLE, RUFFLES AND TIERED SKIRTS! Lots of TEXTURE with three dimensional flowers. Be daring! Do something different. We have. See you soon.

SHORT OR TEA LENGTH WEDDING DRESSES

We are being asked more and more each week about short wedding dresses. We received a short dress from Moonlight Bridal on September 7th and sold it yesterday to a bride who is getting married this month.

It has a lace bodice and full pleated skirt with a belt and small bow at the waist. I immediately ordered another like it and two more. To see the "informal" (no train) collection by Moonlight, go to moonlightbridal.com and look at their Tango collection. Let me know which ones you like the best!

NEW PRICING

We are in the process of repricing all our gowns. We will not be giving a $200 first time in discount. We will have special pricing on multiple accessory items. Come check it out!

WEDDINGS IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD

Since we have moved into our new location, 3211 So. Highland Drive, we are seeing many more brides from the "hood." The other day I had a bride who lives in the same "quadrant" I live in and I've known her Grandmother for years. It is fun to see the brides who live on the East side too. We always have a lot of brides from Provo, South Jordan and West Jordan.

Provo is self explanatory, and South and West Jordan--many homes are 20 years old, the kids are growing up and getting married. We love to see you all and find it fun that we get so many brides from so many out of state places as well (thanks to BYU and BYU Idaho). Sometimes our appointment book hardly has an 801 area code in it--all out of state.

NEW GOWNS

We received some new Fall styles yesterday--and replenished our inventory after two very busy weeks. Most of them are steamed and ready to try on. We are seeing a lot of December brides so if you are getting married in December-February we need to see you NOW!

Regular shipping time for the Bonny Bliss (modest) gowns is December 22. We do have a lot on order, but for the best selection, come in now! We don't yet have any appointments for Monday, Labor Day. We will take appointments in the morning.

WHERE HOPE OVERCOMES EXPERIENCE

I had a non-traditional bride the other day. She was so discouraged. She wanted something informal and short versus long. She had been to one shop and was hardly acknowledged and another that was closed on Wednesday. We chose several to try on and the second dress was THE one.

And then we found that we are practically family. She is the grandmother of my great nephew. She showed me a picture of the toddler, and yes, he does look like all the other Miller kids and grandkids. He has my mother's blue, blue eyes. My mother is his great great grandmother. Maybe this is more family information than you normally see on a blog like this, but after all, marriage is really a family business, isn't it?

TALE OF TWO BRIDES

My last blog told of the bride who wouldn't let me help her. Yesterday I had another bride, very similar body shape, wearing the same size, 14, as the previous bride. This bride could not believe all the gowns we had for her to try on. She found THE gown and loves it. Our seamstress will have to a little tweaking as this bride has a VERY small waist.

Please, please, if you are new to our shop, let us do our thing. It is different than any other bridal shop. We get you in the size that fits the best although there may have to be minor alterations. I have many brides come in thinking they are a size or two larger than they are because some shop(s) do not have their size and there is not usually time to order for Utah brides. We have lots of sizes and more ready to ship that are in the U.S.--not in China. Sizes 2 and 4 along with 14-16 seem hard to find. Visit us. Put your wedding gown dreams in our hands for two hours and find your gown.

We will be getting new gowns and some of the new Fall styles September 1st.

NEW LINES

We have just received some gowns from two new vendors and they are wonderful! Very retro and romantic. We are the only bridal shop with these exact gowns and it has been really, really fun to show them. They are not catching on like wildfire, but we will find the brides who can step out of their comfort zones and try something really fun and different and beautiful! We'll post pictures on our facebook as soon as we get them.

MODEST BRIDE

OK. So I'm blog happy tonight. At our shop we pride ourselves at being efficient and showing the bride many different options. Often a bride finds she really does like ivory or she likes mermaids instead of the ballgown she thought she wanted--or vice versa. If I had a nickel for every time I have heard, "thank you, I never would have tried that dress on," I'd be rich.

Our gowns are clean and in good shape because our staff helps the bride with each dress. We get positive comments on our gowns all the time.

This is the way after 22 years I have found works the best for MOST brides and their entourage: me or my staff is helping the bride at all times. We provide bike shorts and bustiers then a small hoop to keep the gown away from the legs. We choose the gowns and show the bride as many gowns as she wants and then go back through the favorites. Most brides love it.

Unfortunately we had one today whose mother was not about to let us help. She wouldn't use the hoop because it wouldn't go over the hips--has to go over the head. She did not understand how much more comfortable gowns are with a small hoop on. She told me the bride did not want ivory. The bride said she hadn't decided. The bride felt like we had a small amount of 14-16s to try on when she would not try on what has been our most popular the past year--ruching. Ruching across the bodice. Ruching on the skirt. Ruching over the hips, etc. Ruching is very flattering on most brides.

She is getting married in about six weeks. No one can order anything for her. I gave her a list of the stores that seem to have the most sleeved gowns and I wish her well. As a bridal retailer, we do not want to stock up on a lot of gowns this time of year because it is slower. As for us, we sold have three times as many gowns as we had anticipated in our new store for the month of August. We still have an excellent selection in sizes 2-32 in both white and ivory. Bliss by Bonny has an excellent line with sleeves and I work closely with them to have many gowns ready for immediate rush shipment.

If you are planning a wedding before February, I implore you, come in as soon as you can.

P.S. We need high school girls for a photo shoot for homecoming dresses.

INSTANT BRIDE

I always promise myself I'll be better at blogging, especially since we have so much to blog about in the bridal business. Here is one of the best stories: I received a call on my cell phone this morning about 9:00. The bride-to-be was getting her hair done for her wedding which was to take place TODAY! She asked if I had any size 22s. She had ordered her dress on-line and hadn't noticed the damage done to the gown before she got it. She needed a wedding dress FAST.

She came to the shop with her hair half done (I'm always saying that if you have a hairdo when you come in, you won't when you leave). She tried on two gowns and loved the second one. She is tall so the length was right. I put a bustle loop and hook on it and out the door she went to have her hair finished and to a Catholic church for the wedding which, I assume, took place at 2:00p.m. today. CONGRATULATIONS!

MORAL: Be very careful ordering on-line. We have heard of some happy endings, but more of the frightmare type.

Out of State Moms

I've noticed an interesting phenomenon. When a bride comes in with her mother, her mother is also caught up in the moment. However, when a bride has to call her mother and almost beg her to let her have the dress she has chosen, the mother is almost always resistant. Happened yesterday.

The bride finally found the gown she wanted (after being to almost every shop on the Wasatch Front) and her mother told her it was too expensive because tulle is inexpensive and the gown shouldn't be the price it was marked. The construction of this gown is particularly beautiful and the bride felt like a princess. Alas, another bride leaves in tears.

If moms read this I hope they realize it is a natural emotion to want to be with her daughter, but it can't always happen. She is getting married. If she can choose a groom I think she can choose a gown. Any thoughts? Post on our facebook.

DAY IN THE LIFE . . .

WOW! What a day. There is so much we do not have control over. This business is like flying a remote control plane with, now a 120 day delay. Which is what I would like to tell all the brides who are contemplating a Fall wedding. Don't delay!

Things are changing in China which directly affects the ability of all bridal salons to get their gowns in a timely manner. Timely today is at least 120 days without a rush 90 days with a rush. We do have many gowns in stock to try on in all sizes and many more ready to ship from California. Bridal season is winding down (we have more brides in August than any other month) and most bridal shops are not ordering a lot of new gowns in for Fall. Therefore, if you have a good idea that you will be getting married September through December, start looking immediately.

We have a special right now for $998. Any gown up to $1,000, veil, head piece, bustier, slip, necklace, earrings and shoes if purchased on the first visit. This applies to any gown we have or have to order in. Call to make an appointment (same day appointments are usually available), bring your Mom and do some serious looking!!

WHAT A WONDERFUL JOB!

No one has a better job than I do. We are realists and expect a miracle every day. We have many stories to tell and I want to be a better blogger and tell some. They are just snapshots of life, but you that are getting married might find them fun and interesting.

Two things today: We have started offering tux rentals again and a groom picked his up today and looked so handsome. If your groom doesn't want to wear a tux, insist upon it. They look sooooo good!! The guy who picked his up today is the youngest of 14 children, and wait, born in 16 years. Happy Mother's Day to his mother.

Yesterday I got a call from a bride in Vermont who wants a modest gown and, of course, has had a hard time finding one there. She ordered one from a large store on the Wasatch Front, but it arrived in a condition that she cannot wear it. So she googled and found us. We have the Bonny Bliss 2105 ready to ship from California in a white size 2 and it will be here tomorrow. It is a beautiful dotted swiss tulle and is a happy, fun ball gown. (Go to bonny.com to see it.) Her father called with a charge card number and we got that part taken care of.

But that is not the end of the story. Her fiance emailed me this morning with an email that made me tear up. He said ". . Will you please allow me to pay for the gown? I love the concept of the bridegroom furnishing his bride with a spotless wedding garment. . When they expect you to ask them for a card number, you could just tell them it's been paid for. Could this work?" I had w wonderful conversation with him and looked at their wedding website and saw their pictures. The love bug has bitten those two!!!

How is that for romantic? And, I had just read the part of Jane Eyre where Edward has declared his love for her. If you haven't read it, see the new movie and then buy the book. Barnes and Noble had it for about $8.00 in hardback.

Tomorrow is another day and more brides in our new shop. We are so excited about new lines and gowns we are getting in.

SUMMER WEDDINGS

Please, please, please! If you are planning a Summer wedding come in as soon as possible. If your Mom can't get here until the end of March, come in anyway. We are having a lot of calls like this. The current ship date (could change today) is July 1 and rush date is June 6. This is a longer time than we have experienced, but as I keep saying, things are changing in China and it is affecting how long it takes to get our gowns.

Although we do have a lot of gowns and a lot of gowns ready and almost ready to ship, sizes 2 and 4 are going fast and if we run out of them we have almost a four month wait for new ones.

HOW THE UNIVERSE WORKS

This is not the first time this has happened, but it is really fun when it happens. I had a bride come in and found her perfect gown--we had it in ivory; she wanted white. UPS has just delivered a humongous box and I knew I had a white one in the box in a different size. She loved the white one and ordered it in her size. I hung the unsteamed gown up to steam later.

My next bride came in and before we were back to the dressing room she described exactly the same gown in exactly the size I had just taken out of the box. She tried one more on--just to be sure and, of course, chose the gown she had seen on-line.

We'll have it steamed and ready to go when she comes back from Provo to go to the seamstress for minor alterations including a French bustle loop.

NEW STYLES ARRIVING EVERY WEEK

UPS is our friend! Every week we receive boxes of new items--and special orders including shoes, veils, head pieces, bustiers, jewelry and of course gowns. Two brides picked up their gowns which we had had shortened at the factory. Sometimes it is the best way to go depending upon how difficult it is to shorten the gown here.

Of course, you have to give us enough time to have it done for you. We can have a gown shortened on a rush, eight weeks, as well as a regular ship date, 12 weeks. I had a mom come in the other day looking for her daughter who is going to school in Southern Utah and said here sisters would be here in April. The bride is a size 2 and getting married in June. We do have lots of twos and many on order, but they are going fast. I would suggest the bride not wait until April.

If you are thinking of August as your wedding date, come in now.

SATURDAYS IN BRIDAL SEASON

We had appointments starting at 9:00 and ended at 5:00 Saturday February 12. It was really fun and there was a lot of energy in our shop. We had brides from size 2-20. We are pleased to say that every bride who came in found the gown of their dreams.

If you want to avoid the rush, morning weekdays are the least frenetic time to shop and we can usually see you on short notice. If you don't have an appointment and would like to come in immediately, call and see if we have a dressing room available.

If you are planning to borrow jewelry, veil or slip (or anything else you will be wearing), take them shopping with you to see if they work with the gown you choose. It is much easier for you to choose accessories while in your gown--kind of hard to choose jewelry at the mall in jeans and T-shirts.

SUMMER WEDDINGS

Being on this side of the Bridal Business, we have to kind of chuckle when a bride calls and tells us she isn't getting married until June, but wants to start looking. We need to start doing banner headlines in the newspaper in January, "GET YOUR WEDDING GOWN NOW!" Jane Q. Bride doesn't realize that most wedding gowns are made in China and there is a normal 3-6 month delivery time.

Our current ship-date is May 10 with a rush of April 5. We do have many gowns to purchase off the rack and many on order waiting to be shipped from California which means they can be here within a week. Call us at 801 463-1799 to make an appointment if you are getting married this summer. Weekday mornings are the most available. Saturdays are hectic in every bridal shop along the Wasatch Front.

HAPPY BEGINNINGS

Two days ago I had a couple come into the shop and said they are getting married next week. They saw two gowns on our website they loved. He left her there for us to play "Bride" and as it turned out we had both the gowns in her size--one in white and the other ivory.

After much deliberation she chose the ivory one. She looks like a princess. It is a beautiful ball gown style, which laces up the back with a very full skirt. She will be wearing a 120 inch veil to complete the princess look.

We have many gowns to purchase off the rack and gowns in the country to have immediately shipped. We do have sizes 2-30 to try on. Sometimes the sizes on either side of the size chart are hard to find. We love being able to fit almost every bride.