Blogs

Photo courtesy of Candice via Yahoo Shine

With so many details planned to a T, a bride knows she needs to anticipate the potential for something to go wrong on her wedding day. Though most day-of emergencies can be fixed with a sewing kit and tampons, one bride required 911 assistance...in more ways than one.

On Sunday, August 11, a bride named Amanda [she declined to publish her last name] had her wedding gown stolen on the morning of her nuptials in Washington, DC. She had been packing her car in preparation for the ceremony when, upon returning from a quick trip to the house, she discovered the dress had gone missing. Panicked, she called 911 to report the theft. 

This article originally appeared on The Huffington Post

At just 17 years old, Stevie Beale was paralyzed from the waist down in a tragic car crash that killed the car's driver — and Beale's best friend — Charlie.

“[After the accident] I thought I was doomed to my parents' house, to never have a boyfriend or never get married,” Beale told Today.com. “I thought I was going to sit at home and rot away.”

But after the accident, the Toledo, Ohio bride vowed to walk down the aisle on her wedding day, no matter what. And this weekend, the 24 year old did just that. With the help of a walker, Beale ambled down the aisle, a huge smile on her face, toward her groom, Jared VanAusdale.

Watch the video below!

Bride-to-be Kelly Clarkson deputed her latest music video today for her wedding anthem, "Tie it Up." The fun video intercuts footage from fans' weddings with Clarkson wearing a short wedding dress partying in a barn — a sneak peek at Clarkson's wedding style?

Clarkson hasn't been shy about sharing wedding details with fans; she recently tweeted her sweet literary-themed engagement photo, she announced that close friend and country singer Blake Shelton will be officiating and, after finding her dream dress at Vera Wang, she clued us in that it's "a little rock and roll. A little tattered. Nothing like a princess thing!"

We can't wait to see wedding photos!

—Kristen O'Gorman Klein

Guest Blogger: Jessica Hochstadt, MS, Nutritionist and owner of “I Do” Nutrition
Jessica was a Nutritionist and Health Educator in a Boston-based hospital before deciding to focus her practice on brides with “I Do” Nutrition—a global weight-loss service that caters to brides and their bridal parties, on their schedule. She understands that everyone has a different relationship with food, and enjoys guiding bridal parties to appreciate the importance behind meal planning, understanding nutrition, and building a healthy lifestyle. In a time where our world and kitchen cupboards have become overly saturated with misinformation about nutrition, Jessica brings the simplicity back to a field that has sustained us through life.

Your wedding is going to be one of the most memorable days of your life — and hopefully for all the right reasons (like marrying your best friend and person you love, and celebrating with your closest friends and family) — not because you couldn’t fit into your wedding dress or had an allergic reaction to peanuts before walking down the aisle. (Laugh, but these things have happened!)

Photo Credit: Diana Lewkowicz Photography

Most everyone loves taking photos at weddings. We all want to capture those special moments: the bride’s walk down the aisle, the first dance, the toasts, cutting the cake and more. I’m a huge photo-taker myself, but at a wedding I recently attended, I couldn’t help but notice how impossible it was to get a decent shot due to the number of other guests armed with cell phones, iPads or digital cameras. Just when I thought I had a great picture lined up, someone would pop in front of me, block the view and start clicking away with her own camera or cell phone. I gave up and later asked the couple if I could just take a few photos of them. They happily obliged.

Now, if I found it impossible to get some decent photos, imagine how frustrating all the guest paparazzi are to professional wedding photographers. Their goal is to present the bride and groom with a beautiful portfolio sans the interference of guests’ heads, arms, cell phones, iPads or cameras blocking the view. Plus, all those flashes can cause a picture to become blown out or create red or green focus dots on the subject. And some couples simply do not want any photos posted on social media sites before they’ve had a chance to receive professional pictures from their photographer.

When my fiancé Gray and I were deciding where to have our wedding, we had three choices: Tallahassee (our current home), Pittsburgh (my hometown) and Satellite Beach (where Gray grew up). Ultimately, we decided that Pittsburgh was just too far for us to be going back and forth and we didn't want to burden my parents with too much responsibility. (Also, flying out of Tallahassee regularly would have been a monstrous expense.) We crossed Tallahassee off the list because I wanted a fall wedding, which meant that we'd be competing with Florida State and Florida A&M football.

So, we picked Satellite Beach and signed a venue contract this past week (!) for a beach wedding at a Crowne Plaza in Melbourne Beach. Our wedding venue is located just 10 minutes away from where Gray's mom lives, but it's more than four hours away from our home in Tallahassee. We're currently dealing with the challenges of planning a long-distance wedding and we're sort of learning as we go. Here are some of the things that have worked for us so far.

Photo courtesy of Crowne Plaza in Melbourne Beach

To glow is one thing; to glisten and shine is quite another. Such is the challenge of oily-skin care — especially during the summer months. Here are three products that have become permanent members of my hot-weather beauty arsenal. If you have oily skin, you’ll thank me.

Step 1: Cleanse

Keeping pores clear is the key to a smoother complexion. The trick is to find a way to exfoliate regularly without irritation — if you have clogged, oil-prone skin, scrubs meant to be used only once or twice a week aren’t going to do much good.

A better idea: daily gentle sloughing. G.M Collin Active Exfoliant refines and exfoliates with rice powder granules, plus fruit-based enzymes derived from papain and bromelain (papaya and pineapple).

$39, available at spas and skin1.com

Step 2: Mattify

Finally, a mattifyer that really and truly works (take it from me: I’ve tried them all). Avène Eau Thermale Mattifying Fluid does precisely what it says, sans oily-feeling silicones. The star ingredient here is patent-pending Glutamic acid, which works to inhibit sebum production. The formula itself is a gel-fluid, with just enough hydration for people like me, who feel that regular moisturizers just exacerbate the oil-slick syndrome. Skin is left with a naturally fresh, matte finish.

This past week, I unfortunately did not lose any weight (on the plus side, I also didn’t gain any!). After my disappointing weigh-in on Saturday, my trainer Bonne Marcus took my measurements, and that cheered me up — I am down another six inches from the last time she measured me five weeks ago! I lost one and a half inches from my chest, two inches from my waist and two and a half inches from my abs! I had a good week last week eating and exercise-wise, and it definitely bothered me that no pounds came off, but the inches are important, too.

Bonne points out, “The scale is a poor indicator of whether or not you are overweight. Your body composition is not simply determined by how much you weigh, but by how much of your body weight comes from fat. Appropriate amounts of both fat and lean tissue are necessary for optimal health.” A better way to measure yourself is to through a body fat test with a skin caliper. Using the tool, “a trainer will pinch certain sites on your body to get a measurement. It is not completely accurate, but it does give you a good picture.”

Photo Credit: Jennifer Roper Photography on Oh Lovely Day via Lover.ly

Q: My maid of honor is planning my bridal shower and we both agree that children shouldn’t be included. Are we wrong? And how do we let people know?

A: No, you’re not wrong. Bridal showers are traditionally for grown ups. Little ones can become bored quite easily, especially if all those pretty packages don’t hold toys for them! Have your maid of honor and bridesmaids address the envelopes to invited guests only and spread the word that the gathering will be just for adults. 

—Diane Forden