Good afternoon. I hope your day is going as quickly as mine!  Work is flyyyyying by and I think I’ve finally gotten a huge document ready for print. Yippee!

 

Around 9:00 AM, I snacked on some cantaloupe:

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And for lunch, I made a baked tofu + sweet potato sammie.  I drenched the tofu in Anne’s Organic BBQ sauce before baking…. divine!

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On the side, I had a plum tomato + cucumber

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I love raw veggies. πŸ™‚

 

And for dessert….

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Wedding Details: Bridesmaid Dresses!

 

I have seven (yes, seven) lovely bridesmaids.  One is a friend I’ve known since middle school, five are my college girlfriends, and one is Future Husband’s wonderful sister.  They are all outrageously good-looking girls, and I really wanted them to all look beautiful on my wedding day.

 

So…. I let them choose their bridesmaid dresses!  I picked out three styles in the same color and material (at David’s Bridal) and told each of them to pick their favorite style.  I thought a mixture of dresses would look  modern, but the same color + material would make it obvious everyone is part of the same ‘bridal party.’

 

Everyone but my maid of honor actually ended up picking the same dress!  My MOH picked one with straps, and it actually works out perfectly because she’ll stand out a little more!

 

Here is the bridesmaid dress (modeled by me!):

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The bridesmaid’s bouquets will include daises, green button mums, and green hydrangea viburnum.  (The groomsmen are wearing pinstripe tuxes with the same yellow-colored tie and vest.  They’ll have green button mum boutonnieres.)

 

Since we’re getting married outside, I thought a short dress for the bridesmaids would be ideal. Very Florida-ish, don’t you think!? (Our wedding has a Florida theme, as indicated on the invites!)

 

And I know every bride says this, but I actually think the girls will be able to wear their dresses again! One bridesmaid is already planning to wear it to a spring wedding she’s attending. Score!

 

Have you ever had to wear an ugly bridesmaid dress?  Spill the details!

{ 50 comments }

 

  • Jen October 23, 2008, 9:36 am

    Love the bridesmaid dresses! My wedding is in Dec in Mexico (on the beach) and I have the same color for my bridesmaids!

    Looks beautiful!

  • leslie Brand October 23, 2008, 9:45 am

    Hi Caitlin! First time commenter, but long time reader! Your blog is one of my absolute favorites.

    I thought you might have an answer to this: I started getting serious about running this past summer, and completely fell in love with it. IÒ€ℒve already decided to do a half marathon next year. I looooove being outside when I run, but I live in NY, and itÒ€ℒs getting pretty chilly up here! I usually just run in old gym clothes, but something tells me thatÒ€ℒs not going to cut it when itÒ€ℒs 40 degrees outside. Do you have any suggestions on cool-weather gear? IÒ€ℒm just not ready to go back inside to the treadmill yet!

    Also I love the bridesmaid dresses – elegant but not over the top, so perfect for a Florida wedding!

  • VeggieGirl October 23, 2008, 9:49 am

    You and I both had sweet potatoes in our lunches :0)

    Oh my, the bridesmaid dress is LOVELY!! Especially since it’s in my favorite color.

    Luckily, I haven’t had to wear any ugly bridesmaid dresses – hopefully that trend will continue, haha.

  • Meghann October 23, 2008, 9:50 am

    haha I LOVE the hand on the hip pose. Your arm looks so skinny. It’s become such a habit of mine I have to make a consious effort not to do it when I take pictures now, I just always love the results though. πŸ™‚

    I will probaly be there around 6 I have a few things to do around my apt before I head over. What are you doing about dinner. I was going to have a large snack before I come over, but should I pick up something easy for a small dinner while I am at publix as well?

    p.s. I love how are blogs are how we talk to each other..lol

  • lauren October 23, 2008, 9:50 am

    I love those bridesmaid dresses! they are definitely the type to be able to wear again! I have been pretty lucky with the 5 bridesmaid dresses I have that 4 of them were something I could definitely wear again! 4 out of 5 isnt bad!

  • Olga October 23, 2008, 9:52 am

    That’s such a cute dress, definitely not what is associated with ugly bridesmaid dresses =]

    I’ve never been a brides maid (well, not YET) but my best friend’s sister once had to wear this AWFUL bright orange long dress…The bride took them to a tanning booth beforehand too so they were ALL orange. It was very unflattering!

    I love raw veggies too!

  • teacherwoman October 23, 2008, 9:57 am

    Love the bridesmaid dress! Looks very comfy and I love the color!

  • Bridget October 23, 2008, 10:04 am

    I have 7 bridesmaids too! And they are wearing different dresses also! Mine are a little different because I chose 3 different shades of bright/deep pinks, same fabric, and they choose the style…I think it will look really good πŸ™‚

    Love your dress!! Those will look soooo pretty and yes very Florida!

    I haven’t been a bridesmaid yet, but I’ve just been asked by one of my BM’s and she likes the dresses I picked out so much she wants to use the same company!

  • Sharney October 23, 2008, 10:04 am

    What pretty bridesmaid dresses! The color is so gorgeous and the dress looks so light & airy- it is definitely a keeper and one that the girls will be able to wear over and over!

    Quick tofu question for you…Believe it or not, but I have NEVER tried tofu. I have decided to finally take the plunge! What recipe would you recommend for a newbie like me? Would it be your "Perfect Baked Tofu"? Any help would be so much appreciated πŸ™‚

  • Sharney October 23, 2008, 10:12 am

    Oh! One more thing, Caitlin… I did not have the sweet potato/black bean wrap for dinner last night πŸ™ Not because I didn’t want to, but my husband and I had some gift shopping to do and we just grabbed something while we were out. So, tonight is sweet potato/black bean wrap night! Yay! I am so excited to try and will let you know what I think πŸ™‚

  • Meg October 23, 2008, 10:16 am

    I love the dresses and the flowers sound beautiful! You must be so excited!

  • Lauren October 23, 2008, 10:24 am

    LOVE the dress, super cute and even though I’m not from FL, it makes me think of FL. πŸ™‚

    Girl, I’ve been in so many weddings, some good dresses, some I think I literally jumped out of it as soon as I was allowed. I was determined as a Bride to make sure my 6 bridesmaids were comfortable and felt confident in the dresses I asked them to wear.

  • magpie October 23, 2008, 10:31 am

    Your bowl is so pretty!

    The bridesmaid dresses are so perfect πŸ™‚

  • Katie October 23, 2008, 10:42 am

    gorgeous dress! i love the scene in 37 dresses when katherine heigl models all the hideous dresses she’s had to wear… luckily your girls won’t have that problem!

  • tfh October 23, 2008, 10:46 am

    Beautiful dress. I love a bride who is secure enough to want her bridesmaids to look pretty! πŸ˜‰

    b.t.w. made your black-bean-and-mushroom burger the other night– sooo easy and delicious. Much better (and cheaper) than Gardenburger.

  • bitesoflife October 23, 2008, 10:58 am

    Your bridesmaid dresses are really cute and they totally should be able to wear them again.

    Two years ago, I was in three weddings and all of them used the same lavender color but none of the dresses were remotely close in style! They were all pretty ugly, like ballroom-y type dresses so they weren’t anything I could wear again, nor would I really want to!

  • RhodeyGirl/Sabrina October 23, 2008, 11:03 am

    I’ve only been in one wedding and it was my brother’s. The dress my sister in law picked for us was seriously SO gorgeous and I have worn it to 4 or 5 weddings already, with plans to probably wear it again to a wedding in January! I’ve had it taken in twice and I might do it again bc the dress is so gorgeous it’s worth it.

    LOVE the looks of that sandwich.

  • whatiateyesterday October 23, 2008, 11:05 am

    V. cute dress!

    I left my girls pick their dresses too and they ended up picking the same one! And even better, is they have both already worn them again!

  • Meghann October 23, 2008, 11:12 am

    Sadly, I have never been asked to be in a wedding so I haven’t had the pleasure of worrying about ugly bridesmaid dresses.:(

    I will bring the olive oil! and lentil cookies, I have a huge bag of them so you have to try. They are divine!

  • Caitlin (see bride run) October 23, 2008, 11:21 am

    leslie brand – thanks for readin!!! when i lived in PA, i did most of my winter-time running indoors, so I can’t give you much advice. I would recommend getting a sweat-wicking cap and avoid cottons. GOOD LUCK ON YOUR HALF!!!

    olga- hHAHAHAh that sounds HORRIBLE!!

    sharon – yes! i would try the perfect baked tofu! πŸ™‚ enjoy!!

    bites of life – ewwwwwww those dresses sound horrible!

    meghann – MMMM cookies!! yay

  • Lacey Nicole October 23, 2008, 11:29 am

    GORGEOUS!!! i would wear that dress definitely!!! is it a d’s bridal exlusive?! πŸ™‚

  • Leah October 23, 2008, 11:40 am

    Hey Caitlin, does FH has 7 groomsmen as well? Just curious!

  • amy. October 23, 2008, 11:43 am

    very pretty dress! its great how the maid of honor will stand out. i love the modern way of bridesmaids wearing different dresses in the same color/fabric.

    i’ve only been in one wedding and i was the flower girl! i was only 7 or 8 yrs old haha πŸ™‚

  • Danielle October 23, 2008, 11:51 am

    Beautiful bridesmaid dress! And I definitely think they’ll be able to use it again, love it :).

    What kind of tofu do you use for baking?

  • Caitlin (see bride run) October 23, 2008, 11:51 am

    lacey – i think so!

    leah – he has 6. so one dude will walk down the aisle with two hotties on his arms. πŸ™‚ lucky him!

  • *Andrea* October 23, 2008, 11:54 am

    you are lucky to have 7 great girl friends πŸ™‚

    LOVE the bridesmaid dresses. i think you are possibly the nicest bride ever

  • Caitlin (see bride run) October 23, 2008, 11:56 am

    danielle – extra firm, with the water pressed out.

    andrea – hahaha im trying to be a non-bridezilla. really, really trying. ive only had one minor meltdown so far!

  • BOBBI McCORMICK October 23, 2008, 1:55 pm

    very cute dress!

    Sence I have been in about 15 weddings I would have to say YES! One time the dress was beautiful though and it cam in too small so my boobs were up to my chin, I looked a little riskay(spellin?) but it was my fault for not trying it on till the day of!

    Oh and how do you bake your tofu?

  • wholefoodswholeme October 23, 2008, 1:59 pm

    your bridesmaids are very lucky!! that is one gorgeous dress. have you seen the film 27 dresses? so funny.

  • Catherine October 23, 2008, 2:00 pm

    Absolutely love that dress!! So nice of you to let your girlies pick their own style too – I always feel bad when I go to wedding and see one or two girls that look great in their ‘maids dresses and one or two that look miserable.

  • Lee October 23, 2008, 2:01 pm

    beautiful, beautiful, BEAUTIFUL dress!

  • Emily October 23, 2008, 2:56 pm

    Hey Cailin! I’m Emily the “waking up at 3am to eat girl” from yesterday. Good news, I didn’t wake up hungry last night b/c I tried to eat a very filling dinner with lots more veggies and protein! YAY! Anyway, here’s a non food question for ya. I’m getting married in November and have a similar hair and skin color to your’s judging from your photos. Are you do any kind of purposeful tanning before your wedding? Something tells me probably not as health conscious as you are, but if you’re not, are you doing any kind of lotions or bronzers? I can’t make up my mind about what I want to do. I feel so much prettier with a tan, but don’t feel like spending money and time on skin cancer just to have a tan at my wedding, ya know?

  • Emily October 23, 2008, 2:57 pm

    So sorry I typoed your name!! I know how to spell C-A-I-T-L-I-N, I promise! πŸ™‚

  • Tami October 23, 2008, 4:25 pm

    i have too many to mention…..i have a bad wedding story that always shines (or darkens) any wedding story.

  • Tami October 23, 2008, 4:27 pm

    LESLIE-i have some ideas for outdoor running clothes, i live in New Hampshire so I have some really great stuff. I got it at REI but I can recommend some general things.

  • Marlow October 23, 2008, 4:32 pm

    I love the dresses!! Also, the bouquets sound beautiful!

  • just me October 23, 2008, 4:51 pm

    ohhhhh…love the color and design!! i would def wear that again to something else! you’re so considerate to let them choose the design! i love the modern theme!

  • HangryPants October 23, 2008, 5:06 pm

    I’ve been really lucky with bridesmaid dresses actually.

    I love this dress. I so badly want yellow bridesmaid dresses and I love the flowers, too!

  • D10 October 23, 2008, 5:42 pm

    Cute dresses. When I got married I let the girls pick out their own dresses. All my girls we shaped a little different and varied in age too, Matt has 3 younger sisters! I wanted them to all feel comfortable in what they wore.

  • Nicole (anotheronebitesthecrust.wordpress.com) October 23, 2008, 6:28 pm

    The dress is fantastic! So pretty. I love it!

  • Chloe October 23, 2008, 6:53 pm

    I’ve actually never been to a wedding! Can you show us the other bridesmaid dress? I love the one you picked out though!

  • Sharney October 23, 2008, 6:57 pm

    Hi Caitlin! Well, I made the black bean/sweet potato wrap tonight for dinner and OMG!!! AWESOME!!! I really loved it and it was so quick & easy, too. Thank you so much for all the recipe ideas- I have loved every recipe of yours that I've tried. Thank you!
    PS- I hope you and Meghann are having a great time and that the yoga & spinning went well! Did you carve a scary or happy pumpkin?!?!

  • Caitlin (see bride run) October 23, 2008, 8:16 pm

    bobbi – for that tofu, i just pressed the liquid out, coated it in BBQ sauce, and baked it at 350 for 30 minutes.

    emily – hmmmm great question. i dont fake tan (in a bed) anymore and i rarely lay outside because i'm very considered about skin cancer. but i may get a spray tan done a few days before the wedding so it has some time to wash off a little and look natural. the kind where you stand naked in front of a lady who hand sprays you is the best! do a test run run first! and i'm super glad you slept well last night!

    chloe – here is the maid of honor dress:

    http://www.davidsbridal.com
    /bridesmaids_detail.
    jsp?stid=3319&prodgroup=
    110&sid=18588

    (no spaces)

    sharon – YAYYYY i am so glad you liked it!! thats AWESOME!

    and i made a happy jack o latern!

  • Claire October 23, 2008, 8:26 pm

    Those are really pretty dresses and YES, I think they’ll be able to wear them again. OH MY! I had a really ugly dress. It was for my cousin’s wedding. First of all, the style of the dress was like Madrigals (empire waist, poof sleeve with elastic at arm and flowy sleeve all the way down.). Secondly, they were hand made by DIFFERENT people, so everyone’s looked different (in a bad way). And the fabric was this bad light blue. Oh well! She looked really pretty and that’s what REALLY matters, right?

  • Caitlin (see bride run) October 23, 2008, 8:33 pm

    HAHAH CLAIRE! that sounds horrible!

  • sara October 23, 2008, 8:34 pm

    the only time i’ve been a bridesmaid was in my brother’s wedding. the dresses were royal blue satin with a gentle scoopneck and an empire waist. not horrific by any means … what made it horrific, however, were the above-the-elbow matching royal blue gloves that we had to wear.

    quite cheesy in my mind.

  • Caitlin (see bride run) October 23, 2008, 8:42 pm

    ewwwww sara!! yours might win!

  • Tim Rosanelli October 24, 2008, 5:57 am

    You’re bridesmaid’s dresses are young, vibrant, and gorgeous.

    Wow, look out, your bridesmaids are going to be knockouts!

    Tim Rosanelli
    View my blog at
    Sensei Talks
    Join our sit-up challenge at
    60 Situps in a Minute Challenge

  • Mrs. LC October 24, 2008, 6:26 am

    I love your bridesmaid dresses! haha I loved them so much that I had MY bridesmaids wear them when I got married in July! It was the same style (except all the girls wanted to use the spaghetti straps that came with the dress…whatever, I was pretty easy going!) except the color was David’s Bridal “pool”. It was SOOO gorgeous…we got married in a beautiful chapel that the color of the dresses looked fantastic in. πŸ™‚

    If you ever have any wedding planning questions let me know! (esp. about budget stuff…we did our entire wedding, including manis/ pedis for the ladies in my family, and much more for under $5,000!) And it did not look cheap at all…candy buffet for favors, full served luncheon (we had a mid-day ceremony cuz I am a HUGE fan of natural sunlight), wine/ beer/ champagne, and our wedding cake was even cheesecake! YUM!

    Anyway, PLEASE let me know if you want any help. I’m currently helping a few other brides plan weddings, so let me know! Marriage is awesome, you’ll love it!

  • Andrea (Off Her Cork) October 24, 2008, 12:23 pm

    Oh lord every dress but one was icky. I had one that didn’t look bad but was a pain to get into, it had a zipper, buttons, and hooks. Crazy!

    The ones you picked out are so airy and girly! Very nice!

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