Though becoming an increasingly rare occurrence, every now and again, a fortunate individual wandering the beach comes across an antique glass Japanese fishing float that has managed to travel across oceans before appearing on shore. The people who find these treasured floats are said to be blessed, having been made witness to a momentous occurrence and been selected to participate in the journey.

Sharing Your Journey

So it should be with your wedding. Like a delicate glass float that has its beauty enhanced by the waves it has traveled over; taking the leap to wed attests that you, as a couple, have established the tenacity of your bond and found yourselves capable of weathering trials with your love intact. The choice to share your vows before the exceptional people in your life allows them to share in your continued joy and good fortune.

About bellaballs

While formed, each bellaball is crowned with a meaningful adornment stamped in Italian sterling silver. Adornments you may choose include: the Love stamp, Edwardian Heart, Beautiful Design, Neapolitan Bee, Lucky Horseshoe, Rococo Seashell or Classic bella Fig. With over 77 colors to choose from, we’re able to match your exact wedding palette. As with any bella, should you wish to use your own design or the dates of your wedding, custom stamps may be created especially for you.

Give Beautiful

Whether used as centerpieces, keepsakes for the wedding party, or favors for guests, everyone will feel connected to the joy and love you have brought before them as a couple.

To make your wedding bellas affordable, we blow them to a three inch size with no minimum order. Each wedding bella comes packaged with a sheer organza bag in silver, and includes a special display ring.

About The Guest Bloggers

With this inspiration, designer Lesli Jacobs-McHugh and glass artist Diane Hansen set to making their first bellaball glass floats for the wedding of Lesli’s daughter.  At the reception, each setting had a small glass float placed before it. In this way, each guest was given an affordable heirloom that would extend the currents of beauty and kinship into their own lives.

When Diane and Lesli met, they discovered their mutual love of Japanese floats. They created bellaballs as a symbol of strength and resilience. Bellaballs serve as a reminder that no matter where the currents of life take you, you always have the choice to live beautifully.

presents
Wedding Dresses: Figure Flattery
by Cynthia Andrews

Your wedding day is one of the few days in your life when all eyes are on you.  Of course you want to look your absolute best!  There are so many beautiful wedding dresses out there but every woman is created differently.  Sometimes you fall in love with a dress on the rack but you try it on and realize it looks nothing like what you thought when on you. The key is determining which style of dress looks best on your body.  The guideline below can be used to help determine the most flattering bridal gowns to help you look your best on your big day.

Are your hips, waist, and shoulders all a similar width?

Body Type: Rectangle

Best Dresses:  Sheath gowns, A-line gowns, short gowns

Tips: A ruched bodice, sweetheart neckline, and heavily beaded waistband or belt can help create the illusion of an hourglass.

Remember to embrace your body and look for a dress that accentuates your natural beauty.  You should be wearing the dress, the dress shouldn’t be wearing you!

 About our guest blogger

This information was brought to you by David’s Bridal, a nationwide bridal retailer featuring spectacular wedding dresses, gowns, accessories, and more. Cynthia Andrews a freelance writer with a love for all things wedding and fashion.  She enjoys being crafty and spending time with her husband and cat, Vera.

Almost everyone makes some type of New Year’s resolutions. But for brides getting married in 2012, making some simple resolutions can mean more confidence during the big day.

One of the most common resolutions in the New Year is to lose weight. It is important, however, to make the resolution achievable. Brides should set a timeline for themselves and develop action plans for losing weight such as cutting out sugar and increasing their daily exercise. Getting healthy and fit for a wedding means no worries about fitting into a wedding gown, and losing a few pounds makes any woman feel better, especially a bride. It might also be fun to set a long-term goal such as running a half marathon or entering another physical challenge. The challenge does not have to be completed before the wedding day, but setting such a goal might make exercising a little more fun.

Teeth whitening is another quick and easy resolution to make brides feel more confident on their wedding day. Teeth whitening can be done in a professional setting, but this tends to be costly. There are many MD, VA, and DC dentist offices that provide a range of services and some are not as expensive as others. There are also a variety of home teeth whitening systems that can be completed over a matter of weeks and are far less expensive than the office route. These systems have easy to follow instructions and involve teeth whitening trays or strips.

Proper skin care is a resolution that should be taken seriously for all brides. Starting a skin care regiment can reduce or eliminate blemishes and make the skin look younger. This regiment includes using an appropriate cleanser every morning, removing all make-up at night, moisturizing the skin daily and exfoliating at least once a week. Drinking plenty of water, eight to 10 glasses a day, and decreasing caffeine consumption are other easy steps to improving a bride’s overall complexion. It might also be wise to consult with a dermatologist. Dermatologists can create skin care goals and recommend other treatments to improve the complexion. Switching birth control can help the skin as well, but brides need to consult a doctor before making this type of decision.

It might be easier said than done, but eliminating stress might be the most important resolution a bride can make. Wedding planning should be a fun experience and stressing out about the little things will not make this happen. Brides should find activities to help relieve tension such as jogging or start going to a yoga class to learn relaxation techniques.

No matter the resolution, brides need to find those that are easily achievable and will make their wedding day even more special.

About the guest blogger: 

Liz Davies is a recent college graduate and aspiring writer especially interested in beauty and fashion. She wants to make a difference in people’s lives by spreading positive messages. Liz also likes shopping, hanging out with friends, reading and playing with her dog, April.

presents
Four Tips for Choosing the Perfect Wedding Favors
by Taylor Briggs

It’s wedding planning season for all of you newly-engaged summer brides-to-be! After you book the big things, like the venue, caterer, and band (or DJ!), you’ll have to take care of the smaller details that will bring your whole day together. One of these important details is the wedding favors! Many couples have a hard time picking out the perfect parting gift for their wedding guests, but don’t stress…we have four great tips for choosing wedding favors that won’t be left behind on the tables!

4. Make it Practical
Choose a favor that you know your guests will be able to use every day! There are plenty of practical gifts available, from kitchen accessories to bath items to personalized barware, all designed with wedding spin. Your guests will enjoy both the beauty and the practicality of these innovative favors!

3. Match Your Theme/Colors
Many wedding favors are available in a variety of colors so you can choose the ones that match your wedding look! If your wedding has a theme, choose favors that pull it all together. For a beach-themed wedding, you might choose sailboat candle wedding favors, or seashell bottle openers. For an Asian-inspired wedding, you could incorporate stainless steel chopsticks, or sake cups.

Sailboat candles to match a beach theme.

2. Save with DIY Favors

If you have a tight wedding budget to stick to, you can save loads of money by assembling your own wedding favors. Gather your bridesmaids for a DIY favors party and you’ll have cute and inexpensive favors in no time! Purchase bulk candies and favor bags or containers, to send your guests home with a sweet treat at the end of your special day!

Assemble favors with bulk candies and favor bags.

1. Personalize Your Favors

There are so many options for customized favors these days, that it would be silly not to add your own personal touch to remind your guests of your special day. It is easy to find wedding favor vendors that offer free personalization for their gifts, and they have plenty of options for personalization. At American Bridal, you can have martini glasses engraved, wine bottle labels printed, and tote bags embroidered, all with your names, wedding date, or monogram in the colors of your choosing!

Personalized wine bottles

Follow these tips, and your guests won’t be leaving the favors behind on your wedding day!

About our guest blogger:

American Bridal is a leading online retailer of wedding favors, accessories and gifts, offering the largest selection of products since 1997. As part of the XO group, which also includes theKnot.com and WeddingChannel.com, American Bridal has grown to become one of the most trusted names in wedding accessories and favors on the web today.

Taylor Briggs is a freelance writer who focuses specifically on wedding-related topics. She prefers to write about the different stages of planning a wedding, and especially loves reading about destination weddings. She had her own destination wedding last year in Aruba, when she tied the knot with her college sweetheart. During the planning stages of her wedding, she picked up several tricks of the trade, and loves sharing them with current brides-to-be!

Look good on your wedding day with Fitness Matters in Arlington, VA

Every bride and groom wants to look and feel their best on their wedding day. But the clock is ticking and every workout matters! There’s no time for winter doldrums and hibernation. You need a workout program that gets the results you want in time for your special day.

Fitness Matters of Arlington, VA and Big Fat Cake offer a FREE wedding workout to one lucky bride with up to 3 of her friends! Win one FREE private class with Tracie Anzaldi, plus 20% off your next purchase of a program or subscription! Let Tracie Anzaldi of Fitness Matters plan your workouts while you focus on planning your wedding day. Tracie will conduct a free fitness evaluation to help establish your goals. She will then create a custom bridal bootcamp for you and 3 friends. Bring your bridesmaids, groom, other bride-friends, family or just bring yourself!

Tracie can travel up to a 15-mile radius of Arlington, VA or you can have your FREE class in her studio in Arlington. Warning: if you attend one of her classes, you’re going to want to continue! Be ready to get inspired!

To enter, just answer the following by Feb 3, 2012:

How would a private bridal boot camp help you on your wedding day? 

Commenting Contest Rules and Mumbo Jumbo:

1. Respond to the question above. Needs to be substantive comments. Comments like “ha ha” and “lol” will not count. Decisions of what is substantive will be at the discretion of Big Fat Cake. We also have a spam filter for comments so comments with ads or profanity will not be counted.
2. Comments on this post will be counted from today to Friday, Feb 3rd, 2012 @11:59pm EST. Comments on our Big Fat Cake Facebook fan page are also appreciated but do not count for this contest.
3. You do not have to be a bride/groom/bridesmaid, or know anything about weddings to comment.
4. Winners are limited to 15-mile radius of Arlington, VA
5. Winner will be chosen by lottery.
6. Must redeem the FREE class by October 31, 2012.
7. No bashing of people…..however, bashing of thoughts is okay (but please try to have constructive criticism)
8. These rules are subject to change or be added upon (but there is no intent to).

Prices are low, purchases are 30-day risk-free returns and the dresses are 100% made to your measurements. Their total time to deliver is 30-35 calendar days, plus they often have giveaways. No wonder they are a friend of Big Fat Cake!

You can have a wedding reception inside Lincoln's Cottage. Photo Source: lincolncottage.org

My friends know that sometimes I end up doing random activities because of the random Groupons or LivingSocial deals that I buy. Scott falls victim to these activities but we always end up enjoying whatever it is that we normally wouldn’t have done (at least that’s what I say). Sometimes it’s a pain in the butt to use the deal before it expires, which was the case for this Groupon for admission to President Lincoln’s cottage. If you live in the DC area, you may ask, “where the heck is that?” You probably don’t know about it because the cottage opened to the public as a museum only a couple of years ago. It’s right next to the Soldier’s Home in northwest DC close to the border DC and Maryland.

The front of Lincoln's Cottage has a life-sized statue of Lincoln.

The Lincolns spent a lot of time at this cottage during Lincoln’s presidency, especially during the summers. How cool would it be to have your wedding reception here in the same place where the Lincoln’s also entertained their guests? The cottage recently opened to private events and the first wedding will happen here in April of 2012. The cottage itself can seat only 140, if you rent the first and second floors at $7,500. The education center next to the cottage is a newer building can hold up to 90 seats and they offer tent rental that can hold 150 seats. Plus, plenty of parking.

Lincoln spent time on the back porch where he had a view of the White House.

We talked awhile ago about having a ceremony at a historic church at Jamestown. At President Lincoln’s cottage, you could do both the ceremony and reception at a historical vacation spot. Maybe it’s because I’m getting older, but I’m finding a deeper appreciation for historic sites. I mean, isn’t it cool to have a wedding where historic figures spent their time? 

Caught on Facebook! Rewearing an outfit to another wedding with a different circle of friends. Normally, I would get away with it....no thanks to Facebook.

Can women everywhere please agree that re-wearing outfits to events is okay? Let’s make a pact. It would make our lives easier.

I would pick out a couple of ideas to follow and then call it a day because every aspect of your wedding has potential to be more green. If green advice says that your carbon footprint would increase if you did something that you really wanted to do, such as fly to the Caribbean for your honeymoon, then you should ask yourself, “Will I be more sad about not going to the Caribbean, or will I be more sad about the carbon footprint of my plane travel?” If you don’t feel guilty enough, then don’t worry about it.

Randomly, there is a compilation of green wedding blogs on Top Online Colleges. This list is pretty good and includes 50 different blogs that you could follow.

While we’re at it, I like these 5 easy ideas that you could do for your wedding:

1. Use chalkboard signs as much as possible instead of paper (see above from RecycledBride.com)
2. Reuse items that would normally be discarded. This couple reused film canisters from work and repacked it with their wedding invitation.
3. Minimize transportation requirements by inviting less people (think the cost of traveling by car, plane, or train multiplied by number of guests), forgo the limo rental, or plan a honeymoon that involves minimal transportation.
4. Use recycled paper for your invitations. Top Online College’s list has several vendors that use recycled paper and with chic designs.
5. Keep meat to a minimum. Meat has the biggest impact on the environment among food items so if you leave it out, you’ve reduced your carbon footprint. This idea is easy to do, but personally, I’d be sad without meat on the menu.

Eco-friendly invitations, such as formal-invitations.com, give only 100% recycled paper options.

What green ideas have you done, or intent to do for your wedding?

Reese Witherspoon's engagement ring was the only ring on her left hand during their engagement. Photo Source: abcnews.go.com

Unless you’re of the lucky few (especially in this economy), you haven’t sported a ring worth thousands on your hands. I wore a thumb ring on my left hand for most of my college career and a few years after. When I got engaged, I didn’t think to move it. After scolding from close girlfriends, I moved the ring, and finally never wore it again. Same goes for my other rings. I was a little disappointed at the time because those rings were also part of my personality (I’m over it, I promise) but looking back, it was the right thing to do because it showed how important the engagement and wedding rings were.

How have you worn your engagement or wedding rings? Do those rings deserve the entire hand? 

Guys – do you figure out the answer before asking?
Girls – do you give the answer before he asks?