Welcome back to wedding week here at Bower Power – and nothing says Bower Bridal Power like the name Maggie Sottero.

I love me some Maggie.  We go way back.  Back to my first ever bridal show.  I wore a Maggie gown that night…and it was love at first fitting.  It was plumb amazing.  The workmanship of a gown…the feel of the fabric…the way that this woman designs bridal dresses…well, let’s just say it is enough to make my blood boil over.  So I knew that when it came time to say ‘I do’ – I wanted Maggie to be there with me holding my love handles.  Enter the Shannon dress.  It was everything I wanted.  Sweetheart neckline WITH STRAPS, a corset back with no tail, a little sparkle up top and some interest in the back.  My seamstress added the french bustle to really make Shannon shine.   

 

Next came the hair and veil.  Hair was going to be up.  I had learned long ago that curls fall flat in Georgia heat…even in October.  So I knew that my best bet to beat the humidity was to pin-er-up and spray the heck outta her.  My lovely hairdresser fixed it the morning of the wedding with lots of lift in my bangs area and lots of curls in the back.  The curls were perfect for hiding the place where the extra-long veil pinned in.  I actually borrowed my veil from a local bridal shop (where I had done some modeling) and the owner was gracious enough to allow me the entire week with the princess-like sweep of fabric.

The shoes were actually free too because I already had owned them.  They were my favorite pair for bridal shows and they were perfectly broken in.  The 3.5″ heel was oh-so-comfy and I didn’t have a single blister – even after dancing the night away.

As a bouquet, I decided to carry my grandmother’s family bible.  Since I am not a really flowery type of girl – especially since blooms cost an arm and a leg in October – the Bible was actually the perfect representation of who I am…low maintanence, grounded, and totally in-tuned with morality.  Stop laughing Jeremy.  In actuality I am not those things.  I am, however, incredibily in love with Jesus.  And that was enough to convince me that the thing I wanted most to carry down that aisle to my future was the word of love.

And love would suit me just fine – especially since you get jewelry on the day you celebrate it.  Our rings are white gold and we were able to find the perfect fits for our busy (but oh-so-chic-renovating) lifestyle 🙂  My ring is really really thin with diamonds half-way around.  And Jeremy’s is one of the narrowest we could find but with a little detail encircling the top and bottom.  

Finally – one of the cheapest things that I had on that day was the paper parasol that we got to take lots of photos with.  I love the southern charm of a parasol, don’t you? And mine were super affordable since I ordered a dozen off of Oriental Trading and doled out others to the bridal party gals.  

So there you have it – a complete rundown of the things that made me feel like a fairy princess on my big day.

Anything surprise ya?  Did you see that Bible bouquet coming?  Or maybe you just thought that I played it safe on my big day when you did something truly outrageous.  Spill those blissful day beans!