Mirror, Mirror, On the Wall...

Dress Number Two is the least fair of them all!



To refresh your memory (do we really want to do that?), here is the Ugliest Bridesmaid Dress of all time!

A big congrats though, to Michelle Williams Rognon, who will be rewarded for her diligent friendship (because it takes friendship to wear that dress, and that is all I am going to say), with the Golden Gate bridesmaid dress of her choice, in the fabulous color of her choice!

(Michelle, just pop your e-mail address in the comments section and we'll hook you up! And rest assured, this dress you really will be able to wear again!)

And now, a big hand (and condolences) to all our participants! (Next time I will figure out how to use Survey Monkey for real. Promise.)

For those of you coveting a Golden Gate dress of your own, be not dismayed. These gorgeous gowns are good for so much more than saving you from bridesmaid Hades.

I am already planning to rock important business meetings in this carefully tailored, pleat-topped dress...

And this the flirty ruffles of this dress seem like the perfect companion for a Spring brunch and an afternoon browsing used book stores...




What is your favorite Golden Gate dress?
And, weddings, aside, where do you plan to wear it?

Remember, Remember...

... that there are only a few more hours to vote for the Ugliest Bridesmaid Dress of All Time! We will be shutting the contest down at high noon, Mountain Standard Time. So, get to perusing and vote casting, and all of that.

And, once your eyes have been sufficiently doused in the not-so-awesome, hop over to Shabby Apple and recover with the whimsical and wonderful Golden Gate bridesmaid dresses, now available for your viewing (and purchasing!) pleasure!

The winner of the Ugliest Bridesmaid Dress of All Time contest will be announced first thing Monday morning.

Happy weekend, kittens!

Wedding Bell(a)

Because the Internet is a place where we do not judge each other, I feel totally comfortable and not at all embarassed telling you that I watched "Twilight" three times last weekend.

And then maybe I got on Stephenie Meyer's Web site and read a bunch of stuff there.

And then maybe I kept scouring the World Wide Web for any other "Twilight"-related tidbits.

Which might have led me to a feature from In Style Magazine, wherein well-known designers took a stab at designing Bella's wedding dress, based on a reference in the third novel, "Eclipse." No one has caught a glimpse of the real thing yet (real being a relative term, natch), but if I was Bella (oh, were that I were Bella!) I think I would be happy to walk down the aisle toward my dreamy vampire love in any one of these creations.

Check out the link (come on, you know you want to) and then tell us: Which dress do you think is best for the soon-to-be Mrs. Cullen?

And if it was you stepping into marital bliss, which dress would you pick for yourself?

Always a Bridesmaid

Here's the latest from our hard-working, fun-loving interns. This week's installment comes from Kate Weed. Ready? Steady? Read!

Bridal Bombardment
To put it mildly, marriage has been a topic that has popped into my life with surprising frequency in the last six months or so. You could say it’s a theme that’s been relentlessly assailing me in multiple lines of attack. The kitchen bulletin board that was to be devoted to photos of me and my roommates joyously checking off our list of fun summer activities features has been invaded by invites, barraged by bridal showers and bachelorette parties, and attacked by armadas of announcements. It seems I might be the only one who missed the memo that Summer 2009 is the time to wed for my high school graduating class.

The subject doesn’t escape me even at my part-time job at a children’s clothing store, where one of the main drives of shopping mothers lately has been the outfitting of their children in color-coordinated clothing for the summer weddings of family members.

While you might assume that the force with which this theme has permeated my existence in the last half year would have driven me to a matrimonial overdose, I have found that there is one essential element to a wedding that can keep my interest in any marital celebration: the clothing that comes with it. I’ve recently become a fan of TLC’s “Say Yes to the Dress,” in which a bridal shop seeks to fulfill every entering bride’s dream of that perfect white gown, and when I discuss a neighborhood reception with my mother or sisters, the meat of our conversation tends to revolve around the apparel of the wedding party.

The obvious focus of wedding fashion is on every aspect of the bride’s dress, but I’d like to devote a little attention here to the attire of the bridesmaid. Bridesmaid dresses can be downright awful (think of Katherine Heigl’s atrocious “27 Dresses”), but the Bridesmaid of 2009 actually has the potential to rival (or at least come close) to the bride in a look of up-to-date elegance. I love J.Crew’s vision for the modern bridesmaid for this retailer’s rejection of the dowdy or unoriginal bridesmaid dress. Rather than presenting bridesmaid models in the same dress and the same color, this retailer suggests keeping bridesmaids in a unified color but letting each attendant choose the dress shape most flattering for her body type.







Conversely, bridesmaids can be dressed in the same dress but in a variety of colors. Or, give the bridesmaids a few choices in colors and styles and everyone comes out looking and feeling their very best.

Shabby Apple dresses provide bridesmaid solutions for both traditional and less-traditional wedding styles. All bridesmaids would shine, for example, in the flattering and forgiving color/shape combo of the Martha’s Vineyard brown wrap dress.






Or, if she wanted to mix it up a little as J.Crew designers recommend, a bride could outfit her attendants in Shabby Apple’s varying styles of the little black dress, or even interject punches of color with the bold-hued Some Like it Hot red wrap dress or Upper East Side bright blue pleated dress.

While I won’t be the bride at the (biweekly) weddings I find myself attending this summer, I’ll be content for now, knowing that my current saturation in all things nuptial has at least provided me with some delicious wedding cake, some delightful dance floors, and the knowledge that in today’s world, the well-outfitted bridesmaid can walk tall.

Color Me Mine

Since you all did such a wonderful job choosing our bridesmaid dress designs, I have another favor to ask of you. Just a small one. Are you ready? Set?

Here we go.

All I need you to do this time is let us know what colors you would like to see those stunning bridesmaid dresses made in. Are you thinking of a sweet, flowered neckline in a buttery yellow? A bold plum for a striking keyhole neckline? A skirt flowing in soft lavendar? We want to hear all about it!

It's a little hard to see, but each swatch has a number, starting with the left-hand column and going down each column in order (so the swatches at the top of each column are 1, 6 and 11. Catch my drift?). Hop into the comments section and let us know what two or three colors tickle your fancy. And, if you want to match the colors to the specific bridesmaid dress designs, you can certainly do that, too.

Isn't this the best kind of coloring?

Can't wait to see what you come up with!

Voice of the People

The results of the bridesmaid dress contest are in. The people have spoken!

Before I make the big reveal, let me say how excited I was to read your comments and see how many of you have been hoping for Shabby Apple bridesmaid dresses for your very own special day! We here at Shabby Apple are certainly happy to oblige. No need to resort to denim skirts and red Keds. We have you covered.

We also have a surprise twist! (I know what you are thinking. Oh, goody! I love surprise twists!) The voting was so close, and all the designs were so impressive, we decided to name four winners instead of three. That's right. Four winners. Four fabulous dresses for you to choose from. Four friends/sisters/sisters-in-law/nieces/old college roommates who are going to bless your name forevermore because they got to wear flattering, non-frumpy dresses to your wedding. 

Are you dying to know? 

Well, here you go then!

First Place (by a landslide, I might add): Number 7!

Second Place: Number 9!

Third Place: Number 11!

And Fourth place: Number 5!

Let's hear it for all our contestants!

Now, another round of applause for our winners!

And, brides-to-be, keep your eyes here. There is more to come.

Always a Bridesmaid

The only time I was ever involved in a wedding party, it was for my aunt and uncle's Chuck-Wagon Wedding and I was a flower girl. They got married on horseback and I wore a denim skirt, a cowboy hat and red Keds. It was awesome.

Unfortunately, cowboy chic doesn't work for very many nuptials, and I think we've all probably witnessed some pretty bad attempts at bridesmaid fashion. (Raise your hand if you have a shiny, teal, puffy-sleeved dress in your closet. I thought so.) Finding the perfect dresses for your bridesmaids can be almost as difficult as finding the perfect dress for yourself.

Which brings me to the following wonderful news. Shabby Apple, that friend that always has your best interests at heart, is introducing a line of hip and flattering bridesmaid dresses! (Applause.) And, it gets better! We want you to help us choose! That's right. This isn't a one-way street, people. Your input matters.

Below you will find a total of 11 designs, from two incredibly talented Shabby Apple designers. (I'll just warn you now to hang on to your socks, or else they will get knocked off.) Each design has been assigned a number. Here's what we need you to do: vote for your favorite one. That's all. Just vote. Just one time. (Please, please, pretty please, just one time!) The three designs with the most votes will get the green light, and that eternal bridesmaid dress dilemma will be solved forevermore.

So, without further ado, the contestants are:

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6. (left), 7. (center), 8. (right).

9. (left), 10. (center), 11. (right)

So, to sum up.

1. Shabby Apple is going to introduce a line of bridemaid dresses.

2. We want you to help.

3. Hop into the comments section and vote for your favorite design, using the number it has been assigned.

4. Only vote one time, for one design, unless you want me to die of an anxiety attack.

5. Check back here to find out who the winners are!

6. Buy Shabby Apple dresses, bridesmaid and otherwise.

Voting will end TWO WEEKS from today, at midnight MST on January 29th, so get on it. After all, bridesmaid bliss awaits.