Q Center is a new and beautiful addition to Chicago-area weddings in recent years, with previous history as being a private corporate training facility to Fortune 500 companies. Situated on 95 acres along the stunning Fox River in St. Charles, IL, the venue offers a wide range of indoor and outdoor locations, including a sprawling 19,000-square-foot ballroom and an intimate outdoor pavilion for stunning waterfront ceremonies. From small affairs to grand soirees, this venue offers the whole package with on-site accommodations, event planners, catering and plenty of services and recreation options to make your happily ever after come to life!

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Looking for a truly unique place to celebrate? This is it! Brookfield Zoo’s lush grounds and tranquil settings serve as a beautiful backdrop for wedding and events near Chicago. And don’t forget the best part—the animals! With opportunities to include this venue’s wildest features, your big day is sure to be memorable!

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There’s no denying that on your wedding day, you – the beautiful, blushing bride – will be the star of the show. Your groom will look dapper in his suit, your bridesmaids will be glowing in their dresses, and your flower girl and ring bearer will be so cute you can barely stand it. Yet despite all of that, you will still be the one at the center of attention. Some women adore the spotlight while others find themselves feeling slightly shy and bashful. Regardless, many soon-to-be brides feel the pressure to look perfect on their wedding day. That pressure can lead brides to make hasty life changes disguised as healthy ones. No matter if you have been intending to pursue these life changes for a while, these not-so-healthy choices can actually do more harm than good for your body (we’re looking at you, crash dieting). Figuring out the healthiest and most effective ways to get in shape and feel your best can be tricky, and many women have a hard time figuring out where to begin. So what’s a girl to do? ChicagoStyle Weddings and the experts are here to help pave the way to a healthier and happier you.

DO: Start months in advance.

The biggest mistake that brides make is delaying the fitness process until a few weeks before their wedding and then expect to see a drastic change. Just like building a solid relationship, sculpting your body is a process that takes a considerable amount of time and effort. Getting healthy doesn’t happen overnight. Whether you have been working out here and there or haven’t seen the inside of a gym in months, we recommend committing to your workout and diet plan shortly after your engagement. The celebratory buzz that accompanies a proposal is an amazing motivator, and when you’re dying on the treadmill and can’t remember why you thought cardio was a good idea, a quick glance down at the sparkle on your ring finger should be enough to keep your head in the game.

DO: Stagger the start of your diet and your workout.

The goal, of course, is to diet and workout at the same time, but enforcing a strict diet and implementing a challenging workout routine can be a shock to the body. If you think you can handle starting both prongs of your fitness plan at once, then by all means, do so. However, there’s a considerably higher success rate if you take things one step at a time. It’s up to you whether you want to start with your diet or with your workouts, but we recommend beginning your fitness journey with your diet. It might take a few days to get into a rhythm but eating “clean” gives you a boost of energy that will make your initial workouts more tolerable. After a week or so of eating clean, lace up your shoes and get ready to hit the gym.

DO: Attack your fitness goals with a plan.

The second biggest mistake that brides make is failing to formulate a plan of attack. In order to succeed, you will need a structure that goes beyond “I’m going to cut out dessert and try to work out when I can.” To start, write down your goals while keeping your gown in mind. Strapless? Tone those arms. High-low? It’s all about your legs. Mermaid? Perk up your butt. While spot training (targeting only one area of your body and expecting it to drastically change) has been thoroughly debunked, it’s okay to put a little extra focus on certain areas in addition to doing full-body cardio and strength training. Regardless of what workout plan you decide to adhere to, it’s important to set a realistic schedule. Print out a weekly calendar and pick which days are your workout days, keeping in mind that you deserve at least two days off. Juggling work, wedding planning, your social life, and a workout regimen can be difficult, but the first week is always the hardest. Once you get into a routine, things tend to balance out and get easier.

DO: Vary your workout and exercise with friends.

One of our favorite bridal workout tips is to get your bridesmaids involved. If you’re lucky enough to live in the same city as your leading ladies, hit the gym together or sign up for SoulCycle, Pure Barre, or any other type of group fitness class. If your bridesmaids agree to join your health crusade but live out of town, turn your GroupMe into a motivational support squad and send each other positive reinforcement. There’s a chance your bridesmaids have minimal interest in pursuing your fitness goals alongside you and that’s perfectly okay. If your girls aren’t up for the challenge, try grabbing your groom and turning him into your workout buddy instead. The real takeaway here is that no matter who you enlist as your partner (or partners) in crime, working out with your fiancé or friends is a great way to keep your workouts fresh, fun, and consistent.

DON’T: Buy a dress for the body you think you’ll have 8 months from now.

The urge to buy a dress for a body you don’t yet have comes from a positive, optimistic place, but it’s a dangerous road to head down. In addition to further heightening the pressure behind your pre-wedding fitness plans, there’s a good chance that you might not transform from a size fourteen to a size six in a matter of months. You’re setting yourself up for disappointment on a day that should be filled with nothing but happiness, and that’s why we highly recommend shopping for the body that you currently have no matter how motivated you think you are.

DON’T: Fall down the Instagram fitness rabbit hole.

No two bodies are exactly the same, which means the way you gain muscle or lose weight will be different from your favorite Instagram models and fitness gurus. Not all butts can be sculpted to reach Jen Selter-status, and Kayla Itsines’ legendary abs are practically the eighth wonder of the world. Don’t forget, Instagram icons know exactly how to position the camera to make their bodies look out of this world. Bone structure and genetics play a huge role in what body type you have, which makes every fitness journey unique. It’s important not to compare yourself to other women – especially those who have dedicated their entire careers to fitness.

DON’T: Overreact to messing up your fitness plan.

You have been killing your workouts and diet for two weeks. You are feeling great, you’re starting to notice your body toning up, and then you go out with the girls one Friday night and the drunk munchies strike. Rather than accepting the minor slip up as an inevitable cheat day and climbing right back onto the horse, many brides have a tendency to say, “I screwed up. I might as well just call it all off right now.” Avoid the urge to be a perfectionist and go easy on yourself. One glorious night of 3 A.M. pizza rolls is not going to derail your health journey unless you allow it to. Just pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and return to your quinoa.

DON’T: Cram the night before or the day of your wedding.

This is one of the most important don’ts on the list, and it’s the one that always gets dismissed. At this point we probably sound like a broken record but we’re only repeating ourselves because it’s so important. Say it with us now: Fitness. Isn’t. An. Overnight. Process. If you haven’t been working out consistently and decide to go to Barry’s Bootcamp the day before your wedding, the only things you will gain are a painful limp and a significant dose of embarrassment as your overworked leg muscles try their best to get you down the aisle. And the same goes for achieving “Michelle Obama Arms” after putting in a single night’s worth of dips and curls – it’s not going to happen. Crash dieting is the worst of them all. If you wake up the morning of your wedding and decide that the breakfast of champions consists only of water and an apple, you stand the risk of ruining your entire day. Not fueling your body appropriately can lead to nausea, dizziness, and even fainting. Once you add a healthy serving of wedding jitters into the mix, those side effects increase tenfold. Passing out at the altar will probably secure you a spot in a “Most Embarrassing Wedding Fails” reel, so eat a sensible breakfast and avoid internet infamy.

If this all sounds too hard and you’re feeling demoralized, never fear: your fiancé didn’t propose to a hypothetical, post-fitness-crazed version of you. He or she proposed to the perfect you that exists right now, cellulite and not-quite-a-six pack abs included. Becoming a healthier version of yourself is always something to strive for, but that in no way means that you aren’t beautiful exactly the way you are and deserving of the bridal spotlight.

No matter how amazing your makeup and hair stylists are, there are certain self-inflicted beauty disasters that no professional should have to navigate.

If you were a professional painter, would you rather create a masterpiece on a fresh, flawless canvas, or one that’s stained and poked full of holes? unless you’re going for a look that’s wildly unorthodox, we’re betting that you would opt for the clean canvas instead of the messy one. In order for you to leave your appointment looking like a bridal masterpiece, you need to do yourself and your beauty team the courtesy of prepping intelligently beforehand and not arriving at the salon looking like a train wreck. we aren’t saying that you need to walk in looking picture perfect – it’s your artists’ job to get you camera-ready, and minor flaws like errant pimples and dark under eye circles can be easily remedied – but there are certain beauty behaviors that no bride-to-be should ever engage in. Read on to discover our list of definite beauty blunders.

Blunder: Attempting a Quick Emergency Tan.

Whether you’re slathering on lotion, getting sprayed in a booth, baking in a bed, or laying out beneath some good old-fashioned natural sunlight, the odds of a last-minute quickie tan going well are incredibly low. Darkening lotions and spray tans are notorious for their streaky results and tanning beds and poolside lounging can culminate in horrific burns. So, what’s the key to successful tanning? Start early. Instead of using an overnight miracle lotion, opt for a gradual product that builds color with each use and start applying it about a week before the wedding. if you are the spray tan type, the same rule applies. Start with a lighter option and gradually work your way up to avoid an oompa loompa debacle on the eve of your Big Day. While we can’t responsibly endorse tanning beds due to health concerns, we can say that if you insist on this option, be smart about it and tan in increments rather than attempting a twenty-minute power session beneath the UV lights the night before your wedding.

Blunder: Testing Out New Beauty Products or Regimens.

No matter how convincing the reviews are online, do not – we repeat DO NOT – use any skin or haircare product that you haven’t used in the past. The night before you get hitched is not the time to finally try that fancy Brazilian exfoliating cream you got in your stocking last Christmas, and the same goes for any new lotions, shampoos, conditioners, makeup… you get the idea. Even if you have never had sensitive skin in the past or haven’t had a disastrous run-in with a new beauty product, it’s better to err on the side of caution and stick to what you know. This rule doesn’t just apply to products you can buy at a store – whipping up new homemade concoctions are also a bad idea. Making an avocado and coconut oil smoothing mask sounds like a great idea in theory, but when you show up for your beauty appointment the next morning with hundreds of tiny green clumps in your hair (mashing the ingredients with a fork is not the same as pureeing them), you’re going to have an awful lot of explaining to do. Just trust us on this one, save the skin and haircare experiments for a different night.

Blunder: Trying Aggressive Fake Nails for the First Time.

We’re all about looking to Instagram for mani-pedi inspiration, but if you’ve never worn long acrylic nails before, your wedding day is not the time to give them a test drive. They might look amazing but if you aren’t used to wearing them, performing even the simplest wedding day tasks will be next to impossible. Popping in your contacts, touching up your makeup, and holding utensils at your reception all become infinitely harder when you’ve got a set of inch-long talons glued to your fingers. So unless you are already an expert, go with the nail routine you’re used to.

Blunder: Giving Botox or Lip Plumpers a Whirl.

They may have worked wonders for your favorite celebrities but getting any kind of permanent wrinkle treatments or fillers near your wedding day is like betting on the worst horse in the race. There’s a chance that everything will work out in your favor, but there’s an even higher chance that your treatment will go wrong. Infection, inflammation, swelling, redness, itching, bleeding, bruising, allergic reaction… unless you’re going for the Bride of Frankenstein look, we recommend saving your artificial enhancements for after your wedding. Dabbling in Botox is entirely your choice, but trying it for the first time right before your wedding is borderline reckless.

Blunder: Using Communal Makeup Collections.

We’re all for sharing your deepest secrets and biggest dreams with your bridal party, but your makeup is one thing that you should absolutely keep to yourself. If you’re rolling your eyes and preparing to skip to the next item on our list, pause and imagine your honeymoon. Is pink eye part of your vision? If not, take this rule seriously. But I want all my bridesmaids to look cohesive, you are probably thinking to yourself. And I don’t want to make them all splurge on lavender eyeshadow that they’ll never wear again. The good news is that if you’ve hired a professional makeup artist for your wedding, you won’t have to waste a single moment worrying about gross germs. If you’ve decided to forgo professional help and want everyone to do their own makeup, remember that Q-tips are your friends and bring a bundle of them to your bridal suite.

Blunder: Insisting on Going Over the Top.

Until now, we have mostly focused on beauty blunders that happen before the Big Day, but one of the most common mistakes actually occurs the day-of. Every girl who’s ever modeled or done theatre knows that in order to look your best on camera and video, your makeup needs to be a little bolder than normal. Since your wedding day is one of the most photographed days of your life, it’s understandable that you would want to treat that rule like gospel. However, it’s dangerously easy to go overboard. Whether it’s dark bronzer, garish eyeshadow, heavy liner, or any other extreme beauty faux pas, we recommend leaving theatrical makeup looks to the runway models and opting for a style that’s less outlandish. As you stand at the altar with your partner and exchange vows, you want them to gaze lovingly into your eyes and not be distracted by the fact that your XXL Ultra Max Volume Explosion fake lashes are slowly becoming unglued. Yikes.

Blunder: Forgetting that Internal Health Fuels External Beauty.

Even if you’re armed with enough hair and makeup products to open your own beauty counter at the mall, all of your helpful tools, brushes, and sprays will be for naught if you don’t take care of yourself on the inside. Hit the gym. Drink tons of water. Eat your greens. Take daily vitamins (and get them from your doctor, not a former reality show contestant who is peddling “the next big thing” on Instagram). Concealers and hair treatments might make you look like a million dollars but living a healthy life is what will make you feel like a million dollars. The list of beauty do’s and don’ts is almost endless and feeling overwhelmed is totally understandable. However, the beauty blunders that we have discussed with you are things that can easily be avoided with a little planning and common sense. Steer clear of these and you will be well on your way to looking gorgeous on your wedding day.

With 26 event rooms and 53,241 square feet of event space, Hotel Midtown is an ideal choice for weddings, celebrations and more. This vibrant, modern hotel venue is located just steps away from world-class shopping, dining and nightlife in one of Atlanta’s most well-known neighborhoods. Paired with stunning guest rooms and amenities, you’re sure to enjoy your experience!

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How to Confidently Find the Dress of Your Dreams

As a little girl, I would spend hours lining my stuffed animals up along my bedroom floor to witness the vows between Barbie and Ken. I dressed up as a bride for multiple Halloweens and quickly fell in love with fairy tales and all things related to “Happily Ever After”. Years before I met my now-husband, I began to plan my dream wedding as I could not wait to experience my own personal fairy tale with my very own prince charming. I would cut images out from piles and piles of bridal magazines in an attempt to piece together my future perfect day.

After the initial shock of my proposal began to wear off and I blissfully floated back down to reality, I quickly began to wonder what dress I would wear. I recalled all of the bridal fashion that had been accumulating in my mind for over a decade and I rapidly became flushed with panic. This would be the dress of all dresses and one that I wanted to remember as nothing less than perfection. All brides-to-be are faced with the decision of which dress to choose, and while this may seem like a monumental task, there are several ways to lessen any anxiety that accompanies this process. Rest assured, you will be armed with the knowledge and confidence necessary to decide on the dress of your dreams without second-guessing yourself along the way.

Calculate Your Budget.

There is no sense in falling in love with a gown that is outside of your budget. By firmly setting a budget prior to looking at dresses, you are ensuring that you will be able to fall in love with, and afford, your dream dress. It is important to keep in mind the cost of any alterations that might be necessary

in order for your dress to fit properly. I was able to find a reasonably priced gown for my wedding, but the alterations needed for it to actually fit ended up costing well over half of the initial dress price. What started as a steal quickly turned pricey. While there is absolutely no harm in shopping around for alterations, make sure that whomever you choose is reputable and guarantees his or her work. While there may be less expensive alteration options available, having your dream dress altered incorrectly could quickly turn into a nightmare.

When setting your wedding dress budget, also keep in mind what accessories or details will be necessary in order to make your dream a reality. Does your vision include shoes that will cost double the price of your dress itself? Will your gown only look complete with the inclusion of added detailing? Have you thought about how much the veil you have dreamt about since you were a little girl actually costs now that it’s time to say “I do?” By doing so, you will help define your budget, and most importantly, find a final look that fits within your allotted budget.

Decide on Your Image.

Have you always dreamed of walking down the aisle looking like a princess in a gown that would make Cinderella envious? Or are you seeking a simple yet elegant look? Are you opting out of a dress completely and on the hunt for a modern pantsuit? Deciding what look you would like to convey on your wedding day will help weed out a handful of cumbersome options and unnecessary shopping related stress. In your hands, you are currently holding a wealth of information when it comes to all things weddings; flip through these pages and see if any gowns stand out to you. Utilize social media as a tool in order to gain inspiration from other brides who have paved the way before you. Reference all of these resources prior to stepping inside a bridal boutique to avoid feeling overwhelmed. In the same way, decide what type of style, fabrics, and details you’d like to avoid. Maybe you love the long sleeve look but also know you will not be able to wear those long sleeves because your wedding is in July – these details are great to make note of as well. Once an overall image is decided upon, you can use your new-found inspiration to hit the ground running in the hunt for your dream dress.

It Takes a (Small) Village.

If one thing can be learned from years of watching wedding shows on television, it’s that less is sometimes more. This certainly rings true when it is time for you to decide who to bring with you dress shopping. While the idea of having a large group of your closest friends and family with you may sound picturesque, a large group can often make the already challenging decision that much more difficult,

as more people often means more input. Many brides opt for bringing between two and four people with them shopping (often their mother, grandmother, sister(s), and maid of honor). Depending on how many people are able to join, extending an invitation to your future mother-in-law is often well-received and appreciated. No matter who you choose to bring with you, one thing to always keep in mind is that this is the dress you will be wearing. It is your wedding and you are the one who needs to be in love with your final decision. While it is oftentimes easier said than done, try not to let the opinion of others detour you from following your heart. Looking back on your wedding photographs with regret over not picking the gown you wanted would truly be a shame.

Keep an Open Mind.

Falling in love with a dress while standing in a fitting room is one thing, but, you also need to make sure that you will be able to enjoy yourself for the entirety of your wedding celebration. I tried on one dress in particular that was stunning, I truly thought that I had found The One. However, upon trying to sit down I quickly realized that I could hardly breathe and enjoying our wedding cupcakes would have been nearly impossible. Think about your wedding and find a dress that fits accordingly. Are you planning on dancing until your venue turns the lights off? Perhaps a gown with yards upon yards of additional fabric weighing you down is a bad idea. Or are you saying “I do!” on the beach? Seek out a dress that is lightweight and airy. A great alternative is to choose two dresses. One for the ceremony and one for the reception. It’s your celebration, you can change gowns if you want to…or not! With thousands of options available, finding a dress (or dresses) that make you feel beautiful, while still enjoying your wedding day festivities is a must and absolutely possible.

Timing is Everything.

Give yourself plenty of time to find your gown. After all, it took you until this moment to find The One to marry, why settle for a dress that isn’t perfection? We suggest giving yourself at least ten months prior to your wedding to purchase a dress. By doing so, you ensure ample time for your gown to arrive and schedule any necessary alterations in order to make your dream dress a reality. Allow yourself the opportunity to appreciate each new chapter that accompanies this special time prior to your wedding. Enjoy the celebratory showers and parties that are thrown in your honor and soak up the love that will surround you during your engagement. Try not to let the anxiety of finding a gown overshadow these joyous moments. With a minimum of ten months, you ensure that you have given yourself enough time to find the perfect dress without experiencing buyer’s remorse that often goes along with rushing a purchase.

Highlight You.

For most of us, our wedding day will be our most photographed day. With that in mind, it’s of the utmost importance that you are in love with the way you look in your dress. Wedding gowns come in a variety of materials, cuts, colors, sizes, and designs for a reason; no two brides are exactly alike. What might appear off-putting on the hanger may fit like a dream once you try it on. Think of finding a dress like its very own chapter in your wedding book. Go into this chapter with an open mind and an open heart to ensure that you are giving yourself every opportunity to fall in love. It is also advised to purchase a dress that fits your current figure and not a goal that you have set for yourself. While many

couples like to use their wedding as motivation to revamp their eating and exercise habits, there is no reason to put extra pressure on yourself to squeeze into a dress that is two sizes too small. Planning a wedding can be stressful enough, why add the stress of weight loss into the mix? Never let your beauty be defined by a number. Tags are sewn into the inside of our garments for a reason, so no one else needs to know.

The glow that radiates from a bride on her wedding day has nothing to do with the price of the gown, the designer, the size and style, or even how long it took to decide on the dress. The reason brides are so beautiful on their wedding day stems from the confidence they carry as they walk down the aisle. Confidence in your dress decision brings you one step closer to your “Happily Ever After”.

Written by Lauren Beers

What I Learned about Myself While Dress Shopping

If there’s any one wedding planning moment made iconic by pop culture, it’s saying yes to your wedding dress. And whether you have been dreaming about your perfect bridal gown since the good ol’ days of middle school, or are diving into the bridal boutique deep end totally blind, shopping for the dress you’ll wear on what’s arguably the most photographed day of your life comes with a fair amount of pressure and vulnerability. Especially if you’re not used to seamstresses seeing you in your underwear.

As it turns out, I learned a lot about myself while shopping for my wedding dress. Or, at the very least, I had some long-held suspicions about myself confirmed, once and for all. And if you can learn anything from my mistakes, successes, and general confusion, then it’s definitely worth sharing every moment of my self-revelation. Here are five things I learned about myself while shopping for my wedding dress.

I Had No Idea What Dress Shopping Actually Was.

In the year leading up to getting engaged and shopping for my wedding dress, I was living in a 600-square foot studio off Chicago’s Belmont Red Line stop, with a television only slightly bigger than the iPhone X and no cable. Reality television shows dedicated to bridal fashion were not a part of my regularly scheduled programming. I am also the kind of gal who tends to know my exact size in everything, in the approximately three clothing stores that supply my entire wardrobe, and therefore almost never try anything on before buying it. As such, prior to wedding dress shopping, it was entirely lost on me that I would be expected to take off the clothing I had arrived in and adorn myself in massive amounts of white lace, satin, and organza. I expected to sit, maybe sip champagne, and point at things while some fairy god-seamstress magically estimated my exact dimensions by glancing at me out of the corner of her eye. Then, in 6 to 12 weeks, I’d return and pick up my perfectly-tailored dress, which I would slip into for the first time on the morning of my wedding. For anyone with similarly misguided expectations, this is precisely not how it works.

I Care About Comfort More Than I Thought.

If there were ever a day to sacrifice comfort for fashion, I imagined my wedding day would be it. Then I discovered: not so much. With minimal exception, the wedding dresses I tried on could have taken me down the aisle and then right back home to bed. As it turns out, I gravitated towards wedding dresses that shared a surprising number of qualities with my favorite comforter. Don’t underestimate the power of a super comfortable wedding dress — and, believe it or not, you do not have to sacrifice style for comfort. Seriously, I promise! Don’t forget that you’re going to be spending a really long time (think: sun up to sun down) in your dress. Dancing, eating, hugging endless numbers of people, taking hundreds of beautiful photographs. You will want to be comfortable.

I Am Not A Cryer – At Least, Not A Fashion-Inspired Cryer.

As oblivious as I was to the actual logistics of wedding dress shopping, there was one cliché that was well ingrained in my mind and, I’m sure, is equally-ingrained in the mind of every wedding-planning bride. When you find THE ONE (the one dress, that is) you will cry. Whether that crying looks like some tastefully tear-filled eye ducts or full-on sobbing into your tulle, crying is to be expected. If you do not cry, you must not have found THE ONE. That was simply not true for me. This narrative lasted for the exact amount of time it took to try on a single dress. Standing in front of the full-length mirror, I thought: “Hey, I actually look good! Let’s do this again!” I scampered back to my dressing room to try on a second dress. Upon returning to the full-length mirror, I found myself thinking: “Hey, that’s kind of flattering! Maybe this isn’t so bad after all.” Upon evaluating the third dress: “Huh. I look pretty good. Again, so, fourth dress, then?” while beginning to wonder how long this was all going to go on. Without a tear in sight, I settled on the fifth dress, because that was not only the exact number of dresses I had the patience to try on, but also because five had been my grandfather’s lucky number and I liked him. The moral of this story is, whether you try on two dresses or two hundred, love them all or struggle to find one that speaks directly to your bridal spirit, if you do not cry, do not despair. Knowing you have found the dress for you is not determined by how many tears you cry, but by how rockin’ you look in it. And believe me: you’re rockin’.

I Get Confused When Other People Cry Over Fashion.

Unlike my own tear-free eyeballs, the three people I invited to watch me parade around in white organza all afternoon were beside themselves. From subtle sniffles to mascara rivers, each of the dresses I tried on was met with the same level of awe, enthusiasm, and tears. Now, don’t get me wrong, having people stare at you and tell you you’re so beautiful they are inspired to cry is enormously flattering. It should probably happen more often than it does in a woman’s lifetime. But it in no way gave me any indication whether one perfectly great-looking dress was any better than the next perfectly great looking dress. If you anticipate you’ll be an indecisive bride, make sure you bring at least one level-headed gal pal along for concrete feedback.

I Should Have Substituted All That Pre-Wedding Pilates for Pre-Wedding Weight Lifting.

Anyone who has never spent much time around wedding dresses before might be shocked to know how much a little lace, tulle, and bedazzlement can actually weigh. The answer is somewhere between the weight of a small dog and that of the first car you bought after getting your driver’s license. If you’ve been living off kale and lemon water for the last six months, under the mistaken assumption that there’s one perfect dress size all brides must meet before walking down the aisle, you might find yourself weakened and staggering under the weight of your dream dress instead. While we’re surrounded by all kinds of stories about wedding day dieting, my number one piece of advice to every dress seeking bride is to throw out those diet books and do whatever makes you feel your strongest, your happiest, your healthiest, and your most beautiful – inside and out. But honestly, adding a little pre-wedding strength training never hurt anyone.

Written by E. Ce Miller

Your bridal bouquet is the icing on the cake—it completes your wedding day look with an extra bit of pretty! Not sure where to start? Talk to your florist about your vision. Let them know what your wedding dress looks like, what the bridal party is wearing, where you’re getting married, etc. If you’re having an outdoor wedding in the middle of summer, some flowers will hold up better in the heat than others. If you’re sticking to a tight budget, in-season flowers are usually less expensive. Trust the pros—they’ll point you in the right direction and help bring your vision to life!

From beachy and boho, to romantic and elegant, these ten beautiful bridal bouquets created by Florida florists fit just about any style. Get ready to be inspired!

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They say rain is good luck, but from traveling guests to outdoor ceremonies, there are so many reasons why every couple hopes for ideal weather conditions on their wedding day. You can plan for so much, but weather is always going to be the one thing you can’t control.

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Viewing their beloved pets as members of the family, many couples choose to include their furry friends in their wedding day. We’ve seen it all – from ring bearer pups to mini brides! It’s the perfect way to personalized your wedding and include everyone that’s most important to you.

In addition to pets, some brides even snagged beautiful photos with animals on their venue’s property. Farms and zoos are the best place for these photo ops, but we also love the Hemingway House’s resident cat!

Here are a bunch of unique and adorable ways couples have included pets and other animals in their wedding days.

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With sunny skies, a tropical breeze, and temperatures in the mid-80s year-round, it’s no wonder the slogan of Aruba is “One Happy Island.” It’s a perfect Caribbean destination for the most romantic weddings and honeymoons in every season: consistent weather, white sand beaches and Instagram-worthy turquoise waters.

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Photo by Northern Art Photography

Just across Lake Michigan, a not-so-far-away destination offers stunning, picturesque scenery with the nation’s longest freshwater coastline, wildlife refuges and over 100 state parks. Combined with its rich automotive and arts history, Michigan is an ideal place for a romantic getaway, whether it’s a honeymoon, or everything from the bachelor party to the reception.

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Imagine walking down the aisle to the sound of a live string quartet. How much would it cost to hire live ceremony musicians for your wedding?

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There are so many things to take into consideration when you’re planning a wedding. Sometimes, it’s tough to know where to start. First, it’s important to set a budget and stick to it. Keep in mind which services you want to splurge on and which you want to save on. Make a list of what’s most important to you and go from there. (more…)

This bouquet makes a bold statement! How much would it cost to have a florist create a beautiful, bold bouquet just like this one for your wedding?

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