We’d all love to hear your engagement stories and how your wedding planning is coming… Just leave a comment!

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I just wanted to let you know I’m still around!  December and January are my busiest time at work due to the Detroit Auto Show.  (GO, check it out.  Give the D some love and then hit up Greektown or Bricktown  or Midtown!)

I plan to get back behind the keyboard soon.  And, like I said, I’m working on that new wedding website. 

Bridge

No appointments are necessary, but it can get pretty crazy in there!  I’d make an appointment just in case and go super early to miss the crowds!

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Bridal Salon: Brides by Demetrios
Troy, Mich.
Customer Service Grade: A-
Alterations Grade: B-

They are reasonably priced and often have sales.  And, I asked what kind of discount I could get if I paid for my dress and veil in full at the time I purchased.  They gave me a 20 percent discount.  I thought it was a deal!

 Alterations: B-
Demetrios also had some bad reviews when it came to alterations.  My thinking was – you only really hear about the bad reviews as opposed to the good reviews.  And, if there was any issue with alterations, the salon could resolve the issue and get me a new dress if need be, right quick.  I didn’t want to take the chance and go some where else and not have the salon liable.  Since I was having some more complex alterations, I stuck with them.

 Price – I had heard alterations were pricey at Demetrios.  And, yes.  They were.  Alterations were almost half the cost of my dress!  I almost died!  But at that point when it’s so close to the wedding, you don’t care.  I just decided to drink a Bloody Mary afterwards and not worry about it. 

My one complaint about my dress alterations was that the seamstress didn’t want to take in my dress as much as I wanted.  And for me that was unnerving.  I know me.  I am a realistic individual and had NO intention of looking like I had been stuffed in my dress and had it sewed on the day of.  I just knew the longer I wore my dress, the looser it became, so I wanted her to take it in to account for that.  Understandably, she was worried that I would pop a seam.  But as I suspected, on my wedding day, I found my dress to be looser and less form fitting that I wanted. 

Also, I wasn’t entirely happy with the overall alterations.  I wanted it to fit and feel better than it did.

Here’s a pic of my dress on the model.  Overall – I was happy with my experience at Demetrios and I’d definitely add them to your bridal salon hit list.

Demetrios: 248-637-0620

Original Gown: Demetrois by Brides

The sale is all next week.  Be sure to make an appointment as they are an appointment only salon! 

Roma Sposa: 248.723.4300

Image: Heather Saunders Photography

Pipe & Drape: Colonial Events
Troy, Mich.
Grade: A+

This crew is SOLID.  Like the stalker I am, I called around to other Metro Detroit places that rent pipe and drape and Colonial Events beat out all the prices. 

I didn’t even think of renting pipe and drape for the wedding reception.  Well, not until we actually saw the ballroom set up for a wedding in the same way ours would be set.  The story is – we booked our reception at the Greektown Casino-Hotel before the hotel was complete.  So, we never actually saw the ballroom – we only saw schematics of the ballroom.  It was a jaw dropping deal – and we liked the atmosphere of a casino wedding in the 24-hour buzz of the Greektown corridor, so we booked.  

What the ballroom looks like without a backdrop.

I have to tell you, when we saw the ballroom when it was finished in February 2009, I wasn’t at all impressed – it was blah in comparison to their stunning lobby and plush bistro.  Then, a couple weeks later, Greektown had their first wedding reception and I popped-in to take some pics.  It wasn’t until I saw this (left) picture when I realized that I needed some sort of backdrop to cover the doors and the exit sign.  This look just didn’t go with my intimate and romantic idea I had in my mind for our wedding… 

Well, Greektown’s event coordinator at the time quoted me some prices on a backdrop their in-house A/V crew could put up and said to call then closer to the wedding.  But when I called them a couple months before the wedding to confirm, there was a rather large discrepancy with the price.  

Long story short, I found Colonial Events and we booked white pipe and drape and had four uplights with purple gels for one bad arse out-the-door price.  (TIP: I called my photographer to see which color backdrops and lights would photo best.) 

Ssrly, it completely, COMPLETELY changed the atmosphere of the room.  It was so intimate and romantic.  They helped make a blah room breathtaking. 

LOVE THEM.  They were easy to work with and we had NO issues at all with them!  Check out a previous post I wrote about them.  While our backdrop was fairly simple, they do all kinds of creative and beautiful pipe and drape solutions. 

 Colonial Events: 248-589-3544 

Here’s the ballroom WITH a backdrop.  Big difference, right?Courtesy of Heather Saunders

The study which was conducted by Yakult, a Japanese-based yougurt maker, says that roughly 22 percent of brides put on an average of 21 pounds after the wedding!  Of the 3000 brides surveyed, more than half said they no longer worried about their weight and appearance.  Twenty-two percent felt they no longer felt they needed to impress their significant other.

And get this – 21 percent of the bride’s said they had argued with their partner about the additional weight gain! 

And here’s the biggie – The study revealed that more than a third of the women found it difficult to eat healthily during the first year of their marriage because they no longer had the wedding day or honeymoon to motivate them.  And, a Yakult spokesperson from said that some brides seek comfort in food when the face the post wedding anti climax of having the wedding and honeymoon over. 

Interesting, huh?

I have to tell you, I laughed out loud at my desk when I heard this.  Because, well, I put on some weight after my Big Day.  Nothing too noticeable, since I’m wearing Michigan winter clothes.  But, I did.   It’s cold in Michigan and I can’t run three plus miles with the dog anymore.  (Just for the record, we BOTH get flabbier in the colder months)  Not to mention, eating and drinking becomes an indoor sport.  Ha! Look at me making excuses already!  I’ll let you all know if I can shed the pounds come Spring. 

Check this Slim Fast ad out.  I posted it because I love the picture… But, I don’t think Slim Fast is a long term solution to weight loss.  With that said, I can see how someone on this diet program could gain weight after the wedding if they stopped cold turkey and threw their diet out the window.  My advice would be, if you’re going to lose weight for the wedding, think of it as a life style change you can live with well after the wedding, as opposed to a wedding day goal!

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Florist: Michele Nonis
Warren, Mich.
Grade: A

You know, I think this woman is wonderful.  She truly cares about the integrity of her work.  And, she has confidence in her ability.  It’s easy to have faith in her - And, that is so incredibly important when you’re choosing your wedding vendors. Having faith in the people you choose to make your wedding everything you imagine it to be.  If you try and micro manage you’ll drive yourself Mad Hatter mad!  Michele will tell you that too!

Michele Nonis is very competitve with her pricing – I mean a jaw-dropping good deal.  I met with four florists and called around to others, so I know how good we got it.  She’s able to charge these lower prices because she works out of her home and doesn’t have the overhead of a storefront – and I think she likes to be able to give people what they want for an affordable price. 

A week before the wedding, I found out that our recepetion venue didn’t have votives other than these (when they had told us they had two other kinds), and Michele was able to take care of that in a snap of a finger.  No worries.  So easy. 

I have to tell you, I loved all the flowers.  Absolutely loved them.  The bouquets were BEAUTIFUL.  Really, they were breathtaking.  In all honesty, since I’m brutally honest – the boutineers weren’t my favorite of the bunch, but they were still classy.  (Sorry MN.)  

Now that I got that one little criticism out of the way, I want to tell you when I walked into the ballroom, it was as beautiful and romantic as I hoped it would be.  She had decorated the headtable beautifully with flower petals and votives of various sizes with floating candles.  It literally made my heart skip a beat when we walked in.  It makes me smile just thinking about it. 

And the flowers on each the guest tables were stunning!  Loved the colors, loved the flowers, the candles, EVERYTHING. 

Michele took the image I had in my head and she brought it to life.  And, many of our guests commented on how intimate and romantic the room was.  It was perfect.  Thanks Michele!

So, if you’re looking for a extremely talented florist who charges a reasonable price, give Michele a call.  She is amazing.  And wonderful to work with too! 

Contact: Michele Nonis at 586.776.1201

First, I have to tell you – Honestly, I have NO IDEA where time has gone. There seems like there’s a million things I want to do and I don’t have time for anything but work!  Work as in my day job and work as in fixing-up and maintaining my humble abode.  So, I’ve stayed away from this blog diggity and my social media obession (Facebook) for the last few weeks.  It’s been a nice break, but now I’m ready to get to it!

What I’m going to do is finish up my Detroit vendor reviews and some other personal posts about my wedding.  Then, comes Change. 

The next phase of this here blog will focus on Metro Detroit wedding venues, vendors and other little helpful nuggets of info I can dig up for you Metro Married To Be’s!  I love the hunt for for a good deal, talented vendors and cool places to have a Metro Detroit Wedding.  (Me wants to beef up the Detroit Venue Guide and expand to Metro Detroit) 

AND – I’d like to highlight real Metro Detroit brides.  So, send me your pics!  I’ll have submission guidelines and all that jazz to ensure good quality images. 

Also - if you have any information you’d like to share, please submit it  to mydetroitwedding at gmail.com.

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Elizabeth’s Head to Toe
Birmingham, Mich.
Grade: A

Ah, Elizabeth.  LOVE her.  Elizabeth has a quaint little spa right below Red Salon in downtown Birmingham.  There’s been many days where I walked in feeling blah and walked out feeling fabulously relaxed.  Elizabeth can make you feel beautiful from head to toe. (I know… I sound like ad, but it’s the truth.)  Whether you’re looking for a facial, a massage or a pedi – It’s a magical place.  Really it is.  Some of you may know Elizabeth from Touch Spa.  Well, it’s in the same place, different name, and now one single owner who’s following her dream.  (LOVE that about her… and her old partner.  Both of whom are following their own dreams.) 

Choosing Elizabeth for my wedding make-up was a no-brainer.  First, she’s been doing my arch for the last seven years. (I lack all talent when it comes to the brows)  She’s seen my everyday look and I knew she wasn’t going to ”paint” me up to look like someone I didn’t believe myself to be.  And that was important for me.  I wanted to be comfortable with my look.   Second, she’s super talented.   And she’s honest.  If it won’t work for you, she’ll tell you.   And lastly, she can do foundation like no one’s business and it lasts all. night. long.  No lie.  No touch-ups for me.  Not once.  Except for the lips.  (When you marry, you seem to smack your lips all over your new hubby!)

Let me tell you, I actually dreaded my hair and make-up trial.  Why?  Because I have never been able to convey what I wanted in a way that the artist was able to capture it.  Well, Elizabeth did me up and I felt BEAUTIFUL.  And, I was worried that I wouldn’t feel beautiful and feel like myself on my wedding day.  Though, I do admit, I did blend in my make-up a bit.  (sorry E)

Oh, and I wanted to mention that for my make-up trial I went with a purple palatte.  But after looking at the pics I decided to go with a smoky charcoal look and Elizabeth nailed it (without a trial run).

Anyway, there are very few wedding vendors that I didn’t comparison shop  because it doesn’t always come down to the best price when it comes to hair, make-up and photography.  Don’t do it ladies!  If you have to splurge, do it on your make-up!  And, really, Elizabeth is quite reasonable.

You can book Elizabeth in the salon or she will travel to you.  So, if you’re looking for someone to capture the beautiful person you can be on your wedding day, check out Elizabeth.  I LOVE her.

Tell her I sent you. 

Elizabeth’s Head to Toe: 248- 203-9933

Images Courtesy of Heather Saunders Photography

But, I’m off to a bridal shower in Almont and then I’ll get back to my vendor reviews and Detroit wedding love. 

Sorry!!

According to a LA Times article, the service rents more than 160 styles and features high-end designer togs from the likes of Diane von Furstenberg, Herve Leger, Proenza Schoulerand, and “Project Runway’s” fourth-season winner, Christian Siriano, whose dresses, which sell for up to $3,000 but can can be rented for about $200.

Talk about fashion being easier on the pocketbook.

Christian Siriano 

The Wedding “Do”
Red Salon – Sara Celina
Birmingham, Mich.
Grade: A+

Honestly – I’ve never really liked any updo I’ve ever had.  Really.  It’s true.  But, I knew I wanted it up for my wedding -Something soft and romantic.  

So, what did I do?  I procrastinated.  I didn’t search and seek out metro Detroit hair stylists and go through a million trials.  I asked my longtime brow girl, the ever-talented Elizabeth from Head to Toe, who I should go to for my wedding ”do.”  I told her the style I kind of wanted and she said Sara Celina of Red, which is the salon located right above her spa. 

When I talked to Sara, I think I may have sounded crazed and told her I hated all the updos I’ve ever had… and even mentioned a bad prom do.  And you know what she said ever so cooly to me?  ”Honey, I don’t do prom.  I do Red Carpet.”   That’s when I knew, this woman was bad arse.  

I had COMPLETE faith after my trial, which was a breeze.  

And, I didn’t think it was possible that I would love my hair as much as I did.  She did soft curls with a loose bun at the nape of my neck.  She nailed soft and romantic.  Still in awe of her mad skills.  

If you’re from the Detroit area or you’re planning a Detroit wedding from afar, definitely check out Sara Celina of Red.  She is absolutely amazing!  And she’s cool as hell.  That’s a bonus.

Red Salon: 248.203.1313

Courtesy of Heather Saunders Photography
 

She is incredibly talented.  Geniune.  Fun.  And we LOVE LOVE LOVE her.    

Here’s the My Detroit Wedding sneak peek she posted on her bloggity blog.  see more on her blog. They’re prettier there too!

More to come soon.  Thank you HS!  We love them!  <sigh>

My Detrot Wedding Sneak Peek
 Courtesy of Heather Saunders Photography

For now, here’s my favorite Halloween-themed inspiration board. 

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