I would have to say the last time I went bra shopping with my mother was when I was 12 and it was a mortifying experience. Almost twenty years later and I am so happy to have my mother with me, along with a group of very supportive friends, to help me find a bra for my wedding dress. I needed something that was strapless and that would offer me support that nothing would fall apart while I was dancing! Victoria Secret is always fun, this time I was looking at the practical bras. They have an amazing selection, and they do have high quality bras and corsets. I found what I needed, it was expensive and it worked. And the nice surprise was getting some gifts from there for my honeymoon at my shower!

This was one of the places that we saw at the wedding show, and my mother just fell in love with the idea of having the wedding reception there. For a whole bunch of reasons this was not the place to have the wedding (they didn't have availability was the main reason, they were booked during the time we wanted to get married). My mother did find out that they had afternoon tea and suggested that we hold my bridal shower there instead. This was really fun! It was my mother, sister, best friend, aunts and grandmother, all women at the party, and we were 8 in total which was a perfect number. The staff was really great. We felt like princess! It was formal, elegant, and probably the nicest place I had eaten at in a while, and considering that we were just there for tea..wow! It's not inexpensive, it was almost $30 a person, and for those who don't know, it's not just tea. They serve you sandwiches and small desserts. I think it was nice that I was able to spend some really quality time with my family members, and get to listen to them offer me advice and suggestions on married life. I think everyone should go here once for the tea time, at least for the experience!

We had a joint his/her engagement party with our friends, instead of a bachelor party, which started off here at East End and then ended up at our house for a dance party. This is a really nice place to go with your friends, it's a bit fancier than some other bars, and everyone in the crowd is usually dressed up. We went because we love martinis, but also because we also like oysters! I think shell food tastes really good with a strong drink, and luckily most of my friends share the same taste in food with me. You don't need to make reservations, because it is a bar, but you should check on the night that you're going because there could be a live band and then they charge cover. There was a live band, but we've heard the band before and liked them. I think having a gathering at a fancy bar is better than at a restaurant, because I was really able to mingle and talk with everyone. And this is a nice restaurant so people tend to behave. The martini menu is also great, and I really recommend the pineapple martini. Really good!

This is the best restaurant in the area! I first went here with my parents a long time ago and we all loved the food. That rarely happens in a family with so many picky-eaters (now, I am the more out going eater in my family). We used to go here for special occasions, like graduations and birthdays. We hadn't been there in a while, so when my mother suggested that we have a family dinner there before the wedding, we all agreed. Because we were going to be so many people (my family and mike's family) we made reservations way ahead of time. It has happened in the past that they are just booked up for a Saturday! I called, I got an idea of what would be on the menu, and then I made reservations. The Magnolia Grill is really sweet looking, I think it just looks like a special place that the owners care about. The food that night was great: again, they have such a great selection of seasonal plates that it's always easy for people to find what they like (choosing between what they like may take longer). And the desserts! save room for the desserts. I exercised all day at the gym just so I could have the ice cream and the dark chocolate pot de cream and cookies!

They have the best of everything sweet here! I love their beignets (I just bought a box last week), the gelatos, and the eclairs! For our wedding, along with the cake that my sister offered to bake (she's in culinary school as a pastry maker, so her cake was wonderful) we also ordered several dessert trays from Sugarland bakery. We estimated that each guest would eat between 1 and 2 desserts with the cake, so we ordered accordingly. They have an amazing selection, but we narrowed it down to fruit tarts, eclairs, cannolis, truffle bars and something else. We had so much food left over! With the wedding cake my sister made, the desserts we ordered, and the chocolate fountain, we had so much food. I guess I over estimated how much our guests could eat. I actually was kind of happy that we had so many desserts leftover, we boxed them up at the end of the night and ate them over the course of two days. The staff here is amazing, I always get a big smile and a nice greeting from whoever is working behind the counter. I'm happy just walking in there, and because they have so many tasty treats, all the better!

I want to bring attention to the chocolate fountain that we had at our wedding; we paid for the silver package, and we also paid to have it set up and taken down, cleaned up, etc. You have the option of just renting the equipment yourself and taking it up and down yourself. I was really excited about this, I always said that I wanted a chocolate fountain at my house and I was for certain going to have one at my wedding. I guess my disappointment was that my guests weren't as crazy about eating chocolate covered fruit and cake as I was. I saw maybe twenty people go to the fountain and try something, and the rest of the people sort of looked at it. I think we had too much food at the wedding, because in the end no one wanted to eat from the chocolate fountain. I loved the staff and the set-up, everything looked and tasted great. I recommend them 100%, but I would suggest reviewing your menu ahead of time and making sure that you're not going overboard with the food. Wasted chocolate is a horrible waste.

I didn't know how formal our wedding was going to be until Mike came home from visiting his mother in Raleigh and let me know that he got fitted for a tuxedo. I had originally bought a simple vintage dress, and I though Mike was going to wear a simple suit, but I guess he got talked into wearing a tux by his mother. Hmm. No, it was okay! He rarely has the chance to wear a full suit (he's a teacher, and the only suit he ever wears is a track suit, because he's also the volleyball coach). I loved the idea that he loved himself enough to go out and get a tuxedo! He said that his mother made the appointment for him, he went in at 10, was fitted, and that he would need to go back to pick up his suit and for a second fitting. Because Mike was going to wear a tux, the rest of his grooms also went there and were fitted for tuxes (rentals, too) just so that everyone would look on par. The store was really great. They called to let him know that the suit was ready, it looked great on him, and when I went back with him to return the suit after the wedding the salesclerk was so happy to see "the happy couple". I love people who love what they do!

I want everyone to go here! It's really the cutest store in the world, so bright and cheerful, and they have the best selection of paper and stationary. Thye have inhouse printing (meaning that you just pick a style of invitation card that they have in the store and they'll print it up right then and there for you) or they can send it out to one of the companies that work with. We had custom printing, and the style of the invitation card was so unique and cute! I was really surprised by how much Mike liked the card, too! My suggestion is to go in with an idea of what you want the card to say, what kind of theme you want. Mike and I are rather creative, but the card we chose was more simple. I think we were happier with that.

We liked this because we were able to send our friends a postcard right away (the company mails it for you) with the date of our wedding. I had most of my friend's addresses already, and with the help of my mother it wasn't hard to get everyone else's address. The thing I like the best is that we were able to upload a picture of ourselves, and the quality of how good we looked was amazing. When you sign up you can get three free postcards, but the rest of the order isn't that much; it's the price of postage, really.

This was a really fun event. I went with my mom on one day, and then I went with my best friend on the second day. There's lots to see and do, lots of people to talk with. My mom wanted to find out more about the different reception and ceremony venues in the area, and we found lots. The Wedding Show has vendors for all budgets, too, which was good. We were able to find things in our price range. My friend also won a David's Bridal gift certificate, which she put towards her bridesmaid's gown. I think the big highlight for many was the fashion show, but I had gone in thinking that I had my dress, so I really didn't pay that close attention. I did notice that the one shoulder dresses were popular then at the show, and now you see it everywhere. They had lots of displays on trends for invitations and catering ideas that you also see everywhere.