Banana Republic (Raleigh)

It seems kind of funny that I would buy an old dress and then my bridesmaids would buy new dresses from a chain store, but that's just the way it worked out! Banana Republic was having a sale and my sister stopped in last spring and saw that they had a whole rack of dresses that were in the color scheme I wanted. We all drove down the next day, the bridesmaids found dresses in their sizes (or somewhat in their sizes). They were able to buy really beautiful silk dresses for less than $90, and the dresses were originally marked at being $300. I would say that we were very lucky, but they had about twelve dresses in the style we bought in stock which made me question whether they were 'trendy'. The girls didn't care, they loved the dresses. I was told by my sister that she plans on shortening the dress so that she could wear it more often. I've stopped in the store a few times since and I can't believe the good sales they have. And the quality of the dresses are excellent, so I would really suggest checking it out.

Because we were being married on the beach, no one thought that it would be necessary to have the groom wear a tux. And because the wedding ceremony would be in June, we all agreed that a nice button down shirt and pants would be good. My husband got the nicest outfit from Banana Republic! He said that he spent over four hundred dollars, but he did get some things on sale, and he also included a few extra shirts and a pair of shorts that he would wear throughout the whole wedding weekend. On the wedding day, for the ceremony, he did wear a suit, but it wasn't a stuffy suit! He just looked so cool and relaxed! He didn't have any groomsmen, so it was just him standing up there, barefoot (we were both barefoot, much to his mother's dismay). I think Banana Republic has some of the nicest cloths for men, especially for guys in their late twenties. It fit him well, the colors were cool and trendy looking, and we looked great in the pictures.

My daughters and my best friend were going to be my bridesmaids. Both girls are in their early twenties, one lives and works in Arizona and the other is in school for business. They are fairly strong headed girls, and so I let them have their own choice in choosing dresses. The daughter that came with me to David's Bridal tried on bridesmaids dresses and said she would not be wearing a traditional bridesmaids dress. I was really surprised when they said that they had found their dresses at a chain store, Banana Republic. The dresses were beautiful. They were long dresses, and the cut was very flattering. They told me that they shopped online together (in their own state) and then decided on a few dresses at stores. They went shopping at the same time and then sent text photo messages with the dresses they liked. I was so impressed with how smart they were! Much more smart than their mother! And the dresses were about the same as a nice bridesmaids dress, only they fit better.

My sister and bridesmaids kindly offered to pay for their own bridesmaids dresses, and so I let them choose whatever dress they wanted as long as they stayed in the yellow and gold color scheme. They found these really beautiful long gowns at Banana Republic in a faint gold/yellow over the Christmas holidays. The dresses were long, and made of this really nice silk material. Even though they were suppose to be winter holiday dresses, they were perfect for a formal summer wedding dress. The girls looked beautiful! Banana Republic has some really nice gowns, and their clothes are always really beautiful. We also saw purses that we loved there, but the purses did not go on sale. The dresses went on sale, and the 15% off was nice. The dresses were, originally, $240 each.