Did everyone wear a traditional wedding dress?

[lostmarbles]

Ok, this is my last new question for a while- I think!

 

From the numerous wonderful and beautiful photos I've seen, it looks like most everyone wore a traditional wedding dress. While I admit I was never one to dream of the big day and this is not my first wedding, I was married downtown before and did not wear a dress, much less a pretty wedding dress. It is my FI’s first and he just assumes I’ll be wearing a wedding dress, but whatever level of formality I’d like. Part of me wants to wear a nice ivory or cream, no train, no veil, wedding dress, but part of me wants to keep it even more simple. I’m fairly heavyset and on a rather limited budget (our whole cruise wedding idea was so we can keep it simple, save money, and afford a honeymoon!) and just looking at gowns online for a start makes me all nervous about finding one that will be flattering and affordable. I thought about asking my step-Mom to sew one.

 

Ok, so this was my typically long winded way of asking: Are traditional wedding dresses/attire the norm? Did you or have you seen others wearing an informal dress or something else for their onboard ceremony?

 

Thanks as always- you all are just so great!

 

 

~Angela

[Florida_chick]

I am planning my wedding for Nov. 2005 on a cruise ship, and I got a knee-length, strapless dress. Not quite what I would call a traditional wedding dress. It looks alot like the dress in this link.

 

 

http://www.jessicamcclintock.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10001&storeId=10001&productId=50825&categoryId=10105&langId=-1&parent_category_rn=10103

 

Just an example of a non-traditional dress on a cruise wedding :-)

 

Good luck with your dress search!

[kimberli]

For my vow renewal in October, I originally planned to get a white sundress. I thought if my husband wore a white linen shirt with khakis, and we used tropical flowers, that would be gorgeous. But then I found a hawaiian print dress that I fell in love with, and it even came with a matching purse! We bought my husband a hawaiian print shirt, my daughter a hawaiian print dress and are asking the few guests that we have coming to wear hawaiian print as well. None of the prints match. I think it will be really fun.

 

Good luck to you!

Kim

[Nancy3Lily]

I am getting married this October in St. Thomas. I did not want traditional - this is also our second marriage. I found exactly what I wanted, an ivory tank top style dress. In my mind it will be perfect!

 

I agree that having the wedding on a cruise was planned to be casual - no traditional wedding stress. Although there are many questions because you are planning something very important in your life - on the blind - keep asking questions and plan it the way YOU want.

 

I saw many hawaiian style dresses that looked very nice and seem reasonable at http://www.hotshirts.com. - check it out.

[newbie5489]

Angela,

 

I think whatever you will be most comfortable in is what you should wear. I'm sure you're going to look just stunning either way. I'm not going with a traditional dress for our cruise ship wedding. It's very sleek and elegant with no train or poof whatsoever.

 

I know this may sound off the wall, however, I may know of a way for you to get a beautiful dress and save a bundle of $$. Please feel free to email me if you're interested at all. kchad501@yahoo.com I have a dress that has never been worn you may be interested in. :)

[lovesbaking]

Hi Angela,

It was my second, husband's first. I didn't want to wear a traditional dress either, I wore coral, he wore cream silk suit with a coral tie!, pictures look great against the Caribbean Sea!

 

My advice, wear what makes you feel beautiful (and comfortable).

[jerseygirl3]

Since it was a second marriage for each of us, we didn't want traditional. We selected attire from http://www.paradiseonahanger.com.

 

If you go to that website and on the left hand side of the homepage, click on "weddings," you will find our wedding attire.

 

I wore the dress entitled "Lady of Aloha." My bridal party (4 ) wore the dress called "Hearts Desire" (same dress as mine, but it's a different color). My husband wore the one entitled "Island Tradition" (that matched my dress) and his groomsmen (4) wore "Heat of the Night" (that matched the bridal party's dresses).

 

The dresses and shirts come in a wide variety of sizes. It turned out to be very inexpensive, and the photos came out phenomenal. In fact, when we were planning our wedding, Paradise on a Hanger didn't do wedding attire. They just happened to have those above mentioned shirts and dresses in their catalog, and we sort of put it all together. When we ordered, the owners were very impressed with our selections and said they should think about making a wedding section. I see they have done that.

 

The photographer thought our wedding party looked great...they came out so well in the photos.

 

I had a local craft store make up our bouquets and boutonnaires to match the clothing. I had brought in a dress for them to see the print, and they matched the silk flowers to it.

 

The guys wore white pants with their shirts...were gonna do khaki, but the white just looked better.

 

As far as sizing, what I did was order a few shirts and a few dresses in various sizes. They have a very liberal return policy. I had everyone try on the various sizes, and then ordered exactly what I needed. For every three shirts we ordered, we got $20 off. And it was free shipping at the time. They are a great company to deal with. I would call them directly rather than order online.

 

Good luck with your plans.

[lostmarbles]

Hi all and thanks to everyone who answered so far! I am seriously considering the tropical look now. I look seriously bad in white or really any version of it and I think the tropical look may make me feel better and feel more comfortable, but still be special. I checked out the sites (hot shirts and paradise on a hanger go to the same page).

To give me a better idea of these or other traditonal clothes "in action", does anyone have photos of their big day they wouldn't mind sharing. If so, please link it here or you can email me at lostmarbles@cox.net

 

Thanks agian ladies! As usual you've all really coem through to offer advice and support!

 

Congratulations to all who have or are planning on tying the knot the cruise way!

 

~Angela

[chicaletta]

Try looking under seller heiphy on ebay for wedding gowns. Great prices and beautiful gowns to choose from. I originally wanted casual for my dress but ended up changing my mind to formal and when I found his site there was no changing my mind back again.

[charletbride]

We are planning our wedding on board a ship in December. When we were originally talking about a church wedding, I wanted the full train formal gown with full veil and all the trimmings but since we've changed plans I've decided to go with a simple speghetti strap style gown. It will be full length but without a train. More like a white prom dress then a wedding gown! I won't be wearing a veil but I will be wearing a tiara. I'm probably gonna do some sort of beaded collar to wear around my neck and earrings. I want something I can easily wear to formal night and not have to bother with some huge hoop skirt and train or anything silly, but I am young, will be turning 21 a few months before the wedding, and I've dreamed of a beautiful wedding my whole life.

[Barb_and_Sean]

I'm wearing a simple but elegant ivory dress by Alex Evenings. It's lightweight (cool) and doesn't really wrinkle (perfect for packing). You'll look wonderful in whatever you decide to wear. Afterall, you are a BRIDE. :) Good luck and happy planning to you.

 

Barb

[kelleydickerson]

I wore a traditional wedding dress, from David's Bridal. It was beautiful, but did not break the bank. I would probably find someone else to do the alterations, though, because those were almost as much as the dress!

 

I was not going to wear a veil, but my mom talked me into it. I am really glad that she did. It really finished off the head piece and dress.

 

You could also have the salon do your hair and add flowers.

 

Kelley

[Kansasgal]

I am wearing a sarong type dress/halter with some beautiful bead beach sandals. You can see a variety of styles at allyouneedtowear.com

Best wishes!!!