"I adore being dressed in something frilly"

This week a couple of early teenage girls were in the store for a bridesmaid fitting and one looked at the other and said,
"What do you want YOUR wedding dress to look like?!" 
And they headed off into the racks of chiffon and lace whispering about their dream dresses.

When I was a little girl my dream dress was in the Sears catalogue and it was this enormous pink ball gown.  Yes.  Clearly my 9 year-old self had excellent taste.

So here, today, I am showing you a few examples of current trends that are probably different from what you envisioned in your doll house days, but are absolutely gorgeous for this fall! (Because, don't forget! You need to order your dress 6 months before the wedding date!)

The Ruffles and Florals

So very feminine and playful!  Ruffles are a wonderful way to show that sassy fun side of your personality without sacrificing any of the bridal glamour.  Florals are another way to go flirty and fun but stay bridal:

the entire bodice of this gown is covered with satin flowers and baby sparkles that catch the light juuuust right.
These dresses are sophisticated and glamorous without being ostentatious.  Perfect for the grown up Barbie lover.

The Lace

What is more feminine than lace?!  Lace is always romantic and can be sweet or sophisticated depending on how it's worn.

We have recently gotten in several lace gowns for this fall that are absolutely nothing but lace!!  Lace detailing is another way to show your soft side:

Shown here along side satin you can see how the lace and satin together adds a regal sweetness for the girl who dreamed of a princess wedding dress.

The Details

Flirty details are really exciting right now and allow you to play with bold statements.  And if you are wanting a traditional look for the ceremony but want to amp things up for the reception simply add it on your way to the party!

I personally love the details that are removable because I know I would love to have several dresses for my wedding and adding or removing details gives the illusion of a different dress!!

I put this beautiful sash against a pink dress so you can see the detail better.  The long tulle sash ties for a gorgeous effect against any gown.

I totally just disappointed my 9 year-old self by not including a single pink ball gown but seriously that little girl also really likes to play Princess Leia so let's not take her disappointment too seriously.

Ode to the Prom Girls Past and Present

The moon is full, it's the first day of spring, and if you listen very closely tonight you will be able to hear a wail emanating from teenage girl brains everywhere:

"OHEMGEE. WHAT AM I GOING TO WEAR TO PROM!!!"


Shshshshsh!!! It's going to be ok.  You will find a dress, you will look gorgeous, and you will have an amazing time with your friends!!  So relax and let us help you.

Here are a few things to think about before dress shopping:

1) Know your body type and what silhouette best flatters your shape. I think this website is really helpful in determining your best assests.

2) What color do you NOT want to wear.  Ruling out what you don't like allows you to open your mind to all the other colors.

3) Think about dressing for who you are and NOT what your friends will be wearing.  You are a unique young woman!  Show off who you are!!

4) These are quality gowns that you will have for a very long time.  To quote a wise prom girl who came in this week, "The dress is more important than my date...I'm going to have the dress a lot longer than the guy."

Example:

Here's me in 2000 at my Senior Prom.  Yes, yes, when you're done laughing at my hair let's just talk about how I've re-worn this dress several times!

Like here!!  I wore the same gown to a formal fundraiser when I was 25...my hair turned out much better this time. (Side note: this year I will be wearing it again to an event...11 years post purchase!!)

So my dear past prom girls, send me your pictures of you re-wearing your gorgeous gown.   Let's see you rocking those dresses!  Check back to see if your picture is posted!! camarillobridalandgowns@gmail.com

This is Renee (ya know, the rockstar) wearing her circa 1994 gown!  Second showing of this gown was at a wedding reception a few years later.  I was considering cropping out her date because of privacy issues but REALLY  he's wearing black jeans and cowboy boots!!!!!  That's too good to crop out.

Send us your pics ladies!  camarillobridalandgowns@gmail.com

We have to order the bridesmaid's dresses WHEN?!

Yep.  It's a shock, but 20 weeks before the wedding date is the time to order those gowns!

If you like me initially think "SCHWHAT?! That is ridiculous.  We don't need to do that because <insert whatever reason>." No. You DO need to.  Why? Because we never have and never will have a dress be too late for a wedding.

So here's why: because the Leprechauns are evil and try to foil all your wedding plans...wait...what!? JUST KIDDING! Happy St. Patrick's Day!!

Ok, so here's ACTUALLY why.  The manufacturer of these dresses does not just produce a huge arbitrary batch of sizes.  They produce these dresses because you order them.   So let's walk through the time line and why it is so important to your wedding.

1) You've chosen the wedding dress and now it's time to think about those lovelies who will support you in this next step in life!
2) You decide how you want your bridesmaids dressed: all in the same color and same dress, different gowns, same color, same dress different colors...whatever it is that you decide!
3) You and your maid of honor enjoy an appointment choosing the look you want.  You let the rest of the party know the style and color that you want and they each need to come in to be measured for their dress.  (after all the dress is made only because they are going to wear it!)
4) As each person comes in for their measurements (or calls them in, for those out-of-towners) we record their information in the file until each person has given measurements and payment.
5) ONCE WE HAVE EVERYONE recorded THEN we are able to place the order with the manufacturer!  The reason we wait to order all of the dresses at the same time is to ensure that they all are cut from the exact same color fabric.  Fabric is dyed in lots and there can be slight differences in shade between these lots.  By ordering them all at the same time we avoid difference in color and make sure all the dresses are shipped to us together.
6) THE DRESSES ARE HERE! YAY!! Now it's time for your lovelies to start picking them up (which can take longer than you think...they are busy girls!) and having their alterations done.  Length, bust line, or side seam alterations are common and simple but do take time.  Which is just another reason why giving yourself breathing room is so important.

Once you add all of this up it comes too...20 WEEKS! TA-DA!!

HOLY TUNA SALAD!  I DIDN'T KNOW THAT AND IT'S LESS THAN 20 WEEKS AWAY!!!

Deep breathes...you are probably still ok. We are able to get dresses on a RUSH 9-18 weeks but there is an additional $30 fee added.  What's that you say?! It's 6-8 weeks!?  Lady you need to order NOW! And we can get the dresses in 6-8 weeks but it's going to be an extra $50 per dress.

That about sums up the explanation of that originally silly sounding 20 weeks before the wedding date!

Hello, My Name is Gorgeous

Welcome to the official Camarillo Bridal Blog!!
My name is Tabitha and I will be doing most of our posts with help from all our wonderful ladies!

Allow me to introduce our consultants.  Our adorable owner/store-mom is Pam who not only manges the store with beautiful professionalism but takes great care of all her girls.  Renee is our manager and the longest current employee.  Basically?  She is a bridal rockstar...she signs autographs.  Then there is Shelley who has great experience in the industry and always pulls the perfect dress that you had no idea you would love.  Nichole is our resident fiancee and has a great sense of how to match you to your dress.  Jazmyn is our newest and our sassiest consultant.  No really, there be some serious pizazz and bridal knowledge packed into this fun-sized lady.  Then there's me: I'm the new girl and am carving out a new position in the store as Director of First Impressions.  I'm here to take care of you from the minute you call or walk in to the minute you start your appointment with one of these fabulous consultants.  Any questions? Come to me!  Check out the who's who page for more fast facts on these ladies.

Let's start with background: Camarillo Bridal and Gorgeous Gowns was started by Pam when she realized that she had 3 beautiful daughters who all needed gowns for different events and that the dresses they were finding were just not...IT.  So she proactively decided to just start her OWN dress shop which I find 1) admirable 2) really awesome.

Soon after she realized that expanding into weddings would be the savvy business choice and that the style of gowns she had to offer were in serious demand.  It just so happened that there was a preexisting wedding business being sold by a wonderful woman named Jennifer and it was the PERFECT match! BAM!  She was in the wedding business.

Fast forward 6 years: OH MY GOODNESS THE STORE IS OVERFLOWING WITH BRIDES!  Pam had hit a prime market and we can't keep up with the traffic coming in and we get so sad when we have to tell a girl that we don't have a fitting room for her.  Which, really? Is a fantastic problem to have, but our poor dresses can not even breathe so it is time to move again.  But where?  Well thanks to the advent of web movie rental our local video rental had cleared out and their empty space was PERFECT!!

Present day: We are waiting impatiently to get into that space, because we are literally falling-off-the shelves kind of exploding.  Like, the other day I heard a wedding dress gasp when I tried to cram it back into the already too full rack.  No joke. Because we had planned to be in spacious new store by now and had bought inventory to match.  Hopefully we will be able to open our doors to you lovely ladies mid April...we'll keep you posted!  Check back for the weekly blogs, and also check us out on Facebook for more moving details!!