bride-to-be

Seven Items You Need to Include in Your Wedding Day Emergency Kit

November 13, 2019 by aaadmin Leave a Comment

It is your big day. There are levels of excitement, nervousness, and emotions that have come to the surface. Between the ceremony, reception, rehearsal dinner, and the events surrounding the wedding, there is so much to think about. One item you can’t forget is your wedding day emergency kit. You can pack it yourself or get a kit with the items that are included. We gathered some tips from real brides. Here are some of the items they shared that are essential for your kit.

Ashley & Alexandria’s Real Bride: Lisa is Lovely in Lusan Mondangus

September 4, 2019 by aaadmin Leave a Comment

Ashley & Alexandria’s bride Lisa was fabulous on her wedding day. Lisa’s intimate ceremony was at the Guardian building and her reception was held at The Whitney in Detroit. Our bride was looking for a classic and timeless style when it came to her wedding dress and she found it with Lusan Mondangus.

Ashley & Alexandria’s Designer Spotlight: The Beauty and Elegance of Blue Enzoani

August 7, 2019 by aaadmin Leave a Comment

With modern European styles mixed with traditional looks. This designer is dominating the bridal landscape. Blue Enzonai offers a beautiful modern style mixed in with an unforgettable classic look.

At Ashley & Alexandria’s Bridal boutique we are proud to offer some of the top designers in bridal. Our boutique is located in Southfield, MI. We are honored to service brides from all over the United States. It is such a joy to help our brides find their dream wedding dress.

How to Return Wedding Gifts You Know You’ll Never Use

October 31, 2018 by aaadmin Leave a Comment

Source: Brides

When your wedding is all said and done, you’ll hopefully be left with a handful of good memories, a couple hundred photos, and a pile of gifts. As you’re ripping off the wrapping paper and uncovering the items that your guests have given you, you might notice that some of those gifts will never be used, cared for, or looked at again.

So what should you do with the gifts that you’re most likely going to bury underneath a pile of things you never use in your garage or shoved in the back of a closet? You should try to return them to get money or get something else from the store that you’ll actually use instead.

Here’s how you can return your unwanted wedding gifts. The best part is, the people who gave you the gift never have to know.

Sort Through Gifts ASAP

When the wedding ends, you’re going to feel tempted to want to sit back and relax, taking time off to recover from all things wedding. But before you kick your feet up and catch up on your favorite TV shows, the very first thing you should do is rip open the wrapping paper on your wedding gifts. Start sorting the items you received into two piles: a keep pile and a return pile.

If you received a lot of registry gifts at your bridal shower, be sure to separate them into piles right after as well.

After you’ve made your piles, start taking action. Examine the gifts in your return pile. Do you have a gift receipt for them? Do you know where they were purchased? To meet most store’s return policies, you want to bring items back within the month they were gifted to you. That way, you have a better chance at getting money back or a store credit.

Look Up the Store’s Return Policy

If you have a receipt for the gift, look up to see how long you have until you can no longer return it. Some stores give money back within 30 days and then after that, give store credit.

If you find that you don’t have a receipt for the gift, but you know exactly where it was purchased, it’s worth taking the item to the store, asking to speak with a manager, and explaining that it was given to you as a wedding gift. Stores like Nordstrom, Macy’s, Target, and TJ Maxx, have a reputation for being great with returns or working with customers who don’t have a receipt. Usually, they can scan the barcode on the item, see when it was purchased, and give you the amount that the item is valued at now (if it was purchased months or even years ago).

Ask the Gift Giver for More Information

Sometimes, after your wedding ends, you find that you are left with a pile of gifts that you have no idea where they were bought. If they end up in your return pile, strike up a conversation with the gift giver to inquire about more information. Casually ask them where they bought it from so that you can investigate the return policy.

Swap It, Sell It, Store It to Regift

If you’re finding yourself eyeballing a dead end when trying to return a specific item that you just don’t want, you might want to resort to getting your money back or your money’s worth in other ways. If you’ve been given a gift card you know you’ll never use, you can swap it for another one using a website like Cardpool. You can also sell your gifts on Facebook Marketplace or using the website Tradsey. Or, if you’ve received a gift that you know you can’t use, but someone else would adore, you can store it away to regift for someone’s next birthday, holiday, or wedding gift.

The Wedding Beauty Routine You Should Start 1 Month Before the Big Day

October 3, 2018 by aaadmin Leave a Comment

Source: Brides

The wedding is officially just a handful of weeks away and it will be here in the blink of an eye. When you hit the one-month countdown—a moment that seemed so far away when the wedding planning begun—everything is pretty much in place, with just a few finishing touches remaining on the to-do list. The same can be said about your wedding beauty timeline, as just like every checklist tied to wedding planning, there are still a few more to-dos.

So let’s get to it, below!

Get Strands Camera-Ready

Now isn’t the time to get creative with your hair color. New York City colorist Rita Hazan says you should tell your colorist what look you’re aiming for about two months before the wedding. Then, she says, “I like to touch up a bride about two weeks before the big day so color or highlights look natural and fresh straight through the honeymoon.” If you want to tame frizz or coarseness, go for an in-salon keratin treatment a month out. “This can be a game changer if you’re having a destination wedding in a humid place,” says hairstylist Mylo Carrion at the Rita Hazan Salon. “Plus, your hair will be totally low-maintenance on your honeymoon.”

Brighten Your Smile

There’s nothing like the prospect of wearing a white dress to make you want to bleach your teeth. Dr. Lana Rozenberg DDS at Rozenberg Dental NYC recommends the Zoom! QuickPro whitening treatment for brides with limited time. “This is a perfect treatment for the bride with a busy schedule since it is super fast, taking only 10 minutes in the office including the application of the whitening gels and instructions,” she tells Brides. One treatment can result in a smile that’s four shades lighter and will last for up to six months. Even if you end up pushing perfecting your smile to the bottom of your to-do list, rest assured you can still dazzle with those pearly whites on your wedding day. “Brides can have this done just a few days before the wedding—including the day before—since there is no downtime and no sensitivity after the treatment,” says Dr. Rozenberg.

For an at-home option, Matthew Messina, an assistant professor of dentistry at the Ohio State University, recommends a drugstore kit, such as Crest 3D White Strips, although in-office whitening “is more obvious and takes the patient homework out of it,” according to Messina.

Get Serious About Your Sleep

Getting a solid night’s sleep is easier said than done, especially for busy brides-to-be with a million things on that to-do list. Use the final month before the wedding as an excuse to focus on those precious eight hours and make it a priority turn down at a decent hour. “This might require prioritizing exercise and avoiding sleep-busting habits like binge-watching TV before bed or drinking caffeine late in the day,” says Casper’s in-house sleep expert Theresa Fisher. Whether you need a new pillow, a chic silk sleeping mask, or a sound machine, do what you have to do to get those Zzzs in.

Amp Up the Workouts

If you’ve been on your health journey for a few months now, it’s time to step it up. “If you are working out three days a week, add a fourth. If you are working out a couple of times a week, add an extra workout or two,” suggests Anna Kaiser, founder of AKT in Motion. It’s all about what works for you—however, the main rule of thumb in the few weeks leading up to the big day according to Kaiser is, “Every workout should get and keep your heart rate pumping for at least 70 percent of the workout.”

Read the rest here.