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Hi There! I just wanted to take a moment to thank everyone that shopped with us for the 2016 prom season! We had an awesome record beating year, and we are so grateful to those of you that chose us for your prom superstore. We are already planning for 2017, and hope that we will see many of you back for the fun events and awesome dresses that we have in store! We are planning on adding more tux rental options in 2017 for the guys as well! We are excited to share photo's of our #beyoutifulfamily members in all of their finery. If you are a #btgirl and want to be featured in our online gallery you can send us pics by email, or a Facebook message through the business page, please include the names of anyone in the picture along with the year. Thank you and much love from Kelly and the #btstaff !!!
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We see them everywhere, the pretty corset laces on the back of wedding, prom, and bridesmaids dresses. Not only do they look great, but as an added bonus you can pull those suckers so tight your waistline will magically shrink 5", just like you see on the movies, right? WRONG!!! We hate to burst your bubble, but the fact is that corset laces on dresses are not made to withstand the same kind of pressure that a real corset would. I cringe every time I see someone pulling on a corset laced dress like they are re-enacting a scene from Gone with the Wind; while in my head I am screaming "YOU ARE GOING TO BREAK IT!!!!" What folks fail to realize is that it wasn't until 1828 that corsets started being engineered with metal eyelets. After those little marvels started being used, the the corset could withstand just about any amount of force you could muster, without running the risk of tearing the fabric. Corsets also became known as hidden killers because of the damage they could inflict on the human body by over-lacing, or "tight-lacing". Fun Fact: Did you know that men wore corsets too; albeit rarely? Today, dresses with "corsets" are for aesthetic appeal; even more importantly they act as the closure in place of a zipper. While they will give you a certain amount of shaping please take care not to lace too tightly. Fabric and thread, especially delicate fabric and thread, will only withstand so much before eyelets start popping. Real corsets with metal eyelets. Notice the corsets being laced go UNDER the dress. It's not the dress itself that is being laced. So, if it is an hourglass shape you are after, we highly recommend getting an additional body shaping undergarment, and not relying on your dress alone to achieve the look you want.
A few weeks ago we made an exciting announcement that we will be opening a new addition to the store in 2015! We are still very excited and thankful for this new opportunity to grow our business here in Wilkes. We made this decision after hearing the feedback of what our customers were saying during the 2014 prom season. People thought we only did weddings. They had no idea that we had such an amazing selection of gowns and accessories for prom and social occasion, even though our name is Bridal Traditions Wedding & Prom Attire. So, the idea was born! We would have a store within a store and promote it as our prom boutique.
At first, it would be the section that was already designated as the prom department in the store, but it would receive separate marketing, promotion, and its own name. That was a task in itself. What do we call it? I knew that I wanted it to be something meaningful, that would somehow have an impact on the girls that would shop here. It is my desire to empower young women to be who they are, and to accept the reflection in the mirror as beautiful. I wanted a name that would convey that we do not care who you are, what your tastes are, or what you look like. We think you are beautiful! It took some time and a lot of bouncing ideas off of different people, but one day a very good friend casually said; "What about beYoutiful?". It was a perfect fit! So the name was set, the logo was being designed, and plans were being made. But, I kept having the nagging thought; "Wouldn't it be amazing to have a whole new re-designed area just for prom?". So after much deliberation and consideration we decided that YES, this is do-able! To date, the new wing (as I am lovingly calling it), has four walls, a roof, windows, and new siding. This is a very exciting time during the journey of Bridal Traditions that we are proud to make you a part of. It is our sincerest hope that come prom 2015 everyone knows about our prom boutique, and that we do not here the words "I didn't know this was here!" ever again. I am ever thankful for the amazingly unbelievable blessings that we have received and the newness of each day. It's an awesome journey and we are enjoying the ride! I'm sure that some of you have seen the few pictures that we have posted to our social media pages showing that we have construction going on at Bridal Traditions. Well, today we are making the official announcement of just what that construction is going to become!
We are so happy to announce that we are adding 627 square feet of space that will house the beYoutiful Prom boutique at Bridal Traditions! The boutique will be dedicated to all of our prom and homecoming dresses and accessories. There are also plans of additional dressing rooms, with a better viewing space, and more lighting. We are treating beYoutiful Prom as a store within a store, so we will create Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and website accounts that you can follow to get all the latest news about prom related merchandise and events. Keep an eye out for those to launch in the coming months. Our projected grand opening of the boutique itself is February 7, just in time for the 2015 prom season! Having this extra space for our prom customer will also allow us to expand our bridal and maids departments as well. Our goal is to give all of our customers a comfortable "un-cramped" shopping experience. While we have the mess of the new construction going on we are also taking the time to give the rest of the store a facelift too, with new siding on the outside and new paint on the inside. :) We want to send out a huge and heartfelt thank you to all of our loyal customers and friends who have helped make our growth within this community possible! We are so blessed to be able to be able to live and work in Wilkes! Having your wedding dress altered is a necessary part of wedding planning, and it is quite an undertaking in itself. Wedding and formal gowns are not made from the fabrics that we are used to wearing everyday. These fabrics are not typically "stretchy" so they need to be altered to fit your shape. All gowns are structured differently and each woman has her own contours that are unique to her, the key is to mold the dress to your body shape while keeping the integrity of the gown design. The good news is that most formal gowns are made with alterations in mind, the bad news; this takes time and multiple fittings. The most common misconception that I see with alterations is that people don't understand why it takes more than one fitting, or why the dress is not perfect at the second fitting. Depending on the dress, the person, and the type of alteration it can take several fittings to get a dress just right. "Show up with an open mind. It may take more than one appointment to get a perfect fit, so don't despair if the dress puckers or pinches." Randy Fenoli - Much Ado About Alterations If you are in the alteration process, please be patient with your seamstress, remember she/he is trying to mold this delicate, unforgiving fabric to the shape of your body, and that is not an easy task. Everything that is done to one part of dress can affect another part, which it is not always predictable. For more information on this subject please read; Much Ado About Alterations, a must read article about the alteration process based on an interview with Randy Fenoli of Say Yes to the Dress. · Begin your search for your prom dress early. You may not have a date yet, but you will want to start looking at fashion magazines and stores as early as three to four months before your prom.
· Make sure you don't pick one that everyone else will have; you should be different. Just be yourself. · Plan your budget for your prom dress and begin saving as soon as possible. Be sure to allow extra cash for small accessories like hair clips, shoes, and jewelry. · Watch some celebrity red carpet events and take notes on your favorite styles. You may just be able to find a similar prom dress in your local boutique. · Try on dresses in a variety of different styles and cuts to find the one that works best for your body. If you have a slim figure, you may look best in a sheath-style dress that shows off your silhouette. If you are curvy, you may want to consider an A-line dress that will highlight your waist and minimize your hips and thighs. Don’t be afraid to try on something that you hate on the hanger. Some dresses are just not hanger dresses, but they look great when you get them on a body. · Start shopping for shoes and accessories at least 2 months in advance of the Prom. This way, you can try on your shoes, bag, and dress all together at the dress shop. Most dresses will need to be hemmed to the right length and having your shoes prior to making alterations is a must. · Plan to choose and purchase your prom dress at least four to six weeks before your prom. Most formal gowns (including prom dresses) require alterations for a perfect fit, and you will want to allow enough time to complete these alterations. · A couple of weeks before your prom, try on your dress with your shoes, jewelry, make-up, and hairstyle to be sure you like the finished look. Walk and move around in your prom dress a little to give it a comfort check and to make sure there will be no wardrobe malfunction. Even the most well made garment can loose a hook or pop a zipper. · On the night of your prom, make sure you wear a button-up or large neck shirt that you can remove easily once your hair and makeup are done. This will prevent any make-up smudges, or heaven forbid, pulling you hair down before the big night. Knockoff dresses being sold online are a huge issue in the formalwear industry right now. This has been a problem facing us for the past few years and as prom season approaches I would just like to remind everyone of the dangers of shopping online for your prom gown. Overseas manufactures are actually counterfeiting gowns from the actual designers which, is an illegal practice. One of the best ways to tell if you are looking at a knockoff is the price. If the price online is much cheaper than the authorized retailers price then most likely you are going to receive a very cheaply made version of the original dress. Remember, if it's too good to be true it probably is. Problems associated with buying a gown online:
These are all problem that we have encountered personally with customers who chose to order online thinking they were getting a great deal. In the end not so much, they wind up spending more money than they would have to begin with if they had purchased the dress from an authorized retailer. This article is geared more toward the prom customer, but it does happen to brides on a regular basis as well. There is nothing like having a bride come in the week of her wedding to get a gown because the one she ordered online did not arrive or it was a disaster when it did arrive. Remember that retailers do have affordable options if you are on a tight budget and for us personally we have payment plans and will work with you so you can have the dress of your dreams. These are special moments that do not happen very often in a lifetime, we should be creating good memories. Do you really want to look back and say; "Man, my special occasion was a complete disaster."? Visit NBCNews.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy I had the opportunity to visit one of the "big box" bridal & prom stores a few weeks ago. It was certainly not my main mission to go to this store, but I was in the area, so of course I had to stop in to see what it was all about.
I was there for at least 15 to 20 minutes, walked by 3 sales associates, and not one greeted me or asked if I needed any help. I also observed a young girl shopping for a formal dress. Based on how young she looked, I am assuming it was the first time she had every purchased, or tried on anything formal. She was walking aimlessly around the store, in a dress that was completely wrong for her, followed by her mom and a friend. I felt so sorry for her because I could see the frustration mounting on her face. At no point did I see a sales associate offer any help or advice to this young girl, who was so completely and obviously out of her element. Shopping for formal-wear is much different that shopping for ready-wear clothing, and when you don't have someone who knows about formal-wear to guide you it can be a very frustrating experience. I know that big box stores have there place and that we all shop at them for one reason or another, myself included. I also think that small stores have a lot of stereotypes that get placed on them that are not fair or true. We really have a lot more to offer than people might think. Stayed tuned for part two of this series where I will begin to discuss common myth's about bridal boutiques, how they can compete with the big chains, and give the consumer a better experience to boot. So sneakers can be formal! We are covering the Converse and Tom's trend with the blingy sneakers from Helen's Heart. These would work great for bridal, but I see more of our prom girls going with this option. Can you just imagine either of these styles with a cute tutu dress!? Love it! We have samples in the store now and we can special order your size. They do run out of stock quickly on these so make sure you order with plenty of time to spare. Bling Sneakers are available in both a high top and low top version and each version comes in silver or gold.
And what I love best about these shoes are the hidden built up heel. Not much, just about 2", but it's amazing how awesome those 2" will make your legs look! There is this huge misconception that there is SUPPOSE to be or HAS to be some big emotional display when choosing a wedding dress and it's just not true for everyone. I see brides begin to question their decision because someone else thinks (and says) there has to be tears involved. For some people that is the case and that is perfectly fine, that's why we keep the tissue box close at hand. But for those of you who are not prone to emotional display it is also perfectly acceptable that you DON'T cry when you choose your dress. Don't let someone else tell you how you need to feel or how you should behave. Only about 10% of our brides are actually brought to tears when they find "the one", another 30% dance and giggle, and the other 60% just can't get enough mirror time. The world is made up with people of all different personalities and we all handle each situation differently. Some people choose things based solely on the emotion of how it makes them feel while others are more methodical about their selections. Neither way is wrong they're just different, and that's OK! Please! Do not let someone else talk you out of saying yes to your dress because they say you are suppose to cry, jump up and down, faint, cut cartwheels or any number of other silly notions that people sometimes have. You will know when you have found your dress and no one else. Except maybe your bridal consultant because we have become pretty good knowing ;) |
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