Are you still looking for the perfect wedding venue?  This coming Sunday, February 8th, may be your lucky day!

Eighteen local Marriott and Renaissance hotels are opening their ballrooms for a huge open house event.  You don’t need to make an appointment; just visit any of the participating properties between 1:00 p.m. and 5:00 p.m.!

And it gets better:  At each property you visit, you can enter to win one of four pretty amazing grand prizes:

• A $1000 gift certificate to Adorn Brides
• Manolo Blahnik shoes for your wedding day
• 250,000 Marriott Rewards^® points to use toward your honeymoon
• An engagement photoshoot with Bella Pictures

We’ll return to our series on how to start planning your wedding in our next post, but I had to take a short break today to tell you all about the upcoming DCCWC Couture 2009 Bridal Show! The DCCWC is the DC Couture Wedding Consortium, and its members are among the most stylish and sought-after in the Washington wedding community.

This year’s DCCWC wedding show is scheduled for Saturday, January 31st, from 12:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. The location is the beautiful Decatur House on Lafayette Square in Washington, DC. Admission is free but limited, and you must preregister if you plan to attend.

Don’t miss this chance not only to meet some fabulous wedding vendors, but also to take a look at Decatur House — it might be just what you’ve always imagined for your wedding!

Head on over to the DCCWC website to register and learn more about the show.

And thanks, Sara, for the heads up! (Sara Bauleke is the fabulous wedding planner behind Bella Notte. If you don’t hire us, then be sure to give her a call!  We promise you’ll love working with her.)

Okay, so maybe it’s shallow, but among the many other more worthy things for which I give thanks (family, friends, food, shelter… the big things), I also give thanks for sales. And I give thanks for (and to!) those who clue me in to the really good sales. It’s no secret that the total bill for a bride’s gorgeous attire can add up pretty quickly, so in my book, a bridal salon event is really, really good.

In the spirit of giving, I’ve spent the morning hunting down sales happening between now and the end of the year at DC-area bridal salons. Some of them are even starting the day after Thanksgiving. And it’s not just about the bride: There are some good sales happening on bridesmaids’ and flower girls’ dresses as well. What better way to spend the day after Turkey Day than to hit the bridal salons? Leave the boys at home with their football games and take your bridesmaids out for a day of shopping.

Read, clap with glee, then get on the phone and start making appointments as necessary. You can thank me later.  :)

Blueberries Bridal, Kensington, Maryland
Now through November 30th, 2008
10% + $10.00 off Suri bridesmaid dresses

Now through December 1st, 2008
10% off little girl dresses

Dharma & Leopold’s, Warrenton, Virginia
(super-cute clothes for your flower girl and ring bearer)
Valid through December 24, 2008
Coupon worth 15% off any one item

Distinctive Designs Bridal, Rockville, Maryland
Now through December 31st, 2008
Sample Sale (up to 75% off!)

Formalities Bridal, Winchester, Virginia
Now through December 23rd, 2008
Bring in a toy to donate to Toys for Tots and get 10% off any dress purchased that day

Hannelore’s, Alexandria, Virginia
Going on now!
Sample Sale (up to 50% off!)

TLC Bridal Boutique, Frederick, Maryland
Going on now!
Sample Sale (many gowns priced at $99.00!)

David’s Bridal, locations throughout the DC area
November 26th – December 1st, 2008
Sample Sale (50% off select styles)

The Barn, Bunker Hill, West Virginia
November 28th, 2008
50% off all out-of-stock wedding gowns

Promise, Bethesda, Maryland
November 29th – December 31st, 2008
Winter Sample Sale

Carine’s Bridal Atelier, Washington, DC
December 7th, 2008
Sample Sale (up to 75% off!) at the Ritz-Carlton Tysons Corner

Replacing the traditional wedding cake with a tower of cupcakes is a trend that looks like it’s here to stay, and for good reason:  Cupcakes are fun, delicious, and often less expensive than a more traditional multi-layered wedding cake.

While hunting for information about cupcakes for one of my brides this afternoon, I stumbled upon this blog post about a cupcake contest to be held right here in DC next month!

It sounds like all the details aren’t yet in place, but here’s what’s posted so far:

Date:  Thursday, September 25th, 2008
Time:  TBD, but sometime after working hours
Place:  The Washington Club at Dupont Circle

Entries will be accepted from professional, amateur, and out-of-town bakers, in the following categories:

•  Vanilla with chocolate icing
•  Chocolate with vanilla icing
•  Wildcard – where creativity counts

Now, I’m not suggesting that all you brides-to-be (or grooms-to-be) get started on developing the Great American Cupcake Recipe, but this sounds like a really fun opportunity to see what area bakers have to offer in the cupcake department!  Plus it’ll be a fun night out for you and your fiance, or for your and your bridesmaids.  And the Washington Club is a lovely venue that’s available for wedding receptions — maybe you’ll find the perfect cupcake and the perfect place to serve it!

While we’re on the subject of cupcakes, they’re not just the new wedding cake. Cupcakes make excellent wedding favors, are a delicious addition to an out-of-town gift basket, and are a welcome surprise when brought in for your guests to enjoy as a midnight snack at your reception.  I’m sure you can think of other great ways of incorporating cupcakes at your event.

Back to the cupcake contest:  I think Mr. Husband and I will try to make it to this. Anybody else in?

It’s that time again! The Filene’s Basement store at Mazza Gallerie is hosting the Running of the Brides on Friday, August 1st — only a little over a week away.

For the maybe two of you who aren’t familiar with the Running of the Brides, it’s an annual deep-discount bridal gown sale unlike any other: Brides (and their teams, a.k.a. family and friends) line up outside the store well before opening time, then when the doors are flung open, rush toward rack upon rack of bridal gowns, all marked down to ridiculously low prices. I’ve never gone to the event myself (sadly, the city in which I married didn’t have a Filene’s Basement), but I’ve heard stories of brides getting multi-thousand dollar designer gowns for hundreds.

If you plan to go, then get there early. The queue outside the store often starts forming the night before. The other option is to get there late, after the huge crowds have dissipated and the Filene’s Basement staff have had a chance to get things back in order again. According to Filene’s, there are still great deals to be had later in the day for brides who just aren’t into the mayhem of the morning rush.

If you go, then drop us a line and let us know what it was like! And of course, tell us all about the gorgeous dress you scored for a killer price.

Yesterday we participated in the Fort Myer Military Community Bridal Show sponsored by Five Star Catering.  It was held in the beautiful Fort Myer Officers’ Club, affording brides the opportunity not only to meet vendors, but also to see the space and meet the catering staff.  It was a great day–we met lots of other area vendors, and of course lots of area brides-to-be and their families!  Here are a few photos: 

Our table:
    

A beautiful floral display:
 

One of the food display tables during setup and complete:
 

The delicious (and popular!) display from the Heidelberg Pastry Shoppe in Arlington: 
 

Thanks to the special events staff at the Fort Myer office of Morale, Welfare, and Recreation, for all the hard work they put into organizing this year’s show.  And thanks to all the brides and families who stopped by! We enjoyed meeting you all, and look forward to working with you. 

Want to do more than just look pretty on your wedding day?  Consider shopping for your wedding dress at the Brides Against Breast Cancer charity dress sale!  This year’s sale is happening on March 20, 21, and 22, at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Tysons Corner.  There’ll be lots of beautiful dresses at amazing prices, and the proceeds from the sale are used to help grant wishes for patients living with breast cancer.  It’s a win-win!

We’ll be volunteering at the event, and we hope to see lots of brides-to-be perusing the racks.  For more information, visit the Brides Against Breast Cancer website.