Wedding inspirations (ethnic vs. traditional)

One of my closest friends from Duke is in the midst of planning her wedding right now - one of my VERY favorite things in the world.  I love, love, love planning, and a wedding is pretty much one of the most amazing things a girl gets to plan.

So I've been looking around to help out with inspiration for her (and also just because it's a guilty pleasure).  Her wedding will be an Indian wedding, so I've been on the lookout for beautiful pictures of "cultural" fetes.  (That's what the wedding websites seem to call weddings that aren't of the the "I do / I do" variety, I'm not really sure how any wedding is any more "cultural" than another, but anyway).

I thought I'd post a few beautiful pictures of attire - "cultural" and otherwise.  And I'd love your comments on these and all things wedding, and any pictures you'd like to share!

First, a Christos gown.  I almost bought a gown by Christos - it was the runner up - but in the end I went with a Vera.  Can't really go wrong either way.  I love that this dress is so elegant and ethereal, and I especially love the tulle neckline and bodice detail.  FABULOUS.  And a great solution for all the brides who don't want to do strapless.  My thoughts on that:  strapless dresses are a bit of a red herring.  Your wedding dress is not going to fall down the way your average strapless dress might, so brides need not worry so much and be overly concerned about avoiding strapless.  Wedding dresses have a ton of boning, construction, and tailoring so you're really not going to need to worry. 

And here are a few pictures that I love from this wedding on Style Me Pretty. I love the colors, the flowers, the subtle variations in the sarees.  I am just learning about the different traditions, options, and styles for Indian weddings . . . so much fun!  The bride and groom have chosen a hybrid approach to the attire, with bridesmaids in sarees and the bride in a white gown.  It looks great, and I think a bride should do whatever she wants on her wedding day!

Comments

[Nina]

Wow, I love the pictures of the bridesmaids' sarees! But I do think the saree blouses with the sleeves somehow looked better than the sleeveless ones....too bad only one of them seem to be wearing it with sleeveless....

[Nina]

opps, i meant to say: too bad only one of them seem to be wearing it with sleeves....