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Whether you are ready to start shopping for the perfect dress now or in the future I highly recommend Anna Be.  It’s by far my favorite bridal boutique in Denver!  Happy dress shopping!

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I’ve save the very best for last!  You may remember my post from earlier this year when I had the opportunity to try on a couple of Stephanie James’ designs at Anna Be.  I absolutely love her!  I’m a North Face-wearing, fleece-loving, Colorado mountain girl but when I tried on those dresses I was wishing I could travel back to the 50’s so that I had an excuse to wear dresses like this all the time!  Although the look didn’t really fit my laid back mountain wedding I still secretly wish I would have worn the Audry dress. I felt so beautiful in it and wanted to twirl all day long!  

The best part about Stephanie James is that each dress is custom made and can be personalized to your style.  The Josephine dress is available in a variety of different colors and a strapless version is available as well.  The Audrey dress that I tried on had an adorable blue petticoat and can be made with a variety of different colors.  Such a fun touch to add!  Here are four of my absolute favorite tea length designs from Stephanie James.  She also makes full-length gowns.  Check her out at www.stephaniejamescouture.com

Audrey

Josephine

Greta

Mrs. Kennedy

Stephanie James’ designs can be found at my favorite Denver bridal boutique, Anna Be.

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I love the simple yet sophisticated style of Nicole Miller’s designs.  They’re perfect for the Colorado bride looking for an understated, yet elegant look.  

Wedding dresses by Nicole Miller can be found at my favorite Denver bridal boutique, Anna Be as well as several other Colorado boutiques.  Visit www.nicolemiller.com for more information.

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This week is all about my favorite wedding dress designers.  I’m not sure how I discovered Claire Pettibone but I’ve been a fan for years.  Her dresses exude romance.  I love how light and airy and comfortable they look.  These are some of my favorites from this year’s and last year’s collections.

Alexandra

Canterbury

Cloisonne

Helena (I wanted this dress SO bad!)

Joan

Plume

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Sottero & Midgley is a division of Maggie Sottero and offers gorgeous gowns at an affordable price.  Just like the Maggie Sottero gowns I talked about yesterday, these gowns are available in a variety of hues as well.  Sottero & Midgley has a wide selection, these are just a few of my favorites.

Style #: ASM3148

Style #: ASM3158

Style #: ASM3170

Style #: JSM1103

Style #: JSM5140

Style #: VSM7047

Check out Sottero & Midgley’s site for a list of Colorado locations.

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This week I’d like to share some of my favorite designers with you.  First up, Maggie Sottero.  I love that most of her designs are available in a variety of options from white to ivory to silver and more.  White isn’t for everyone so I think this is such a great way to make your dress fit your personal style.  I could spend days drooling over the dresses on her site.  Here are a few of my absolute favorites.  

Ireland

Anastasia

Flora

I would love to see this in the ivory lace over gold option, I think it would be stunning!

Haven

Kym

Mirabella

Check out Maggie Sottero’s site for the many Colorado locations where you can find her designs.

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I had known for some time that Anna-Be was one of the hippest bridal boutiques in Denver but not until recently did I discover that they provide full service wedding design and coordination.  Not only can they help you find the perfect dress but they know how to design and coordinate the wedding of your dreams. Let me tell you, when it comes to weddings, Anna & Breanna have got it going on.  The best part is working with them and their entire staff is like having your best friends plan your wedding.  

(Be sure to read more about the Anna-Be dress boutique posted earlier this week directly below this post.) 

What is your name and what is the name of your business? Anna Walsh & Breanna Doll, Anna Bé

Where are you located and what areas do you serve? Anna Bé is in the Highlands neighborhood of Denver at 3215 Zuni Street. We work with brides who are having weddings all over the state of Colorado and we’d be happy to work with destination brides as well.

What inspired you to become a wedding coordinator? The decision to become a wedding coordinator was really a piece of the greater mission of Anna Bé, which is to bring great design to brides. Coming from the background of working in an ad agency, the owners of Anna Bé, Anna and Breanna are passionate about bringing creativity and flawless service to brides. To do this, they created the Anna Bé design studio. The design studio is a new approach to planning and coordination that is rooted in great design. We have an in-house graphic design team so every aspect is truly custom. Brides who work with us receive top-flight planning and design services. From the event design, vendor recommendations, budget management, designing and producing custom stationery and paper details, to the day-of coordination, Anna Bé will help manage the entire day. And we want to make it fun! We make sure that every bride gets a dose of our philosophy: Less Stress…More Play!

What is your favorite part about what you do? We love it when you get to the wedding and the bride, groom, and entire family can just really kick back and have a good time. We want everyone to be wowed by the event without having a clue as to how much effort goes into making it happen.

What kind of services and/or products do you offer? Anna Bé provides a comprehensive approach to designing and planning the wedding. It’s all about great design and creativity when working with Anna Bé. From start to finish, Anna Bé provides event design, vendor recommendations, budget management, custom stationery and paper details, and day-of coordination.

What advice would you give a bride currently looking for a coordinator? Style and relationship. You’re gong to spend a lot of time with your coordinator, so you should pick someone that you enjoy spending time with. And it’s also important to pick a coordinator who can create the style of wedding that you want.

How far in advance should a couple book your services? The sooner the better! We can be most helpful if we can get involved before too many decisions are made so time and productivity is maximized.

On average, what does a couple spend for your services?  What do your rates start at? Each package is customized to meet the needs of the couple. During our initial consultation we work together to get an understanding of how Anna Bé can best help. Our packages start at $5,000

What question are you most asked by brides and what’s your response? We get asked a lot of etiquette questions by brides and their parents. Depending on the situation and the style of the family, we can always provide the “correct” or historical etiquette and traditions. However, a lot of that has been thrown out of the window and we can always provide different options about how to best handle various situations.

Are there any common misconceptions in your industry?  If so, what would you like the brides out there to know? Many brides get caught up in thinking that every detail needs to be perfect! It doesn’t. While we strive for perfection, invariably something unpredictable happens. Maybe it’s a weather change or a last minute guest that arrives. A good planner and a great attitude make all of the difference in ensuring each of these unexpected events a positive outcome.

Do you have any tips for couples that are planning their weddings from out of state? If you’re coming in for a mountain wedding, we love to prepare brides and guests about altitude and weather. Colorado weather can be finicky varying 50+ degrees in a single day. And it’s super important to stay hydrated to avoid altitude sickness.

Who are some of your favorite vendors to work with? Some of our favorite photographers include Jim Christianson Photography and Jenna Walker Photography. We’re constantly meeting new people and looking for new talent that will be a good fit for our brides.

What is the best way to reach you?  Do you have a website? Whatever works best for brides! Call us, email us, or feel free to stop by and browse the collection. We’re a small shop so we do request that appointments are made if you would like to try on dresses, but we’re always happy to have you stop by. We have a website at www.anna-be.com and a blog at www.anna-be.blogspot.com.

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I have been so excited to introduce you to the girls over at Anna Be!  Anna & Breanna are fabulous and make finding your wedding dress the fun experience that it should be!  Finding my dress was definitely the most difficult part of my entire wedding process and I know now that it shouldn’t have been.  Anna & Breanna and their staff provide the personal service that you deserve when searching for the most important dress of your life.  If you have not yet found your dress, be sure to stop by.  For now, read our interview with Anna Be, they have some great advice to share!

What is your name and what is the name of your business?  Anna Walsh & Breanna Doll, Anna Bé

Where is your store located?  The Highlands neighborhood of Denver, we’re at 3215 Zuni Street

What is your favorite part about what you do?  We love it all! It’s so much fun getting to work with brides as they are going through the entire shopping experience – trying on dresses with friends and family, coming back for that second look, deciding that she’s found the dress that she just cannot bear to take off, and then working with her until the wedding day to make sure that the entire look from the veil to the jewelry is simply fabulous! It’s a long process and everyone who works at Anna Bé makes it a goal to ensure that it’s less stress and more play!

What kind of services and/or products do you offer?  Anna Bé has a collection of simple, elegant gowns. Most of the designers we carry are exclusive to our store and include: Nicole Miller, Junko Yoshioka, Lela Rose, Vera Wang, Lusan Mandongus, Essense of Australia, Augusta Jones, Stephanie James, Caroline DeVillo, and more. Our signature is to bring together a collection of well-edited stylish pieces that focus on construction, cut, fabric, and design. We’re a little bit more fashion-forward and definitely shy away from the pouf! Beyond the gown, we have some of the most fun frocks for your maids. Chic looks from Jenny Yoo, Nicole Miller, Bari Jay, Vera Wang, After Six, and Watters are dresses that fit a variety of budgets and styles. Anna Bé also carries an extensive collection of veils and headpieces from Sara Gabriel and fabulous accessories from MEG Jewelry, Haute Bride, Bloom Jewelry, and Nicole Miller.

What advice would you give a bride currently looking for her dress?  Have fun with the process! Not every bride steps into a gown and has this moment where she knows that’s her dress. Also, it’s a good thing to come into the store with an open mind. Sometimes what you fall in love with in a magazine looks completely different in person and other times the dress that you never thought you would wear ends up being your dress. And lastly, when comparing dresses, keep in mind that the dress purchase is not over when you order the dress. You want to work with a shop that is going to be there for you through the entire process – it’s a long one, and it should be fun the entire way!

How far in advance should a bride start looking for her dress?  We suggest that brides order a minimum of 6-8 months before their wedding day, so I would suggest to start shopping at least 7-10 months out.

On average, what does a bride spend on alterations?  We’re so lucky to have a team of amazingly talented seamstresses who work with Anna Bé. Our seamstresses are independent contractors, so they are able to keep their costs low.  Alterations costs for brides depends on the extent of tailoring required and the type of the dress. More couture gowns that have extensive handwork and detail will often be closer to the top end of the range compared to a single layer dress with simple hem that may fall closer to the bottom end of the range.

What question are you most asked by brides and what’s your response?  Our most common question from brides is when do I need to order my dress? For most dresses, we do recommend ordering at a minimum of 6-8 months before the wedding day. However, if you’ve found your dress and your wedding is still a year out, why wait? We think that finding the dress and getting it checked off that list is often a huge relief for many girls, so once you’ve found your dress there is no reason to delay in ordering. We do also always have some sample dresses that are sold off the floor, so they are great for last minute dress needs (plus, they are discounted and can be a great bargain!) and we also have a few designers that can accommodate rush requests as short of turnaround time as 1 month.

Are there any common misconceptions in your industry?  If so, what would you like the brides out there to know?  We find many girls are surprised to find out that their wedding dress won’t fit perfectly when it first arrives. All dresses require alterations to get that perfect fit and to create the bustle for the reception.

What is the best way to reach you?  Do you have a website?  Whatever works best for brides! Call us, email us, or feel free to stop by and browse the collection. We’re a small shop so we do request that appointments are made if you would like to try on dresses, but we’re always happy to have you stop by. We have a website at www.anna-be.com and a blog at www.anna-be.blogspot.com.

Did you know Anna-Be isn’t just a dress boutique?  Check in on Friday to learn about what else the fabulous girls at Anna-Be have to offer!

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Liz, of Fleur de Liz, made my amazing bouquet.

I loved my shoes that I found at Dilliard’s.  They were cute and comfortable!

Our ceremony was at Dedisse Park here in Evergreen.  It was exactly what we wanted, casual, secluded and in the middle of un-touched nature.

This image will be huge in my album!  There will never be another moment in my life that will compare to my dad walking me down the aisle to my future husband.  I just love this!

The great thing about having a standing ceremony was that everyone was ready for a group shot as soon as the ceremony ended!

Evergreen Lake House was perfect for our reception.  Everyone loved it!

It was really important to us that our flowers did not get thrown away at the end of the night.  I bought a ton of clay pots from Michael’s and Mark’s mom helped me plant flowers the day before the wedding.  All our local guests got to take one home with them.

I really wanted to do something super cute for our place cards but something was bound to get cut with so much on my plate.  I was running out of time and energy so instead I just created this seating assignment in photoshop.

Next to the seating assignment was this, a small tribute to all our family and friends.  We were so thankful to all of them for traveling so far to celebrate with us.

Jenna & Matt captured so many awesome moments.  I love this one of our nieces and nephews.

This is a view of Evergreen Lake House from a distance along with a shot of the view from the lake house deck.

The inside of Evergreen Lake House is just as gorgeous as the outside.

I decided a long time ago that I did not want a traditional guest book, instead I wanted a guest book filled with black and white portraits of all our guests.  We created a little mini studio inside our reception and went home with over 600 fabulous photos of our guests.  

One of my favorite shots from the mini photo studio.

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