Style

Jun 2011

When I finished the APW book (It's done! I'm still excited about that!), I knew that I wanted to jump back into APW with some personal passion projects. I wanted to play around, get a little messy, try out some new things. I also knew that while I was writing the book, I had this crazy need to look at blogs with good pictures and good design, but I couldn't handle words (I know). I was writing 6,000 words a week, and consuming more words was beyond what I could take.

So, I decided to launch a new APW feature: Wordless Weddings. Because here's the thing: not everyone has a Wedding Graduate post to write for their wedding, and some pictures are just so beautiful and interesting that they are inspiring on their own. Wordless Weddings is going to be my little piece of Zen on the blog.

This is how it's going to work.

Weddings will all be reader weddings, and fit within the APW ethos, obviously.
They won't actually be wordless, but they'll be close. Just a sentence or two about how the wedding felt, with links explaining where the wedding was held, who shot it, and the dress. (That's coming soon to all weddings. We all want to know about the location and the dress, am I right?) It will be similar to what I used to do with Real Weddings, back in the day.
If you want to submit your wedding photos for possible use on the blog, either as a Wordless Wedding, or as a stock photo (here is an example of a post with a stock reader photo), upload them to the APW Flickr stream. By uploading the photos, you're giving us permission to use them on the site, so please make sure you have permission if you don't own the copyright, and give us a photo credit if one is needed.

And let's have fun. Because who the hell says you can't have The Practical and The Pretty at the same d*mn time?

Photo: By One Love Photo, our amazing photographers. Also this is a little hint about someone who I think should be a Wordless Wedding or a Wedding Graduate. (cough!)

Posted in: Style | 25 Comments »

May 2011

Lauren Wedding Planning: Oh My! Dress… Part 2

I don't know about you guys, but I am really excited about assistant editor Lauren's final post on picking her dress. Lauren's dress search echos my dress search (which was so epic that it has its own section on the site). For both of us, figuring out the wedding dress was a story of figuring out ourselves, and who we wanted to be when we got married. It was loaded, and complicated. And for me, it was worth it. In July we'll find out if it was worth it to Lauren, but I'm betting yes. And now, without further ado, the long waited (at least by me) next post on Lauren's wedding planning.

So last time I left you, I was a sweaty mess in a bridal boutique in Chicago, aware of what I didn't want and with a vague idea of what I did. Before we go any further, I need to come out and say this, just so we're clear: Dress shopping is hard. It is not at all what I thought it would be, and even now, after spending a chunk of change and time at two fittings, it's still hard.

Two months after the bridal boutique that made me take my shoes off and wash my hands before they allowed me even to think about dresses, my lovely friend, Maris, visited me in San Francisco. It was time to have another go at this thing. I had an appointment at a bridal shop in Burlingame (45 minutes outside of the city) that had carried a few styles I had liked and seen on the The Kn*t's giant searchable-dresses website. (A very handy tool for a girl who has no effing clue what she's looking for, I'll give them that much.) When we arrived we were the only people in the store except for a lovely older Russian woman who could have been a fabulous aunt-friend-of-the-family type. She was fantastic. Her name is Georgette. And I had no issues, whatsoever, whipping off all my clothes in front of her because all she really did was praise my ta-tas and tell me every dress I had on was made for me. We all need these people in our lives. The ones who go, "Oh my god, whatever. When I was your age I was begging for an a*s like that. Put this on, you're going to look amazing."

So, I picked a dress. I bought the dress. I called my mom and told her I had bought a dress. I felt good about the experience. I felt relieved that the entire thing was over, Maris high-fived me and then we made our way over to the donut shop and I had the biggest apple fritter of my life. Done and done, right? Except not. Continue reading Lauren Wedding Planning: Oh My! Dress… Part 2

Posted in: Planning, Style | 109 Comments »

Mar 2011

On Snippet & Ink: Loving Without Envy

Have I mentioned to you guys that I share an office with Kathryn of Snippet & Ink? Well, I do. And yesterday I walked into the office and she said, "Meg, the wedding I'm posting tomorrow has you written all over it." And she could not have been more right. When I flipped out over this picture she pointed out that it was basically the same picture taken of me at our wedding. Maybe the bride and I are soul sisters, a little.

The wedding between two London theatre people.... and get this, it took place in an abandoned mansion on North Wales with no electricity, that hadn't been lived in for 60 years. Because that's the kind of parties this couple throws. And Kathryn said, wisely (I'm paraphrasing), "The trouble is, we see a wedding like this and we think that we need to throw a wedding in an abandoned mansion. And we don't. That's not us. But it is them. So we just need to appreciate what it is." Which is so exactly it.

That, and the 30-foot wedding cake was a fireworks bonfire. I'm just saying.

So anyway, go see it all, right this second. You're welcome.

Photographs: Nick Tucker, layouts by Snippet & Ink

Posted in: Manifestos, Meg's Thoughts, Style, Weddings | 26 Comments »

Jan 2011

Lauren’s Wedding Planning: Oh My! Dress

Long time readers will remember my long and involved dress saga (if you don't, it's worth a read, because what an epic story it was). So it only seems fitting that we're coming full circle, and Assistant Editor Lauren is here with the first installment of her dress story. Not to give away too much, but in it she's naked and sweaty with a bee-keepers mesh hat on. So, you know there is that.

So Kamel and I have been watching Say Yes To The Dress because Oh my god that sh*t is caarraazzy! And I'm totally fascinated with people who think nothing of spending 5k on a dress whereas it takes me six months and a lot of potatoes to save 1/2 that amount. But oh the pretty! And oh I digress.

You guys - I cannot BELIEVE I haven't told everyone the story of my dress hunting experience! Because isn't it supposed to be one of those ground breaking wedding planning moments? For some people it is. I've seen it on TV. I've seen the "oh my gosh this is THE ONE!" face and then the tears and the mother's tears. So I know it's not a myth, I know it happens to some people, probably to even some of you. Buying a wedding dress can be a long journey so when you finally make that decision I can see it being an emotional one.

My journey had two stops and the first was in Chicago where my dear friend, Maris, set me up an appointment at a used dress boutique. Because my goal was to find something that didn't look like prom and was under a thousand. Preferably like six hundred bucks. I was stoked because this place had straight up designer dresses, but were all used so they were greatly reduced. I had never tried on a wedding dress before, I had never even really seen one up close. I had no idea what all of the different shapes meant or how they would look on my body. But I did know that something was amiss when the storefront had a little basket of socks and a sign asking us to remove our shoes before entering. The entire store was white. White carpet, walls, furniture. The saleswomen wore all white. There was a soon-to-be-bride trying on her possible wedding gown on their shiny, white runway in the middle of the store. A full on runway, raised off of the ground about a foot, with a three sided mirror at the end. This decadence had always been what I had imagined for wedding dress shopping. The troupe of girls, the champagne, the sitting room with the glittering chandelier, the runway. The runway? Then why was I suddenly in the midst of a full on run-and-hide panic attack?

First, I was sweating like a mofo because it was mid-June in Chicago and the humidity was upon us, and god knows trying on clothes while sweating is a real treat. Second, I was asked to wash my hands before I was allowed to touch any of the dresses, for fear I would sully them. Then I was shown to the back room, with Maris, where hundreds and hundreds of dresses hung in bags on rows and rows of racks. I was told my appointment would only allow for 6-10 dresses, so pick wisely, and then we were left to our own devices. And the clock was officially ticking. Maris was like a kid in a candy store, and bless her heart because if it wasn't for her I would have probably apologized to the sweet lady in white and ran to the nearest bar. Maris was grabbing all varieties of dresses going, "Ooo THIS one! THIS ONE! Ooo lace? How do you feel about lace? Embellishment or not to embellishment?" and I would respond "nuumm? Eerr? Fuhhh..." and shrug my shoulders. Finally I was able to croak out, "I'm a little overwhelmed..." as I literally fanned my face trying desperately not to cry and be a total psycho in this fancy store. Maris continued to repeat, "Lauren this is SHOPPING. You know how to do this! Start picking things!" Continue reading Lauren’s Wedding Planning: Oh My! Dress

Posted in: Planning, Planning, Style, Wedding Undergraduates | 130 Comments »

Oct 2010

On *Owning* Inspiration

Last week, the imitable Rebecca Woolf of Girls Gone Child wrote a piece about fashion where she noted the huge difference between inspiration and aspiration (You guys may not know her, since she’s a blogger-who’s-also-a-mother and sometimes those bloggers get less airplay on our corner of the web? Anyway you’ll love her. Done.) She wrote about how aspiration is those spreads in Vogue magazine with $50,000 dresses, inspiration is your favorite fashion blogger who blogs about how she put together an outfit with a $50 dress she found on sale at Macy's. Or Teen Vogue. She loves Teen Vogue.

For some reason, all week I kept thinking about this inspiration/aspiration dichotomy. I’m a huge lady mag and lady blog reader, and trust me, there is room in my life for both -ations. I like aspirational design blogs, and wedding porn, and fashion magazines. But at the end of the day, I’m an inspiration girl. I want you to break it down for me in ways that make sense. How can I make a super chic, ragingly fun wedding reception in my parents church social hall? How can I use what’s already in my closet to create really editorial outfits, that say something about who I am? How can I re-finish and re-arrange the furniture I have to make my living room work for me?

I think in a lot of ways we’re in a very inspirational cultural moment. We all have less money and fewer choices, and after years of excess, we’re all trying to figure out how to make the most with what we’ve got. And the blog-o-shere has really rushed into the gap left by print media. We’re all writing for each other about how we can do this, how we can improve our lives, how we can do more with less.

But then there is the trap. The trap of mistaking inspiration for aspiration.

I’ve wanted to meet Rebecca Woolf for a long time, because, I don’t know, she’s a young mom who’s really rocking motherhood and selfhood and a writing career at the same time. So, at Mighty Summit I started asking around to see if anyone knew her, and was up for introducing me. Heather Sphor was like, “Oh, h*ll yeah, of course I will.” But before I asked Heather, five people must have told me Rebecca was, “A glamazon”. I’d look puzzled, and ask, “Ok, but what is she like?” and people would say, “intimidating.” And I’d think, ‘Huh. Weird. That’s clearly not her personality, that’s a reaction. Why are women so easily scared of each other?" (And I’m super guilty of this, by the way, which is why I’m talking about it).

Rebecca and I got into a four hour gab fest this weekend (We got along? We can't shut up?), and at the end we were talking about fashion. She was saying that one of her personal missions was to get women (especially moms) to feel empowered to be stylish, just because they wanted to be. Or in her words, “How much longer does it take to put on pants than sweats? I rest my case.” And that’s when I mentioned the “glamazon” thing. And she shook her head at me in this really baffled way, and was like, “I don’t get it. I’m trying to say that style is NOT exclusive, and instead people think, ‘well, she’s stylish and I can never hope to live up to it.’” Which is exactly it. Continue reading On *Owning* Inspiration

Posted in: Life, Manifestos, Personal Thoughts, Style, Weddings | 130 Comments »

Jul 2010

A Sit-In, And Also Snippets

Well. It's been a sort of insane week at APW. Three (ok, four) posts with 60gajillion comments, a guest post at Get Rich Slowly, CNN coverage, and all the APW related hustling and bustling I'm doing behind the scenes. Oh, and my job. Because I have one (thanks US health care system).

Last night we were trying to make the bed, well, David was making the bed and I was trying to make the bed, and I just totally lost my sh*t. I was like, "I hate fitted sheets they are the devil, I can't read all my comments, I'm working all the time, I need a nap and GOD*MN IT I HATE THESE FITTED SHEETS, F*CK." And then I just sat down on the floor. You know, I had a little sit-in.

So. I thought today maybe I'd just post a few things that I've found inspiring around the web, yes? I mean, you guys are way behind reading the 60gajillion comments right? It's NOT JUST ME, right?

Ok. So:

Let's start with P and the wedding Mitzvah. You're going to have to go over to What Possessed Me to get the whole story, and you should give her a hug while you're there I think, because she may also be having her own sit-in, but let me quote you this magic:

I love this photograph because it transports me to that windswept moment of heightened emotion, but also because it represents the sweetness that weddings seem to inspire in others. All of the distasteful elements of planning a wedding were offset by the fact that getting married somehow made me an undeserving recipient of a wonderful series of mitzvahs - acts of kindness - from friends, family and strangers. Now that I am an ordinary civilian and no longer a bride, I realize how special that time was - and how tender that liminal state.

That liminal state. Yes. That's the bit I'll remember forever.