Two Royal Events for the Royal Wedding Weekend

Time's running out for Kate to change her mind! Kidding, mostly. Seems that most of the planet will be watching, with those of us on the West Coast of Canada staying up late to watch the pre-game show at 11pm.

To celebrate the first Wedding of the Century (seeing as how the century has just started), Paper Doll is joining in the fun.

First up, on Friday, we're joining with Leaf & Petal Florist, Orange Passion Photography, Amber Leigh Wedding & Designs, and more at Leaf & Petal from 2-6. There's prizes to be won from every vendor in the store (we're offering a Free "Beer" Boutique Showing) and the experts will be on hand to answer questions. Our Dress of the Week "Riviera" will be on display at the store. The tv will be showing the wedding as well.

To celebrate in store at Paper Doll, we're having the Royal Wedding Royal Flush. Every NEW dress or shoe purchase is eligible. When you purchase your new dress or pair of shoes, you will be entitled to pull a card from the suit of hearts. If you pull a number card, that's your discount (2%-11%). Pull the Jack, and save the HST. Pull the Queen to save 15%. Pull the King and you'll save 20%!!

This is only good for NEW dress and shoe purchases. Dresses currently on hold and other items in the store are NOT included in this discount. This is ONLY from 10am on Friday until 6pm on Saturday.

We look forward to seeing our customers, current and new, to celebrate the biggest Royal Wedding this decade. Wear a hat!

Dress of the Week - Riviera

This week's DOTW is a secret. This gown is from a private line that's not found elsewhere in Canada (yet!). We're their first Canadian account and we couldn't be more proud!

Riviera is a lovely chiffon and satin empire-style gown. The top is ruched chiffon with a notched-v neckline with removable straps, and highlighted by a row of gold bugle beads before changing direction to go around the waist.

From under the bust, the satin gown falls straight down to the floor, with no train from the skirt. Instead, two chiffon sashes fall from the back zipper and can be worn in many ways. The bride can choose to have the sashes follow her like a train, or tied into a bow and fall to her knees, or even put over her shoulders like a wrap, and then tied into a sweet bow in the back.

Riviera (all of her!) will be on display on Thursday and Friday at Leaf & Petal Flower Salon in honour of the Royal Wedding! Paper Doll has joined with other vendors in the area to offer suggestions and answers to your questions from 2-6 on the 29th of April at Leaf & Petal. We hope you will stop by to talk with Teela and find out what Paper Doll can offer the discerning Island bride.

Paper Doll Formals is also having their own "Royal Wedding Royal Flush" in the store on the 29th and 30th. Every dress and shoe purchase entitles you to pull a card from the suit of hearts. That card determines your discount - from 2%-11%, but if you pull the Jack, you save the HST. Pull the Queen and save 15%. Pull the King and save 20%!!

Paper Doll Formals is the only store in Canada (as of this writing) have Riviera in store, along with two of her friends, La Vega and Dominica. If you're looking for something exclusive and in a surprisingly inexpensive price point, then this line is for you. We'd love to see you from 10-6 (except not on Monday - we're recovering from our chocolate hangover that day so we're closed).

Dress of the Week - Forever Yours "Intrigue"

This week's dress of the week arrived at the start of the week and is very lovely in person.

At first glance, the lace overlay catches your eye because it sparkles! It can't be seen well in the photo, but in person, there are sequins throughout the lace and it sparkles as it moves.

The sheath under-dress is made of lovely duchesse satin, and can be worn with or without straps.

There is boning on the inside of the bodice to keep the shape, and a lovely lace-up corset back that gives a snug, perfect fit to the bride. This is a great example of a 'mermaid' style, or 'fit and flare' type of gown.

As the lace flows down, it meets with a tulle flare in the skirt, and ends in a small, perfectly arched train.

This gown is perfect for an outside wedding as it catches the light and has a smaller train.

For an indoor wedding, this dress would look lovely in a small chapel and with a cape in a winter wedding.

Paper Doll Formals has this dress in stock and you'll be pleasantly surprised at the price point as the quality would suggest at least $1,200... but it's much less than that!

Planning and Preparation

The key to any successful event is planning and preparation. To that end, Paper Doll Formals is offering a free wedding planning workshop on Thursday, April 14th from 7-9pm in the store.

Now, while I know that I know everything ;-), it seems that I need some help with this, so I've invited some friends over to help out with the workshop:

Amber from Amber Leigh Weddings and Design will talk about wedding planners, what they do, how they can help and things along those lines.

Sean from Equinox Catering will chat about seasonal foods, how much is needed for certain numbers, and other foody items.

Andrea from Leaf & Petal will inform you about flowers, bouquets, timelines and such.

Angie from Twisted Sifters Cupcakes will tell you all about the trends for cakes and sweet desserts.

I (Mary!) will talk about dresses, timelines, and the perils of online purchasing.

There will be a small question and answer at the end, and with luck, we might be able to try on a dress (or two) before we head off into the night.

If this goes well, we might have another one, with different vendors to help you plan the Perfect Wedding!

Hope to see you there.

Dress of the Week - Impression Destiny

This week we feature a lovely dress by Impression Bridal from their Destiny line.

Nicknamed the "Icing" dress because of the small bit of bling under the bust, this dress is lovely in its simplicity.

The fabric is a light taffeta that catches the light as you move. The bust is ruched and gathered by a bit of sparkle that is just enough to brighten, but not enough to over-power.

The ruching continues down the bodice and hips, hugging to the thigh where the skirt falls into elegant pickups all around.

A small, nearly not-there train finishes the gown, leaving a simple back that can be dressed up with any length of veil.

Adding a small crinoline under the dress will expand the skirt enough to show a very elegant fall of fabric.

This dress is light enough for a summer wedding, and would work well outside due to its small train.

It would also look nice indoors at an elegant evening wedding in a small chapel or other decorated space.

Paper Doll has this dress in store now to try on and fall in love with. It has a very reasonable price point which may surprise you, and can be ordered in white or ivory.

See it up close at www.impressionbridal.com

Have you heard about this wedding?

Apparently there's some famous person tying the knot at the end of the month.

He's actually Royalty, not a celebrity, although he would appear to be a celebrity by any other standard - paparazzi following him around since birth, royal parents, etc, etc.

Yes, I'm talking about William Wales (born William Arthur Philip Louis) who is soon to marry Katherine (Kate) Middleton - his university sweetheart.

I'm not going to get into the dirty details - there's enough blogs and posts and sites about that already. What I would like to bring to your attention is what Paper Doll is going to do about it.

We're joining with Leaf & Petal, Orange Passion, Twisted Sifters, Amber Leigh Wedding and Design, and more in celebrating all things wedding on the 28th and 29th of April at Leaf & Petal!

We will have one of our lovely gowns in their store with a brochure and an on-site consultant to answer questions for you on the 29th from 2pm-6pm.

What Paper Doll is doing on the 29th and 30th is still a secret, but you'll like it.

Royally!

Dress of the Week - 2Be

This gown has just arrived at Paper Doll and it's already a hit!

This Kathy Ireland 2Be gown is a sleeveless dress with a ruched v neckline, flowers along the skirt, and pickups throughout.

What really makes this gown stand out though, is the inside.

Inside this gown is a build-in corset top, along with an elastic fastener to make the waist sit the way it's supposed to. You won't need any separate corset or bustier with this gown because it's already in the gown.

The fabric is a lovely soft taffeta that glistens as you move.

The handcrafted flowers are placed strategically to draw the eye along the a-line skirt.

The deep-v back also helps to draw the eye toward the small chapel train.

This dress is lovely to look at and lovely to wear. The a-line skirt accentuates most figures, and the shoulder straps gives that little bit of support to a larger bust.

Paper Doll Formals is the only place on Vancouver Island that has this gown for you to try on and purchase for your one-of-a-kind wedding.

We hope to see you soon so you can see for yourself how gorgeous this gown is!

(Kathy Ireland Weddings by 2Be - gown #E231126)