Colorfully charmed and too-cute-to-boot!

Colorfully Charmed

It was such a pleasure to see this beautiful shoot. From beginning to end, the sweetest details were all thought through with care and had such a whimsical spirit! All the gorgeous images captured by Hilleary Photography make us smile! The coloring and lighting was almost like a fairytale dream.

The details and planning were brought together by Beautiful Bride Events and were top notch as well. Even Elise Nuckols Art was there to hand paint the Kate McDonald hand painted McLeod gown. And let’s not forget about those amazingly pink and perfect florals! #allthehearteyes!

Please see the full shoot over on Cake and Lace! You definitely don’t want to miss any of the charming details.

Madelyn Dress

Our Madelyn dress in Cement Shantung is certainly a favorite and we love the simplicity of the color with her ruffled collar. What we love most about the Madelyn paired next to the Kate McDonald McLeod, is how it still stands out next to that hand painted beauty yet allows the bridal gown to be a statement.

Our other favorite thing is that she has pockets. Of course.

We couldn’t be more smitten with this darling shoot!

Photography: HILLEARY PHOTOGRAPHY | Venues: RUNNYMEDE, THE DARLING OYSTER BAR, and CANNON GREEN CHARLESTON | Event Planner: BEAUTIFUL BRIDE EVENTS | Suit: CHARLESTON FORMAL WEAR | Live Painter: ELISE NUCKOLS ART | Stationery: Hadley Designs | Bowtie: HIGH COTTON TIES | Florist: KRISTIAN DESIGNS | Transportation: Low Country Valet | Bridal Gown: KATE MCDONALD BRIDAL | Bridesmaid Dress: LULA KATE | Rentals: Ooh Events | Hair & Makeup: Paper Dolls Hair and Makeup | Robes: PLUM PRETTY SUGAR | Cake: SABLEE | Vow Book: WEDDING STORY WRITER

This holiday, we’re thinking bridal engagement gifts…

With Christmas this weekend, and as we spend the holidays with friends and family, it is also definitely Engagement Season! And for all the ladies out there knowing he’s about to pop the question, you might also be thinking about a cute little engagement gift to get your best gal pal. Perhaps a few of these will inspire you!

6 Bridal Engagement Gifts

6 Bridal Engagement Gifts to inspire you!

1. Coffee Mugs with cute sayings
2. Countdown Blocks to the special day
3. Cute Journals for her to record memories
4. The Perfect Tote for carrying around town
5. “Wifey” and “Bride” clothing to show off 😉
6. A Bridal Box full of goodies for her to use

Enjoy and Merry Christmas!!!

Hey hey southern Golden Girl, how about a little tropical inspired soiree for your Friday?

Happy Friday Lulas!

We are beside ourselves excited to share with you a little of our styled shoot with Southern Savvy Events and photographer Cathy Durig. If ever there was a time to embrace our inner Golden Girls, this shoot definitely fits the bill. Blanche, Dorothy, Estelle, and Rose would be so proud.

Also excited to see that our Abby bridesmaid dress in white serves as our Bride’s LWD. Any of our Lulakate’s can be worn by the bride in white, (and of course in any color you like!) We also wanted to say thank you to Bella Bridesmaids for sharing with Lauren of Southern Savvy Events our dresses. Those girls sure do know what they’re doing when it comes to bridesmaid style!

Look at those amazing florals! Wish we could have these in our salon all year long. The design by New Creations Floral Co. fit the style of this tropical southern Golden Girl soiree just right!

We also are in awe of these fun and sweet stationery from Olive Paper. These would also serve as sweet little cards for your bridesmaids to keep. We love the idea of making a scrapbook of all your friends weddings including your own to celebrate the memories with your closest gal pals.

Our Southern Golden Girl Gal Pals

Of course you can always stop by Bella Bridesmaids, our other retailers, and our own salon in Charleston to try on our Lulakates. And for the month of December, we will be offering 10% off discount on any Lulakate dress! Make an appointment today!

Our Lulakate Harper dress (in this amazing Forest green color), has completely inspired us to make one last stand before this summer weather leaves us. We decided to take a little adventure over to the idea of a tropical bridal brunch! Complete with palm details, hibiscus floral crowns, poppy pink lipstick (of course), and some tropical heels. This inspirational post also furthers the idea that you really can wear our Lulakate dresses for more than just one event.

And without further ado…

LULAKATE HARPER TROPICAL BRIDAL BRUNCH INSPIRATION

The fun that the Harper dress encompasses is evident with the short Dahlia style skirt. The pleating gives a fuller style as to allow for comfort and ease. And of course you can’t go wrong with a V neck and V back! Totally classic, classy, and yes, sassy!

Tropical Accessories:

We are 100% smitten with these hibiscus pink, gold, and turquoise earrings from BHLDN. And we know every Lula needs a bag to put all her essentials in. This bag we found on Etsy is perfect for this tropical vibe we have going. The shoes? Oh yes, palm details with a sturdy heel and ankle strap are totally giving us heart eyes.

During the brunch, before treats and drinks have been served, perhaps it would be fun to do a flower crown bar. Have all the necessary materials, hibiscus flowers, greenery, and floral tape and wire so the guests can make their own flower crowns.

Don’t Forget The Details:

When you think Tropical, you most likely immediately go to a vision of beaches and palm trees. In the case that you may not have any palms close by, head over to your local nursery and see if they happen to have some palm like plants. You can either place them in bright blue pots or use the leaves as placemats for your dinnerware. These paper cutouts featured on Oh So Beautiful Paper will give you plenty more inspiration. Definitely a DIY-er’s paper paradise!

Treats and Eats:

Now in terms of feeding your guests, it would always make sense for a tropical bridal brunch to have pineapples. Lots and lots of pineapples! This pineapple turned floral display is amazing and perfect for table centerpieces. Cut out the insides of juicy goodness and use with toothpicks for easy munching, and then fill with some tropical flowers. Voila! Another idea for this would be a watermelon. A perfect end of summer treat and you can use the watermelon too for a centerpiece.

If it’s a little warm outside, this idea of a pineapple as an ice-cream bowl could not be more up our alley. Yes please!

And the old-timey convertible beetle? Yah, we just love this picture and fits in great with our inspiration!

Hope you enjoyed this installment of our #LULAKATESTYLESERIES! Our Harper dress is a total win and like we said, can def be worn again and again. 🙂

Could we be anymore in love with this pastel candy-licious styled shoot? Even if there weren’t any Lulakates in the shoot, we’d still love it! The concept of pairing candy, pastels, and a wedding, seem perfect and very kind to our inevitable sweet tooth.

Pastel Candy-licious

Featured on Wedding Chicks, this styled shoot can be seen in full with all the charming details. Sarah Sofia Productions is the designer and stylist behind all this cuteness, and Ariel Perry captured all the fun.

And how amazing is this “Love” cut-out? Hmmm, may need this in our shop!

Calling all sweet tooths! (Including ours!) What’s not to love about a cotton candy champagne cocktail bar?

The models wear our Kenzie Top with Sassy Striped Dahlia Skirt, Carter, and Lucy dresses. (Pictured above from left to right)

Gotta say, we love the combination of colors!

P.S. We have so many colors too! And in two different fabrics!

Check out our site to mix & match to fit your needs!

Isn’t it positively charming?! Every detail came together so sweetly, and again, we are so in love with this concept! Please check out the full post to see all of the vendors incredible work over on Wedding Chicks.

We are definitely Kate Spade inspired with Kristyn today in continuing our #LulaKateStyleSeries!

Kate Spade Inspired with Kristyn

It’s no secret that we love love LOVE Kate Spade. The prep, the pep, the too-cute-to-boot style; we just can’t get enough. So naturally it would make sense for us to want to put together a little Kate Spade inspired style with one our Lulakates. The Kristyn dress is both classic and elegant. A dress where you really can do no wrong. And in terms of styling her, we always like to spice up a classic with some fun trendy touches, and that Kate Spade style works perfectly.

A few stripes here and there would serve a bridesmaid well. Keeps a little pizazz and also a little interest to the eye. And we for sure love the idea of these hot pink bridesmaid shoes! Add a little gold, a little sparkle, and a pink lip, and we are good to go!

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If wanting a little more sophistication, perhaps have hair all the way up in a ballerina bun or classic updo. Keep eye makeup fresh and natural looking for this style, but go all out on the pink lip! That come hither color works anywhere from casual to black tie.

 
If you are also wanting to go full on Kate Spade, don’t forget to add polka dots into your style. Do black table linens and sprinkle white or gold dot confetti on them, or have your cake designer put polka dots on the cake.

 
OR you could even choose our Striped Dahlia Skirt like this seen here! 😉

Hope you enjoyed our Kate Spade Inspired with Kristyn as much as we do! You can see more dresses already styled for some inspiration here, here, and here. Or find us on Instagram to follow along with our #LULAKATESTYLESERIES.

Happy Friday and have a great weekend!

Putting together Lulakate style inspiration is so much fun. From stripes to short dresses, Lulakate has so many styles in a variety of colors and different skirts. To start off on a #LulakateStyleSeries, we’ve got the striped Dahlia, Lucy, and Madelyn dresses. If perhaps you’re trying to decide how to style your Lulakate, we hope a little collage might help inspire you!

STRIPED DAHLIA STYLE:

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Oh so classic and fun! The striped Dahlia dress is actually two pieces! With our white Kenzie top (love the criss cross back of it!), and striped Dahlia skirt, this dress is elegant and poised! The stripes definitely make it fun, perfect for an outdoor wedding, but with elegant touches, like a braided high bun, a simple white bouquet, and classic gold jewelry, this two piece dress stands the test of time.

LUCY STYLE:

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The Lucy dress is DAH-ling! Definitely a favorite, this little beauty looks great in all of our skirts, (Dahlia, Brunch, & Maternity), and a dress you can both look incredibly charming walking down the aisle with your bride and also dance the night away in. We paired Lucy with delicate blushes in all style elements. These super cute pink flats, peonies, a letter necklace, and totally fun with a side braid all make for some great Lulakate style inspiration.

MADELYN STYLE:

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The Madelyn dress is spunky and fun with her ruffled collar and sexy open back. This bridesmaid style (especially in our Merlot color – pictured here!) would look great in a daring color with some blush and rose gold tones. Since the dress is a shortie, we love the idea of some sort of ankle strap to make the legs look long. And with hair down, or half up/half down, the ruffled collar will still stand out and you can still feel fun and fancy free in the Madelyn.

Which Lulakate dress are you going with?

And stay tuned for more Lulakate style inspiration for our

#LulakateStyleSeries!

This LulaKate Jacqueline gown inspiration has been amazing to put together! A dusty blue with lavender and touches of blush make for not only showing off the Pantone colors of the year, but also a whimsical and charming wedding color palette that will last throughout time. You seriously can’t go wrong!

The color palette also makes our Jacqueline gown shine bright! With skinny straps and a flattering neckline, the Jacqueline gown is a great dress for any shape or style bridesmaid. Plus, they have pockets! The featured look above is with the “Dahlia Skirt,” and of course also comes in the “Brunch” and “Maternity” skirts as well.

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For hair and makeup, we love the idea of a little shimmer on the eyelids and you can definitely do either a flower crown or a braid crown, or both!

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Loving Minted’s watercolor/marble suite for your wedding stationery! Delicate and elegant, but still has a super fun feel that sets the tone for the wedding. We really love it paired with rose gold flatware too!

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And we can’t forget both the bouquet and shoes! For shoes, ballet flats seem like an easy choice and these are great not only for dancing, but the color is a great neutral that you as a bridesmaid can wear again and again. The bouquet works too with ivory and blush roses, perhaps add a few lavender stems in there and you’re good to go!

And you know we like to offer options, so don’t rule out the LulaKate Jacqueline gown as a shortie! Cute to boot!

Let us know what you think of our styled posts or if you have any suggestions! We’d love to hear from you, so leave us a comment below!

The countdown to the wedding is starting to move faster the closer it gets to the date, and if you haven’t thought about it already, there is something that the bride and her girls need to do…The Bachelorette Party! And what’s more, the games you can play! We found 8 fun bachelorette party games that are sure to be fun, get things going, and be sure to make you giggle all night.

{Be Mine Rings}

8 Fun Bachelorette Party Games:

1.) MEMORY JAR: Have all members of the bridal girl squad write on a piece of paper of how they met the bride or of a fun (maybe embarrassing?!) story the two of them shared. Fold it up, place it in the jar, and then have the bride open them one at a time. A great way to introduce everyone at the party in case they don’t each other!

2.) MAKE A VIDEO: Find a favorite song as a group, dress up with feather boas, sunglasses, perhaps some bright red or pink lipsticks like LulaKates love to wear and make a music video.

3.) QUESTIONAIRE: How well does the bride know her fiancé? Before the party, give a list of questions to the groom, get all of his answers and then quiz the bride at the party.

4.) KISS THE CUTE GUY: This one would be fun to do when catered to the bride’s taste of who ever her celebrity crush is. We do love the Ryan Gosling below! Give her cut out lips to pin (or stick!) on the poster and try and get it as close to guy’s lips as possible. Make sure to spin her around a few times to make it more difficult.

{Kiss The Guy}

5.) SCAVENGER HUNT: This one is great if you’re wanting to expand your bachelorette venue and get a little crazy. You can create a list of fun and silly dares for her to do around at different locations, or take her around to meaningful locations of the bride and groom if that works location wise. This bachelorette game is great and can be really unique to the bride.

6.) MAKE A BRIDAL GOWN: No, we’re talking an actual bridal gown, but a gown that’s a little more bio-degradable, like…toilet paper! Split up your bachelorettes into teams of two and give them a roll of toilet paper. Whoever makes the best looking bridal gown in under 3minutes wins! (Make sure to take pictures!)

7.) JUNK IN THE TRUNK: This one is a little more active and fun for everyone to try themselves too. Tie on an empty kleenex box around your waist with the box on your back facing out. With your favorite music in the back ground and of course some ping pong balls, your bachelorettes have to try and get all the balls into the box before the time runs out. (3-4minutes) Bride, remember to shake your booty to make it harder for the girl squad!

8.) BACHELORETTE PARTY PINATA: Find a fun piñata at your local party store and fill it with whatever you like. Candy, fake rings, or makeup even just to name a few.

Hope you enjoy these 8 fun bachelorette party games! It is true though, wherever you may be for the bachelorette party, whatever games you play, being with your girls is the best! This will be a fun night of giggles and memories you will all share before the big event! And before you know it, you’ll be putting on your LulaKate bridesmaid dresses and helping the bride walk down the aisle to her new adventure. That’s one of the many things best friends are for, right?!

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If you are still in need of a bridesmaid dress, look no further! We have some great dresses in our Sample Sale too!

We were fortunate to be featured in Charleston Magazine’s Fall-Winter 2012 issue a few times, and one of our favorite articles was Best-Dressed Desserts: a true celebration of cake. We loved it for the obvious reasons (butter cream filling and chocolate ganache), but more importantly we loved seeing the inspiration these talented cake designers gathered from a select, few wedding gowns. We had no idea that cake designing, much like wedding gown designing, is a process involving inspiration, contemplation, and sketch work.

So when we were told that the wonderful cake designer Jim Smeal created this gorgeous cake shown above using inspiration from our Novak gown, we were floored. Little did we know that when working this rich, embroidered organza into a gown it would also give way to rich, almond-praline decadence.  We are beyond amazed with what has been created and have a new found respect for our favorite sugar fix. It is a beautiful thing to see talent and creativity mesh in such a delicious way!