The Bride is Always Late: Irish Wedding Blog from WeddingDates.ie » bridesmaids

Bridesmaids…the comedy of the year!

Ciara Crossan — Tue, 28 Jun 2011 14:43:38 +0000

You’ve probably already been hearing all the hype about Bridesmaids the movie and you don’t need me to tell you to head on down to the cinema to watch it….but seriously, do! You won’t be disappointed!

This is a laugh-out-loud comedy that will shock you, make you smile and there’s even some tender moments in there that will give you pause for thought. None of the actors are high high profile, so none of them come into the movie with any baggage or previous conceptions. They are immediately engaging and likable and you’ll be hard pressed not to get sucked into the story and start feeling for all of the characters, flaws and all!

One of the stand out performances is that of our own Chris O’Dowd – remember him from the Meteor TO-GO ads last year?? He is so endearing and even comes off as a bit of a heart throb at the end of the movie!

One of my favourite quotes of his in the film was when he talked about weddings and the whole stress surrounding them:

Officer Rhodes: “Running a wedding should be fun. You know if I ever had a wedding I would want everyone to be stress free…..You know I would like it to be a carnival. Like people win prizes guessing the bride’s weight.”

Brilliant. There are many more hilariously funny stand out moments, which I won’t ruin the movie by going into them here, but suffice to say this is a funny, feel good and genuine movie that guys and girls alike will enjoy!

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Quirky Bridesmaids Dresses from Amity

Ciara Crossan — Thu, 10 Mar 2011 15:35:30 +0000

Cork ladies will be familiar with quirky store Amity, located on French Church St, between Patrick Street and Paul St Shopping Centre. Known for its funky decor and unusual clothes, the girls in Amity have been inundated with requests from Brides looking for non-stereotypical bridesmaid dresses.

In response to this, Amity have transformed their 1st floor into a bridesmaid floor for the coming months with private appointments taken. Stocking a vast range of styles of dresses that bridesmaids will actually wear again!

From beautiful 100% silk fabrics to luxurious satins withan array of different colours and styles, from full length Grecian style maxi dresses to shorter variations. From vintage inspired styles to more classic styles. Many styles are available in the same fabric so bridesmaids can mix and max styles. Bridesmaid dresses starting at €74. Call Amity on 021 4275038 for a private appointment.

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URGENT APPEAL – DRESSES NEEDED!

Ciara Crossan — Fri, 21 Jan 2011 15:41:07 +0000

I’m a great supporter of Buy My Dress, an initiative by the Down Syndrome Centre to raise much needed funds. The concept is, you can donate any dress you no longer wear and they will sell it online and the proceeds go to help children with Down Syndrome all over Ireland. When they dropped me a line this week, of course I was delighted to spread the word for them about their urgent appeal for more dresses!

You can also log on to www.buymydressonline.ie to browse their selection of bridesmaids and wedding dresses. I spotted these beauties and if you were watching the Golden Globes this week, you will have noticed that Emerald Green is a trend on the red carpet this year:

Buy My Dress online has been up and running successfully now for 5 months – how time flies when you are surrounded by fabulous frocks!! But we are now a victim of our own success and find ourselves running a tad low on stock! So, it’s time to take action!

Each week we love being able upload new dresses to our Friday Frocks section and we know you love seeing our latest gems. So, we would urge you to please throw open your closet THIS WEEKEND (it’s practically spring after all!) and choose one dress (or more!) that you know, while still fabulous, you will never wear again!

We accept all types of dresses from casual to glamorous, office wear to bridal, so if you have one to donate please, please send it on! We are also looking for children’s dresses, so pack up those little ones that no longer fit and put a smile on another child’s face, all the while helping raise funds for Down Syndrome Centre.

Many women are opting for previously worn wedding dresses now and this is a great way to not only save money but also be eco-friendly! Here are a couple of the wedding dresses which you can buy on Buy My Dress:

After your wedding, to donate your dress, simply mark your envelope FREEPOST and send it to: Buy My Dress, 62/63 Lower Mounttown Road, Dun Laoghaire, Co Dublin. PLEASE ENSURE ALL DRESSES ARE CLEAN AND IN GOOD CONDITION!!! Check out www.buymydressonline.ie for these and other dresses to buy!

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Charming! Pandora opens flagship store in Cork

Ciara Crossan — Mon, 06 Dec 2010 15:04:27 +0000

Irish ladies have jumped on the Pandora craze with gusto over the last few years, and many of you probably are sporting a pandora charm bracelet on your wrist as you read this! The good news for Irish Pandora aficionados is that the internationally successful Danish jewellery brand has expanded their position in the Irish marketplace with the opening of a flagship store in Cork’s city centre! There are also stores in Dublin’s Grafton St & one opening in Limerick shortly.

Over 60 invited guests were in attendance at the Official Launch last Thursday 2nd December. Guests braved the Arctic conditions to attend the newly opened store on Cork’s Winthrop Street and their resolve was rewarded with a thoughtful ‘thank you’ gift. Each guest was presented with a beautiful charm, gift-wrapped in the inimitable PANDORA style, from the PANDORA ‘Unforgettable Moments’ Collection. Niiice!

The Christmas atmosphere was most definitely is the air with the backdrop of the Christmas lights on Winthrop Street and seasonal music lending a festive feel to the evening. To help celebrate this wonderful event, Cork favourites O’Flynn’s Gourmet Sausages welcomed their new neighbours by providing party-goers with much-needed hot gourmet sausages garnished with home-made relish helped to stave off the bite of the December air!

Founded in 1982, PANDORA designs and manufactures beautifully crafted, hand-finished jewellery made of genuine materials. The beauty of PANDORA jewellery can be attributed to the attention to detail given to each and every piece in the collection, primarily created from sterling silver, gold, precious and semi-precious stones and Murano Glass.

The Cork store is the first of several store openings for PANDORA planned for late 2010, with further plans to expand in 2011. Thanks to strong growth in recent years, PANDORA is today, one of the world’s largest jewellery manufacturers. If you are lucky enough to live in Cork, check out the new shop on 9 Winthrop Street, if not, visit www.pandora.net or call (021) 4276228. And…to whet your appetite, lust over the gorgeous pieces in the Pandora TV ad (and no, I’m not just talking about the lead male!)

Guys struggling with the perfect Christmas Gift, then a Pandora charm bracelet or necklace is sure to put a smile on your girls face! Pandora charm bracelets are also a lovely idea for bridemaids gifts with matching charms as a keepsake of the special day.

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One woman’s trash is another woman’s treasure!

Ciara Crossan — Wed, 14 Apr 2010 10:16:00 +0000

Buy My Dress is Ireland’s largest one-day charity dress sale.With same-day events happening in Dublin (Royal College of Physicians, D 2), Cork (Cork School of Music, Union Quay) and Galway (Meyrick Hotel, Eyre Square) on Thursday 20th May this is definitely one event not to be missed! There might even be some second hand wedding dresses up for grabs, or options for bridesmaids dresses – so well worth going along if you are a B2B.

Ladies all over the country are spring cleaning their closets and donating lightly-used dresses which they no longer wear to this fashion event! C’mon, admit it…we all have then, a dress or two lurking at the back of the wardrobe that we have never (and will never!) wear! Whether too big, too small, or simply an impulse purchase gone wrong, Buy My Dress wants that dress you once wore to a wedding, or bought for your child’s communion and is now at the back of your closet.

Last year was the first Buy My Dress Event and they sold almost 1,500 dresses in Dublin’s Royal College of Physicians, raising 35k and earning the title of Fundraising Campaign of the Year. This year the charity hopes to collect 5,000 dresses and has expanded to other cities Cork and Galway.

If you are interested in donating a dress, then you can check out the drop off points at www.buymydress.ie (Peter Mark Salons and many Credit Unions are participating as drop off locations)

As a result of monies raised through last years Buy My Dress event they have begun funding the post of Ireland’s first Down Syndrome Liaison Nurse to AMNCH, Tallaght. In this role, the nurse provides advice, support and guidance to parents of newborn children with Down Syndrome in Dublin maternity hospitals and at home on request. The aim for 2010 is to expand this post and fund further Liaison Nurses countrywide.

So, either donate a dress or head along on the 20th May to one of the shopping days in Dublin, Cork or Galway and buy a dress! As they say, one womans trash is another womans treasure!

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Girls Just Wanna Have Fun!

Ciara Crossan — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 16:14:24 +0000

While not strictly a wedding-event, when I got the brochure from the Celtic Ross Hotel about their Girlie weekend package in aid of Action Breast Cancer, I thought it would be a great bonding weekend for a bride and her bridesmaids, or mother-of-the-bride/groom, or indeed a chilled low key hen event.

It’s on the weekend of the 9th –11th October down in Rosscarbery, West Cork. For €175 per person, there is a full weekend of activities all based in and around the hotel, sounds like a nice break-away-from-it all for the girls! It includes 2 nights Bed and breakfast in the hotel and dinner on the Saturday night. There are a host of activities on Saturday afternoon AND you get a Back, Neck and Shoulder Massage in the Holistic Suite….now that’s what I call value for a weekend break away!

The weekend will begin on the Fridaynight with a pink bubbly reception followed by some salsa and dirty dancing with Debbie from Salsa Train www.salsatrain.com!

On Saturday enjoy a leisurely breakfast until 11am, then take part in any or all of the activities below:

Aqua Aerobics – a stint in the pool is always a nice way to start your day!
Bootcamp – the new craze hitting the country. Join Mark from www.rebelbootcamp.ie for an outdoor workout. Includes a talk on nutrition. Perfect for the bride-to-be wanting to shape up.
Afternoon tea – with pink cupcakes of course!
Make-up consultation with Colette O’Sullivan from Porcelain Make-up www.porcelain.ie – get all the tips you need.
Cork Style Confidential – presented by Maeve and Molly will showcase all things stylish and sophisticated in the fashion industry www.maeveandmolly.com
An Irish Cancer Society Health Promotion Advisor will give a talk on breast cancer awareness and general cancer awareness for women.

Chick flicks will be shown throughout the day in the Library Bar for those that just want to chill out for the weekend.

On Saturday night enjoy a pre-dinner drinks reception before a sumptuous 4-course meal. We will end the night dancing away to Karaoke and DJ. On departure all guests will receive a Goodie Bag!

I think this is a great innovative package put together by the hotel and a really lovely idea for a chilled weekend to relax with friends. Best of all – Action Breast Cancer will benefit from the proceeds of the weekend, so everyone wins!

You can download the full brochure here and to book, contact the hotel directly: by calling (023) 8848722 or emailing reservations@celticross.com.

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Pressies for the Girls

Sabrina Dent — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 06:36:08 +0000

It’s traditional to give your wedding party gifts. It’s also stressful to give your wedding party gifts, because it’s one more thing to plan, one more thing to organise, and yes, one more thing to pay for. Here’s a less expensive solution that your bridesmaids will love – individually chosen cosmetics bags stuffed with a variety of handmade goodies.

Online retailer Etsy is stuffed to the gills with unique and gorgeous cosmetics bags and wristlets so you can choose whatever style you fall in love with. I’ve bought from Dalinda’s shop Plonka and I love the wristlet I got. She makes bags in a range of fabrics, so you can choose a different fabric to suit each bridemaid and make your gift really individual. (I like these little zippy purses at $13.50 each.)

In it you can put lots of little goodies, like luscious handmade soaps and lipbalms from Cherry Blossom Co. Ciara and I both have products from Cherry Blossom Co and love it; the products are very natural, really pretty and great quality. She charges $11.30 for international shipping for the first product, but each item after that is only one cent – so for large orders, it’s super cost effective.

Finally, you can pick up loads of little samples on Etsy that fit perfectly into small bags – check out the super-cute perfumes from Theme. You get seven minis for just $7, and they come in a whole range of scents and colours, perfect for coordinating with bags and soaps for a really lovely themed gift.

All of this stuff – pouches, lip balms, soaps and perfumes – comes to $172 including shipping if you’re buying for half a dozen bridesmaids, which is about €134 these days. For a party of six bridesmaids, that’s €22 each, which is a bridal bargain if there ever was one.

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A Wedding Disaster of Titanic Proportions

Sabrina Dent — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 04:11:30 +0000

So you’re planning your wedding day, dreaming up themes of romance and eternal love, and suddenly you have a brilliant notion: to dress your bridesmaids in one of the most romantic dresses from one of the most gaggingly romantic films ever. In short, you decide to dress your bridesmaids in Rose’s famous evening gown from the movie Titanic.

You know, Titanic. The movie where the two main characters fall in love, hit an iceberg, sink an entire cruise ship, and oh yeah – the guy dies.

OK, sure. Anyway, moving right along, since this dress does not exist outside the 20th Century Fox studios, you decide to ask your future mother in law to sew the dresses for you. She declines help, she declines a pattern, and on the day of your wedding, she reveals the dresses she has spent six months making (or not):

I’m not particularly superstitious, but I’m pretty sure the bride jinxed this one right from the start, what with the “1,500 dead people and a broken heart” theme. If you didn’t catch this true story when it made the rounds 10 years ago, you can still read the whole story of this epic wedding diaster at Etiquette Hell.

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