Wedding Gowns & Bridal Gowns

I can’t believe I missed this last year! Music producer and American Idol judge Kara DioGuardi got married last July at a very private ceremony in Maine. Her husband is actually someone far removed from showbiz – his name is Mike McCuddy and he’s a general contractor who built the house next to her summer house in Prospect Harbor . They met when she marched next door to complain about how the house he was building was too close to hers. She found him hot, they ended up dating, and they got engaged during a vacation in Mexico.

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Fourteen-year old girls everywhere (and fourteen-year-olds at heart) must have spent a good chunk of last weekend queuing to grab tickets to the New Moon, the next installment in the Twilight series. I’ve never even touched the book, but fans might be interested in this Twilight-inspired collectible I found. At the end of New Moon, Edward Cullen pops the question to Bella with an antique heirloom ring awkwardly described as a “long oval, set with slanting rows of glittering round stones.” Emitations designed a costume jewelry engagement ring based on the book’s description, which you can buy on Amazon for $49. It’s made of gold-plated sterling silver that forms a fragile web around faux diamonds. The ring is supported by a split band for a comfy fit, and is also available in silver (but you might want to get the gold-plated one for a more authentic piece, as the book indicates the ring as being gold).

I wonder if readers of Twilight would actually be thrilled to receive a wedding proposal with this ring.

Marilyn Monroe might think that diamonds are a girl’s best friend, but who says decking yourself with shiny gems is the only way to accessorize your wedding dress? You’ll stand out even more if you finish off your wedding dress with a non-traditional object, like lace. Lace bridal jewelry is a gorgeous and creative alternative to traditional bridal jewelry. The same rules still apply – the more simple the gown, the larger and more ornate the lace jewelry. The more embellished the gown, the simpler the jewelry.

You can easily make lace jewelry yourself with lace from a craft store, or you can buy them from US-based Etsy seller Live in Style. They’re a little expensive, but the craftsmanship looks excellent and each piece is intricately designed. I’m absolutely in love with her creations; check out my favorites below!

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A while back, I talked about the importance of purchasing ethical engagement rings and making sure the diamonds in your engagement ring are mined from conflict-free sources. Then again, who says engagement rings have to be made of diamonds? One thing we can do to reduce the demand of blood diamonds is by purchasing engagement rings made of other rocks and semi-precious stones. While surfing the Internet today, I came upon an interesting jewelry company called Turtle Love Committee that specializes in truly unique engagement rings.

The company was born when the founders noticed that the only engagement rings out there are made of pricey diamonds, and that there there is no organized source of unusual engagement rings. Turtle Love Committe believes that the value of an engagement ring should not be placed on its financial expense, but on the love and commitment that it symbolizes. Thus, every single piece they offer is carefully selected for its quality and design so they can reflect your relationship and lifestyle best. If you look through the website, you’ll notice that the design of each piece really is truly unusual, and that not a single piece of jewelry has a diamond on it.

The Monhegan moonstone engagement ring was the first that caught my eye, mostly because moonstones are among my favorite semi-precious rocks. Their milky white color is beautifully understated and if you place it underneath the light, they reflect subtle hues of purple and blue. The Monhegan moonstone engagement ring is dominated by a large faceted moonstone about the size of a 3-carat diamond. It’s stunning but not tacky, and the lucky girl who receives this is sure to cherish the ring for many years to come.

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Men don’t really wear a lot of jewelry and there haven’t been many options in men’s wedding bands, until recently. Scott Kay, one of the world’s authorities on bridal and platinum jewelry, has recently launched an alluring collection of men’s wedding jewelry. The collection features engraved cuffwear studded with onyx, as well as wedding bands that allow men to speak their personality beyond their wedding day. The tattoo-inspired rings in particular use an interesting process to bind ink with metal, creating quite literally a tattooed wedding band.

Who says brides get to have all the fun? Look under the jump for our top picks among Scott Kay’s collection of men’s wedding bands.

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