Say Hello!

To our newest employees!  I sat down with Nichole (on the left) and Stephanie (right) as they shared a little about themselves for me to put in the blog!

Hi Ladies!

So Nichole, tell me a little bit about yourself!

"I currently attend the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse - majoring in Microbiology.  I moved here from my hometown of Mt. Horeb, WI.  I LOVE sports, especially soccer!"

What do you love BEST about working here at Charlotte's?

"I LOVE seeing how happy our brides are when they find their PERFECT dress!  We are truely blessed to be part of this stage in planning."

What sort of activities do you enjoy during your free time?

"I LOVE reading, watching movies, and of course, SOCCER!"

What is your FAVORITE part about La Crosse?

"I love that we are surrounded by nature, like the bluffs and the river."

Thanks Nichole!  You will LOVE working here at Charlotte's!



Stephanie has been here for a few months, we just have not gotten around to posting a blog about her!

Stephanie!  Tell me a little bit about youself!

"I am also attending UWL with a major in Elementary Education.  I am from Viroqua, WI!"

What is our favorite part about working here at the wonderful Charlotte's?!"

"I get SO excited helping brides find their perfect gown!  Also, I love the family atmosphere that we have here at Charlotte's.  I purchased my Junior and Senior Prom dresses at Charlotte's and I am excited to share my experience with future Prom girls!"

What sort of activities do you enjoy during your free time?

"Usually I'm busy studying, but I do LOVE spending time with my friends and family."

Thanks Steph!

We are very thankful for our two newest addtions!

Happy Monday!

"Win a Free Wedding Gown" Contest Was a Success!!

During the month of November, we gave our brides the chance to earn raffle tickets to go towards our "Win a Free Wedding Gown" contest. It was so much fun!!  Congratulations to the winning bride, Anna!!  A big thank you to all those who participated! 

The winning ticket!

Anna's mom accepting the check.

ATTENTION MILITARY BRIDES

We are participating in Brides Across America again this year!!  We are so excited for this event and can’t wait to honor the men or women who have served overseas.  The event will take place on Thursday November 10, 2011 from 10 A.M. to 7 P.M. and Friday November 11, 2011 from 10 A.M. to 5 P.M.  The event is for these 2 days ONLY!! Plan accordingly because there are no exceptions J   

For those of you not familiar with Brides Across America, we give away wedding gowns to qualifying military brides.  Please be aware that gowns are limited and are given away on a first come, first serve basis. 

How do Brides qualify?

• Must be engaged, or had a civil ceremony and planning a wedding within the next 18 month 
• The bride was deployed overseas within the past 5 years
    OR
• The groom was deployed overseas within the past 5 years
•  The bride or the groom is on active duty and will be deployed overseas

You need to bring the following items with you (VERY IMPORTANT)

•  Driver’s license
• Military ID (or a photocopy of the ID)
• Copy of deployment papers for the bride or groom that state the time of deployment and location

Check out Kathy’s interview with WKTB News 8. 

http://www.news8000.com/news/Charlotte-s-Bridal-offering-free-wedding-dresses-to-military-brides/-/326/4045804/-/jxywllz/-/index.html

If you have any questions give us a call! 608-784-3493

Happy Wedding Weekend!

Congratulations and best wishes to all of our beautiful brides!  Heather K., Jessica, Jaclyn, Jennifer, Sandy, Marissa, Heather H., Kathryn, Shannon - have fun this weekend!

Please don't forget to send us photos from your big day!  We will speak with you all soon!

Much Love,
Charlotte's Bridal Staff

Happy Wedding Weekend!

October Event/Bridesmaid Sale

Our "Plan Your Wedding by Color!" event was a success!  The ladies had fun as Charlotte's Bridal Alumni, Beth, talked about all things color!  They learned styles, fabrics, and palettes.  Also, we are proud to announce the winner of the free bridesmaid dress!  Congratualtions Krista!  We are looking forward to dressing your wedding party!

ATTENTION LADIES!  Don't forget about our BRIDESMAID SALE we are having next month!  If the bride purchased her wedding gown through our store, bridesmaids will recieve an ADDITIONAL 10% discount making a WHOPPING 20% off!  If the bride has not purchased her wedding gown through our store, ladies will have a chance to sneak in a 10% discount!

FOR OUT OF TOWN BRIDESMAIDS!  You can get measured elsewhere (by a professional) and call in your measurements/payment during the sale!  Please be aware that our phonelines are VERY busy that day, so if you are unable to reach us PLEASE leave us a message with your contact information and we will return your call as soon as possible :)

We are looking forward to working with you!

Happy Monday!

Plan your wedding by COLOR!

We are swollen with pride to announce our 2^nd official store seminar!  A few weeks previous, we hosted an event showcasing all things floral.  The event was a success!  Our 2012 brides had a great time as Shannon (our floral expert) shared her knowledge on the subject.

In just under two weeks, on Saturday October 15 at 6:30 pm, we will be discussing all things COLOR!  We couldn’t be happier to have a Charlotte’s Bridal Alumni, Beth Grams, come into the store and help you learn about bridesmaid dress styles, fabrics, and most importantly, COLOR!  We want to help plan YOUR wedding color palette for your location and style.

We all know, asking a close friend or family member to be in your wedding is asking them a lot.  By RSVP-ing to Julie@charlottesbridal.net, you are automatically are entered for a chance to WIN A BRIDESMAID DRESS for someone in your bridal party!  It does NOT get better than that!

We are so excited to see you there!

I apologize!

Sorry for the lack of blog posts.  There just arent enough hours in the day!

ANYWAY, here is a post that I have been wanting to do for a while.  We are going to style your wedding party!  This is our first attempt at this HOPEFULLY weekly blog post, so bear with us!

 Aubergine/Eggplant/Lavender - whatever floats your boat - are our colors for this week! Aren't they so cute?!

Notice here how this Bridesmaid's dress has rouching and pulls to the same side as the bridal gown...we did this on purpose. :) While you don't want to be matchy, matchy, fun little details like this can really pull the look together.

Colored Flower Girl dresses are SUPER fun.  We are pulling the colors from the Bridesmaids dresses here without being super matchy agian.   

Now the groom...He is wearing a Savvi Tuxedo in charcoal, which in my opinion is super cute with our
Aubergine/Eggplant/Lavender theme.  I will discuss the pocket square, vest and tie in a little bit.

Our BEAUTIFUL bride is wearing a satin A-line Gown.  The rouching stops at the natural waist, which is super flattering.  It also has a bow detail and buttons down the back (I'll discuss this a little later). 

Here is a close up of our bow detail.  Super gorgeous with pearls and sparkle. 

Quick shout out to Emily for her photography skills!!  This is the button detail along the back of the wedding gown.

See - How gorgeous is that?!? I love, love, love buttons!

Back to our groom.  Thought we would give you guys a couple shots of the pocket square.  There are two of them in there.  Notice the "mountain" design.  I'm not going to lie and say that we have master skills in pocket square folding - it just came this way.

This is another design.  I think we made this one up too...

Obviously we needed a little instruction on how to fold the pocket square.  Maybe if we find an easy one... 

Practice makes perfect right?!?

Ok, well we just made up our own anyway.  Looks great Heather!!

The finished product!!

Now if we jump back to our Bridesmaid, we can discuss her jewelry.  The accessories ARE the most important part...Or maybe thats just me and my obsessions.  But seriously, jewelry is very important. The pearls in the necklace match the pearls in the Bride's dress.  And this design is super fun and elegant at the same time.

A simple string of pearls for the Bride.  Again drawing from the pearls in her dress.  Stunningly beautiful!

Ok now jumping back to the groom.  His vest and tie are also from Savvi.  This color is called "Victorian Lilac".  The vest pattern is called Sterling, which means "tonal pin dot" and the tie is paisley.  These two are my FAVORITE combination - my opinion may not matter, but I thought I would throw it out there.

And in case you couldn't see the design before, we got a little close and personal.

Well that's all we've got today friends.  Happy Oktoberfest!! 

Say a big hello..

To our newest Bridal Consultant, Nicole!

Hi Nicole!

Tell us a little about yourself!

"I am recently and HAPPILY married.  I am from Oklahoma, and moved here because of my husband.  We recently found out that theres a baby on the way!  Could NOT be more excited!"

What is your favorite part about working here at Charlotte's?

"I am in LOVE with the girly atmosphere.  I have so much fun with the brides!"

What do you like to do when you aren't working here?!"

"Basketball is my SPORT!  So, that takes up most of my free time.  Of course, I enjoy relaxing days off with my hubby :D"

I am sure it's a pretty large transition from Oklahoma City to La Crosse!  What is your favorite part our town?

"Well Oklahoma City has a population of 1,000,000, so I LOVE the small town aspect of La Crosse.  Also, I love the pretty breezy summers compared to OkC 110 degrees!"

Thank you for sharing, Nicole!  And and HUGE congratualtions on your pregnancy!  We are excited to be a part of your journey through next May!

Please come visit Nicole and the rest of our FANTASTIC staff at Charlotte's Bridal!  Call and set up an appointment today!

Happy Sunday!

It's that time of year again!

Keep a sharp eye!  Our local wedding magazine will be putting out a new issue THIS FALL!

Heather, our manager, and Nancy, one of our bridal consultants were there to witness the BEAUTIFUL photoshoot that took place yesterday, August 3rd, for the magazine!

Hi ladies!

"We spent the morning styling our gorgeous model, Amy, and exploring beautiful Downtown La Crosse for the perfect 'photo ops'. Rebecca Eby, from 'Studio Nouveau', was the photographer for the day and she did an amazing job! We went to a variety of places, including The Pearl, Kick, The La Crosse Community Theatre, and a few others. The local wedding magazine provides a great opportunity for Charlotte's to connect with local brides and showcase what's 'hot' in the bridal world!"

Stop by our store for the current issue, and keep a look out for the new fall issue!

Happy Thursday!

Hello!

And welcome to our completely renovated blog!  Starting NOW and for forever, we will be updating this as MUCH as possible!  SO, stay tuned for store updates and events, interviews, photos, and much much more!

Also, what better way to start fresh then to introduce y'all to our newest Bridal Consultant!

Hi Sara!  Sara just recently graduated from the University of Wisconsin, La Crosse with a Bachelors in Marketing.  She is currently attending Viterbo University and on the road to recieving her MBA.  You go girl!

Sara, what is your FAVORITE part about working here at the wonderful Charlotte's Bridal?

"I love the fast paced environment; there is always something new and exciting happening.  Also, I love working with and meeting all of the new and beautiful brides!"

What are some of your FAVORITE things to do?

"Well, I have recently acquired a minor in music at UWL.  I have been playing the flute for 15 years and will continue to!  Beach volleyball also takes up some of my time.  It's so much fun, and the competative nature is just so hard to stay away from."


What do you LOVE about our beautiful city, La Crosse?

"I love the bluffs.  Hiking them is so fun!  Biking the trails is also a favorite past-time.  The river is EVERYONE'S favorite hangout.  The beach is so beautiful!"

Which brings us to a close.  You can meet Sara and all of our other wonderful Bridal Consultants here at our store!  Call to set up an appointment today!  We are looking forward to working with you!

Bridal Gown Blowout Sale!

June 25th- July 2nd 2011

Charlotte's Bridal and Formalwear is marking hundreds of dresses 50-70% off to make room for new inventory!

Many of our wedding gowns will be priced from $99 to $499! In addition, select bridesmaids dresses will be 50% off- so come early and bring your bridesmaids along to get the best selection of colors and sizes!

You must schedule an appointment to get in on the deals, as dresses are sold on a first come, first serve basis. Don't wait to set up your appointment!

Mother's Day Sales Event

In honor of all the fabulous ladies in our lives, Charlotte’s is having a fantastic Mother’s Day sales event! We have a huge selection of all the latest styles and fashions so your mother or soon to be mother-in-law will look her best. We’ll help you coordinate all of your colors and take care of all the details!

If the bride purchased her wedding gown from Charlotte’s, the mother can receive $40 to $50 off any mother’s dress- stock or special order! If the bride didn’t purchase her gown from us, the mother can still receive $25 off her dress!

This is a fantastic deal that runs throughout the month of May- you definitely don’t want to miss out!

Wait No More!

We’ve been anxiously awaiting the big day and pondering over the shape and style of Kate Middelton’s dress. Finally our questions have been answered! Kate wore an ivory and white satin gazar with French Chantilly lace gown, created for her by Sharon Burton of fashion House Alexander McQueen yesterday at the royal ceremony.

The dress had an air of simplicity and modesty, but the plunging sweetheart neckline gave the gown a dramatic element. We couldn’t help but think-was she channeling the timeless beauty of Grace Kelly?

Royal Wedding Extravaganza!

Okay, we'll admit it, we are joining the royal wedding craze that is surrounding Prince William and Kate Middleton! Who doesn't dream of marrying a prince and getting to wear the most beautiful and extravagant princess wedding gown made specifically for your special day? And, she gets a crown. And fine china named after her! We're jealous... and extremely intrigued. Kate is a beautiful woman and she has a classic yet modern sense of style, so we are so excited to see what she will wear for her wedding gown!

We recently came across a website that shows different sketches from some of the best designers in the world (uhm, could we have Monique sketch up a gown for us too?) and also some unknowns, which is what Kate is great about. She helps awesome designers who are on the brink make it to the map, so we wouldn't be surprised if she does the same thing with her wedding gown designer too.

Take a look at our link and then let us know what your vote is for Kate's dress! We would love to talk princesses and all that is royal with you :)

http://www.people.com/people/package/gallery/0,,20395222_20444259,00.html#20880659