2010 Holiday Dresses

As the holidays quickly approach, there are several reasons to do a little shopping for yourself. We all want to look fabulous at that holiday party, office event, or annual family gathering. Now is the time to shop for that holiday dress that will make you stand out and be remembered. There are several fashion do’s and do not’s when it comes to the holiday season. White is just not appropriate during this time of year unless you’re wearing a wedding dress. However, when it comes to colors for the holiday dress, the range of possibilities is endless. Red, Green, or just about any dark hue will work as well as the shiny silver and gold dresses. You can also get away with some bright colors as well. The style of dress is also wide open. Anything from short cocktail dress to long evening gown can be worn depending on the event. Here are a few ideas and hints for finding that perfect holiday dress.

The office party may have moved out of the office and therefore so should your style of dress. If your office party is being held at a fancy restaurant or hotel, you want to dress elegantly. Your choice of dress should mimic your environment as well as your natural skin tone and style. Don’t be afraid to wear that short cocktail dress that shows off your natural curves as well as your fabulous legs.  Select a 3 inch heel to further enhance your calves.

This dress is available in silver or gold from Scala and finding gold or silver shoes to match is easily accomplished. 

If you’re looking for something a little more elegant, try something with a little less pizzazz, but lots of glamour. This navy blue evening gown features a one shoulder neckline with a modified mermaid silhouette. The taffeta will shine just as you do throughout the evening. This dress is designed by Tony Bowls.  Try a silver sandal with this dress with a heel height that makes this dress just miss the floor. With most full length evening dresses, you should always order 2 weeks in advance of your event to allow for any alterations that may be necessary and get a heel dependent on your height.

The little black dress never fails. You can wear the little black dress to just about any event, any environment and the best part of all, the little black dress flatters almost any body type. But, while the little black dress is appropriate for any occasion, we would like to introduce a new twist on that little black dress. Black, gold, and full of posh glamour, this fit & flare evening gown by Terani 95232P keeps you looking chic at your holiday event. Gorgeous golden rose embroidery stands out against the black dress body and casts a lovely shimmer. The strapless bustline rests low on the chest and has a u-shape cut at the center for a little extra exposure. Add the perfect gold shoes and this look will heat up any cold climate.

The standard colors of dark reds and dark greens still work well for any holiday ensemble. Don’t forget to finish off any holiday look with  sparkling earrings, a matching bracelet, and maybe even the matching necklace. It goes without saying that shoes are a must-have.

Dress Like Miss America at Your Prom or Next Social Engagement

You don’t have to be Miss America, Katie Stam, or even a Miss America Pageant runner up to dress like a pageant winner. A lot of the gowns featured in this years Miss America pageant were designed by Tony Bowls. And while some of these gowns were custom designs, there were a number of gowns that are readily available at a store near you.

The new Miss America, Katie Stam wore style# 19c54 from the Spring 2009 Tony Bowls Collection during her talent portion.

Miss Louisiana wore style# 19C07  from the Tony Bowls Collection during the evening gown competition.  This strapless chiffon A-line gown and nude sweetheart bodice encrusted with hand-beading and lightly pleated skirt with front side slit was a very nice choice.

Try wearing clear or silver sandals with a moderate heel to finish off this look.

 

 

 

 Other gowns seen on stage include:

 TBE1856

Strapless taffeta A-line gown with ruched bust line, jeweled accents at Empire waistline, high-low bubble skirt with embroidered trim. Removable straps included. Check out this great prom shoe to finish off this fabulous dress. 

 

 

 

 

 

TBE1917

Printed charmeuse slim A-line evening gown with modified halter neckline, keyhole bodice, hand-beaded illusion midriff, twisted back straps, center front slit, pleated sweep train. Matching shawl included. Finish this off with the perfect black and gold sandal and you are all set to walk the runway, the red carpet, or anywhere you want to be seen.

 

 

 

 

TBE1869 

Sleevesless charmeuse soft A-line gown, ruched chiffon bodice with plunging neckline, beaded accents and back crisscross straps, charmeuse skirt with chiffon front drape. Leopard print skirt available in Brown/Blue only. Solid skirt in Red and Gold.

Paris by Jonathan Kayne  is the perfect match and a great way to finish off this look.

 

 

 

 

 

Tony Bowls’ styles dominated the Miss America 2009 Pageant. If it’s good enough for the 2009 Miss America-Katie Stam, you should be seen in one of these styles as well.

The Bling is The Thing .. or OMG That Prom Dress is amazing!

This year, all of the new prom dress styles feature some sort of bling. Metallic fabrics and colors are hot and dresses with sequines are featured everywhere.  Hollywood sets the trends by showing us the glamorous actors walking the red carpet during the awards shows on television and now available in high definition. This is good for showing the fine details of the dress, although it may be bad for the celebrity if they have any flaws in their make up. From the Desparate Housewives to emergency room doctors, there is bling to be found.

If you’re looking for a sexy and stylish look for your prom or next social occasion, look no further. Here are the hottest trends for the shiny prom dresses and evening dresses and how to accesorize.

While hand beading is not exactly bling, it does provide a nice little glimmer and dances in the lights. Check out this dress for an excellent example of hand beading at it’s finest. This dress features a sexy A-line deep plunge halter. Wear some sexy sandals with this dress because the front slit will allow you show off more than your dress.

 And make sure your feet are as sexy as the rest of you with Apulia by Helen’s Heart. This is a Gold Multi colored 3.5 inch heel which matches perfectly with the style 19536 from Tony Bowls Legala.

 

 

If you’re looking to step it up and provide some sizzle to your evening, sequines will do just that. A dress featuring sequines will catch the light perfectly and catch everyone’s eye. If you don’t want attention and you don’t want to be noticed, stay away from sequines. But, if you are looking for some serious spotlight, this dress will put you there. This dress features sequine encrusted sheath with front side slit and crisscross back straps. Add some silver shoes to complete this amazing look.  This High Heel Silver Sandal with a Cascading Rhinestone Front by Sizzle will match perfectly with your glittering prom dress.

 

Check out this article for more ideas about dress and shoe combinations that will dazzle.




The Holiday Dress

With the holidays right around the corner, it’s time to think about the “all important” issue of “What To Wear”. With the holidays come lots of reasons to get dressed up. So the question is not “Do I Want To Get Dressed Up?”, the question is “How Do I Want To Look?” There are several types of parties and events around the holidays. Your look needs to reflect you, but it also needs to be conscious of the people who will see you.
The always important office party offers an event that requires a look that subtly says “professional” but screams “beautiful”. For this type of event, your choice should be based on the time as well as the location. If your office party is truly an “office” party meaining that its held in the same building that you work in, the sexy evening gown is definitely out. You should consider wearing something professional and mildly sexy. Show off with a little extra on the day of your office party with this nice slim knee length cocktail dress. This dress from Mon Cheri Occasions feaetures an attached chiffon blouse and intricately hand-beaded Empire waistline. This will fit nicely in an office setting and allow you enjoy the after party with the your co-workers when you all meet at the local cafe after work. Consider wearing a sexy strappy sandal  in black, gold, or silver to add a little more femininity and a little less “office look”.

If your office party is being held a fancy hotel or restaurant, consider wearing something a bit more elegant. Show the boss you not only work well in the office, but look great outside of that office setting. Show off your curves and wear a color that fits the holiday spirit. Reds and greens can be sexy, yet classy and sophisticated. Consider this red Stretch taffeta slim knee-length cocktail dress with wide tapered shoulder straps that trail into a unique open back bodice, sweetheart neckline, and ruched crisscross bodice. This dress will make sure you get noticed by the right people at that elegant affair. Top this look by looking at the bottom. Shoes, of course can either finish off or totally ruin a great looking dress like this. Look for a peep/open toe shoe with a heel that shows off your calves. A complimentary color like black or red wine.

Of course, there always the unavoidable family get-togethers. Wetheer you enjoy visiting with family around the holidays or not, it’s always a good idea to give the impression that things are going great. Nobody really wants bad news around the holidays. Wear something that says “I am in the holiday spirit and happy to be there”. This dress features a Below-the-knee heavily sequined tulle A-line and a unique deep plunge halter neckline. This dress says “let it snow”. Finish off this look with some silver sandals that compliment the sequined detail of the dress and continue that shiny wintry mix.

The holidays will come and go, but you can make your mark and be remembered all year long. Dress to perfection and look happy doing it.

Looking For That Purple Prom Dress?

A brief history of the color purple and how it relates to royalty:

A dictionary defines purple as “any of a group of colors with a hue between that of violet and red” and as a “symbol of royalty or high office.” Historically, the color purple has been associated with royalty and power.

“Tyrian Purple,” the purple dye of the ancients mentioned in texts dating back to about 1600 B.C., was produced from the mucus of the hypobranchial gland of various species of marine mollusks, notably Murex. It took some 12,000 shellfish to extract 1.5 grams of the pure dye. Legend credits its discovery to Herakles, or rather to his dog, whose mouth was stained purple from chewing on snails along the Levantine coast. King Phoenix received a purple-dyed robe from Herakles and decreed the rulers of Phoenicia should wear this color as a royal symbol.

Rome, Egypt, and Persia all used purple as the imperial standard. Purple dyes were rare and expensive; only the rich had access to them. The purple colorants used came from different sources, most from the dye extraction from fish or insects.

Today, genuine “Tyrian Purple” remains the domain of the rich and famous.

Purple Prom Dresses are “all the rage” for the 2009 prom season and 2009 spring fashion trends. Purple is a rich and vibrant color that works well with black, gold and silver accessories.

Purple was out of the spotlight for quite a few years as a fashionable color. But now it has come back stronger than ever.

In the 70’s purple dresses were very popular. And now it seems not only have we recycled purple as a  popular color, we also see some styles from the 70’s re-emerging into the fashion scene.

What to wear with your purple prom dress:

For solids like the dresses shown here, sexy strappy sandals in slver or black are recommended. Jewelry can be purple or fuschia beads or crystals or of course, silver and shiny. Find more silver prom shoes.

Choose purple and walk the red carpet like royalty!

A Free Wedding Dress? Are you Kidding Me?

It seems that lots of wedding dress and prom dress designers are willing to give away at least one free dress. Did you know this? Well it certainly came as a surprise to me. Wedding Dresses can be very expensive. Imagine not having that expense in your wedding budget? What could you do with an extra $1000.00(at least)?

Well, here are the details:

Mon Cheri Bridals is giving away 11 free dresses per year. Mind you, this is not only wedding dresses, but prom dresses, mother of the bride dresses, and social occassion dresses. You could win a free wedding dress by world class designers like Sophia Tolli, Rina DiMontella,  James Clifford Hjelm, and Tony Bowls. This month, you could win a Rina DiMontella Wedding Dress or a Destinations by Mon Cheri Wedding Dress. Both of these collections are very beautiful and offer a variety of styles to choose from.

Your odds of winning are pretty good compared to other sweepstakes because this sweepstakes is not advertised on other sites and the only promotion is a small link on their homepage. Also, you don’t have to wait a year to find out if you won as most of their sweepstakes run monthly. So, what are you waiting for?

Check out the Fabulously Free Dress Giveaway.

The Perfect Dress

I got this story in an email this morning and thought to myself, “What a great story!”

Jennifer’s wedding day was fast approaching.
Nothing could dampen her excitement — not even her parents’ nasty divorce. 
Her mother had found the perfect dress to wear and would be the best dressed mother-of-the-bride ever! 
A week later, Jennifer was horrified to learn that her father’s new young wife had bought the exact same dress as her mother! Jennifer asked her step mom to exchange it, but she refused. “Absolutely not. I look like a million bucks in this dress, and I’m wearing it”, she replied. 
Jennifer told her mother who graciously said, ”Never mind sweetheart. I’ll get another dress. After all, it’s your special day.” A few days later, they went shopping and did find another gorgeous dress. When they stopped for lunch, Jennifer asked her mother, ”Aren’t you going to return the other dress? You really don’t have another occasion where you could wear it.” Her mother just smiled and replied, “Of course I do, dear. I’m wearing it to the rehearsal dinner the night before the wedding.”

In today’s world, dealing with divorced parents during a wedding is one of the most stressful parts of planning a wedding. Of course, purchasing two dresses can be very expensive, but I am betting most women would gladly spend the extra money for this type of dignified revenge.