Saturday, October 12, 2013

I Said "YES!" (To the Dress)

I am sitting here on Cloud 9 as I type up this blog post because today I SAID "YES" TO THE DRESS and I have officially found my gown!!!  Oh the glory!!!  I must admit that for me it was nothing like you see in the movies or on tv.  No tears of joy, no crying mother, no dramatic gasps from my MOH as I walked out of the fitting room.  I don't think I expected any of that to occur but it's funny how different things are in reality compared to what you envisioned in your head.

Today I attended a Maggie Sottero trunk show at Bijou Bridal.  I have been eyeing this wedding designer ever since I started browsing online for wedding dresses.  I was excited when I learned that Bijou was hosting a trunk show today.  So I made an appointment to attend and I'm so glad that I did because I found my dress!

Bijou Bridal store in Paramus, NJ
I loved the elegance of Bijou Bridal.  I have gone dress shopping a few other times before but this is the first place that really felt like a bridal salon.  It was a really big store, with gorgeous displays, soft colors and a really elegant feel.  I believe this is their flagship location but they have a few other locations here in the States.  I'm not sure if those are equally as large.  Bijou also carries many different designers aside from Maggie Sottero including Casablanca Bridals (another great brand I like), Watters Bridal and Enzoani just to name a few others.


When I arrived at Bijou I already had an idea of what I was looking for.  I've spent my previous wedding dress hunts trying on different kinds of dresses and deciding what I liked most. I tried different types of fabric (Satin, Organza, Taffeta, Lace, etc) as well as different silhouettes (A-line, Ballgown, Fit n Flare).  similar dress so you can get an idea of what I chose.  This is NOT the dress that I got (that's a secret til 9/14/14!).
Different dress silhouettes.  Photo from Pinterest.
 As I mentioned in a previous blog post I really like the fit and flare/trumpet silhouette.  So when my appointment began I got right down to business looking for exactly what I wanted.  I ended up trying on only 3 dresses in the whole store. This was not because they didn't have beautiful dresses but because I wasn't interested in trying on any dress that I didn't think could be "the one".  I only wanted to try on dresses that had exactly what I was looking for.  I ended up choosing a dress that I felt the best in.  From head to toe I loved everything about the dress.  It felt so fabulous being in it.  Below I have posted a

Lauren dress by Maggie Sottero


I can't believe I chose my dress!  Things are starting to fall into place.  I was so grateful to have my mother and my MOH there with me while I tried on dresses and especially since I found it with them.  I'm also glad that the hunt is over with and I can keep focusing on the next plans to make without the added pressure of finding a dress.  I am really looking forward to booking our wedding officiant next as we haven't done that yet.  Hopefully that will be done by the end of this month and then I think I'll take a breather/break from wedding planning for the holidays.  I hope you enjoyed this post!  Til next time...

-Michelle G

P.S. Only 337 more days to go!

Monday, October 7, 2013

My Bridesmaids



I started out not even wanting a bridal party because Pete and I initially thought we were having a very small wedding. I thought I would just have my sister as maid of honor. But then we decided to have a bigger wedding and thought it would be nice to have a bridal party. So we decided on just 4 bridesmaids and 4 groomsmen. But that wasn't enough. We felt like we were leaving people out of such an important day. So we decided on 6 bridesmaids and 6 groomsmen.  I'm so glad that we are able to have such a great group of people who will be part of our wedding.  This has been one of my favorite parts of wedding planning so far.

My Fabulous Bridesmaids

I tend to keep my inner circle very small.  So when I had to choose bridesmaids it was pretty easy for me to know who I wanted.  I wanted people who love and support me and my relationship with Pete.  I wanted people who knew me for many years and whose relationship with me has stood the test of time.  I wanted people who I knew I would still be close with years after my wedding day.    It is this handful of people who have remained in my life throughout it all and who I felt should stand up there with me on what is to be the most important day of my life so far.  So here they are... my fabulous bridesmaids!!! :)





This is me and Jessica, my sister and Maid of Honor (MOH).  I chose my sister because she's the closest to me and I couldn't imagine anyone else standing up there as MOH.  It is a big honor and my sister is deserving of it.  I know she will do a great job!  


Carmen and me at the Britney Spears concert!


Here's a picture with my cousin, Carmen.  I also asked her to be part of my bridal party.  We have many childhood memories and she is one of my closest cousins! We don't always get to see each other often but it's always a good time when we do.  

Jessica, me (blonde) and Laura during !  

 


I also asked my other cousin, Laura to be a bridesmaid too.  I am very lucky that I get to see her a few times a year especially during the holidays!  I have watched her grow up into such a lovely young woman.  She's always been there and I'm happy she will be there with me on my wedding day!

Kristina & I at her rehearsal dinner!



Kristina and I have been best friends since we were in Kindergarten.  Even though she moved away and we grew up apart we always stayed in touch and visited when we could.  She got married last year and I was part of her day.  When I got engaged, I knew she had to be part of mine.  Our friendship has lasted over 20 years and I feel confident it will last at least another 20!  I'm so glad she will be a bridesmaid!
Carissa and I

I have a lot of really fun memories with Carissa.  We have been friends since 5th grade and even got to go to college together!  She is someone who I know I can always have a good time with.  We have been friends for a very long time and I'm glad we have so many fun memories to laugh about together.
   


Keisha and I have been good friends since high school days.  She's awesome and has always been a good friend to me.  I'm happy we have stayed friends after high school and that she will be part of my wedding day.





How I popped the question!

I posted a blog post previously about the Trash the Dress trend but there is another trend I am finding and it relates to your bridesmaids. More specifically, it relates to how you ask them to be part of your wedding day.  If you browse through Pinterest, Etsy, Zazzle or other sites like that you might find an extensive list of "Bridesmaid invites" that come in the form of adorable note cards, jewelry, keepsake trinkets and other cute crafty ideas that all ask the same question.... "will you be my bridesmaid?"  The point of it is to ask your bridesmaid in a more sentimental and thoughtful way rather then an email, call or text.

For example, one of my bridesmaids got married last year and wanted me to be in her bridal party. We were childhood best friends and she lives out of state.  I received a package from her and when I opened the box it was literally a bottle full of sand and seashells with a "message in a bottle." When I opened the bottle and retrieved the small piece of paper it was a one liner inviting me to be a bridesmaid. Talk about cute!!! I had never gotten something like that or been asked in such a special way. I knew that I wanted to do something similar when my time came.
This is what my friend Kristina did for her bridesmaids! Message in a bottle!  How cute is that!? 



Front of note cards I sent to my bridal party! 
When it was time to ask my bridesmaids I wanted to make it simple, sweet and to the point.  So I decided to find a pretty note card that I could customize with ask each girl's name.  I ended up ordering my note cards on Zazzle.com and I think they came out pretty cute.  They are designed like an invitation and it has the wedding date along with my question.  I haven't shared my wedding date with many people yet aside from immediate family.  I thought this was a cute way of revealing the wedding date as well.  Inside I wrote a nice message asking if they would be my bridesmaid.  Short, simple, cute and to the point.  Exactly what I was going for :) 


Bridesmaid Inspiration

I know it is still super early for my bridesmaids to get their dress but that doesn't mean I haven't already been thinking of all the possibilities!  I am planning to wait on choosing their dresses because I want to get my wedding dress first.  But I've added a few photos from my personal wedding Pinterest board with some of my inspiration.  In the beginning of my Pinterest pinning I felt like I was just pinning a mish mash of random wedding inspiration that had no theme.  However, as I go back now and review my boards I have begun to see the patterns, the vision and themes.  I can't even begin to rave about how useful Pinterest has been for me.  











Hope you enjoyed this post!  I have SO MUCH MORE in the works!  I am going to a trunk show this weekend to keep looking for my wedding dress.  Hopefully I will report back with some exciting news!  Til next time

-Michelle G

P.S. Only 342 more days to go!




Tuesday, September 10, 2013

Fort Tryon Park

My previous post cast a spotlight on the vendor chosen for my wedding photos and video. Today's post is all about Fort Tryon, the park we chose to have our engagement photo session. First of all, I never ever thought I would be doing something like this! It's one thing to take a nice photo but quite another to be front and center in a photoshoot! I am so glad Pete will be there with me so we can have fun with it. 

When we decided to do the photo session we realized we had to come up with a great location. Since we both really love nature and picnics we felt a lovely park would fit our personalities best. We debated between a couple of parks but it was our vendor, George Street, that suggested Fort Tryon Park.  Fort Tryon Park overlooks the Hudson River and George Washington Bridge. I had never been inside that park although I have passed it by many times before. We looked up some beautiful engagement photos online done at that park and were blown away. It was the perfect choice.  Since we both had never actually been in the park we decided to check it out. The park is so beautiful with amazing views of the river and bridge as well as gorgeous architecture and gardens. I am so glad we took the time really scout out the park for photo ops.  We ended up having our own mini photo session.  Below I posted some pictures from it.  Enjoy!

Me in the top right corner


Beautiful architecture and Heather Gardens 



George Washington Bridge



Pete's turn



Pete again

Thursday, September 5, 2013

Vendor Spotlight: George Street Photo & Video

                                           


Our wedding is almost 1 year away and I am starting to get really anxious to start all the wedding preparations. Up until now we have only set our date and venue. It felt silly to start planning everything so soon with well over a year before the wedding. But now that the 1 year mark is coming close I am finally feeling ready to really dig in and get the ball rolling. Time for the fun to begin! 
Picture taken from George Street online portfolio


Our wedding will be September 2014. September and October are 2 of the most popular wedding months so I knew we had to start the vendor search with photographers and videographers because they book up way in advance. I spent a nice portion of my summer nights researching all the preferred photo and video people my venue suggested. I also spent time stalking my married facebook friends to see what photographer/videographer they used for their weddings. 

Picture taken from George Street online portfolio


I had an idea of what I wanted my pictures and video to look like. I have really fallen in love with the photojournalistic approach and romantic poses. I wanted to make sure I chose a team that would give us exactly what we wanted. We will look back on these photos and videos for many years and so it was super important for us to make sure we get that. 

Picture taken from George Street online portfolio


My mother was the one who actually found the website to George Street Photo & Video and sent me a link.  It wasn't one of the suggested companies or one that I had found off a friend. George Street is a great company that works with couples all over the US.  They have many offices and photographers and really offer a great service.  

Picture taken from George Street online portfolio


I was initially drawn to the beauty and quality of the work they did. I loved the angles, the clarity, the vision of the photographers. I watched some of the videos and was blown away by their work as well. They had what I was looking for. 

Picture taken from George Street online portfolio

Now George Street was not the first company I had fallen in love with. There were a nice handful of companies that I had listed as possibilities but their prices were astronomical and out of our price budget set for photo/video. So I was half expecting the same for this company but was pleasantly surprised to find that the prices were not just reasonable but totally in our budget! So I sent them an online inquiry to get more information. After speaking with a rep we were assigned a wedding coordinator to meet with and go over the packages and choose a photographer. We were given an online style assessment (which I took alone without Peter lol) prior to meeting so they can match us up to photographers who match our style preference. I thought this was a fabulous idea since I had no clue what my style was. Our coordinator, Natalie, showed us a few portfolios based off our results. We fell in love with the work of the second photographer we saw.  (Erik G. portfolio <---this is the photographer we chose! I love his work!)

Then we looked at the videos and agreed on adding video to our package as well. I love how they edit the videos to make it look like a movie or tv show lol. 

Picture taken from George Street online portfolio


The package we chose included a free 90 minute photo session that we are planning to use for engagement pictures. I wasn't planning on doing engagement pictures but since it's included we figured why not? So that gives us a new project: prepping this photo session. I will save that for another blog post though.

Sorry if this got a little long and ranty but there is just so much to mention!! Hope you enjoyed! And look out for my upcoming posts! 

xo,
Michelle G

PS: if you aren't already, follow me on twitter and instagram!! @itsmichelle_g

Tuesday, August 13, 2013

Bridal Trend: Trash the Dress (TTD) - what are your thoughts?



I am nowhere close to finding my wedding dress. In fact, I am not really even planning on starting to look for it until sometime this fall but I have been reading up on the Trash the Dress (TTD) trend and had to write a post!

So just in case you are reading this and have no clue what I am talking about let me just briefly let you know about this growing trend. From what I have gathered online, it was started by a photographer in Las Vegas over 10 years ago but has only recently gotten popular in the last 5 yrs. Basically at another time after your wedding you stage another photoshoot where the bride wears her wedding dress again and purposely ruins it during the shoot. Some brides will jump into the pool or frolick around a beach. Others run around in mud and dirt, or shred it up. I have seen brides who threw paint on their dress and even a very controversial shoot where the bride burned her dress (while still wearing it!).

FYI I believe this is a photoshopped TTD which might be a good alternative

From what I understand, the point of TTD is supposed to be a fun, different take on traditional wedding photos. It allows the bride to have fun with her dress, have different kinds of poses and change things up. One site I read said that it symbolizes your devotion to your husband since you can't wear the dress again. And as one former bride I know who has done a TTD shoot said "Since you only get married once its not like you will ever wear it again. So why not?". 



So what do you think of this trend? Would you do it? I certainly can understand the appeal and reasoning behind the TTD trend. And it definitely does look very fun but this is a trend that I personally will be skipping and this is why: 

1. I'm too sentimental: I still have the dress I wore in my Quinceanera (Sweet 15). My mom still has my baptism and communion dress. I come from a family who holds onto this type of stuff. For me, this is a very special dress that I want to keep perfect and show my children someday. It is sacred and important because of the commitment I made wearing it.  To spend so much money on a beautiful dress only to purposely ruin it seems to be a waste of money and disrespectful to the sanctity of the dress (to me at least).


2. Unforeseen dangers: Maybe I am being a little pessimistic but I have read about the bride who drowned wearing her dress in the river or the one who burned her dress while wearing it. The possibility that my safety can potentially be compromised for a photo is a huge red flag!

Anyway, hope you enjoyed this post.  The next few posts will be coming soon as we near our 12 month countdown to the wedding.  I'm so excited and glad to know that this is just the beginning.

xo,

Michelle G






Blog Spotlight: CRAZYCOZYCHIC


*Blog Spotlight* 

I am always looking for fun and interesting new blogs to read up on. I recently got into contact with a really sweet fellow blogger, Karen from Ireland. She writes about product reviews, tags, hair and more! Please take a moment to check out her blog and show some love!

http://crazycozychic.weebly.com <---link to her blog! 

Tuesday, July 9, 2013

Now what?

I find myself asking this question all the time.."now what?"  I'm pretty sure this was the first thought in my head right after I said "Yes" to Pete and called some immediate family members to share the good news.  In my immediate circle of friends I'm the first one getting married.  I'm also the first grandchild getting married.  My childhood best friend got married last year and I flew in two days before to stand next to her as a bridesmaid.  To be honest, I have never planned nor been around someone who was planning a wedding.  So after those initial first moments of awe and excitement were over I realized that I was in over my head and totally overwhelmed.  I always thought I would know exactly what I wanted and that I would have the entire wedding planned out by the next day.  However, it's not the case!  There is so much to consider that I could never just plan something in a day! I think it's so easy to get caught up in EVERYTHING at once and get really lost and burnt out.  So I'm taking things one at a time.  There are a lot of wedding planner guides available in bookstores and online but even with those guides I am feeling my way through this process and going at my own pace.    We are about 3 months into planning and have set our wedding date and location.  That's it.  That's all I know so far.  People ask me all the time if I've done this part or decided on that and all I can tell them is "I don't know yet," because it's the truth.  I haven't gotten to that part yet because I don't want to jump around to different things.  So now that date and location are set...now what?


What I'm using to plan my wedding

Ok so first I should probably start out with what I'm using to get my planning in gear.

First thing I did when I started planning was buy a folder.  I needed something that I could use to hold onto important receipts, papers, contracts, etc. and take around with me when I go to visit venues and vendors.  I also signed up for a few wedding websites like The Knot and Wedding Wire to help me stay up to date with current trends, ideas, inspiration and venue choices.  Just beware of the reviews for the venues.  After reading through a bunch of them I realized that almost every review is written by a bride/groom who had their wedding at that specific location.  So of course the reviews will be biased because let's face it, they chose the place so of course they are going to love it!  Another website that I'm using is Etsy, which is an awesome website to buy handmade/original and really creative stuff through independent vendors.  I like going on this site to browse through various different bridal decorations, invites, favors, etc.  You don't have to order from the site to find inspiration and get ideas!  I'm also using Pinterest to get wonderful inspiration for the wedding through pictures.

The Next Steps...

  1. Vendors: My goal for this summer is to find and book some of my vendors.  I'm planning to find a wedding officiant, DJ, and photographer/videographer.  I have a few others on my list but these are the ones I would rather book sooner than later.   
  2. Workout/Diet plan: Because let's face it, we all want to look fabulous on our wedding day!  I was doing so well but fell off the wagon last summer.  I'm back on now and have been working out about 3-4 times a week for about 40-60 minutes doing moderate/high intensity workouts at home.    I'm doing both cardio and strength training with hand weights.  I'm debating on whether or not to officially join Weight Watchers but I'll probably just do it on my own.  I will post a different day about the exact workouts/diets I'm doing.  Also, Pete just joined a new boxing gym nearby.  I'm so glad that we are both making an effort to get in shape for our wedding! <3 
  3. Keep pinning: Since I'm still in the early stages of planning I am still open to ideas and gathering inspiration.  I'm still very open to the many possibilities and this is such an important day that I want to make sure I plan every last detail.  I've been using the Pinterest app on my iPhone to pin images that give me wedding inspiration or an idea that I want to use.  
I think that about sums up where I am so far with everything.  Which isn't too far but I have more than enough time so there's no need to rush. I hope my next post will have more fun details! Stay tuned!

-Michelle G     





Saturday, June 15, 2013

Let the wedding planning begin!!

The past 2 months have been pretty crazy and hectic for me.  I got engaged in April and ever since that day things have been a bit chaotic.  Between work, traveling and trying to plan a wedding this is actually the first moment I've had to really blog about it.  I've been toying around with the idea of blogging my wedding planning.  I think I'm just gonna do it.  I think it would be awesome to be able to look back at the whole process and have it as a nice memory.  So here we go... blogging about my wedding planning adventures.

Pete and I waited about a week or so before we started with our wedding planning.  Typical me even bought a special "wedding folder" so I could hold onto my notes, brochures, business cards and other important paperwork.  The first thing we decided to do was come up with a guest list.  We felt that the best way to figure out how big of a venue/reception hall we need is to figure out how many people we need to accommodate.  This would also help us come up with a wedding budget.  Since we both don't come from very large families we are able to keep the guest list down to closer family and friends.  At this point, our list is about 125 guests.  

The next step was finding a venue and choosing a wedding date.  In order for me to continue on with the rest of the planning I needed a place and a date/time.  The hardest part of this process so far was choosing the best place to have the wedding.  There were pros and cons to consider.  

POSSIBLE WEDDING VENUES

Here are the places that we looked at for our wedding <3 Since Pete and I are having the wedding ceremony at the venue we need to make sure they have a nice place for it to take place.  I only chose to look at 7 places because after awhile the prices are comparable and venues start to all the look the same.  I narrowed it down to these 7 places and attempted to make a decision based on that.  I was lucky enough to have found my venue amongst one of these 7 but had I not, I may have kept looking.  Our wedding day is set: 9/14/14 at one of these lovely venues listed below!

The Clubhouse at Patriot Hills

The Clubhouse at Patriot Hills, Stony Point, NY

The Nyack Seaport
http://www.nyackseaport.com
The Nyack Seaport, Nyack, NY

The Colonial Inn
http://colonialinnnj.com
Colonial Inn, Norwood, NJ

The Estate at Florentine Gardens
www.florentinegardens.com
Estate at Florentine Gardens, River Vale, NJ

Old Tappan Manor
http://www.oldtappanmanor.com
Old Tappan Manor, Old Tappan, NJ

The Tides Estate
http://www.thetides.com
The Tides Estate, North Haledon, NJ


View on the Hudson
The View on the Hudson, Piermont, NY



Sunday, April 28, 2013

Engagement + Our Story

Beyond excited and blessed to be able to share such a wonderful announcement.  A few weeks ago I got engaged to my best friend, Peter.  We are so happy and excited to begin this new chapter in our lives together.  We have been through so much over the years and through all the ups and downs we have continued to make our relationship a priority.  I love him so much and I am ready to see what our future has in store.  

OUR STORY

I met Peter one evening in a restaurant about 7 years ago.  It was June and I was a few weeks into my summer break from college.  I had been working all day taking care of kids.  I was tired, messy and ready to spend my evening at home taking a nap.  My 2 friends invited me to get dinner at one of our favorite casual spots.  Since it was a casual hangout spot I didn't think to change my clothes (or put on more makeup).  I just went looking like a total mess.  

We got to the restaurant and sat down.  As soon as our waiter came to take our order I regretted not changing or fixing myself up.  As soon as I saw him I felt an instant attraction to him and I felt that I liked him right away.  I looked at his name tag, it read 'Peter.'  He immediately smiled and was very outgoing.  He said hello to my girl-friend, Keisha.  They happened to know each other from school.  They small talked for a bit (while I tried not to stare at him) and then he took our order.  From the get go I could tell he was really easy going, friendly and easy to talk to.  I secretly cursed myself for not having changed my clothes, combed my hair and freshened up.  Since when did this restaurant hire cute waiters?!  When he started flirting with Keisha, I figured I didn't have a shot.  So I just admired him while he served our food and refilled my drink.  I never thought anything would ever come from this encounter.  And nothing really did, but it was the first time our paths crossed and the first time we ever met.  
Pete in his waiter uniform.  This is basically exactly what he looked like the day we met.  
It might have been a few days or maybe a week later that I returned to the same restaurant with Keisha and another friend.  It just so happened that Peter was working there again that day and we happened to get seated in his section again.  This time I had come looking a bit more presentable.  Of course he started flirting with Keisha but then he also talked a bit with me as well.  He was so nice and friendly and I really liked him.  Keisha wasn't interested but I sure was.  At the end of our meal he left us a card with a link to his MySpace (this was back in the old days of social networking).  I'm not sure if he left it for Keisha or if he left it for me but I took it and friended him on MySpace.  I didn't think anything would come of this but I figured if anything maybe I could make a buddy to give me free ice cream lol. He messaged me right away that he recognized me from the restaurant and from there we started talking online, then on the phone until he asked me on our first date.  As they always say...the rest is history!
Me & My Love
He is my best friend.  I can tell him anything and share everything with him.  He loves me and accepts me.  I can be myself with him.  I feel safe and secure with him.  He makes me laugh, he helps me with anything I need.  If I have a problem, he is there trying to fix it with me.  He loves me and he loves my family.  He loves my dog too :)  He is a wonderful person and I am so blessed that I met him.


How Pete popped the question!

I have always said that I would never want a public engagement meaning I would never want other people to be present during such an intimate and special moment in your life.  This is just my own preference.  So places like a restaurant, sporting event or holiday parties are not my thing. Pete picked the best spot near our house to ask me to marry him.  When the weather is nice, Pete and I love to go to our favorite little park to have picnics and just relax and enjoy nature.  He took me for a walk to our favorite park and as we stood by our spot he had a guitar player come and start playing Bruno Mars "Marry You" in the background while he asked me.  It was low key, private and sweet.  The best part was that it was in our park at our favorite spot which made it very sentimental and thoughtful.  Of all the places near my house, this spot was the most appropriate I think.  And he did an amazing job picking out the ring!!


My gorgeous engagement ring!  I love the personalized birthstone added underneath! Aquamarine <3
I am just in the early planning stages of our wedding.  I am overwhelmed but also very excited to plan this important day with Pete.  I think I will be blogging alot more in the next few months as I make preparations for everything.  I hope to be able to share my journey.

xoxo,
Michelle G

Friday, February 15, 2013

A Recent Hilight

Happy Valentine's Day! I hope everyone had a wonderful V-day!  I am posting a day late but hopefully everyone is still in the loving spirit.  Anyway, I have been quite the slacker when it comes to posting on this blog and that is simply unacceptable.  I am going to try very hard to blog more regularly.  I have been so busy since starting a new job that I barely had time to post.  I was lucky enough to get out of work early yesterday for V-day and so I took advantage and enjoyed a lovely dinner with my boyfriend.  Before we left, he picked me up and gave me my gift.  My boyfriend usually always gives me jewelry for this occasion so I was surprised when he came into the house with balloons and a Steve Madden retail bag.  I love Steve Madden shoes although I must admit that I do not own many.  Nevertheless, I have been eyeing the Steve Madden Hilight Sneaker for awhile now. 
Hilight in black
They are the sneakers with the hidden wedge in them that resemble an updated hi-top sneaker.  I know originally these sneakers came out awhile ago from Isabel Marant for over $800 but over the past few months many other brands have come out with their own version of this design that are a bit more affordable.  So I was really surprised when I opened the Steve Madden box and see these shoes!  At first I wasn't sure if I would like them on me but once I put them on I was surprised at how comfy they were and how cute they look with a good pair of jeggings!  Plus not to forget, if you are short like me
(5'2 and under) these sneakers elongate your legs and make you look taller and slimmer!  They come in other colors but for me I love to buy things in classic colors like black so that I can wear them with a lot of different outfits.  They function like a bootie but have the look of a sneaker and if you grew up in the 90's you will also love the retro hi-top feel of this sneaker.  I plan on wearing these baby's all through Spring 2013!  

What shoes will you be strutting in this spring?