The Duchess of Cambridge looked stunning at the weekend in a beautiful dress by Jenny Packham.


                                                     


Designer Jenny Packham is known for her beautiful wedding and red carpet creations that are worn by many celebrities. However now we all have a chance to have our own bit of Jenny Packham glamour as she has designed a range for Debenhams called No 1 Jenny Packham.

This red chiffon maxi dress is very similar to the one worn by the Duchess and would be great for bridesmaids. At £135 it's very affordable too.



Check out the whole range of No 1 Jenny Packham at Debenhams for some gorgeous dresses and accessories or the Jenny Packham website for the full Jenny Packham range of bridal wear and accessories.
     

Image Credits: Jenny Packham News and Debenhams

Did you know that Matalan sell a range of bargain clothing for weddings? The men's range includes morning suits from £55 and single breasted lounge suits for just £85.00. They also have coordinating waistcoats and ties and a boys range available in early May. The tie shown below is just £3.00.

                                                     
           
                                                     


                                                     
For little bridesmaids there are pretty dresses from £25.00 and for the guests a great range of shoes, fascinators and hand bags. Check out their website or selected stores now.

French Connection has recently launched a truly gorgeous new range the Premium Collection which is packed full of stunning dresses that would be perfect for stylish bridesmaids or wedding guests and could even provide a second dress for the bride to dance the night away in.

The Pearl Queen strappy dress ticks all of the boxes for the recent art deco revival and would suit a 20s or 30s inspired wedding. Its costs £350 so is one of the more expensive dresses in the range.

                                                      

For those wanting a bit more arm coverage the Pearl Queen is also stunning and priced at £280.00


                                                  

If you fancy some real shimmer, how about the Rocka Sequin dress. It's priced at £295.00 and available in two colours.

                                                       

There are so many dresses to pick from as well as shorts, trousers and jackets so check out the full range here, though a word of warning, with so much lovely stuff your fiance and your credit card may never forgive you, or us if you do!

Are you struggling to find a stylish Bridesmaid's dress that suits all of your Bridesmaids and can be worn again? With adult Bridesmaids it's nice to have a consistent theme or colour but to allow them to express some individuality. Also it's essential to consider that Bridesmaids come in different shapes and sizes and some may not feel comfortable in short, strapless or low cut.




These dresses can be bought in Bristol from the Mews, Clifton. You can also buy a matching bandeau to go underneath for a more modest look, which is great for curvier girls. They even work on pregnant Bridesmaids too thanks to their flowing silk jersey design. They also make ties to match all of the colours for a complete look for the guys too. The Photos below courtesy of Two Birds at the Mews Clifton, show the full length dress with two of the 15 options.

The movie Bridesmaids is out on DVD this week and I would wholeheartedly recommend it as it perfectly captures the way that Weddings can dominate the lives of all involved and not always in a positive way.


                                         

The film had me in tears several times as it follows the plight of Maid of Honour Annie as she is regularly upstaged by her childhood best friend Lillian's new friend Helen who is prettier, richer and appears to be perfect in every way. Meanwhile her life is unravelling following the failure of her dream cake business and a precarious love life.

It's got me thinking about other great Wedding films and here are some of my favourites.

1. Father of the Bride: Hilarious and worth watching to see Steve Martins Father of the Bride, George (Bonks) fall apart as his Daughters Wedding becomes more and more OTT thanks to the wonderfully camp Wedding Planner Franck.

2. Muriels Wedding: Made 15 years ago (where has the time gone?) this is the amazing tale of Abba obsessed Muriel. She is frumpy, overweight and very unpopular with the cool girls but turns herself into beautiful swan Mariel to marry a handsome swimmer who needs a visa.


                                   

3. My Big Fat Greek Wedding: Carrie's nicest Ex Aiden (John Corbett) stars as the very sweet Ian who meets Greek girl Toula and becomes part of the biggest Fattest Greek Wedding ever. Did you know the Greeks invented everything and Windex not only cleans windows but can cure an array of medical inflictions. Fact!

4. The Hangover: More Vegas stag do than Wedding based but laugh out loud hilarious especially if you have ever woken up after a rough night to find you have acquired a screaming baby oh and a tiger and lost your memory, one of your friends and a tooth!

5. The Wedding Singer: Drew Barrymore and Adam Sandler star in this 80s wonder. Worth watching for the 80s music and fashion alone.

Words by Stephanie Allison

Image credits: IMDB and Muriels Wedding Movie Studio Briefing