Featured Fit: Classic Black and White

By Cool J


Last weekend was a special weekend for my husband's side of the family. His mother Arlene was getting (re)married! She had re-connected with a high school friend at her 40th high school reunion in Fargo, ND several years ago, and the two of them had been "courting" for the past few years.

Though perhaps the marriage of two people in their 70's may not be "traditional", the rest of the wedding was very much so. The ceremony was held in a church, with all the normal Lutheran rituals, followed by a formal reception at a hotel reception hall.

Yet the most traditional and "classic" aspect of the wedding was the color scheme that Arlene chose:

BLACK AND WHITE

Black and white is simple, classic, and it works! Here is a montage of pictures demonstrating the classic look.

The men all wore black and white tuxedos.

The bride wore a black lace Monique Lhulillier gown. It was a perfect dress that suited her very well.
Doesn't she look lovely?

Here is a full shot of the dress on Jessica Chastain:

I loved the black lace over white. It was very elegant.

Even the young kids went with black and white attire.

As for the "bridesmaids," Arlene had instructed us to wear black cocktail dresses. She left the details up to each of us. Unfortunately, I didn't get a good picture of the other three bridesmaids (I'm sure there will be plenty once we see the professional photos!) Therefore, I only had one of Shelley giving a reading in her black gown. Isn't she stunning? 

Allowing the four of us to pick our own dress in the same color gave us the ability to demonstrate our individual styles, while still retaining the black and white theme.

As for me, I went with a very simple pleated jersey sheath dress by Tadashi Shoji.

You can find it here:

http://shop.nordstrom.com/S/tadashi-shoji-pleated-jersey-sheath-dress/3195447?origin=category&resultback=8620

I paired it with an old J.Crew necklace and black pumps. Just like the color scheme for the wedding, it was classic and traditional, and for once, I actually think I will be able to wear this bridesmaid dress again!

Fits on the Road: Bismarck, North Dakota

By: Cool J

Hello from Bismarck, North Dakota!

The D-man and I are here for my mother-in-law's wedding. It was a long, uneventful drive, but we did break it up by visiting this handsome fella in Jamestown, ND.

WORLD'S LARGEST BUFFALO!

His name is Dakota Thunder. Isn't he handsome?

We arrived in Bismarck yesterday in time for the rehearsal dinner.

 (Picture from the rehearsal)

This morning we decided to go for an easy jog around the town before I went to the salon for hair/make-up.

Hair and make-up in Bismarck:

Before:  No makeup. No styling of the hair. Yikes!

During:

After:

Okay, so back to the FITS ON THE ROAD part!

We headed out early this morning (around 6:30 am) to beat the heat and explore the area. We're staying at the Radisson, which is a little less than a mile from the state capitol grounds. There were a few other runners on the grounds, but it was mostly deserted.

Below is a picture of the North Dakota State Capitol, commonly thought of as the least interesting capitol building in the nation! 

Even though the actual capitol building was not very impressive, the grounds surrounding the capitol were very green and enjoyable.

(Petrified wood)

We jogged through the grounds and back to our hotel, for an easy 4 mile run.  It was a nice way to get a little bit of a sweat before the busy day ahead of us.

No matter how short the exercise, it still makes me feel so much better to work out while traveling. I know that today we will be eating and drinking more than normal, so I was very happy to still be able to find my "FITS ON THE ROAD" in Bismarck, North Dakota!

*Stay tuned for pictures from the wedding! 

Our bridesmaids dresses are simple black cocktail dresses.