Paloma’s Nest offers custom ring bearer bowls as a stylish and modern alternative to the traditional pillow option.  Individually hand crafted in Austin, Texas by Caroline Colom Vasquez, the ring bearer bowls are Paloma’s Nests’ signature item but are just the tip of the iceberg in her artisan repertoire (I love the dove bowls!).  Her Etsy shop is full of delightful little gems, including the newly introduced silver & gold leaf varieties of the ring bowl.  Customize yours with your names, wedding date or perhaps a meaningful quote.  And the best part – after the wedding it can serve as a beautiful, instant-heirloom bling holder (which, c’mon, is more than you can say for for even the cutest of ring pillows).

Charlotte area brides are scrambling to regroup after Noble Brides of Pineville abruptly closed its doors after 5 years of business.  Several customers report receiving text messages from store owner Scott Noble informing them of the closing but most found out via a sign on the store’s door and a similar message on their website.  Noble advises customers to “request a reversal of charges with your credit/debit card provider and place the order with another local retailer of your particular dress.“  This is the second Charlotte area bridal boutique to close unexpectedly in the last year.  La Bella Sposa left brides in a similar situation last summer.

The Bridal House of Charlotte is generously offering to help brides who’ve been affected by the store closing.

In this economy with even established and well respected stores struggling to pay suppliers, brides are sure to feel anxious about placing their wedding gown order.  Certainly a store owner isn’t going to volunteer that they are on the verge of closing their doors and planning to use your deposit to pay their store rent rather than place your dress order.

So what is a bride to do?

1.  Address your concerns frankly and openly with your bridal consultant.  Force yourself to come down from that “I just found the perfect dress” euphoria and remind yourself that this is a business transaction (and a big one at that).

2.  Confirm the date your dress will be ordered (in writing on your contract).  While it can be common for stores to hold and “batch” orders from a single designer, no order should sit un-submitted for longer than a week or two unless this was discussed and agreed upon.  Follow up this discussion by requesting the contact information for the designer you’ve selected and reach out to them around your order date to confirm that they have in fact received your order and that all is in good standing.

Is this another annoying to-do on your already long to-do list?  Yes.  But in my book, it’s well worth it for the piece of mind that comes with knowing your dress has been ordered and your deposit went where you thought it would.