This will be the farewell post at Engagemental. Thanks for reading!!!

I’m so sorry that it’s been forever since I’ve blogged. I’m studying for the NY & NJ Bar Exams and things have gone from manageably tough to just plain hellish!  This will probably be my last post for the month of July, since the test is in 3 or so weeks, and I’m freaking out!

After the bar, for the whole month of August, all I will have to consider is the wedding, so I’ll be back in blogger form, I promise!

In the meantime, here are a few updates:

• We sent out our invitations, which turned out great!  I love the way they look – very classic with a rural look that fits our setting just right.
• We’re going on a French honeymoon!  Whenever I have time off, I dig around online for hotels, sights, and restaurants for us to visit.  Check out the incredible farmhouse in Normandy where we’ll be spending our first few nights after some time in Paris:
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• Finally, I am obsessed with the Schick Quattro for Women!  This is definitely the razor I’ll be using on my underarms the day of the wedding – It’s super safe and cuts really close to the skin. I love it!

This is a great idea…

Wishpot is a user-friendly site where you can create a custom-made registry without sticking to one store.  You can also share neat ideas, design concepts, etc…  All in all, a really cool website!
I’m one of their “Wedding Experts” and you can see a few of the collections I’ve put together by clicking here.

Well, this has got to be the most idiotic concept I’ve seen in a long time:

Topless flip-flops!

Apparently these sandals have some sort of adhesive on the top of them that sticks to the bottom of your foot.

It’s flip-flops without the flipping (or the flopping, for that matter)!

The genius who drummed these beauties up wanted a sandal that wouldn’t leave tan-lines on the tops of people’s feet.

Fellow brides: I know we’re all doing our best to avoid bathing suit lines this summer. I’m all for buying a bandeau top bikini, even if it’s not the most flattering style. BUT THIS IS WHERE I DRAW THE LINE (no pun intended)…

Do you want to look like some sort of dimwit? Get the flip-flop tan and flaunt it with pride on your wedding day.

One day of perfect tootsies is not worth a summer of humiliation.

After catching the Sex and the City Movie this past weekend, I’ve decided that Charlotte wins for best wedding dress look of the show (for her second-time-around style when she married Harry)!

What’s your opinion?

Carrie in Vivienne Westwood haute couture:

Miranda in her lowkey, mature burgundy velvet suit:

Charlotte’s big princess dress from her wedding to Trey:

Charlotte’s delicate, feminine dress from her wedding to Harry (my favorite!):

Too bad we never got to see what a Samantha wedding would look like. I bet it would have looked totally slinky and like none of the ones above.

So, apparently Prince Joachim of Denmark married Marie Cavallier over the weekend, making her officially Her Royal Highness Princess Marie of Denmark, Countess of Monpezat.

The wedding changed her from being French Catholic to Danish Lutheran in the course of a single ceremony. Wow! That’s fast!

Check out these awesome pics – it’s total bride porn.

Nice tiara!

He’s the youngest son, so not much of a chance she’ll be Queen of Denmark, but still looks really cool!!

… I will be blissfully happy!
Apparently at Jenna Bush’s wedding a few weeks ago, the cake started to collapse, so that the top few tiers started tilting. See it in this photo:

I’d love to know other celeb wedding glitches! For some reason it makes it all the more apparent that everyone has wedding stress, even when you have a multi-million dollar affair.

Speaking of celebs, it seems that Ashlee Simpson and Jessica Alba both got quietly married since I graduated from law school and emerged above ground. Can’t wait to see some pics!

The ones from Alba’s wedding may be nonexistent: They went to the Beverly Hills Courthouse at 11.30am on May 19th and wed with no friends or family present.

People has this cover on Ashlee’s wedding (not shocking that Papa Joe sold the photos right away, is it?)

p.s. What’s one thing that Ashlee Simpson and I have in common?

Both of us are going to be married by our dads!

And that is, I hope, the only thing we have in common.

I love, love, love our new electric water kettle. It is so useful. It boils water quickly and with just the turn of a switch. If I had to advise one item that every house should have, it would be an electric kettle. And there are so many cool designs!

The biggest bit of advice with an electric kettle – get one with a lift-off base. It means you don’t have to worry about unplugging the kettle when you fill it up, and it’s safer for pouring the boiling water too.

Here are some of my favorites:

• Breville Ikon Electric Teakettle (1-qt. capacity, $69.95 at Williams-Sonoma) – This is ours. It has a really clean, modern shape and cool spring loaded lid. I love the LED light-up water gauge. When it’s on, it looks like R2D2!

• Kalorik Aqua Glass Electric Kettle ($79.99 at Linens-n-Things) – This one wins for modern sleek design. It would look totally swanky sitting on a kitchen counter. I’m unclear what the size is, or whether that glass base would stand the test of time.

• Cuisinart Electric Teakettle (1.75-qt capacity, $79.95 at Williams-Sonoma). This one has classic, old-fashioned kettle looks with modern electric technology. My one concern here is the handle, which looks awkward for pouring leverage. But the look is one of a kind if you want a real teakettle appearance!

• Capresso Electric Kettle (48 oz capacity, $59.99 at Crate and Barrel) – This clear glass one looks so cool. I can’t decide if it would be fun or drive me slowly crazy to wait and watch the water boil…

I just visited our local Target and there’s a huge new display of outdoor, beach, picnic, and party goods by everyone’s favorite entertainer, Cynthia Rowley. You can find a fair amount of it on the Target website here, but I found lots of stuff that isn’t on the website when I went in person (like fun paper goods and decorative items!). If you have a Target registry, don’t pass these up:

Plastic fruit tumblers are $23.99 for set of 12:

Sailboat pocket tote bag with mini-binoculars makes a cute bridesmaid gift ($16.99):

Rattan 12-piece melamine dinnerware set (just $19.99 and also comes in pink!!):

Madras plaid steel beverage tub could look great at an outdoor reception ($12.99):

But here’s the high-low find of all time.

Tiffany & Co used to have the “Fruits” ceramic bowl and tray pictured below (since discontinued, but relatively pricey I assure you):

Here’s Rowley’s melamine fruit bowl and platter set ($13.99) and fruit tray ($9.99) that give you much the same, summery look for bargain prices!

This colorful, retro-cool stuff is great for an outdoor pre-wedding BBQ, rehearsal dinner, farewell brunch, or even a DIY wedding by the sea.

Love it, love Rowley!

There’s a great article critiquing the waning tendency to RSVP in today’s NY Times Style section.  Check it out here.

From everything I’ve heard from people who’ve been through this before, people apparently will not RSVP to your wedding. This seems totally shocking, but I think this article sheds some light on why it happens.