The Brides Against Breast Cancer Nationwide Tour of Gowns is coming to Jacksonville! This unique opportunity allows brides-to-be a chance to find the gown of their dreams at a remarkable price, while helping to make wishes and memory-making events come true.

Most gown prices range from $99 to $799, including hundreds of beautiful new name brand and designer gowns valued up to $8,000.  More than half the gowns presented during each event are NEW designer gowns that arrived directly from designers, manufacturers and bridal retailers.

You won’t want to miss it!

Hyatt Regency Jacksonville Riverfront
225 E Coastline Drive, Jacksonville, FL 32202

VIP NIGHT
Friday, July 23: 6 PM – 9 PM
$45 per Bride and guest, $20 each additional guest
In addition to getting first pick of the gowns, enjoy hors d’oeuvres,
a mini-bridal show, and a wedding expert panel discussion
Buy tickets in advance

GENERAL SALE
Saturday, July 24: 10 AM – 8 PM
Sunday, July 25: 10 AM – 6 PM
Free Admission

(this is me, volunteering at the Brides Against Breast Cancer gown sale in Orlando in 2009!)

Last week I had the pleasure of volunteering at the Brides Against Breast Cancer gown sale in Orlando.  It was two days of hard work but also incredibly rewarding.  Here are two shots of me at the VIP event on Thursday, March 12th at the Fairwinds Alumni Center at UCF:

Thanks to Allan Saltman of Allan Jay Images for capturing these memories!  Check out his blog post about the event: http://allansangle.wordpress.com/2009/03/15/brides-against-breast-cancer-vip-party/

An organization on Florida’s First Coast is giving weddings to our most deserving citizens – our Armed Forces, police officers and firefighters.

Thank You Weddings was created by David Hanscom of Y? Entertainment, and will be giving away four weddings during 2009.  Applications are being accepted through December 31st for spring weddings.

The current Thank You Weddings package includes Wedding Coordination, Photography, Videography, Entertainment, Rentals, Linens and Decor valued at $12,000.

Check out this recent interview from First Coast News about Thank You Weddings!

Browse through more than 1,000 name brand and designer wedding gowns while helping men and women who are fighting breast cancer!  The Brides Against Breast Cancer Nationwide Tour of Gowns in coming to Florida in March, and you won’t want to miss this opportunity if you have not already purchased your wedding dress!

Gown sales will be held in Orlando March 14 & 15, and in Tampa March 21 & 22.  More than half of the dresses are brand new, arriving directly from bridal shops, trunk shows and the manufacturers.

Have you already purchased your dream dress?  There are other ways you can get involved:

• Host a Pink Envelope Bridal Shower
• Buy your Kate Aspen wedding favors through Making Memories Foundation
• Donate your wedding gown after you are married

To find out more, visit the Making Memories website at http://www.makingmemories.org.

You spent months searching for the perfect wedding dress, and also quite a bit of money! The wedding day has come and gone, and you looked absolutely perfect in your dress, and now it is a little bit dirty, hanging in your closet, holding lots of wonderful memories. What are you going to do with that fabulous wedding dress? The first thing to do would be to get the wedding dress dry cleaned. Many bridal shops provide a free dry cleaning gift certificate with the purchase of a wedding dress. Also some bridal shops offer a wedding gown preservation process. This process enables a bride to preserve the beauty of her wedding dress for years and years.

Another great idea for your used wedding dress would be to donate the dress to a charity of your choice. One example is the Making Memories Foundation’s Brides Against Breast Cancer. By searching online or maybe even speaking with the bridal shop where you purchased your dress, you will be able to find out lots of information on what to do with your wedding dress after the big day.

If you or someone you know is interesed in donating a wedding gown to Brides Against Breast Cancer, contact heather@firstcoastweddings.com.

“Brides Against Breast Cancer” is the Making Memories Foundation’s top fundraising event across the nation, and the tour will soon be in Florida.

Events will be held in March in Orlando and April in Tampa. Thousands of gowns are available for purchase, and the money raised is used to grant wishes to terminal breast cancer patients. Gown prices range from $89 to $799 and are available in sizes 4 to 24.

While some gowns are donated by brides, over half of the gowns are new and come from manufacturers and bridal shops. Find out more by visiting the Making Memories Foundation website.

If you or someone you know in the Jacksonville area would like to donate your wedding gown for an upcoming sale, please contact Heather Trimboli at heather@firstcoastweddings.com.