{Heart-Centered}

Dear Bride-to-Be: 

“To be ‘on edge,’ you are literally not centered—not being in your spiritual center,” poet Carrie Latet once said. Planning a wedding can be one of the most “on edge” times. With all the commercial hype, canned traditions, and tantalizing nonsense out there, it’s an extra daunting time for the bride and/or the mother of one doing the planning.

What are you doing to stay centered in your heart, grounded in your love during this busy time—a time that’s also very pivotal in deepening your relationship? I’ve often said that when a woman becomes a bride her intuition is heightened, her insights sharpened—IF she stays heart-centered! And there’s the rub. We must be willing to have a still mind—or at least moments devoted to inner and outer quietness and stillness—otherwise we can’t “hear” our intuitive signals, those angelic whisperings and soulful nudges that keep us centered right where we lovingly want to be!

Love. Listen. Let go.

…with love from Cornelia

ps: This is an excerpt from my book, The End of the Fairy-Tale Bride: For Better or Worse, How Princess Diana Rescued the Great White Wedding. Available on Amazon.

[Photo courtesy of Vogue Daily]

{Who's Inside the Dress?}

Dear Bride-to-Be: 

When I had my bridal “art-to-wear” shop years ago, working with thousands of brides, I would ask them: What image do you want to remain in the imagination of your guests? It’s not the vision of a lovely woman in a beautiful gown that really inspires. What remains unforgettable and inspiring is when that image is infused with the beauty of an open heart. Being included in the intimacy of the day is the real gift people take home and feel when they later picture the bride. Perhaps that’s what makes some wedding dresses themselves so memorable: they were chosen with that same open-hearted, soft-focus attention.

In my new book, explaining how Princess Diana influenced the world of weddings and continues to do so today, I share that while the royal wedding was being planned and arrangements organized, much of Diana’s attention—like for many brides before and since—went to the dress.  Diana chose David and Elizabeth Emanuel to design her wedding gown; the husband and wife team known for their “full blown romantic style” and it seems she innately knew how to present herself with the aura of a fairy-tale princess by the choice of such a feminine, silk taffeta confection. Her striking appearance captured the imagination of the world looking in; it not only started fashion trends, but it, immersed in the magical phenomenon of “time spirit,” also changed something fundamental: women’s relationship with themselves as a bride and as a woman.

Whatever guides you in choosing your wedding gown—fashion trends, dreams from girlhood, goddess nudges, looking like a princess—be sure to let your woman’s intuition have free range and that your open heart is involved in every step of the process!

Love. Listen. Let go.

….with love from Cornelia

ps: The End of the Fairy-Tale Bride {Volume One} For Better or Worse, How Princess Diana Rescued the Great White Wedding is now available on Amazon.

{The Wish-Fulfilling Tree & the Princess Bride}

Dear Bride-To-Be:
Did you ever read the book or see the film, The Princess Bride? I thought you'd enjoy a post on my "End of the Fairy-Tale Bride" blog that shares the deeper meanings that this fairy tale presents. Sharing the ancient story of the magical "wish-fulfilling tree," it's a reminder that when we trust the messages of our inner spirit -- our intuitive wisdom -- then our heart's desire comes true. (And it may be different from what your mind imagined!)

When you're a bride, your woman's intuition is highly enhanced -- so use it! It's like having your very own "wish- fulfilling tree. (Take some deep breaths, look within and listen.) Trust your heart's intuitive lead and you'll be able to see beyond any limitations....

Click here to read the charming mythology of The Princess Bride. (Enjoy its reminder to look a little deeper at things, people, situations...there is always more than what meets the eye! And be ready to be enchanted.)

Love. Listen. Let go.
...with love from Cornelia

ps: The End of the Fairy-Tale Bride is also the name of my upcoming book...due for release next spring. Stay tuned for more news!