You may have thought TheKnot.com was the only bridal web site in town, like I did, but you were sorely wrong. 😉  There’s many more out there, and while it’s overwhelming, each of them have unique features that make them worth a stop in your daily Web browsing.  So, here’s the top things I like about Brides.com!

1.)  Community Forums.  I do a lot of social media mining for work, and never realized how many people still use forums as a means of sharing advice and tips.  Not something I’d ever thought I’d find myself doing…until now.  Recently, I’d been debating the bridal makeup issue and what I wanted/did not want.  I took it to the Brides.com forum and got some really great advice!  The forums are easy to read and follow, and it’s my hope that I’ll be able to keep up and answer some questions along the way!  The Knot has forums too, but I find the format too hard to follow..Brides.com is  much easier!  And thanks to everyone who answered my question :).  

2.)  Workout Tips:  Most brides are looking to stay in shape while they are in the engagement stage.  Working out and staying fit has always been a priority of mine, but I’m constantly searching for new workouts and strength routines to try.  Brides.com has a few on their site that are challenging enough to feel great!

3.)  Hairstyle Images:  This is another area I struggle with. I’ve never had my hair professionally done, and I want something that fits my personality.  The gallery of images on Brides.com is a great resource. My only criticism is that once I “clip” the images, it’s hard to find them again!

4.)  Modern Bride:  Ok, so this is not a feature found on the actual site, but worth mentioning none the less!  Modern Bride is the publication that corresponds with Brides.com (one of them, at least!).  I’m not really into wedding magazines, since most of them are just advertisements, but I LOVE Modern Bride for all of the articles and great pull outs it has.  If you are like me and don’t want a lot of magazines sitting around, buy this one!  I promise you’ll actually find something useful in it.

There’s obviously some things I have to criticize about all the sites.  With all of them, the usability is challenging sometimes:  the pages take forever to load, you can’t get back to where you were when browsing through the galleries, the quizzes don’t load properly…all that good stuff.  I also was not a big fan of Brides.com planning checklist from a usability perspective.  It does not load as nicely as TheKnot.com.  Overall, though, another great resource for busy brides!!