Ok, I’m being a total travel dork right now by going preemptively gaga over the new PanAm show on ABC this fall.

Maybe it is because I enjoy most things vintage, but really I think it is because I long for a day when air travel was glam in all classes. Pan American World Airways was one of our country’s first international carriers. It started in the 20s and brought passengers to what was then the hotspot of all hotspots—Havana. Throughout its storied tenure, the carrier became known as the “Ritz-Carlton of airlines” (as coined by the guy who inspired the movie Catch Me If You Can) for its impeccable service and extensive flight routes (and it made quite a few appearances in a number of Bond Films). 

In the 60s, PanAm beat Virgin Airlines to the space race and established a waiting list for intergalactic tourist trips. Gas prices and other pressures ultimately lead to PanAm’s downfall, so it will be exciting to see the glammed-up days when pilots and stewardess were hotties, wore gloves and smiled in the friendly skies.

I love hearing from all you wonderful brides, and this email from BG reader Kristina Marie certainly warmed my heart:

My name is Kristina and I love Bridal Guide and used it sooo much for the planning of our wedding!! We got married in May and I got such a reaction from the hand-painted signs we made that I thought I'd set up a shop on etsy and offer them to brides like myself that love that sweet and charming feel of the signs. I was wondering if it's possible to get them featured? Let me know what you think! Thanks so much!

Well, wonder no more, Kristina, because I love these signs, and I'm sure other brides will, too. And how great is it that this DIY wedding project turned into an online business? Take a look at some of Kristina's goods below, and check out more of her signs on etsy.com/shop/sweetweddingdetails. And let me know what DIY projects you're taking on for your own wedding. I applaud your fabulous creativity and can-do spirit!

E! News has revealed that two of Kim's wedding gowns will be re-created by Vera Wang for her collection with David's Bridal, White by Vera Wang! The dresses will hit stores after February 2012 and are expected to retail for below $1,600. Here at BG, we're huge fans of White by Vera Wang (have you seen the gorgeous bridesmaids dresses?), so we can't wait to see how Kim's gowns, reported to cost $25,000 each, will be re-created for this line.

Check out this behind-the-scenes video from E! News of the photo shoot!

SPOILER ALERT! 

Look away if you don't want to see photos from the upcoming Breaking Dawn film! Still reading? Scroll down for all the juicy deets Twihards can expect to see when the fourth installment in the beloved series hits movie theaters on November 18.

Here, Alice and Rosalie prep Bella for her big day. "Is this really necessary? I'm going to look plain next to him no matter what," said Bella in the novel. "No one will dare to call you plain when I'm through with you," retorts Alice. Bella naps while soon-to-be-sister-in-law Alice masks, buffs, and polishes her from head to toe. 

In a surprising moment of tenderness, Rosalie—who clearly doesn't approve of Bella's decision to marry Edward and become immortal, a choice she never had—creates the bride's intricate, braided updo and places the veil underneath.

Bella is shocked when Edward forces her to look into a mirrored surface at the wedding reception—"her skin was cream and roses, her eyes were huge with excitement and framed with thick lashes." Since this natural beauty's idea of dolling up consists of raking a brush through her hair and throwing on flip-flops and a hoodie, we can't wait to see Alice work her magic in the movie!

Photo courtesy of Erica Ferrone Photography

A new study by home insurance firm LV reveals almost two-thirds of grooms are paying less than a month's salary for their fiancée's engagement ring. In the past, they traditionally saved up to three month's salary towards this purchase. Most of the women surveyed said they expected their husband-to-be to spend a minimum of one month's salary on their sparkler, so there's some discrepancy here.

These photos are just too good not to share! Barbie and Ken finally got hitched. Check out this hilarious (and gorgeous!) photo shoot by BdG Photography that we spotted over on Rock n' Roll Bride.

Bridal prep:

When my lovely editor Stefania (you may know her as The Budget Guru) approached me and asked what has been my number-one worry throughout this wedding process, I had no idea it was going to take me THIS long to articulate what it was. Don’t be fooled, it is not because nothing worried me. Au contraire—everything worries me. I am a worrier by nature. I am that person who wakes up in the middle of the night to write notes to myself like, “Don’t forget to deposit check during your lunch break." I think brides can relate!

So, back to my point. I was wracking my brain, almost about to send Stefania an email saying, “You sure you don’t want me to write a post on what DOESN’T worry me? It’ll be lots shorter…”, when I woke up a couple of hours before dawn one night and wrote myself a note. It read: “#1 worry = not having Mom here with me."

And then I slept like a baby.

My mom and I are as close as they get. She bosses me around like crazy and I pretend to take on everything she says. I was also the only girl in my all-girl’s mission school that could tell her mom when she’d met a boy and had a crush on him. We are tight. Her opinions matter to me and I usually take her suggestions on board.

When real bride Dawn Nicole left a comment on our Facebook wall, telling us that she fully designed and printed every paper product for her wedding, we knew we had to meet this girl and get her story. And boy, we weren’t disappointed—her photos and DIY prowess may just inspire you to ditch your paperie and make your own one-of-a-kind wedding invitations.

Like most great ideas, this one was born because Dawn wanted something out of the ordinary that thousands of other brides haven’t already used. She personalized her invite with nametags, which helped her avoid having to use twice the amount of envelopes, since one set is traditionally addressed to the guest. Dawn is having a garden-style wedding and getting married in a large park, so she wanted to pick a complementary design motif. “We chose a ‘love birds’ theme because it has such a sweet feel. Plus, we plan on planting a ‘unity’ tree during the ceremony and having a ‘wedding tree’ for our guest book. It just fit!”

Kim Kardashian’s walk down the aisle took on black-and-white Old Hollywood glamour with a gorgeous white aisle runner accented by flourishes in black, as well as the famous K & K intertwined monogram logo.

Julie Goldman, president of The Original Runner Company, is the creator of that magical path toward Kim K’s happily-ever-after, and she shares the details on how Kim’s camp came to her to create the Runner of the Century:

“When we were asked by Sacks Productions to make a black-and-white aisle runner for Kim Kardashian’s wedding, we knew this would be a big project. We had done many celebrity weddings before, such as Kevin Jonas, Fergie, and Bethenny Frankel, but we knew this wedding would have the world’s attention. 

“Her runner entailed replicating the couple’s classic KK logo in Swarovski crystals – two times! Then we added a delicate vintage flourish down the sides. We had been told that there would be no other décor for the ceremony aisle, so the runner really had to make a statement. Once we saw the video of the ceremony, we knew we had done our job and added a classic elegance to the luxurious wedding.”