All about BeeZee's Wedding

The Food

2010-07-30T12:08:00.000-07:00

Our food was AMAZING, as well as our drinks. Which was open bar and we actually even started the open bar before the ceremony which people raved about. We had the former owners of Silver Palate Bistro do our catering. They used to have a restaurant at Great Neck but now they are 100% catering and located on Providence road with the name Chef by Design. They did spectacular. Everything was seamless, plus the food was awesome.Here are some pictures to get your mouth watering. The mini crab cakes were my favorite!

The Cake

2010-07-09T13:08:00.000-07:00

Here is our wedding cake:

Leftover bridesmaid dress fabric was even used for the board holding the cake.

A close up of the cake topper:

The Grooms Cake:

Both:

Click for larger images.

A special thanks to my great aunt Teeny for doing both of these wonderful cakes, and thanks to Beth for making the cake toppers for the grooms cake. I just love my glow in the dark bride & groom Munny's!

The cake turned out so much better than my inspiration cake:

Wedding Party Attire

2010-06-24T13:10:00.000-07:00

The flower girls:

My grandma made their dresses. View previous posts about them here.

They did so good!

Gabrielle:

My Junior bridesmaid, she walked Kathy, my black lab who was also ring bearer down the aisle.

Her dress was opposite the bridesmaids with the same kind of silk. My grandma also made her dress.

Kathy:

Our ring bearer had some flowers and ribbon that had the rings tied to it on a simple dog chain. There aren't any perfect pictures of her but here is a glimpe...and another bit of my dress!

The Bridesmaids:

Ashley was my matron of honor, then in order there is Alyssa, Bekah, and Ashley. My mom made all of their dresses and I think they turned out great! Their jewelry went with it perfectly! These are the only two I could find with just them, where all of them were in it!

The groomsmen:

Greg was Zach's best man, then there is Josh his brother, Shea my brother, and Jarrod. Zach is in these with them. Order in picture below from left to right : Jarros, Greg, Zach, Josh, Shea

And here is almost everyone...

Sorry you will have to wait for my dress!

The Rings

2010-06-21T11:45:00.000-07:00

Our manicured nails look great! We still need to get both of our rings re-sized and I am going to get mine sautered together.

The Bridal Party Gifts

2010-06-19T06:58:00.000-07:00

For the Groomsmen Zach got them all Zippos with their names engraved. But he thought about all of them. Gregs was some special Armor one engraved with Crawford, Josh and Jarrod hand normal ones engraved with Josh, and JT Money (I don't know where Jarrods nickname came from), then Zach got Shea a slim one because "he likes to wear tight pants." Here is Shea with his Zippo.

For the Bridesmaids I got them a matching pearl necklace and earrings. They were freshwater pearls in my wedding colors. I got them from Lauren on Etsy. Go to her shop here. She was great. I told her what I wanted, she even sent me pearl samples before she made them. Plus her prices are good. I was extremely happy with them!

I got the twins these cute little bracelets...

I got Gooby (my cousin Gabrielle, who walked Kathy down the aisle) a simple pearl and crystal necklace..this is the best picture I have, sorry!

I also got Teeny a necklace for making my wonderful cakes, and biggie some cool earrings for doing all the flowers. I really hope everyone liked their gifts! I know Bekah does because I've seen her wearing it since!

The Rehersal

2010-06-18T08:33:00.000-07:00

Well the rehearsal went well. It was pretty painless, the twins were the only ones who were questionable if they would make it down the aisle. However on the wedding day they went down perfectly! I was feeling great, not nervous at all, until we were about to head to the rehearsal dinner. Then I felt awful and ended up getting sick in the car, how embarrassing. I can't even say that it was nerves, maybe I didn't eat enough or drinking wine on an empty stomach was a bad idea. Either way I was pathetic and sick throughout the rehearsal dinner. Total bummer. I have to say better the day before than on the day of the wedding. Has anyone else been sick throughout their rehearsal dinner? However there are still some pictures from it. Janet made her backyard look really nice for the party. I can't comment on the food since I couldn't eat any but I think everyone else enjoyed the night.

The Rehearsal:

Rehearsal dinner:

Then poor pitiful me! HA

The Venue

2010-06-17T13:41:00.000-07:00

I know this has been a long hiatus, but pictures are FINALLY in my hands! For your first taste I will post pictures of our awesome venue. Let me just say the day, and the wedding couldn't have turned out more perfect. Our ceremony and reception was all held at the same place. My Uncle Don, and his wife Liz's house.

The space worked out really well. The caterers moved the table and chairs while we had a cocktail hour up on the deck and around the pool. My mom and Aunt Biggie decorated the arbor and we got the potted plants at McDonald's Garden Center.

Bachelorette Party!

2010-05-17T12:22:00.000-07:00

My bachelorette party was Saturday night, and let me just say... it was a pAArty!

Ashley(cousin) did an awesome job planning, with the help from Liz, Shannon, and Debbie (I think). It was all kept a complete secret from me too. I am shocked no one spilled the beans! The night started off at Pacifica (which is one of my favorite restaurants). It is a small tapas bar at the Oceanfront in Virginia Beach with awesome drinks and food. They have a menu that changes seasonally and usually features locally grown produce. I love it. We all enjoyed some dinner and drinks as well as our first shots of the night (blow jobs). They were some sort of coffee or espresso shot with freshly made whipped cream. For those who don't know a blow job shot is a shot you must take without using hands. This proved difficult since the glasses were both huge and square. I think only about 5 of us managed to take it the right way.

Next a party bus picked us up to take us to our next destination. It was both huge and equipped for dancing.

The first and main surprise was a trip to Kokomo's for ladies night. We had tables reserved upstairs to see the Southern Gentleman. Now I had never seen strippers before and it was certainly an experience. Dianne somehow accidentally won a bid war for the first stripper lap dance, but she went along with it. They all bid on the cowboy for me, which I think was the best guy of the night (at least that we saw). He ended up pulling out a banana and peeling it on top of his crotch then proceeded to cover it with whipped cream and shove it in my mouth. Of course everyone in my party was going crazy and loving it. He also poured chocolate in my mouth and filled a cantaloupe with whipped cream and chocolate then literally "pounded" it to smithereens. So ridiculous. I was covered in whipped cream by the end of it.Sadly we didn't really get any pictures of this because it wasn't allowed, though I think Amie may have snagged a few with a disposable camera. Once we had enough of the male entertainment we got back on the party bus and headed for the Hilton Hotel to go to Catch 31 with the hopes Ashley D's husband who is a bartender there could get us up to the Sky Bar. At this point Jessica finally got to meet up with us too!

We took some Kamikaze shots when we first got there...

Then we got to go up to the sky bar! But were squashed in the elevator!

All in all it was a super fun night. There were some party fouls, some wet clothes, some ripped pants and cut knees, and lots of dancing Here are some more fun shots from the night.

Rehersal Dress and Shoes

2010-05-13T12:04:00.000-07:00

Sunday my mom and I made a trip up to the Williamsburg outlets to check out BCBG for dresses. My mom needed a new dress for the wedding since she decided to shrink and the first one we got no longer fit. I needed a dress for the rehearsal dinner. Luckily we both found dresses there! I love the dress my mom got and wish I could also squeeze into a size 0... maybe if I lost 5 pounds. I won't give away any details though. (Of course I will post pictures from the wedding). Now the dress I am wearing for the rehearsal is super cute. It is gold and surprisingly looks good on me. Since I was on a budget my mom bought the dress (because she loves it and can wear it as well) so I am borrowing it for this occasion and she wants to wear it to a Christmas party. Here it is.

After our successful trip to BCBG we headed back home to Lynnhaven mall to look for shoes, plus I needed to pick up some makeup and nude underwear to wear with my dress. My mom found some cute shoes at Off Broadway for her dress. The hunt for shoes I could wear for the wedding reception was not going as smoothly. Finally as we were about to leave Dillard's I spotted the perfect shoe. First off it matched my rehearsal dress, second I could also wear it for the wedding reception, and third it was actually called Bride! It was meant to be! Now after all that buildup... here it is.

They are so pretty and glamorous in the sunlight too! I am in love with them and I can wear them for more than just the wedding. They did cost me $80 but I think it was totally worth it. I definitely did not have luck finding ballet flats but I think these shoes are better than any ballet flat I could have found. Probably more comfortable too. I apologize for my pathetically old toenail polish in the pictures too.

I can't believe it is only 9 days until the wedding! I can see the date on the 10 day forecast now! So far so good. Though its still unpredictable. As of right now it says low 61 high 80 and mostly sunny! I hope it stays that way.

Zach and his buds leave for their man- bachelor party- weekend getaway. They are going whitewater rafting in West Virginia then driving to Georgia to shoot machine guns...There are 8 of them I believe. I am having Alyssa come spend the weekend with me because I don't want to be in the house alone. Ashley (cousin) was put in charge of my bachelorette party. I have a feeling I have a lot in store for me...I'm sure I will have pictures to post Monday...

Ring Bearer

2010-05-13T10:36:00.000-07:00

I am sure I have mentioned that my 8 1/2 year old Black Lab Kathy is going to be our ring bearer. Isn't she cute?!

Now first we solved the dilemma of how she was getting down the aisle by having my cousin Gooby walk with her.
We still have the way to attach the rings up in the air. With 9 days until the wedding we are really getting down to the wire! Nothing like procrastination!! I saw these pillows which I loved by Anna Whitford ...

We figured we could make a harness/jacket type thing out of leftover bridesmaid fabric and make a mini version of one of these pillows using more leftover fabric and interfacing so that the flower would be stiffer. I am not sure that we are still going to do this. Though I love the idea, we may be able to make something similar. Here is another pillow that my mom found though I don't like it nearly as much...

And here are some other cute pups with simple corsages or flowers around their necks that the rings are also attached to.

I really like how the last one looks like it is on a string of pearls. Very pretty yet simple. So, I am leaning towards my first idea, or the last picture. Opinions? Ideas? Suggestions? Which do you like best?

Ballet Flats

2010-05-06T13:31:00.000-07:00

I have decided that I need flats for the reception. I do not think I can last 6 hours or so on grass in the tall heels I got. Not only will I be sinking into the ground but I will probably be standing for most of the wedding and do not think I will last that long. Plus, I don't want them ending up super grass stained. So the solution: ballet flats.
This way I won't look too short while I am standing at the alter with Zach and in all the posed pictures, and after all thats over I can put on more comfortable shoes.

Now I've only got 16 days to find flats, and I have no idea what I am looking for. I was browsing online and here is what I found. I am thinking I want something simple. and maybe a color, not white? No idea. I will hopefully find something on Sunday when I go shopping with my mom.

Images courtesy Nordstroms, Zappos, Urban Outfitters & Nine West

I already think I want to reject the lacy looking mary janes. They look a little too... little girl? I actually think my favorites are the last four. No idea! The last pair is real cute though I am not sure about that ankle strap. Who knows, when I look at DSW and Off Broadway maybe they will have the perfect pair. Any ideas? Favorites? Suggestions?

Insanity!

2010-05-06T11:14:00.000-07:00

That's kind of how I have felt lately...insane. I am exhausted and overwhelmed. Definitely ready for the next 16 days to fly by! I can't wait for the wedding and to have a nice long break from work and enjoy some time with just Zach in the beautiful country of Ireland!
The past few weeks have been so crazy, with preparing for the wedding, moving, and my art show. I must be crazy to take on all those things at once. The art show is set up and done now, and we are 98% moved out of the old house. I still have a ton of organizing to do still, and around one more load to bring over. It is crazy how the wedding is only a little more than 2 weeks away!

Zach and I got the marriage license yesterday morning, after wasting a good 15 minutes waiting at the wrong clerk's office. We also got a permit for the tent. Good to have that taken care of and not have any crazy neighbors have a way to ruin our wedding! I also tried to get our ABC liquor license but they said I didn't need one since it is at a residence. Hopefully that doesn't come to bite me in the ass later on.

Also we really lucked out with Gooby's dress fabric.We wanted to find a periwinkle silk to match the ribbon/sashes that will be on the bridesmaids. We went to Fabric Hut and low and behold right next to my bridesmaid fabric there is a periwinkle silk that matched the ribbon EXACTLY. I was fully expecting not to find anything. We will make her a sash with the bridesmaid fabric so she will kind of be opposite of the bridesmaids. Kathy's harness and pillow will be made with leftovers from both dresses so she will coordinate too.

We still don't have a final head count but I am thinking it is around 175 right now. Pretty big party! I am praying for beautiful weather because I am a little worried we can't fit everyone under our large 40 x 80 tent. I hope everything will workout and fall into place. I can't spend time stressing over things that are uncontrollable, though it is super hard NOT to do.

18 days to go!

2010-05-04T07:31:00.000-07:00

I don't know how it has crept up on me but this wedding seems so close now! Funny to think that 2 weeks from Saturday Zach and I will be getting hitched! I really don't feel prepared either. I feel like there is so much I have to do still but then I think about it and there really isn't too much left. For some exciting wedding news though....

We have an addition to the bridal party! Gooby will be assisting Kathy down the aisle! Before we were very unsure how to get Kathy (our ring barer) down the aisle. We thought of treats... but we don't want her barreling down the aisle! She does love some food. I don't think drooling would be the best either. So, while she is very behaved, and the best dog ever I think this is the best solution. We are hunting for fabric for Gooby (Gabrielle) 's dress tomorrow, I am hoping we can find a periwinkle silk and accent it with the bridesmaids green silk. If not her dress will probably be made of mostly leftover bridesmaid dress fabric. I am pretty excited about this though and I am sure Gooby is as well!

So for the to do's I still have to accomplish. Let me make a list, which as of late seems to be one of my favorite things to do. But hey, with so much going on you have to stay organized somehow!

Get fabric for Gooby's dress ( Wednesday)
Get fabric for Kathy's harness and pillow that we are making. (Wednesday)
Get more ribbon for Bridesmaids (Wednesday)
Get marriage license ( Wednesday)
Get Liquor License
Get Tent license
Get potted plants for the aisle
Look for Grape Vine?
Call Teeny about making a grooms cake
Get makeup
Give DJ the paperwork for what we want/ don't want played at the wedding
My mom needs to finish Ashley's Dress
Alyssa needs to get fitted for her dress
Get Alcohol
Get thank you cards
Write Thank You notes for Bridal shower gifts
Wrap wedding party gifts
Get gifts for Gooby, Ava and Elle.

I am sure I am forgetting some things, but oh well. That does seem like a lot. Hopefully I can get a good portion of it done tomorrow.

Bridal Shower

2010-04-26T09:37:00.000-07:00

My Bridal Shower was Saturday. Ashley and her mom Jackie and sister Taylor through me an awesome party! It was alot of fun. Plus there was such yummy food and Ashley made a VERY pretty cake! Pasta salad, bruchetta, and chocolate covered strawberries are some of my favorites! I made out like a bandit too! Got plenty of wine glasses and shower curtains! Which you can never have enough wine glasses and the shower curtain I picked is nice fabric so I am going to use the extra as the curtain for the bathroom window and just have it draped to the side. Some other awesome gifts are my mom got me that narrow bathroom cabinet that I wanted from target and Janet got me a Kitchen Aid mixer and a knife set. Really all my gifts were great and I am so glad that so many people could come have fun! Here are some pictures.

So many presents!

me with my boquet of bows...

My Gma, me , my mom

Janet and I

Also here is a picture of Don and Liz's beautiful house which is the wedding location!

Rehersal Dress

2010-04-23T13:17:00.000-07:00

So I am on the fence about whether I am going to make a dress or buy one. I like this butterick pattern alot.

Which says it is easy. I would probably try to add pockets too it. Since I LOVE dresses with pockets. It was the closest pattern to this dress from Ann Taylor that I LOVE. I would probably pick some kind of similar fabric to the Ann Taylor dress for it too, but I think I may just like it two toned rather than all one color.

This one is super similar but longer... and from J. Crew.

Now sometime after the first I think I will go shopping with my mom since her dress has apparently turned into a "sack". I guess she lost weight? I wish I could say the same... So maybe I will look for a dress then and if I can't find anything then I will attempt to make this dress? Though my sewing skills aren't the best... and I have no idea how I would find the time. I do really like this Express dress, however that pale pink doesn't look too good on me. I feel like that color always washes me out.

For whatever reason I have been drawn to these light seaglassy colors. I definately want a springy dress. No black or dark colors. I am sure I will find something!

Wedding Makeup : Update

2010-04-22T12:46:00.000-07:00

I did end up going onto the live chat on MAC 's website. Here is what they suggested with pictures of all the products after.

First off ( I will use my Bare study paint pot first by applying it to my eyelids to help keep the eyeshadow on and keep it from creasing)

Begin by applying Naked Lunch Eyeshadow as a base on your eyes with brush #242. Sweep Sable Eye Shadow through your crease with brush #222, then add Vanilla Eye Shadow to your brow bone using brush # 242. Line your eyes with Teddy Eye Kohl Pencil. Add Coal Black Pro Lash mascara to your lashes. Blush your cheeks using Cubic Blush. Complete this look with Beurre Cremestick, Hug Me Lipstick and Lust Lip Glass. ( Note: I do not want lip gloss so I would ex off the lip gloss).

I mentioned my freckles and she suggested I use Mineralize SPF Foundation/ Loose. " this powder contains minerals for a smooth natural finish and medium buildable coverage. The formula is oil-free and non-acnegenic."

I then asked about fake lashes. She said she always suggests lashes for brides and recommended # 7 Lash, it is slightly spiky and adds subtle volume and enhancement to your lashes (perfect for brides).

She suggested Select Cover-Up which is a liquid concealer for under the eyes, and suggested to use brush #213 to apply it.

So here are the pictures:

Bare study paint pot (already own)

Naked Study Eyeshadow

Sable Eye Shadow

Vanilla Eye Shadow

Brush # 222

Brush # 242

Teddy Eye Kohl Pencil

Pro Lash Mascara Coal Black

Cubic Blush

Beurre Cremestick

Hug Me Lipstick

Lust Lip Glass (won't use)

#7 Lashes

Select Cover-Up

Brush # 213

Now If I actually wanted to purchase all of these things... seeing that the only item I have is the Paint Pot, it would cost me $270.00. YIKES. Now minus the lip glass and its...$256. Still rediculous. If you get rid of the brushes it takes it down to $182.50. That is still a ton of money. Would I have been better off hiring someone to just do my makeup? What would be the right things to cut out of the purchase? At least with the mascara (I have needed a new thing for a while), eyeliner, eye shadows, and lipstick are all things I could re-use since it is a natural look. I dont own any blush or lip products or foundation since they aren't things I wear regularly or...ever. Would I be better off making an appointment to go in that day, have one of the MAC makeup artists do my makeup and simply spend $50 on some MAC makeup products? What would you do? What do you think of the look? I like the shadows and everything, not sure about the blush. I am just so torn on what I should do for this! I definately want to make sure I look good for the wedding and all the pictures though. However I definately dont have $200 or more to spend on Makeup.

Wedding Makeup

2010-04-22T10:38:00.000-07:00

First off. One month left until the big day!!!!!!!

Now like alot of things I am attempting to do myself, makeup is one of them. Well me and one of my bridesmaids Bekah has offered to help.

I am starting to wonder if I should have just hired someone for this, but both Bekah and I are pretty good with makeup so hopefully we can work it out. One of the things that pretty much everything I read says if you are doing your wedding makeup yourself make sure you PRACTICE it several times. So far we have one practice run down.

Now we've already done one thing wrong based on the tutorials I've been watching. We used shimmery eye shadow pretty much everywhere. Apparently it is better to keep the shimmer to a minimum and keep it on your lower lid so that in pictures you don't get a glare on your upper brow. So already I know I need to get some matte shadow. Also we did not try out the fake lashes on this trial run amd I need to invest in some waterproof mascara. I also definately need to figure out a different lip color. I know I want to stick with a lipstick rather than a lipgloss, because I really hate how sticky lipgloss is. I'm sure Zach doesn't want to kiss me with lipgloss either! I know he doesn't want glossy lips!

In my search I found this website which has 101 makeup looks including links to tutorial videos. It is by far the most helpful thing I have come across. I particularly liked number 5. I thought she explianed things really well, plus it was with MAC cosmetics which I love. I am considering going to the MAC website and going on the forum to ask a specialist for ideas. Bekah also suggested I go to her website for Mary Kay and use this virtual makeover to test looks out. So maybe I will do that!

Flower Girl Accessories and then some

2010-04-21T11:48:00.000-07:00

Sunday my Aunt Jooji and her daughter Gooby came over to help my mom and I with some wedding stuff.
We made the little bird seed pouches. They were actually a little more difficult and messier than the M & M's since the birdseed was so small. I will probably regret this decision when I get a mouthful of birdseed. Oh well, its tradition right!? Here is what the finished product looked like:

After we finished that task we decided to make the twin's head wreath's and decorate their flower girl baskets. I did not measure their heads I just made the wreaths a certain size and we can pin them on their head. I am sure they will not wear them any longer than the ceremony and pictures...

I started off by wrapping the barkwire into a circle about three times around.

It was wire so when I had it wrapped around the way wanted it I just wrapped the ends around the wire to secure it. It looks kind of like twisted vines, which I like. Now we decided to add some of these little guys, which we picked up at A.C. Moore a while back. Our intentions were to use some in the bridesmaids hair and where ever else we decided. We didn't even make a dent in them...but we snagged each bunch for $.50, so not too big of a deal if we don't use all of them. I am sure we can find homes for them though.

The ends of these were wire so I just used that to wrap around the bark wire.

At this point it looks like a Roman laurel wreath... so now it is time to add some flowers! We got out our handy glue gun which uses these massive glue sticks!

Then we glued some flowers on in the same style as what we did with the baskets...I'm going to jump to the baskets then I will reveal the finished picture...

For the baskets we decided just to decorate them with flowers based on an idea we saw in a magazine. So we just glued flowers around the lip of the basket.

Gooby had the fun job of plucking all the flowers for us. Having multiple people as an assembly line certainly helps to move things along alot faster.

we ended up adding a few leaves in on the underside beneath the flowers too. Here is our finished product!

It was pretty easy with the exception of a few glue gun burns on our fingers and it didn't take long either. Around three hours for four of us to make 160 pouches of birdseed, the head wreaths and the baskets. We may still add some ribbon to the baskets and the wreaths...but thats super easy.

On another note tomorrow will mark the "One Month Until the Big Day" how crazy is that?!

Don and Liz's house is pretty much done as well. They are moving in this weekend! I havent been there in a few months and can't wait to see how nice it all looks! We are meeting Bill (my tent rental guy) and Joanie (my caterer) at 9am next Wednesday at the house to figure out how exactly we will be laying out the tents and tables and everything. Pretty exciting. Me and my bridesmaids also have our nail appointments set. So the day before the wedding we will be enjoying tasty treats and mimosa's for about four hours while we all get manicures and pedicures. Party at the nail salon!

Hair Change?

2010-04-19T13:30:00.000-07:00

I think I want to change my hairdo.... I just have been thinking about it and there are things I don't like about the hair I had for my trial run. Heres a picture to remind you what it looked like

Now here is more what I think I want...

This first picture is by far my favorite. I like how it looks more casually pulled back, I don't know what that wierd hair loop on the bottom is, I would just have curls, and I still want a few "stray" curls though smaller chunks, and may have to snip a bit of my hair so it isnt SOOOOO long. I think I want to ditch the poof and the asymetricalness. I just want a more casual look, something like what my bridesmaids have but... a little more put together. Thoughts? Do you like this idea better than my test hair?

Wedding Favors: Complete

2010-04-15T13:03:00.000-07:00

Sunday my mom, Ashley and I made the wedding favors. It was a little time consuming but the three of us made 200 in probably 2 hours? Maybe less. We had pre-cut tulle circles. You can find them at Michaels, or any craft store. We actually got ours and the ribbon we used at Norfolk Wholesale Florist. They are well worth their $6 to $10 price tag ( for 80- 100 circles). I can't imagine the nightmare it would be to cut circles out of tulle yourself. We had ordered two 5 pound bags of customized M & M's. They are not the cheapest. Upon receiving them we realized we definately needed more M &M's so we looked at Michaels first since we knew they carried a variety of solid colored M &M's. However their selection was picked over and the M&M's were a little beat up. So we headed over to fresh market where we found the perfect ones.

Ashley is having fun puring the M & M's!

A plethera of M& M's!

Here's some close ups. Note: when ordering customized M & M's you can pick up to three colors. I chose pearlized white, light blue and lavender. So when we went to the store we picked out some brighter, more fun colors. That sea foamy light green, a bright limey green, and that periwinkle color. I really like the mixture of colors and they will go well with the rest of my wedding colors!

The first set was to set up the handy folding table. Which has served us well for our somewhat DIY wedding. We have used it for making the bridesmaid dresses, as well as putting invites together, and getting them ready to mail.

My mom also pulled out her xacto cutting board as well as a rotary cutter. Notice on the one side there is a ruler so we or Ashley(she ended up with ribbon cutting duty) could measure and cut ribbon super fast. She was cutting 12" lengths of both a bright blue and a sage green ribbon. This method worked extremely well.

I was given the job of scooping and gathering. We were using a tablespoon as our scoop and started off using about 1 1/2 scoops and by the end more like 2 scoops. I would say 25- 30 M & M's per favor. after scooping the needed amount onto a tulle circle I would gather it up evenly and hold it out for my mom to get that first starter tie around it ( It was real difficult to do yourself) then I would move to the next one while she made the bow.

Here are some finished favors.

There were 2 layers in this basket.

And we ended up with a good amount leftover!

So we did need more than ordered but number wise didn't need to add so many. However, I am alot happier with having those extra colors added in. We will probably set a nice bowl of these remaining M & M's out for our guests to enjoy at the wedding. We will also set the favors with each place setting.

All in all it was not too bad of a process and if we had more people helping it could have been done alot faster. We plan on using the same method for the birdseed which will be thrown at Zach and I while we make our grand exit. Fingers crossed I don't get a mouthful!

Decorating the Arch

2010-04-12T09:52:00.000-07:00

Yesterday my mom and I put together the Arch we ordered! It was pretty easy but it will need some staples and screwholes covered with wood filler as well as another coat or two of white paint. We decided to look for inspiration on how to decorate the arch. Here is what we found.

I love the balls hanging randomly on the last picture. An added bonus is that we have already gotten foam balls to try and make our own pomanders. I think we have decided to try and use those for the arbor instead of the chairs along the aisle. We will hang them randomly on the arch as well as some bunches of other flowers and fresh cut greenery. I would like to see if we can find some grapevine somewhere as well. Also LOVE the idea of just having some potted plants along the aisle. I think doing that instead of the pomanders will be better especially since we found a better place to use them. I just guess I like things a little more creative and not so much the norm. Plus I think it will go right along with the feel of my wedding since most of the flowers there will be in tighter bunches.

We also saw these which I think are pretty cool, especially if a few hydrangea buds were added.

We also got all the wedding favors put together, but I will do a post devoted to that tomorrow.

Wedding Flowers

2010-04-02T12:27:00.000-07:00

My flowers have been the task I have most dreaded. I don't know a whole lot about arranging flowers and really have no concept of amounts I would need. Every time I tried to figure it out I ended up way too overwhelmed. Picking out the flowers I wanted wasn't too hard of a task, but it definitely took a lot more research than I expected. Sadly, I did not find a miraculous website that was basically a flower encyclopedia with photos of every flower imaginable, and organized by color and size or something. Now this may exist, but I did not come across it. The one site that I ordered some of my flowers from did have a pretty good organization of their flowers and you could search based on color. Fifty Flowers could be a good place to start if you are unsure of what flowers you want to use.

Now to the hard part of figuring out how many flowers we needed. First off I had to figure out where there would be flowers, and then break it down to how many stems of each flower I would need for that particular thing. First up was the tables. My estimate on guests attending is around 175 (though so far we only have 80 or so confirmed via RSVP yes's) so with 8 people per table and adding in a few extra I came up with an estimate of 25 tables. I added a few extra tables since I am not doing assigned seating and I don't want anyone to feel like they are "stuck" with some people because there are no other seats. Now my arrangements planned per table are 3 glass cylinders ( one small single bud size, one medium, and one large) we figured we would need around 3 hydrangeas per table and somewhere around half a dozen of other flowers.

To give you an idea of the look I am aiming for here are some pictures I got my inspiration from:

Next on the list was my hydrangea pomanders that I want to hang on the side of some of the chairs along the aisle. I guessed we would have around 15 and each could be made with around 2 hydrangeas. Not sure if I was correct in this assessment or not..and in actuality we ended up with 18 foam balls not that we have to use them all.

My cake is going to have hydrangeas as well, yes it is a very hydrangea-y wedding. I assumed 5 on this tops. I want them more cascading down the cake so the individual flowers will be removed from the stems.

Then there is the Arbor, which we did buy some fake vines with blue hydrangeas on them from Michael's but I still want to incorporate real flowers in with it. This will be done with leftovers I suppose.

There will also be some flowers on the gift table and other various places as well which will be made with the leftover flowers. I have some big tall glass cylinders. Maybe 20" tall? Which we will probably fill with limes and have flowers on top.

The boutonnieres I figured we would only need 3 hydrangeas total probably.

The Bouquets... Mine will be slightly larger than the bridesmaids. I want it to be light blue hydrangeas ( probably 4 stems) then have both the white and green roses mixed in. While the bridesmaids will have the brighter blue/ periwinkle hydrangeas ( probably 3 stems) and I am not sure if I will add green roses to theirs or not.

Now that I am writing this out I still feel unprepared even after ordering flowers! Which is probably silly, and I will have a lot of people helping out. If we need to we will go buy more flowers from the store. HA!

In actuality this is what I ordered from wedding hydrangea. I did the order of 150 stems and I broke down the colors to be this:

15 Purple & Lavender

50 Dark & Medium Blue
15 Light Blue

15 Fresh Green

50 Periwinkle

The breakdown of the flowers ordered on Fifty Flowers are:

Purple Anemones: 75 (mine will have a black center)
Jade Green Roses: 50

Purple Lisianthus: 100

Amelia creamy white roses: 50

Now anytime I order something online I google "coupon codes for ". With Fifty Flowers I lucked out and found a coupon for 5% off and it saved us $29.00! Always a bonus. All the flowers will be arriving Thursday May 20th so we have time to make arrangements before the Saturday wedding. Hopefully they all get here on time and are pretty and we have enough!

I'm getting married next month!

2010-04-01T11:30:00.000-07:00

Last night I feel like I accomplished a TON!

After work I went to the mall with Bekah, Ashley and Jessica. I found myself some boobies as I like to call them. Really I just ended up purchasing a "NuBra Ultalite" Bra. Which is basically a thin fabric adhesive bra. I didn't want something too paded, and all of the inserts I tried were not good. I was planning on just sewing some into my wedding dress but sadly that didn't work. Why can't anything be simple?! Then we thougth to forgo them alltogether but not having any type bra/support/coverage wasn't working either. Hopefully this solution will workout perfect, but I have yet to try it. Fingers crossed because this option at $32 seems like heaven compared to he higher priced options from $56 to $68. Too much for a bra I will rarely wear if you ask me.

I also purchased some very light fake eyelashes to possibly wear at my wedding. Since it seems to be that either I am doing my own makeup, or I will let Bekah do it. (Probably the latter). I am thinking of a more natural appearance. I do not want to look over done. I don't want a super dark night look, but something between a "day" and a "night look. Maybe have a light pink, neutrals and purples color palate? Purple always seems to look good with my skin tone and greenish grey eyes. I need to have some test runs...

After our shopping Bekah and I went to my mom's where she tried on her dress and sadly it still needs another (small) alteration! Bekah's ribcage and shoulders are just so miniscule! She's near impossible to fit! ha. Fingers crossed it will be perfect after this.

My mom and I then ordered some necessities at Save on crafts:

the barkwire I showed in my previous blog... you can look at it here

floral wire

floral tape

white tulle

floral foam spheres (to attempt to make my pomanders)

An arbor/ Arch

This Arbor is different from the Arbor I wanted before. you can see it here. Originally we were going to get one made to look like the one I found before, but figured that may be too much work. Then we opted to either buy the exact one I saw online (which was somewhere around $500), or look for something else. While we were shopping on save on crafts I decided to see if they have Arbors (which of course they did, they have EVERYTHING). Thats when we found this one, which is real wood and involves some assembly but comes with everything you need. Not to mention it was only $150. So we saved a good chunk of money.

In addition to my great finds at save on crafts we also ordered my wedding favors (personalized M&M's). I posted about them a while ago. You can read more about it here. I did not order exactly what I had picked out then, but it is still pretty similar. ie: the words are the same. (Brittany & Zach, May 22, 2010, and Tie the knot). I decided to just stick with words, no pictures. I also opted to go with paler colors. I picked a light blue, a lavendar, and a pearlized white. Hopefully we get them relatively soon so we can start putting the little favors together. We ordered the 10lb. bulk. I am hoping that it's enough, otherwise we will be buying some plain M&M's to mix in with the personalized ones.

Then last but not least we ordered my flowers!( to be expanded upon in another post).

On a complete side note: I think I am going to start tanning today, as well as I have been trying to work on my posture and not slouch so much. It is soooo hard though and almost painful to sit up straight. Sitting at a computer all day doesn't help much either. Hopefully by the wedding my posture will look a little better and I won't be the slouchy bride.

Progress...

2010-03-31T08:51:00.000-07:00

I know I have been majorly slacking on the wedding updates! For the few of you that read this anyway I apologize. Tomorrow I can officially say " I'm getting married next month!" how crazy is that. It blows my mind how fast the wedding is approaching and although I don't have a ton to do right now I feel like I am sure there are a million things I should be getting done.

I am sure I am not the only bride to be that has wedding nightmares. Mine have started. Usually its a problem with my appearance. Maybe I am self centered who knows. But All the wedding nightmares I have had so far involve : problems with my dress (it's not done, it looks awful, etc.), I've forgotten to do my makeup, I've forgotten to get my hair done. Now I know in real life all of these things are impossible. SOMEONE would be telling me to go to my hair appointment, as if I could forget. So who knows why my dreams have been illogical but they have. My matron of honor has also had dreams about my wedding where we got into a fight, and my grandma was dreaming about problems with my wedding dress, though that is probably because she is the one making it! Does anyone else have some good pre-wedding dream stories?

One new thing is that my friend Alli has agreed to sing a song during the ceremony. I am still in the process of coming up with a list of songs for her to choose from. I wanted her to just go ahead and pick one out but she wanted suggestions.

Also Alyssa's dress is ready for her first fitting this weekend when she gets home, we have measured cousin Ashley so we can get her dress ready, and fingers crossed that Bekah's dress is FINALLY done, after at least 5 fittings. We shall find out tonight when she tries it on again!

If I get the chance tonight I hope to order the flowers, the bridesmaid gifts, the wedding favors, and do some more research on arbors. We are now considering just buying one rather than making it. Also I need to do some research on brown paper colored floral wire. I have no idea if anyone knows what I am talking about, or if it has a specific name, or where to find it... but I need it for my cake as well as the twin's little floral head wreaths I was going to make. BTW I looked at michael's and had no luck, I only saw some on pre-made wreath things. We did however find some vines with blue hydrangeas that we can put on the Arbor.

AHHA! UPDATE: Save on crafts ( a very handy website) has almost anything you may need especially when it comes to DIY weddings, and they even have tutorials. And look what I found!

They called my wire " bark covered natural wire" , which this is even better than what I was thinking of.

My dress is also ready for a third fitting. Pretty exciting!

I am going to do an entirely separate post on my wedding flowers shortly.

First Dress Fitting!

2010-03-19T12:05:00.000-07:00

FINALLY my grandma had my actual wedding dress ready for the first fitting! The top was a little too see through still so we will have to add another layer of fabric. It was definately still a work in progress. the lining wasn't attached to the outside fabric yet, we needed some more tulle, pieces still needed to be made and added, still needed a zipper, etc. But it was so exciting getting to try on a dress that actually looks like a wedding dress! It is going to be so pretty! I would post pictures but I don't want to risk Zach seeing it. The little clues above were almost more than I wanted to reveal.

Don't worry though. There will probably be a whole nice long blog entry about the dress and the process and whole transformation of my design of it, from what it started as, to what it developed into. And yes I promise to include LOADS of pictures.

Other notes Zach and I have been super busy house hunting and I really have been slacking on the wedding planning. I feel like there are things I should be doing because as the date draws ever nearer I am going to be swamped with things to do. ( ONLY 64 DAYS TO GO!) My mom was saying how I needed to make a timeline. With when things need to be done from now up until the date as well as a timeline of the weekend of the wedding ( especially the wedding day). It seems so overwhelming to do that all myself though.

The Bridal shower is set for April 24th which is also the day the RSVP's are due. Which I have only gotten about 40 back so to the other... 90 or so of you, you need to get on that!

The bachelorette party has had little to no planning so far. I guess Ashley is working on getting all the bridesmaids in to help with that. I don't know if it will be dinner then out to some bars or what. I do know we were thinking about getting a Limo so we could pAArty it up without driving!

I think I have figured out where I will order my flowers. the hydrangea's I am still set on ordering from Wedding hydrangea they also have a blog! You can view it here.

I was already thinking about using just hydrangeas in a bright blueish purple ( to coordinate with the bridesmaid sashes) for the groomsmen's boutonnieres. Low and behold their blog had the perfect example! As seen below:

For the rest of the flowers ( bright green roses, ivory/cream/ or white roses, Purple Lisianthus, and Purple Anenome's) I will get from Fifty Flowers which seems to have all the flowers I want to order and for reasonable prices.

Most of what I have read seems to say that the flowers should be ordered 2-3 weeks before the wedding. I don't know if you can order them sooner or if I should just go with that estimate. They will get delivered thursday. Not sure if we should make up all the flowers Friday? I'm thinking doing it all the day of the wedding may be too hectic. Any suggestions? Has anyone else done their own wedding flowers? I still need to read up more on making the bouquets and making the boutonnieres and everything too.

I guess that is enough updating for today!

Cake Topper

2010-03-10T10:31:00.000-08:00

So the first picture is the cake topper I currently have... However Bekah brought up a good idea. I have the Cat DIY Munny (Trikky) already and I was considering getting Raffy the Giraffe. and decorating them like a bride and groom and having them as cake toppers. ( I get the cat because , well I love cats, and Zachs the giraffe because he is so dang tall! haha) I would have to order the giraffe on ebay because I dont think Kidrobot has it anymore. Thoughts? Good idea or bad? Too weird or does it seem to fit Zach and I? If they don't turn out good I do still have my original cake topper... Not sure yet but I am definately considering it!

Dress Fitting

2010-03-08T12:26:00.000-08:00

Hopefully by the end of this week we will have a wedding officiant lined up...

Tonight I am going to try on my dress (well the Mock dress) My grandma has finished the green mockup, so once I try that on and make sure everything is good to go then she will be ready to start with the real fabric! So exciting. I hope that it looks good! Alyssa tells me it is really pretty.

Few little updates

2010-03-04T10:59:00.000-08:00

Well the invites going out ended up with problems! Of course... I was concerned about the weight of them so I took them to work to weigh them and check the postage. They weighed at 44 cents. I thought all was well. However we got around 40 returned some listing they needed an additional 17 cents and others an additional 37 cents. What the heck?! I also found out that some others were delivered anyways and the postman paid for it. While some were delivered and my guests were expected to pay! What the heck! Yet still at least half were delivered with the 44 cent postage completely normal. Sounds totally retarded to me, especially since they all were the same exact thing. So apologies to anyone who was inconvenienced. Hopefully everyone got their invites and they aren't lost in the mail! We did send out all the returns with additional postage so some may still be arriving. I've already gotten a few responses back!

Also plans were adjusted on my dress and the new mock up is WAY better. I am really happy with it and can't wait to try on my real dress rather than some crazy teal tester! hahaha

Another great accomplishment is that I have gotten pretty much all the cyllinders I need! Hurray! So glad I don't have to hunt for any more on my days off.

Not much else new. I am still trying to figure out flowers. I was leaning towards just hydrangeas, white and green roses, and purple ranunculous. But the ranunculous is probing hard to find so I may have to pick another flower ( purple lisianthus or purple anenome would be my next choice... we shall see!)

Sorry my posts are lacking in excitement!

Invites are out!

2010-02-26T12:55:00.000-08:00

The invitations have been mailed! Yesterday to be exact. There are still a handful of people we need to send some to which I am finishing them up after work today. But most local people should probably get their invitations today!

I haven't been updating much, but I guess not too much is going on. I went and picked up some single stem cylinders today at michaels, So I think that I should have enough small ones now. The big fatties are proving hard to come by. I have been to countless thrift stores with no luck. I feel the pressure of time now that there is less than three months until the big day. We may end up needing to order some. Michaels doesn't even have any like what I want.

Ashley B's bridesmaid dress is completely finished. Bekah's.. fingers crossed that it doesn't need any more alterations... has been fixed but we are waiting for her to try it on again. Ashley and Alyssa's need to be started ASAP. Especially after knowing how many adjustments we had to make to Ashley and Bekah's dresses.

My grandma has been working on a mock dress for me to work out any kinks before she starts working with the $33 a yard fabric. I am really starting to worry about how the dress is going to look and hope that my design actually looks good on my body. I kind of feel like cursing myself for not trying on a single wedding dress. What was I thinking!? Usually my ideas turn out good so I am praying this is one of those cases.

On another note, I got Zach's wedding ring!

Pretty crappy cellphone picture but oh well. It is white gold with a satin finish in the middle and polished edges. I spent quite a bit on it so he had better wear it!

I do still need to figure out the whole flower situation. (order the hydrangeas online and go into norfolk florist to order the rest...) That is definately the biggest thing looming over my head, as well as finding a wedding officiant. I still feel a bit like I don't know where to start. Maybe the courthouse? I want a very short and simple ceremony. Not religious. No silly pouring of the sands or unity candles or any of that junk.

Still not sure how the layout of the tent and everything is going to work. Hopefully we can squish everything into Don's yard!

That's pretty much all the new info I have for now.

92 Days!

2010-02-19T08:07:00.000-08:00

I can't believe the wedding is only like 3 months away! Crazy! Which also means Ireland is only three months away!

I am very excited about it all. I really think it is all going to come together and be awesome. I just hope it doesn't rain!

We had the food tasting, Everything was awesome! The mini crab cakes were by far the best. We made a few alterations and did decide to change one thing. We nixed the beef satay in favor of beef tenderloin. I just thought the asiany dish didn't flow with the rest of our predominantly mediterranean cuisine. The other things we changed were small little things like olives with no pits in the salad and no mushrooms on the mediterranean vegetable display. Overall I am extremely happy with the food and it sounds like its going to be displayed pretty cool.

I am looking forward to meeting her and the tent company at Don's on Monday to figure out the layout.

I am also hoping to finish the invitations tonight so they can be mailed out tomorrow!

Few Updates

2010-02-17T06:28:00.001-08:00

Well we have gotten the disposable cameras that will go on all the tables at the reception.

And even bigger news my mom and I went shopping on Sunday and found her Mother of the Bride dress! It is very pretty but I am not allowed to post a photo of it on here because she doesn't want everyone to know what she's wearing! Ha!

I have finally started the process of registering. It is extremely overwhelming. I didn't expect it to be as difficult as it is. Trying to figure out what you want and pick a variety of price points. What is too expensive to add? I did add a kitchen aid mixer, not that I expect to get it, BUT I would really love one. Hahaha! Also how much stuff do I need to add??? Ahhh I just don't know!
So far I am at Williams Sonoma, Bed Bath and Beyond, and Target. Though I have only picked a handful of things out at Target so far. One being this extremely awesome bookshelf that I want but is probably wayyyy to pricey for anyone to get. its like $330. But It is really cool. I love it.

Looks like we are definately going to order the hydrangeas because they won't be in bloom yet locally by the wedding. Which is what I thought.

I also need to get on finding a wedding officiant. As well as finding the remainder of glass cyllenders. If anyone wants to help in the search I need shorter fat ones/ other larger ones and small skinny ones that would hold like one flower. I almost have enough of the medium sized ones. So maybe this weekend will involve some thrift store hunting. As well as maybe getting Zach's ring. We shall see.

We have 87 Invites totally complete. I am still waiting on a few addresses before I print out the final sheet of address labels, then we probably have another 30 minutes or so of assembling invitations and envelopes. Then they will be ready to mail! Hopefully they will be in the mail by Saturday, so expect them early next week. Definately by the end of the week.

My Grandma also said she was going to start my dress Monday, though I haven't heard anything more about it. But that is another exciting step!

Only 94 days to go. Pretty crazy! But I do feel like I have alot done.

Ireland is set

2010-02-09T10:35:00.000-08:00

Zach bought our tickets to Ireland today!

I am so excited! Especially since it is officially set now! We fly out Sunday May 23 at like 7 pm and we fly back Saturday June 5.

We've also already reserved 3 nights at The Westin in Dublin. Pretty excited.

Then we will rent our car ( a BMW 318i) and make our way around the coast staying at little bed & Breakfast's.
Really, I can not express how excited I am about all of this!

Bouquets

2010-02-06T19:08:00.000-08:00

Today Ashley, Bekah, My mom and I managed to assemble all of the invitations. Though we still need to print addresses on all of them.

Tomorrow my mom and I are going hunting for her dress and probably going by my Grandma's to talk about mine...

I've been searching high and low to try and decide exactly what flowers I want. Now is the time I need to start figuring out how many and what all we need to order. Still haven't seen anything like what I want but for my bouquet I am thinking the lighter blue hydrangea, white/ivory roses, chartruse roses, bachelors button and purple lisianthus.(maybe lavendar lisianthus for my bouquet).

(the big purple flower-purple lisianthus)

The Bridesmaids will have the Lisianthus, bachelors buttons, both roses and then the brighter blue, purple, and green hydrangeas.

This is what I am thinking right now. Guess it could still change...

Silver Palate

2010-02-04T11:34:00.000-08:00

I am very happy to say that we are 100% going with Silver Palate for the catering! Here is what the menu looks like so far....

There will also be coffee, iced tea, and sodas etc. The food will be buffett style, go up and get what you want, probably do it by table discretely so there isnt a mad rush to the food. Though I think the salad will be plated and served.

Pretty excited!

So now my biggest things are getting invites out and the flowers, plus my dress. I also still have some more cyllinders to find.

Here is what the Arbor we are having built is going to look like...

This image is vinyl but the one we are building will be wood. It will be pretty! I am happy that things are starting to come together and I do not have AS much to worry about. Though there is still ALOT to do.

Progress?

2010-02-02T10:17:00.000-08:00

Invites are on their way and should arrive by Friday!

Also I should have Silver Palate's quote soon! I am so anxious to see it and I really hope we can work with them. I am ready to get that decision made and a contract signed.

The anxiety is really starting to set in too. I know I still have 4 months and I have gotten a lot of the big things taken care of but I feel like there is still so much left! I think finishing up with invites and getting them mailed out will be a big relief. Hopefully addressing the envelopes won't be too difficult.

I think I will feel alot more comfortable when my dress has been started too. I know it is a really big undertaking for my grandma. It isn't going to be easy. I pray that my design will actually look good on me. Maybe I should have actually tried on some wedding dresses before coming up with an idea in my head. Granted I love what I have designed and I am sure it will look good. But the dress is pretty important to me. So hopefully it will be flattering and we can pull of making it!

I think the fact that the snow last weekend put wedding planning on hold has gotten me into a frenzy of feeling like I am falling behind since most of my spare time has been spent on planning.

Zach and I also need to order our plane tickets for Ireland before the price continues to creep higher. He did get his passport yesterday though so we are set on that!

My mom and I are supposed to look for her dress this weekend. Fingers crossed we find something good!

Invite update

2010-02-01T09:21:00.000-08:00

So I still hadn't heard anything about the invites on Friday and finally got in touch with someone to find out what was going on. Since I thought they would be printed and here by now. Apparently the paper I ordered wasn't in stock and wouldnt be there for another three weeks! Since I obviously need to send the invites out and didn't want to wait they said they would give me another option which is basically the same paper but just has seeds inside so you can plant the invite and grow some flowers! It even comes with instructions. Pretty awesome. Plus I get this more expensive paper for no additional cost! Hopefully they will be mailed out today! They should be. Fingers crossed.

Also still waiting for the Silver Palate quote. I am getting anxious for it. I am ready to make a decision and I really hope their price will work!

Other than that no more developments on the wedding.

DJ'in

2010-01-26T08:33:00.000-08:00

Okay so we got another BIG check off our list! We have secured Rodger from Astro DJ. He is apparently really fun, so hopefully it'll help make the wedding a really fun party! He is also their top and most requested DJ, so I am very happy we got him.

The little girls tried out their dresses and they are soooo cute!

I had a very hard time getting them to sit still for a picture because they were so excited. haha

My mom also finished Ashley B and Bekah's Bridesmaid dresses, they just need to try them on again so we can do the bottom hem.

I think I am getting pretty good prgress so far.

We met with the 3rd caterer Monday (Silver Palate Bistro) I definately like them the best, I just hope we can get it to work with our budget! We shall see. Fingers crossed.

My Hair

2010-01-21T07:30:00.000-08:00

I know alot of you ( really not that many, but most of you who read my blog) are dying to see what my hair is going to look like. So here are the pictures. Though by the wedding I hope my bangs will be longer and will not be so far down my face but pulled back more. I have 4 months, and I figure they will have grown out enough by then. Hopefully I will look better in pictures on my wedding day. ha!

Also, Really liked the caterer I met with last night, and my shoes came in the mail! Thankfully they not only fit but also are comfortable and pretty.

Updates and Flower girl dresses!

2010-01-20T08:16:00.001-08:00

So the catering meeting on Monday went really well, and we have another one tonight. David is also in town tonight so I hope to pick his brain about the wedding and Ireland tonight at dinner...

My Grandma has finished sewing the flower girl dresses. We still haven't gotten the pansy colored ribbon in yet so imagine them with that as a sash.

I love them! I can't wait to see them in them.

We also got the birdcage and the dress form, so we can get started on my dress soon! We dropped it off at my grandma's last night.

Saturday I think we are going to start making the bridesmaid dresses which seem to be pretty simple. here is a picture of the pattern. Just the dress, and they will also have a pansy sash/ ribbon around the waist.

As soon as Ashley sends me her pics of my hair I will post them. Mine came out dark and are hard to see.

Flower Research

2010-01-17T12:28:00.000-08:00

I have been on a hunt for flowers here is a compiled list of flowers I liked/ thought I may be able to use...

Agapanthus (blue, lavender, white)

Ageratum (purple,blue)

Gardinia (white)

Delphinium (blue)

Bachelor's Button (Purple, Blue)

Hydrangea's (of course the main flower, I want to use Green, Blue, and Purple variations)

the picture shown is a blue mophead hydrangea

Anemone (purple)

Parrot Tulip

Gladiolus ( green and purple)

Ranunculous (purple, green) I really like this one

Phlox (purple, blue)

Snowball (green)

Statice (purple)

Lisianthus (purple)

Pincushion (purple)

Roses (miniature? cream or white)

Tweedia (blue)

These are all just ideas, I am still looking. I need to go checkout a flower encyclopedia or something from the library. But there are certainly some I like. I also need to find some more greenery... Obviously I will not be using all these flowers. It is a start though. Hydrangeas will make up the bulk of the flowers.

Progress

2010-01-17T09:23:00.000-08:00

Yesterday Ashley, my mom, Janet and I went to check out Norfolk Florist and see what they had. Sadly they had absolutely nothing. I guess they get in flowers on Mondays so by Sat. there is nothing left. It was a total disappointment. We did get some ribbon there though.

My hair appointment did go well though. My hair is decided! I won't post pictures though just because I don't want Zach to see.

We also did inventory on the glass cylinder collection we've got so far.

Still need some more skinny ones (that would hold like one flower and some shorter wide ones.) Pretty confident we can find what we need. We've got a good start! The ones on the left are the silver hurricane glass ones we got from A.C. Moore.

A post on flowers will hopefully follow later today!

Settled on these shoes.

2010-01-15T10:45:00.000-08:00

As much as I loved the other shoes, it just wasn't practical to spend almost $400 on a pair of shoes you won't really see. Plus my wedding will be outside and it would be horrible if they just ended up destroyed from walking in the grass. So I settled on these....
They are pretty and simple, in Ivory, as well as a high heel so I can be somewhat less of a munchkin next to Zach. Plus with a more reasonable price of $79.99 its a much better deal. We've already ordered them so hopefully they fit and are somewhat comfortable. One more thing done. Yippee.

More Bridal Shoes

2010-01-15T07:53:00.000-08:00

The bridesmaid shoes are found but the search continues for my shoes. I've checked out two new sites which both have a pretty large selection.

Bellissima Bridal Shoes and

My Glass Slipper

I ABSOLUTELY LOVE LOVE LOVE THIS LAST PAIR!!!!!! They are by Hey Lady and I want them. I found them on theknot.com which then led me to Bellissima. Where I discovered they carry a price tag of $360.00. GAH! What a total smack in the face. Now usually I dont like the very sparkly/glitzy (bling) stuff like this but these shoes just go right along with the romantic feel of my wedding.

Here is the wonderful description of these beauties...

"Hand-finished with rhinestone crystals, this fabulously strappy slingback is designed to be fashionable as well as comfortable. Each shoe is crafted with a Poron performance insole, typically seen in running shoes, a "dancer's fit" toe box to eliminate toe overlap, built-in arch support, soft lambskin leather lining and a buffed leather sole. Heel measures 4". This shoe is made of diamond white micro suede and is not dyeable. "

OMG serious torture. Why do I have such good taste? These shoes cost about as much as it has for the fabric and everything for my dress!

On another note, I've got two catering meetings set up so far, one this Monday the 18th and another on Monday the 25. Still waiting to hear from another to try and set up a meeting.

Also my Grandma has completed the flower girl dresses, I have yet to see them, but I here they look absolutely cute!

Now I am going to hunt to see if I can find those shoes on sale somewhere...

Other various ideas I like

2010-01-12T10:36:00.000-08:00

Here are some more things that I found that I like. I definately think we can easily make these. I think it would be nice to have them on the chairs along the aisle for the ceremony.The limes would be really cool to use in some of the glass cyllinders. Especially the super tall ones that need filler.

Saw this cake topper at A.C. Moore. I like it way more than any others I have seen...plus it's Ivory to match everything else.
Thats all for wedding planning now. In the process of getting quotes from several caterers. I am also on the hunt for a wedding officiant and someone to do makeup for the wedding.
Saturday I am getting a trial wedding hair done and we are also heading up to Norfolk Wholesale Florist bright and early to check out flowers.
Things are coming along. The knot tells me that there are only 130 days left until the wedding. Doesn't seem so far away.

More things to check off the list...

2010-01-12T09:59:00.000-08:00

Saturday afternoon/night (by that point it was 5) we went to a stationary place and looked through their invites. I only liked a handfull and they were pretty costly. We were also looking at some print yourself ones at Michaels, but they didn't have enough and i wasn't crazy about them. So we pretty much decided the ones I picked out first online were our best bet.

Sunday morning we ordered the invites. And already got the proofs! They should be printed or printing by January 20!

They added this quote to go on the left hand side. and I totally love it!

So happy to have this done! we also found these really cool Hydrangea Stamps. So we will have to order them for the invites...Not sure which I like best...

One more thing done. Also accomplished on Sunday.. We found bridesmaid shoes!Not only were they (originally $79.00) at Off Broadway for $49.00 plus an additional 30% Off. So they ended up being only $36.00! Great deal.

We also Purchased the larger of the two birdcages for people to put cards in at the wedding.

Other weekend accomplishments...

2010-01-12T09:45:00.001-08:00

After the tuxes were taken care of Janet, my mom and I went to look at what A.C. Moore and Michaels had to offer... we found a few things that we will get as we save up our 40% off coupons. Janet got us a guest book..We also got some christmas baskets from Michaels for $1.39 that we will spray paint white then cover with fabric to replicate this theme that goes with the guest book...
That is our goal... We also found some hurricane glasses that had a silver leaf embellishment I guess you would call it. So they were glass but looked mostly silver with some see through parts. They were in with the christmas clearance items. We got 12 of them so we will incorporate them onto some of the table centerpieces...with a candle inside.
Michaels seems to have the best deal for the votive candles I found some online that would cost around $110.00 but Michaels had some $7.99 for 12 already in the glass holder. with 40% off coupons we could really get them cheap...Probably would only end up costing us around $63 for all that we needed. We also went and got some glass cyllinders at the dollar store.
I feel like we succeeded in making some wedding planning progress this weekend. Though I need to split up all the blog entrys so there isn't one that is a mile long.

Tuxedo Success

2010-01-12T09:07:00.000-08:00

I have a feeling that this past weekend was a look into my future days off. Granted we got a lot done, but my entire weekend was consumed with wedding planning.

First on Saturday Janet and Mike, as well as my mom, Shea and Greg all came over and we headed up to Men's Warehouse. Amazingly we found what we wanted there for a great price. $124.99 for each tux and that includes everything (shoes, tie, vest, cuff links, and even socks!)Plus since we are getting more than 5 tuxes ( we are making my dad and Zach's dad wear tuxes as well, only they will have a black vest and tie.) Zach will get a free suit worth up to $400. Personally I think that is an awesome deal! So that is one more thing checked off the list.

as you can see the men got bored fast and huddled together in the back, before deciding to leave and let us take care of everything ...

Here are our color choices...(the sage is for the groomsmen, and the ivory is for Zach. The pansy ribbon was too difficult to match)

So glad to have this done!

Tuxedos

2010-01-08T10:13:00.000-08:00

Zach and I both have this weekend off... a rare occurance. We are using this to our advantage though. Saturday we shall go hunting for a tux for him and his groomsmen.I think we will look at Men's Warehouse and maybe this place called Affordable Tuxedo and Bridal shop off of S. Military Highway. Hopefully we can find something!Then that will be one more thing checked off of out to-do list. It may be a party going to look at tuxedos. Pretty sure my mom and his will come along with shea and maybe greg too. Hooray! so far I know we want a slimmer fit black tux , two buttons, and zach wants a bowtie, they will probably have vests as well. Zachs colors may be just black and a white that goes with my dress while we are thinking about having the groomsmen's accent color matching the ribbon that will be on the flower girls and bridesmaids. Its called pansy and is kind of a bluish purple.

Also I have called some caterers, two are putting together quotes the other two I called haven't called me back, if they don't then I guess too bad we don't want to use you anyways! I should at least have two by the end of next week.

I also have schedules a preliminary wedding hairdo test with susie on sat the 16th at 2 pm. I wonder if anyone will come with me? Maybe my mom and maid of honor? I would like second opinions... So hopefully we can have that figured out and another thing done.

Sunday of this week me and all of my bridesmaids minus Alyssa are going to go shoe hunting. (for their shoes) hopefully we will have some luck!

Back to wedding planning...

2010-01-05T09:57:00.001-08:00

After a slight wedding planning Hiatus over the holidays I am back in full swing!
My Uncle Joe and Aunt Becky can't make it to the wedding and want me to move the date back so they can come to be mid June ( prob June 12?). I just don't know about this though. So many people have already been told. I almost think we are in too deep to change it now. We haven't ordered or booked anything yet, so technically it COULD be done. I still don't know though. I would LOVE for them to be there but sometimes there isn't anything you can do. Opinions?

There are some serious big things that need to get done now! First up is ordering the invitations. Pretty sure we are going with this design from invite site. It is called white breeze. This ended up not being much more expensive for the hassle of not having to make and print it ourselves. We will address the labels ourselves and have them print the invite and RSVP card. This needs to be ordered in the next week or so...

Next thing on the to do list is trying to figure out what is going on with my dress fabric. We ordered it about a month ago and it still hasn't come in! They are supposed to call my mom today and let her know what is going on but I still haven't heard anything.

Zach and I FINALLY settled on a song for our first dance! Hold On by Michael Buble. YAYYYY!!!!

This Saturday we are headed to look at tuxes for Zach and the groomsmen. I hope we can decide on something then. It would be nice to have something else out of the way.

Ashley and I need to continue our bridesmaid shoe hunt. I still haven't found anything.

Next Wednesday (no not tomorrow) my mom and I are going to Norfolk Wholesale Florist to look at flowers and maybe pick out my flowers or at least get more of a grasp on cost and what we need.

Caterers is probably the biggest thing looming over my head right now. I have comprised a list of 8 caterers so far that I need to call about. One is standing out more than the others so far based on what I saw online. Catering Concepts seems to have what I am looking for and even better it is located at Hilltop. So it is super close to where the wedding will be! Does anyone know anything about them? Do you have any suggestions on caterers in Virginia Beach? Zach and I are looking to have a buffet style dinner. We also would like for them to provide the linens and such. I am sure I will have a separate post once I have called and gotten more info on this.

I still have SO much to do! It is overwhelming. I totally understand why so many people hire wedding planners who do all the dirty work like researching all these different caterers, tent rentals and such. They just get to go to the appointments and pick what they like! I am sure I can do it myself, and it will turn out just the way I want but that doesn't mean it is an easy process.

Also on my to do list soon will be finding a DJ, continuing my search for various glass cyllinders, starting to make all the dresses, calling around for tent rental prices, ordering favors, ordering the disposable cameras ( we are going to put one on every table) , registering for gifts, planning the Bachelorette party, the bridal party(though this will be more something for my matron of honor to do), I am sure there are plenty of things I am still leaving out too!

Also if anyone knows of any bartenders we could possibly hire for the wedding let me know.. I am assuming we will need 2 or 3. I think we are going to buy all the alcohol ourselves.

One thing is for sure about this though, it will be a great party!

Registries

2009-12-21T11:34:00.000-08:00

I have yet to register anywhere. I was debating doing it at all since we do already have a lot of things but I have thought of several things that I could really use for the house and I am sure as I am looking I will come across more things we need. Some necessities are:

-New flatware

-A set of Knives (or maybe I will register for individual knives that will end up making a set?)

-Rubbermaid Tupperware with easy find lids

I could REALLY use those. My Tupperware cabinet is a total wreck (exactly like the one in the commercial)
-I would LOVE to have a kitchen aid mixer but those are really pricey so I won't get my hopes up
- curtains and curtain rod for the dining room ( it is still bare, I don't know if this is too weird of a thing to ask for or not)

-was considering new luggage(at least for me)
-serving dishes

Really overall there isn't a whole lot I would ask for. One of my biggest hopes is for cash that we can hopefully put towards ripping up the carpet and refinishing the hardwood floors underneath. This is a home repair that I REALLY want to do. It is probably my priority. (this is all under the assumption that we do manage to buy the house and get the $8000 tax credit before April.)

Does anyone know if there are things you should and shouldn't ask for? I figured that any sort of home goods qualify. I also feel a little uneasy about putting expensive things on the list. I don't know that there is a whole lot of items I would register for. Also when are you even supposed to do this? Because picking things out at Target or something NOW may not still be around come May when people are purchasing gifts. I guess I need to be reading up on my gift registry etiquette. That or I am reading way too much into it. As of right now I will probably register at Target and Bed Bath and Beyond. Any other suggestions? I like Crate and Barrel and Pottery Barn and such but those places are kind of expensive...

Ireland?

2009-12-21T07:34:00.000-08:00

Zach and I finally may have come up with a compromise for our honeymoon, with the help of travelling guru David!
We are considering going to Ireland and making a road trip around the coast starting and ending in Dublin. I think it would be super fun! We would get to explore, stay in Inns, go to Pubs. Maybe Zach will even get to tour the Guinness brewery! I think it would be super pretty and everything. Only question is what are we going to do about driving on the wrong side of the road!? Do we need a special license for that?? I am pretty excited about this and think it will be awesome. Now we can start the planning. We probably will wait until monday to fly out..I am pretty sure tickets will be cheaper during the week rather than the weekend.

David also suggested a brunch with family Sunday and Zach and I can open our wedding presents then. Sounds like a good idea. David has photographed over 300 weddings so I am pretty confident he knows what works and what doesn't. Still so much planning ahead but at least we have a start now! Hopefully we can experience awesome things like this!

UPDATE: this looks like it will be a definate. His parents are going to help us out a little with the cost. We need to start saving! He is going to turn in his passport application next Tuesday (I've already got mine). I need to start researching which places we will stop at and what inn to stay at. As for driving looks like it won't be a problem we just have to adjust to the right handed steering wheel and their roads. ( Oh boy!) This is certainly going to be an adventure.

Wedding Favors

2009-12-12T10:28:00.001-08:00

I have been looking into different things to do for the wedding favors, I was trying to think of things that everyone would like. I thought of making cookies with some sort of packaging and having like 3 cookies a person. But I am not sure if we would have time to do all of the baking.

I also remembered that you can customize M & M's so thats something to think about!

You can only choose 3 colors, I would probably pick light blue, purple and green. They also can print your picture on them! Which is totally awesome! They offer little bags and boxes to be all ready to go but I think I would just buy it in bulk and package it for guests myself. It would be a cheaper option. The site offers 5 lb. boxes. I have no concept of how much 5 ibs of M&M's is, I would have to look at the store to see how many lbs the biggest bag of M&M's is... So I know how much I would need... then order some little drawstring bags to put them in or something. So there is one idea in addition to the cookie idea.

I wish I had better skills for getting a picture of them. I took a picture of the computer screen with my cellphone. So sorry about the quality... Heres a picture of someone else's already printed...

Right now I am really liking this idea...

Invitations

2009-12-10T10:02:00.000-08:00

It is time to start thinking about invitations!

So far my wedding is turning out to be very DIY and I am trying to be budget savvy.

Its logical of course that I am considering making my own invites as well, but I still have alot more researching to do.

I was considering sending out save the dates, but at this point there is only 5 months until the wedding so I feel like it is pointless... the picture above I made at a site called mypunchbowl. Which worked out great until I realized that I don't really have anyone's email. So I gave up on that and decided I didn't need to do save the dates. The site however was really cool and you can change colors of whatever design you pick. It was very easy to navigate.

I did find this site emmylu through younghouselove's blog which includes wedding invitations where you pay for a pdf file and then can print however many you want. You can change colors of the design for a little extra.. I liked this design the best, and it happened to be the Norfolk one! Although the colors are not right.

I also came across this page which has a list of websites you can go to that offer semi-DIY invites like emmylu. There were lots of good ideas on there. Now I LOVE handmade/interesting paper so I would love to incorporate that somehow into the design of my invitations heres some ideas I found on invitesite (which I found through that previous link)

I think we could easily find some interesting paper at Jerry's to use as the outside layer/ encasing etc. then if we either found/made invites that we could print up ourselves to go inside it could be fairly easy and definately original, and preferably way cheaper than ordering. It is definately something I need to look into very soon!

Name Change

2009-12-10T09:43:00.002-08:00

So, talking to Ashley about this has made me decide to post about it.

Okay so I know for many, many years it has pretty much been tradition for the bride to take the grooms last name. I'm sure many years ago this wasn't a big deal, but now I think it is a complete and total hassle.

Don't get me wrong, I am not going to keep my name, I am going to switch to Johnson, but I dread thinking about the headache that this name change will cause.

All the bills are in my name, my credit card, checking account, drivers License, car insurance, student loans, and even things like emails! I am going to have to call and change so many things! I am not sure if I will change my email which is currently bgegan17, because that just seems like too much of a pain. Then the worst thing of all will be the fact that I need to change my signature! Guess I had better start practicing.

Hairdos

2009-12-10T09:43:00.001-08:00

Okay so first off for the flowers I am leaning more and more towards hydrageas. I love this.

This is what I am thinking for the bridesmaids. Not sure how alyssas hair will work because hers is shorter though...

For my hair I was thinking a messy curly updo. And I've had a really hard time finding a picture of what I am thinking in my head. I really like this first one, but I almost want my curls a little more apparent? Less wavy more curly? I like the pieces coming down in places. I even like the flowers in the hair. I think I will want my bangs pulled back though. Not sure about a veil or if I even want one yet...

Thoughts?

Shoes!!

2009-12-10T09:42:00.002-08:00

Update: just found these...

So on Friday I hung out with my bestie and we went on an excursion for shoes for the bridesmaids and myself and had ABSOLUTELY no luck at dillards, macys, nine west, off broadway, and DSW. We also spent alot of time looking through magazines at hairstyles... but that will be a separate post. Heres some ideas for bridesmaid shoes. Maybe something strappier? Im thinking silver though...

So I've been searching online for shoes that I liked. I was even considering having my shoes be blue. Kind of weird but it was just a thought. So I KNOW that I want pumps, that are considerably high. Probably platform pumps. I need as much height as I can get since my soon to be hubby is 6'6"! I don't want to look like a midget. here are some things that I have found and liked a bit

I think I like the flower ones or the 2 variations with the lace/ embroidery on them the best... I dunno just some ideas..

What is your favorite? Any ideas on what I picked or where to look for good shoes? I've looked online at Zappos and nordstrom.

Flowergirl Dresses

2009-12-10T09:42:00.001-08:00

SO here is a pic of the pattern we are using for Ava and Elle's dresses. We got a cotton fabric that is white with tiny pansy blue roses and a little bit of green leaves on it then we got a sparky white organza that will go overtop of the cotton to give it a dressier look. Then we have pansy (blue/purple) 2 1/4" ribbon for the bow.. The same ribbon will be used on the bridesmaid dresses. I think I will have the twins just wear little white ballet flats with their dresses.

I sort of wish I could blog about my wedding dress but that needs to remain a secret from Zach so I will have to refrain.

Currently I am addressing postcard mailers while waiting for my chinese food to arrive. I am starving so I hope it comes soon!

Cake!

2009-12-10T09:41:00.002-08:00

So I LOVE this cake, It is pretty simple. I want it to be more of a light green instead of the pink and the flowers I was thinking I would like to have more of a blue or perriwinkle than pink. Or maybe even use hydrangeas? We have to ask my aunt Teenie if she wants to do the cake, if she doesn't then I guess I will get a price from Plaza Bakery. I just want it to be traditional wedding cake ( the almond flavor).

As much as I feel like I have picked out and decided on: cake, flowers, dresses, place to have the wedding and reception. There is still ENDLESS amounts of planning to do. And even more decisions to be made on the things I have picked out. I still need to get prices from caterers, dj, tent/ table/ chair rentals, linens, and the list goes on. One step at a time I guess. Its just pretty overwhelming May 22 is only 6 months away and I am sure it is going to creep up fast.

I am pretty sure the absolute BIGGEST challenge ahead is my dress. I am pretty flexible on everything else but what I wear has to be perfect and I've pretty much got my mind set. I know what I want and I know it is going to be hard to make, I just hope we can pull it off! My grandma is really good at sewing and between her, my mom, me and Joni we should be able to do it. It also sucks because I want to talk to Zach about it but can't! I am determined to keep this a secret from him. I have really lucked out because he has basically told me he doesn't care and I can do whatever I want. Which is nice, but sucks because he doesn't really care to hear about anything either. Oh well. I have other people that will listen, ha!

On a complete side note: I wish I wasn't working today. I am totally unmotivated to do any work.

The date is set!

2009-12-10T09:41:00.001-08:00

Saturday, May 22, 2010!!! I am having it at Don and Liz's new house in Linlear (fingers crossed it will be done, though they say it will be finished in February). So now the most important thing I need to do is send out save the dates so that people who are out of town can try and come! SO excited!

Flowers

2009-12-10T09:40:00.002-08:00

So we have also decided to do our own flowers. Not positive on the specific flowers I want yet but I want it to be greens, blues and purples. I kind of want to involve hydrangeas. I love this idea from the magazine with a bunch of simple cylinder glasses of different shapes and sizes. So I suppose me, my mom, my grandma, and Janet will have to start collecting a Hodgepodge of glasses from thrift stores starting now...sadly I did not have access to a scanner so I had to photograph magazine pictures... oh well.

I am sure everyone is sick of hearing about my stupid wedding planning. But this is my blog and I have a lot of fun blogging about this stuff since it is pretty much consuming my life right now. I may even do a few more posts today....

The perfect wedding location???

2009-12-10T09:40:00.001-08:00

So I have been STRUGGLING to find the right place to have my ceremony and reception. At least a place that is also budget friendly. Botanical gardens was my top pick but still not anywhere near cheap. I could forsee the headaches this search was bound to cause.

Luckily today I think I was given a lifesaver. Liz has told me that their new house in Linlear will be done by February and that I could have my wedding there. I still need to call her and make sure that it is okay and discuss everything but that would be PERFECT. I really hope it works out. Their lot is really big and pretty AND on the water. We could easily set up a tent for the reception and have the wedding ceremony closer to the water.

This makes me not only relieved but also more excited. I don't have to worry as much about date either with this free option. I am debating between May 22, June 5, or June 12. All are Saturdays. Not sure yet...

Bridesmaid Dresses

2009-12-10T09:39:00.002-08:00

I Like the center dress but with a shorter hem. Like at the knee. I actually really like the colors on that one but may change it... Not sure yet. Hopefully we can find a similar pattern!

Wedding Planning

2009-12-10T09:39:00.001-08:00

Okay so I haven't even been engaged for a few days and I am already overwhelmed! There is SO much planning involved in a wedding. I guess you don't realize it until you are completely faced with it! So either my blog is going to turn into a wedding planning blog over the next few months or I will make a separate one? HA.
Right now I am faced with the task of finding a venue to hold the ceremony and reception. I have had several suggestions: Cavallier country club (pretty but prob way too expensive), Norfolk botanical gardens (my 1st choice right now I think), resort conference center/ trade winds. I am leaning toward the date of May 22. But obviously that may have to change to accomodate availability at the venue. I would like it to be late May or early June though I know a TON of people get married in June. I really didn't want to have it over the summer because of the heat. SO If I can't get spring then I have to aim for September although then I run into problems with my brother and Alyssa etc. being back at school. So really May or June would be best. But then I've only got 6 months to plan! Ahhh.

We are also planning on making all the dresses: flower girls ( ava and elle, Don's twins) they will be SO cute, maid of honor and bridesmaid dresses ( Ashley B, Alyssa, Bekah, and Ashley S.), as well as my wedding dress. Which will be the biggest challenge. I've found one I LOVE but I don't know how we are going to make it!

So overwhelming! Wish me luck! Though I already have alot of help from my bestie (and maid of honor) Ashley, she got me this AWESOME planning book. And of course my mom, Janet and my grandma will help alot. I am so excited about all of this even if it will be stressful!