Some Pleated Poppy Love

If you've never been to The Pleated Poppy, you really need to check it out. Lindsey is incredibly talented and has some really fun things in her shop. Her blog is full of her creative talents and is very inspiring. One of her creations is called the Petal Pusher and it's a simple but pretty fabric flower pin. She sells them in multiple colors and they could be used in a variety of places to add some extra embellishment. For example, I recently used one of her snow white petal pushers as a hair accent during my wedding reception. I wore a long veil during the ceremony and pictures but wanted something to dress up my hair after the veil was off. (Bear in mind the picture was taken after some serious dancing had taken place so my hair is a bit undone.)

I just slid a hairclip through the pin that was already fitted to the back of the flower and then clipped it into the side of my updo. I'm sure the flower started out higher but like I said... dancing and more dancing. This little guy was a fun addition for my hair and cost a lot less than most of the floral hair accessories I had looked at in bridal shops. And now I have this sweet accessory to add to another outfit whenever I want. Definitely check out The Pleated Poppy soon. I'm sure Lindsey will have all sorts of crafty goodness going on for the holidays!

Welcoming Our Guests

One of the main reasons we chose our venue in the first place was because we anticipated a decent number of guests coming from out of town. The club that hosted our ceremony, reception and rehearsal dinner boasts an on-site hotel with reasonable rates and we loved that guests would be within walking distance of all the main events. We put together goodie bags for all the out-of-towners which included snacks, drinks, sunscreen and information about the weekend. I bought simple brown paper bags at Target for about $0.50 a piece and we tied the handles with navy blue & white polka dotted ribbon, our signature accessory. I found little round tags and used those to label each bag for the front desk staff at the hotel.

My sister designed the insert that we added to each bag, which provided guests with a schedule of events, a map and of course a welcome message. The design mimicked the invitation to my bachelorette weekend and was perfect for the contemporary but cute look that I wanted. The hotel provided a map of the grounds and my sister doctored it with additional info and some cute details to make it feel custom-made. I had them printed and folded at Fed-ex which took all of 5 minutes and was totally worth not having to mess around with double-sided printing at home. The map and schedule of events helped save us from answering questions about where people should go and what time they needed to arrive. Plus once they were dropped off at the hotel, the bags were automatically given to guests in our block of rooms. Such an easy way to (sort of) personally greet each guest.

The final product... love it!

Polka Dot Preview

Happy Labor Day! We have enjoyed a very nice weekend with some beach time, some lazy relaxing around the house and hopefully today will mean crossing a few jobs off the to-do list.

With only 26 days until the wedding, the list is still pretty lengthy but day by day we are crossing things off. One of the most recent tasks in front of me was doctoring the shoes that both my bridesmaids and I will wear. Since the girls' dresses fall just below the knee, I wanted shoes that would go beyond basic and have a little personality. I spent many moons searching high and low for the perfect navy blue and white polka dot shoes but to no avail. The shoes that came up on the numerous searches looked like they were made for either a grandma or a stripper with nothing in between. The one beautiful pair that I found were Michael Kors and with a $400 price tag went way past affordability.

Finally one of my brilliantly creative bridesmaids found an article on Martha Stewart Weddings (shocking I know) that suggested using ribbon to add fun accents to standard bridal shoes. We decided to give it a shot and ordered basic peep-toe dyeables from David's Bridal. We opted to have them dyed navy blue to make things easier and this is what arrived a few weeks later.


Not a bad start and certainly these would have been just fine, especially considering they come from a different store and still match the bridesmaid's dresses perfectly. But I have been all about adding little personal touches here and there to our wedding to make it feel like ours. So when I saw the article from the fabulous Martha, I knew it could be just the thing to kick these shoes up a notch. So here's the result after a little creative doctoring by my wonderful bridesmaid...

I love them!! Even up close, you still can't tell that they weren't originally made like this. I'm also very excited that I chose to wear the same shoes as my girls because I would be very jealous if they got to wear these cuties and I didn't. I'm already looking forward to getting some pictures of all of us wearing our matching shoes. The shoes were pretty reasonable to start and to dye them was only an extra $3. The ribbon is $3.99 for 4 yards and covers many shoes. I can't wait to see everyone in their adorable matching shoes. Just a little preview of the upcoming nuptials! Let the countdown continue...

Update: This post has been linked up with the Thrifty Decor Chick's Before & After party. Even though it isn't a room re-do or a home decor item I couldn't resist!

Bachelorette Bonanza

The weekend has finally arrived. Tomorrow three of my girlfriends and I will head to the Pink Palace for my bachelorette celebration and Saturday about ten other gals will join us. I am almost completely in the dark on this one so I'm pretty much ready for anything. My maid of honor/sister and two of my bridesmaids have put a lot of time and energy into planning a fun weekend for me and my friends and I could not be more grateful.

This weekend getaway comes at a prime time when the details of our wedding are starting to become overwhelming. We had one of "those weeks" when you just feel like nothing is coming out the way it was intended. I can't think of a better way to recharge my batteries than to blow off some steam in the desert with my girls! The Fiance is on full dad duty and seems genuinely excited for his daddy-daughter weekend.

The activities that I am aware of include dinner, dancing and time relaxing by the pool. Did I mention it will be 103 out there?! That's actually cooler than I was anticipating. I'm obviously not packed yet but I figure I won't need much besides a bikini and a fun outfit for Saturday night. In my mind I'm already sitting in the pool raft with a magazine and a drink. It's sure to be a fun and memorable weekend for this soon-to-be-mrs!

The Alphabet Game

Yes I have been completely MIA lately because I have a crazy to-do list that keeps getting longer. We are now under 60 days in the wedding countdown and that means that we have a lot of details to manage so that our big day is not a big disaster. I also want things done in advance and in a very organized fashion so that I can enjoy our wedding day. I saw some version of this on a wedding website but I've looked at so many that I honestly can't remember which one it was so I can't link back to the post unfortunately. Here's my version of the Alphabet Game, Wedding Style.

A- Appointments need to be made for manis/pedis and hair for myself and all my bridesmaids.

B- Bridesmaid gifts need to be completed. I can't reveal what these gifts are but they are handmade by yours truly and a bit more time consuming than I imagined (possibly due to procrastination on my part.)

C- Ceremony order has to be decided, including the who goes with who in the processional.

D- Dress is being altered and needs to be picked up in 10 days. Yay!

E- Emotional... that would be me, the bride upon seeing/hearing any wedding related show, music, etc.

F- Flowers are decided on and out of my hands. Luckily I trust our florist so this is the least of my worries.

G- Gifts for parents and groomsmen need to be decided and purchased.

H- Hairstyle has been chosen and needs a trial run whenever I find a hair salon.

I- Invitations to the rehearsal dinner/baptism of Baby need to be ordered or made and sent STAT.

J- Jubilation is what I feel when I think about the fact that we are actually going to be married in less than 2 months!

K- Kiss, as in the first kiss... do we practice? do we just go with the moment?

L- Lingerie for under my gown needs to be purchased.

M- Map of the country club grounds needs to be put together for the welcome bags for out of towners.

N- Nails- will I go falsey for the wedding so that my hands look extra pretty in the pictures??

O- Officiant is going to be wonderful and we're so happy that we already know him so we don't have to worry about whether he will make our ceremony special and meaningful.

P- Payment schedule needs to be mapped out so we know when vendors need final checks.

Q- Quiche... not on the menu. Quail... not on the menu either.

R- Rehearsal order needs to be written and sent to officiant and wedding coordinator at the club. Let's all be on the same page.

S- Shoes are ordered and need to be picked up for modifications to be shown later.

T- Topper for the cake needs to be found if I think that would be cute and kitschy and old school and kind of fun.

U- Uphill... the direction I need to be walking on a regular basis to keep shaping up for the wedding.

V- Vows need to be determined. Traditional? Yes. But what version?

W- Welcome bags need to be designed and necessary items need to be purchased/made.

X- eXactly what was I thinking when I decided to wait until the last minute to finish the rest of the bridesmaid gifts?? I claim temporary insanity.

Y- Yummy dessert or cake needs to be decided on ASAP.

Z- ZZZs... I could use some!

Details, Details

For over a year I've been planning my wedding. Truly the action part of the planning began around September but before that was the part that all girls who dream about weddings wait for with eager anticipation... buying bridal magazines and basically fantasizing about just how fantastic your wedding will actually be. Some girls buy bridal magazines before they are actually engaged because the idea of getting married and having a wedding is so exciting that they can't wait. I admit that I was one of those girls. I used to buy the occasional bridal mag in college BUT once I was actually dating the Fiance, I refused to purchase a single magazine until the ring was on my finger.
photo from marthastewartweddings.com

In the months of browsing, hunting, researching and planning I have definitely learned a few things and I'm not even finished yet. Here are a few nuggets for those who might be planning their own nuptials.

1. Do your research. Check out different options either online, in person or even just by listening to other couples. The first option you find isn't necessarily the wrong one but it will help your mind rest easy if you shop around a little too. I knew that the first gown I tried on was "the one" but I still tried on several others. Seeing the others only confirmed my initial instincts and that's the one that I bought in the end.
2. Ask questions, lots of them, when meeting with vendors and planning different aspects of your wedding. At times it may feel tedious, but it's important to clarify small details that can make a big difference. In almost every picture we saw of our reception venue, the chairs were covered in white and it seemed like a nice touch that dressed up the banquet room. I told the club coordinator that we would most likely want covers at our reception but luckily I asked about extra charges. The basic white chair covers were an additional $6 a piece, which adds up quickly when you assume that obviously each guest will need a chair. Needless to say, we decided we could live without the covers.
3. Double check every contract before you sign. Actually it might be safer to triple check. While most quality wedding vendors pay close attention to detail, remember that while you are only planning one wedding, your vendors are most likely juggling several clients at once. And since they are only human, mistakes can happen. If you thoroughly check every detail of your contracts, you can avoid potential mishaps down the road.
4. Don't be afraid to be unconventional. If you let go of the idea that a wedding has to fit a certain mold, it will be easier to plan a day that will be meaningful to you and your future spouse. Of course there are many elements of tradition that make it a beautiful and special part of any wedding, but sticking to tradition for no reason other than thinking you should takes away from the essence of what a wedding is, an expression of the commitment between two people. If unconventional and nontraditional elements will add more value to your day, then I say go for it.
5. Be prepared to compromise. When you factor in your idea of a dream wedding with that of your fiance, your parents, your fiance's parents and your vendors, it will help if you can be a little flexible... unless you want to be Bridezilla, in which case you should feel free to throw an absolute shit-fit until you get your own way. But for normal gals who don't want to alienate all their loved ones, it will help if you include others' ideas, as long as you aren't sacrificing something that is truly important. Flexibility is also key when you are working within a budget, however big or small. Sometimes the ideas that seem so great in theory are not practical when it comes to cost.

Overall I think that planning a wedding is a lot of fun. I try to keep an eye on the big picture and remember the purpose behind all the details. When it comes right down to it, in ten years I don't want people to remember our wedding because of the great food or the beautiful flowers. While I want the food to be good and the flowers to be pretty, I mostly want people to remember how much fun they had and how happy we were as we celebrated our marriage with our family and friends. I'm much, much more excited about marrying the man of my dreams than I am about the wedding.