123 Days to Go: Flower Girls

I have the two cutest flower girls in.  the.  world.  Seriously.  Lucy is my cousin/friend Callee’s sweet baby.  She just turned 1 and when the wedding rolls around, she’ll almost be 1 1/2.  Grace is my friend Krystal’s sweet baby.  She will turn 1 one week after the wedding.  Lucy is already walking (or running!) and I have a feeling Grace will be too come December.  Because of their ages (this applies to any age, really) I have accepted that one or both girls may not be in the mood to be in a wedding.  I’m totally okay with whatever happens.  I just want them there in completely adorable outfits and a picture or two.  Or five.  Or a million.

I found this image early on of three little girls in tutu-like dresses with a bride in the background.  I LOVED the idea and I felt it went with the laid back feel I wanted, versus them in dresses that matched mine.  There’s nothing wrong with matching dresses… I’ve seen plenty a wedding with a cute mini-bride flower girl tossing flowers down the aisle.  It just didn’t fit with my wedding.

(image 417 Bride) 

Grace’s awesome momma Krystal mentioned longer tutus, more like a dress.  I thought that would be really nice for winter, maybe provide a little more coverage.  I know plenty of people are making tutus, so I hit up Etsy for ideas.  (Side note: I had no idea that apparently EVERYONE is making these, putting their own spin on it with colors, added ribbon, etc and selling them for next to nothing… or for waaaaay too much!  Maybe I should get in to the tutu making business.)  I searched ‘black tutu’ and this gem popped up:

 

(image tiarastutus on etsy)

Yes, I noticed this tutu has cat ears and a tail.  No, that isn’t part of my idea.  I love the short pouf!  The all black is something they could wear again (it’s made with an elastic waist band so it can grow with them).  If they wear short little tutus, they’ll definitely need tights…. and I love baby tights.  Specifically polka dot and striped tights.  Enter the magic that is Trumpettes Cheeritights.

 

(image trumpette)

They are polka dot AND stripes in one!  One leg gets dots, the other stripes.  They have these in several colors, but I’m loving black with white or white with black (naturally).  What does every baby girl in the world need?  Glitter shoes.

These baby glitter shoes?  ADORABLE and AFFORDABLE.  These bad boys are available at Target (but they are cheaper elsewhere online) for $12.99.  Martha Stewart Weddings mags had a project a couple of months back showing how to glitter your own baby shoes.  Tiny black flats and a jar of glitter may be even cheaper than the ready-made version, and it’s another DIY project to add to the list. 

The only thing left for the outfit would be a plain short or long sleeve onesie with a big black bow/headband on their sweet little heads.  Because I’m out-of-my-mind lately, I couldn’t bear the thought of e-mailing this to the girl’s moms without first seeing what it may look like put together.  Yay for visual aids!

Polyvore rocks.  I put the outfit together on the right and realized it doesn’t look like a batch of crazy.  But just in case the tights were too much with glitter shoes and a tutu, I located these Gap baby tights in white with black dots.  I think it makes this a little (emphasis on little) less costume-y.  Unless someone protests what I put together, we may have a winner.  We just have to decide on the tights.

 

143 Days to Go: An Evolution of Themes

When selecting a theme/colors for your wedding, you’re instructed to think of your favorite colors, your dream wedding, your daily style, the time of year, time of day you’re getting married, pull inspiration photos… ad nauseum.  I immediately thought of The Perfect Palette blog.  I was already following this blog because her color combos were great inspiration for decor but she creates the inspiration boards for weddings.  I started thinking about wedding colors just in time for the blog to run a special series called “25 Days of Christmas”.  Each day was a special palette geared for the Christmas/winter wedding.    

To answer some of the questions that are posed above, I was originally thinking elegant evening winter wedding with red accents (that’s a mouthful!).  The Perfect Palette delivered with this beauty of an inspiration board:

Love it, right?  Titled ‘Red & Shades of Grey’ I just knew this was the one.  I started envisioning centerpieces of low bowls full of red roses, shiny pewter dresses on my bridesmaids, everyone in red shoes.  At this time, I also thought we were going to book at a hotel with a ballroom of red carpet.  Then I went dress shopping for the first time.  Not only could I not find anything for myself, the bridesmaid dresses in pewter had a very distinct blue tint to them… no bueno.

This led to my thinking that maybe the red and greys weren’t “Christmas” enough.  I also think it was this inspiration board’s use of one of my favorite BHG or Country Living photos (the front porch) that made me think this could be the one.  Aren’t the green dresses beautiful?

This palette’s downfall?  I decided I didn’t want a super Christmas-y wedding and that shade of green dress?  Nearly impossible to locate and only that shade of green would do. 

I went back to the drawing board.  Things I knew?  We had booked a brick walled, high ceiling renovated firehouse for our venue, I still loved grey, I still wanted it to feel wintery, I wanted the pictures to be as timeless and classic as possible and I love all white bouquets.  Oh, and I also wanted a rustic laid back feel despite our city backdrop.  So what about a scheme of whites, greys & silvers?

I ran with it.  And after seeing the kraft brown paper in this wedding featured on With This Ring, I thought I could mix a little brown in for the rustic, homemade touch.

So I trekked over to ColourLovers.com and created this color palette of my very own!  It’s cream/kraft paper/silver/gray/black.

 I plan to kick up this neutral scheme with some brightly colored vintage looking paper goods and accents, like this stack of programs:

And incorporate some rustic woodland accents (same wedding as kraft paper color example above):

With less than 5 months to go, I’m hoping to keep this vision… I don’t really have the time to change it!

(All images credit to source in body except program picture courtesy The Knot)

144 Days to Go: Someone Should Make a List

After my soon to be MIL gave me the family addresses I’d requested (their family was the last of the addresses I needed), I started thinking again about what really needs to be done.  And its A LOT.  A SCARY LOT.  I started thinking and stewing and thinking and stewing and was totally toeing the line of a panic attack.  Luckily, the boy came home and distracted me with tales of his work and Last Comic Standing.  I told him briefly how I was feeling and he said, very calmly, “We just need a list and a plan.”

DUH.  I need a list.

I am an avid list maker.  I make lists for fun.  I’ve made a few lists regarding what needs to be done for the wedding, but it was basically taking the big things from my Knot list and putting it on paper… dress, venue, floral, food, cake.  Then I trashed the list because I had plenty of time* and already have said online list.  The online list also doesn’t help a lot with those planning a DIY heavy shindig… so here it is.

• Order & pay for my dress
• Confirm photog, pay deposit, schedule e-pics
• Decide on cake design
• Contact baker (I know who I want already, she is available) to have tasting, pay deposit
• Make final decision on rentals (if any)
• Book rentals (if any)
• Confirm what comes with food, confirm date also (no deposit required)
• Price & purchase catering related items (baskets, warmers, etc.)
• Confirm bartender (softball bar person)
• Decide what booze to carry
• SUITS!  Need to have boy try on, get guys to reserve, decide on what dads will wear
• RINGS!  Need to try mine on again, make sure it’s what I want and order the boys
• Book rehearsal dinner (mmmmm…. Mexican!!!)
• Book block of hotel rooms for guests
• Book hotel room for us (? may go home for dogs)
• Booze license (?)
• Talk to venue, change times renting (please let this work)
• Book DJ, pay deposit
• DIY list (separate list)

DIY List

• Invitations, all enclosures (map, rsvp, reception?)
• Programs
• Tablecloths and runners
• Centerpieces
• Bouquets
• Bouts
• “Altar” decor
• Menu cards
• Candy bar & bags
• Cutlery wraps
• Escort cards
• Entry decor
• Guest book
• Bridesmaids and bride accessories
• Wall decor

What a good feeling that is!!!  To some, this might look scary but I actually feel really good about it now.  There is something nice about writing it down… there’s a plan now, just in having these things out of my head.  Along with putting this in my sidebar to cross through as I complete it, I’ll probably print it off to carry it with me JUST IN CASE another meltdown creeps up on me!

*There is NEVER plenty of time.  No matter what any one tells you.

All images courtesy the knot.

163 Days To Go: What’s Done

My Knot checklist states I have 152 things to do for the wedding… 30 of which are ‘past due’.  This checklist started back 8 months ago and since then I’ve completed only 37 items.  Some of those things were easy to mark complete, like ‘Hire a calligrapher’.  I’m not getting a calligrapher so hooray!  I’ve accomplished something. 

My mom will tell you I’m a list maker to a fault.  I can’t help myself.  I enjoy the rush of marking something off the list.  Done.  Finished.  Complete.  So I’m not complaining about the list by any means.  I’m worried about the 152 items that need to be done in 5 1/2 months.  To make myself feel better, let’s discuss what I HAVE done.

* Let friends and family know you’re engaged – I changed my facebook status to ‘engaged to…’ in November.  Complete!

* Choose a wedding date – In November, I ran through the months to select a date.  I wanted a spring or fall wedding but spring 2010 was too early.  June, July, and August are not only hot sweaty months (who wants to sweat on their wedding day?) but the boy’s softball season is on full force.  September is the month my cousin got married so it’s out.  October 2010 is when my Aunt is getting married.  I don’t like the month of November so it’s out.  December, January, February, March (now 2011) are cold.  This led me to April 2011.  I mentioned this to my grandma and she said, “Why so far away?  You’re grandma might not make it that long.”  I laughed.  She laughed.  So I backed it up to December and my lucky number.  Ta-da!  Complete!

* Hire a ceremony officiant – Easy.  J has said since we got serious that when we get married, his softball friend Pastor DJ would do the ceremony.  J asked, he said yes!  Complete!

* Find a ceremony/reception venue – We viewed two locations, a hotel and the firehouse.  The hotel was going to be almost $6000 (!!!!!) for the space, appetizers for dinner and limited bar.  Insane.  I also felt the hotel limited how I could decorate… I’m rustic/vintage/whatever and it was going to feel cheap because I knew I couldn’t decorate the way it would need and it wouldn’t feel like ME.  (Or us.  Do I have to say ‘us’ or do we all understand ‘he’ doesn’t really care?)  We saw the firehouse and booked it the next day.  It’s everything I wanted if I was going to have an indoor December wedding.  Complete!

* Select and inform your bridal party – Easy.  I don’t think a step could have been any easier for us BOTH.  We each had 5 people that we couldn’t imagine the day without (besides family, natch).  We asked, they said yes.  Complete!

There are other things marked as complete (florist, bridesmaid dresses, calligrapher) and probably a few more I’m just a couple of minutes of decision-making away from checking off (save-the-dates, order dress, confirm caterer, finish wedding guest list).  Some girls at 163 days to go are just getting started and I’m 37 items in.  Not so bad, I guess!    

(Image via Project Wedding)

Why Here, Why Now?

This blog is simply to track the last six months of our wedding planning. By “our” I totally mean “my”. Let’s see where we are so far…

The boy proposed in May 2009, but concrete plans weren’t in place until November 2009 during our vacation to Vegas. We’ve been together for five years (today!!!) and when we get married we’ll be just short of our 5 1/2 year anniversary. In December/January, we viewed a couple reception locations and decided on a great downtown renovated firehouse. We booked IMMEDIATELY. In January or February, I went dress shopping for the first time and it was… um… terrible. I cried, but not in the way they show on ‘Say Yes to the Dress’. After that catastrophe, I gave up on wedding planning for awhile.

A couple weeks ago, my wedding tracker app said we had 200 days until we were Mr. and Mrs. and it hit me that I should probably get my crap together. Considering we started with over 400 days until the blessed event and I really hadn’t gotten anywhere, the panic set in. I want to use this blog to share things with my family members (hi Mom!) on ideas I have so they can tell me if I’m stoopid or brilliant (God-willing it’s the latter). I want a diary, of sorts, so I can look back and see why I made the decisions I did and remember how I felt each step.

Anyone who follows along, welcome! I’ll try not to get too crazy… MOST of the time.

(Image courtesy 100 Layer Cake)