Invitations: The guts

Every day after work, I rush into the apartment hoping to find more RSVPs waiting for me. It's like having mini presents to open everyday. Well kind of. It's exciting regardless.

We got 5 RSVPs in one day! This was the third day in a
row that we had them in the mailbox. No stalkers please.

Now that I think everyone has received their invites, I think it's time to share them with the internet. You ready for the reveal? First up, the envelopes. They are kind of plain on the outside, but it's what's on the inside that counts right? I had grand plans to embellish the envelopes but got lazy. Names and addresses were printed on my Epson R1900. The font is Monterey BT.

We didn't print, stamp, or use wrap-around labels for the return address. Instead, we used our handy-dandy address embosser. I was a little bit afraid that if an invitation had to be returned, it would get lost in the mail. But, so far so good.

You ready to tear into the envelope yet? Guests were greeted with a red and white polka dot liner. Want to know a secret? That liner is wrapping paper that I cut up and glued in. Our invitations were strategically placed so that the backside was facing up. I did this for two reasons. 1) The envelopes were kind of thin. I didn't want the embellishments potentially causing a tear. 2) So that the "please recycle" message was received.

Turn the invitation around and you get, personalization. Each invited guest had their name printed on the invite. The embellishment I mentioned above is the baker's twine that I used in lieu of a pocketfold. The goal was to minimize paper and weight of the total invitation package.  

Let's take a closer look at the details, shall we?



 

The names are in Kon Tiki Enchanted. See the faint outline behind the names? That is actually an embossed stamp of the graphic we picked for the wedding. You can kind of see that the twine is flush with the edge of the cardstock in the photo below. A edge paper punch was used to make just enough of a notch to keep the twine in place.

Now for the real guts of the invites: the actual invitation, the information card, and the rsvp card. Sorry for not posting a close up of the invitation card itself. Not much to see after bluring out our names and dates. Our names are in Kon Tiki Enchanted and everything else is in Century Gothic.

More embossed craziness.

The information card. Since most of our guests are from out of state, we chose to make our wedding a weekend affair and invite everyone to all the events. We are hoping that this will give us more time to catch up with folks rather than trying to squeeze it all in the day of. Headers and website are in Kon Tiki enchanted and details are in Century Gothic.

RSVP cards and return envelope. Since it was just coming back to us, I decided not to add embellishments.

The card is folded card. I have never been a fan of traditional rsvp card verbiage for names. I also tend to think that people get confused by M__________. So I changed it. It's pretty straight to the point if you ask me. Let me tell you, printing this card so that the graphics bled to the edge of the paper was a big pain in my backside. I fiddled with my printer settings for a good two hours before it came out right. Let's not count how many test sheets of paper I had to use.

The entire suite together.

Everything you see here was handmade from blank cardstock, with the exception of the envelopes.

Next up, the cost breakdown. I'm curious to see how much it actually cost me us.

50 days.

Bowls

This is one of the BIGGEST/BADDEST rage in the wedding biz: Paloma's Nest ring bowls. They were first introduced in 2007 and have been tugging at the heart strings of brides ever since. Bride's have been using them as ring pillows during the wedding and then reusing them as a place to keep their rings post wedding.

via Palmoa's Nest



They are beautiful, but they aren't "us". Why am I talking about this when I already have my ring pillow? Well, I am kind of a bad fiancé. I do not wear my ring regularly. GASP!

I wear it mostly just in public. Altho, I have been known to run errands and have show up at family functions without it. WOOPSIE! I do a lot of things with my hands. Baking. Cleaning. Dishes. Assembling furniture. Disassembling furniture. Rearranging furniture. You get the picture. When we moved into our place, I was assembling lamps (with my ring on). Let's say, metal and metal is not good. My ring lost. Since then, I am super careful not to have it on. 

When am not wearing it, my ring ends up in all sorts of places. It does have a "home" in my bathroom (yes, we have separate baths). Sometimes, it just doesn't make it there. Other times, it is there and I just have a panick attack because I don't remember placing it there.

Anyways, for the last year or so, I have been trying to come up with cool, but safe things I can use as a ring holder. Here is one (genius) idea from Weddingbee blogger Mrs. Hot Wings:

.

Mrs. Hot Wing's rings reside in a soy sauce dish (via Weddingbee)


Awesome. BUT. I don't like the idea or sound of metal on ceramic. I want something softer than my ring. If I am going to do damage, I want it on the holder, not my ring. At some point in time, I booked marked this find:
 

via The New England Trading Co.

They are mini wooden pinch bowls. You know, the kind normally used for salt, pepper, and other spices? I also found these colorful pinch bowls by Le Creuset:
 

<><>

 

via discount cooking



Who says you can't use them for other things? Since I saw them in person at Sur La Table, snatched them up. The red one is in Jake's office since he loves red. The green one is in the kitchen; I'm on some sort of green kick. The yellow one is in my bathroom matching my yellow and blue duck theme. And the blue one sits on my desk at work. Perfect.

53 days.

Red dress - almost there

We are so, so, so very close to the end with this dress!

I had two fittings in one week. It isn't the norm, but due to circumstances, we had to squeeze in a second one. Why? Well, funny story. On the afternoon of my scheduled fitting, Barbara was with her daughter when someone rear ended her daughter's car. The car was towed to the repair shop WITH the skirt of my dress in the trunk! We continued with my fitting, but only working with the top of the my dress.

I'll be honest. I didn't really know how I felt about it. I was pretty indifferent. We made a couple of key decisions. The piping color. We discussed where the piping would go, but ultimately we needed the skirt for the full picture. We worked out the arm hole sizing. And also the placement of the zipper.

A few days later, I went back. This time I saw the entire thing for the first time. I went up to the top of the stairs of Barbara's apartment like I always did. Turned the corner and walked into her sewing room. That's when I saw it. My dress on the dress form. All I could do was say "oh my god" a few times over.

I.LOVE.IT. Thank goodness the wedding isn't too far away, otherwise it would take a lot of self control not to wear it around the house pre-wedding when I finally get it in my hands.

For this fitting we focused on the fit of the dress and some minor details. A few more adjustments were needed in the bodice to accentuate my waist (aka, give the illusion that I have a waist). I decided to change the fabric on the waistband from the skirt fabric to the silk brocade. There was just barely enough material  left over. AND. We measured me for pockets! POCKETS! Well, it wasn't an exact measurement. Both Barbara and I had completely forgotten that I had requested them in the very beginning/ Good thing she reviewed the contract. Lastly, we dicussed potentially adding a light petticoat to give the skirt just a little bit more oomph. This would also help give me hips, too ;) The petticoat would be an added extra, but at this stage in the game. I just need it to happen.

I get to see it all sewn up and a couple steps away from completion next week!

OK, I suck at keeping secrets, so here is a sneak peak....



I have no idea what we are discussing here.



54 days.

Previously:

Red dress: fabric and buttons

Red dress: muslin fitting #2

Red dress: muslin fitting #1

Milestone: Red dress

Red dress - fabric and buttons

I have been meaning to update ya'll on my Chinese dress. It has been quite some time since the last post (try almost 5 months!)

I was able to bribe a friend who is currently living in NYC to pick up the fabric for the bodice of my dress. Instead of mailing it up to me, her boyfriend, who lives down the street from us, brought it home with him after one of his visits. It took awhile, but I am grateful beyond words. I could have purchased the fabric online, BUT the web prices were higher than in store. Also, I wanted real eyes to scrutinize the fabric in case of any runs, tears, etc.

Barbara was able to find red silk charmeuse that was the perfect shade of red to match the silk brocade. In addition, she picked up some black silk charmeuse and gold polyester fabric that we could potentially use as the piping fabric. Now it was decision time.

Do I want black piping or do I want gold piping? Gold is traditional and looks more upbeat, bright, and cheery. The black is a bit more versatile and elegant. At the same time, I was afraid it might be a touch goth. Aside from the piping, do I want to use the shiny side of the fabric or the matte side of the fabric for the skirt?



Silk brocade with gold trim and silk charmeuse skirt fabric: matte - bottom and shiny - right. (personal photo)



Yay for fabric!! Now for one itty-bitty, tiny-weeny detail that makes the dress: the buttons. Specifically, frog closure buttons. It is one of the most important details on a cheongsam. But as I have learned through this process, is one GIANT pain in the arse.

You see, the buttons are generally handmade to match the dress. It is usually made out of two different colors, the same as the piping (trim) used on the dress. I don't know where I got it in my head that I could just buy them. Hang on to that thought for a minute.

At first, this is the button that Barbara brought to me: 

cord frog closure via Vogue Fabrics

Its alright, but not what I had in mind. This is what I was thinking:

personal crappy cell phone photo

Beautiful right? After an exhaustive search of Boston and the Internet, I was able to find just a couple of potential sources. There are a handful of stores in MA that sell them. The first stop I made was at a fabric store in Chinatown. You would think that I would have some luck. No dice. I even asked them if they could recommend other stores. Also no dice. I called around to local fabric and button shops. They had some, but only of the one's made out of cord (like the photo above).

I hit up the shop that I had originally scratched off my list. I knew they could custom make them. The shop owner informed me that indeed they could make them. But it would cost me. I was quoted $20 per button. I kept this as option in the back of my mind. I really didn't want to shell out $40 just for 2 buttons.

I had found a source for premade buttons from Hong Kong. I wasn't completely sure that the color matching would work out in my favor, but I took a gamble and ordered them anyways. I lost, but only $12. For $12, I received half a dozen buttons in red/gold shipped from overseas. Unfortunately, the red was too orangy and the gold was too metallic.

Next, I tried ordering buttons from the shop that I had previously purchased the fabric from. This would be the second time I tried ordering buttons from them. Like the first order, they called/emailed to tell me that my order could not be fulfilled. Their website apparently was not up to date. This was beyond frustrating.

I could have continued to try ordering buttons online and hope that the color would match or that items would be in stock. But decided to just have the local shop do it, since I could supply the fabric and ensure that it matched my dress. Yeah...this idea totally backfired on me. I went back to the shop, who then changed the pricing on me. They apparently when you supply the fabric and pick a color that they do not agree with, they raise the price to $25 per button. $25! HOW ABSURD!?!?!?!

I won't recount the fiasco, but this run-in made me want to curl up into a ball and cry. I contemplated having my grandma make me buttons. I contemplated sending out a swatch of the fabric to my uncle who lives in Hong Kong to see if he could have someone in the fabric district in HK made them for me. In the end, I decided that it wasn't worth any more of my time and effort. No one but me or a member of my family would miss them.

Drama over!

Up next, I get to see my dress!

55 days.

Previously:

Red dress: muslin fitting #2

Red dress: muslin fitting #1

Milestone: Red dress

Western traditions - nixed

Weddings, whether Western or Chinese, can be very cookie cutter. Jake and I are a strange compilation of modern with a touch of tradition. When it comes to our wedding, there are just some things that we are completely doing away with.

via life.health.wellness.

Nay to being married in the bride's hometown.

This is an outdated tradition. I think it stems from the fact that the brides parents used to pay for the shindig and she was leaving her parents home. It probably would have been a helluva lot cheaper if we were doing this in Oregon. Most of my friends would get to visit their families in traveling for the wedding and save money by staying with them. BUUUUT it probably would have been a GIANT pain in the butt to try and plan a wedding 3,000 miles away. And most importantly, there is no way Grandma can make that flight.

Nay to "Something old, something new. Something borrowed, something blue. And a silver sixpence in her shoe."

I am far too lazy to type out what each item is supposed to symbolize, but basically each is supposed to bring the bride luck. Almost everything I will be wearing will be new. I am still deciding on jewelry, so there maybe something old there. But it does not matter to me at all. I am all about the overall look, not fulfilling poems.

Nay to the father-daughter dance.

I can hear you gasping. Look, my dad does not dance. I do. He does not want to stress out about learning. I do not want him to stress out. AND I have always been a super independent kid. You are just going to have to get over the fact that there will be no emotional father-daughter moment on the dance floor. Silver lining; you get the 3 minutes to dance to an extra song at the end of the night.

Nay to cake cutting/feeding.

I am sure that there is a purpose and symbolism that goes with this tradition. I am a big girl and I do not need help eating cake. I can feed myself just fine. In the words of Jake, I am kind of a piggy when it comes to food. I would probably just end up eating his bite. I also do not like sharing my food with Jake? Or anyone for that matter. One last thing, we ain't serving cake. GASP!!!!

Nay to the bouquet toss.

Ugh, I hate this more than anything at weddings. Please put a giant bulls eye on me that screams "SINGLE". I went to a wedding once. I think there were only 3 single girls, maybe 2. I was one of them. I got up and went to the bathroom just before the bouquet toss started. Apparently, they had the DJ call out for me. OOPS, missed the whole thing (THANK GOD).

Nay to the garter toss.

One word: Embarrassing! Not to mention, we only have a handful of single guys on our guestlist. There are a few more but I am not counting them as they are in long term committed relationships. It is just a matter of time before they join the club.

Nay to the sweetheart table.

this isn't really a tradition, but I thought I would throw it into the mix. We have a lifetime to dine alone. I am too cheap to rent an extra table and pay for the linens that must go on it. We will be surrounded by family and friends. Neither one of us wants to be separated from any of them. Instead of a sweetheart table or a king's table, we will be seated with our immediate family. I think it is a nice touch, the two families joining together, dine together. Our wedding party members will be seated with their significant others and spread out with their respective friends.

Did you decided against "traditional" elements?

56 days.

Dressing the Women Folk: Flower girl

via igoyougo



via myhautewedding, photo by Cameron Ingalls.



via Style Me Pretty, photo by Erin Hearts Court

Tell me that your heart did not just melt into a giant puddle of goo. I cannot get over how freaken adorable these little flower girls are in their tutus!

I forget how this idea first crossed my mind, but I have to admit that I let it escape. Around Easter, I started looking at Easter and First Communion dresses for our flower girl. I had read somewhere that you can score a cute dress on clearance after the holiday passes. Unfortunately, we could not find anything that a) was what we were looking for, b) in her size, or c) at the right price point.

While perusing photos of our flower girl on Facebook, I learned that she had started ballet classes. After some research, I found that getting her a tutu was very, VERY reasonable (try under $20). BINGO! After checking with her mom, to make sure that she would love it. I contacted Etsy seller TutuRocks and got the tutu train going (haha, I made a funny).

Here is our tutu:

via TutuRocks

I cannot wait for M to wear it!

P.S. I confess that I thought about making it myself for a split second. Purchasing was by far one of the best decisions I have made this whole process.

57 days.

2 months

58 days just does not seem like enough time. Then again, I sat on the sofa and watched TV all day Sunday. What? I deserve a break now and then. Don't judge =P

Let's revisit the wedding timeline checklist thingamajigy I have kind of been following:

4 Months before the wedding

 - Book your florist - Well, she has not officially been booked, but we have been working with a florist. Nothing has been set in stone, mostly because Jake and I have completely different tastes when it comes to floral arrangements. We have been around the world in term of designs. Hopefully we will peg something down real SOON.
 - Shop for your wedding bands - DONE. I finally have them in my grubby hands. I owe you guys photos. 
 - Visit your physician. Get your physical examinations and blood tests if required to obtain a marriage license in your state. - Yea, I do not think this applies.

3 Months before the wedding
 - Send out your invitations - DONE! I think most people have received them. We have heard from folks in MA, CO, CA, TX, and WA. Strange that we have not heard a peep out of folks in OR and CT. Oh, we got our first RSVP yesterday!
 - Select tuxedos - Done and done. We (I) decided to go with suits. The groomsman suits are all in and half delivered. Jake finally purchased his suit over the weekend and will be headed into the store today to meet with the tailor.
 - Arrange for rental of items needed for your ceremony and reception - Leaving this in the hands of our planners.
 - Discuss finalized menu options and costs with your caterer - I think there is plenty of time to make changes.
 - Arrange transportation/ limousine service for the wedding party to the ceremony and reception - We are cheap and do not care about "arriving in style". The party will get there via our own cars. But we do need transportation for the guests to and from the reception. We want to make sure they take full advantage of the open bar.
 - Order wedding favors - HA. You people think you are getting favors.
 - Shop for bridal party gifts - Easy, peasy. For the ladies, we are gifting hair and make-up. For the gents, we are gifting their suits. I feel bad as the women do not have something tangible they can keep. I'll probably come up with something small and personalized. 
 - Begin any necessary counseling sessions with your wedding officiant - I doubt that our officiant is qualified to counsel us. But we should start planning the ceremony.  

2 Months before the wedding
 - Choose your wedding music and share your selections with your Band or DJ- Yeah...I need to get on this. 
 - Select a location for your rehearsal dinner and make the necessary reservations & deposits - DONE! I'm already drooling over the menu we picked out.
 - Confirm with formal wear shop that they have received all measurements of every male attendant - See suits comment above. The men will have to take care of the tailoring on their own. 
 - Schedule your alterations and final fitting for the gown - One should probably call and schedule fittings well before the 2 month mark. I have had my fittings scheduled since March. 
 - Schedule fittings for the bridesmaids and flower girl - Psh, they can do this on their own. I ain't their mamma.  
 - Make arrangements for your "Bridesmaid Luncheon" and other "Pre-Wedding Parties" -  Meh.
 - Order address labels with you & your future husband's new name & new address - Move and plan a wedding? No thank you.
 - Confirm your order with the florist - Yea...I need to get on this, too.

1 Month before the wedding
 - Design your wedding programs - Already thinking about this. I have a pretty good idea and it will be awesome.
 - Apply for your marriage license - I will give this task to Jake. If he forgets, I guess we won't be really married then ;)
 - Have a final gown fitting - Scheduled
 - Choose all of your wedding accessories - Um, in this day in age, I am most certain that brides have their accessories all picked out MONTHS before.
 - Visit your hair stylist, work on a style with your veil - Already had this taken care of back in May.
 - Visit your make-up artist the same day - see line above.
 - Hair & make-up done, have your formal bridal portraits done - Uh, sorry, I ain't a Southern belle.
 - Discuss and finalize details with wedding service providers - TBD.

Now for the personal to-do list:

• Menus need to be designed, printed, and assembled.
• Cardbox - I told myself by the end of the month....I have 8 days...
• Chair signage - do we even need signage? seriously?
• Welcome packages for out of town guests -I mean what welcome packages? No one is getting anything.
• Communicate with our photog and cinematog what photos/moments MUST be captured.
• Table numbers
• Seating chart - I had post-it notes with last names when making the invitations, now I can just use those to help arrange everyone.
• Super secret wedding stuff -  We have been doing a lot of things behind the scenes that we refuse to share with anyone, including our parents and wedding party members. We want EVERYONE to be surprised, enjoy themselves, and have a great time.
• Ring bearer pillow - so close to being finished
• Flower basket - also so very very close
• Signage for guestbook and other things.
• Escort cards

Countdown:
3 months
4 months

5 months

Meltdown at 5 months

6 months

7 months

8 months

9 months

11 months

12 months

13 months

Invitations: Go Bye-bye!

The invitations have been completed AND sent out! Technically, they were 2 days late out of the gate. But, USPS was so fast getting them to you guys that it does not matter. Seriously, USPS rocked it. We dropped these off around 5pm on Wednesday, June 15. Some of you had them the very next day!

So we showed up at the post office with our box of 79 invites. (If you are counting, we made 85. 4 were hand delivered, 1 we kept for ourselves, and 1 is an extra). I asked the clerk if we could hand cancel them ourselves. He took one look at the box and asked his colleague for the "bullseye" (aka the stamp). Yay for hand cancelling our own invitations.

Here's Jake meticulously stamping each one and making sure the ink is bold red and the stamp very visible:

Here I go with my LEAN manufacturing training, assembly line style. Spread out a bunch of them and then give them all a quick stamp: If your stamp is pink and/or not entirely legible, then you got one of my stamp jobs ;) 

 

We got back in line, gave them back their stamp and just as I was getting ready to take a photo of Jake handing them all over, the 3rd clerk yells at me. It went something like this:

Clerk: No

Me: *gives her puzzled looked*

Clerk: No...no...

Me: Uh?

Clerk: No photos. No photos in government buildings.

Me: Oh! I thought you were telling us that we couldn't bring these [invitations] to the counter.

As a consulation, I made Jake pose next to the sign with the empty box.

60 days

Recovering

I know you are all dying for photos and stories from Vegas, but I need a few more days to recover before I can sift through all the photos.

In the mean time, I came across this photo. It is a picture of a food blogger's setup. I am currently in the market for a tripod. Not just any tripod, I want one from either the Giotto MT93 or MTL93 line. Why? Because they have an AWESOME 4th "leg" that can be placed parellel to the ground (and adjusted at additional angles in reference to the ground). The 4th leg allows for pictures to be taken from above.

Right now, most of my photos are either taken on my kitchen counter or on the kitchen table (most the table since it is right next to the window). I have not done a lot of overhead shots like this mostly because I do not have the setup. If I want an overhead shot, I have made like a monkey and climbed on chairs and the table.

 

via taylor takes a taste



via taylor takes a taste

Maybe I can register for one of these...

65 days.

Hootenanny, shenanigans, and debachury

Hootenanny. Dontcha just love that word? I do.

Tomorrow morning, I will be on a plane bound for Las Vegas, Nevada. I am 30 years old and this will be my first time in Vegas, ever. It probably sounds super cliche to say, "hey, I'm having my bachelorette party in Vegas." but that's how I'm rollin'. Other than the chairs we picked out for our reception, I have never been more sure of something in this whole wedding planning process (except maybe my wedding band, the photographer, the videographer, the planner, ok I maybe I have been really sure of a couple of things). My girls are spread out all over the country, well mostly they are in Oregon with a few scattered in Washington, Colorado, and Massachusetts. But I figured if someone has to travel, everyone should travel. What better adult play ground than Vegas? 

I am super excited to take a vacation. As I mentioned yesterday, I have not had one in over a year. Traveling for weddings last year was not a vacation. I had a great time at each event and took a little time to see some sites, but it wasn't a sit back, relax, and be carefree type of trips. Also, if you know me, you know that I am super type A and like to know what is going on and like to have a plan. I have been sooo layed back on this trip you would swear that I have been taken over by aliens. It is actually kind of nice to sit back and let others take care of things. I won't lie, it feels weird, but oh so good not to have to stress out.

I am super excited to not only see my girls, but also to be able to spend time with them. I won't get to see all of them, but I'll take some over none any day. I haven't taken a vaca with my maid of honor since Cancun in 2007. Oh what stories we have ;)

And lastly, I am super excited to finally be reunited with my wedding band! I think I mentioned that I found it in Oregon. I kicked myself for not purchasing it right there on the spot. But I was able to purchased it later and had my maid of honor pick it up for me. Yay.

 

Sorry, what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas. Although, I think there is going to
be a major surplus of cameras on this trip between all the budding photographers.

I am surprised by my ability to contain my excitement. 72 days.



Crazy Productive

Last weekend was crazy productive. I mean CRAZY PRODUCTIVE. Here's a quick recap:

Friday -

On a whim, I checked the Macy's site to see if they were having any good sales on men's suits. Seeing that Father's day is right around the corner, I thought maybe they would have something. I was so right. The suits we had picked out were on sale (same sale price as when we had spotted them 2 weeks or so ago). They were having a Private Men's Sale (25% off purchases over $100) on top of the sale price. And if that isn't enough to make you weak in the knees, they give an additional 15% off for opening a store charge card. So for the price of a tux rental, I got the boys suits, suits that they get to keep.

I was able to purchase 4 of 8 suits. We technically only need 5, but I figured my brothers are of an age where they should probably have a good suit in their closet. And that the suit my dad had custom made in Hong Kong or China back in 2005 isn't really black. Well it turns out that the male members of my family are far too small to fit into the smallest size that is available (go ahead and giggle, we did), so that is that.

Also, I found a couple of ties that we had previously picked out for the guys. Unfortunately, there was not enough of them at a single store, so I store hopped (hit 3 in one night), but still do not have all of them. Speaking of store hopping, I had to do it in order to pick up one of the jackets. One of the guys has a strange size, 38L. It was not available for order, but one of the stores just happened physically have it. Good thing I remembered seeing it. The sales rep did not believe me when I said that I thought I had seen it there the weekend before.

Saturday -
First item of the day was to drop my shoes off at the cobblers. Yes, I just said cobbler. I took my shoes to someone who had REAL experience with shoe repair. My red heels have rubber soles, which are great for walking, but horrible for dancing. Instead of spinning, I would be doing wierd jerky motions. Probably would not look too smooth, and definitely not the look I am going for. The cobbler will be putting suede leather on just the soles. For my dancing shoes, (I don't remember if I told you, I caved and will be wearing 3 pairs of shoes) the soles are too thin, so the cobbler will be adding a rubber sole to them. He mentioned that it was a great way to keep the integrity of the original soles and I could just replace the rubber as they became worn.

Because my 15% off pass was only good until the end of the day Saturday, I pulled the trigger and ordered the last suit blind. I did not have the last groomsmans measurements, but I figured, hey, lock it in at the fantastic price, and worry about exchanging for the correct size later. AND it did not dawn on me that I could just ship one of the suits directly to the bridesman (as opposed to having it shipped to me, and then me having to ship it to him). Done and done!

Our friends S and D came over to hang out and help craft late in the day. As you have probably figured out, I am not good at asking for help. In fact, I am down right horrible. Maybe it is pride. Maybe it is the fear that others won't do it my way. Well let me tell you. Extra set of hands are THE BEST. We blew through 3 projects between the 4 of us. Three!!! One of the projects being the big ticket item, our invitations. Great food, great company, fantastic time had by all. What more can a girl ask for?

Sunday -

I. FINISHED. THE. INVITATIONS! It has been my goal all along to finish them before my trip to Vegas and then to send them out when I get back. I was beginning to think they I would not make my personal deadline, but I was actually OK with that. Thanks to S and D, they were finished on time and look pretty amazing. In fact, they look exactly like my design. Also, they were finished 1 day before the expiration date on my trial copy of Adobe Illustrator. Whoohoo!

See what I mean about being crazy productive? I rewarded myself by sitting on the couch last night and not doing a single thing for the wedding. It felt great. I cannot wait until this weekend, 4 days completely removed from any form of crafting or planning. It will be the best only vacation I have had since...Ogunquit.

73 days.

So over inspiration sources

I have been flipping through magazines, T.V. shows, websites, and blogs for almost two years now. I have developed a new talent. OK, maybe it isn't a talent, I consider it creepy more than anything.

I don't have any urges to collect or pick up bridal magazines because a) they show the same thing in all of them and b) they are freaken expensive. I was in the doctors office last week and there was a Boston Brides magazine taunting me "pick me up, flip through me." Instead I scoffed at it and surfed the web on my phone instead.

I used to LOVE watching crazy bridal shows like Bridezillas, Platinum Weddings, and Say Yes To The Dress before we were engaged. But after being engaged for a year, I was over it. Bridezillas was just people acting to get on TV and to get a free honeymoon. Platinum Weddings was just depressing how much money these couples could spend on their weddings. They were beautiful, but also gaudy. SYTTD, I got to the point that I could name the designers and after awhile you just see them pulling the same dresses over and over.

I follow a couple of different blogs (Style Me Pretty, Weddingbee, just to name a couple of the 20+), but I'll be honest, I have wanted to just completely remove all of them from my Google Reader for months now. but I just cannot being myself to pull the trigger. Like the aforementioned medias, they too get all repetitive. I see the same trends over and over. It got to the point that I could identify designers for wedding dresses, bridesmaid dresses, and shoes. I started being able to identify photographers based on their style (some are heavily featered and favored on specific blogs). And today, I was able to identify the designer for an engagement ring. It went something like this: "Damn, nice ring. I bet it's a Tacori. It looks like a Tacori." I scrolled around the post looking for mention of it (I no longer read, I just look at photos), then finally found it in the photo caption. Yeup, Tacori. WOW. How freaken sad is that?

via icanhascheezburger.

74 days.