Yummy Colors

I'm currently obsessed with the purply blue simple but chic color palette over at In This Instance feature on "Market Chic Table Decor".

Searching for the Picture Perfect Venue

M and I were engaged on Friday, March 27. On Saturday, March 28, the research began for the perfect wedding venue. It's funny how when you call your friends to tell them the great engagement news, the first questions are when and where are you getting married. No matter how soon after you are engaged they receive that call (even within minutes). I know -- I'm guilty of it as well. But I wanted to have an answer so I began researching online and planning a trip to Chicago to see the venues in person.

We went to Chicago the next weekend and had several venues on our itinerary to see. I knew I wanted June wedding in a unique space. Something other than a hotel ballroom so that helped narrow down our search. I also knew that I would need a venue that would have two distinct areas - for the ceremony and the reception. So we began bright and early on Saturday morning.

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Our first stop was the gorgeous Harold Washington Library in the South Loop. It was my dad's suggestion (a wealth of Chicago venue knowledge) and I was prepared to be wowed after we looked at pictures online. We had to navigate through the library stacks to actually get to the venue space. When we arrived in the reception hall, I was in awe of the high glass atrium ceilings and the large space. Yet underwhelmed by the seafoam green and blue tile and paint. We went to see the ceremony space which was a small rugged room (I'm not a fan of rugs) which would probably not fit more than 50-100 guests. We checked out the bathrooms (I've learned - ALWAYS check the bathrooms) and they were like any public bathroom...kind of gross. Most certainly did not go along with my vision of a spa like bathroom experience for my guests. Don't ask me why I even think about this stuff.

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So we were off to our next stop, The River East Arts Center. I was excited to see this space as I had gone to a work event here previously and remembered how pretty it was. Also, with my art history background I thought it would be so fitting to get married in an art space (with disregard to the fact that M is an engineer and not at all artsy). The River East Arts Center was as pretty as I had remembered and the coordinator we met with was great. We had some concerns upon leaving though. One there were not two distinct spaces, instead the ceremony would have to transition to the reception space during cocktail hour. Not ideal but was it a deal breaker? Also, the issue of price. It was by far the most expensive venue we were looking at and we had heard rumblings of foreclosure. And finally there was only one catering option and I was not sure that I was ready to close that door as well.

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I was secretly giddy about our third stop of the day. A small but truly uniquely Chicago space called The Ivy Room @ Tree Studios. It was a historically restored building that is mostly used for artist galleries but has a spectacular courtyard that could be used for the ceremony and cocktail reception. The venue did not disappoint. It was thrilling to see the courtyard and I could imagine M and I saying our vows there. The reception space was hardwood floor and we looked through many inspiring pictures with the coordinator, Donna (she was fab) and were picturing our wedding there. Until we asked about the rain plan. Duh, duh, duh....

The rain plan would relegate our guests to the ceremony in the reception space and cocktail hour in a windowless rugged basement. It wasn't terrible. But picturing almost 200 of our nearest and dearest crammed into the tiny windowless space was uninspiring. So we left...feeling slightly less hopeful than we had upon arrival.

So what did we do next? My mom had one final suggestion that we visit on a whim...more details to come.

Bridesmaid Invites

I've been inspired by my best friend and soon to be bridesmaid L. She is getting married on May 1 and just asked us to be bridesmaids with the most adorable cards I have seen.

So I've been all over Etsy searching for an adorable bridesmaid invite for my bridal party. I love the cards with the dress silhouette on the front.

From Pink Avenue Brides

From Design with Style

Or maybe something a bit more sassy...

From Little Lady Company

What do you think?

Ceremony Location in My Dreams

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M and I are really struggling with our ceremony location (more on that later) but wouldn't it be delicious if we could just say our vows on the top stop of this beautiful stone building?

Honeymooning Thoughts

M and I spent a week at the Mandarin Oriental in Riviera Maya in January. Let me say it was a spectacularly luxurious vacation which ended after days of sunbathing with mango margaritas with a very romantic couples spa massage.

We're going back and forth about where we will honeymoon and we need help! We don't want to waste time on a long flight but want to really feel like we have gone someplace that is different and exotic.

Greek Isles? Aruba? Caymen Islands?

Inspiration without the Board

So it's been a bit tricky for me to put together the inevitable bridal inspiration board. Simply because I change my color crazed mind every two seconds. I wish I was the bride to be with a color theme in mind as it would help me to shape the cluster of boo-tiful images in my mind that lead to June 26, 2010.

Alas, I'm still at square one (which is currently light pewter, champagne, with a pop of apricot).

Regardless, I have hundreds (maybe thousands) of wedding-y goodness photos saved to google reader (love it) and some of my faves are below.

Unfortunately most of these were clipped before I started noting the source (with the Martha exception below) so if an image is yours please let me know and I will source ASAP.

Adore this for a fun favor.

Bistro inspired menus...yum

Simply Candle Chic

Chicago...A Bride's Kind of Town

Surprisingly I'm not like one of those typical chickies who has dreamt about her wedding her whole life and has it all figured out well before the ring is slipped on my tiny little finger. Sure after spending 8 years with my boyfriend and seeing a few of my best gals getting engaged, I had started to think about walking down the aisle but the only thing that I knew for sure was that I wanted a real Chicago CITY wedding

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I dreamt of fantastically Chicago wedding pictures like this. A perfectly romantic kiss surrounded by the city that I love.

Therefore when the ring was slipped on my finger by the lovely M (more on that story later), I had a few of the "tough" decisions already figured out. Little did I know the thousands of decisions that lay ahead of us on our wedding planning extravaganza.