Wedding Week Whirlwind

I hope all you dearies had a fabulous Thanksgiving weekend filled with fun, laughter, and loved ones. I had a delicious time in Chicago with my entire family for the whole week.

We had a whirlwind of a wedding week as well. My mom and I spent most of the week going from appointment to appointment downtown, we met with florists, cake vendors, and stationers. M and I decided to postpone our engagement session as the weather was so not enjoyable on Tuesday (rain and cold) so we'll probably end up doing them in the Spring.

I have many stories to tell and I cannot wait to talk about the fabulous vendors we met with this week but that will all have to wait until I head back to Boston. I'm off to enjoy the last few hours in Chicago with Mamacita!

I Love Goooold & Cupcakes

Martha Stewart

I have a secret. Sometimes I wish that we were having a cupcake wedding. This secret wish was further fueled by MS Weddings Fall issue which featured these gilded cupcakes. Swoon.

Wedding Puppy

Our 2 year old beagle, Edison is the love of my life (second to M...at least until we have children). I am so sad that given the many circumstances, we will not be able to include him in our wedding. We really wanted him incorporated somehow but given the flight to Chicago (he's too big to go under the seat) and the venue (surprisingly enough, museums tend to not allow dogs on their property), it just did not make sense.

He's my baby though and I will miss him. I'm still looking for some cute way to include a snippet of him along the way. We'll see.
source

I love looking at wedding posts that have dogs in them though. It makes me slightly envious but happy for those folks who can include these fantastic family members in their big day.

LOVE - It's A Sign

I am obsessed with this wedding featured on Martha Stewart Weddings (and just about every other wedding blog at the time). I love the aqua and poppy colors, the classically beautiful church, and the fantastically joyful bride and groom. But it was truly the signage that pushed me over the edge of infatuation and envy on this one.

The L - O - V - E signs flanked the alter until the bride and groom shared the marriage beginning smooch at which point the bridal party turned the signs around to reveal X - O - X - O.

Now I'm not sure that M and I can pull this one off. I think the signs look incredible against the church backdrop and it may not fit into our outdoor plaza wedding ceremony. Regardless, a girl can dream, right?

First Dance: The Way I Am

The REAL video was disabled for embedding

I've been obsessed with this song by Ingrid Michaelson since it debuted in an Old Navy commercial a year or two ago. What a sad way to discover a great song? I am slightly tempted to consider for our first dance, as it is so cheeky and cute.

What do you think? Is it too silly?

Throw Me That Bouquet

One of the first questions that people ask me when they find out I'm in the middle of planning my wedding is "What are our colors?" Before I had gotten engaged and started reading the lovely blogs and researching inspirational decor, I had never even considered that one would have a color theme for a wedding. I'm rather indecisive about many things and our colors is one that I have been particularly fickle about.

We decided to keep our decor in the neutral color schemes with the bridesmaid dresses silvery gray and the groomsmen in black with neutral ties. Therefore, we'll use the flowers, particularly the bouquets to add the pop of color to our celebration.

source

An all white bouquet is delightful for some brides, it is pure perfection (especially in peony or ranunculus).

Yet I am envisioning something a bit more vibrant for myself. I love a pink soft bloom against a white dress.

I've gather nearly 50 pictures of colorful bouquets to bring along to our floral appointments over Thanksgiving and I'm so excited to see what other ideas are out there.

Engagement Shoot Look for Less?

I'm on the hunt for two perfect engagement shoot outfits. Although the weather may not be perfect, I want to look autumnly chic. I want us to have two distinct looks - one cozy cute and one more dressed up.

So for the cozy chic dry run:

Marled Cap-Sleeve Cardigan in Cocoa Powder

Old Navy

$32.50

Silk Pleated Posy Top

J. Crew

$49.99

Skinny Ankle Zip Pant

Gap

$69.50

J. Aldridge by Sea of Shoe Gladiator Heel

Urban Outfitters

$29.99

One complete look for less than 200 bones...not too bad if I do say so myself. I'm thinking I could probably swing it without the shoes (although at $29 that is not a bad deal). My one concern is that the cap-sleeve sweater may be a bit chilly in November Chi-town weather.

What did you wear on your engagement shoot? Did the weather distract from your style expectations

Honeymoon Time!

Although M and I have been together nearly 8 years at this point...we have only taken 1 true vacation together. We spent almost 2 years in a long distance relationship in which we traveled back and forth between Atlanta and Chicago - so we had limited vacation funds. And before that we were in college and I was more interested in going on Spring Break with my girlfriends then a romantic getaway with my main squeeze.

This past winter, I was fortunate enough to be invited on my company trip to Riveria Maya in Mexico. It was a fantastic vacation to say the least...M and I truly enjoyed 5 days at the luxurious Mandarin Hotel. We laid on the beach, enjoyed margaritas, he played a little golf, and we saw Paul McCartney (no joke!)

So I was beyond excited to start researching our honeymoon. M was in charge of the honeymoon...we decided this early on. Seeing as he has had limited involvement in the nitty gritty wedding details, we thought that he would be best suited for research in the honeymoon department. And research he did. We decided early on that the Caribbean would be our best bet. Considering that we will only have a week to honeymoon, we wanted something easily accessible but relaxing and romantic. The feeling of remote without having to travel more than 5 hours to get there.

We finally settled on Anguilla - a small Caribbean island right off of St. Maarten. We booked a 6 night stay at Cap Juluca. A fantastic resort which has a little golf for him...a lot of beach for me...and a romantic honeymoon package for the both of us.

All Photos Courtesy of Cap Juluca Resort

I have been to the Caribbean a number of times with my family but this is M's first trip. I am so excited for him to experience the white sand beaches and the clear blue-green sea.

Where are you going on your honeymoon?

Love Poem Favor Boxes

In oogling the pretty favor packaging goodness over at Martha Stewart Weddings, I stumbled upon something inspiring. As I've mentioned, I have a bit of an obsession with words and pretty readings and I'm looking for many ways to incorporate beyond our ceremony.

These favor boxes may be just what I'm looking for.

via Martha Stewart Weddings

The instructions look fairly simple...although I've yet to try my hand at any DIY projects so we'll have to see. I would make a few tweaks...leaving in tact the off-center font on the box but perhaps switching the tie and removing the LOVE beads. I would consider a mix of poems and sonnets to create some depth to the favors so hopefully couples would go home with two different readings.

The Seemingly Simple Instructions:

A beaded message and a few lines of Shakespearean verse photocopied onto newsprint paper spell out pure romance.

Wrap box in 81/2-by-6-inch paper, securing with double-sided tape. Fold 24 inches of waxed twine in half; tie knot 81/2 inches from fold. Thread on beads; knot again.

Sugar Doll!

Jenn over at the awesome A Bride's Brain gave me the Sugar Doll Blogger Award. Go check out her funny and inspiring tales of wedding planning, if you haven't already.

So on to 10 facts:

1. I have recently discovered the joy of cooking and baking - I am on the verge of making both M and I extremely overweight for our wedding!

2. I always wanted to be a writer when I was growing up...somehow I ended up in a completely different profession but blogging has brought me back to my roots.

3. I have an odd fear of wax museums.

4. I spent 6 months living in Florence when I was in college and I would easily move back to Europe for 6 more months if the opportunity arose.

5. I'm a fiercely competitive board game player...my personal favorite is Scattegories.

6. I save all of my fashion magazings (pack rat much), I have Vogues and Instyles from 2004 still in my apartment.

7. I have an obsession with vintage French advertising posters.

8. I have seen every single episode of Friends, Seinfeld, and Sex and the City.

9. One of my favorite authors is Faulkner...although at times the thought of trying to re-read some of his work terrifies me.

10. I am an art history buff who wishes that she was an artist.

Phew...that was harder than I thought it would be! Okay I know that this award has been looping the blogger circuit for some time but I wanted to pass along to some of my fave daily reads (sorry if you've already received!).

Behind the Knot

Chicago Bride to Be

Just Lovely

Not Really Blogging Material

Oh Me, Oh My Wedding

Prosecco and Lemonade

Random Reflections of a Perfectionist

That Bride's Got Chutzpah

Victoria With Roses

Wed in the White City

Escort Card Shout Outs

These are amazing escort cards that were from a wedding featured on Style Me Pretty today. Each escort card has a custom greeting for the guest. Such a cute and kitschy way of giving a personal shout out to the friends and family who joined you to celebrate your wedding.

My personal faves are:

"Hey Hey Harris"

and

"Nice Tux Max"

First Dance: Make You Feel My Love

I've been on the hunt for the first dance song. Unlike many couples who have been together for several years, M and I do not have a "song". I am currently really digging the song "Make You Feel My Love" by Adele. It is romantic and hopeful (with the exception of a few lines in the middle of the song that we would edit out).

What do you think?

Save the Date!

Yay! Our Save the Dates arrived on Saturday. Our designer had dropped them off at my parents house last week and my mama was so kind as to send an extra in the mail to me. I'm sad to have to "erase" some of the text.

Photo by Moi

I had last seen the mock up over email and could not get a true sense of the colors but loved the design. We worked with one of my dad's former colleagues to design and print our Save the Dates. I wanted something organic and light with a pop of color. I adore flourishes, clearly as they were all over my inspiration pictures for the paper suite.

How did you choose your Save the Dates?