We have been really, hectically busy for the past month or so which has lead to a lack of wedding planning. This morning we realized that we only have about a year left so we better make some headway soon! Planning a wedding for "leaf season" in a town whose #1 industry is tourism means that planning is more of a conquest than just a simple challenge. It is a test of will-power, strength, determination and financial resources. We need to go ahead and plan as much as possible to ensure that we have the wedding of our dreams.
Thankfully, we have started making some strides for finding a perfect location. Tomorrow we plan to go check out a B&B that *fingers crossed* is what we've been hoping for. We went back through our budget yesterday and have cut a lot of costs. I've been trying to find some catering menus just to get an idea of what the true cost of catering will be. I'm also trying to find ways that I can DIY things to reduce the cost.
Also, I have an account on TheKnot which pleasantly counts down the days for you (because we all need a little more time-crunching in our lives) and I found out today that we have 384 days until the wedding. For the Type A/planning person that I am, that is a little scary.
I really wish I could make this more funny and entertaining for you all but at this stage there isn't too much happening (and we're both sick, I'm not funny normally... I'm really not funny when I'm sick). Better luck next post!
*Edit to Add* Lance is seriously considering a zombie cake... I must be the luckiest lady alive!
Sunday, September 18, 2011
Friday, August 19, 2011
And The Search Continues...
Let me start this by putting in a disclaimer. I've never believed in The Dress. Wedding dresses usually seemed ridiculous to me. This is a morality tale about The Dress.
As some of you may know, today I went dress shopping with my mom and Jenna at the Brides Against Breast Cancer trunk show. We paid for "VIP" tickets so we could have early admission before the show was opened to the general public. The morning went smoothly after we each had a glass of champagne and brunch. When we were finally ready to go in I was a bundle of nerves. I'm still not entirely sure why I was so nervous. The dresses were sorted by size and there was a separate section for couture gowns. We must have tried on 15 or more dresses when I found the "One". There was a serious problem though, the dress was double my budget. I could hear the guy from "Say Yes to the Dress" explaining the cardinal rule of wedding dress shopping (which, by the way, is, "Never try on a dress that is over your budget.") That's sound advice but when you love a specific dress it doesn't always work out that way.
I left The Dress behind and we picked out a few more to try on. As we were heading to the changing area I saw a girl trying on MY dress. It was gorgeous. I felt angry and sad that she could possibly get this dress. Lo and behold, as fate would have it, she did not buy The Dress. It was returned to the racks (possibly to taunt me, I'm not exactly sure). Since The Dress was the only one like it in the whole show I decided to try it on. BIG mistake. When I stepped in front of the mirror I felt like a goddess. The Dress was everything I had imagined-- except the price. I was so close to tears and Jenna said, "Okay let's take it off now," I refused. One look at my mother's face was enough to confirm that even though this was THE Dress it couldn't be MY dress. As I was blatantly stalling so I didn't have to take off The Dress, a volunteer came up and asked if we were going to buy it. My mom said no and the volunteer explained that someone else wanted to try it on.
As we were walking out the door, I looked back and The Dress was back on the rack waiting for it's new owner. I still can't get the image of The Dress out of my mind. Hopefully, I can find one similar enough to it tomorrow when we go boutique wedding dress shopping with my aunt. Moral of the story:
NEVER EVER EVER try on a dress out of your budget. It will only end in tears, heartache and anger =P
Maybe dresses are like partners, "There are always more fish in the sea." But what if The Dress was like your first love. The one you compare all others to. I have to keep hoping that maybe The Dress is still out there for me.
As some of you may know, today I went dress shopping with my mom and Jenna at the Brides Against Breast Cancer trunk show. We paid for "VIP" tickets so we could have early admission before the show was opened to the general public. The morning went smoothly after we each had a glass of champagne and brunch. When we were finally ready to go in I was a bundle of nerves. I'm still not entirely sure why I was so nervous. The dresses were sorted by size and there was a separate section for couture gowns. We must have tried on 15 or more dresses when I found the "One". There was a serious problem though, the dress was double my budget. I could hear the guy from "Say Yes to the Dress" explaining the cardinal rule of wedding dress shopping (which, by the way, is, "Never try on a dress that is over your budget.") That's sound advice but when you love a specific dress it doesn't always work out that way.
I left The Dress behind and we picked out a few more to try on. As we were heading to the changing area I saw a girl trying on MY dress. It was gorgeous. I felt angry and sad that she could possibly get this dress. Lo and behold, as fate would have it, she did not buy The Dress. It was returned to the racks (possibly to taunt me, I'm not exactly sure). Since The Dress was the only one like it in the whole show I decided to try it on. BIG mistake. When I stepped in front of the mirror I felt like a goddess. The Dress was everything I had imagined-- except the price. I was so close to tears and Jenna said, "Okay let's take it off now," I refused. One look at my mother's face was enough to confirm that even though this was THE Dress it couldn't be MY dress. As I was blatantly stalling so I didn't have to take off The Dress, a volunteer came up and asked if we were going to buy it. My mom said no and the volunteer explained that someone else wanted to try it on.
As we were walking out the door, I looked back and The Dress was back on the rack waiting for it's new owner. I still can't get the image of The Dress out of my mind. Hopefully, I can find one similar enough to it tomorrow when we go boutique wedding dress shopping with my aunt. Moral of the story:
NEVER EVER EVER try on a dress out of your budget. It will only end in tears, heartache and anger =P
Maybe dresses are like partners, "There are always more fish in the sea." But what if The Dress was like your first love. The one you compare all others to. I have to keep hoping that maybe The Dress is still out there for me.
Wednesday, August 3, 2011
Back On Track
Whew! It's been a rockin' ride since I last posted. After some deliberation we decided to re-set the wedding date for our original date October 6, 2012. We've decided to slow down some of the wedding planning since we have a generous amount of time. As of right now, we need to figure out a venue and set a final budget.
Mom and I are going to a bridal dress show in the end of August to support Brides Against Breast Cancer. Yes, it is early to be dress shopping but this show only happens once a year and all proceeds go to a great organization. I'm excited that we are still planning on attending the show. It should be exciting to say the least. Images of half-crazed Bridezillas beating each other up to get "THE" dress keep running through my head. I guess we'll see how it all goes. Fortunately, Mom and I have decided to go to a morning brunch for the show so the number of crazies should be limited.
Mom and I are going to a bridal dress show in the end of August to support Brides Against Breast Cancer. Yes, it is early to be dress shopping but this show only happens once a year and all proceeds go to a great organization. I'm excited that we are still planning on attending the show. It should be exciting to say the least. Images of half-crazed Bridezillas beating each other up to get "THE" dress keep running through my head. I guess we'll see how it all goes. Fortunately, Mom and I have decided to go to a morning brunch for the show so the number of crazies should be limited.
Monday, July 11, 2011
Until Further Notice!
We have officially decided to "unset" our wedding date. Lance and I are still engaged and everything is working out really well but life happens. We will let you know when the date is re-set and things are back on track for wedding planning. Since we don't have a date, we aren't going to be wedding planning any time soon. Thanks to everyone for your help thus far!
Thursday, June 30, 2011
Location, Location, Location
As fate would have it, Lance and I finally found a venue that we both loved but the owners have a cap of 30 for wedding guests. Bummer. Now I'm back on the prowl. The sad truth, however, is that there aren't many houses that either have enough room or have enough parking or have enough privacy/yard area. I've found a couple more houses that we can look at and I'm sure that we will find something that we both love and can't live without. We will just have to keep our eyes and ears peeled for new rentals.
I do have to give a shout out to my mom, the Queen of Rentals. Throughout my youth, my mom's side of the family has taken annual beach trips. This is no easy feat when you consider my mom is one of eight siblings. When you add in spouses and/or children the number of beds significantly increases. My mom and her sisters are the searchers and coordinators for the beach house rental. Some of the houses they have found were phenomenal. Thankfully, my mom has been helping me house hunt for the wedding. Even more surprising is her enthusiasm in the search. I'm hoping her house-hunting powers will help us find the perfect place but I'm exceptionally grateful for all of the help she's given me so far.
I do have to give a shout out to my mom, the Queen of Rentals. Throughout my youth, my mom's side of the family has taken annual beach trips. This is no easy feat when you consider my mom is one of eight siblings. When you add in spouses and/or children the number of beds significantly increases. My mom and her sisters are the searchers and coordinators for the beach house rental. Some of the houses they have found were phenomenal. Thankfully, my mom has been helping me house hunt for the wedding. Even more surprising is her enthusiasm in the search. I'm hoping her house-hunting powers will help us find the perfect place but I'm exceptionally grateful for all of the help she's given me so far.
Friday, June 24, 2011
The Dress
Honestly, I have not really imagined my wedding dress. Growing up I was more interested in picking out cake flavors than necklines. We've imagined that our wedding will be Asheville-themed which means choosing a wedding dress is more of a hassle than it probably needs to be. I want the dress to be Asheville-esque but I also want the dress to be recognizable as a wedding dress. Since we are going the charity route with our registry, I thought it would be a great idea to do the same with the dress.
Brides Against Breast Cancer is an event that allows brides to try on, and hopefully buy, thousands of dresses with all of the proceeds going towards Making Memories. Making Memories is similar to Make A Wish but for men and women losing their battle with breast cancer. The dresses are donated by designers, stores and individuals. There is an event in Raleigh in the middle of August that my mom and I are going to attend. I also invited my friend Jenna. She will be my Asheville inspiration. Hopefully, we can find the dress of my dreams while giving to a great cause.
Has anyone else gone to a BABC event? How did everything turn out? Does anybody have any other ideas for charity dress buying?
*Edit to add: If you click the header "The Dress" it will direct you to the Brides Against Breast Cancer website*
Brides Against Breast Cancer is an event that allows brides to try on, and hopefully buy, thousands of dresses with all of the proceeds going towards Making Memories. Making Memories is similar to Make A Wish but for men and women losing their battle with breast cancer. The dresses are donated by designers, stores and individuals. There is an event in Raleigh in the middle of August that my mom and I are going to attend. I also invited my friend Jenna. She will be my Asheville inspiration. Hopefully, we can find the dress of my dreams while giving to a great cause.
Has anyone else gone to a BABC event? How did everything turn out? Does anybody have any other ideas for charity dress buying?
*Edit to add: If you click the header "The Dress" it will direct you to the Brides Against Breast Cancer website*
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Charitable Giving
Okay, two posts in one day is a little excessive. It won't be like this all the time.
In lieu of a gift registry, Lance and I want to have a charity registry. I've spent a lot of time today looking for an online charity registry website and I haven't been able to find too much information. If anyone can point me in the right direction that would be awesome. Part of me wants to just link to the charity's website and have the guest directly donate but then we might have a hard time writing thank you notes.
Has anyone else heard of other couples doing this? Let me know what you all think.
Thanks!
In lieu of a gift registry, Lance and I want to have a charity registry. I've spent a lot of time today looking for an online charity registry website and I haven't been able to find too much information. If anyone can point me in the right direction that would be awesome. Part of me wants to just link to the charity's website and have the guest directly donate but then we might have a hard time writing thank you notes.
Has anyone else heard of other couples doing this? Let me know what you all think.
Thanks!
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