As you can see, I didn't do a very good job at keeping up with this blog thing. Let me tell you, the last month of planning was insane! I got sick the last week in August and the beginning of September (I still had a little cough during the ceremony but hopefully it wasn't noticeable). As the wedding day got closer, I became more excited and couldn't eat or sleep, which didn't help with me getting better. I felt like a robot running on caffeine. Cory and I had taken off work two days before the wedding and three days after... but in hindsight, I would've taken a total of two weeks off.
Anyways, it's been a little over a week since we got married and I have a lot of updating to do on this blog. I'll try my best to finish it up... gotta squeeze it in between, organizing our place, writing thank you notes, opening up a joint account, changing my last name... and all those other items on the post-wedding to-do list.
Monday, September 22, 2008
Thursday, August 7, 2008
Cord and Veil ~ done!
I'm so lucky to have a wonderful family!! I've been searching for a cord and secondary veil online but the choices were very limited. It's not like there's a store down the street where I can buy it at either. I asked my brother where he got theirs and he said "probably the Philippines" but wasn't sure. He offered to let us borrow theirs but of course it'd be nice to have a set of our own. A couple of days ago, I asked my cousin, Rona, who lives in the Philippines if she could kindly buy me a set since she and her parents are coming for the wedding. I gave her a general description of the design we liked ('cuz we didn't want anything too fru-fru) and man, that girl was on top of it! She's already bought it and just sent me pics! They're perfect!! THANKS, RONS!!
M&M pics
The fun and colorful box they came in
Very well insulated
One bag plain & one bag personalized
Hey, a lavender one got mixed in!
M&M's are here!!! =)
The doorbell rang so I yelled to my co-workers, "I'll get it, I think it's my M&M's." The voice on the other side of the door goes, "YUP, it is!" Guess who it was? Funny UPS man that delivered the candy yesterday... LOL!
I loved the box it came in... sooo colorful!!
(I didn't bring the camera with me today so I'll have to post real pics up later.)
I loved the box it came in... sooo colorful!!
(I didn't bring the camera with me today so I'll have to post real pics up later.)
Wednesday, August 6, 2008
Candy scoops ~ arrive!
OMG ~ I got another package!!
First batch of candy ~ arrives!
Guess what arrived here at work about an hour ago?! The first batch of candy I ordered online!! YAAAAAAY!!! These past couple of weeks have been great!! We've gotten wedding shower gifts delivered to the house, on Monday the floralytes came in, yesterday it was the cake stand, today the candy... and I just received an email that the M&M's are arriving tomorrow!!
The UPS man and my boss were laughing 'cuz I was jumping up and down when I saw him carrying a box labeled Chocolate.US/BulkFoods.com. He said, "You can't imagine how many people asked me 'You sure you don't want me to get rid of that box for you?" Hahaha... Oh, UPS man, you're so funny!
I carried the box to my office and couldn't wait to open the darn thing. Tim (a co-worker) and I oohed and ahhed as I pulled each thing out... swizzle sticks (rock candy)... licorice twists... jelly beans... candy sticks... He was most excited about the blue licorice twists 'cuz he didn't know it came in that color. Trust me, I didn't know it either but when my friends were helping me decide what to get, Kat said she really liked Twizzlers. Red twizzlers were not an option but they actually come in blue! (Ick... I'm not a fan of licorice.)
I was very disappointed when I saw the Jelly Belly jelly beans. I ordered 4 lbs. which is 1,600 pieces (approx. 9 per person) but I don't think it's enough. I overestimated the size of those suckers. I guess I'll go to a candy store and buy them by the pound from those bins. Six more pounds should be enough, right?
Other than that, everything else looked fine. I can't wait till the M&M's come in tomorrow!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The UPS man and my boss were laughing 'cuz I was jumping up and down when I saw him carrying a box labeled Chocolate.US/BulkFoods.com. He said, "You can't imagine how many people asked me 'You sure you don't want me to get rid of that box for you?" Hahaha... Oh, UPS man, you're so funny!
I carried the box to my office and couldn't wait to open the darn thing. Tim (a co-worker) and I oohed and ahhed as I pulled each thing out... swizzle sticks (rock candy)... licorice twists... jelly beans... candy sticks... He was most excited about the blue licorice twists 'cuz he didn't know it came in that color. Trust me, I didn't know it either but when my friends were helping me decide what to get, Kat said she really liked Twizzlers. Red twizzlers were not an option but they actually come in blue! (Ick... I'm not a fan of licorice.)
I was very disappointed when I saw the Jelly Belly jelly beans. I ordered 4 lbs. which is 1,600 pieces (approx. 9 per person) but I don't think it's enough. I overestimated the size of those suckers. I guess I'll go to a candy store and buy them by the pound from those bins. Six more pounds should be enough, right?
Other than that, everything else looked fine. I can't wait till the M&M's come in tomorrow!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Cake stand ~ arrives!
The cake stand came in the mail yesterday!! That was fast!! Thanks Ebay seller!!
I knew it was 22" x 6" but it definitely looks bigger in person... but it's hollow so it's not that heavy.
I knew it was 22" x 6" but it definitely looks bigger in person... but it's hollow so it's not that heavy.
Tuesday, August 5, 2008
Wedding dress update
I just received a call from Hannelore's. They left a message to let me know that my dress is ready to be picked up!!!
Rewind...
About a week and a half ago I had an appointment to try on and pick up my dress (which had just come in a few days before). As I was standing in front of the mirror checking out the back of the dress I noticed that the buttons ended at the hip level. I thought, "Hmmmm, that's odd. Aren't they supposed to go all the way down to the end of the train?" I asked the lady helping me but she wasn't sure and had to go look at my file. While she was doing that, the lady that sold me the dress happened to walk by my fitting room. We chatted a bit and I asked her about the buttons. She couldn't remember and had to look for the dress on the floor to check. Sure enough, they were supposed to be there. She said she'll see if the dress needs to be overnighted to NY so they can sew them on there or if they'll just send the buttons and Hannelore's alterations department will do it themselves.
Anyways, the buttons ended up being shipped to the store and are now sewed on. The dress is ready to be picked up but I'm still debating if I should have the store or my seamstress do the alterations. I've heard lots of brides in Jean's store complain about the horrible experiences they've had with store alterations (and that's why they have Jean fix it). The dress is loose (I hope that's a sign that I've lost some weight!) and it's also too long (surprise, surprise) so there's quite a bit that needs to be done. Oh well, I'll figure it out later. I'll probably have Jean do it since she's doing all the other dresses and she's conveniently located near my work. Oh, dear Lord, please let it turn out okay.
Rewind...
About a week and a half ago I had an appointment to try on and pick up my dress (which had just come in a few days before). As I was standing in front of the mirror checking out the back of the dress I noticed that the buttons ended at the hip level. I thought, "Hmmmm, that's odd. Aren't they supposed to go all the way down to the end of the train?" I asked the lady helping me but she wasn't sure and had to go look at my file. While she was doing that, the lady that sold me the dress happened to walk by my fitting room. We chatted a bit and I asked her about the buttons. She couldn't remember and had to look for the dress on the floor to check. Sure enough, they were supposed to be there. She said she'll see if the dress needs to be overnighted to NY so they can sew them on there or if they'll just send the buttons and Hannelore's alterations department will do it themselves.
Anyways, the buttons ended up being shipped to the store and are now sewed on. The dress is ready to be picked up but I'm still debating if I should have the store or my seamstress do the alterations. I've heard lots of brides in Jean's store complain about the horrible experiences they've had with store alterations (and that's why they have Jean fix it). The dress is loose (I hope that's a sign that I've lost some weight!) and it's also too long (surprise, surprise) so there's quite a bit that needs to be done. Oh well, I'll figure it out later. I'll probably have Jean do it since she's doing all the other dresses and she's conveniently located near my work. Oh, dear Lord, please let it turn out okay.
Linens & chargers cont'd...
I'm not sure if I put this in another post, but we decided to rent the scallop-rimmed chargers from Party Rental b/c it was too good of a deal to pass up. Let's forget the fact that it's not necessary to have chargers but... they look good so why not? (It's stuff like this that throws us over budget!)
These charger plates were seriously a good deal (don't you love how I try to justify this expense)... I'm not kidding... they were priced about $5-8 per piece lower than the other chargers. Loren also thought it was odd and thinks they pricemarked it incorrectly, but hey, that's not our problem... hahaha!!
We've also been trying to find floorlength tablecloths to rent. You're probably asking, "Doesn't the hotel provide those?" Well, yes they do! Except their color is moss green!! Ugghh... which makes it difficult for us to use them. The hotel has ivory overlays (the smaller linen that goes over the tablecloth), but we're definitely not using those as tablecloths 'cuz I don't want the tables' legs to show. Oh well, so that's the reason why we need floorlength tablecloths... and since we're renting them we might as well pick out a color other than ivory.
Party Rental has this linen called Oriental Shimmer (a light blue shade) that would've been perfect but it's also a darn overlay!! Sheesh!! Anyways, I found another rental company online and looked through their inventory. There was one that might work so I called and set up an appointment to see their showroom today. The sales guy was really nice and it turned out that the color of the linen I saw online was perfect!! AND it's big enough to fit a 6-ft. table!!! I think we got a winner so I asked him to draft up a rental agreement on the spot. It turns out they give an additional 5% discount (but I have a feeling every rental company does that b/c Party Rental gave us a discount too). I took pictures and they gave me a swatch of the fabric. I'll have to update Cory since he wasn't able to come with me today, but thankfully, I think it's a done deal.
These charger plates were seriously a good deal (don't you love how I try to justify this expense)... I'm not kidding... they were priced about $5-8 per piece lower than the other chargers. Loren also thought it was odd and thinks they pricemarked it incorrectly, but hey, that's not our problem... hahaha!!
We've also been trying to find floorlength tablecloths to rent. You're probably asking, "Doesn't the hotel provide those?" Well, yes they do! Except their color is moss green!! Ugghh... which makes it difficult for us to use them. The hotel has ivory overlays (the smaller linen that goes over the tablecloth), but we're definitely not using those as tablecloths 'cuz I don't want the tables' legs to show. Oh well, so that's the reason why we need floorlength tablecloths... and since we're renting them we might as well pick out a color other than ivory.
Party Rental has this linen called Oriental Shimmer (a light blue shade) that would've been perfect but it's also a darn overlay!! Sheesh!! Anyways, I found another rental company online and looked through their inventory. There was one that might work so I called and set up an appointment to see their showroom today. The sales guy was really nice and it turned out that the color of the linen I saw online was perfect!! AND it's big enough to fit a 6-ft. table!!! I think we got a winner so I asked him to draft up a rental agreement on the spot. It turns out they give an additional 5% discount (but I have a feeling every rental company does that b/c Party Rental gave us a discount too). I took pictures and they gave me a swatch of the fabric. I'll have to update Cory since he wasn't able to come with me today, but thankfully, I think it's a done deal.
Monday, August 4, 2008
Flowers ~ floralytes
In addition to receiving the BEO's... I also got the submersible floralytes that I ordered last week in the mail today!!!
Floralytes are these small lights that you place inside a vase to light up the water. I only ordered two so our florist can test them out first. Actually, she has another client that's interested in them too so we're basically being the guinea pigs. Cory and I were curious as to how they'd look so we opened up the package and tested them out ourselves... heehee. They're not bad and they're really small for something that puts out so much light!!
Now I need to schedule a time to drop these babies off at her house.
Floralytes are these small lights that you place inside a vase to light up the water. I only ordered two so our florist can test them out first. Actually, she has another client that's interested in them too so we're basically being the guinea pigs. Cory and I were curious as to how they'd look so we opened up the package and tested them out ourselves... heehee. They're not bad and they're really small for something that puts out so much light!!
Now I need to schedule a time to drop these babies off at her house.
Almost as small as a quarter
It should be bright enough to light up the vases
Bridezilla who?
Oh man, Trisha (our day-of-planner) has been asking me to send her copies of our vendor contracts and other info to help get them started on our wedding prep. I wanted to send her a comprehensive binder with all the information she'll need to know (yes, a little bridezilla-ish**). But I've been so busy with other things that I only get to work on it a little bit here and there. But I finished it on Friday and sent it off.
Today, I got an email from her that said, "I have received the package :) Thanks for putting that together so neatly, lol" I thought she'd get a kick out of it. She knows I'm a little nutty.
**Suprisingly, throughout this entire wedding planning experience I have not been a bridezilla. Even Cory agrees so I'm not lying! LOL! For some reason, I always thought I'd be one... not that I WANT to but I heard that a lot of brides turn into one without even realizing it. The only thing I've requested is for the bridesmaids not to have tan lines on their shoulders... and I admit that I watched Cory like a hawk when we were working on the invitations... but, that's probably the extent of my bridezilla-ism... for now... hahaha!
Today, I got an email from her that said, "I have received the package :) Thanks for putting that together so neatly, lol" I thought she'd get a kick out of it. She knows I'm a little nutty.
**Suprisingly, throughout this entire wedding planning experience I have not been a bridezilla. Even Cory agrees so I'm not lying! LOL! For some reason, I always thought I'd be one... not that I WANT to but I heard that a lot of brides turn into one without even realizing it. The only thing I've requested is for the bridesmaids not to have tan lines on their shoulders... and I admit that I watched Cory like a hawk when we were working on the invitations... but, that's probably the extent of my bridezilla-ism... for now... hahaha!
Hotel ~ BEOs!!!
YAY!!! I got the BEO's (Banquet Event Order) from the hotel today!!! Ooooooh.... how exciting!! The BEO is a document between the client and venue that outlines everything from the rooms being used, the times they're blocked, the food/beverage selections, A/V, room setups, etc.
It's a very detailed document, and pretty important, b/c it's what the onsite manager and banquet staff use on the day of the event. I've been waiting for it and can't wait to go through it! Yeah, I'm a dork.
It's a very detailed document, and pretty important, b/c it's what the onsite manager and banquet staff use on the day of the event. I've been waiting for it and can't wait to go through it! Yeah, I'm a dork.
Sunday, August 3, 2008
Candy buffet ~ CANDY & SIGNAGE
I have never bought so much candy in my entire life... seriously!! I spent this entire weekend finalizing the setup for the candy buffet. I bought a total of 40 pounds at the store and almost 30 pounds online! WHOA! (and I'm not completely done... shhhhh)
(I don't really love candy but this little guy was too cute)
Here's what made the final list:
Silver
Hershey's Kisses
Hershey's Hugs
York Peppermint Patties
White
Milk Chocolate M&M's (personalized with our names and wedding date... if you're interested visit My M&M's)
Milk Chocolate M&M's (not-personalized)
Reese's White Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups (I didn't even know they made these until I got to the store!)
Lifesavers Mints (Pep O Mint and Wint O Green)
Jelly Belly Jelly Beans (french vanilla)
Chiclets
Swizzle Sticks
Blue
Nestlé Crunch
Peanut M&M's
Dove Promises
Jelly Belly Jelly Beans (blueberry)
Blueberry Sticks
Blueberry Licorice Twists (Kat's request)
I was hesitant to buy them ahead of time but I checked their packaging and they don't expire until June 2009. If you decide to have a candy buffet, MAKE SURE YOU CHECK THE EXPIRATION DATE on the packaging!!! You'd be surprised... some stores still have stuff on the shelves that expired the beginning of this year.... ewwww.
If you're gonna order them online, some places take weeks to package and ship their items so make sure you don't wait until the last minute to place your order... and don't forget to store them in a cool place!! I'm storing our stuff in a basement.
This weekend I also ordered the scoops and tongs from Scoops-Scoops.com:
I was on a roll so I started making some of the signage for the containers:
(I don't really love candy but this little guy was too cute)
Here's what made the final list:
Silver
Hershey's Kisses
Hershey's Hugs
York Peppermint Patties
White
Milk Chocolate M&M's (personalized with our names and wedding date... if you're interested visit My M&M's)
Milk Chocolate M&M's (not-personalized)
Reese's White Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups (I didn't even know they made these until I got to the store!)
Lifesavers Mints (Pep O Mint and Wint O Green)
Jelly Belly Jelly Beans (french vanilla)
Chiclets
Swizzle Sticks
Blue
Nestlé Crunch
Peanut M&M's
Dove Promises
Jelly Belly Jelly Beans (blueberry)
Blueberry Sticks
Blueberry Licorice Twists (Kat's request)
I was hesitant to buy them ahead of time but I checked their packaging and they don't expire until June 2009. If you decide to have a candy buffet, MAKE SURE YOU CHECK THE EXPIRATION DATE on the packaging!!! You'd be surprised... some stores still have stuff on the shelves that expired the beginning of this year.... ewwww.
If you're gonna order them online, some places take weeks to package and ship their items so make sure you don't wait until the last minute to place your order... and don't forget to store them in a cool place!! I'm storing our stuff in a basement.
This weekend I also ordered the scoops and tongs from Scoops-Scoops.com:
Scoop Spoon
Designer Tong
The Grabber
I was on a roll so I started making some of the signage for the containers:
I feel pretty good that I got so much done... now onto the next project...
Saturday, August 2, 2008
Wedding dreams
The other day I had a dream that my wedding dress was knee-length! Oh geez... and this morning, Cory told me he had a dream that it was our wedding day and he couldn't find his tux! Weird...
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Cake stand ~ I WON!
No, I didn't win a free cake stand... I wish... but, I bid on one on Ebay and found out I just won it!! Cory really wants the cake to rest on a stand so we went to Fran's Cake and Candy Supplies in Fairfax and reserved an 18" stand. When I told the lady who's making the cake that we finally reserved it, she said that it was too small. Unfortunately, Fran's didn't have a bigger size and the owner told me she doesn't plan on buying one anytime soon. Bummer. We had no choice but to buy our own.
So I won this beautiful cake stand today:
So I won this beautiful cake stand today:
Diameter: 22"
Height: 6"
I have no clue what we're going to use it for after the wedding or where the heck we're gonna store it. Let me know if there are any brides, bakers, or party planners out there that are reading this post and want to rent this cake stand... LOL... I'm serious. I guess when our cake is resting on it, it will look something like this:
The future hubby was happy with the recent purchase!!
Monday, July 28, 2008
Candles & holders
During my lunch break I decided to head over to Pentagon City Mall. It's conveniently located 10 minutes away from where I work.
After walking around aimlessly I wandered over to Things Remembered. They were having a 50% off sale on some of their items so I bought the Eternity Unity Candle Set which includes the pillar holder, pillar candle, two taper holders, two taper candles, and a keepsake box. Each of the pieces has Swarovski crystals and the pillar holder has an "infinity" symbol. The design is simple and it was a pretty good deal.
(I'll post pics up soon.)
After walking around aimlessly I wandered over to Things Remembered. They were having a 50% off sale on some of their items so I bought the Eternity Unity Candle Set which includes the pillar holder, pillar candle, two taper holders, two taper candles, and a keepsake box. Each of the pieces has Swarovski crystals and the pillar holder has an "infinity" symbol. The design is simple and it was a pretty good deal.
(I'll post pics up soon.)
Reception lighting
Cory and I thought it might be nice to spice up the lighting in the ballroom for the reception. I did some research and contacted a lighting company that looks like they do an amazing job.
We set up an appointment for someone from their company to meet us at the Westin on June 5th (the same day we had our menu tasting). He turned out to be really nice and had a lot of good ideas. Here are the things we decided on:
24' Drape behind the stage where the two-tiered head table will be on
Cool blue uplighting along all four walls
White uplighting for the drape behind the stage
Washes of moodlighting for the dance floor in warm and flattering colors (I think he said pink and lavender were the best)
Spotlighting of the cake table
Spotlighting of the two 6-ft. candy tables
I really wanted to have the entire wall behind the stage draped but it wasn't in the budget 'cuz we added the dance floor lighting. Actually, what am I talking about?! We didn't even have a line item for additional lighting in the budget! We were planning on just using the hotel's existing lights! Oh man... this is what I mean by "unexpected costs" in that blog post called "Budget." But they say that the lighting can really change the ambience and look of a room, especially the use of uplights. There's no way to know how it'll look until the day of so we'll see. Here are some examples of uplighting:
It's been almost two months since he gave me the contract. We were going back and forth trying to decide if we could lower the amount of uplights (he highly recommended that we don't do that)... or if we needed to spotlight the head tables (we opted for the uplighting behind the stage in case the bridal party gets too hot underneath the spotlights)... or spotlight the centerpieces (we figured that the floralytes in the vases are enough). Also, the spotlighting of anything required prior approval from the hotel since the lighting company would need to put tracks on the ceilings. Thankfully, the hotel is very lenient and has no problems with it.
It's a done deal 'cuz I just faxed him the contract and put the original and deposit in the mail!
(Don't worry, we're not having totem poles or pictures of leopards on the walls.)
We set up an appointment for someone from their company to meet us at the Westin on June 5th (the same day we had our menu tasting). He turned out to be really nice and had a lot of good ideas. Here are the things we decided on:
24' Drape behind the stage where the two-tiered head table will be on
Cool blue uplighting along all four walls
White uplighting for the drape behind the stage
Washes of moodlighting for the dance floor in warm and flattering colors (I think he said pink and lavender were the best)
Spotlighting of the cake table
Spotlighting of the two 6-ft. candy tables
I really wanted to have the entire wall behind the stage draped but it wasn't in the budget 'cuz we added the dance floor lighting. Actually, what am I talking about?! We didn't even have a line item for additional lighting in the budget! We were planning on just using the hotel's existing lights! Oh man... this is what I mean by "unexpected costs" in that blog post called "Budget." But they say that the lighting can really change the ambience and look of a room, especially the use of uplights. There's no way to know how it'll look until the day of so we'll see. Here are some examples of uplighting:
It's been almost two months since he gave me the contract. We were going back and forth trying to decide if we could lower the amount of uplights (he highly recommended that we don't do that)... or if we needed to spotlight the head tables (we opted for the uplighting behind the stage in case the bridal party gets too hot underneath the spotlights)... or spotlight the centerpieces (we figured that the floralytes in the vases are enough). Also, the spotlighting of anything required prior approval from the hotel since the lighting company would need to put tracks on the ceilings. Thankfully, the hotel is very lenient and has no problems with it.
It's a done deal 'cuz I just faxed him the contract and put the original and deposit in the mail!
Sunday, July 27, 2008
Friday, July 25, 2008
Friday, July 18, 2008
Flower girls' dresses
I've been putting off buying the flower girls' dresses. Mainly I think it's because the store has a final sale policy and I'm scared they won't fit the girls. Unfortunately, both our flower girls live out of town and can't try them on ahead of time. But I finally brought myself to do it two weeks ago. I bought one at the David's Bridal in Springfield but since they didn't have the other size that I needed, I had to drive to the Woodbridge store to get the other one. What a hassle! I chose style S1038 in ivory (satin, sleveless bodice w/ tulle skirt). According to the website, the sash and removable ribbon are sold separately but both items came with each dress when I purchased them.
We're not using the sashes/bows that came with the dresses though. Instead, we asked Jean to sew sashes from the fabric she's using for the bridesmaids dresses. She finished making them today and ta-da! The girls are gonna look so cute in their dresses!
We're not using the sashes/bows that came with the dresses though. Instead, we asked Jean to sew sashes from the fabric she's using for the bridesmaids dresses. She finished making them today and ta-da! The girls are gonna look so cute in their dresses!
(Disregard the lighting that's making them look yellow.)
Monday, July 14, 2008
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Privacy
I just realized that I'm giving a lot of personal information out on this darn blog!!!! Got a lil' paranoid today so I went back and blurred out some personal info from pics and deleted some info from old posts.After the wedding, I'll put vendors and contact names back in the posts.
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Saturday, June 14, 2008
Thursday, June 5, 2008
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
Sunday, June 1, 2008
Candy buffet ~ VASES
Check out all the containers I've gotten so far! Cory thinks I'm obsessed... and I think he's right!
Friday, May 30, 2008
Monday, May 26, 2008
Escort card holders ~ part III
As I was walking around my parent's house today, I passed by the library and saw that the escort card holders had multiplied! It's been almost a month since I last worked on them so I was a bit confused. Then, I wondered if I had done some and just couldn't remember. Yeah, I know I'm starting to sound crazy. There's so much information I'm trying to keep straight in my head right now and the days are flying by that it's getting harder to remember everything!!
Well, it turned out that my mom was responsible for it. She's been practicing and has gotten so good at making them!!! Thanks, mom!!!
Well, it turned out that my mom was responsible for it. She's been practicing and has gotten so good at making them!!! Thanks, mom!!!
Sunday, May 25, 2008
Wedding rings
We were in the Tysons area today so we bought our wedding rings! We already knew which ones we wanted from browsing on previous trips. We also want to get them engraved and since he bought my engagement ring from the store it's free of charge!! Yipee!! There's not much room to engrave a lot of things on mine 'cuz it's small, and we haven't decided what we're going to put, yet. I think we're going with...
on his: CMA ∞ CJA 09.13.08
on mine: CJA ∞ CMA 09.13.08
AHHHHHHH!!! We're getting married!!! YAAAAAAY!!!
on his: CMA ∞ CJA 09.13.08
on mine: CJA ∞ CMA 09.13.08
AHHHHHHH!!! We're getting married!!! YAAAAAAY!!!
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Tuesday, May 6, 2008
Flower power
We had appointments set up with three florists that I found on The Knot. Our first appointment was last month on April 5th in Georgetown. That... place... sucked!! The lady was sooooooo not helpful. For example, we want white flowers for the bouquets and when we asked her for advice she recommended the only four flowers she had available in her store: hydrangeas, orchids, roses, and tulips. HA! We were so annoyed when we walked out of her shop. To make things worse, she said she'd draft up a proposal and as of now, we still haven't received one.
The second appointment was with a florist who works out of her home. Her prices were more reasonable... probably due to the fact that she didn't have to pay for office space. We spent a total of 2 1/2 hours at this appointment and got so much accomplished. We decided on every single type of flower we're going to use:
CHURCH: The church doesn't require you to leave your arrangements but it's considered a good gesture if you do... kind of like a donation. We chose a simple arrangement of gladiolas, carnations and other flowers I can't think of right now. She's decorating the pews with bows free of charge.
CENTERPIECES: We want them to look very simple, airy and not too dense. We chose curly willow and dendrobium orchids in 24" pilsner vases. Orchid florets will be strategically placed in the water to have a floating effect. We want the centerpieces to be lit so we're using submersible floralytes. Another thing is, usually, florists have you rent their vases which means the flowers are totally useless after the reception is over. We didn't want the flowers to go to waste so we asked our florist to purchase the vases for us. That way our guests have the option of bringing home the entire centerpiece after the reception is over. The head table will have greenery and rose bowls for the bridesmaids to put their bouquets in.
The second appointment was with a florist who works out of her home. Her prices were more reasonable... probably due to the fact that she didn't have to pay for office space. We spent a total of 2 1/2 hours at this appointment and got so much accomplished. We decided on every single type of flower we're going to use:
CHURCH: The church doesn't require you to leave your arrangements but it's considered a good gesture if you do... kind of like a donation. We chose a simple arrangement of gladiolas, carnations and other flowers I can't think of right now. She's decorating the pews with bows free of charge.
CENTERPIECES: We want them to look very simple, airy and not too dense. We chose curly willow and dendrobium orchids in 24" pilsner vases. Orchid florets will be strategically placed in the water to have a floating effect. We want the centerpieces to be lit so we're using submersible floralytes. Another thing is, usually, florists have you rent their vases which means the flowers are totally useless after the reception is over. We didn't want the flowers to go to waste so we asked our florist to purchase the vases for us. That way our guests have the option of bringing home the entire centerpiece after the reception is over. The head table will have greenery and rose bowls for the bridesmaids to put their bouquets in.
CORSAGES: Mothers will have wrist corsages w/mini, pink cymbidium orchids; our grandmothers, pinned corsages with white dendrobium orchids and freesia; principal and secondary women sponsors, pinned corsages with white alstromerias (w/pink throats)
BOUTONNIERES: Cory will have a white cymbidium orchid; groomsmen, white calla lilies; ring and coin bearers, white spray roses; dads and his grandfather, white, mini callas; principal and secondary men sponsors, white alstromerias or peruvian lily (w/pink throats)
BOUQUETS: My bouquet will consist of white cymbidium orchids with a collar of lemon leaves, the stems wrapped in soft ivory ribbon with pearl-headed pins; the bridesmaids, 20 stems of ivory tulips, greenery ivy and salal, the stems also wrapped in ivory satin with pearl-headed pins; flower girls, pomander balls with greenery, white spray roses, florets of light blue delphinium, and white & blue streamers... they'll also have floral combs with white spray roses, light blue delphinium and ivy leaves ~ btw, our florist is providing the cake flowers and a tossing bouquet gratis!! ~ she's awesome!
MISCELLANEOUS: Three of the vases on the candy buffet will have submerged, white dendrobium orchids; and the wedding cake will have white cymbidium orchids as the cake topper and also scattered down the ledge
Today we signed the contract and mailed it along with the deposit... WOOHOO!!! One more task completed!!
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