365 days and it's just the beginning

one year ago today i married a man straight from the story books. 

not a day has gone by where i haven't thanked the lucky stars for bringing him to me.

husband, our vow will always remain the same...

i vow to help you love life, to always hold you with tenderness and to have the patience that love demands, to speak when words are needed and to share the silence when they are not and to live within the warmth of your heart.

i give you my heart, i promise from this day forward, you shall not walk alone. may my heart be your shelter, and my arms be your home. 

happy anniversary, husband.

happy dad's day

i am the luckiest lady i know. i feel so incredibly blessed as i have been surrounded by amazing folks since the day i came into this fine, fine world.

so much of who i am comes from my father. he is a genuinely good, better yet, great man. he taught me that girls can do anything that boys can. he showed me the ways of the hammer and screwdriver, taught me how to fish, cheered me on at all of my sporting events, and was my permanent partner at the sock hop. he is my personal google resource when it comes to all things fix-it. this man knows it all, no joke.

dad, i am forever grateful to have you in my life. thank you for helping me to lay my foundation... i am a strong, independent woman thanks in part to you.

we are so thankful for all that you do for us kids.

happy, happy father's day. one of the greatest moments of my life was dancing with you at my wedding. i will always be your little girl.

video of our father-daughter dance song hand picked by my dad found here

wedding wednesday: the invites

teaching has not always been my thang. before dedicating myself to helping students with special needs, i took a go at the whole graphic designer gig. it worked out for a while, and then i quickly learned that i preferred working with and helping people..face to face. i still dabble in the printed design world from time to time, with a freelance projects here or there. it serves as a lovely hobby...that and this whole blogging thing.

this background certainly helped out when i began tackling the whole wedding invitation conundrum. i knew that i wanted something simple to reflect our outdoor, casual vibe. once i decided on the "look," there was no turning back. i finished the design and promptly marked that check on our list. knowing myself, i could have tweaked the invites until the chevron came home. 

invites can take up a huge chunk of a wedding budget. i feel fortunate that i was able to design ours for no cost and then take my design to a local, trusted printer. we saved a bundle. amazon was a great resource for envelopes, we found the twine on etsy, and bought the keys from a closing scrapbooking store for next to nil.

my recommendation for keeping it cost effective...make a trip to etsy and purchase a "printable" wedding invite. you won't get an actual tangible invite, but a printable file. there are a gazillion talented designers out there, and you can find many of them on etsy. the great thing about purchasing a printable wedding invite file, you support individual talent and can get them printed where you want, on the paper of your choosing. this is yet another way to support local business. in the process, you save some major cash....major. just make sure that you always, always get a proof of the invite before you have someone (whether a local printer or one online) print your hundreds of copies with your name spelled wrong on paper that is too light.

take a gander at these beauties i found on etsy...

go find these beauties on etsy!! 

>> 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 <<

wedding wednesday: the groom

i sure know how to pick em. well... it worked out for me that one time. the time when it mattered. this guy is sticking around and i've got the ring to prove it. one of the best moments of our big day was walking down the brick pathway to this face. at the end of the aisle was my dream. at the end of the aisle was my future...and it looks to be a good one at that.

as i sit here and reflect while all of the madness and chaos of life surrounds me nine months later, i am so grateful and thankful for this man. he grounds me and supports me like no one else can. he puts up with my incessant requests to bring me things while i toil away at my computer. he puts up with the stubbornness that surrounds me and my need to always be right. he actually wouldn't have me any other way. that's what i like to believe anyway.

all joking aside, when you find that "one," make some room for their nuances and annoying habits. i like to think they make life interesting. they did in our case....don't get me started on all the things i have to put up with. he he...

wedding wednesday: shoes for the bride

shoes are a girl's best friend... that and dogs. forget the diamonds. 

i really lucked out in the shoe department for my wedding with the vintage nina peep toe pumps you see in the photo above. they actually served as my "something old" and belonged to the great aunt of a dear friend of mine. they weren't too high of a heel so i was able to get around in the yard with no issue (our wedding was in my parents' backyard). comfort is key as you are on your feet for the majority of the day. 

i got pretty daring as the night drew on and the dancing commenced. i ended up changing into some sky high navy blue suede platform peep toes (this tends to be the opposite of what most brides do) when i changed into my reception dress. i figured if the shoes are gonna show, they are gonna be stunners.

speaking of stunners, if i had to do it all over again, i would be thinking about these pretties below.

1/ seychelles turning point $80 2/ all dolled up wedge in a day $59.99, 

3/ topshop jollie glitter sole heels $124, 4/ ruche down the aisle heels $99.99, 

5/ dainty dramatist heel $79.99, 6/ asos faith b falivar mid satin heel $101.73

wedding wednesday: band vs. dj

ahh, the age old question band or dj, band or dj. some couples struggle with this choice, we however did not. don't get me wrong, i love music, but husband and i knew we could party like rock stars and keep some pennies in the bank while doing it. i have enjoyed many a band and many a dj at many a wedding. either can be done really, really well...and of course you have the other end of the spectrum. both can be bad, real bad.

we chose a dj over a band for a few good reasons. money would be the first. djs are nine times out of ten more cost effective than bands. we even offered to pay cash and received a chunky discount for doing so (do this with a lot of vendors... you would be surprised how many will take you up on it). our djs played music at our ceremony, cocktail hour, and reception. they even provided a sound system and audio necessities for the ceremony.  it was a total package deal.

this leads me to my next point. we got a lot of bang for our buck with the amount of tunes our djs played over the expanse of our wedding day. the variety of music was key to set the tone the tone for the evening. we had our hands in the music mix and were able to choose genres, musicians and specific songs for all points in the evening. our dj had a wonderful online system for setting up our choices. most importantly, we had a very specific do not play list. they graciously obliged.


>> some of our music selection <<

ceremony
prelude: a ton of vitamin string quartet
processional: the piano guys- a thousand years
recessional: stevie wonder-signed sealed delivered

cocktail hour
variety of indie and folk music

dinner 
big band, croonies and oldies

dancing
first dance: ryan adams- i love  you but i don't know what to say  (amazing song!!)

 

father/daughter: tim mcgraw-my little girl
**chosen by my dad (so sweet and really brought on the tears in many. i still well up when i hear this)
mother/son: louis armstrong- what a wonderful world

these openers lead into some oldie, but goodie classic wedding jams...and it got progressively more popular and louder as the night progressed. we finished the night with frank sinatra's: new york, new york  (we got engaged in nyc!) 

i swear...husband and i barely left the dance floor. it was just as we had planned. my last piece of advice is to make sure you check out a specific band or dj prior to committing. the djs we chose played at a wedding we attended, so we knew they were good people. husband and i were also particular about having a dj that wasn't annoying with the mic or overly talkative. our dj was very receptive to this and performed just as we requested. they even left us with a parting gift that evening...a collection of cds with all the songs from the entire day. score.

happy dancing.

wedding wednesday: restyle the dress

i have been dying for an opportunity to rewear my reception dress. when we got married, husband and i agreed that every year on our anniversary (that is every year we remain the same weight...not sure how long that will last) we will get all fancy in our wedding garb and hit the town. during our one year wedding anniversary coming up in june, husband (and hopefully yours truly as well) will be in spain on a trip with students. there is no way i am lugging the dress overseas...though that would be romantic.

instead, i opted for a little restyle challenge for our annual valentine's day tradition. since we have been together, husband and i have celebrated the holiday of love by filling our bellies with a three-course brunch of french delicacies. no better venue for a little feather action. my dress worked its sartorial magic as it breathed new life as a skirt under my winter layers. i did some major shopping in my own closet to come up with this lovely combo. my only wish would have been for the weather to cooperate...it was pouring rain and dreary. i am talking buckets, people. white backdrop for an ivory skirt wouldn't be my first choice...but, we work with what we got.

outfit details:

wedding dress worn as skirt

forever 21 polka dot blouse

j.crew kimono jacket

thrifted stole

vintage clutch

franco sarto heels

some more feather fun.

1 / 2 / 3 / 4

wedding wednesday: diy flowers

flowers...  a detail not to be overlooked, but one where you can certainly cut financial corners. yep, you guessed it...we did our own flowers for our big day. this "we" included help from some of our green thumb family and friends. we kept it simple, but really couldn't have done it without their help...we would have stressed our socks off. i am telling you, do not take this on if you stress out easily (trust me you have enough to worry about) and don't have helpful hands available that you can trust to take on this challenge. 

being the control freak that i am, i was adamant about making my bouquet and the two boutonnieres knowing that these would be the most photographed floral pieces. i did research prior to (nerd alert) taking on this ordeal and followed the directions for creating a bouquet here and an example of a boutonniere here. we did this all a day ahead of time and the bouquet and boutonnieres lasted beautifully in a refrigerator.

we kept most of the flowers in the white/ivory family with touches of yellow and greenery. this made flower shopping a cinch as we travelled from costco to local grocery stores to collect our bounty. for the bouquet, I wanted to make sure i had a good base of hydrangeas for fill to create a base to build from. it worked smashingly well. i was more than pleased with the result. as for the tabletops, we filled milk glass vases with the flower varietals. once the wedding planning process began, my mom and i started thrifting milk glass and found most vases for under 2 bucks. they were a lovely addition to our simple table decor.

wedding flowers are a major wedding diy to take on...but the benefits far outweigh the added stressors they bring on. that is what this lady believes, but trust me not everyone agrees with my craziness. my big advice...do your homework, keep it simple, and practice if need be. we estimate that we saved between 1,000 and 1,500 dollars by doing it on our own. boom. i'll take it.

good luck with it and happy arranging.

wedding wednesday: reception dress

when planning for our wedding i was convinced that a reception dress was a grand idea. now that it has come and gone, i am elated that i opted to go that route. my reception dress was a true labor of love.. even though everyone thought i was bat poo crazy. feathers on your wedding dress? your mom is going to alter it? damn straight. 

the idea to alter my mom's wedding dress didn't come until half way through the planning process. my mom trusted in my vision from the beginning... bless that woman. she was ready to tackle the project right alongside me. she poked her fingers too many times to count when sewing feathers and complied when i requested to take it in just another smidge. the two of us really did make this happen all on our own. my only regret... not taking pictures during the process. if only i had the blogger brain back then.

this dress is something i will be holding onto for a long time to come. heck, bury me in this sucker. not only is it a stunner, it belonged to a woman i admire wholeheartedly and couldn't love any more than i currently do. this project pretty much topped all others, as i was able to work alongside my partner in crime, my mother, my rock. thanks mom for being such a sensational planner and helping to make our wedding day extraordinary.

p.s. isn't she a beauty!?

we found feathers here and the brooch was thrifted.

wedding wednesday: first look

husband and i strayed from many a wedding traditions and we were so glad we did on this one. seeing each other before our ceremony not only took away the nerves, but gave us alone time which is few and far between for many couples on their wedding day. all you married folk will most likely agree with me on this one. the 45 minutes before the ceremony taking pictures and basking in the excitement with my future husband were some of my favorite memories from the day. if you are up in the air about whether or not you want to have a "first look" as they say, i urge you to just do it. i don't urge you for pictures sake, but really for the moment. it is one i would never take away.

wedding wednesday: the rings

i am a huge fan of unique wedding bands and engagement rings... (and yes, this was before duchess kate came on the scene with her sapphire and such). from interesting stones to antique throwbacks, there is nothing better...that is, if rings are your thing. i personally love the tradition, but that is just me. 

back in the day when husband and i were just regular ol' boyfriend-girlfriend we had the whole wedding conversation when things got all hot and heavy. husband (then boyfriend) played it right when he inquired about "the ring" prior to making any big decisions. my response...something different. we did some looking around on the internet, but ultimately he came up with what you see above. this man has taste people... i think i'll keep him. he went with a green tea sapphire stone...can't get much more unique than that. even better, he got it off etsy from a small, independent jeweler who is passionate about using conflict-free stones...the engagement ring also didn't cost him the bank. triple score.

   

>> i did some digging of my own and found some other fab non-diamond alternatives... take a gander <<

rings 1,2,6 rare earth // ring 3 one garnet girl // ring 4 pompeii // ring 5 kristin coffin

wedding wednesday: the dress

i have a confession to make. i didn't try on a single dress when shopping for a wedding dress. not a one. unfortunately for my mother, there were no traditional mother-daughter trips to bridal salons. we never set foot in one during the entire planning phase.  the reason for this would be the gorgeous reem acra dress you see the lovely olivia wilde wearing below. the day she wore this dress to the 2008 emmys was the day i found my wedding dress. i didn't even know husband at the time, but i knew that whoever that man was would see me in this dress. i know this sounds like crazy talk, and it is. especially if you know me. i am not the girl that has been planning her wedding since the ripe old age of five.

there was however, a small problem. this dress cost about 5,000 dollars more than what i would have liked it to.  i was unwilling to spend that kind of dough. my solution...find a dress that has the same look and feel with a reasonable price tag. my route...the good ol internet. i scoured dress sites for days and finally, with great luck found an option at light in the box. the kicker is that this dress cost only 150 smackers. a deal you can't pass up, if you ask me. 

i snatched it up and a week later the dress arrived. i was shocked upon its arrival. the dress was of great quality and fit me like a glove, as they say. the only thing was that the sleeves left much to be desired. a plan was devised and it included a sleeve redo. i took off all of the beads on the sleeves and was left with mesh cap sleeves. my task was to recreate a similar beaded look from the original reem acra dress. i bought supplies and my beading adventure began.

i have to admit, this task was quite the undertaking. i spent many a day and night on the couch pricking fingers and cursing myself for taking on this challenge. in the end, i probably spent well over 80 hours rebeading the sleeves of my dress. when the last bead was sewn, it was as if i had climbed mt. everest. to say i was relieved would be the world's greatest understatement. i was elated to be done. i had my dress and it was even more special because i put my sweat and tears into it.

other than the fact that i am a crazy person, you can maybe take a little something from this. your dress is out there and it just might not be in that bridal salon. through my search, i have found amazing dresses at antique stores, on etsy, and in countries you wouldn't come to expect. don't be afraid to put on your diy cap and have at it. you might surprise yourself.

happy hunting all you brides to be.

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wedding wednesday: save the date

as some of know, two thousand and twelve brought me a husband, and a good one at that. planning our wedding day was a process that i relished, being the creative nut that i am. we did a lot of clever things to save money (for us and our parents...yes, you mom and dad) and make the day a special, unique gathering for our friends and family. wednesdays will be opportunities for me to share our wedding goodies with you. i realize many of you are not in the process of getting married, however, some of these ideas may be transferable to other celebrations as well. otherwise, i suppose you can ignore me on wednesdays. do whatever suits you.

save the dates are common tools for couples to announce their upcoming nuptials and give notice to their friends and family to block off the day they have designated for their wedding ceremony and reception. typically this involves sending out a card or a magnet of sorts. i have seen some really creative, unique save the dates come through our mailbox. 

with our wedding, husband wasn't really into the whole save the date thing, and i really didn't want to spend the money. that is why i proposed to him that we make a video and email it to our guests. he bit the bait and my gears started rolling. i ended up creating a stop motion video, which cost nothing but a whole lot of time. we had already decided on a "feel" for our wedding at this point and i knew i had to incorporate this into the video to set the tone... hence the skeleton key and the color choices.

i used my old digital camera, iphoto and imovie to create the video. you will need a lot of space on your memory card as this took well over a hundred pictures. many stop motion videos take hundreds more depending on the length and content. i followed the stop motion video tutorial here at photojojo where she goes step by step through the process. photojojo even provides links to other software to use besides imovie for those that don't have macs. in all reality, it wasn't all that strenuous. just keep in mind...you will need to take lots, i am talking mucho photos.

check out our save the date video below. prior to sending out this video via email, we set up a wedding website to direct all of our guests to from the video. you can check that out here at weddingwire.com. a video like this could be made for invites to numerous types of events...i could see some really sweet kid birthday party invites done with this method!

our wedding day

our wedding was beyond a day to remember. it was simply magical and i couldn't imagine a better way to commit to forever to my one and only. i thoroughly enjoyed planning our wedding. husband would certainly tell you that it was maybe a little bit too much. ok, maybe a lotta bit too much. it's not my fault. quite frankly, the advent of sites like pinterest and weddinggawker have shifted wedding culture to create little martha stewarts in all corners of the universe. i may have joined the ranks. i am sure some of you out there can relate.

as we know, weddings can be a lot of work and cost buttloads of dough. ours was no exception, however our diligence and willingness to get down and dirty saved us tons of the green stuff in the end. i will be sharing details of our big day and oodles of money saving tricks and diy projects. 

stay tuned, my friends.