Ruffles

Leia pointed out yesterday that I probably won't be able to settle on a color scheme until the first bridesmaid finds THE dress at bridesmaid shopping weekend.  I agree, I think the final colors will depend a lot on what we find.  So until bridesmaid weekend, I'll just post some inspiration dresses in all different colors, to get everyone thinking about what they might want to look out for.

Because of the fanning on my dress, today I went hunting for dresses with interesting architectural elements.

personal photo from yesterday's fitting

By accident, I seem to have picked only ruffled dresses, almost all of them pink. Again, this isn't really an idea for the whole bridal party, just an inspiration starting point.

$49 Newport News	$30.77 asos
$44.50 Roxy	Nordstrom
$30.77 asos	$47.86 asos

Bustle up!

Leia and I went to my first dress fitting today.  When we met Randy (!) at Kleinfeld, he recommended Remziye Perkin.  So after lugging my huge dress on the subway from Brooklyn to the Upper East Side, Leia and I met Remziye, who was not only sweet, but extremely efficient.

First of all, let me just say that when I first put the dress on, I was thrilled because it definitely felt looser and was sliding off me more than it was a month ago!  Remziye first pinned the waist tighter (I kept asking for it to be tighter and tighter), and then hemmed just a tiny bit (the shoes make me 5'7).

I know nothing about bustles.  I only know what they are because of how many wedding blogs I've followed in the past year.  So when it came to bustling this dress, I had no opinions.

This is a picture of the train on my dress that Leia took in my apartment the night I bought the dress.  The train is a big reason why I decided to keep the dress long rather than make it tea-length.

 

Within literally two minutes, Remziye had pinned up a "french bustle" (?) on my dress today:

Leia and I are not huge fans of the bustle on the bow, but we loved the skirt bustle.

Final total for the alterations was $475, which is high, but still less than I was prepared to pay, so I am happy.  My second fitting is scheduled in April.

In other news, I am currently considering a flyaway veil instead of a birdcage veil, and this one from Etsy is a great price at $28:

 via BellaBridalVeils

Pre-Cana Perspective

It's been a pretty emotional week for private reasons, compounded by recent stress at work due to the current trial, a sore throat and the gloomy weather.  But I wanted to get this post out because I am still trying to document the wedding planning process, and Jeff and I took a big step this past weekend.

 

source

Last Friday and Saturday, Jeffy and I completed our Pre-Cana requirement.  For people unfamiliar with this step, it's a requirement for getting married in the Catholic Church, and it is essentially a marriage preparation program.  Friday evening was a special service with an excellent homily by a very funny priest.  He quoted Jesuit Pedro Arrupe, and the poem was so beautiful that I am now trying to figure out how to incorporate it into our wedding:

"Nothing is more practical than finding God, that is, than falling in a love in a quite absolute, final way. What you are in love with, what seizes your imagination will affect everything. It will decide what will get you out of bed in the mornings, what you will do with your evenings, how you spend your weekends, what you read, who you know, what breaks your heart, and what amazes you with joy and gratitude. Fall in love, stay in love, and it will decide everything."

I mean, doesn't that last line just stay with you? sigh.  The whole service was a really beautiful experience because of how much love there was around us. I think there were 27 other couples in the program, most of whom were around our age.  There were a surprising number of high school and college sweethearts (At least it was surprising to me.  Is it possible that Jeff and I are less special than we think we are?).

Saturday was led by a couple that has been married 38 years.  Ken and Bridgett were absolutely fantastic.  They discussed important components of a marriage in the context of their own marriage.  The themes I recall were: communication, sex, raising a family, the Church, and dealing with the in-laws, though there were some more.  There were serious topics, sad stories, and silly stories, all of which really made us think about how we would deal with those situations in our own marriage.  For each topic, Ken and Bridgette would first talk for a little bit, sharing stories from their marriage. Then each couple would complete questionnaires related to each topic in little workbooks in silence, and then share them with each other (not with the whole group, just with our partners).  Each of the worksheet questions had two answer blanks, one for our answer, and one for how we thought our partner would answer it.

I know it sounds lame, but the questionnaires led to some interesting conversations, and Jeff and I really did get closer after completing this program.  Filling out the questionnaires reminded me a lot of a game of Pictionary that Jeff and I won against Amanda and April (I had to bring it up).  There were so many times during the day that our answers were word-for-word identical. I know it wasn't a contest, and that marriage isn't about getting questionnaires right, but if it was, then Jeff and I totally killed it. Just sayin.

 

source

Anyway, this marriage prep program couldn't have come at a better time.  I keep getting so stressed about little things like flowers and dresses and DJs.  It's crazy easy to forget that all this work is for one day that is the really just the start of (hopefully) a long, full life together.  I was reminded of the things I am most grateful for, none of which are clothing or accessory-related. I remembered (and may I never forget again) that marriage is a precious and Godly thing, and I am so blessed to have found the man that I want to share that with.  I am grateful that the government cannot decide whether or not I can get married (and hopefully that will change for others soon).  And I'm grateful that Jeff and I have the resources, the family and the friends to throw this big party to celebrate our marriage.  If you're reading this Jeff, I love you, and I can't wait to be husband and wife.

That being said, I have been putting a heck of a lot of thought into flowers, dresses and favors lately, so keep an eye out for that ahead.  20 invitations completed so, 40 to go.

Soft pink and creamy yellow

My wedding shoes came on Tuesday, and I am obsessed with them!! They fit perfectly, and they are just the right height (3").  And I am in looooove with what a perfect shade of pink they are!

(The pink color is even sweeter in person, if you can believe it. The color is called "Powder Puff.")

This pink has had me contemplating color schemes.  I've been really struggling with the color palette for the past week, because I'm beginning to think that in order to create a cohesive look I will need to make a final decision about color.  April emailed me a gorgeous yellow dress the other day, and I've been thinking about yellow and pink ever since.  Pink and yellow could be my two favorite colors.  I've decided on some specific things that I like and dislike with regards to pink and yellow at my wedding: I would not want a superbright sunshine yellow, I really only like a warm mellow yellow. I would call it a "creamy yellow".  Also, I really hate it when pink is overused.  So I am contemplating the following options:

1. Bridesmaids in mismatched creamy yellow dresses with matching pink bouquets
2. Bridesmaids in mismatched soft pink dresses with matching yellow bouquets
3. Some bridesmaids in pink and and some in pale yellow dresses, all with matching yellow-and-pink bouquets

With any of these options, shoes and other accessories can be in all different colors.

Creamy yellow calla lillies via The Knot	Pale pink peonies via The Knot
$348, Bloomie's	$138, Nordstrom
last season Bloomie's  :(	$158, Nordstrom
$168, Anthropologie	$165, Calypso
$158, Ann Taylor	$215, Ann Taylor

As much as I adore pink dresses, I am leaning heavily towards Option #1 for a number of reasons.  I really like the idea of everyone having matching pink bouquets, since the boys will be wearing pink vests. Also, I think pink flowers will be featured at the ceremony and reception, so splashes of creamy yellow would stand out more.  And a pale yellow is crazy easy to accessorize.

Okay, I had a revelation just now that if we find some really fabulous pink-and-yellow print dress on our shopping spree, then maybe we can make Option #3 work...

I am sure my mind will change again (I won't be surprised if it changes after I brush my teeth in a few minutes), but what are your thoughts?

Back to the Bridesmaids

Bridesmaid weekend is now a month away, so it's time to start thinking about the dresses!!  Ladies, just so that you're prepared: I am going to jam-pack the weekend.  We're getting up early and shopping until we can't walk anymore, because this is maybe the only opportunity we have to all get together before the end of May.  So we need everyone to walk away with a fabulous dress before the weekend is up.

Alright, onward with photos:

1. Inspiration.

The following photos most represent what I want to accomplish with my bridesmaids (all three of these photos have been featured on this blog before):

a. Color.

I still haven't been able to select a color scheme, but I think this photo is a perfect starting point.  I love the soft, feminine, summery colors in this photo (and particularly the liberal use of pink), and would be happy with dresses in any shade of this color palette.

 via The Perfect Palette

b. Mismatched and Unique, but Coordinated.

I love both of these photos because the dresses are all unique, and yet still look cohesive.  The colors are not what I am going for (see section 1a), but otherwise this is the look I want:

via Wedding Bee.

 

via BeSpoke Press 

2. Tentative shopping plan for Saturday. I started with a handful of places, and organized them so that we can start uptown and make our way downtown.

10AM: CALYPSO

935 Madison Ave., nr. 74th St.; 212-535-4100 OR
815 Madison Ave., nr. 68th St.; 212-585-0310

This was Leia's first suggestion, and even though the online selection is very limited (I'm told the flagship store has five floors), I love their summery dresses:

Gabrielle, $99	Shireen, $165
Senona, $69	Barclay, $165
Circle dress, $325	Glitz, $49

1PM: BELLA BRIDESMAID
 545 Eighth Ave., nr.37th St.; Suite 1525

I made an appointment at an actual bridesmaid boutique firstly because I thought it would be fun, but also because this one seems to have a lot of un-bridesmaid-like dresses.  We have an hour with the consultant.  I decided to post this picture of some of their collections so that you can browse the dresses on your own:

3PM: MACY'S
151 West 34th Street

Leia suggested Macy's because of the sheer number of dresses we'll be able to find there. The last time I was in the Herald Square Macy's I literally almost cried because of how frustrating the entire experience was.  But I think if we are mentally prepared, we can tackle it.  The selection of summer dresses online is not so great right now, but I'm guessing that's because there's still snow on the ground.  We will probably have better luck in a month.

 $82.99, $88.99 and $83.99 all on sale

5PM: ANNE TAYLOR
149 5th Ave.; nr. 21st St.

$185, $158

I picked Anne Taylor because it's my favorite dress store, but we can definitely try someplace else if everyone likes. Here are some more cute dresses:

 

$168 at Anthropologie

$98 at J.Crew  

$98 at J.Crew

$132 at J.Crew

Guess we'll have to go to J.Crew.  Maybe the one near the South Street Seaport?

So that takes care of a big chunk of Saturday.  Any other stores that we can fit in during the day? We can shop on Friday night and Sunday too, but we'll need to also make time for cocktails at some point. 

Rustic centerpieces

The mini-blizzard today made me wish for spring. I started thinking about flower options for the wedding, and I really love the look of mason jars for the tables:

via Brenda's Wedding Blog

last two via We Met in a Bar

I think the simple, unpretentious look of the jars really suits our venue, a rustic French restaurant. I love the last photo the best; the antique blue jar is beautiful and pink tulips are my absolute favorite. Alas, tulips are a spring flower, so my June wedding probably won't feature them.

Wedding kicks

So, I bought my wedding shoes today (I hope)! I need my wedding shoes for the fitting on 2/27, and I really adored these shoes that Leia showed me online:

Ruffle pump via Newport News

I don't know how many opportunities I'll have to actually go shoe shopping between now and the 27th, and I really really love these shoes. So I'm crossing my fingers that I will fit into the 8.5 size I ordered. Also, Leia worked some magic, and I got an added discount on the shoes. If these actually end up being my wedding shoes, it'll be the best bargain of the wedding: $38.70 including shipping and handling.

As for the rest of wedding planning, I've finished making 5 invitations so far, about 55 to go. Sigh.

Tuxedo time

Yesterday was highly productive, wedding-wise. In the afternoon, Jeff and I met up with Leia and Peter at Men's Wearhouse on Avenue of the Americas (which was just around the corner from Kleinfeld.)

It took some persuading to get our salesman to let Jeff try on the tux style we wanted (I think he was lazy), but eventually Jeff did get to try on a jacket with coattails, and we all agreed that he looked slick. So we selected this style for Jeffy:

Joseph & Feiss Full Dress Tails via Men's Wearhouse

I think the white vest and tie are a nice alternative to Jeff's desire for an all-white tuxedo. It's a really formal look for him, but hey, it's his wedding day! Plus, he liked how he felt in it, which is the most important thing.

For the groomsmen, we opted for a slightly less formal look within the same designer:

Joseph & Feiss One-Button Notch Lapel via Men's Wearhouse

For the vests, I picked the pale pink herringbone vest with long necktie for the groomsmen, and the white herringbone vest and long necktie for the father of the groom:

I initially wanted to have the Best Man wear a bow tie to differentiate himself, but I think we will distinguish him with a pink boutonniere that will match Jeffy, and we will not put boutonnieres on everyone else.

So the groom's tuxes are picked! It was pretty painless. Now they all have to get measured at a Men's Wearhouse near them, which is convenient since the groomsmen are in New Jersey, DC, California and New Hampshire. Then the tuxes will all be delivered to the Men's Wearhouse near the wedding 2 days before.

After Men's Wearhouse, we went to Crate and Barrel and painstakingly selected the china and flatware for our registry. We both experienced sticker-shock, and I know that the price is part of the reason why people put china on their wedding registries in the first place, but still... yikes. We decided against putting stemware on the registry, because we really don't have the space for that in our place right now. We had a lot of fun browsing the rest of the store for the remaining registry items, most of which we already selected online.

Today is SUPERBOWL SUNDAY! We're hosting Jeff's dad, brother and sister-in-law for the event, so the apartment looks better than it's ever looked. I was up until 4am on Friday scrubbing every surface of the kitchen until it sparkled. The menu is fully planned, and right now Jeff and I are just nursing hangovers until everyone arrives. As far as wedding planning goes, I may try to knock out a few more invitations today, we'll see how it goes. Happy Sunday, everyone!