The Bold and the Beautiful

I feel really excited about our color palette which Dan and I just solidified (at least in my mind) today.

Before I reveal any colors or ideas you all have to read our thought process and research. I don't want you all to skip to the colors and go "oh okay, goodbye blog. cya tomorrow." Hehe

So anyway awhile ago Dan and I were thinking of an accent color. We decided on one and perhaps a secondary color. Though we didn't have any ideas on how to incorporate the colors into the whole wedding. This morning I was looking for an invitation vendor. I'm very hesitant about the invitations but with try and accept that they're a necessity.

Anyway, I was looking at some invitation ideas and started thinking about colors and winter or almost winter weddings ideas. I liked some of the ideas that the invitation website had for winter themed weddings. Dan sent me some links that helped to get my head brainstorming. (Hey reader, is the suspense killing you yet?)

So I started thinking of how we could use these two colors to their fullest. I started thinking about table settings, dresses, tuxes and such. Trying to tie it all in. I was looking through some ideas of table place cards and it hit me.

While I want some element of surprise on the day I'm going to hide some of the actual details/ideas from you all. So the theme/color palette is Black and White formal affair with subtle but bold punches of red. The deepest red possible, think blackish red similar to blood red. Though don't take the blood red comparison to mean anything cryptic, it's just a very distinct color of red. Another smaller secondary color will be silver but possible a matte/tarnished silver. Not too bright to stick out too much. The eye catching color will be red.

I'll give you an example to demonstrate my idea. For me the bride I need to have these three colors in my outfit. White: Dress (how easy) Black: perhaps a purse or other accessory Red: Bouquet (I was already leaning towards a red rose bouquet)

With these colors in mind now I just have to incorporate them in all aspects of the wedding. Who knew I would be so matchy matchy but I really like this scheme and hope to pull it off in a simple and elegant way. If any of you have decoration ideas please let me know. I would love to hear your input.

10 days later?

Wait a minute. Didn't I just order the dress on Jan 16th? Yes, yes I did.

They gave me an expected date of Feb 26th but it came in after 10 days. I don't really know how an assembly line can make a dress so fast, not to mention ship it from China. We all know these dresses are not made in the US. I may skeptical but this time line doesn't seem to add up.

Unfortunately, I don't know if there is anyway to prove that this dress didn't come from another store. Though trust me if that dress so much has one single bead out of place I am denying it and either forcing them to get me a different gown or a full refund. I've heard a lot of horror stories from customer service at David's Bridal and I am regretting buying my dress from them. While everything has a good chance to work out right, trust me I'm going to worry until that day comes. It is in my nature to worry about everything until I am proven wrong.

So Becky and Shannon I call upon you two to get ready to inspect the dress with me. We shall become detectives in our own right with magnifying glass in hand. I don't want to miss anything cause we all know that once the dress leaves the store David's Bridal will no longer claim it is theirs.

All I have to say is ugh, I really didn't want to deal with this until late Feb. and not Feb5th. I guess the sooner the better in case something goes wrong.

What is the Bride's Trousseau?

The definition of this french word is the personal outfit of the bride: clothes, accessories and linens. I'm not sure what the linens refer to but lets just say a handkerchief for my tears of joy.

So the list of stuff I need to get is follows (this is in access of the dress)
headpiece and veil
bustier (corset just cause I'm adventurous)
pantyhose/stockings
garter
petticoat/slip (poofy for fullness of dress)
shoes
jewelry
wrap/cape/gloves (it's gonna be Nov so I gotta be prepared)
Purse (bc I didn't buy the dress with pockets)

Above all this I need something old, something new, something borrowed, and something blue.

I am really glad all the books/articles I have seen give a guide to the brides trousseau. I can't believe how naive I was to think the dress was the hard part. I can't see myself trying on the bustier and jumping up and down saying "This is the one, oh my I have to have this."

Hopefully, I can avoid the HIGH gouged prices at bridal salons. I got a tip from Dan's mother about a lingerie store in Champaign. Perhaps they will have a great quality bustier for a reasonable price, I'm not paying $79 for a piece of crap David's wants to sell me.

I'm gonna try and go shopping this weekend to at least track down some of this stuff. I also hear the internet is a good source for wedding stuff.

P.S. Hair style is still not decided. I need to find someone who has experience with hair pieces. If I want the hair style that I like. I need to add fullness to my hair...why do I have thin and fine hair? My answer is a double curse. Extra hair added to the trousseau, I think I can do that?

Yogathon for Haiti

Dan and I exercised today. That is an accomplishment in itself. We did it for a good cause too and it was fun to watch Dan do yoga for the first time. I'm not really all that experienced but this was his first time.

We went to a local yoga studio (Amara) to get our body, mind and soul aligned and to participate in their yogathon. Amara hosted three one hour classes by donation. The donations are going to UNICEF to aid in the relief efforts for Haiti.

I really wanted to donate some money to help out the Haitians and thought this was a great way. Not to mention we got something good out of it for ourselves.

I hope that Dan and I will continue to participate in yoga and to also help those less fortunate than ourselves. Keep things in perspective especially when spending a lot of money on just a wedding ceremony.

Keep Haiti in your minds and prayers as they recover from this tragedy.

Hair today, gone tomorrow

Well sorta anyway. I just booked a consultation with a hair stylist on Sat. I'm super excited to see what my wedding day hair could look like. This will also let me decide if I want a headband or hair comb. Also maybe Renee can help me decide the placement of a veil should I decide to get one.

If you are thinking, whoa she is moving fast with some of the smaller details, just hold your horses. I'm really excited to have my headpiece custom made for me with the flare and design that I want. So I need to decide which piece I want and start talking to the custom jewelry maker. I'm getting a great deal by having it custom made. One it will have the features I want and nothing that I have to compromise on. The woman has so many beads and crystals she lost me while describing what she could do. Also the base prices she quoted me for (with Swarovski Crystals) were so much less than the average price I could find. So I'm excited to have something that no other bride (up to that point) will have had. Perhaps it'll be my something new, a whole NEW design.

I hear Terre Haute is great that time of year...

It looks like I may have made too appealing of a joke answer to the poll.

Anyway, this last weekend was great and made me feel a lot better about the whole planning thing.  Photography was one of the big question marks for me before the weekend and now it is solved.  Now if only that would magically happen for decorations / flowers.  I want to echo Jeni's huge thanks to Becky for helping out this weekend, she reminded us (many times) to "Focus!" and startled us out of our glazed stares into the abyss of cakes and shiny things.
After missing a whole week of workouts due to being sick and traveling, Jeni and I got back on the slow-moving bus to health-town yesterday by working out.  We are planning to go again tonight.  We are also planning for the future to adjust our schedules in advance for travel weekends (theres gonna be a lot of those).

Oh where shall we go?

So this is a reminder to vote on our Honeymoon poll. If it were up to me, Dan and I would take a MONTH (!!!!) off work and just travel all over Europe. Though Hawaii / New Zealand also sounds awesome because it will be cold up here and warm there.

I think I can speak for both of us though that we are not lounging on the beach type of people. We need a place with some activities. So let us know what you think. If you don't want to comment on the blog then facebook either of us. I would love to hear what you all have to say.

If you choose Terre Haute, Indiana I will track you down. Grrr

Loves all and talk to you again soon.

Bridal Show Galore

Becky, Dan and I got our hiking shoes on and made the rounds at Madison's largest and grandest Bridal Show. From the first booth to the last we got so many good ideas, found vendors and even decided on some noes. To say the bridal show was a success is an understatement. Dan and I made a plan prior to going what vendors we wanted to focus on and stuck to that list. Plus Becky was an amazing note taker and kept Dan and I on track.

Instant replay brought to you by Jeni.

The first stand was a specialty chocolate confections vendor. While I'm not sure if we will use this vendor for anything I did have an awesome experience. They took my picture and put it on a lollipop. Now if you are think how they did it check back later and I'll take a picture and post it for you to see. I haven't eaten it yet so the chocolate may taste gross but hey I'm on a lollipop.

While walking around the outside we found some good photogs, some DJ's and cake places. Lots of cake, I'm talking every cake vendor (had to be 10-15) all had samples. What Dan and I learned from this... ICING IS GROSS. Whether it be fondant or buttercream neither of us liked it. Not to mention we don't really like sheet cake either. So we left cake as a no and we would find the only vendor selling cheesecake. The samples were delicious and I think *wink* this is our type of cake. The vendor gave us a really cool idea with ordering simple flavors and having a toppings table. That way all our guests can choose what kinda cheesecake they would like. Toppings ideas are fresh fruit, jams & chocolate sauce, really the sky is the limit. Well, our budget and Monona Terrace Catering abilities may really be the limiter. However, we decided we could perhaps buy the stuff ourselves and have the baker smuggle it in. Can you imagine a bill reading "Smuggling Fee $15"? It would be super funny.

About mid way through the show we happened upon an seamstress who specializes in wedding dress alterations. Let me tell you this woman was a life saver. She solidified my distaste of the Champaign David's Bridal and let me know why (THE EXACT REASONS WHY) my dress wasn't fitting my body. The answer is...drum roll please...a shorter waist than the average population. This was then confirmed later in the day with the Madison David's Bridal Alterations. With my mind being vindicated and also being more knowledgeable on the alterations needed. I was very happy. The woman at the show took the time to look at the photos and point out what needed to be changed. I was so grateful I'm almost inclined to use her for my alterations but will need to look in Urbana first. Having her in Madison is very inconvenient for me.

Towards the end is where Dan made a huge dent in our planning. While Becky and I were kinda tired and sick of the whole place, Dan landed upon an amazing (well we hope) photographing team. This husband and wife team were winners of theknot.com (our wedding helper) photographers of 2010. Who could ask for a better reference? Anyway he talked in detail with them and found great comfort in their style and how talented they are. Needless to say as of this morning they are our photographers. I talked in great length with Ben (the husband of the team) to get our questions answered. Since they were still free we had a contract drafted and signed and payed the deposit today. All I can say is Nov 6th they are now booked for the wedding extravaganza of the year.

This show was a blessing and kinda of last minute plan. When I decided to return to Madison to focus on my dress, Becky casually reminder me of the show. So we went and loved everything.

As a side note...Dan got so many compliments for being at the show as a groom and just so you all know I didn't have to trick or bribe him into coming. I just mentioned that I was going and I guess I assumed he would be there too. He was and it was a great to go there together.

P.S. Thanks again Becky for all your help during the show, organizing the shows pamphlets and dress shopping. Dan and I appreciate a ton all your efforts to help us along. :)

Say YES to the dress

So I tried on my dress again (third time) and got a final consultation on what size to get. After that I actually ordered my dress. I can't believe that I actually made that decision.

We will update you on the Bridal Show later when Becky, Dan and I are done looking through it all.

But alas I have a dress.

Back in Town

Dan and I made it to Madison. We are staying at Becky and Adrian's apartment for the weekend. Should be fun and nice to be in something other than a hotel room. Plus there is a HUGE TV!!!!
Thanks Becky and Adrian :)

I'm really excited to go to the bridal show tomorrow. Becky, Dan and I are going to trek there and try and find some of our missing vendors. We are also hoping to get some good ideas. I also hear there will be lots of cake. I'm going to take a break from my healthier eating and enjoy the delicious desserts.

Dan and I will try and update y'all after the show. Gogo vendors...sell me stuff.

Goodnight all.

We Have a New House!

Check out our new house.  We plan to reside there together soon!
http://picasaweb.google.com/dan.hoeflinger/GingerbreadHouse#5426711527548570754
hehe, well something like that.  We took a night mostly off planning to watch the second half up a movie and make this.  It was a fun time.  The roof fell 1.5 times :( but it all worked out in the end.
I'm looking forward to this weekend in Madison.  Hopefully we can get a good jump on picking and figuring out vendors for the smaller things in the wedding.  I personally have no clue about alot of the remaining things so we will have to feel it out as we go.
Goals for the weekend:
1) Finalize dress selection!
2) Get vendor small lists for : Music (DJ and maybe other), Decorations, Flowers,  Officiants
3) Find some time to relax and get better from being sick :(

The venue marks the spot.

So on Mon. We faxed in the deposit for the venue. I am glad to say that we now have the place officially booked and Dan and I can continue to plan. I was very nervous of finding a great venue for a wedding only 11 months away. Luckily, we snagged this place on one of the last Sat available in 2010. Believe me it wasn't easy either.

For me personally, I'm scared to plan the food. I'll gladly admit that I'm a boring eater, no flavour (I love British english) here please. Do you think I can just have mac & cheese or pizza for my wedding meal? Dan and I are hoping somewhere in the pages of the Monona Terrace Catering menu something will seem appetizing for all those invited. Keeping in mind of course food allergies and vegetarians (Shout-out to Betsy). Readers: Be prepared for us to ask you opinions and help on the food choice. We both will need it.

So to close I have one request. If anyone has any advise to give Dan and I pertaining to wedding shows. He and I are going to go to the huge extravaganza that is the Bridal Show in Madison and we don't really know what to plan for. Let us know what we can expect.

Loves

Dress Shopping Fiasco

WARNING!! Very long post!! TLDR I found my dress even with a bad experience.

I got a comment from a bridesmaid about my dress and thought I would elaborate. For those who this is the top post read the "Only Two Day" post first.

So since trying on some dresses on Jan 2nd I was feeling hesitant on the dress I really like. I feel it is super fancy and didn't know if it was right for the type of more casual wedding I want to have. I also wanted to show Dan's mother the dress.

A little more background information...I wanted to find a gown from David's Bridal (a chain store). The nice thing about a chain is that they have a location near every bridesmaid that I have (3 cities) and also there is one in Champaign IL and Madison WI. This I thought would allow me to try on dresses with my family and friends in Madison and then re-try on for the people down here. This was my intention on Sun. I wanted to decide if the dress was really right by putting it on again. I always second guess myself and needed some more time with the gown.

I walked into the store and was greeted kindly by the reception person and that is where the customer service ended. My consultant (if you can call her that) asked me my name in a whisper because she couldn't remember what the receptionist said to her. She never introduced herself nor asked Dan who he was or his name. So we went on our way, I feel I know the drill already and was getting set to try on the dresses. So with a clip-board in hand Stacy couldn't figure out much about what sizes I needed or anything. I told her my bra size which then resulted in her handing me two bras that weren't the right size saying "One of these should work." After that I was left to stand in my bra and slip for quite awhile before she even came back. While I was outside the dressing room (yes in undergarments tehee) she came up to me and said they she couldn't find any of the dresses that I wanted to try on. I was shocked as I had 5 dresses with two being contenders for the real thing and they didn't have any. So she left and eventually came back with one dress. The halter top wasn't my favorite so at least I could rule that style out and stick with the cap-sleeves/off the shoulder straps dresses. Eventually, she told me that I could go and look through the dresses and that she would try and find some that she thought I would like. I walked into the aisle and it didn't take long before I found it (my dress). I grabbed it and Dan's mother and I went back to the dressing room. Once Stacy came back she asked me about the dress (I was thinking did she not know this was on the list). I told her this was the dress that I was sure was the "one". So I got in it and remembered why I liked it so much. I came out of the dressing room (not hard since she dressed me with the door open) and saw Dan and his mom's faces light up. I knew from that moment that they both loved it and remembering back to Madison, everyone loved it there too. This is when I got annoyed, Stacy asked me what I liked and didn't like about the dress. I definitely told her this is the one multiple times and she had the nerve to ask me what I didn't like about the dress. After that I kinda dismissed much of what she said. To me the personalization of Beth at the Madison store far out weighs anything I experienced here. Stacy seemed like she just wanted the sale and to get her commission. She kept trying to get me to commit to the gown. The alteration woman came over and answered a few questions but didn't approach me very kindly. She abrasively told me the dress didn't fit and I would need a larger size. I was quite shocked because I didn't realize until some research last night that the gowns run really small. I feel like I'm a slender petite woman being forced into the idea that I need a gown 8 sizes larger than my pant size. That just left me horrified and the normal, Ugh I'm so fat feeling. I know that I'm not but neither of the sales people tried to help me understand based on measurements and that my waist (rib cage) is much larger in proportion to my bust and hips. This causes my need for a much larger size.

All in all this experience left me feeling drained and in doubt about getting a fancier dress in general. It took a lot of thinking and crying yesterday to realize that I shouldn't care about anything but what I look like in the dress. I think it looks very nice and hopefully if I get the larger size I won't have to alter it down 2 or 4 sizes. That would make me upset once again. However, I have learned that David's Bridal in Champaign is not somewhere I would like to shop nor give my money too. If I end up buying this dress (I still want another opinion about altering) I am buying it in Madison even if that means I have to drive up there a lot. The Madison location was by far a better experience and my consultant there Beth deserves every bit of her commission when I purchase the gown.

At least I got one thing accomplished from my visit yesterday. I have been VERY wrong in my thinking that the dress isn't right for me and can say without a doubt that I want to wear that gown on my big day. I hope for those who see it that day agree that it is just right for me.

Love everyone and thanks for letting me vent a little.

Phew! Close Call

Whoops. Glad I was able to restore that. Time to stop messing with stuff and almost nuking our site.
I'll try and post tonight and give an update.  See ya then.

Only Two Days :(

Why are weekends so short? I feel I did so much this weekend but got so little done. Here is a recap.

Dan and I have stuck to our exercise goals so far. It seems strange but exercising doesn't really take all that long to do. On Fri. Dan and I used the Wii Fit to get some calories burned and get some use out of Dan's day 1 present. There is this advanced step program that I find fun and challenging. Hopefully it won't get boring too fast. It was fun to have some competition too. Oh and btw my Wii Fit age is 20. I'm five years younger, YAY!

On Sat. Dan's mother invited me to a yoga class. This was the first time I actually did yoga with an instructor in person. I've done some online classes and with the Wii. It is a totally different experience in a class. Plus I got to use a mat and other accessories that I don't have at home. I would love to go back to a yoga class but need it to be a little shorter (1.5 hours is too long).

After a tumultuous dress shopping experience which no less made we feel terrible about the dress I am most likely to buy, I put all my energy into a 20 min workout. I did this stair elliptical type of machine. It was great to feel some exhaustion after.

Other than that Dan and I just need to finalize some details. The room deposit is due in a few days so we will get that done and have our venue set for good.

I'm ready for this week to be here and all the great wedding stuff I'm going to attempt to do.
I promise I'll get more done this week. I feel behind but perhaps thats just me. Hehe

Oh noes!

I was mucking around in the settings trying to do some cool stuff and lost almost everything in the layout pictures etc.  !!!
I will try to recover it but I think I'll have to rebuild it from scratch.  Pardon my dust.  Sorry!
/sigh

/sad

Time flies

Wow 11 already ...
Hehe its been a while since I've posted.  Happy New Year!
A lot has happened, Jeni has caught you up with a lot of it.

However, big news!  We have a venue!  and more importantly a date!
Were are having the wedding and the reception in the Monona Terrace in Madison, Wisconsin.  (Link to the right ===>)  Were in the Community Terrace, check out the 360 degree tour through the link.
Save the date for Saturday, Nov. 6th.  I'm  excited about this place, its a really cool building with an amazing view.
The venue selection was a bit of ordeal though.  The running theme throughout all this planning is that neither Jeni or I are at all decisive. We have to continuously help each other out when were having issues making a decision.  We ended up breaking out the trusty pro / con list to compare a few venues.  Then we broke it down to categories and figured out what was most important to us and which venue was the best in each of these categories.  It took a lot of work and a bit of a leap of faith to get it booked but its done (well when we sign the contract I have in front of me).  The leap of faith came because we were intending to visit it last weekend in Madison but it was closed for maintenance ... surprise!   I think it will work out alright.

We decided a few other things including some tentative colors:  White, Black, Red, and maybe a splash of Yellow.  I kinda just made this decision, let me know in the comments if this is weird because I have no idea about this sort of thing.
Speaking of reader interaction, check out the poll I have to the bottom right.  I want more votes, and comments!  Let us know you are here; what is interesting and what isn't.  Its nice to see whos on here.

Last bit: we also have a workout plan, three days a week, Sunday, Wednesday, Friday.  We gotta get down to our fightin' wedding weights.
303 days and counting!

The saga continues...

So when I was finished trying on a few dresses it was time for some bridesmaids styles. My sister and Becky (two bridesmaids) tried on a couple styles. I'm pretty sure they have chosen the dresses they want. Oh yeah, for those of you not familiar yet. I'm not going with the traditional look for the bridesmaids. First and foremost I want the dress to be reusable. So I chose the color black. I just have some general guidelines because it still is my wedding, amirite? I looked through the styles at David's Bridal and will let them chose from a list of the dresses I like. A few of my bridesmaids may be using dresses they already have. Whatever they chose I know they will look great.

Other than that Dan and I went to a hockey game in which WI just edged some no name team that I don't even remember. The night was fun and we got to hang out with some of our Madison friends. Plus, Dan really likes hockey and wishes he was on the ice. *In HS and college he played a lot of hockey and was usually the goalie. Better watch out I'm not marrying a sieve.

For Sun we got right on the road and made it home with enough time to relax a bit. That drive gets longer and longer I swear it does. I'm definitely not looking forward to all the drives back to Madison for wedding stuff.

BTW we will be in town next (for those Madisonians) on the weekend of Feb 5th for the Culver's (ugh) Camp Randall Hockey Classic. Its an outdoor hockey game in Feb and I hope the weather is nicer than this week.

Tata for now!

Madison Trip...Success

To start this blog off HAPPY NEW YEAR.

This weekend, while long was very successful. We set out on the road Thurs. and arrived in Madison around 4pm. We met up with friends and got to show off my beautiful ring. It was a fun New Years Eve and was glad I got to spend it with my friends. Even though there was a lot of EtOH flowing. Don't drink wine out of a solo cup... you have now been warned.

On Fri. we spent the afternoon with my mom. We ate some lunch, did some sledding and got some important wedding stuff out of the way. I believe Dan and I have a guest list that is almost complete. We are still working out some details but think the list will work with the venue we like. I guess we just have to find a date and then think of what we want to do with the invites.

Interjection... go and see the movie Up in the Air. Dan and I saw it this weekend and it was great.

On Sat. Dan and I had a couple appointments. We went to see a ballroom at the Madison Concourse Hotel. We both left the hotel thinking it was better than we had thought a hotel would be. The room is still boring but the hotel staff seem to know what they are doing. So I guess this hotel is a serious contender for a venue. After this we made our way over to Monona Terrace. To our surprise the building was closed. :( So we still have not seem our number 1 choice yet. We might have to send in a liaison to scope it out or trust the Terrace's photos.
Once 1pm rolled around things got interesting. We went dress shopping and amongst the 10-15 dresses I tried on a few stood out. I think I have found the dress and only need to be a little decisive. I have always had trouble making a decision on things of this nature. Just ask my Mom what happens when I shop for glasses.

Well off to work today and this is getting quite long. I'll see what I can add later or perhaps Dan will add his weekend experience.

Dress shopping in Madison ... More at 11.