I got two other big items checked off my to do list. They were the invitations and a dress for the reception.
To start with the simple one. We finally finished designing and writing our invitations and ordered them. This was a very fun process and I really enjoyed using Dan and my creativity to make one of a kind invitations. Of course I am still keeping them a secret and in fact no one knows what they look like or even concepts except the Stationer, Dan and I. We are keeping it that way so that you all can see them at the same time. My lips are sealed.
Moving on and this happens to be a good transition. So as many of you may see on the banner to the right. One rule that will be followed to a t is that the bride will be dancing as long as the DJ plays. This rule presented a problem. How in the world is my petite frame going to handle my huge and cumbersome wedding gown all night? I really don't want cuts on my shoulders and sweat dripping all over it. I am planning to donate the dress to a charity to benefit a good cause (haven't determined one just yet) but I don't just want it laying around the house. So there are two good reasons for another dress. One final reason is why not have two dress, it's my day.
So on Sat my bridesmaid Shannon and I tackled this challenge in the Mall of America. This great mall is the mecca for all shopping. Shannon and I were casually shopping when she mentioned that J Crew always has cute, simple, nice and slightly casual attire. Which is perfect for me as I'm not a flashy person and don't really like highly over the top outfits. So as we ventured into J Crew I was slowly looking at the racks and found a nice white casual dress. I grabbed my size which happened to be the only size available so I went and grabbed another dress in a size up. Shannon and I were here to either get a dress or get a size so I could order one online. After these dresses we found (only really a couple dresses in store) I went to try them on. The first white dress turned out to look super bad. It didn't my frame at all, that back and front pleats we too large and didn't lay flat. This got me bummed.
The other dress was just for sizing purposes. It was a short, strapless cocktail dress with raised metallic stripes. Certainly not my style or is it. Low and behold the dress I dismissed to swiftly actually turned out to be PERFECT. Shannon and the nice gentleman immediately changed attitudes when they saw it and I'm pretty sure I was beaming. I felt amazing in it. It fit perfectly (doesn't need any alterations) and looked so cute. Not to mention it is ivory (still bride like) and is a fun more casual dress perfect for dancing in. Though I was still a little cautious in wanting it because I am trying to be less spontaneous with shopping. I like to think my purchases over and debate if I really want it.
After some deep contemplation in the store I decided to go for it. I then realized I had no idea what it cost. Shannon the shopping savvy person that she is said don't be surprised if it is up near $200. This took me down a notch and I just had to know. As I got the price tag out and turned it over I noticed my heart stop beating. $128!!!!!!!!!!! What, is that even possible. While some of you out there may think that is a lot of money (it is) but not compared to the alternative. I found bridesmaids dress I liked but was indecisive about it and that one started at $169 and would have needed alterations. So this dress was a steal not to mention no sales tax being that I bought it in MN. All that combined with a 15% discount made the dress a little more than $100. Totally perfect for my budget and to allow me the second dress I really wanted.
My only problem with this dress is that now I need another pair of dancing shoes to match. I was already gonna buy dancing shoes but now I need to match the dress. So I get tons more fun looking at the internet shoes stores to find the next perfect pair of shoes.
Here is the link to the dress. The dress is shown in grey and I got it in the natural color. Just select natural and you will see what it looks like (sorta its looks whiter in the pic it is more ivory in person). Hope you like it.
http://www.jcrew.com/AST/Browse/WomenBrowse/Women_Feature_Assortment/NewArrivals/dresses/PRDOVR~26673/26673.jsp
Thursday, May 27, 2010
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Making three checkmarks
This last weekend (Fri included) was very productive for wedding plans. Venue, invitations and another dress were all part of the agenda.
Today I will recap the catering meeting.
My mom and I ventured down to the Monona Terrace to meet with our catering manager Sue. I felt very prepared for this meeting and had all my notes questions and information organized. Not to mention that I sent Sue a copy of my materials early so she could get prepared herself. Though for those who know me understand that all this preparation still didn't stop me from worrying about the meeting. Ugh, I gotta do something about worrying.
We all started out simple, just filling out some general information about the time flow of the day. We got worked out when we can move into the room and went over when stuff would happen. Since Dan and I are having the ceremony and reception all in the same room there is some logistic details to determine. Also I don't really want my guests to be enjoying hors d'oeuvres when workers are tearing down the ceremony. So there are these little things we need to work with.
I was quite happy to see an actual floorplan that didn't include 29 tables spread through-out the entire room. This one had all the stuff Dan and I need in the room and also we get to change it as we see fit. One thing I really liked was having the ceremony off the pre-placed dance floor. This doesn't seem to really work well with all the stuff we need in the room. That being said the ceremony may have to be on the dance floor and if it is I hope I don't clomp clomp too much. Hehe I did buy heels even if they are little ones.
We decided on the menu finally and figured out the bar option and general place settings. This will help me to better determine the cost associated with feeding 100+ people and make sure we get everyone something good to eat. The menu will go up on this site a little closer to when the invitations go out. Cuz we'll be needing y'all to choose what you would like to eat.
One thing we decided was the cake display and cutting. If you all remember awhile back I was quite worried about being able to display the cake and have a cutting. Well we resolved this issue so that is the easiest for both parties involved. Since Dan and I will be sitting at a table all to our own (its called a sweetheart table) we will have a lot of room for extra stuff. In that extra space will be a specially decorated cheesecake (with fresh fruit) for our cutting. This will allow us to cut a cake and also for everyone to see it happen. If we waited for the desserts to come out not everyone would be paying attention. I know when I see cake I get all foggy eyed and super hungry.
So much other stuff was discussed that I can't go over it all. Just a little taste into the intricate details that need to be decided during the planning process. I feel like I could easily plan a wedding after this one and if anyone is looking for a planner you know where to find me. Too bad so many of you are already married. :)
Today I will recap the catering meeting.
My mom and I ventured down to the Monona Terrace to meet with our catering manager Sue. I felt very prepared for this meeting and had all my notes questions and information organized. Not to mention that I sent Sue a copy of my materials early so she could get prepared herself. Though for those who know me understand that all this preparation still didn't stop me from worrying about the meeting. Ugh, I gotta do something about worrying.
We all started out simple, just filling out some general information about the time flow of the day. We got worked out when we can move into the room and went over when stuff would happen. Since Dan and I are having the ceremony and reception all in the same room there is some logistic details to determine. Also I don't really want my guests to be enjoying hors d'oeuvres when workers are tearing down the ceremony. So there are these little things we need to work with.
I was quite happy to see an actual floorplan that didn't include 29 tables spread through-out the entire room. This one had all the stuff Dan and I need in the room and also we get to change it as we see fit. One thing I really liked was having the ceremony off the pre-placed dance floor. This doesn't seem to really work well with all the stuff we need in the room. That being said the ceremony may have to be on the dance floor and if it is I hope I don't clomp clomp too much. Hehe I did buy heels even if they are little ones.
We decided on the menu finally and figured out the bar option and general place settings. This will help me to better determine the cost associated with feeding 100+ people and make sure we get everyone something good to eat. The menu will go up on this site a little closer to when the invitations go out. Cuz we'll be needing y'all to choose what you would like to eat.
One thing we decided was the cake display and cutting. If you all remember awhile back I was quite worried about being able to display the cake and have a cutting. Well we resolved this issue so that is the easiest for both parties involved. Since Dan and I will be sitting at a table all to our own (its called a sweetheart table) we will have a lot of room for extra stuff. In that extra space will be a specially decorated cheesecake (with fresh fruit) for our cutting. This will allow us to cut a cake and also for everyone to see it happen. If we waited for the desserts to come out not everyone would be paying attention. I know when I see cake I get all foggy eyed and super hungry.
So much other stuff was discussed that I can't go over it all. Just a little taste into the intricate details that need to be decided during the planning process. I feel like I could easily plan a wedding after this one and if anyone is looking for a planner you know where to find me. Too bad so many of you are already married. :)
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Up, Up and Away
This weekend while traveling many many miles north I will be making a few stops. The first stop is tom evening when James (groomsman), Dan and I go to watch Conan thrill us live. I had seen Conan while he was host of Late Night. It was really fun and the welcoming of the guests which is not on TV was very funny and memorable. This I hope is nothing short of that. He also has some surprise celebrities that show up and participate. It'll be exciting to see what celebrity we get.
After Chicago it is just a small leap up to Madison. I will be spending a lot of Fri in meetings with two vendors. The first is my huge catering meeting that I discussed earlier. After that it is off to the Paper Deli for my invitations. I am really excited to place the order for our invitations. I am keeping them secret from all you readers so that you have a nice surprise in the mail.
Finally on Fri afternoon I will be taking the final leg of my journey by arriving in Minneapolis / St. Paul for the weekend. It is on of my bridesmaid's bachelorette party and I wouldn't miss it for the world. I shall make sure that Shannon enters married life with one final night of single hood. I have no idea what is on the agenda other than dinner but it should be a great weekend nonetheless.
After the weekend is over and I have arrived back in Urbana it will be back to the grind. I have a lot of centerpiece ideas and would love to get them going. Not to mention its about time Dan and I start solidifying our honeymoon and probably begin reserving stuff.
Have a great weekend everyone and see you all next week.
After Chicago it is just a small leap up to Madison. I will be spending a lot of Fri in meetings with two vendors. The first is my huge catering meeting that I discussed earlier. After that it is off to the Paper Deli for my invitations. I am really excited to place the order for our invitations. I am keeping them secret from all you readers so that you have a nice surprise in the mail.
Finally on Fri afternoon I will be taking the final leg of my journey by arriving in Minneapolis / St. Paul for the weekend. It is on of my bridesmaid's bachelorette party and I wouldn't miss it for the world. I shall make sure that Shannon enters married life with one final night of single hood. I have no idea what is on the agenda other than dinner but it should be a great weekend nonetheless.
After the weekend is over and I have arrived back in Urbana it will be back to the grind. I have a lot of centerpiece ideas and would love to get them going. Not to mention its about time Dan and I start solidifying our honeymoon and probably begin reserving stuff.
Have a great weekend everyone and see you all next week.
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
Shoes for a day
On Sat I set up my pay pal account to get prepared for some online purchasing. I was able to finally make a decision on my veil. I bought it from a seller on Etsy.com (I wrote about the site awhile back) and am excited to have it delivered. I just got the tracking number today and so it should be here this week. The seller had a very good reputation on the site and seems to do beautiful work for a fraction of the cost in bridal salons. I will try anything in order to save some money. Unless I find something I absolutely have to have.
That brings me to my next purchase and I have to say this one I didn't go cheap on. My shoes are amazing and when I first saw them I knew they were way to expensive. So I kept looking and looking. All the time thinking about those other shoes and just wishing I could find a good alternative. The shoes took my breath away and I feel they are absolutely perfect for me and my wedding. Also to make matters better for Dan, I really like them with jeans so after the wedding they won't just go in the closet and never come out. I feel the investment in these shoes is well worth it and I feel better than spending less money on shoes I only sorta like. I wore them a bit tonight and tried them with my wedding dress. I think you all will really like it.
That brings me to my next purchase and I have to say this one I didn't go cheap on. My shoes are amazing and when I first saw them I knew they were way to expensive. So I kept looking and looking. All the time thinking about those other shoes and just wishing I could find a good alternative. The shoes took my breath away and I feel they are absolutely perfect for me and my wedding. Also to make matters better for Dan, I really like them with jeans so after the wedding they won't just go in the closet and never come out. I feel the investment in these shoes is well worth it and I feel better than spending less money on shoes I only sorta like. I wore them a bit tonight and tried them with my wedding dress. I think you all will really like it.
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| Wedding Shoes |
Thursday, May 13, 2010
Food for Thought
Due to my obsession with completing tasks WAY before they need to be done I have successfully weaseled my way to meeting with my catering manager 3 months earlier than I would be assigned one. Tehee, I sure know how to bend the rules to allow me to get this stuff done now rather than later. That being said I had a lot of work do to in order to be prepared.
Over the course of last week and earlier this week I have compiled all the information I have for the Monona Terrace. Along with my reference books and the internet I feel pretty informed on what I should expect to be asked and all I need to do is put all my thoughts in one place. If that's even possible.
I turned to my trusty Excel spreadsheet and began with the simple questions Monona Catering listed in their handbook. This list covers time lines for the event, food service choices and room set-up. It also covers my outside vendors, decor and other certain smaller details. For that I am glad I got it all figured out or do I.
While I have answered their questions and compiled it into a pretty list they have quite their work cut out for them. I have at least one question for each and every item on their list with a whole lot more about random stuff. These questions are generally thanks to my other resources about what to know and ask. I have over 100 questions. I am a nut case and want to know about every little detail. Every dime they are taking from me and exactly how the day will go. I think some would call me a control freak, I would call myself an informed buyer. That being said I think Sue may regret scheduling the meeting at 10am. She will need a lot of coffee to make it out of there awake.
Every out there reading...wish me luck that I can craft an amazing wedding day for you all to witness. It is hard work but with my attention to detail it should be a pretty seamless event. Or so I hope.
Over the course of last week and earlier this week I have compiled all the information I have for the Monona Terrace. Along with my reference books and the internet I feel pretty informed on what I should expect to be asked and all I need to do is put all my thoughts in one place. If that's even possible.
I turned to my trusty Excel spreadsheet and began with the simple questions Monona Catering listed in their handbook. This list covers time lines for the event, food service choices and room set-up. It also covers my outside vendors, decor and other certain smaller details. For that I am glad I got it all figured out or do I.
While I have answered their questions and compiled it into a pretty list they have quite their work cut out for them. I have at least one question for each and every item on their list with a whole lot more about random stuff. These questions are generally thanks to my other resources about what to know and ask. I have over 100 questions. I am a nut case and want to know about every little detail. Every dime they are taking from me and exactly how the day will go. I think some would call me a control freak, I would call myself an informed buyer. That being said I think Sue may regret scheduling the meeting at 10am. She will need a lot of coffee to make it out of there awake.
Every out there reading...wish me luck that I can craft an amazing wedding day for you all to witness. It is hard work but with my attention to detail it should be a pretty seamless event. Or so I hope.
Monday, May 10, 2010
Planning the Ceremony
So we've started to try to plan the ceremony. The Officiant gave us this big packet to go over and go through. He eventually will be the one to write the ceremony, but he is also very enthusiastic about matching the ceremony to fit our personalities. This is both a good and a bad thing. It is good in that it should be a fun ceremony which we are happy with and which fits with the wedding theme and us as a whole, but also bad in that we have to do a lot of work to help design the ceremony so that he can take that as input.
The packet he gave us consists of a bunch of samples of ceremony scripts grouped into parts of the ceremony. The goal is to go through that packet and pick out which pieces best fit what we want for the ceremony and make notes as to what we like / dislike of the choices given. With that information he will craft us a ceremony which hopefully matches what we want, but is also unique to us and not just the pieces in the packet stuck together. He says he writes an original ceremony for everyone he marries.
In our normal organized way, I've made up a spreadsheet for us to mark our selections and comments throughout the workbook. Hopefully this allows us both a place to try and decide how our ceremony will go.
Sorry I haven't posted in a while, I don't really have an excuse, but hi again and thanks for reading!
The packet he gave us consists of a bunch of samples of ceremony scripts grouped into parts of the ceremony. The goal is to go through that packet and pick out which pieces best fit what we want for the ceremony and make notes as to what we like / dislike of the choices given. With that information he will craft us a ceremony which hopefully matches what we want, but is also unique to us and not just the pieces in the packet stuck together. He says he writes an original ceremony for everyone he marries.
In our normal organized way, I've made up a spreadsheet for us to mark our selections and comments throughout the workbook. Hopefully this allows us both a place to try and decide how our ceremony will go.
Sorry I haven't posted in a while, I don't really have an excuse, but hi again and thanks for reading!
Sunday, May 9, 2010
The Attack of the Moms
Happy Mother's / G-mother's Day to all you moms out there. Someday I will join you but for now I am content to let you have this day. I hope each one of you has a nice time with the family you get to spend your time with. I would love to spend time with my mom and gma but I just live to far away. The afternoon was spent with Dan's family with his grandparents making the trip over. It was a nice day filled with so much food and good conversation.
But alas off to more wedding planning and work tom. Cya then.
But alas off to more wedding planning and work tom. Cya then.
Thursday, May 6, 2010
184 days = 6 months
It is officially May 6th, 2010 and that means in 6 months Dan and I will be getting married. (collective pause)
Now that the shock has worn off and my face has returned to normal (see below link) I can begin to get back to work.
http://www.surfacezero.com/g503/data/500/shock_face_copy.jpg
I promise the face is a result of knowing I have a lot to get done in 6 months. :) There is not a lot of time and totally too much work to be done. I need to spend some time today getting some serious wedding planning over with.
One small project I am working on is the invitation wording and possibly a monogram. This has been kinda slow due to designers block. I know for sure that traditional and proper etiquette isn't for me. So it's hard to write the invitations without missing necessary components and not sounding to formal. I'm really trying my hardest to remove as much formality as I can from our wedding. It is quite difficult.
Hopefully I'll have enough concentration to last the work day and then be inspired to work on the wedding. If not at least I'm ahead enough and even I deserve to procrastinate a little right. Planning 3 months ahead of schedule instead of 4 is still reasonable. Hehe
Now that the shock has worn off and my face has returned to normal (see below link) I can begin to get back to work.
http://www.surfacezero.com/g503/data/500/shock_face_copy.jpg
I promise the face is a result of knowing I have a lot to get done in 6 months. :) There is not a lot of time and totally too much work to be done. I need to spend some time today getting some serious wedding planning over with.
One small project I am working on is the invitation wording and possibly a monogram. This has been kinda slow due to designers block. I know for sure that traditional and proper etiquette isn't for me. So it's hard to write the invitations without missing necessary components and not sounding to formal. I'm really trying my hardest to remove as much formality as I can from our wedding. It is quite difficult.
Hopefully I'll have enough concentration to last the work day and then be inspired to work on the wedding. If not at least I'm ahead enough and even I deserve to procrastinate a little right. Planning 3 months ahead of schedule instead of 4 is still reasonable. Hehe
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
A Long Hiatus
I am back. This last three weeks have been the busiest for work yet. It all finished up this last weekend with a very long day Fri and a sorta long day Sun. In between that was my 26th birthday.
I had a nice day which Dan started by making me pancakes with fresh strawberries. To highlight the hectic work schedule he did this at 6am on Sat morning. I just couldn't sleep in as I was used to getting up so early. It was fun to get to relax and have breakfast brought to me. I did eat way too much and took a nap shortly after I was done. I blame the sudden lapse back into sleep from the food coma of all those delicious pancakes. During the afternoon we went shopping for a couple b-day presents. The first is a set of rollerblades (Dan still needs to order from online) and a hockey stick. I guess he wants me to play street ball with him and I may just have to. First order of business though is to regain my skating prowess. I need to channel the skills I developed down at our local skate rink. Gotta love skating in circles at Molten's. The second gift was a pair of earrings. Dan and I went to the mall and shopped the jewelry stores for my wedding earrings. I thought it would be a nice mixed gift and also so I could get a nicer pair. The link below is my selection. However, I didn't get them with Blue Topaz, mine are aquamarine a slightly less blue color but still gorgeous.
http://www.zales.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3864006&kpc=1
Right when I saw these earrings I knew I had to have them. Dan likes them as well and it made for an easy little pick up. I also get to cross the "something blue" off my list as my earrings are blue.
Dan and I went to a tapas restaurant (V Picasso) for dinner. For those who are not familiar with tapas, it is the spanish way to serve small portions of food. This way you can sorta sample many different menu selections. The funniest part of the dinner was that Dan used his gift certificate from Day 5 of Christmas. Dinner was super cheap as a result even though we indulged a lot. The food and wine was so good this time. The restaurant is quickly turning into one of my favorites in the area.
Other than that the weekend was just full of work and relaxation. I had yesterday off from work and didn't do all that much. I'm gonna make it a point to stay in better contact with the blog now that work has settled down. Cya all soon.
I had a nice day which Dan started by making me pancakes with fresh strawberries. To highlight the hectic work schedule he did this at 6am on Sat morning. I just couldn't sleep in as I was used to getting up so early. It was fun to get to relax and have breakfast brought to me. I did eat way too much and took a nap shortly after I was done. I blame the sudden lapse back into sleep from the food coma of all those delicious pancakes. During the afternoon we went shopping for a couple b-day presents. The first is a set of rollerblades (Dan still needs to order from online) and a hockey stick. I guess he wants me to play street ball with him and I may just have to. First order of business though is to regain my skating prowess. I need to channel the skills I developed down at our local skate rink. Gotta love skating in circles at Molten's. The second gift was a pair of earrings. Dan and I went to the mall and shopped the jewelry stores for my wedding earrings. I thought it would be a nice mixed gift and also so I could get a nicer pair. The link below is my selection. However, I didn't get them with Blue Topaz, mine are aquamarine a slightly less blue color but still gorgeous.
http://www.zales.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3864006&kpc=1
Right when I saw these earrings I knew I had to have them. Dan likes them as well and it made for an easy little pick up. I also get to cross the "something blue" off my list as my earrings are blue.
Dan and I went to a tapas restaurant (V Picasso) for dinner. For those who are not familiar with tapas, it is the spanish way to serve small portions of food. This way you can sorta sample many different menu selections. The funniest part of the dinner was that Dan used his gift certificate from Day 5 of Christmas. Dinner was super cheap as a result even though we indulged a lot. The food and wine was so good this time. The restaurant is quickly turning into one of my favorites in the area.
Other than that the weekend was just full of work and relaxation. I had yesterday off from work and didn't do all that much. I'm gonna make it a point to stay in better contact with the blog now that work has settled down. Cya all soon.
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