Pure Poetry

I saw the brown version of these Poetic Licence shoes over on Oh Happy Day. These would be such cute bridesmaid or wedding shoes. Comfortable heel height, strap so they won't fall off during dancing, and great for pictures.

Big Plans, Tight Budgets

Who wants a platinum wedding?? I do! I do!! But how can I get $300 a bottle champagne wedding on a six-pack of beer budget?


Hey, you're not the only one asking yourself that question. According to Time magazine, lots of brides are. Here's a little of what they're reporting:

"According to the Wedding Report, a research firm that compiles stats on the wedding industry, the average cost of an American wedding rose to $28,732 in 2007, as the festivities have grown increasingly elaborate and personalized. But for the first time in almost a decade, that number is forecast to drop slightly this year, to $28,704. Nearly half of caterers and event planners surveyed by the National Association of Catering Executives (NACE) in March said they were seeing declines in wedding spending in response to the economic slowdown; 12% even reported wedding cancellations because of financial concerns."

Now isn't that interesting. What's your take on this whole scale back situation? Have you found yourself dealing with it? Or it is just business as usual for you? Let me know...

Operation: Love Reunited

Yesterday I read about this great organization on Andrew Bryant's blog and had to share.

Operation: Love Reunited connects photographers with the families of enlisted US Military men and women and provides the family with a complimentary photography session. The session focus is on deployments– before and more importantly, after, when they reunite safely home with their families.

Although this isn't specifically related to wedding photography, I know that many of you out there are trying to plan a wedding while someone you love (fiance, partner, brother, father, sister, mother, friend) is in a war zone. I know many of you have had to cancel, re-schedule, move-up and move back weddings b/c of wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.

I also know how valuable these photos can be. Husband and I both worked for a year for the government in Iraq (non-military) and one of the last things we did before we left was have a portrait session done for our families...just in case. And if you think planning a wedding with a loved one in a war zone is difficult, then try planning the wedding FROM the war zone.

If you're part of a military family and would like to have this done please go to their website for more info and if you are a photographer please consider donating your time to this worthy cause. It really can make a huge difference in someone's life.

Affordable Bridesmaid Dresses

Aren't these two dresses adorable? The second one says it's black but it looks dark gray to me, which is the "it" color these days. And pink, of course, is a perennial favorite. The best part: each dress is only $150. Why even look at those bridesmaid dress companies?

A Bride in Need Deserves Help Indeed!

Calling all brides! Calling all brides!! It's time to bustle your dresses, strap on your Jimmy Choo wedding sandals, put your diamonds together and help a fellow sister in matrimony that is in dire need of your assistance.

This young bride reached out to us because she needs someone to re-book her vendors. You see, due to a family emergency, she's had to cancel her wedding completely. Can you imagine? Being so near "I do" and having to postpone everything? Unfortunately, they could lose their deposits unless one of you spectacular brides can help her re-book a few vendors, specifically the Loyola Alumni Chapel, Westminster Hall (reception), the Peabody Ragtime Ensemble (entertainment) and Signature Catering.

Rest assured she won't be making a profit from this, you'll pay the vendors directly. She'll only receive her deposits back, which will help her pay medical bills and take care of other necessary expenses.

If you can help, or know someone who can, give Mrs. Nearlywed a shout by clicking the "Email Me" button on the right. Thanks in advance for being fabulous!

We are ALL TOPS!

Right now I am so loving Christine Tremoulet for being passionate about her craft. Some of you have heard me say it over and over INTENTIONALITY! Here is a quote from her:

Several weeks ago, I heard Guy Kawasaki speak here in Houston. He has nothing to do with weddings - but lots to do with marketing. (Matter of fact, he is mentioned several times in Harry Beckwith's "Selling the Invisible" book.) He has a site called alltop.com which has different "channels" for different topics.

I shamelessly begged that they create a wedding channel. I sent them a list full of URLs to include. It finally launched today!

I Love That! That's so what this business and even more so Life is all about, being Intentional about something..."Anything".

Enough for the Life Lesson the other great news is -we're on the site! Head on over and take a peek at a great list of fantastic wedding blogs.

As soon as you're done there PLEASE head over to view Christine's and be blown away by her photography... Talk about being Intentional!!!

Giving Props

Being a green and white bride myself, I naturally gravitate towards that color scheme. I really love what Jacob and Rachel did with it and how unique their wedding centerpieces were. Using props on the table alongside flowers really made their centerpieces unique and my guess would be that they cost less since the use of fresh flowers was minimal. See if you can also spot the use of fauna in addition to the flora.

All photos credited to Sarah Bussey Photography







^ I know this HAS to be the first time you've seen a turtle shell used in a wedding. If it isn't then I definitely need to hear details.

Miss Me??

Well I'm back! And married to boot! Alas, now begins the long wait for pro pics. But don't fret, I'll stick with you through the next month or so and feed pretty wedding things your way till my pics come in and I can pick apart every detail of my wedding in excruciating detail.

Up now are these lovely baubles from Ben-Amun

Perspective

So when you're at your wedding and you realize that the napkins don't match the exact shade of fuchsia that your bridesmaids are wearing, think of this before you make yourself ugly with anger.



^ Gorgeous bride and amazing shot




^ The Earthquake begins and the photographer keeps clicking






^The aftermath

Photos found at Photoshelter...click to see more.

Getting With The Program

So we are now t-minus 3 days away from the wedding and we're running around taking care of all the small details that you can really only do at the last minute.

Some of those details are programs, menus, escort & place cards, and menu cards. There was just one thing I was sure of when it came to these things : I wanted to have nothing to do with them. Yep, I'm sick of the small details.

Sure, I COULD do them and probably save some money, but I'm at the point in my life where my time is more valuable to me so I don't mind throwing out some cash. And I never want to think about font, color, or paper again. So where do I go when I'm looking for someone craftier then me? Etsy of course.

Specifically the shop of Etsy seller andbear. I was browsing for programs and found these programs pictured below in her shop


^ The programs are one long piece of 110 lbs. cardstock with info on the front and back. And they are only $1.25 each. Naturally andbear can design these to fit you wedding colors/design. I was also psyched b/c in the listing it said she could also do other items like menus!

So I contacted andbear, told her the info I wanted on the programs, showed her my invites, and below is what she came up with!

^Click to enlarge


^Here is the back with the order of the service. I didn't want a giant booklet with tons of thank-yous and explanations. Like most things I just wanted something simple.


^And here are our menus! You can enlarge to see what we'll be dining on.

Andbear also designed escort cards, place cards and table numbers based off of our invites. So for 35 programs, 70 menus, 70 escort cards, 70 place cards, and 9 table number cards I only paid $180 plus shipping! That small investment was well worth keeping my sanity!

Invitations....

Our invitations are coming together! It is so exciting to see all the pieces fit together!

FI and I ordered our Main invitation from Paper-source, and I showed you the other day, so we are getting that letter pressed. We purchased the pocket folds from Paper Presentation as I blogged about earlier but they just came in the other day. The look great and the stardream silver is the perfect color!

We purchased the large sheets of Stardream Quartz from paper-source and had them cut down at Kinkos, along with our Stardream Mars Paper which we are using for the backing of the invitation. I love seeing the idea I had in my head starting to come to life.

I believe we even found the paper we want to line the envelopes, unfortunately the picture loading device is not working for me, it could be because I am posting at work? Tonight I will try to upload the pictures and show everyone!

Since we are using a pocket fold we need an A 7.5 Envelope--so we had to special order these. We had wanted to get them in the dark red, but Paper-Source only has them in so many colors so we ordered them in the Stardream Quartz. We are doing a trial of lining the envelopes tonight, so I will definitely take some pictures and share!

It is so exciting every day seeing different pieces of the project come together. Now FI and I are in the process of purchasing a printer, we are leaning towards an Epson, since we have heard rave reviews, but if anybody has any suggestions please let me know!

I will try to upload pictures later--I'm heading to Chicago tomorrow for one of my best friends Bachelorette party, but I will try to load them before I leave! Happy Memorial Day everyone!

In My Perfect Wedding World

My calla lily bouquet will look like this bride's! It's elegant, graceful, and pretty much perfect. Bravo to her florist for getting this classic 100% right.

All photos below credited to Evoke Photography from the wedding of Amy & Mike.

Registering for Sheets?

If sheets are on your registry then make sure you read this article in the Washington Post on how shops and manufacturers are cheating consumers...hint: Those 800 thread count sheets for $150 might not be as soft as you were hoping for.

Marching To Your Own Drummer

It's been a while since I featured a BadA$$ Bride, but this lady qualifies! Pink and white dress? Seen it. Black and white? Yeah seen that too. Pink, black, and white....the hair....the shoes...awesome.

Photos credited to John Michael Cooper of alt.f from the wedding of Staysi and David

Kate Landry Bow Frame Clutch

This is a little bit more girly then they type of thing I normally go for, but there is something about this purse that I really like. Maybe it's the sale price - $63.75

Thankfully with less then a week to go I've past the point of online shopping. Nothing I could order now would get to me on time without paying extra shipping...which would kill the whole point of getting good deals online. My pocketbook breathes a sigh of relief.

A Royal Wedding

This weekend the Queen's oldest grandson, Peter Phillips, married Canadian, Autumn Kelly. In a very unroyal move, the couple decided to sell exclusive photos to Hello! magazine for about $1 million dollars but that doesn't mean a few photos weren't snapped by the news agencies as the couple entered and exited the church.


^The Bride wore a $6,000 bespoke dress from British Designer Sassi Holford .


^She carried an elaborate if somewhat traditional bouquet. The crown was a loan from her new MIL Princess Ann


^The bridesmaid dresses were from Vera Wang






^Poor Princess Beatrice has inherited her Mother Fergie's style taste and not her Aunt Diana's


^Princess Ann was very appropriately dressed as the mother of the groom.


^And of course Prince William's girlfriend, Kate was there. He couldn't make it cause he was at another wedding. She represented the couple.

When You Care Enough to Hit Send

Because my wedding wouldn't be complete without vicious sarcasm...Someecards - When You Care Enough to Hit Send.










^I'd love to send this one out after our wedding...some might take offense but a choice few will enjoy it.

But The Good News Is...

So I'm definitley down about my bridesmaid not being able to make it to the wedding, but it's not totally raining on my parade...remember last month when I posted about Monachetti video and how I said that if I could have anyone in the world do a video of my wedding it would be them?

Well...I caved...after going back and forth with myself and with fiance for what seemed like forever we decided to have Monachetti do our wedding. Man...never thought the word "video" and "our wedding" would be in the same sentence!

It's crazy, I know...completely impulsive...but I'm excited and can't wait to share with you guys what Monachetti creates for us!

And for some audiovisual stimulus, below are the two videos I posted last month (cause I'm obssesed) and two more!




^Amy and Casey




^Shannon and Matt




^Libby and Time



^Casey and Lance

Two Free Tickets until Midnight!

We are in the home stretch for our Get Into The Event Planning Game. If there are any of you out there that still want to attend. I am offering two free tickets to the workshop. Just email me directly using the link to the right (info holymatrimonyonline com) and I will get you set up.
The tickets are first come first served and you don't have to take both of them. The workshop is being held in Columbia, MD and starts promptly at 8:00 am ending at 12:00 pm.

Wanna see you there!!

Bummer

So with about a week and a half to go before the wedding I've found out that one of my bridesmaids won't be able to make it. She's been really sick lately and she's been in the hospital for the last 3 days. It's the second time this month that's she's been in and now they need to do outpatient monitoring. She's trying to talk to the doctors to let her come but I've told her to stay. I don't want her to get worse just b/c she wants to come to my party...plus I don't want to spend the wedding day in the emergency room b/c she's pushed herself too hard.

I can't say I'm not disappointed. She was worried I'd be mad, but I had to explain there is a difference between being sad vs. being mad. I think she feels a lot of guilt b/c I traveled to India when she got married and she feels like she should come to mine come hell or high water. It's been hard convincing her that she's got to forget about the wedding and just take care of herself.

So my three musketeers are down to two :(

Color My World

One of the reasons I chose my wedding colors (kelly green and white) was because I liked the way bright colors show up in photos...I really want my photos to pop with color.

The other day I saw the below wedding of Amy and Matt on the blog of Jennifer Dery, and I love how vivid all the colors are. I thought the bride did a good job of meshing the bright greens, oranges, and pinks with a neutral like navy so that it was bright but not garish.


^I adore these flower girl dresses...Love the white petticoats and the kelly green ribbons


^I had a major crush on these green bridesmaid dresses from JCrew, but alas, they would not have been flattering on my bridesmaids and they were a little overpriced (IMO)


^Loving the ribbons on the flowergirl basket

Bachelorette Ideas

Ok, I am not the biggest fan of Top 10 or 20 Lists. I might scan them for a sec but overall they don't do too much for me. But having said that the folks over at Customized Girl have put together a really useful TOP 50 list of ideas and tips for the Bachelorette Party.

Now it may be that the Bachelorette Party does not get nearly enough play and its always one of those things that leaves people scrambling for ideas on what to do. Ta-Da! Check our their list.

And once you've read the list head over to their website they have THE cutest tee's!

I Would Hurt Somebody For Venice

I have a "thing" for Europe.

A BIG thing, I Love it, LOVE it, LOOOOOVVVVE IT!

So when my new friend Rosie from Forever After Images in the "UK" dropped me a note with images from a recent wedding she shot in Venice, I was over the moon.
First I love the fact that she reads my blog Second...well just look at the shots...

Bring On the Short Pants

I "think" it's officially safe to say that Spring is here.  Despite 40 degree weather this past weekend and the fact that I have told al of my brides to get a shawl, I do feel as though the worst is behind us and warmer temps are in store.  So having said that I began thinking that capri's, skirts and my cute, cute walking shorts will very soon be making their debut.

So as a ritual I made my way to see if there was anything new on the razor front.  Perhaps it's TMI but though i wax the brows, I shave the legs. I am trying out the
Schick® Quattro, they say you can even skip a day... hmmm.... yet to be confirmed.

The other kind of cute thing is on their website they have created the funniest widget, yet another way not to get any work done! 

You can customize the character -  make them audibly say whatever you want - and send it to anyone you know that could use a "dream date." (You've already got a man Ms. Bride To Be!)

The dream date widget is here Have a go and send one to a friend.

Calling D.C. Brides! Your Time To Shine

The Washingtonian is looking for engaged and recently-married couples. All your hard work and attention to detail might even get a spot in the magazine or online. Here's the lowdown from The Bridal Party :

Seeking: Engaged or Just-Married Couples
By Marissa Conrad

Been to any great weddings lately? Or maybe you’re planning one yourself. Either way, The Washingtonian would love nothing more than to hear all the details of the big day. E-mail us at mconrad@washingtonian.com or jneal@washingtonian.com and give us all the details! Don’t be shy about sending a few digital snaps, too. You could be featured in our magazine or online.

Jewlery for the Maids---

The next mark on my "to do list" has been Attendants gifts. I know that we are still 4 months out, but I really want to get them something special, so I want to focus on this now.
So Far I have two Definites of what I want to include in there gifts:

- A pair of earrings to wear on the day
- Home made stationary ( gocco)



Than its between mani/pedi for everyone or a nicer bag that I put everything in and another possible gift--but I'm not worrying about that now-- What I have found is the Earrings that I want for My girls!

I found the wonderful designer ameami on Etsy

Below are the earrings for the Bridesmaids:




^ Imagine them in Garnet though--So Garnet and Pearl--I think the Red will accent will look great with the Gray Dresses!

Here Is the Style Idea for the MOH's




^ However instead of the Purple imagine Quartz--I love the tear drop, and I think they are going to be perfect for the girls!

Ameami is a Pleasure to work with, she has been so helpful picking out stones for me, after I describe what I am looking for, I can't wait till the earrings come in!

Garden Wedding Escort Cards

This is a pretty cute idea for escort cards. It would be perfect for an outdoor spring/summer wedding.

Photo credited to Evoke Photography from the wedding of Erin & Brian

Lush from Labbancz

Now on the complete other side of the spectrum from Jenna Bush's casual soiree is this lavish wedding that Marie Labbancz had on her blog today. Even though my personal tastes learn towards the modern and subdued, it's a bit of voyeuristic fun for me to see really romantic style weddings like the one below. Hey, if you're going to go lush then you need to go all out!


^The Brides dress was a Pnina Tornai gown from Kleinfeld Bridals . I can honestly say I don't think I've ever seen a white dinner jacket and tie combination (as opposed to bow tie) but I'm liking it.


^Check out that back! Silk Roses were a theme throughout the wedding


^I've often expressed my love for long tables as opposed to round...need I say more?


^Silk roses were incorporated into the invites as well


^Normally I really hate when flowergirls are dressed up as little brides (as I'm sure you can tell by my flowergirl dress) . But this dress is just so much fun I think any little girl would feel like she was in heaven in it.


^Both of the tuxes were custom made


^And of course we can't forget the cake

For more pics check out Marie's blog.

Bush Wedding Photos

The White House has released a few photos from Jenna's wedding this weekend (they are from White House staff photographers, not her actual pro-pics).

I must say I'm really impressed with how normal and low-key her wedding looked. She literally could have had anything that she wanted...price was no limit...and yet she chose a really elegant and casual affair.

^ I think her dress fit her like a dream. And no stiff, elaborate updo for her...just soft, natural, wavy hair.


Not a handcrafted sugar flower in site....just real flowers and simple sweet buttercream frosting.


^What a beautiful setting for a ceremony




^No tuxes here....the bride's father wore a suit


^The family photo


^The inside of the wedding tent. I don't see any towering centerpieces or matching glass goblets anywhere (but I do spy those chivari chairs!)


^The outside of the reception tent.

Doesn't this feel like a wedding you could have thrown yourself? I love it. If money was no object do you think you'd have enough self control to go low key or would you go all out?

So True!

^ I saw this today over on Blah, Blah, Blahg (the blog of the designer who did my wedding labels) and immediately identified. I start out each day with so many goals I want to accomplish for work, home, and life in general, and instead of getting anything done I'm distracted by some shiny wedding thing.