Yes, we had one!! And I’m so excited to share it with you!
Personal photos
I was rather silent about this during our planning, largely because I wasn’t sure it was actually going to happen. There came a point a few weeks before the wedding where Foxy gave me an option: we could either have a stationary veggie tray during cocktail hour (in addition to our passed hors d’oeuvres…don’t ask, I really wanted one), or we could have a DIY photo booth. Both would equal out to about $300 when all was said and done.
I’ve been leaving out “detail” pictures from my posts on purpose, because I wanted to put them in one big post at the end. So here we go! No words, just pictures.
We’re quickly approaching crunch time, and lately a lot of little tasks have been popping up. Here’s what we’ve been up to…
Sent rehearsal dinner invitations
Y’all know by now I love me some paper products, and for awhile I was sort of designing rehearsal invites that would match our entire suite. I wasn’t feeling very inspired, and I counted how many we actually needed to send—just 12—and ordered some. I picked this design from Wedding Paper Divas and was pleased with the quality (and price):
(Invitation via Wedding Paper Divas)
I felt a little guilty for not matching it (crazy, I know), but I figured if anything didn’t need to match, it’d be the rehearsal invites.
Started making table numbers
Remember this inspiration post? I decided to do something like the table numbers for ours. Originally, I thought I’d use maps from the locations we’d traveled (we’ve gone to as many places as we’ll need tables), but again…I got a little lazy, and it seemed like a small detail that wouldn’t really be noticed. I got those 99 cent Ikea frames and used map paper I had left over from my invitation envelope liners.
I am so excited to share that I had my first fitting last week! After purchasing my gown from the Pronovias flagship store in NYC back in May, it has been eight months since I last saw myself in my dress. Since then, I’ve avoided looking at other wedding dresses in the event that I see one that makes me regret purchasing mine. Luckily, that hasn’t happened, but I was admittedly nervous in the days leading up to the fitting. What if they ordered the wrong dress? What if they ordered the right dress, but I hated it? What if my accessories didn’t match?? The whole white, off-white, ivory, cream versions of white thing is extremely confusing! I had nightmares the day before the fitting where each of these situations happened. But when I woke up in the morning, I realized I needed to get a freakin’ grip. If by any chance something did go wrong, there was still four months for the salon to fix it. So with my accessories, courage, and mom in tow, we drove into the city, had a little bit of drama trying to find parking (but that’s NYC for you), and ultimately made it on time for my appointment.
When it was time to step into the fitting room, I held my breath while the seamstress opened up the garment bag…and the dress was finally revealed! Not going to lie, though—for a hot second I actually wasn’t sure if it was my dress. I couldn’t remember the bodice or the skirt looking the way it did but I kept my crazy thoughts to myself and decided to wait until I put the gown on to make any judgments. Once the dress was on, though, I knew absolutely that this was still my dress. This time around I am even more in love with it because…
I like the concept of giving each member of the wedding party a little something to say “thank you” (because they are investing time and money) and “you’re awesome.”
Gifts for BM E and MOH R (top row), BM P and BM K (bottom row)
Deciding what to give to my bridesmaids was a gradual process. In the end, I decided to gift each a necklace to wear at the wedding and an assortment of useful things (mostly stationery items) from Japan. The stationery gifts were a reflection of my interests (paper lover = me) and also allowed me to pick items to suit each ladies’ taste. Each gift bag included…
Mel is selling a Gloria by Enzoani gown. She is asking $1,061 for the size 4 dress
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Other great items for sale:
Disclaimer: I’m going to hope all of you love wedding videos of strangers as much as I do, because I’ve included a few!
Guys, I was just not feeling videography at first. I, like many others, thought it was just another expensive expense we couldn’t afford. And I was perfectly happy thinking so! Until the lovely Mrs. Coach (or maybe Vanessa McKellar?) went and ruined it for me.
The first time I became even the slight bit interested in videography was after Coach posted about choosing her videographer, which happened to include this incredible piece by Vanessa McKellar.
The music, the love, the FUN! It was all captured so perfectly! And dang it, hive, I was hooked. Soon I was creepin’ all over the interwebs for more and more of these videos. Mr. Manatee found me several times cuddled up with my laptop and my comfy comforter (IKEA, you can make a mean goose down) with a single tear and the fear that our budget was out the window on this one.
After I was ready and Mr. CA was ready, it was time for our first look! There wasn’t really much discussion between us about the first look—we decided it was the best option since we didn’t want photographs to eat into too much of the cocktail hour or reception. Also, I thought it would calm my nerves a bit to be able to spend some time together before I had to walk in high heels and a poufy dress in front of a bajillion people. OK, so only 115, but it seemed like a bajillion.
Mr. CA, looking dapper. Apparently I took a bit longer than expected to get ready, so he was standing out there for a little while. HA! Sorry, babe. Story of our lives.
Before we move into the reception, I’d like to share some of the finer details.
These next two pictures show off the variety of centerpieces we went with. The tall arrangements were calla lilies, and the short arrangements were hydrangea and roses wrapped in larger green leaves.
Initially, I wanted to walk to the church. Mr. T insisted that we rent a trolley to get me there. That’s what we ended up doing, and I’m so glad we did.
I’m glad we rented a trolley because it allowed everyone to get there comfortably…
Ah, the weather. Is it just me or does everyone worry about the weather on their wedding day? There were a few factors that went into our choice of an April wedding. First, we didn’t want too long of an engagement. Sixteen months has been plenty of time—anything longer would’ve made me too impatient. Also, I really desperately want peonies. That meant April or May. Lastly, the weather was very important for us to consider because I pass out when I get too hot. As in eyes roll back, fully faint, on the ground pass out. So summer months were out. With fall out because of a long engagement, summer out because of the heat, and a desire for peonies—spring it was.
Image via Diana Elizabeth blog / Photo by Diana Elizabeth
Then comes one of those weird quirks that some people (no, just me?) have…I really don’t like odd numbers. Exception: 23. But being married in 2013 was enough odd numbers for me, so we (okay, I mostly) decided on April instead of May. After that, it was easy—it would either be the sixth or the 20th, because we wanted a Saturday wedding.
Now, the sixth is special to us. Mr. O’s birthday is June 6th, mine is December 6th. We started dating in June. But I wanted to set our wedding apart from these other dates, so the 20th it was.
samara85 shares a photo from her bridal shoot.
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Officiant J signaled to the string quartet that we had sealed the deal and the ceremony was finished—and they began to play a string quartet arrangement of “I’m Yours” by Jason Mraz. (That was an easy mutual decision for Mr. W and I. It’s recognizable, upbeat, and the name seemed a propos. Mr. W’s runner-up, in case you’re interested, was a string quartet arrangement of “Thriller.” I’m glad we held off on the Michael Jackson until the dance party started.)
Press play and listen along!
Then, before anyone knew what was happening, Mr. W swept me up into his arms and carried me back down the aisle. Other than reciting our vows, that tops my favorite memories of the day—it was one of those fleeting moments that I’ll never forget.
It’s been a while since a bee or two has discussed the pros and cons of rocking your natural skin on the Big Day, and since we’re in the midst of winter weddings, I thought I’d share my thoughts on tanning/not tanning.
It’s been a running joke in my family for years that when I was growing up I was desperate to get a real tan by the end of the summer. I say by the end of the summer, because as all fair-skinned girls know, it doesn’t happen for us with one or two days in the sun. IT’S WORK. IT’S A PART-TIME JOB. And frankly, it’s nearly impossible. The comical part is after working so hard all summer, laying out with friends, hitting the pool, and begging my family for some beach time on the annual camping trip, my tan is all but gone by the time end of September rolls around. I would work so hard for months to see it disappear within a few weeks!
I used to fake and bake as well, but that quickly lost it’s luster due to money and the fear of getting skin cancer. It wasn’t until after college that I finally gave up tanning altogether. Enough was enough, and I decided to give up my goal of being a bronze goddess. And let me tell you, it was pretty freeing. I felt like a weight was lifted off of my shoulders.
Cut to the “year of the wedding,” and people are asking me if I’m going to get a spray tan (which I have done for other weddings and before a trip to LA), use tanning lotions, or fake and bake before the wedding, to which I reply, “I’m marrying a Scottish man. I won’t be the palest person at my wedding.” Nothing against Scottish people, but I’m sure we can all agree they aren’t the darkest group out there.
When I visited Scotland for the first time it was during a week in June, and everyone told me it was the warmest week they were going to get all summer. It was a heat wave. And it was like 65 degrees. I was wearing jackets and shivering!
Then there’s me, blonde-haired and blue-eyed with the fairest skin of anyone in my family. I’m Swedish and Norwegian from Dad Sword’s side and German and Russian from Mom Sword’s side. I like to joke that Mr. Sword and I are going to have translucent children. Lord help us.
I believe in doing whatever makes you feel amazing on your wedding day. But I don’t need to be tan to feel beautiful. It may have taken me a few decades to get to this point, but I’m OK with my skin color.
And word to the wise, if you want to make a lighter-skinned person happy, call them fair instead of pale. Fair also means beautiful, but pale is a negative term meaning “less than” such as when something pales in comparison to something else. Not as nice.
(all photos personal unless otherwise noted)
Are you a fair-skinned bride who is going au naturale on your wedding day or are you trying for that golden glow? What about other skin types (non Caucasian) people? What pressures do you feel from society in regards to beauty?
Initially, I wasn’t very excited about making table numbers. I figured I would print out the numbers in a cute font, throw them in a frame, and call it a day. If only they were that easy. Ultimately making the table numbers turned into quite the project and I am so exited to see them on our feasting tables. The tables will be full of twinkling candlelight and bright flowers, so I wanted the tables numbers to balance out some of the natural aspects of our wedding. Well folks, you can’t really get any more natural than this:
A log from my parent’s backyard. [It was chosen for its barky goodness.]
When I was visiting my parents over the holidays, my dad and I had a few dates in his wood shop…aka the garage. My dad has always loved woodworking and has built some pretty awesome things over the years (lots of furniture, playsets, and a screened-in-porch). This past year he hasn’t had much time for his wood shop so it was fun to pull his tools out. Growing up it seemed like he was always getting the latest and greatest tools every birthday and Christmas, so I was a little surprised when he said he wanted to use this old guy:
