Mrs. Apple Cider, New York/CharlotteAge and Occupation: 27, Corporate Communications ManagerFiance's Age and Occupation: 26, Grad Student – Clinical Mental Health Engagement Date: September 13, 2008Wedding Date: October 2009Venue: Banner Elk Winery & Blueberry VillaAbout Me: I am a North Carolina girl with a New York City spirit. I love crafting, blogging, laughing and dreaming. I know every word to the Anne of Green Gables and Little Women movies. I own every single Martha Stewart Wedding Magazine and have been dreaming of weddings since I was little. I believe life is about doing what makes you happy. If you aren't happy re-evaluate what you are doing. You should never look back on your life and not be proud of what you are doing. If you want to travel - travel. If you want to sing - sing. If you want to start a company - start a company. If you want to blog – blog!
Things are getting serious. This weekend is our first wedding shower, and it is far from the busy streets of NYC. It is at Mr. AC’s parents’ home in West Virginia. We are both really excited about the shower. It will be the first time (in 6 years) that my mom and sister have been to their home. It is the first time my sister will meet Mr. AC’s parents.
I have had a lot of stress in the last few weeks. The wedding is really causing stress in my life, but I have to say I am really looking forward to this shower. Being together with your family, your future in-laws, friends, and family is what weddings are all about. And being less than 2 and a half months out, this is an important reminder for me.
Since all of my bridesmaids, including my sister, live in North Carolina, I haven’t seen the BM dresses in person. Read more…
Mrs. Apple Cider, New York/CharlotteAge and Occupation: 27, Corporate Communications ManagerFiance's Age and Occupation: 26, Grad Student – Clinical Mental Health Engagement Date: September 13, 2008Wedding Date: October 2009Venue: Banner Elk Winery & Blueberry VillaAbout Me: I am a North Carolina girl with a New York City spirit. I love crafting, blogging, laughing and dreaming. I know every word to the Anne of Green Gables and Little Women movies. I own every single Martha Stewart Wedding Magazine and have been dreaming of weddings since I was little. I believe life is about doing what makes you happy. If you aren't happy re-evaluate what you are doing. You should never look back on your life and not be proud of what you are doing. If you want to travel - travel. If you want to sing - sing. If you want to start a company - start a company. If you want to blog – blog!
I am not an umbrella bride but I know there are some out there and I had to share this really cool umbrella that I found on Etsy. They could be the perfect accessory for some bride out there!
Mrs. Apple Cider, New York/CharlotteAge and Occupation: 27, Corporate Communications ManagerFiance's Age and Occupation: 26, Grad Student – Clinical Mental Health Engagement Date: September 13, 2008Wedding Date: October 2009Venue: Banner Elk Winery & Blueberry VillaAbout Me: I am a North Carolina girl with a New York City spirit. I love crafting, blogging, laughing and dreaming. I know every word to the Anne of Green Gables and Little Women movies. I own every single Martha Stewart Wedding Magazine and have been dreaming of weddings since I was little. I believe life is about doing what makes you happy. If you aren't happy re-evaluate what you are doing. You should never look back on your life and not be proud of what you are doing. If you want to travel - travel. If you want to sing - sing. If you want to start a company - start a company. If you want to blog – blog!
As most brides are, I am trying to get in shape before the big day. I have been working at getting in shape for the last year. I have been working out more, I got a trainer at the gym, and have generally been trying to get healthy.
As most of you know, I had hip surgery in April that left me on crutches for 6 weeks, and basically out of commission for a solid 2 months. It was a major setback, but I am committed to getting back in shape and finally off crutches and cleared to work out full time. Read more…
Mrs. Apple Cider, New York/CharlotteAge and Occupation: 27, Corporate Communications ManagerFiance's Age and Occupation: 26, Grad Student – Clinical Mental Health Engagement Date: September 13, 2008Wedding Date: October 2009Venue: Banner Elk Winery & Blueberry VillaAbout Me: I am a North Carolina girl with a New York City spirit. I love crafting, blogging, laughing and dreaming. I know every word to the Anne of Green Gables and Little Women movies. I own every single Martha Stewart Wedding Magazine and have been dreaming of weddings since I was little. I believe life is about doing what makes you happy. If you aren't happy re-evaluate what you are doing. You should never look back on your life and not be proud of what you are doing. If you want to travel - travel. If you want to sing - sing. If you want to start a company - start a company. If you want to blog – blog!
After our experience with the “big brands” (e.g. Bed, Bath & Beyond and Williams-Sonoma), we felt an overwhelming need to find more “us” stuff. Don’t get me wrong… we registered for plenty of stuff at BB&B, but we have a love of unique art pieces, so I thought we should create an Etsy registry.
Currently Etsy doesn’t have an official registry, so I decided to create a button on our wedding website and a post a few items that we liked.
(this button is on our website but not clickable here)
Mrs. Apple Cider, New York/CharlotteAge and Occupation: 27, Corporate Communications ManagerFiance's Age and Occupation: 26, Grad Student – Clinical Mental Health Engagement Date: September 13, 2008Wedding Date: October 2009Venue: Banner Elk Winery & Blueberry VillaAbout Me: I am a North Carolina girl with a New York City spirit. I love crafting, blogging, laughing and dreaming. I know every word to the Anne of Green Gables and Little Women movies. I own every single Martha Stewart Wedding Magazine and have been dreaming of weddings since I was little. I believe life is about doing what makes you happy. If you aren't happy re-evaluate what you are doing. You should never look back on your life and not be proud of what you are doing. If you want to travel - travel. If you want to sing - sing. If you want to start a company - start a company. If you want to blog – blog!
We did it… we finally registered and we felt like huge jerks. I wish registering felt better than it did. EVERYTHING IS SO EXPENSIVE! Living in NYC has given us a different view on life. Everything is expensive… our rent, our food. Neither one of us was that excited about registering. I am not sure why. Maybe it is that it is hard to imagine what we will need. Or maybe it is that we have a tiny apartment that we are moving into and it is hard to imagine it full of stuff.
Our first stop was Williams-Sonoma, and wow, was that place overwhelming. The one bright spot was the lady that helped us. She was super friendly and gave us great advice. Once we got started though, we felt sort of out of place and I just couldn’t bring myself to ask guests to get us a $500 pot. I just couldn’t do it.
Mrs. Apple Cider, New York/CharlotteAge and Occupation: 27, Corporate Communications ManagerFiance's Age and Occupation: 26, Grad Student – Clinical Mental Health Engagement Date: September 13, 2008Wedding Date: October 2009Venue: Banner Elk Winery & Blueberry VillaAbout Me: I am a North Carolina girl with a New York City spirit. I love crafting, blogging, laughing and dreaming. I know every word to the Anne of Green Gables and Little Women movies. I own every single Martha Stewart Wedding Magazine and have been dreaming of weddings since I was little. I believe life is about doing what makes you happy. If you aren't happy re-evaluate what you are doing. You should never look back on your life and not be proud of what you are doing. If you want to travel - travel. If you want to sing - sing. If you want to start a company - start a company. If you want to blog – blog!
Laura Taylor from The Darling Life Photography shared so many pictures with us from our engagement photo session. I wanted to share some of the outtakes. It is really fun to get to choose from SO MANY! I am lucky to have a generous photographer.
This is my favorite outtake - I love that I am handing him all of the “boy” balloons
Mrs. Apple Cider, New York/CharlotteAge and Occupation: 27, Corporate Communications ManagerFiance's Age and Occupation: 26, Grad Student – Clinical Mental Health Engagement Date: September 13, 2008Wedding Date: October 2009Venue: Banner Elk Winery & Blueberry VillaAbout Me: I am a North Carolina girl with a New York City spirit. I love crafting, blogging, laughing and dreaming. I know every word to the Anne of Green Gables and Little Women movies. I own every single Martha Stewart Wedding Magazine and have been dreaming of weddings since I was little. I believe life is about doing what makes you happy. If you aren't happy re-evaluate what you are doing. You should never look back on your life and not be proud of what you are doing. If you want to travel - travel. If you want to sing - sing. If you want to start a company - start a company. If you want to blog – blog!
I saw this conversation starter idea in the latest Martha Stewart Weddings, and now have to “borrow” the idea for our cocktail hour. You can make flags with your guests’ names, and they can pin their names to the year that they met you. It is such a fun idea and I think it would make for a fun wall hanging after the wedding.
There are a few options for getting a number sheet: Read more…
Mrs. Apple Cider, New York/CharlotteAge and Occupation: 27, Corporate Communications ManagerFiance's Age and Occupation: 26, Grad Student – Clinical Mental Health Engagement Date: September 13, 2008Wedding Date: October 2009Venue: Banner Elk Winery & Blueberry VillaAbout Me: I am a North Carolina girl with a New York City spirit. I love crafting, blogging, laughing and dreaming. I know every word to the Anne of Green Gables and Little Women movies. I own every single Martha Stewart Wedding Magazine and have been dreaming of weddings since I was little. I believe life is about doing what makes you happy. If you aren't happy re-evaluate what you are doing. You should never look back on your life and not be proud of what you are doing. If you want to travel - travel. If you want to sing - sing. If you want to start a company - start a company. If you want to blog – blog!
As everyone knows, I am obsessed with balloons, so the first round of pictures I shared are all with balloons. I really think they turned out well. We wanted to take some without the balloons too, and I think they also turned out great! Here they are.
These pictures were taken in Central Park. It was hazy/cloudy all day but I think it helped with the lighting.
Mrs. Apple Cider, New York/CharlotteAge and Occupation: 27, Corporate Communications ManagerFiance's Age and Occupation: 26, Grad Student – Clinical Mental Health Engagement Date: September 13, 2008Wedding Date: October 2009Venue: Banner Elk Winery & Blueberry VillaAbout Me: I am a North Carolina girl with a New York City spirit. I love crafting, blogging, laughing and dreaming. I know every word to the Anne of Green Gables and Little Women movies. I own every single Martha Stewart Wedding Magazine and have been dreaming of weddings since I was little. I believe life is about doing what makes you happy. If you aren't happy re-evaluate what you are doing. You should never look back on your life and not be proud of what you are doing. If you want to travel - travel. If you want to sing - sing. If you want to start a company - start a company. If you want to blog – blog!
A few weeks ago we spent the day with the amazing Laura Taylor from The Darling Life Photography. I have been a big fan of her work for years and she kindly agreed to take our photos. We had a great time gallivanting all over New York City taking pictures with Laura. She was patient and fun to shoot with.
Here are some of our favorites (CLICK THE PICS TO MAKE THEM BIGGER):
Mrs. Apple Cider, New York/CharlotteAge and Occupation: 27, Corporate Communications ManagerFiance's Age and Occupation: 26, Grad Student – Clinical Mental Health Engagement Date: September 13, 2008Wedding Date: October 2009Venue: Banner Elk Winery & Blueberry VillaAbout Me: I am a North Carolina girl with a New York City spirit. I love crafting, blogging, laughing and dreaming. I know every word to the Anne of Green Gables and Little Women movies. I own every single Martha Stewart Wedding Magazine and have been dreaming of weddings since I was little. I believe life is about doing what makes you happy. If you aren't happy re-evaluate what you are doing. You should never look back on your life and not be proud of what you are doing. If you want to travel - travel. If you want to sing - sing. If you want to start a company - start a company. If you want to blog – blog!
As I have said 100 times, Etsy is a gem in my life and in the lives of so many brides. I made 3 random purchases from Etsy this week and I am not only excited about them but don’t feel at all guilty for going off the “budget plan” for these.
First, these gems from the Etsy Shop of Ay Mujer. I plan to use them at our rehearsal dinner, and just think the mixed colors are so fantastic! The seller takes custom orders. My set of multi-colored flags were only $11 for 1 banner that is 13’ long, with (9) 9″x10″ flags. I bought 3 sets.
Mrs. Apple Cider, New York/CharlotteAge and Occupation: 27, Corporate Communications ManagerFiance's Age and Occupation: 26, Grad Student – Clinical Mental Health Engagement Date: September 13, 2008Wedding Date: October 2009Venue: Banner Elk Winery & Blueberry VillaAbout Me: I am a North Carolina girl with a New York City spirit. I love crafting, blogging, laughing and dreaming. I know every word to the Anne of Green Gables and Little Women movies. I own every single Martha Stewart Wedding Magazine and have been dreaming of weddings since I was little. I believe life is about doing what makes you happy. If you aren't happy re-evaluate what you are doing. You should never look back on your life and not be proud of what you are doing. If you want to travel - travel. If you want to sing - sing. If you want to start a company - start a company. If you want to blog – blog!
I decided to order rubber stamps to use on a lot of different wedding elements (some determined, and some yet to be determined!). I am so please with them that I wanted to write about them.
I decided to order the birds separate from the tree so I could change the colors of ink/embossing powder if I wanted to! Read more…
Mrs. Apple Cider, New York/CharlotteAge and Occupation: 27, Corporate Communications ManagerFiance's Age and Occupation: 26, Grad Student – Clinical Mental Health Engagement Date: September 13, 2008Wedding Date: October 2009Venue: Banner Elk Winery & Blueberry VillaAbout Me: I am a North Carolina girl with a New York City spirit. I love crafting, blogging, laughing and dreaming. I know every word to the Anne of Green Gables and Little Women movies. I own every single Martha Stewart Wedding Magazine and have been dreaming of weddings since I was little. I believe life is about doing what makes you happy. If you aren't happy re-evaluate what you are doing. You should never look back on your life and not be proud of what you are doing. If you want to travel - travel. If you want to sing - sing. If you want to start a company - start a company. If you want to blog – blog!
Our invitations have caused me a lot of stress. I have had so much inspiration from wedding blogs, and of course, the bloggers here on the ‘bee. But sometimes inspiration can be overwhelming. I knew from the beginning that I wanted to have our invitations letterpressed. I just thought that this was something that I couldn’t pass up. I also knew that I wanted them to have a “wood grain” feel and had hoped to achieve this look with letterpressing. I seriously have been thinking about this since day 1 of our engagement!
Mrs. Apple Cider, New York/CharlotteAge and Occupation: 27, Corporate Communications ManagerFiance's Age and Occupation: 26, Grad Student – Clinical Mental Health Engagement Date: September 13, 2008Wedding Date: October 2009Venue: Banner Elk Winery & Blueberry VillaAbout Me: I am a North Carolina girl with a New York City spirit. I love crafting, blogging, laughing and dreaming. I know every word to the Anne of Green Gables and Little Women movies. I own every single Martha Stewart Wedding Magazine and have been dreaming of weddings since I was little. I believe life is about doing what makes you happy. If you aren't happy re-evaluate what you are doing. You should never look back on your life and not be proud of what you are doing. If you want to travel - travel. If you want to sing - sing. If you want to start a company - start a company. If you want to blog – blog!
My sister and grandmother will be throwing me and my bridesmaids a luncheon the day before the wedding. I am really excited for the event. I think it will be sweet and fun, and exactly what we need to kick off the weekend. We decided on an adorable location. We will be having a “tea”, complete with scones, cucumber sandwiches, and hats. Yes, I said hats!!
I decided to design the invitation and would love advice from the hive on what invitation you all like best. It is so fun making all of these invitations!!! Read more…
Mrs. Apple Cider, New York/CharlotteAge and Occupation: 27, Corporate Communications ManagerFiance's Age and Occupation: 26, Grad Student – Clinical Mental Health Engagement Date: September 13, 2008Wedding Date: October 2009Venue: Banner Elk Winery & Blueberry VillaAbout Me: I am a North Carolina girl with a New York City spirit. I love crafting, blogging, laughing and dreaming. I know every word to the Anne of Green Gables and Little Women movies. I own every single Martha Stewart Wedding Magazine and have been dreaming of weddings since I was little. I believe life is about doing what makes you happy. If you aren't happy re-evaluate what you are doing. You should never look back on your life and not be proud of what you are doing. If you want to travel - travel. If you want to sing - sing. If you want to start a company - start a company. If you want to blog – blog!
Everyone is talking about this wedding dress on the blogs, and i will admit - it is stunning! But check out those bridesmaid dresses!!! Those are the same ones that I am having, and in the exact same combination - 2 with straps, and 3 strapless. Mine aren’t in this color, but wow, wow, wow! They look great! I love the 2 different colors here, but am excited for our “marine” color.
Mrs. Apple Cider, New York/CharlotteAge and Occupation: 27, Corporate Communications ManagerFiance's Age and Occupation: 26, Grad Student – Clinical Mental Health Engagement Date: September 13, 2008Wedding Date: October 2009Venue: Banner Elk Winery & Blueberry VillaAbout Me: I am a North Carolina girl with a New York City spirit. I love crafting, blogging, laughing and dreaming. I know every word to the Anne of Green Gables and Little Women movies. I own every single Martha Stewart Wedding Magazine and have been dreaming of weddings since I was little. I believe life is about doing what makes you happy. If you aren't happy re-evaluate what you are doing. You should never look back on your life and not be proud of what you are doing. If you want to travel - travel. If you want to sing - sing. If you want to start a company - start a company. If you want to blog – blog!
I shared a sneak peek of my soap project last week and I am now here to share the directions. This project is simple and cheap. You can up the creativity and challenge by actually making your own soap (I knew that I didn’t have time) but that is a great idea.
First things first -
Buy your soap. I decided to go with dial soap bars and bought 36 of them for $14. If you are planning to make more, you can purchase soap at places like Sam’s Club or other wholesale stores. Here is one that I found online: Kitchen Supply Direct.
You want to go with a soap that is already wrapped but not boxed. I found that the boxed soaps seemed more like presents than soap bars. I tried Ivory soap first. Read more…
Mrs. Apple Cider, New York/CharlotteAge and Occupation: 27, Corporate Communications ManagerFiance's Age and Occupation: 26, Grad Student – Clinical Mental Health Engagement Date: September 13, 2008Wedding Date: October 2009Venue: Banner Elk Winery & Blueberry VillaAbout Me: I am a North Carolina girl with a New York City spirit. I love crafting, blogging, laughing and dreaming. I know every word to the Anne of Green Gables and Little Women movies. I own every single Martha Stewart Wedding Magazine and have been dreaming of weddings since I was little. I believe life is about doing what makes you happy. If you aren't happy re-evaluate what you are doing. You should never look back on your life and not be proud of what you are doing. If you want to travel - travel. If you want to sing - sing. If you want to start a company - start a company. If you want to blog – blog!
(this button is on our website but not clickable here)
Unique Wedding Favors
This is my favorite outtake - I love that I am handing him all of the “boy” balloons
(click for a closer look!)
