Weddingbee

I never thought I would be this into wedding planning. Ok - maybe I’m not obsessed yet, but I am starting to get ideas on flowers, bouquets, colors, ribbons and all of the extra personal touches that will make it my wedding. So once I secured a venue, my next goal was to buy some save the date magnets.

I actually was not planning on sending out save the dates, but, it turns out that I really should. Why? Apparently, there are guidelines to sending these out. Who knew?

Etiquette on Save the Dates

Why you should send:
If many of your guests are traveling to your wedding
If your wedding takes place on or around a holiday
If you are planning a faraway destination wedding
If your wedding will take place in a seasonally busy or tourist locale, where flights and hotels book up early

When to send:
4 to 6 months before the wedding
If you are having a destination wedding, then up to 12 months before the wedding
If you are having your wedding at a tourist locale (like NYC) or over a holiday weekend, 6 to 9 months before the wedding

What to say:
Names of you and your fiance
Date of wedding
Location of wedding (city)
Something like “invitation to follow” to indicate that they will receive an invitation at a later point.
Wedding website (if any)

Notes:
Remember - not everyone on your guest list will need to get a save the date card/magnet, but everyone who gets one will need to receive an invitation.

(source: Onewed)

I ordered some proofs for the magnets. When they get in, I will post pics!

Ok - so I know this happens to all newly engaged brides, but I cannot stop staring at my ring. It’s the perfect ring for me and my fiance just outdid himself by getting me exactly what I wanted.

I remember the first time I tried on this ring at Tiffany’s (no the ring isn’t from Tiffany’s - you crazy??) The sales lady was throwing every shape, size, cut at me and I didn’t like any of them. Then she told me to try this one. And I told her that I didnt want my ring to have pear shaped diamonds - I’m not partial to them. She insisted. I put it on my finger and literally gasped because it was so beautiful.

So since I’ve been showing it off at work, and school, and everywhere else - people keep commenting on how shiny it is because it’s new. Then I realized - man, I don’t ever want that shine to go away. But I don’t want to get it professionally cleaned every month either. Being the neurotic crazy woman that I am, I researched every method of home cleaning your diamonds.

Without further ado….

1. Soak your diamond ring in a warm solution of mild liquid detergent and water. Ivory dishwashing liquid is a good choice, but any other mild detergent is fine.

2. Use a soft brush if necessary to remove dirt. Soft is the word - dont use a brush with bristles that are stiff enough to scratch the ring’s metal setting.

3. Swish the ring around in the solution, then rinse it thoroughly in warm water. Close the drain or put the ring in a strainer to keep from losing it!

4. Dry the ring with a lint-free cloth.

Other things you can do to keep your diamond rings from daily wear and tear. I’ve highlighted #2, because I didnt know this one. The others are fairly standard.

1. Dont wear it when you’re doing rough work. Even though a diamond is durable, it can be chipped by a hard blow.

2. Dont let your diamond come in contact with a chlorine bleach when you’re doing household chores. It can damage and discolor the mounting.

3. Go to your local jeweler at least once a year and have them check your ring and other preciouis pieces for loose claw and wear of mountings.

4. When you’re not wearing diamonds, keep them in a fabric-lined jewel case, or a box with compartments or dividers.

5. Dont jumble your diamond pieces in a drawer or jewelry case, because diamonds can scratch other jewelry - and can even scratch each other.

6. Diamonds get smudged and soiled and dusty. Lotions, powders, soaps, even the natural skin oils, put a film on diamonds and cut down their brilliance.

Or, if you’re a freak like me, you might want to get an ultrasonic cleaner for your jewels. This is a good website I found - you can get a decent cleaner for $50 bucks!!

When my cousin got married 10 years ago, I thought that I would always wear her wedding dress. It was gorgeous, and she looked absolutely beautiful.

Now, that I look back - yes, 10 years ago the dress was absolutely stylish and beautiful. But unless I do some major snipping and re-designing, the dress just isn’t what I’m looking for now. It’s too bad - because it was a very expensive dress.

So this got me thinking….who is really ever going to wear my wedding dress? My daughter? How can I expect her to like something that I wore 30 years ago, when I dont even like something that my cousin wore 10 year ago? Yes, your wedding dress has sentimental value. But when are you ever going to wear it again? And I hate the idea of turning the dress into a quilt or another gown.

Where am I going with this??

Well, I am seriously considering renting my wedding dress. Yes, you heard me right……renting my own wedding dress. Although I would love a dress that I can call my own, after doing a little research, I think it will be much better and economically efficient if I just rent.

Here’s an article about renting wedding dresses and the store in NYC that the article mentions.

MyrJan (235 St. Marks Ave, Bk)
Fancy Wedding Center (6604 Bay Pkway, Bk) - no website

Here’s another store I found online…

Wedding Gown Rentals & SALES (409 Crooks Ave, NJ)

I mean, my fiance is renting his tux…so why not? Now all I need to do is go see the dresses to make sure that they’re not ugly.

I havent seen all of the spaces that I wanted to see…but like my friend says, when you know, you know.

We are getting married at Twenty Four Fifth!!

With a guest count of 85 people, ceremony fee, and other expenses (service charge and tax), I will be paying less than what I thought I would for a space this beautiful!!

My matron of honor got me the Bride’s Book. I’m gonna start filling in the pages this weekend. Considering I’ve only been engaged for 5 days and I already have a venue - I’m doing pretty well, I think!!