Weddingbee Blog

We’re officially two weeks out from the wedding, and I am starting to get majorly nervous. All the little details of the day are starting to get to me, and I dream about the wedding every night. Not good dreams, but bad ones, where stupid things go wrong. Like I walk down the aisle without my bouquet. Or my hair is terrible, or my makeup looks like a hot mess, or my dress looks horrible. And all these little things are adding up to one big stressed out Powder Puff!

Example:
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Yesterday was an extraordinarily sad day for myself and my family. After fifteen wonderful years, we decided to put down our sweet little dog, Molly.

Molly was an adorable little girl who loved jumping through the pachysandra, going on romps through the woods and relaxing in the sunshine. One of my favorite habits of hers was in the summertime when we had shorts or a skirt on, if Molly walked by you and was feeling especially lovey, she’d give our legs a little slick. Like a little passing, “Love you!”

But in recent years, Molly had heart problems.
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This past weekend, three of my wonderful aunts threw me my very first bridal shower. It was held at the Knollwood Country Club in Lake Forest, Illinois, and let me tell you, this was an absolutely BEAUTIFUL location!

Check it:

Gorgeous, right?

So, two of my bridesmaids and I set off early so we would have plenty of time to get from the city up to the shower. Well, like the best laid plans, this completely fell through when we ran into terrrrrible traffic north of the city.
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Well everyone, I had my final fitting the other day, and I am now the happy owner of a wedding dress! A dress which is currently hanging on the back of the closet door in the guest room at my parents’ house, with the train spread out, all dramatic-like.

The wedding is three weeks away, peeps! All of the big and most of the little decisions are all made, and I am totally over making decisions, at all. Which is where you all come in.

My dress comes with a white satin sash, which flares out at the ends and has some embroidery, as well. I’ve been feeling kind of blah about the sash overall, so I’m thinking about ditching it.

Here’s a little something to jog your memory:

My dress, with sash (I’ll want it tied in a bow) and bustled.

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One of the things that I HATED about wedding planning was the budget. Who wants to think about money when you can look at pretty pictures?! Well, as it turns out the budget is pretty important. Go figure!

Mr. Powder Puff and I had decided early on that we didn’t want to spend a lot of money on this one day. Yes, it’s important, and yes you only get to do it once, but we would like to buy a house in the near future, and I couldn’t justify spending our house down payment on a party. And honestly, keeping the wedding small was a good thing. I found that keeping the costs down kept me focused on the real reason for the celebration- Mr. Powder Puff and I becoming man and wife! Instead of a huge production, we’ll be having an intimate ceremony with a (hopefully!) fun party afterward.

Ultimately, what kept the price reasonable was getting married in Western Michigan. Everything is so much less expensive there—holla! We also enlisted quite a few friends and family to contribute their services, which helped A LOT. It takes a village!

So here’s the breakdown:

Date: 7/2009
City, State: Spring Lake, Michigan
Budget: $12,000
# of Guests: 120

Wedding Day Costs
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Have I ever mentioned how much I love Etsy? Well, I totally do! It’s allowed me to find totally unique, completely adorable gifts for my favorite girls.

So, cute clutches, check! Next on the list—earrings!

I wanted something unique. Different from the typical pearls or crystals. Luckily, my favorite friend Etsy came to my rescue with these sweet little beauties, courtesy of seller Ben and Oliver:

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When Mr. Powder Puff and I first became engaged, we knew immediately there were certain wedding traditions that we did not want to uphold. Namely, the garter and bouquet tosses. We find them to be awkward, uncomfortable, and (in the mister’s groomsmen’s hands) prime time for some R-rated moments. No thank you!

Now, since we are foregoing the traditional bouquet and garter tosses, I am not in the market for a garter. But if you are, you must must MUST check out the gorgeous creations over at Bleu Garters. They have some totally swoon-worthy creations like these:

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Yes, that’s right my friends. Mr. Powder Puff and I bought our wedding bands this past weekend. I hate to say it, but we’re one of those sappy couples that got matching rings. That’s basically one step away from matching leisure suits and “His” and “Her” towels. And I kinda like it!

His: A 5mm white gold band

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*So I know the whole Marie Antoinette cake title thing is totally overdone at this point, but seriously, I can’t resist!

This past weekend, Mr. Powder Puff and I met with his fabulously talented aunt who has agreed to make our wedding cake. Bring out the fireworks and pom poms, people, because our last major “to do” is now DONE! Woohoo!!!

Now, I have to admit that the cake has never been high on my priority list. Hence waiting until a little over a month till the day to nail down this decision. But the mister’s aunt made it a totally painless process. She simply sat me down with a stack of cake books, which I perused. I picked out the simplest looking cake, a couple of flavors (including some red velvet… om nom nom!), and voila! Done!

And what does this cake in question look like? Very similar to this beauty:
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… but even more so when it’s something like this:

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Before Mr. Powder Puff and I were even engaged, I never pictured myself making my own invitations. EVER. In fact, I considered myself a girl who didn’t even really care what the invitations looked like.

That was until I started reading wedding blogs. And oh! What gloriously beautiful invitation suites! They had letterpress! Calligraphy! Gold fairy dust! Aaaaaand they were completely out of our budget.

Enter DIY invitations. Now, there are times when you can buy invitations for much cheaper than you can make them. For us, it was definitely more cost-effective to make them. And in the interest of helping you, dear readers, make that all-important decision if you’re wavering on the edge of the DIY canyon, I’ve decided to disclose our invite budget.

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Mr. Powder Puff asked me to be his wife.

And in exactly two months, I’ll follow through on the promise I made to him that day.

This wedding has been a loooong time coming, and now it’s finally starting to feel real. I’m getting butterflies in my stomach- I can’t wait!

I have some fabulous bridesmaids. This wedding has been a loooong process, and they’ve supported me and encouraged me through it all. So naturally, I’d like to get them presents that reflect their general fabulosity, while sticking to a budget, of course.

I’ve always known I wanted to get my girls cute little clutches. That was easy. Finding them for a reasonable price… not so much.

Until I saw the fantastic Etsy seller, Baffin Bags. She has an adorable collection of clutches, key fobs, and mini wallets that are totally swoon-worthy, and completely reasonable! Check out some of her designs:

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This is quite possibly the perfect first dance.

What makes a first dance memorable to you?

Like many other brides before me, I have been workin’ on my fitness so I can be a super sexy lady come wedding time. And so far, I’ve been doing really well. I’ve been sticking to my workout regimen, and I’ve seen some great results!

But I have a downfall. And oh, what a downfall it is!

Yes, the delicious monkey clinging to my back is none other than the lovely, tart yet sweet Sour Patch Kids. Om nom nom!

Oh Sour Patch Kids, why can’t I quit you?!

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