Weddingbee Blog

Once upon a time, in my early days as a Bee, I wrote this post about my plans to create a brooch bouquet. I even gave you a little sneak peek at its progress here, but that is where I stopped! Other projects became more of a priority and I never got around to sharing the final product with you before the wedding. It’s your lucky day because I’m sharing now!

This project was indeed a labor of love and I couldn’t be happier with how it turned out. I’m still so in love with it and I now get to enjoy it every day.

So how about I just show it to you and then tell you how it came to be?

Photo by Stephen Martin Photography

I won’t reinvent the wheel when other bees before me have posted fantastic tutorials on how to make your own, including Mrs. Sloth’s and Mrs. Stripes’, whose post was recently featured on the Helpful Series. I followed Stripes’ method with just a few modifications.
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I discussed the first part of our minimoon here.

We arrived at the Kingsley Inn a little early on our check-in day. We dropped off our bags and decided to head over to Saugatuck to see the town and see what was open. I’ve been to Saugatuck during the summer and it is hoppin’ with people, but on a Monday in January? Not so much. That didn’t matter one bit to us. We drove through the town and already started discussing the things we’d do when we came back in the warmer months.

Although most of the shops weren’t open, several restaurants were, so we decided on The Butler, situated right on the lake.

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Being a tax accountant means that January through April, 15th are just a tad busy. Mr. Ball Cap and I didn’t want to squeeze in a honeymoon right after the wedding only to have me come home and start working insane hours. I wanted to enjoy our trip away and not worry about the stress I’d be coming home to. We still wanted to get away for a few days, so we went on a minimoon at a bed and breakfast in Michigan.

(See that snow? Where was it the day of the wedding?!)

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The Wednesday before the wedding, MOB, my sister, and I executed a last-minute favor project.

Long before the days of Pinterest, I ran across an idea for a fortune cookie wedding favor. I liked the symbolism of receiving a fortune at the start of a new year. I saved the idea in one of my umpteen wedding spreadsheets and moved on. Fast forward to when I actually needed to reference it and it was nowhere to be found. I tried to search for it again but never quite found the right post. Oh well—time to wing it!

MOB called her local Chinese restaurant and I stopped in to pick up a box of 200 fortune cookies for $16. I bought some Baker’s chocolate from the grocery store and treat bags from Jo-Ann and we were ready to roll.

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Stress is a you-know-what. I’m no stranger to stress. I am a tax accountant. Three and a half months out of every year are filled with deadlines and stress, but after over ten years in the industry, I feel I manage it quite well. Wedding and emotional stress, however, is a new beast.

I knew that planning a wedding would be stressful at times. Our engagement was just over 15 months long and for the most part, I handled the crazier moments quite well. It wasn’t until the week before the wedding that I realized I was holding on to some major stress, and obviously was not managing it at all.

I, like many, many other brides, grew my hair out for the wedding. One week prior to the 31st, I took a shower and noticed I was losing more hair than normal. I’ve been using the Wen hair care products for a few months now and I use a comb in the shower to work the product through my hair and untangle any knots. Well, I ran the comb through and it came out FULL of hair. It completely freaked me out. I thought maybe it was a fluke, but the next time I washed my hair, the same thing happened.

I was trippin’ big time so I reached out to my fellow bees to see if anyone else had experienced this.
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I’m back and I’m now a Mrs.!

I couldn’t have asked for a more perfect day. Our ceremony was beautiful and the reception was a blast. We haven’t stopped receiving glowing reviews from our guests and I’m still completely overjoyed.

Mr. Ball Cap and I are on a mini honeymoon getaway right now, but I couldn’t resist popping in to say hello and sharing a teaser pic with you all.
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Good morning Hive. It’s still dark outside, I’m curled up in our recliner with my robe, and my sister is upstairs sleeping. It’s my wedding day!!

After 15 months of planning, the day has finally arrived. We had a wonderful time at our rehearsal dinner last night and emotions started bubbling over. Even now, just thinking about seeing Mr. Ball Cap for the first time today causes tears to run down my face.

I’m nervous but so excited to begin this day. I want to soak in every minute and enjoy it to the fullest.

Hive, it has been such an honor to be a part of this community and share my journey with you. You have offered amazing support and advice and were always there to lend an ear. You have made this experience all the more special and memorable.

So this is it!
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Last week, my wonderful mom (MOB) surprised me with a gift certificate for a facial and massage at a spa in downtown Chicago. She wanted me to take some time for myself to de-stress and relax before the wedding.

The Spa on Oak offers an Oak Street Refresher package which includes a 45 minute facial and a 30 minute massage. I have never had a facial before so I was looking forward to that experience.

I made an appointment for 3:15 on Thursday. Unfortunately it was raining like crazy, but I caught a cab and made my way to the River North area of the city. I had never spent any time in this area and I was definitely taken aback at how beautiful and high-end the neighborhood was! The spa was surrounded by boutiques such as Jimmy Choo, Hermes and Harry Winston. I couldn’t afford to even look in the windows!
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and the wedding is SNOW!!!

I’m a winter bride, and yes, we chose to have a winter wedding on purpose! People still seem to be so puzzled that we would want to get married during the time of year where, in the Midwest, it can plummet to unbelievably cold temperatures, and Mother Nature can drop 5 feet of snow on your butt overnight.

While we don’t wish to contend with this on the wedding day,

Image via csc.cs.colorado.edu / Photo by Ken Woitaszek

I ache to have gorgeous pictures like these:

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Last Saturday, bridesmaids, family, and friends helped to throw me the coolest bachelorette party.

How cool you ask? Take a look at this!

This is NOT a Photoshopped picture! I will get to the details behind this in a minute.

The evening started at my home where I was greeted by a house full of ladies after my makeup trial. We gathered in the den where I opened a few belated shower gifts and was presented with some attire for the night—including the best hat ever!!
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In between my first dress fitting and bachelorette party, (which I’ll post about next!), this past Saturday, I was able to squeeze in my makeup trial.

I wear makeup every day so I’m not afraid of going for a more dramatic look for the wedding. Bare Minerals is my current choice for foundation and concealer, but thanks to you smart and informed peoples here on the Hive, I learned that this type of makeup does not photograph well. Apparently it reflects the light and can make you look like a grease face. Yeah - that doesn’t sound very bridal to me!

After learning this tidbit of info, I knew airbrush was the direction I wanted to go. I’ve never worn airbrush makeup, but my FSIL did for her wedding and she looked radiant.

My makeup artist, Anjelica, asked that I bring pictures of makeup looks that I liked. Pinterest to the rescue again!

Image via ProjectWedding.com / Photo by AllMadeUpTeam.com

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Hi Hive! Sorry I haven’t been around as much lately. With less than a month to go, things are getting pretty crazy. I have a lot to share with you, especially since I was able to cram a dress fitting, makeup trial and my bachelorette party all in this past Saturday. Today, I wanted to update you on my weight loss journey and show you the results of my first dress fitting!

I shared my weight history with you here and how I came to start the Ideal Protein program. It has now been a little over 9 weeks and I am proud to say I have lost 31 pounds and 18.75 inches! I still can’t believe how well the program has worked for me and how much success I’ve had. I had hoped going into this that I could maybe lose 30 pounds before the wedding. Looks like I could have set a higher goal for myself!

With this weight loss came the all important question—how will my dress fit now? If you recall, I ordered a size down in my dress not knowing there was a 3 inch difference in the dress maker’s sizing. When my dress first came in—it didn’t fit—not by a long shot. My first appointment was on Saturday and I am not sure it could have gone any better!!

DRESS PICTURES AHEAD!! NO LOOKING IF YOU ARE MR. BALL CAP OR MY DAD!!
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Unlike a certain “celebrity” who chose to wear three different dresses on her wedding day, (only to file for divorce 72 days later), I will NOT be wearing more than one gown.  However, I will be wearing three different shoes.  Yes, good people of the hive, I am a three shoe bride.

Aside from the first step of admitting I may have a problem, this wasn’t something I planned out. You have already stuck with me through three posts on my ceremony shoes - One, Two, and Three, and a post or two on my sparkly Ugg boots. So what in the world would entice me to look for a third pair?

Dancing. That’s right—gettin’ down, shakin’ your groove thang, show me what you’re workin’ with—dancing. I love to dance and plan on bustin’ a move with the best of them at my reception.

As I was going through the timeline of our day last week, I realized we needed to pull together an amazing song list for our DJ that would keep the dance floor jumping all night. That got me thinking that maybe the Uggs weren’t the best choice for moving freely about the dance floor. While they will keep my tootsies toasty warm commuting to and from locations and will look amazing in some outdoor pictures, I think they may hinder my running man skills on the dance floor.

Zappos is my go to place when I get the shoe shopping urge. Their 365 day return policy just can’t be beat. I ordered the Astrella flats by Romantic Soles in pewter.

Image via Zappos.com

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While our wedding date just so happens to be New Year’s Eve, we aren’t necessarily going all out with a New Year’s Eve theme. We are simply adding elements that complement the holiday while trying to avoid going too over the top.

So far, I have shown you our personalized clock and the boutonnières. Next up is some sparkly table decor!

Thanks to Pinterest, I found my next DIY project.

Image via Blowout Party / Photo by Kristen Steele Photography

I knew just where to find those big letters so I skipped my happy booty over to Jo-Ann’s, used my 40% off coupons (they accept Michaels and Hobby Lobby coupons as well!) and scored a bunch of paper mache letters to spell out “NYE,” “MR,” and “MRS.”

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Mr. Ball Cap’s brother was married in September of 2010. We are very close to his brother and sister-in-law, and their daughter is our Jr. Bridesmaid. With their wedding not far behind us, they still have many of their supplies on hand. Future Sister-In-Law let me know early on that I was more than welcome to use anything they had left over. It was a sweet offer, but one that I sort of forgot about once I got into the heavy planning stages.

Fast forward a month or so ago, and we needed to make a decision on the card box. This wasn’t something that was a high priority for me or anything I wanted to spend a lot of time or resources on. I just wanted it to blend in with the overall look of the wedding and be practical and useful.

My first thought was to follow the movie “Up” inspired mailbox trend. I find this idea beyond adorable and love the personalized touch.

Image via DisneyWeddingBlog.com / Photo by Wildflowers Photography

(Super cute “Up” inspired engagement shoot.)

The biggest concern about using this type of card box is that the cards could easily disappear.

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