Bridal show? Psh, how about attend a "not wedding?"

This team of Atlanta vendors throws a fake wedding where brides to be can be the guests! How cool. Much more exciting than a bridal show. I'm not speaking from experience, but check this out!

Atlanta - July 21, 2011

http://www.thenotwedding.com/

Poetry (and prose!) for Thought

Coming up with personalized wedding vows is probably one of the most nerve racking parts of the whole event for me... I DESPISE public speaking. Plus, I want what I say to sound good, right? Therein lies the problem: I am completely polar oppositely far far away from being romantic. I like romantic gestures towards me, but I have a really hard time being, for lack of better words, mushy gushy. Therefore, I need some inspiration, and what better a place to get it from than classical poetry. Here are a few of my favorite poems, don't be surprised if my vows are bits and pieces of all them put together!

From Wuthering Heights

Emily Bronte

...He's more myself than I am. Whatever our souls are made of, his and mine are the same... He's always, always in my mind; not as a pleasure to myself, but as my own being.

"If there is such a thing as a good marriage, it is because it resembles friendship rather than love."

-Michel de Montaigne

"The true beloveds of this world are in their lovers' eyes lilacs opening, ship lights, school bells, a landscape, remembered conversations, friends, a child's Sunday, lost voices, one's favorite suit, autumn and all seasons."

-Truman Capote

A Red, Red Rose

Robert Burns

O, my love is like a red, red rose,

That's newly sprung in June.

O my love is like the melody,

That's sweetly played in tune.

As fair art thou, my bonnie lass,

So deep in love am I,

And I will love thee still, my dear, 

Til a' the seas gang dry.

Til a' the seas gang dry, my dear,

And the rocks melt wi' the sun!

And I will love thee still, my dear,

When the sands o'life shall run.

And fare thee well, my only love,

And fare thee well awhile!

And I will come again, my love,

Though it were ten thousand mile!

"Love is the condition in which the happiness of another person is essential to your own."

-Robert Heinlein

Did I Ever Tell You

Richard Exley

Did I ever tell you

that I love you

early in the morning

with your toothpaste kisses

and your sleepy eyes?

With your headaches and 

grumpiness

that only goes away

if I hold your hand

and whisper the soft things

that you like to hear?

Did I ever tell you

that I love you

at mid-afternoon

during coffee-break time,

when clocks and

crowded cafeterias

make smiles and warm hands

love's best language?

Did I ever tell you

that I love the way

you smell after a bath,

that I love the way you feel in bed beside me,

that I love the way

you look after I've loved you?

Did I ever tell you that I love you?

I do,

I do,

I do.

"Love does not consist of gazing at each other, 

but looking outward in the same direction."

-Antoine de Saint-Exupery

But ultimately there comes a moment when a decision must be made. Ultimately two people who love each other how much they hope for as their love grows and deepens, and how much risk they are willing to take... It is indeed a fearful gamble... 

Because it is the nature of love to create, a marriage itself is something which has to be created, so that, together we become a new creature.

To marry is the biggest risk in human relations that a person can take... If we commit ourselves to one person for life this is not, as many people think, a rejection of freedom; rather it demands the courage to move into all the risks of freedom, and the risk of love which is permanent; into that love which is not possession, but participation... It takes a lifetime to learn another person... When love is not possession , but participation, then it is part of that co-creation which is our human calling, and which implies such risk that it is often rejected.

I'd be crazy to propose to her, but when I see that profile of hers I feel the only thing worth doing in the world is to grab her and start shouting for clergymen and bridesmaids to come running.

-P.G. Wodehouse

"Grow old along with me!

The best is yet to be."

-Robert Browning

Presidental partying

Haha, long night of dancing much?

Summer Goal

My goal this summer is to make a post a day - and hopefully a lot of them will actually start to be me doing rather than me brainstorming! By the end of the summer I should have found a dress, secured a photographer, paid for my tent, chosen a food vendor, considered stemware and flatware options, plus many more smaller details. I will be working full time at an engineering firm here in Charlottesville, but definitely hope to make the most of my weekends.

Caroline and Jon take on DC

Jon and I went to see the Cherry Blossoms today! While it was a fun photography adventure, it was one of those things I don't see myself caring to see more than once. It was overly crowded and a bit too cliche - but I figure since I live under an hour away from the capital it had to be done sometime!

Update + Unique & Cute Wedding Touches

So, I just requested to see a couple venues over spring break. Ah! I hope they get back to me soon. This is all so exciting. If only I wasn't so indecisive! I still haven't chosen colors, and that is the first step. I was always a sucker for royal purple... then I got Jon into it, and now I've moved on to Pink & Burgundy - which Jon doesn't like. He prefers Light Pink & Royal Purple. Hm. I also like Light Pink & Peach so at least we're narrowing it down. I really don't see any blues or greens coming into the mix, unless they are accents.

CUTE WEDDING TOUCHES! Here are some great ideas I found and I'm definitely planning on implementing more than one of them!

• Taking polaroid pictures of guests as they make their way to the reception. Can either add these photos to the guest book or sign them and write the wedding date on the bottom and send 'em out with the thank you notes.


• This idea is interesting -- make your bouquet have two detachable sections, and present one to your mother and one to your mother-in-law. Still not sure what I think about this one.


• Using seed paper cards (possibly for thank you notes), insert cheesy line about love always growing, lasting forever, whatever. I would do something lame like that :).


• Putting a heart symbol or something at one seating at every table, then that guest gets to take the table centerpiece home. Or, better yet, donate them to a hospital or retirement home.

My favorite sources of procrastination

These sites definitely top my list of wedding helpers. Check them out!

Snippet and Ink
A blog with daily wedding inspirations. Cute pictures from real weddings.
http://snippetandink.blogspot.com/

Project Wedding
Quite possibly my favorite. Very user friendly, amazing collection of real weddings, photo gallery where you can sort pictures by color and genre. Complete with an inspiration board section!
http://www.projectwedding.com

The Knot
This is a magazine's webpage. It's very useful; if you make an account you can set up a wedding webpage, and even have an online guest list where you can keep track of numbers and who has replied, etc.
http://www.theknot.com

Etsy
This is a website where people can sell the crafts they make. It is a goldmine for unique wedding accents for sure!
http://www.etsy.com

100 Layer Cake
Another blog, a little more on the alternative side -- great for the artistic, edgy side of me.
http://100layercake.com/blog/

Wedding Wire
GREAT vendor reviews based on location. Can give you the extra push to pick a venue or a photographer!
http://www.weddingwire.com/

Wedding Mapper
Another site that tailors your search to your local area.
http://www.weddingwire.com/

The Treasured Petal
A blog by a florist. Some interesting pictures, but hasn't been updated too recently.
http://thetreasuredpetal.wordpress.com/2009/06/19/

To Splurge or to Save?

There are certain parts of a wedding that just can't be contested as major money suckers (photography, for one!). While I still have NO IDEA what my budget is going to be, I definitely know where I want to scrimp, and where I want to indulge!

Splurge
- Wedding Day Photography
- Dress (within reason)
- Hair
- Venue

Save
- Centerpieces (DIY or floating candles in water, minimal flowers..)
- Engagement Photography - with my camera by a friend or my sister
- Having an "exhibition cake" - (smaller) with extra sheet cake in the back ALSO going with 15% less cake than what your guest list calls for should suffice (this way I can still get a pretty sweet Ace of Cakes cake - so it's not exactly a save... but relatively!)
- Don't serve any other dessert besides the cake - unnecessary

Caroline & Jon First Snow 2009

wedding inspirations

these are just some every day things that are inspring me.

-bird cages
-rusted keys
-locks
-mason jars
-limes
-postcards
-stamps
-wine labels
-grapes
-pears
-vines
-buttons
-umbrellas
-parisols
-wooden fences
-clothes lines
-suspenders
-potted plants
-wooden plants
-chandeliers
-pine cones
-old fashioned cars
-vintage
-classy
-rustic
-mystic
-etheral
-pearls
-sage
-moss
-aubergine
-plum
-royal purple