Chapel of Love

139 days

Currently working on: pocketfolds (62/130 done)

Today Matt and I met with the wedding consultant for the chapel and went over the ceremony basics. We decided on a couple things such as sitting for the ceremony (versus kneeling), who's walking down the aisle and in what order, as well as other small details. We went through a bunch of old programs that Pat had and took a few as inspiration. We finished the programs on Vistaprint once we got home and I'm ordering them right now! Here are what they'll look like:

After we met with Pat, we went to the Priory and met with Father Al, our officiant. We talked for a little while, got his address, gave him the readings we decided on, and talked about our Pre-Cana in February. (Matt registered us for a two-day one on the 10th and 11th. Hopefully it'll be better having it split like that.)

We stopped at Michael's to get more Glue Dots for the pocketfolds as well as more bags for the welcome bags. I also found some really cute ribbon for the invitations since I knew I wouldn't have enough for those as well as the programs. It's white with light blue writing that says "Eat, Drink, & Be Married".

And now Matt and I are off to bed!

Shower Blues

140 days

Currently working on: pocketfolds (62/130 done)

Yesterday, I received my bridal shower dress in the mail...and it didn't fit. I'm sending it back today for the next size up which they will hopefully still have in stock!

I also got the black shoes that I ordered Monday from Delia's! They fit and are really cute! I can finally get rid of my old ones that are dirty and falling apart!

On a completely non-wedding related note, we had our apartment de-bugged yesterday. Well, the first round since they have to do two more. Thankfully, the next two times are a lot easier in that you don't have to do anything with clothes which was the biggest pain in the ass this time.

Sunday, Matt and I are meeting with our officiant, which I already mentioned. However, we are also going to meet with the wedding consultant for the chapel. We're also going to stop at the school's bookstore to see what they have that we can get for the welcome bags.

Today, though, I'm going to put away some clothes and relax until my Lia Sophia party tonight!

It's Not Easy Being Green

Happy 23rd Birthday to my best friend and groomsman, Lars!

Something Blue

143 days

Currently working on: pocketfolds (62/130 done)

I got my dress label in the mail today! It's a little bigger than I thought it would be, but it's so simple and cute! I love that it's the perfect something blue, but I'm still wearing my blue underwear that I got at Gap.

I also ordered new black Maryjanes on Monday night and got an email that they shipped today! I've been needing a new pair for a while, my other ones are falling apart and dirty. They're my favorite shoes, though, and they go with everything. I also want them for the bachelorette since we're doing a little black dress dinner. Here's the shoes:

Matt and I also have an appointment with our officiant, Father Al, on Sunday. I'm hoping to finalize the mass (we have the music done and our readings picked, so it's just going over everything with Father Al) so that we can order the ceremony programs. Speaking of Vistaprint, they shipped another one of my orders! I'll see what it is in a couple days!

And one last thing, I bought another Groupon for Vistaprint! I can order almost everything for the wedding without spending a fortune!

Place Stamp Here

144 days

Currently working on: pocketfolds (62/130 done)

So obviously I'm taking a break from the pocketfolds, since I've been at 62 for about a week. Part of that was forcing myself to finish the pearls for the bouquets, but I also don't want to start hating the pocketfolds and making them half-assed.

Anyway, I ordered ALL of our envelopes for the invitations today! I had another Groupon deal that I needed to use, so I ordered 200 total. I got free shipping because I went $30 over the $60 of the deal! I'm glad to have this done since we're going to have to send out the invitations in a couple months and I'll be able to address them as I finish them. (After we order the menu cards that are going into the invitations which will be in February.) Here's what the envelopes look like:

I also got an email today that my bridal shower dress has shipped! I'm so excited to get it and try it on! The reviews for it were great, so I'm praying it will look good on me as well as fit well! We'll see in a couple days!

Last night, I was looking at flights to St. Lucia from Boston the week after our wedding for our honeymoon. Matt and I know we want to go to an all-inclusive resort because it's paid for upfront and so no money has to be spent there. We're going with Sandals and were originally looking at their Grande St. Lucian resort. The appeal was that there are two other resorts on the island that you can go to; it's part of their stay at 1, play at 3 deal. However, the flights were ridiculously early leaving on Sunday (we don't want to wait until Monday because it would mean one more day off for me and I don't want to take too much time). So we looked at the other resorts and three in Jamaica have the same stay at 1, play at 3 deal. PLUS, the flights were MUCH better, plus it's a couple hundred cheaper! So we're now planning on going to Montego Bay in Jamaica! I'm so excited, now we just have to book the room and flights!

Just a Few Inches

145 days

Currently working on: pocketfolds (62/130 done)

I found a local salon that is going to do the alterations on my wedding dress! They're quite different from Alfred Angelo, as they don't start until the month before the wedding to take into account any weight loss/gain that might occur. As long as my dress is ready, I'll be happy, and they were really highly recommended online. So I scheduled my appointment for Monday, April 30 at 6 30 after I get out of work. Sadly, their alteration days are only on Mondays and Tuesdays, so I'm going to have to have my girls get their dresses altered somewhere near them, except for Shannon since Ana Bridal (where I'm going) is literally across from the end of her street. I also asked if I could come in just to get some fabric cut off so that I can send it in my our mothers' corsages and they said it would be no problem as long as I bring my shoes. I'm going next Monday (my mom will be visiting so she can go too) to get some of it cut off. Then I can order the corsages! Here's the picture from the listing; the ones I'll get will be white, obviously, with the pearls.

On another note, Matt and I found out that bed bugs are coming through the cracks between the ceiling and wall above our bed. So last night at 11 40, we rearranged the room so the bed was against the opposite wall. Matt called the apartment owners today to tell them so they can get rid of them. It sucks, but it gave us a (pressing) reason to move around the bedroom.

Pearlicious

146 days

Currently working on: pocketfolds (62/130 done)
                                   bouquet pearls (8/8 done)

I finished the pearls for the Cristina's bouquet - the LAST one! I'm so happy to have that part all done, since the brooches are so much easier and fewer! I can't believe that I put it off for months and it only took me four days to finish. I'm ridiculous.

I also finished the RSVPs for the invitations that I have put together so far. (I had run out the other day and had to wait until the rest came in.)

And now onto asking the groomsmen to get measured for their tuxes.

Just Broochy

147 days

Currently working on: pocketfolds (62/130 done)
                                  bouquet pearls (7/8 done)

I FINALLY ordered the last brooches for Jess and Shannon's bouquets! Of course, one of Shannon's won't ship until after the end of the month, but at least I ordered them and can finish those bouquets once they're in. Here are the pictures (let's pray they look this way and I don't have to order any more).

Jess

Shannon

Shannon

Also on the subject of bouquets, I finished the pearls for Juliana's bouquet! I now have only one left to finish which I'm going to do tomorrow! Then it's just the brooches left to buy and put in, then arrange the whole thing and wrap it all up!

I also cancelled my alterations appointment with Alfred Angelo this morning. I'm going to shop around and ask for some estimates before I decide where to get them done. But I'm glad I won't be paying $500 to have material cut off my dress.

Shower Wear

I can't believe I forgot to mention...I ordered my dress for the bridal shower today! I got the Baklava Beauty dress and used my credit from the black disc dress so it was only $54! I can't wait for it to come in so I can try it on! And, of course, one more picture of the dress!

I also found a site that has smaller sized Pasminas for kids for only $14! I'm going to order a white one for Olivia so that she matches the rest of the girls!

Alter This

148 days

Currently working on: pocketfolds (62/130 done)
                                   bouquet pearls (6/8 done)

Tonight, Matt and I went to Alfred Angelo to pick up Cristina's dress! I love it! The piping on the top looks so great! I also scheduled my appointment for alterations. However, when I came home and looked up what pricing might be (thinking around $200) I saw that their stores ran up bills as high as $500! I am NOT paying that much money (half of what my dress costs) to have it hemmed and taken in. So I've looked around on the internets for a local shop and emailed them about coming in for an estimate with them. I'm going to call tomorrow and cancel my alteration appointment saying that I'll reschedule, but I won't. I don't want to make it awkward, though, since I have to pick up some of the other girls' dresses. Speaking of which, I also told them about the cost so they can go somewhere near them or to the same place as me.

Cristina's dress

I also stopped at Michael's and got some more stickers to decorate the guestbook, as well as going to Walmart to grab some more silver wiring. I'm DETERMINED to finish the pearls for the bouquets tomorrow. And then, it's just ordering the rest of the brooches!

Brooch Blues

149 days

Currently working on: pocketfolds (62/130 done)
                                   bouquet pearls (5/8 done)

I ordered my wedding dress label tonight! The money finally transferred to my Paypal account, so I put in my order on Etsy! It's a simple white piece of grosgrain ribbon with my initials and wedding date sewn into it. Here's the sample image that was on the listing:

I also ordered three more brooches for the bouquets which I have started working on again! I finished the pearls for Jess's bouquet and I'm going to start one of the other two. I'm determined to finish the pearls this weekend! Here are the brooches I ordered: the last one for Hannah's bouquet and two more for Jess's.

Hannah

Jess

Jess

I'm planning on buying my bridal shower dress tomorrow before it goes out of stock again, especially since the other one I liked is no longer available at all. I'll update on how that goes.

CL

150 days

Currently working on: pocketfolds (62/130 done)
                                 escort card letters (28/28 done)
                                 guestbook envelopes (115/115 done)

I got home to another mni-Christmas! I had three packages waiting for me, two of which were wedding-related.

First, I got the envelopes that we're using for the escort cards and guestbook. (I'm so glad I bought the Tacky Glue the other day!) I have already glued them into the book! I just need to add the labels to the envelopes and it will be completely done!

Second, I got my package from Vistaprint! In it was the I Spy cards, the rest of the RSVP cards (good thing, I just ran out), some more thank yous, and the stamp for the fans. Sadly, I ordered the invitations with a matte cover instead of glossy. They're still nice, but now they're different from the rest. I think that I'm going to use them for the bridal shower, though. I just need to order the fans!

The third package was the new mouse I ordered for our laptop. Just in time, too, because the left button was dying quickly on the old one. (It would stick after I let go of it.)

I'm going to really start making myself work on the bouquets so that I'm not rushing at the last minute. I have quite a bit to do on some of them and I'm so unmotivated.

And here are the pictures of the frames that I finished yesterday!

Planning Potpourri II

151 days

Currently working on: pocketfolds (62/130 done)
                                   frames (10/10 done)
                                   escort card sign letters (0/28 done)

Okay, here's the pictures that I left out my post yesterday.

The tote bags for the girls:

I finished the Meet the Maids and Moms frames tonight! I had the inserts printed at Walmart and picked them up today. They look really great! I still have to take pictures of them, so I'll post them later.

Matt and I are in the process of picking out which clutches we want to get for our mothers. When I have pictures of them, I'll post those, too.

I went onto ModCloth today and they have the Baklava Beauty dress back in stock! Sadly, they don't have the Bubblegum Poppies dress at all anymore, but that makes my decision a lot easier. (Let's hope they still have the Baklava one this Friday when I'll have the money to buy it.)

I started working on the escort card sign today. I bought the scrapbook paper today at Walmart and printed the letters. I'm going to start cutting everything out and gluing it.

I think that's all I have for now. If not, I'll either add on here or write a new post!

Tote-ally Done

152 days

currently working on: pocketfolds (62/130 done)
                                   frames (10/10 done)
                                   tote bags (14/14 done)

I finished the tote bags! I'm so happy that I got something competed today! They came out really cute! (Check out my DIY site for pictures.)

Here's a couple other things I did today:
-completed more invitations
-ordered the envelopes for the guestbook and escort cards
-had the pictures printed at Walmart
-found clutches on Etsy that I want to order for mine and Matt's moms

That's all for now! I'll post pictures tomorrow when I have more time!

Five Gold Rings

5 months until our wedding!!

Meet the Maids & Moms

153 days

Currently working on: pocketfolds (51/130 done)
                                    frames (0/10 done)

I was surfing through wedding boards on Pinterest and found a really cute idea for the bridal shower: frames with pictures and short bios of the bridal party for people to find out who they are and why you chose them. I loved the idea, so I'm going to do it but also add mine and Matt's moms! I bought ten unfinished wood frames from Michael's that I'm going to paint in each girls' color (of course). I'll write their names on them as well, but I think I'll leave the decorating as a fun activity at the bridal party brunch! I'm going to write the bios and put a small picture of them in each frame, but behind that, I'm going to put a picture of that person and I (Matt's mom will get a picture of her and Matt). They'll get to keep the frames and can display the picture later on!

I also bought more black paper for the invitations as well as honeymoon stickers for my scrapbook. We went to Walmart to get a new cartridge for our printer and I printed out the silver labels for the inside part of the invitations!

I also got a dress for the rehearsal dinner! I have been eyeing this dress from American Eagle for a month or two and it was on sale plus an additional 40% off so I bought it! Then I decided that I would use it for the rehearsal and rehearsal dinner! Here's a picture:

I finished the fifth newsletter today, but I'm not going to publish it here until February 1st!

Off to go craft!

Penguin Suits

154 days

Currently working on: pocketfolds (51/130 done)

Matt and I were busy wedding bees today! We had two different wedding appointments that we went to.

First we went to the chapel to meet with the musical coordinator (who's also the organist) and the vocalist. We decided on the hymns, psalms, and music that would be played during the ceremony. We were also able to get a violinist (although he wasn't there) which I've always wanted! The vocalist has an amazing voice and Sherry, the organist, was great as well! Matt and I are really happy with them and excited to have one more thing checked off our to-do list!

Later we went to Joseph A. Bank to register our wedding and pick out the tuxes that the guys will be wearing for the wedding. We had already built a tux online, so it was just making sure they had all the pieces and registering the wedding and the guys. Now we'll just be sending out an email for them to get measured (at any Joseph A. Bank store) by May! Here are the tuxes that we'll be getting:

Matt

Nick T

Ryan

Nick C

Lars

Rich

Devon

Cole

ushers

my dad (Paul)

Matt's dad (Mark)