I heart Boxes

I love getting boxes in the mail. When I lived in Virginia, my family would send me sponge candy from my favorite candy place all the time. I came home to find two boxes the mailman had left for me.

The first box was a Christmas gift I'd ordered for someone. As soon as I saw the return address on box #2,  I could not open that sucker fast enough!!

Oh the suspense was killing me!!!

Tah-Dah!! My metallic Fuchsia 6x6 Perfetto pocket folds from Cards and Pockets have arrived!!!  Ordered mats in Black Tie! I am so excited! They were having a sale so I couldn't resist. I don't have all of the details done for the actual invitation designs but I knew I couldn't wait! I also ordered the envelopes in pearl and my RSVP envelopes in White and those should be here shortly! *All pictures taken by me*

Were you ever proactive on a wedding project because you just couldn't resist?

Doing My Wedding Garb Homework

Sorry I've been MIA for a few days. I've had a sick little gal at home. Fever's = no fun :(

In between episodes of SpongeBob and watching the Tinker Bell movie for the gazillionth time, I pulled out all of my bridal magazines and decided to put together my inspiration book. I ripped out all of the hair, make-up, and cool ideas I liked. I also pulled every wedding dress picture that caught my eye. Now, when I do get-a-move-on finding a dress, I have a sampling of ideas to take to the store with me. One thing that was consistent in all of the pictures I did pull besides them being anti-poofy, was that 99% of the gowns, were made of lace or had some kind of lace in them. Now don't get me wrong, if I find another poofy gown that makes me cry and sob and swoon and smile all at the same time, rock on, I'm in, but here are some of the styles I'll be looking to try on.

Source

Source

I also love this one by Alfred Angelo

Source

check out the back of this one

Source

I plan on going into more than one bridal store and I'll be taking plenty of pictures. What did you do to prepare yourself for dress shopping?

Mommy Doesn't Want Cake On Her Pretty White Dress: Part 2

For attempt number 2 of my "how to have wipes available to clean off my messy kid, yet still blend in with the pretty table decorations", I used fabric. If you missed Part I, you can check it out here. I started with a very smooth plain white box and some pretty swirly black fabric

I need to be up front and honest with you guys about something before I go any further. I craft cards, and throughout this entire wedding creating process, most of the materials I will be using are paper/craft products. I can't sew and I haven't made a flower arrangement in years, but I know how to use card making supplies and have access to a lot of stuff. Glad I got that off my chest. :) Any-who, I used basic tacky glue to adhere the fabric to the box. All I did was put a layer if the tacky glue throughout the inside edges of the box and spread it around with a tooth pick.

After I let the glue dry a little so it was became tacky, I stuck the fabric onto the inside of the box and held it down until it stayed.

After I did the front and sides, I did the same thing along the bottom.

The box was too awkward to just stick the fabric onto the top. It had a raised lip along the edge and it just wasn't going to stay properly so I improvised. I decided on letting the fabric hang over the top just a little bit like a drap. This way it would be easier to open the box. I measured out my square and added a 1/4 of an inch to each side so it would hang over. I then used red liner to attach my thin pink ribbon along the edge of my fabric. I didn't want to use any type of glue since it could leak through the ribbon.

Next, I used my red liner again to go around the box to I could fold the fabric over. I love red liner because it's VERY sticky, and it's flexable so I was actually able to go around the curved corners with no problem.

And there you have it. What have I learned from this little project? Box #2 has a shiny coating and made it very difficult to handle. The fabric kept sliding but when I used the red liner, it was much easier. If I had thought about that earlier, I would have used it for the inside as well in place of the glue. Since the top just pushes up and open, the fabric that I stuck on the inside snags a little. This was a nice learning process for me and after doing it, I have a better idea of what works, and what doesn't work and I actually plan on incorporating elements from both of the projects for my final box.

Have you tried any run throughs on projects to see how the would work?

Let the Emotional Outburst Start.....Now

I got an email from my Day of Coordinator telling me that, due to unforeseen circumstances, she will not be able to coordinate my wedding. After I read it twice to make sure I was reading it correctly, I started to panic a little bit. What am I going to do? She was going to put out all of my fires for me. If something  wasn't done right, she would make sure it got fixed. This was my only big want for our wedding, someone to delegate everything for me the day of.


Now I've got a huge decision to make. Do I hire someone new for big bucks, or do I ask my friends and family to help me? I did meet with the new banquet manager who really made me feel confident that everything at the reception site would be taken care of by him and his staff. It's just the everything else part that has me worked up a bit.

So help me out, do I hire someone new, delegate my already delegated friends/family, or do I let it ride and hope for the best? If you did have an insider helping you out, how did that work out?

Mommy Doesn't Want Cake On Her Pretty White Dress: Part 1

My 3 year old has gotten pretty good at getting food into her mouth instead of everywhere else. There are still moments when she can make a complete hot-mess of herself. I've written to Mars to let them know that M&M's absolutely DO melt in your hands, and then get all over everything. I am still waiting for a response from them. Even though hugs and kisses from Miss Morgan are my favorite things in the entire world, I don't really want to have little finger prints of ketchup & butter all over my white dress. Here are just a few examples of just how messy my little monkey can get.

First Birthday, Cake

18 moths, Oreo cookie

3, Blue Cake

 I need to have wipes at the table but I don't want a big, bulky, plastic container sitting in the way. Instead I started brain-storming;  how can I make the wipes blend in with the table decorations? I came up with two ideas and  I wanted to do a mock up of them to see how it would look, and if it would even work. I had 2 different containers with different opening mechanisms and textures. I decided to paint container #1.

Since the colors are all wrong, (it's pale-purple with grey), I went ahead and painted it black with acrylic paint. I didn't put a sealant on here either since it is just a dress rehearsal before I do the real deal. The part I like most about this box, it's SO easy to open, you push the button, the top pops open and voilà, you have your wipes. It's also nice and small and won't get in anyone's way.

I grabbed 2 different sizes of ribbon to decorate the outside of the box. I used the thicker ribbon along the side. I used really thin glue dots to attach it so that it wouldn't show a dark spot on the ribbon, and there wouldn't be a noticeable lump. I also stuck a bow on the front of it with the smaller ribbon. I know the seam is showing, but it's just a practice and I can work on hiding that better later..

I'm glad I did do a run through with this because it gave me a chance to see what will and will not work.  The ribbon around the font and sides is just too thick. The bow on the front is also completely washed out. I could keep the thick ribbon on there and put maybe a strip of black ribbon down the middle. If I do go with this one, I will most likely use a thinner ribbon and maybe a black bow. Next I wanted to put our initials on the top and I used the old school method that Mrs. Gloss of Weddingbee broke down for us here.

And after I transferred our letters I painted them in white.

I have to admit, if I didn't have a messy little eater of my own, I probably wouldn't have thought of doing something like this. My Aunt and Uncle will have Morgan and my 1 year old nephew at their table. I also plan on putting a cute pink & black bag together for my Aunt to use in place of the bag I normally tote around with all of her necessities. My normal bring-a-long bag is pretty bulky and it's another reason to add another project to my list. :) I really like the way this turned out. I know I would change the ribbon and put some kind of sealer on it to give it a nice shine. I also have considered using crystals for our letters on top instead of white paint. Next up, box #2 where I try it again using fabric.

Are you doing anything for your messiest little guests?

They're No Manolos

I know, I know, I don't have a wedding dress so what the heck am I doing buying shoes?!  Not to worry, I haven't bought my shoe's yet. You know, the HAWT pink ones I'll have on me when I walk to down the aisle. I bought my reception shoes! I am in no way a "shoe person"-unlike my sister who believes in the motto, "You cannot have too many shoes, ever". I consider myself a purse collector. I love kate spade! I have one pair of dressy Tommy Hilfiger sandals and all of the rest of my shoes are the chunky boot-looking kind. I also have a pair of all black Adidas sandals that I used to chase Morgan around in last summer. I spend most of my time in sneakers but I knew I didn't want to do that for the wedding. This was an important day so I wanted to do a little something out of the normal, yet comfortable, and still within my tomboy-esque comfort zone. I had to come up with something that was a little of both, and then I laid my eyes on these....

Source

Oh yes, they are everything I never knew I always wanted in my reception foot gear. They are pink & black which are our wedding colors, they are soooo comfy, and they are in typical Michele taste. I bought them right then and there. I know I will wear these bad boys no matter what happens, (can you feel the impulse buyers remorse coming on?)  but in searching online for a good picture of my shoes, I came across something else that I'm thinking maybe a little more fitting for the occasion.

Source

These look a little bit more bridal I think. So here it is, do I stick with what I have, or do I buy the pink & white ones which would also increase my sad and pathetic little shoe collection? Are you wearing something non-wedding-ish on your toes during the reception?

I'm a Cartoon!

I have always loved pictures and drawings. My friend Dale is an amazing artist and can draw any super hero free hand. I've got a few of his drawings up on my desk @ work that he did for me from the game Bioshock. One day I was floating around online and saw a board post on Weddingbee asking for ideas. Róisín Curé is an artist who makes the-most beautiful drawings of couples to use for your wedding, like wedding invitations and thank you notes. She was looking to expand her comic strip portfolio but needed real stories of real couples. I thought it wouldn't hurt to send her our story and see what happens. Ro emailed me and said she'd like to use our story! I couldn't believe it. I sent her some pictures of us, some places we loved, even our hobbies. 

I received an email from her several days later that said "Hi Michele, Your comic strip is done......." I was so excited, it was like Christmas. Since I was at work, I had to download the attachment on my iPhone which takes an eternity when you really want something to open. I think it's part of the programing. After a few moments, this popped up on my screen

Source

It brought a cheshire cat grin to my face and tears in my eyes. I sent this wonderful lady a picture of David an I, our story of meeting in a call center which you can see in pic #1, plus, a fact about each of us; that I LOVE Bills football (I've got my Marshawn Lynch Jersey in pic 2), and Dave is a computer geek/guy. The final tid-bit of information I sent to her was that our favorite Vacation spot was Myrtle Beach and that Morgan is what made our world go around. She put the 3 of us on the beach together in the last picture. I can't even begin to tell you how much I love what she has created. We are going to frame this and also display it on one of the tables at the wedding so our guests can see it! If you'd like to see more of her work, you can check out her website Bespoke Wedding Invitations.

Have you added any artistic elements into your wedding day?

Invitations

So, I was given full creative control over the invitations by David, as long as they are tasteful and wedding-like, which means they cannot be adorned with our adorable Xbox avatars. I've lost that battle completely, but, I will utilize them somewhere! *evil grin* Ok, so far, there are things about our invitations that I am sure of and some thing are still a little fuzzy.

One of the things I do know is that our invites will be pocket-folds, and not just any pocket-foldes but the shiniest pinky-est pocket-folds I have ever found!

Source

This picture does NOT do the color justice! These are from Cards & Pockets. I've ordered samples in both the Signature and the Perfetto styles and am having a hard time deciding which one to use. I really like the room in the Perfetto, but I've heard people having issues with mailing them out.

I also love the idea of having an entire suite go with the entire flow of our wedding. One thing I am in love with are bird invitations.

Source

Source

Source

Aren't they fantastic. I am by no means able to create anything like this, lucky for me, my BFF bridesmaid Bonnie, is a graphic designer! Woo Hoo! So we're going to get together with some pizza, stick our kiddies in front of a Disney movie (her little boy and Miss Morgan are good pals) and see what we can come up with. Our Save The Dates need to go out soon so I've gotta get on it. I've also started a list of all of the projects I need to do and my estimated time it will take to finish each project. This way I will have a good idea of when I need to start my projects.

Did you have trouble choosing a pocket fold style? If you used Perfetto, did you have any issues mailing them out?

Meet Our Peeps!

So, we have a pretty good size wedding party and I wanted to take a moment to introduce these special people to everyone.

This is me, Tara (bridesmaid #1), and Sarah Matron of Honor #1 (she's got the arrow) from my 30th birthday.

This is Trevor, our Best Man & Dave's BFF.

This is my sister Melanie, my 2nd Matron of Honor and our Groomsman Bill, also her hubby

Here is Tara again, and Ryan our Groomsman (AKA Tara's hubbs)

Our next Bridesmaid Tracey. She's been practicing being a bridesmaid in her friends wedding just for me :)

My little brother Mike, Groomsman

My adorable Bridesmaid Bonnie. Isn't she cute, LOVE her!

This next pic is of my 3 cousins all of which are in the wedding party. In the center is Bill who is our final groomsman. To the left is Kate & to the right is Chrissy who are my 2 junior bridesmaid.

And finally.......

My BEAUTIFUL nephew Liam, my sister & Bro-In-Law's little boy, who will be our Ring Bearer. I hate that he lives in MO, too far from his Auntie Michele.

And.........my favorite wedding party participant would have to be our flower-girl AKA our little pride and joy, Morgan!

I love her in all her adorable cuteness!

So these are our nearest & dearest who will be with us on our ever so important day. Who are you related to in your wedding party? Do you have any "couples" standing up in your wedding either together or not?

iConfess

I have wedding dress shopping issues. Getting my tush out to dress shop has been a chore for me. I have put it off and cancelled over and over and I'm not sure why. I have a few thoughts on this matter though and was looking for some feedback.  


#1-I wear jeans and a t-shirt just about every single day. Dressing up usually consist of a cute top, nice jeans and heels. I wear dresses to weddings and do not own a skirt. Now, I have my mind set on tradition, tradition, tradition, so I will need to WOman-up and get into trying on some gowns eventually. The last dress I wore was over a year ago to my sister wedding. I was ok with it and Dave loved me in it so I am planning on purchasing some dresses (and maybe a skirt) for wedding related parties like bridal shower, rehearsal dinner, and bachelorette outing. I'm just not used to the whole dress wearing concept itself and once I start "practicing" maybe it will become more natural.


#2-I am a full figure chick. The girls make tops hard enough for me to find but I cannot stand how they look when I'm supposed to be dressed up. I've always been top heavy but ever since Morgan was born, I am over the top heavy. I'm trying to watch what I eat, but I am honestly not big into dieting because even when I try to diet, I cheat...........constantly. So, it could be my shape holding me back? Anyone see Coraine a thousand times like we have? Picture Miss Forcible (she's on the right).

Source

I love those two, it's an exaggeration, but you get the point. So, thats my dilemma. I can look through the magazines and see dresses that I think are pretty and beautiful (Christina Wu anyone?), but honestly, the dress is probably the least important thing on my list. Blasphemy, I know. I really need to just get out there and try on some different styles and find ones that looks good on my shape. Most of what I've read say halters work best for top heavy gals like myself. I also refuse to spend a lot of money on it because it isn't important to me. I'd rather spend the money on other aspects of the wedding like the decor or a chocolate fountain! Yummmmm. See, I told ya, diets and me=EPIC FAIL. I plan on trashing that sucker shortly after the wedding in a Trash The Dress Session, so spending a lot of money on something I will destroy isn't something I want to do either.


Anyone else feel ehhh about the whole dress thing? Anyone got any advice on dressing for the big day when your top-heavy?

Purdy Flowers

So, I had a very quick impromptu meeting with my florist once when we were planning Wedding v1.0, you can read about that here if you missed it. I told her that I had wanted small Gerber Daisy's for the gals in different shades of pink. Now, at our next meeting, I'm bringing her a different idea. One shade of pink (preferably hot pink) tied with black ribbon. My 2 junior maids will have the same but with a smaller number of flowers.

Source

Source

Source

Love it! I've also been thinking about doing something just a smidge different for my BFF Matron of Honor #1 and my sister Matron of Honor #2. Maybe extra flowers? Now, as for me, I'm not big on red roses, so I want big cream roses and hydrangeas. I mean for real, how delish would

this

Source

...plus this

Source

....be? I know right? Fantastic! The boys will be rocking cliche boutonnieres, the moms & grandmoms will get corsages. I'm still not sure what I'm going to have Morgan carry yet. I could do the basket or even her own mini bouquet, or maybe something completely different?

What else do you think would look good with cream roses & hydrangeas? Any ideas on what my flower girl should carry down the aisle?