Chair Covers & Sashes and all things to match this….  (ok, I’m not a poet)

It’s been a few weeks since I have had time to sit, relax with Sangria and write down the adventures.  As we get closer to time, I hope that I have covered most everything already and it will just be exciting and not stressful.

A few things I have accomplished in the past few weeks mostly pertain to linens and things…..

Choosing colors for the reception was easy breezy and based on the invitations.  So white linens for the tables, which will be round and seat hopefully 8 guests per table; white chair covers and baby blue organza sashes tied in a bow.  I am thinking about using the organza sashes as table runners as well, just to add a touch more color to the room.

For the centerpieces, I will be using a very coastal blue theme as well.  Large shells and white faux coral spilling out of a glass bowl filled with sand and starfish will be surrounded by small glass votives with baby blue candles.  I am hoping to use this on the round glass mirrors that Bon Appetit provides with their packages.

I have to say, having an all inclusive wedding package really makes the budget easy to do.  Bon Appetit includes all the table linens, chair covers, sashes and mirror centerpieces in their packages, so I didn’t need to think about any extra expenses to make the reception room beautiful!

Well, I am off to do a few more things on my Wedding Checklist!

Cheers

Belle (bride to be!)

Invites, thank you cards, menu cards, favor cards, etc, etc, etc….

Belle here, for my weekly update!  This week was an interesting week with actually picking our all of our paper goods.  Spent a good while at Paper Players picking our exactly the style for everything printed.  I am happy so say Michelle was fantastic and so very helpful in matching things to my colors, overall theme and best of all, my cake. 

To give you all the details, here is what I ordered:  A beautiful heavy weight iridescent off white cardstock base with subtle sky blue clam shell in the bottom corner with dainty starfish and sand dollars in a neutral khaki color for the single page invitations.  To match, the RSVP card is done in the same gorgeous cardstock with a dainty seahorse in the bottom right corner in the khaki color of course.  I think we are going to continue the theme and do our place cards with the same cardstock and simple embossed clam shell with seahorse.

I also chose the same theme but with a twist for our Thank You cards, but I don’t want to ruin the surprise, so you will just have to wait and see!

I am a seahorse nut, in case you didn’t know.  I just love the idea that when seahorses are being social they turn bright colors, such a cheerful little animal.  I also adore the idea that seahorses choose their partners for life and wrap tails around each other as a sign of affection.  So romantic and fascinating.

Well that’s about it for this week – stay tuned for next weeks adventure!

Cheers!

Belle (bride to be)

Aanother busy week has passed and I am back to update you on this weeks adventures.  It is all about CAKE!

Bon Appetit Restaurant has given me 4 options as far as cake bakers to do my cake.  I never thought I would get 4 pastry chef’s to choose from.  So I did the most fun part of this entire planning process, cake tastings!  I went to visit 2 of the Cake Chef’s to sample the different types of cakes and fillings and talk about what I want my design to be.  I never knew a cake tasting could be sooooo stressful!  Too many choices!

I think I am doing a small 3 tier cake with 2 different cake flavors. The top tier ( which I plan to save) and the bottom tier will both be vanilla pound cake with chocolate ganache filling.  The middle tier will be chocolate pound cake with raspberry and vanilla butter cream filling.  I am so excited about it. 

As for the design of the cake, I am going beachy.  Instead of a traditional white icing, I am doing a pale blue rolled fondant icing with white chocolate seashells scattered over the tiers and around the base.  Very simple, clean and beachy.  Cant wait to see it.

While we were there, we also did a small cake tasting for a cake that we will take to our rehearsal dinner.  Of course I let Chase choose what he wanted since that is primarily “his” cake and you’ll never guess what he chose.  Red Velvet cake in the shape of UGA Bulldawg!  For those of you who know us, you know how much Chase loves his UGA, so now it is part of our wedding.  Hhhhmmmmm…….

Well that about sums up this week’s adventures, and after a week like that I will happily sip my sangria and bid y’all adieu….

Belle (bride to be!)

Hey all!  Belle here for an update on this weeks’ adventures.

Although our wedding day is still months away, there is no doubt that it is first and foremost in my mind.   So this week, while I sip my Sangria, my goal is to make sure our Wedding is also on the minds of my friends and family with my “Save the date” cards.  I know not everyone in my family is familiar with this trend, but I think they can be very helpful, particularly when many of our guests are traveling to the wedding.  In an effort to keep my Coastal Wedding theme going, I am using a seashell inspired card that will then match my invitations.  I also think I might have these cards made into magnets, which will keep them in the forefront of all our guests’ minds when they adorn the fridge!

Now, according to my trusty planner, I am right on track for sending these out.  It is suggested that I send them about four to six months before the wedding (or even earlier if travel plans must be arranged).   I also think I might give some basic information in case people need to plan ahead.  For example, the name of the hotel and location of the ceremony and reception and the BIG Date of the event: Pertinent information for those needing to reserve planes, trains and automobiles.   

In reference to last weeks’ thoughts, we have decided to go with a less traditional civil ceremony.  And not only that, I think we are going to write our own vows!  How’s that for making my life even harder?  So in the next few weeks, I might bounce some ideas off of my friends and family, as to what to put into my vows.  I just think it will make it a bit more personal and memorable to us.

That’s about it for this week, so until next week…..

Cheers!

Belle (bride to be!)

Belle here with my weekly update.  Engaged for  4 months now!  Time flies when you are planning a wedding.   This week my focus has been on finding out how I want my ceremony to go. 

When I think ahead to the emotional impact of that moment, I have asked myself which close friends and family I want to have standing beside us and who will walk me down the aisle. The first question is easy of course it is why I chose my bridesmaids and how Chase chose his groomsmen.  But I haven’t given as much thought to who will say the words “I now pronounce you husband and wife”!

A judge or clergyman will, of course, have the know-how and the authority to do a traditional ceremony, but do we prefer someone with more knowledge of our love story who can personalize a ceremony?  Do we want someone who isn’t following a script, which can sometimes sound very generic?  I think that is also why many couples I have seen are breaking away from the traditional ceremony and going more tailored to each individual couple.

I found a great article on Martha Stewart Weddings about how to choose an officiant and how to go about making it official with a less traditional civil ceremony.  Good reading.

In my reading and research this week, I also found out that both Bon Appetit and Honeymoon Island do have ceremony packages that include an officiant, which for someone who is stressed about which direction to go, makes life easier.  We shall see which way we go!

Until next week – cheers!

Belle, the Bride to be

Belle here……

So I have decided to mix it up this week and instead of boring everyone with my details, I want to share some of my great finds with you.

Things I love this week are:

 Grapefruit and Mint Mojito!

A cool and refreshing drink, perfect for a spring wedding.  The recipe can be found on Martha Stewart Weddings.

Writing in the Sand!

Sandwriting on the beach!  I love this idea to bring the beach to the reception!

Seascape Centerpieces

I love the idea of shells rather than flowers in centerpieces.  Such a fun twist on tradition.

Flip Flops!

I love the idea of not having to wear painful heels on the beach.  And who wants to dance all night in 3 inch stilettos?

So Classically Elegant! Spring Collection Wedding Gowns.

I also love mix and match bridesmaid dresses.  This style strapless empire wait seems to suit all girls, but mix and match colors – flirty spring styles!

Back to wedding details next week – just wanted to share a few fun things with you this week!

Hey!  Belle here for another weekly update!

Girls weekend a success!  Over a fun and frantic weekend with lots of Sangria, we made many decisions on colors, basic dress styles, input on flowers, ideas for favors, suggestions for ceremony themes, reception themes, food and drink requests……. And the list goes on.

This week’s mission is MUSIC!  Dj vs. Band, style of music for the ceremony, song playlist request for the reception, choose the music for bridal party introductions; these are all the things I need to think about this week.  I have heard that it is a good idea to see if you are able to go visit the Dj or Band you are thinking about to hear and see how they work and interact with the guests. 

So this week, I will start calling around to see who I think I want to “interview”.  I have a few on the list that were suggested by other brides.   Grant Hemond, is highly recommended by Bon Appetit as one of their preferred vendors.  Also, I might check out a few bands to see how I like live music.  For the ceremony, I might do an island inspired sound so I will take a peek at Joe Braccio for Steel Drums & Guitar.

I found this link to Martha Stewart Weddings and found it very helpful in my planning.  It talks about budgeting, deciding factors and how to tell if you are choosing the right music and entertainment for an event.

I guess that is about it for this week – I look forward to getting all my Girl’s Weekend decisions finalized and ready to go …..

Until next week,

Belle (bride-to-be!)

That is what this week’s adventures are all about.

As I sit down to write with my trusty Sangria in hand (white tonight – yum), I realize that not only does this blog help me to share my experiences with friends, family and the world, but it is very therapeutic too!  I get a chance to sit and think about how exciting it all is and not have to stress about anything as I relay my adventures to you.

Now on to what I figured out this week.  I know exactly who I want to use for my photographer and I was so excited to find out they are available!  Shannon Livingston Galleries!  If you have a chance to look at her website (www.shannonlivingston.com), you will see why I chose her.   I don’t know if I will have a videographer, since Shannon can do a photo slideshow that I think is so elegant and classic and exactly what I want.

Florists are a bit tougher!  I did drag Chase along with me to see a few florists, and he didn’t really have too many opinions.  So I guess it is up to me.  I think I might ask the girls for their input next week on our Wedding Adventure Weekend!  There are a few florists that I really like and will most likely choose from. 

Flowers by Jenny (www.flowersbyjenny.com) and Brides Bouquet (www.thebridesb.com). 

I think by next week, I will have some great decisions to share with everyone. 

Until then… Cheers!

Belle (bride-to-be!)

I finally got a planner!

Hello all!  Another week has passed and, as always, it has been busy.  I am really looking forward to sitting down with my thoughts, sangria and computer and updating the world on my adventures.

I stumbled across a wedding planning book today and WOW, I have so much more to do than I thought! 

According to the planner, I should think about a wedding website.  I love the idea of having all of the pertinent information in one place for everyone to access!  I think I may get started on a website before I do the “save the dates”.  I need to research who will host the wedding website and how to get that started.   I will have to put some thought into this…..

Next in my new planner is color scheme.  Well, I have that covered!  After I have my girl’s getaway weekend with my bridal party, I will know for sure my color scheme.   I do have a few ideas, but I need more input on exact colors.  I am sure other brides have experienced this, the groom’s are never interested in colors!  So it is up to me.  As long as I don’t do fluorescent colors or morbid colors, he really would rather think about anything else in the world.  Looking forward to my weekend with the girls and some great ideas!

The last on my planner for this week, is to start a guest list!  That is definitely a job for both of us.  If I am being smart about this (which I am, since I now have my trusty planner), I will also have our families put together their list and then we all sit down and trim it down to reasonable.  

Until next week – cheers!

Belle

Hope you all enjoyed the 4^th of July weekend! 

Things have been sailing along this past month or so.  I feel so organized! 

I have a ceremony location, a reception location and hotel rooms for all of our guests.  I have even managed to get all of my bridesmaids to commit to a weekend of wedding planning!  That is a major accomplishment for us.  The only other decision we have to work on right now, is our budget. 

Not an easy task when you think about the reception, flowers, music, marriage officiant, transportation from the ceremony to the reception, favors, centerpieces, dresses & tuxedo’s, invitations & save the date’s and I am sure I am missing a few things.

I did stumble across a great place for my invites & save the date’s – actually it was recommended to me by Bon Appetit.  So this week we are off to Paper Players to make some choices.  I saw some adorable samples that Paper Players had left with our Event Planner, which really falls right into the Waterfront Wedding that I dream about. 

Budget, budget, budget…..  I didn’t realize that this would be so time consuming to plan out a budget.  It really does take a ton of phone calls and pricing to see how it will all fit into my plan.

Cheers!   Belle (bride to be!)