Weekend Wedding Trip

I know, I know, I’ve been bad. I can’t seem to update anything regularly. But, on the bright side, I have a Twitter account for the blog now, and intend to use it more. Especially since this week I’m going home for a friends wedding, and will be taking care of a lot of my OWN wedding business. Speaking of which. . .

The deal with the shoes has been solved, at least temporarily. I bought the white shoes from Zappos in a size 6. I struggled a bit because the Badgley Mischka’s are ON SALE for $175. . . but I still shouldn’t spend that much. However, this is a good lesson to us all. If you start early enough and wait long enough, designer products WILL go on sale in deference to next season’s style (if they don’t sell out first).

The agenda for the weekend away, in addition to getting my finals done for the week I return, is:
1) GET MY DRESS FITTED!!! (I am SO excited for this)
2) Meet with the photographer
3) Talk to the florist
4) Meet with the cake people
5) Look at some bridesmaid dresses

I will, of course, keep you updated on all the low down, up and up, and what have you. Fo shizzle.

Also, you can expect info. and updates on the wedding I am attending, with the bride and groom’s permission, because it is also a budget wedding. And OUTDOORS TOO!! Should prove to be fun and exciting for all involved. I’ll include pictures upon pictures for you to enjoy!

Still have to pack for the trip and get some work done, but I’m pretty much ready. We’re driving nonstop to Council Bluffs, Iowa, from Brooklyn. The friend that’s coming with me is driving from Boston.

Still have to pack for the trip, and do some homework before I go. Peace out, homey g-dogs.

Choose the Shoes

I know I said I wouldn’t (or at least I think I did), but I’m going to do it anyway. I’m going to post a little about me. I promise it’s relevant. I was working on the wedding budget the other day, and one thing led to another, and suddenly I was looking at wedding shoes. I got a lot done on the budget, actually, so that was a good thing. Originally, I had thought that I would buy these shoes in white. I had looked at several pairs, and I really liked the sequined look.

Well, then I went back to my original desire to wear pink shoes. Soooooo, one thing led to another, and I found these AMAZING SHOES!!! But, as much as I want them, I cannot spend $200 on shoes. It’s a tragedy, not to get these shoes, but I learned an important lesson. If you’re willing to settle for less than designer (which I am, but I don’t blame those who aren’t, unless they have no money, and then they should really GET A GRIP), you can find RIP OFF DESIGNS!!!

So I found these RSVP shoes. Granted, they don’t have them in pink, but the design I love. Of course, though, OF COURSE, they don’t have my size. I can sometimes wear a 6 or a 6.5, and both were sold out in white. I put in a request for them to email me when they come in, but I don’t know. . . And even more of a bummer, Zappos is literally the only place that sells these shoes. Seriously, if you take the challenge and find them elsewhere, TELL ME!! I AM HAPPY TO BE WRONG!

But then, I found these OTHER RSVP shoes that I also like on Zappos, and they have my size and are CHEAPER!! So, the question is, should I get the cheaper ones, or wait for my almost-dream shoes, which might never come in anyway because the manufacturer won’t make them in my size because they’re JUST THAT POPULAR.

For those who would suggest I spring for the designer, I also already considered that. THEY ALSO DO NOT HAVE MY SIZE. Apparently brides have small feet, because I was under the impression that the average foot size was 8 or 9. That, or people with small feet just really like these shoes.

To throw another wrench in the mix, I would be totally willing to wait, except that when I go home in a few weeks for another wedding, I’m getting my dress fitted for the first time, and need to know the size of the shoes, or preferably have the shoes I’m going to wear with me. The dress is way too long and way too big because I bought the sample size off the rack. I’m not THAT cheap, but they were discontinuing the designer at the boutique, and I really liked the dress. Anyway, the question is, where do I save, where do I spend, where do I compromise? I like ALL the shoes.

This is the dilemma of the week. And the lesson for everyone else to take away is threefold: (1) If you can’t afford designer, look for a ripoff–it probably exists. (2) Don’t wait until the last minute before the fitting to decide on shoes. And (3) Get married where you live if you can help it, because it’s a royal pain in the tush to make appointments only when you can take a break and go home, and those appointments are months before they would be otherwise so you aren’t properly prepared and there’s a distinct possibility you will CHANGE YOUR MIND by the time the wedding rolls around.

If that made sense to you, I applaud your language skills.

New Favorite Sites!

I totally found my two new favorite sites today, Paper Source and How About Orange! Paper Source is this AMAZING paper site that sells beautiful paper, stamps, stickers, craft tools, craft projects. . . anything you might think you want, and then a ton of stuff YOU NEVER KNEW YOU WANTED are on this site. Go. GO NOW.

Also check out this cute, CUTE blog, How About Orange, where the cute, CUTE blogger posts awesome stuff about her daily crafts that she works on for fun and creates out of the blue for herself and readers. Out of everyday items. SHE’S LIKE A CHIC MACGYVER. There are things here that are so stinking GORGEOUS I cannot believe someone just sat down at her kitchen table and decided, “Let’s make a craft today.” If you are planning a wedding, or even not, I guarantee there will be AT LEAST one item you can’t live without on the big day here. Srsly.

I mean, look. JUST LOOK.

I mean, you just don’t get any better than this.

The Bride’s Book of Etiquette

I work at a small publisher that does mostly reprints of old books, most in the public domain. There was a copy of The Bride’s Book of Etiquette waiting for the production team to scan into the system, and I couldn’t resist taking a look. It was written in the ’60s, by Brides magazine, and it is HILARIOUS. The things theat were expected of the bride, groom, and their families were so. . . detailed. I couldn’t believe what people were expected to do. The order with which the groom asked for his love’s hand and then announced it was this: As SOON as he asked the girl to marry him and she said “yes”, he was to call the father and ask for his permission/blessing. Then the groom’s family could be informed. Soon, the groom’s mother was supposed to call the bride and throw a party for her, formally welcoming her into the family and introducing the bride to her friends.

Then, if you want an engagement party. . . oh boy. The bride and groom can throw it, or the parents, but even though it’s an engagement party you AREN’T SUPPOSED TO ANNOUNCE THAT YOU’RE ENGAGED. You can either a)greet people together until people figure it out and congratulate you (no kidding, that’s what it said) or b) have the father of the bride walk around and introduce the groom as his soon-to-be son-in-law. For bridal showers, no once close to the bride, e.g. mothers, sisters, or close friends, can throw it, because that would be like ASKING FOR PRESENTS FOR YOURSELF. You know, the whole point of having a shower.

The book gives the history of bridal showers and engagement rings, details what you do for newspaper announcements and photos, and how to stay overnight at the same place together without being scandalous (hint:you need a chaperone). I didn’t get a chance to finish the book, but I totally want to buy it now, and I’ll post when I know it becomes available for others. Or maybe you can find it on Amazon already. There’s some good stuff in there; not so much useful, but interesting, funny, and an insight on what used to be traditional.

All I can say is we’ve come a long way since the ’60s.

*Update* It is on Amazon here

Some Great DIY/Save Your Budget Sites

I’ve been looking around lately for some Do-It-Yourself sites that are wedding- and bride-friendly, and I’ve found some really great ones.

My DIY Wedding Day is a fabulous site that collects DIY projects from other popular blogs and features them, as well as featuring some original content. Check it!

Once Wed is one of my favorite wedding go-to sites for anything, and it has a great DIY section that designers contribute to. I got some really nice ideas here, and even discovered ways to save money where I was originally going to outsource.

DIY Bride is a DIY project site/blog/wedding suggestions site, not unlike this blog.

Save on Crafts is a site that sell all sorts of craft goods for waaay cheap. If you’re looking to make favors or decorations (or even some accessories) yourself, this is the way to go.

Style Me Pretty: The Ultimate Wedding Blog really is the place to go for weddings. At least, other people’s. There are gorgeous, GORGEOUS wedding photos featured here every day, and they offer some really creative ideas. Other people are a wonderful resource!

Bluefly is a site that most of you probably know about already, but I have to mention here because of the amazing selection of half-price-and-lower designer dresses they have for bridesmaids here. Even if you aren’t paying for the ‘maids dresses, this is a good resource for them and you.

The Wedding Chicks is a wedding blog I just discovered. They’re doing a 25% off on all items at checkout RIGHT NOW, and have some nice ideas for DIY projects!

There are of course dozens of other great blogs out there with DIY projects and ideas; I just chose my favorites. What are your favorite wedding blogs, and why?