DIY Diaries: Bridesmaid Invitations

It was time to conquer my first do-it-yourself project. Up until now, I hadn't really don't much of anything crafty. I wasn't into art in school, and I don't consider myself overly creative. I knew the first project i attempted would either give me more confidence to tackle all the other projects I had planned, or send me running to the wedding store to buy it all pre-made.


There are so many cute ways to ask your bridesmaids to be in your wedding party. I knew I wanted to do something personal, and cute. I also wanted to incorporate the theme to our wedding (I might have a slight matching obsession).

Option 1 was Bridesmaid Cookies: These are absolutely adorable. You make/order cookies in the shape of a bridesmaid dress, and its colored to be the color you want. In edible ink, "Will you be my bridesmaid" is written.











These are so cute! And I could have made them all in my colors, and added a cute little card. However, my MOH (maid of honor) and one of my bridesmaids live off of Long Island, and I was worried that the trip in the mail might have led to something melting/going bad. And even the girls that live on LI- if I wasn't able to get together with them within a few weeks, the cookies would go bad. So that was out.

I then thought about making a little box with a few things in them and a little poem, but what to do with that after you get it?

I decided to just go to Michael's and hope for some inspiration. Well after about an hour in Michael's, walking down aisles and comparing supplies, I ended up with:

• Wooden frames
• A paint brush
• White and pink paint
• Silver, purple and pink ribbons
• Blingy engagement ring stickers
• A few sheets of fancy paper

And so I decided to paint the frames, white first, to cover the wood, and then pink over it. I found this process extremely therapeutic and actually a lot of fun.

 After the paint was dry, I glued the ribbon onto the frames. This was a bit more frustrating as I am extremely particular that each piece of ribbon was laying perfectly straight. But still, it was fun.

Next was the poem. There are so many cute poem's out there for bridesmaid invitations, so I googled, found a few of my favorites, and tailored them together to work for me.

I cut the paper (good practice for the invitations), and typed the poem up on powerpoint.

I then enlisted the help of my fiancé to figure out how to print on little pieces of paper. I wanted to buy a new one for "wedding printing" but he insisted his big company printer that he was given would do the job. And after us both scratching our heads for a while and printing a few "test" sheets, we had it perfect.

The end result:

I am absolutely in LOVE with these. I kind of want to keep them for myself actually, but that wouldn't be right.

 

Wrap in purple tissue paper, and tie with matching ribbon, and you've got a perfectly cute invitation, which can double as a frame. 

 This most definitely gives me the confidence to tackle my next projects. Go me!

What DIY projects have you done that you enjoy?

Say cheese...

It sounds cheesy, but it's true: After your wedding, there really is nothing left but the pictures. Literally the first wedding nightmare I had was that I hated every single one of my wedding photos, and there was nothing I could do. Choosing a photographer would have to be done very carefully.

Like with everything else in my life, I have a very distinct style. Nothing pains me more than to think my wedding album would be filled with shots like these.

This photo is just breathtaking (Seinfeld reference: Ugly Baby). 

I mean wow. We are all standing in a posed line with out hands folded, and we are even all wearing the same color family. Alright, this is definitely NOT my style.

Your wedding day is the happiest day of your life. You shouldn't need to be posed. I wanted a photographer who could stay on the sidelines and just capture everything that happened naturally.

perfect. photojournalism.

The type of photos I like are more photojournalism, less "put your cheeks together and say cheese". 

The naturalness (word?) of this picture is exactly what I want. The photographer has captured everything about this moment, and it is ORIGINAL. They are the only ones with this exact wedding photo. 

And so the search was on. I knew that  I wanted a younger photographer who was organized and could handle my level of OCD. I also knew that I did not want someone who was exclusively a "wedding photographer".

I just feel like if all you do is weddings, eventually everything starts looking the same. Some might argue that an exclusive wedding photographer will know all the right shots, but for me, not what I wanted.

I was also very conscious of our budget. And so we started meeting with potential photographers.

One guy I met with because he was a preferred vendor of our venue, and on the phone he boasted about how unique and original he was.

When i got there I was in for a different story. Ryan had some sort of work function (not surprising) that night, so I brought my mom to the appointment.

When I told this guy what I wanted, he proceeded to show me cookie cutter, posed, wedding albums. The quality of these photos were good. Very good in fact. But not what I wanted. I explained to him again that I wouldn't want any of these shots, but I would want more photojournalistic shots.

And I kid you not. He said to me.....

"Yeah I can do the photojournalism. But I need to get my standard shots in first. There might not be time for many of the shots you want, depending on how long it takes me to get my shots."

At this point I was losing my cool with his arrogant personality. I'm sorry. You need to get "your" shots? Are you putting these into an album and keeping them to show your kids? No wait, thats us.

In a way I was happy that I knew our personalities didn't match. Saved me the trouble of booking a photographer I absolutely hated. And it's only slightly awkward when I see him at my venue's Bridal Showcases...On to the next.

And the next was perfect. We met with the owner of the small company, who, after talking to us, told us he knew which photographer would be perfect for us. He showed us a few albums from that photographer, and we (mostly me) were elated.

It was everything I wanted. But personality is also important to me, and the owner was more than willing to set up a meeting for us before we booked. When we met our photographer I knew instantly he was the one (Am I booking a photographer, or getting engaged again?)

He's young, modern, not afraid to take risks and (gasp!) skip on some of the cheek-to-cheek shots to be creative. And best of all, he doesn't only do weddings.

This was probably one of my biggest reliefs to check off the list. I was happy, and Ryan was happy that I was happy (a general theme to our wedding planning).

How did you choose your wedding photographer?

The great shoe debacle of 2012

Let's get some shoes.

Actually, let's not. I absolutely love shopping. I would consider myself pretty girly. I love jewelry, headbands and clothes. If I'm having a bad day, going into Forever 21 and spending some money (not a lot, Ryan) makes my day so much better. 

But if there's one thing I hate...it's shoes.

 

 NO SHOES!

(also known as my dream world)

That's right, I hate shoes. They're pretty, I guess? But clothes and jewelry are much prettier if you ask me. If I could live in flip flops year round, I would be the happiest of campers. 

I blame my long-lived hatred for shoes on dance. I spent most of my life in a dance studio, and when you spend 8 hours a day wearing this: 

 

You can see why I'd have no interest in this: 

I am guilty of wearing my hip hop sneakers to high school a few (more than a few) times. My dance background, combined with the fact that I've spent a good portion of the last 23 summers barefoot on a beach- well let's just call it what it is. I hate shoes. 

For the wedding, I guess, I will need to wear something on my feet. Going barefoot is dangerous and we all know that I am not a fan of danger. 

Many people suggested I tough it out, and wear "shoes" to the ceremony, and then change into flip flops for the reception...

Uh, why?...

Let me get this straight. My dress covers my feet. No one is going to see my feet unless I lift up my dress to show them. But I should wear shoes to the ceremony because its traditional? Or because everyone else does? Or because the wedding gods want to laugh at me as I stand for the most important 30 minutes of my life in an uncomfortable agony? 

Nope. 

Sorry, to me it makes no sense. I'm going to have my beautiful dress altered wearing shoes, so that I can wear shoes for 30 minutes, and then take them off? And then for the rest of the night, my dress is too long and I trip over it? 

I am going to wear flip flops the entire day. For me it just makes sense.    

I'm not going to wear just any flip flop. I need the most perfect, blinged out, white, comfortable pair of flip flops that exists. Hence why I'm starting the search now. 

I am on a mission. My first run-in with candidates was when I was shopping with a friend (Hi Andrea!) and not even looking for shoes. We came across these:

   

Aldo: Ciaffone $30

The look was perfect. I wasn't going for a platform but I did like the shape of the shoe. The blingy straps were stunning. However, when I tried them on, they smacked against the back of my feet so hard when I walked, that I think by the end of the night I'd have flat heels. 

The shoe search continues...

Girls: Show me your wedding shoes!

Where to budge on the budget...

Eventually you have to come to the realization that you can't have everything you want...or can you?

One of the things that has been extremely apparent while planning this wedding is that I have a champagne taste and budget. My taste is kind of like this bottle of Krug.

$750

While my budget is kind of like this bottle of Korbel. 

 

$12.95

But come on! Korbel is still delicious and fabulous! And so will be my wedding.   

Ryan and I don't have a specific be-all, end-all "budget". The main reason for this is that we both know that I can get slightly (extremely) obsessive about numbers. I don't really need to be calculating tips and tax for my hairdresser every day until next June. 

We know about how much we want to spend on each vendor. The key here is prioritizing what things are most important to you. For me, the easiest way for me to figure this out was to make a list. Boy, do I LOVE lists!

Venue- My last post made it pretty clear that our venue was not something we wanted to compromise on. Here is a preview of one of the entrees you might pick, via our food tasting. 

 

(swoon)

Photography- The only thing you have left after the big day is over! This is important, but can definitely be done on a budget. More to come on this at a later date.

Flowers- Nope. Don't care. Get me whatever is cheap and in season. Moving on. 

Dress- I need the best, most perfect dress in the world <3 No comments from the peanut gallery please. 

Invites, programs, and other misc. crap that adds up to a LOT of money....

 

I wondered if there was a way that I could have all of the beautiful little touches I wanted, without breaking the bank. And I figured it out!! 

Do It Yourself! This is perfect!! What a great way to save money. I am going to design and make everything from the Save the Dates to the invitations and beyond. I am definitely willing to put in a little blood, sweat and tears to save money. Remind me of this in a few months when I am pulling my hair out. 


Where did you trim the budget for your wedding? Did you do anything yourself?

 

  

Where and When...

Getting engaged in a foreign country is nice for many reasons. For one, it gave us time to take it all in, and figure out what we were going to say when we got hit with "the questions" at home.

I had always wanted a really long engagement. I had even wanted to take time to "just enjoy being engaged" without planning anything (ha). Ryan, apparently knowing me better than I know myself, nipped that idea in the bud.

The time frame for our wedding was settled easily- Ryan told me when we were going to get married. Not having many opinions about much ever, I figure when he does-it's important.

So June or July of 2012 it was. An engagement of about a year and a half. In another part of the country that would be plenty of time. But us Long Islanders love our big fabulous weddings, and actually when we booked our wedding, we got the last available Saturday in June!

 But I'm jumping ahead. Where to get married? I had always loved the idea of a destination wedding. But practical? Not so much.

 

It's technically an island...right? Right. Who was I kidding? I love Long Island. And one thing we quickly realized is that we love Suffolk County, and we love the south shore. That narrowed down our search pretty nicely.

Ryan and I each had one major requirement for our venue. He wanted to make sure the layout of the room was perfect, and I wanted the place to host only one wedding at a time. 

I may have perused Long Island Weddings a few times before getting engaged...And that's where I first came across our venue. I showed the venue's website to Ryan and he said "Looks good, lets write a check" jokingly, which is ironic that we chose that venue in the end. 

We spent a weekend or two touring venues that fit our requirements. Some were out right away. 

At one venue in particular that shall remain nameless (unless you ask me) I felt like we were being sold a used car. 

Literally, that could be the guy we talked to if he were dressed more nicely. I cannot stand people telling me what to do (just ask Ryan) and this venue defined the word pushy. From their "all-inclusive" wedding package that covered everything from the flowers to the photographer, to asking us what other venues had quoted us- it was not our style at all. 

There were a few other places that were nice, but we slowly but surely narrowed down our list.

We decided to go to food tastings at our top two choices and after a lot of thinking, some more talking, and one delicious food tasting- the choice was clear: 

Beautiful, tons of character, great views, right by the water, and amazing, amazing food (seriously). The people that work there pay such attention to detail that even a neurotic bride-to-be like myself can feel (almost) relaxed. The layout is perfect, and I will be the only bride in sight.

Hello Blog.

Blog?

I never really got the point of having a blog. In fact, I’m not even sure I know the point now.

All I know is that my fiance is sick of 24/7 wedding talk, and I really, really do not want to be (but am) “that girl” that doesn’t talk about anything except her wedding because she is completely self-absorbed in a day that will last all of 6 hours.

My Macbook on the other hand, has no complaints. Inanimate objects do not get sick of searching for “purple and pink weddings” “orange and pink weddings”  “purple, pink and grey weddings” and so on…

I don’t know how often I will update this…but if it’s every time I think about my wedding, I wouldn’t go signing up for email alerts.

Name.

The name of this blog is me, in a nutshell. That saying “better late than never” is the most absurd thing I have ever heard. If you know me, you know that I very much respect time. I have never willingly been late to anything, ever.

My fiance thinks its compulsive, and it is. But there is no better feeling than walking into my 4 p.m. appointment at 3:55 (besides walking in at 3:54…you knew that was coming).

Never late is much better. Never late is best.

It sure is. So why I’m getting married to someone who prides himself on getting everywhere at the last possible minute. Most likely the same reason he does not throw something at me when I am having a panic attack in the car at 7:55, on our way to an 8 o’clock dinner reservation.


Wedding. 

I started planning my wedding the minute we got engaged. That is a lie. I have been planning my wedding for about as long as I can remember. I never thought I would love it quite this much (I’ll stop lying soon). Much to my fiance’s dismay, there is a LOT of details and planning that go into the most important 6 hours of your life.

I will post as many details as I can here. But one thing is for sure: My wedding will start at 6 p.m. exactly, so don’t be late!