Tuesday, October 26, 2010

Dresses!

My wedding dress arrived.
I tried it on, and I love it as much as I did when I bought it. This is a MAJOR accomplishment for a girl who changes her mind more often than her socks.
The bridesmaid dresses are in too! They definitely need some altering, and the fabric threw me off. Mind you, we bought online, so what was I to expect? I gave the bridesmaids full creative freedom with them; I want them to alter them whatever way they want to make them their own. Consistency is over-rated!
Planning a wedding in a different province than the ceremony/fiance is proving to be slightly more difficult than I had expected. Honestly, I don't know what I'd do without all of you. Everyone who's been so willing to give a hand. Every time someone loans me something, or finds me something at a yard sale, my heart swells and I'm yet again amazed at the power of community.
Anyways, dab your eyes, we're moving on from the sappiness.
My aunt Linda has agreed to bake our wedding cake! She's the best baker I know. She's so passionate about it. I love everything she makes and I love her. I'm very happy that we didn't have to get an actual company to make the cake, it's so much more special this way. We're going with the simple cake, no tiers, no fondant. Just yummy.
Cakes are over-rated!
Lace has started taking over my room. Though I'm unsuccessful in finding round lace tablecloths (much to my dismay), I seem plenty capable of finding lace material, so I'm buying it as I find it. Right now, I have yards of it hanging over a guitar case. Between disposable cameras and lace, my room is full-up!
We're getting married in less than 8 months. Excuse me, I have to go change my pants now.

Friday, October 1, 2010

MY DRESS IS IN.

It's in. It's sitting at Winchester's bridal in Halifax RIGHT NOW.

This is torture. I want to go pick it up ASAP, but I'm in Fredericton without a car! I'm going to see if someone can pick it up for me.

Until then, I must be patient.

I walked by a bridal boutique that's moving to a new location and everything was 50% off in the store. So guess what? I bought 23 disposable cameras for the tables at the reception! They cost a little over 2 bucks each, not too shabby. I also bought a huge oversized vintage inspired feather pen, but I'm not sure if I like it enough to even use it yet. The feather has a weird gap in it that I don't know if we can fix. If not, I've got a huge novelty pen to write exams with that cost me 3 dollars. I'm alright with that.

WOO TO THINGS MOVING FORWARD!

Tuesday, September 21, 2010

Hit me. Punch me. Help me.

Contrary to popular belief, I did not fall off the face of the earth. I wasn't eaten by polar bears in the Torngat Mountains, and Fredericton didn't reject me. The excuse of "I've been busy", while by times true, is probably trumped more by the "I've been lazy" alibi.

So, you get one hit/punch for not only not blogging, but not planning at all. Please make sure I have at least a month before the wedding to recover from the bruises.

The Eastern Kings Rec Centre is booked. The Church is booked. The minister AND priest are booked (does that mean we are double-blessed by God?). The wedding party is chosen, all dresses are ordered. Things are coming into place.

Things that still worry me: 

1)The cake.
Recently, I've been thinking, "NOBODY REALLY EATS THIS THING ANYWAYS, WHY ARE WE EVEN BOTHERING GAAAAASH!" Then, I finally realized I was kind of right. Why are we bothering trying to make/buy a 3-tiered, fondant covered cake that'll end up costing more than my school books this semester? Jacob and I aren't fancy. We don't need no dramatic reveal of a cake higher than our heads. It's only going to be shoved in each other's faces anyways.

Something like this is much more our-style:
It looks delicious in its simplicity, doesn't it?


One tiered. Buttercream icing, Betty Crocker icing, who cares. It looks pretty. It looks like it won't break my bank account, and it looks doable a day or 2 before the wedding. Horray!

2)Hair/Makeup.
Because for some obscene reason, Jacob's mom Doreen doesn't want to do 6 girls' hair the day of her son's wedding. PSH. (I'm SO joking.) This will eventually work itself out in the near future; we've got it narrowed down to a few hair stylists, and I don't know if we'll even bother with makeup artists. We've got a few talented ladies in our bridal party.
Probably just something low-key, like this. 

3)Transportation.
My dad said "let me worry about that". I'm worrying about that.

This might be a possibility.


4)Decorations.
I just tried to order some round paper lanterns from a site, but it messed up. I'll try again tomorrow. Besides that, I'm thinking that if we don't have enough "things" around to hold flowers, good ol' mason jars will come to the rescue.
Though a bird cage would be amazing, I think an old piece of luggage is more achievable to hold cards.

Cute, non?

I'm also thinking that maybe for outside while we get our pictures taken, having a couple of games of bocce ball and washer toss would be acceptable outside of the rec center. 

5)Where's everybody gonna stay?
We've got friends from out of town staying during the wedding. Camping is an option, but what if it's cold? Souris has 2 motels, which are handy. Unfortunately, the reception is up east. Should I book the (only) Souris taxi to sort of come up east every once and awhile and give people rides, or would it be more practical to hire DD's to drive people around? 

Those are the big 5 things that I'm worried about, generally. Things are coming together, and I feel like a lot of this stuff won't get done until 2 months before the wedding anyways. 

I work better under pressure. 


Monday, July 5, 2010

EEEEEEEEEE!

New websites that get me make me so so happy. 

I follow @bridetide on twitter and they tweet some very useful information. The most recent thing they've tweeted is a site that listed a bunch of extremely useful blogs, including Ruffled. Ruffled is a vintage blog that has given me so many ideas that I'm pretty sure I may just buy out every yard sale/value village item. 

Here's a few examples of how the simplest designs and ideas can turn absolutely beautiful. (click to enlarge)

I guess I know why they say "cute as a button" now...

Loving the pictures on the clothesline. 

GIANT ROUND WHITE BALLOONS!


Also, we had a meeting of the bridesmaids last night, and it went swimmingly. THEY CHOSE THEIR DRESSES! they're ordering online from an awesome shop. The dresses are simple but beautiful and vintage. They'll compliment mine beautifully, and I think they're perfect. I would link you to them but.... I think I want to leave dresses as a surprise. 

Ok, what we've learned today: Wedding blogs = good inspiration (Katharina's Bridal, get on it! :D ), and Marsha gets over-excited and possibly passes out from combined heart rate and heat. 

Monday, June 28, 2010

SORRY SORRY SORRY SORRY SORRY SORRY

I'm a terrible blogger these days, and I do hope you forgive me. I'd like to say that nothing has developed wedding-wise in the past month, but that is simply not true. One big thing happened this month.

I found THE dress. This is taken from my daily blog on the day I bought it:

Today, I bought a wedding dress. 

Chrissy, Stephanie and I met Doreen at Wood Islands to catch the first ferry of the day "over across't". We got to Halifax shortly after 9 and immediately went to the first and most important stop on our wedding tour: Winchester's.

Before I continue, let it be known that I did not expect to like a dress. He'll, I didn't expect to find a lace dress that fit me. But I found it. You know, IT. "the" dress that everyone talks about finding. I've had on dresses I really liked in the past, but nothing like this. I won't lie and say the clouds opened up and a beam of light was cast upon thy dress while a heavenly chorus sang. It was somewhat more ordinary than that. 

I saw it on the wall, and tried it on. Like a glove. I left knowing that it wouldn't be the last time I saw it. All day long it clung to my thoughts. The way it poofed when I spun in a circle. The way it hid my imperfections. The perfect mix of old and new. 

I went back and bought it, and got to ring the bell at Winchesters.


Wanna see a picture of the dress? Here you go! 



That's all you get, MUAHAHAHAHAHA. MUAAAAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA. This much power can go to a girl's head. 

We've also sort of pseudo decided on the Rec Centre up east for the reception/dance. Jacob doesn't want people who don't care about us to come to the party for a free place to drink, and I want to keep with my roots since I'm being married in Souris. Nobody's going to drive up east unless they love us, and I have fond memories of that centre from the time I was a wee child. My mom's also got a tree in her memory beside it, which might be nice for pictures. I think it feels right.

Thank you everybody for all of the lace tablecloths, doilies, single flower vases, and teapots. You just don't get a community like this in bigger places, and Jacob and I are so grateful for what we have. I can't wait to have a beer with you all on June 11, 2011. 

Monday, May 31, 2010

Keep your eyes peeled!

The wedding talk drought officially ended this weekend.

First, a teapot update: I have 10 beautiful perfect teapots in my possession, one at Doreens (It just looked too good above her cupboards that she decided to store it there until the wedding), and one in Banff that Kim brought back from IRELAND for me. How lucky am I? A teapot from Ireland!

Next, an update on a few ideas of things that I'm going to need that you very well might consider junk and want to get rid of.

Junk item #1: Lace doilies or table cloths. Stains do not matter. light wear and tear is fine too.

Something like this one would be perfect. 


Junk item #2: Milk glass, or clear glass, single flower vases. If they're clear glass, they'll eventually be spray painted white.

Something like these beauties would be amazing. 

Here's the idea for the vases: suspend them with a bit of twine or yarn and put a single flower, possibly a gerber daisy to match the colour scheme, in them and put them along the wall to make the walls look more interesting. 

Kind of like this, but with actual flowers in them. 

Junk item #3: floral or vintage looking wallpaper. If your folks papered their hallway in the 60's, search their attic. I guarantee if they're anything like my family, they'll have some left over that they couldn't throw away because it was 'perfectly good wallpaper' and 'they might use it sometime'.

So there you have it. That's all the junk items I need to make the wedding unique and pretty.

Here's a warning to you right now though; If you do want this stuff back, it's best not to give it to me for a few reasons, the most dominating of them all is that I'm the least organized person in the world, so I'll forget who gave me what and not keep track. Another reason is that I'm probably going to tweak items a bit, like dying the doilies in tea to give them a nicer colour, or spray painting the vases. You've been warned! *ominous music*

Besides the fact that we STILL haven't picked a venue for the reception and dance, everything else is going swimmingly. My aunt has given me permission to use my great grandmother's serving trays for cake. I need to incorporate more of Jacob's family in the mix. Any ideas, Doreen?

Thursday, May 20, 2010

Mystery money.

Yesterday I picked up the mail. Bill. Bill. Junk. AN ENVELOPE. ADDRESSED TO ME. 

I opened it, and found a pretty card and 10 dollars. All that was written on the card was "$10 for dress". This was the sweetest and most intriguing piece of mail I've gotten in the longest time. Firstly, someone loves me enough to not only give me 10 dollars, but give me $10.57, including the price of a standard Canadian postage stamp! 

To whomever mailed me the money: Thank you. It's gone into the dress fund and you've put me that much closer to looking pretty in lace on the biggest day of my life. I write down the name of every dress fund contributor, so for yours I'll write down "Anonymous ♥"

I haven't updated in a few weeks because I simply haven't had any time to make any further wedding plans! As most of you know, I was the recipient of one of Canada's Greatest Summer Jobs, and honestly the last 3 weeks have been some of the busiest and most incredible of my life. I'm doing a daily blog about my experiences in the program in my Canada's Greatest Summer Blog, linked in the sidebar. Or for ease of use, right here:





And that's the last I'll say about that blog! Shameless self-promotion, tsk tsk Marsha. 

 By no means am I putting wedding planning on hold for any longer. I'm going to Souris this weekend. We always talk weddings in Souris. 

Friday, April 30, 2010

Doing the math.

I think one of my biggest accomplishments in life is how great I am at avoiding math. As amazing in the art of evading the evil known as mathematics I am, with the date set and the time steadily chugging closer and closer, I felt the need to calculate exactly how much time we've got to throw this whole thing together.

Using an online countdown clock (and giving the slip to manual calculation once more, ha HA!), I now have the amount of time left.

406 days.
9762 hours.
585723 minutes.
35143377 seconds... 35143373 seconds... 35143370 seconds... AAAAAHHH!

In the brief few seconds it took me to re-read what I just wrote, the numbers shrink. In the few moments it takes to type this sentence, it'll be closer. And closer. AND CLOSER.

A girl can drive herself nuts calculating how close it is to her wedding date. Sheesh.

Saturday, April 24, 2010

Meet our flower girl!

Of course, being the incredibly smart, crafty and witty girl that I am, I didn't include pictures of our flower girl in the original wedding party post because I didn't think I had any on my computer.

Yes, I took all of the other pictures of the party from facebook, but forgot that there would be pictures of Taylor on facebook too, and gave up because I didn't have a scanner for her picture that's in my wallet.

Smarty pants.

This is long overdue, but (Drumroll please).....


Flower Girl: Taylor Harris

Taylor Claire Harris is easily one of the most dynamic personalities I've ever encountered. Recipe for Taylor: Take the diva of Whitney Houston, add a dash of attitude, a 2 cups of sugar and shove into a 4 foot frame. She brings so much life into every room she enters, and naturally demands an audience with a pinch-those-cheeks kind of smile.

She's got more charisma and life than a lot of adults I've known. She was a flower girl before, so, naturally having perfected the craft made her the perfect candidate for our big day.

Taylor with her mom, Holly.
Taylor's mother, Holly is my first cousin. My sisters, Holly and I were tight growing up, and it's strange seeing Taylor because a lot of the time it reminds me so much of young Holly that I have to take a step back, shake my head in a comedic cartoon fashion and just stare.

Yep. She's her mother's daughter, alright.

With the date finally confirmed, venues being booked, and family being alerted, it's finally starting to be real.


News.

Ladies and gentlemen, June 11, 2011 is confirmed.

Monday, April 12, 2010

Meet the Party.

So, I've finished my exams, it's an absolutely GORGEOUS day outside... what's a girl to do but sit in her dark apartment and make a blog post?

The Wedding Party.

This post is a long time coming, but I had to wait until everything was finalized before I introduced the group of people immortalized in our wedding pictures. I can't wait to look back at them in 20 years (from our winter cottage in Hawaii with a view overlooking the ocean), laugh at our style and hairdo's, and say "Man, we chose a fantastic group of people, didn't we?"

So, let's get started, shall we? In no particular order:


Maid of Honour: Kim Robertson
Couldn't tell that we were sisters? Get your eyes checked. The choice of Kim as my maid of honour was an easy one. She's my best friend in life. We're so much alike that we can read each other's minds from across the country. No, seriously. On more than one occassion, she's called me out of the blue to ask if I was OK, when I was in fact bawling my eyes out over something. Then there was the time that I randomly felt the need to text "MATTRESSES!" to her and she was indeed shopping for a new mattress in Canmore. What we've got takes talent. She lives in Banff, and the main reason why I moved to Alberta on two separate occasions.

I'm making myself cold, should have chosen a summer picture.

Brides Maid: Krissy Robertson
As far as sisters go, this girl is tops. Originally I was planning on having 2 maids of honour. How do you choose between 2 of the most important females in your life? Krissy told me to choose Kim. She's more of a "behind the scenes" kind of person, I suppose. I'll let you in on a little secret: The FIRST thing this girl said to me when I told her I was engaged was "I DON'T LOOK GOOD IN PINK!" And that's exactly why I love her. She's naturally the most hilarious person I have ever met in my life. If we caught her antics on camera, she could be a youtube star. She lives with Jacob and I, and it's awesome.

What a girl!

Brides Maid: Josie Gallant
Josie is Jacob's sister and is quickly becoming one of my favorite people EVER. I've been with Jacob for 6 years, so it was only natural that this girl would become like a sister to me. To me, a relationship isn't a real relationship unless you can tease each other and throw coasters at each other at Christmas time. Oh, and compare presents from Doreen and Allie (Mine are always better because your mom loves me more. There. I said it). I'm extremely excited to have her in the wedding party because I know she'll make the day just that much more fun.

Josie and some guy she's dating.


Brides Maid: Tara O'Brien
I've known this girl since I was approximately one month old (I'm going to assume the day she was born, I wasn't RUSHED to the hospital to meet her as a 28 day old). We've definitely grown up together and I can remember numerous conversations that we had as kids where we decided that we would be each other's maids of honour. Well T, we're both older and realize that, while the wedding day will only happen once, a sister's scorn can last a lifetime. There's nobody better than this girl. She rationalizes situations that I blow out of proportion. She knows every word to ever song in the history of american pop culture. She's got more drive than anyone else I've ever met. She's my cousin, and my friend for life. She has been and will always be an honourary Robertson (especially with the red hair).

She's also ridiculously cute.


Brides Maid: Catherine Young
It's not often that you get to pick your sisters, and I guess technically I didn't. Weirdly enough, Catherine and I were tight before our parents started dating. We took guitar in community school and started our own fake band with Kristin Cheverie called Noise Pollution. Though inevitably our fake band broke up due to fake reasons like sex, drugs and rock and roll, Catherine and I continued to hang out and grew closer. I still remember the day she wrote in her livejournal (yes, we're talking early 2000's here) "Hey Marsha, I think our parents are dating!" I had known they were dating for a few months before that and felt bad for not mentioning it. Our folks fell in love, got married and it became official. Straight out of the pages of the Baby Sitter's Club, my friend became my "steppy". I never laugh harder than I do when I'm with her. I'm pretty sure our personalities were made for each other.

Catherine and my step-niece, Hailey

Here's where things get awesome. DOUBLE POST FOR

Best Man: Emile Gaudet
Brides Maid: Krista Vanderzwaag
Emile has known Jacob since the college/legendary 5B Brown's court days and has been part of the unstoppable trio of Jacob, Chris and Emile ever since. I'm pretty sure those guys are closer than Jacob and I, because they can bond over hockey (a sport I'll possibly never understand). Emile's an absolutely fantastic guy who deserves the best. Well, he got that and more in Krista. They've been dating for a few years and, from the first time I met her, I loved her. They compliment each other so well, and the 4 of us get along perfectly. From ruining every single picture in NYC by opening our mouths wide, to being part of Bowness.mpquack (the losingest team in Dub trivia), every moment is better when they're around. I'm so happy that they're in our wedding party. The fact that Krista does a fantastic T-Rex impression doesn't hurt, either.

One of the only "non wide open mouth" shots of our trip to NYC.


Groomsmen: Chris Hume
Chris is part of the unstoppable trio mentioned above. It feels like he's always been around, though I've only known him for the last 5 years or so. He's one of those real gentlemen types. You know, the kind where if you politely hold out your hand, they give you all the change in their wallet. No, seriously. One time, I even got 20 dollars out of him. Jacob and I lived with him and his girlfriend Sharon for awhile, and it was great! From the backyard bbq's to rocket beers, Chris is so much fun to be around and I know he and Sharon will make our wedding day amazing.

Chris and the Lovely Sharon. How did he manage to land her?


Groomsmen: Kevin Hanlon
Jacob and Kevin were best friends in high school and inseparable. I started to really get to know Kevin in 2003. Cruising up and down the strip in Souris in his Diplomat (and him being so kind as to not crush me when I kicked a huge dent in the door), hanging out at parties, beaching, you name it. If we've got a memory from high school and university, chances are this kid is in it. He's a riot to be around, he's always got your back, and I can't wait until he gets home so we can all hang out again.
He always was a cool dude.


Groomsmen: Curtis Gallant
Curtis is Jacob's older brother and friend. He lives in Montreal now with his girlfriend Elena, and it feels weird not to have him around. He's forever on my good side for the amazing apples to apples call, where he decided "Japan" was more explosive than "Hand Grenades". Then again, when I think of it, he's also the guy who won clue at the FIRST ROUND OF PLAY. Talk about a good guesser! Curtis is a fantastic guy, and I can't wait until they come home this summer.

Curtis with a friend. Let's give an "AWW!" for the adorable baby!


Groomsmen: Kyle Ferron
I've known Kyle since I was 2 months old and we were in Baby Band together (which is NOT as cool as it sounds. It's a church group thing, not an infant rock n' roll ensemble). He's been one of my best friends since we were babies, and one of Jacob's since we all started hanging out together. It's been awesome having him along for the ride. Without one word of a lie, approximately 90% of my best memories include him. Now, he's engaged himself to an awesome girl named Stephanie, and Steph and I can talk weddings until we're blue in the face!

I friggin' love these people.


Groomsmen: Luke McCabe
I've only met Luke for the first time last summer, where he was nice enough to help me and a friend out by pushing around a giant inflatable sphere for hours. He's known Jacob for years though, playing on the same hockey teams (winning and losing, but probably mainly losing). He definitely coined the phrase "Ree Dee Doo" that Jacob and I say way too often, and it'll be great to get to know him better over the next year!

Luke and his girlfriend
So, there you have it. A blog post only relevant to myself, that's way too long and quite possibly very very boring. Enjoy!

PS: Please ignore the terrible change in font size/spacing, blogspot is not cooperating today.

Tuesday, March 30, 2010

Frequently asked questions.

It's time now for
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS WHICH MAY/MAY NOT HAVE ACTUALLY BEEN ASKED!
*applause*

Question 1: Who the heck are you?!
Answer: My name is Marsha. I'm a farmer's daughter, a biscuit eater and a tea slurper from Up 'Aest. I enjoy videos, blogging, and posing for pictures with books that I've never actually read. I'm 24 years old and that's all I have to say about that.

Islam... hmmm.
Question 2: Who the heck are you marrying?!
Answer: The guy holding the flowers. More formally, Jacob from Souris. I never actually knew who he was until high school, but I'm sure I've muttered things under my breath when I saw him and fellow Sourians taking over OUR BASIN HEAD in the summertime. He is exactly 1 month and 1 week older than me. This matters apparently.

I guess catching the bouquet IS foreshadowing.
And, for good measure, the best picture we ever took together.

Is that sad?
Question 3: Do you have any children?
Answer: Yes. We have a daughter named Timmy. She's 5 years old and she definitely inherited Jacob's good looks.

They grow up so fast.

Question 4: How long have you been together?
Answer: 6 years I think? Around then? Really though, after year 2 they just all sorta jumble together, AM I RIGHT LADIES?

Question 5: Why did you decide on a vintage/antique theme for the wedding?
Answer: Because it can be elegant and cost effective, and it just seemed right.

Question 6: What does your dress look like?
Answer: MUAHAHAHAHA I'LL NEVER TELLLLLLLL. (Please note: I have not purchased said dress yet. I have one in mind but nothing is certain)

Question 7: How much money have you raised through your 10 dollars from 100 people thing/are you completely off your rocker?
Answer: 110 bucks so far/yes.

Question 8: Who's in your wedding party?
Answer: That's another post for another time, I wanna make sure everything is finalized before I start talking about all of that.

Question 9: How did he propose?
Answer: Down on one knee under the Christmas lights at province house on November 31st, 2009. It was beautiful and a very intimate moment between the three of us; Jacob and I of course, and the guy who happened to be walking towards us. We had a bit of an awkward moment with that one. I loved every second of it though, and honestly, how could that NOT have happened with a couple like us?

Question 10: What's your first song going to be?
Answer: We have one in mind, but we never actually had a 'song' per say. Do you guys have songs with your hubbies? Are we alone in this?


10 questions? I think that'll do for now.

Friday, March 26, 2010

Sugary marshmallowy cakey goodness.

To begin, I have a little non-wedding related subjects to cover.

First I want to say thank you for the thoughts, prayers and delicious food that everybody has been giving myself and my family over the past 4 months. It's easy to say that we wouldn't have gotten through it all without the love and support of our community, but it's true. The best feeling on the day of your grandparent's funeral is walking into the church and seeing it packed with the people who love(d) and care(d) for you and Granny and Poppy.

They say people only get together for weddings or funerals. I've seen a lot of you folks for bad reasons lately. Let's get together next for the wedding, shall we?

Now, if you've made it through the mushy must-be-said stuff, I award you with CAKE TALK.Who doesn't love cake? Alright, my fiance doesn't love cake. In fact, he suggested a 'cake' made of sausages and bacon as the 'frosting'. As delicious and artery clogging as that sounds, I think maybe we should go a little more traditional and perhaps use sugar as a main component in the food we'll be shoving in each other's faces in front of a hundred people. I hear bacon grease makes your makeup run.

When we first started shopping around and looking at cakes, I found out that the average cost for a wedding cake is $100 a tier. Yes folks, A TIER. Let me do the math quickly. Most wedding cakes have 3 tiers. At 100 bucks a pop, that's.... carry the one, divide by 83.... 300 bucks for a mound of sugar and flour.

Don't get me wrong. I appreciate a beautiful cake. I'd just appreciate it a lot more if I didn't have to pay that much. Once Doreen heard my concerns about wedding cakes (I believe my exact words were, "I'm not friggin' payin' 300 bucks for a wedding cake, are they INSANE?"), she and I sat down and brainstormed about what could be done on our budget. Let me just state right now that Doreen Gallant might very well be the craftiest jack of all trades I have ever met, hands down. We learned how to make an easy marshmallow fondant via youtube, tried it on a small scale, and the next week she had created THIS:



Yes, this was her first try, and only her second time ever working with fondant (which, as my sisters and I proved in a certain youtube video, isn't the easiest thing to master in the world). How cute is that! These cakes will have to be emulated in the future, if not for the big day then at least for some wedding related parties. They're amazing.

Also, what do you guys think about a small cake to cut that's a little more budget friendly, then cupcakes for the guests?

Oh, also, 89 people to go in my 100 for 10 dress challenge. Jeepers creepers you guys are stellar.

Saturday, March 13, 2010

Teapots, dishes, Katharina's Bridal Show, and 100 for 10.

This last week has been absolutely insane for me. I was meaning to post this on Monday!
Anyways, no time like the present to bring you all up to date on the quest for teapots, which has since expanded into a quest for teapots and dishes.

After receiving my Grandmother MacDonald's dishes, I wanted a way to incorporate them into the wedding. They're absolutely beautiful and fit the vintage theme. I decided I'd like to use them at the head table for the reception. Unfortunately, there's not enough for everyone, so I've been keeping my eyes open for another set.


I love Granny's dishes.

Doreen, Chrissy and I went to the North River flea market last Sunday and I found a teapot that I adored. It was part of a set, and the lady selling it sold me the entire set of dishes and the teapot for 5 bucks. I couldn't believe it! I'm pretty sure that I have enough plates and things for the entire party to have one at the reception, and another teapot to boot!

5 dollar dishes? I would have paid $5 for the teapot alone.
Now, onto teapot mania! I've got some amazing friends and family that are on the hunt for teapots for me. So far I've gotten 4. Here's what 3 of them look like, one is at Doreen's.

The teapot Rhonda found for me. Good eye, McFly!
This is the teapot to match the dish set I got for 5 bucks.
My first teapot find at Value Village.
After the flea market, Doreen, Chrissy and I went to Katharina's Bridal Show at the
Murphy's Community Center on Sunday. It was fabulous! I got so many new ideas from it! The best part was that most of the dresses I tried on at Katharina's Bridal were in the runway show, including the dress i fell in love with. It was fantastic to see someone else workin' it.

When it came time for prizes, my eyes started to glaze over. I distinctly remember the last time I won something; I was in grade 5. It was a cold winter day, and the classroom smelled like pizza (it was pizza Wednesday). They did the milk draw, and lo and behold, out of ALL the children in my class (11), I WON A MILK PEN! It was invigorating. It was heart stopping. It was the last time I recall winning anything in my life... until Sunday.

They started by drawing for prizes that were for both brides and friends/family that came to the show. Of COURSE, Chrissy won an awesome Arbonne Seashores Detox Spa mud mask for face/body. Sibling rivalry/jealousy reared it's ugly head, but I kept it inside (after all, I was going to mooch some of it from her later). Then came time for prizes that were just for brides, and my moment. I actually won 50 dollars worth of flowers from Hearts and Flowers in town!

I WON SOMETHING!

I felt accomplishment (and beet red in the face). When I was walking up to get my prize, Julia from Katharina's Bridal who was doing the announcing leaned over and said "Blog lady?" Man, did that ever make my day. First, I won a prize. Second, the ladies at Katharina's actually read my blog AND recognized me from the picture! That was huge for me. All in all, it was a great show and I received a bunch of new business cards to add to my wedding binder of potentials (and maybe a few too many cake samples).

I kind of feel like an advertisement for Katharina's Bridal, and I love it. Oh, did I mention a friend gave me a 200 dollar gift certificate for Katharina's towards the purchase of a wedding dress? Fate much?

OK, now on to my far-fetched idea of how I'm going to afford a wedding dress. As most of you know, Jacob and I are like everyone else on Prince Edward Island; we don't have thousands to spend on a wedding, and we're really not interested in going into debt for a wedding. To me, debt is for houses and cars and education. This was one of the main reasons why we chose the vintage theme for the wedding; we can have a beautiful wedding with charm and personality without having to spend a lot of money that we don't have. This in mind, I've started a 100 for 10 drive. I'm absolutely shameless. I'm not proud. I'm asking 100 people for $10 so I can get a wedding dress. I've added a donate button to the bottom of this blog, and family and friends have already stepped forward to give me a hand.

That being said, DO NOT feel like you have to give me 10 dollars. The choice is entirely up to you. This is an extremely unconventional method of raising money for a wedding, and I completely understand if people think it's way too 'out there' and maybe a little too presumptuous that I actually know 100 people to give me 10 bucks.

All I have to say for myself is hey, you can't blame a girl for trying.

.

Tuesday, February 23, 2010

Review: Katharina's Bridal Boutique

I have just returned from the most amazing wedding dress shopping experience I've ever had.

First, let me just say that I was a little anxious to go dress shopping again after my last trip to an establishment on the Island. The lady helping me at the dress shop would only pull dresses that she thought would fit or be big and seemed in an awful rush to shoo me out the door. Unfortunately, the few dresses that fit me well enough that I could try them on seemed to be the wrong kind of old fashioned and a little on the homely side... nothing like I had envisioned myself trying on. I left feeling like finding a dress would be like wrapping a whale in taffeta and tulle and sending it down the aisle.

So yes, I was more than a little nervous walking in to Katharina's Bridal Boutique, but I decided to keep an open mind. I was greeted at the door by Kim, one of their wedding consultants. Her warm and welcoming personality made me feel instantly like I was shopping with an old friend. We walked up to the racks of dresses and I mentioned a few of the characteristics I thought I'd like in a dress. Right away she pulled one off the rack, and I instantly said "that won't fit". Kim then told me something I hadn't heard before; forget about the size of the dress, that's just a number. She told me to try it on and, even though it might not fit, I could see if I liked the look of it. And try on dresses I did!

With help from my soon to be mother-in-law and sister-in-law Doreen and Josie, we picked out a number of dresses I wouldn't have even considered trying on because of the size at the other shop. While I was trying them on, Kim made me feel so confident, telling me which were her favorite dresses, telling me stories and making me feel special. She told me what worked and what didn't; a kind of honesty that seems to be rare.

Because of Kim, Doreen and Josie, I found a dress I fell in love with. I wouldn't have tried it on anywhere else, but it looked stunning. I even got to meet Katharina, who came out and told me the best part: They only sell 3 dresses of one particular style a year. This was the best news I'd heard all day; after all, what bride wants to see her dream dress on 10 other brides on Facebook by the end of the season? I left the boutique with loads of information and even a booklet with a picture of the dress I love in it - even though they only get a few booklets and are supposed to stay in store (thanks, Katharina!).

To wrap it up, the ladies at Katharina's Bridal Boutique made me feel so positive about the whole experience. They were amazingly friendly and outgoing, knowledgeable and made the whole thing so memorable. I can't believe they've been open for a year, and I've just heard about them this week. Thanks, guys!

Info on Katharina's Bridal Boutique:
Facebook group: Katharina's Bridal Boutique
Address: 12 Cedar Street, Summerside PEI
To book an appointment: (902) 724 - 3222

Thursday, February 18, 2010

Wedding Nightmares.

For some reason, I've had 3 wedding related dreams this week, and none have been good.

The first dream happened on Friday night. Jacob and I decided that morning to get married that day in some tropical location, and didn't have time to invite all of our friends and family. Doreen and my grandmother were furious, and I remember thinking how much more special it would have been if we would have done everything right.

A few nights ago in my dream, no matter how hard I tried, I could not gather every bridesmaid and groomsmen in one place for long enough to hold the ceremony. It was extremely frustrating.

Last night I dreamed that we had gone all through the ceremony, but I didn't remember any of it. I was sitting in the kitchen of my grandparent's house, and I asked my uncle Doug (who's going to marry us) what time the wedding started, and he said that it already happened. He then diagnosed me with wedding amnesia, and Jacob was so mad that he ran away and cancelled the reception.


I thought these nightmares were supposed to start a little closer to the actual date, not a year and a half before!

Wednesday, February 17, 2010

Pictures!

Just a quick post to jot down an idea so I won't forget it:

Pictures of our parents on their wedding days in old looking frames.
It would add a lot to the guestbook table and add to the vintage feel.

Sunday, January 31, 2010

Kleinfelds.


Jacob, Emile, Krista and myself are making the trek back to NYC this summer to really experience the city... when our boogers aren't frozen to the inside of our noses. When we went for New Years last year, it was phenomenal. There was way too much to see in just 5 days. We didn't even get to see the Statue of Liberty! So we've decided to go back, take a roadtrip in one of our vehicles and head down, maybe check out some sights along the way.

With us actually being able to plan our agendas ahead of time, I've decided to make an appointment to go check out wedding dresses at Kleinfelds. Whether I'll actually get an appointment is questionable, but as far as I can see on the site, if you book at least 4 months ahead you'll have a 1.5 hour slot when you want during the day. I realize this is probably not going to help my budget, but I want to go in and see if they can at least help me narrow down what it is I want in a dress.

Here are a few under 3 grand (ouch) that I like from the site:












Thoughts? They don't tell you the prices on their site, you have to go in and look.
What do you think the chances of one of their amazing clearance sales happening when I'm around are? :S

Monday, January 25, 2010

Tentative wedding colours = picked!



The peachy colour is getting switched out for ivory to match my dress. The bridesmaids dresses will be the purple colour, the sashes on them orange (SO HAPPY I got orange worked in there somewhere) and yeah, ivory for Kim's. That's about all we got accomplished yesterday, and now it's time to shop!

Tuesday, January 19, 2010

Typewriters are cool, right?

Am I going crazy? Maybe.

But I found this idea in one of my wedding magazines: Setting up a typewriter for guests to give us their well-wishes on. It'd be a neat keep-sake that I could put in one of those aluminum tube thingies and take out every few years to re-read for nostalgic reasons.

Ha, I just thought about how you could gauge how the night goes on by the amount of curse words and typos on the paper afterwards... Sweet.