This is lnporter's Yellow Wedding!

The wedding was gorgeous and amazing! It went better than I could have ever dreamed. The weather was perfect...upper 70s. I had been crossing my fingers on that ever since we decided to have it outside. The musicians were great, the officiant led a heartfelt ceremony, the bridesmaids and groomsmen looked amazing (and of course, my hubby did too!), the food was amazing and the cake was yummy and looked great. The flowers turned out beautifully.....I am truly blessed to have had such an amazing day! My only complaint was that our reception was too short. By the time it started, we only had three hours because the site told us we had to be out of there at 11pm. It all went by too fast!!

Pictures to come soon!!

My flower girl is my FH's niece and is almost 3 years old. Her dress is a lot like mine as far as the color (they are both made by Mori Lee and are the same ivory color)... and this pic shows the white. and the embroidery on the top part of her dress is a lot like all of mine. I wish I had a pic of her available, but the pic I found online of the dress should be ok...since she also has bright blonde hair around the same length. My flower lady is making a flower wreath for her hair with blue flowers :)

So cute!!!! :)

While starting to assemble this project per the instructions, I decided to alter it a bit. Instead of just using the fabric for a loose cover, I decided to wrap it (like a book cover) around all the edges, so the whole thing is taught, secure fabric. I wrapped the fabric around folded cardstock. Back in elementary school we used to make books like these but with wallpaper...anyone else do that?? It's kinda the same idea. I found it to be faster and easier to deal with (specially since I don't sew!). I also decided to tie the ribbon in the front instead of to the side, but do whatever you like best!! :) I then printed the inside of the programon yellow paper and glued it (with spray elmer's glue) onto the cardstock (on top of the wrapped fabric).

This is the first one I made...so it's a bit rough, but let me know what you all think!!! I really like how it looks....

Found this idea from marthastewart.com and have decided to do them. Couldn't find the ribbon, so I just went to a fabric store and picked up some navy taffeta and cut them to the size of the programs (I folded a piece of 8.5 X 11 cardstock paper in half). I lined the inside of the book with a piece of pale yellow paper (this will have the ceremony and attendants in navy text). Then I'm going to tie a pale yellow ribbon around the booklet. I did a mock-up, and it looks really good!!! It looks expensive, yet the two yards of fabric were only $6.00, the yellow paper I already had, the cardstock was $10 for 100 sheets and the ribbon only .50 cents a spool....which may take two or three spools. So for less than $20, I'll have a really cute, elegant and expensive-looking wedding program!! I'll post pics if I can :)

Just thought I'd share this one...cause I thought it was just too cute to keep to myself! :) What do you all think??


Wedding Programs:

Wide moire taffeta ribbon becomes a beautiful jacket for a wedding program. A narrow brown ribbon tied in a simple bow holds the finished booklet closed.

Program Jacket How-To
You will need: scalloping shears, 4 1/2 -inch-wide moire taffeta ribbon cut to 7-inch length, program printed on 6 1/4-by-4 1/4-inch paper, paper clips, thin satin ribbon 18 3/4 inches long, pins, and sewing machine.
1. Fold program in half; crease. Fold wide ribbon in half; iron to crease. Center open program on unfolded ribbon; clip in place. Center narrow ribbon on outside of wide ribbon, perpendicular to fold, and pin close to the crease.
2. With booklet open to center, sew through all 3 elements along the fold. Tie off thread and trim excess. Remove clips and pins.

Wow, it's cutting it close....only two weeks left until the big day! I picked up my dress yesterday and have had fears that it would be too small. But luckily, it's actually too big around my ribcage...which I need to get taken in. I ordered the shortest length (the designer offered three lengths) and it's PERFECT...since I'm short AND I'm wearing flats, I was worried. The only other thing I need to do is add a bustle! The shop doesn't do alterations in-house, but gave me a number to a lady that does them and she even comes to your house! She's coming tonight, yay!! :)


I'm hoping all will go smoothly with alterations...but I'm wondering just how many of you have had really bad experiences with alterations???


Will be posting some pics of me in my dress in a day or two! :)

Well the shipment was a bit delayed, which is really making me nervous, cause once it comes in I still have alterations probably! Called the bridal shop and they said it should be coming in sometime in the next few days and will call me as soon as it does.

I'm just a little worried because my FH and I are going to his family reunion in Vermont for a week and we're leaving in two days! I was hoping I could squeeze in my fitting before we left, but since the order is behind, we're going to be cutting it CLOSE. Once we're back, there's only going to be two weeks left untill the big day!!!

I think all I'll need is a bustle to be added and possibly taken in at the top. I ordered the shortest floor length they offer, so I'm hoping it'll be short enough so it won't have to be hemmed.

What have you had to get altered on your dresses and how long have your alterations been taking???

So there's only about 3+ weeks left until our big day and we've only gotten like 60 RSVP's out of the 175 we invited!! We've only recieved one or two RSVP's from my FH's family, and really not that many from friends just yet....and it worries me.

We're planning to give his family another week, and then he and my FMIL will take the list and start calling. How frusterating!!! Not only that, but all of his family lives in the area....so it shouldn't be a big issue!!

On the other hand, though a lot of my family has RSVP'd, there are some where my parents have just simply told me, "Oh yes, I talked to so-and-so, and they told me they are coming." Well great....but can't they send in the RSVP card??? It would be easier to just go through the cards and count everyone up instead of having to go out of our way and remember that "Oh yes, we heard from so-and-so from so-and-so and they are a definite yes."

Oh, and I'd like to mention that our RSVP date was almost a week ago!?!?

I feel like I already am very stressed and working hard to make this event nice and when planning the meal and activities I put a great deal of thought into what everyone would like, as well as what we like....so it seems like they could just throw me a bone and send in their RSVP's. I really feel that I'm not asking too much here!

Is anyone else having problems with people RSVPing?? It's like pulling teeth...and they're all adults!

Matt and I met through a friend while still in college. There are many ways in which we both might have never met.

I was hell-bent on going to this one college, but I didn't get in based on my low SAT scores, so I ended up going to my back-up college, which was 3 hours away from home. During my first year, I roomed with a friend from high school, and she had wanted to "rush" and be in a sorority. I had no interest, but because of my curious/competitive nature, I went along and rushed too, with no intent of joining (I am a huge tomboy!) But then we ended up in two different sororities. In sororities, you get a "big sis" and I ended up having/choosing the same girl that had befriended me during rush. The night of my official pinning (where you're officially in the sorority) she had me over to her house to have a "little sis" night. Low and behold, she lived with two guys and another girl, and Matt was one of the guys. We met that night, and I thought he was cute, and later on my big sis said he thought I was cute, too. However, I had a boyfriend (from highschool, who ended up going to the same college as me).

The Monday after the weekend Matt and I had first met, we both sat down in our choir class (according to our voice parts, we faced each other in the room) and realized we were in the same choir! That is just the start of crazy coincidences.

We didn't really become great friends until the spring that same year, when my big sis invited me along for spring break to florida with a couple "sisters" and other friends, and Matt was there too. We talked the entire trip----in the car, walking around Florida, in the hotel room, and danced at the clubs. We got to know each other sooo well, on such a deep level.

After the trip, we became really good friends---inseparable. It was no secret that he liked me (ALOT) and I still had a boyfriend (though I secretly had feelings for him too). Matt was my best guy friend from then on.

By my second year in college (he was in his 4th technically), things were rough on me. My major/classes were getting very challenging, I was really busy (with sorority and playing lacrosse) which started to make me and my boyfriend fight a lot. Through it all, Matt was always there to lend a shoulder and help me see the positive aspects. I would often talk online to him while I was studying late at night (1am/2am), and he would say, "You need a break...you've been studying for hours. I'm going to come pick you up and we're going to Taco Bell. You need to get away before you go crazy." So he'd come pick me up from my dorm in his TINY white car, and take me to Taco Bell.

Needless to say, I broke it off with the boyfriend, and there was a window of opportunity for us to give it a try. The beginning of my third year of school (and his 5th), we finally started to date. The first day I moved into my off-campus house ( I wasn't even all unpacked) he drove over, and played guitar for me (which he taught himself over the summer) and that was it! After almost three years of friendship and pining, we finally were together.

A side note to this tale is that he almost didn't go to our college. His parents were only an hour away, and he entertained the idea of commuting. We almost didn't meet in so many ways, but I believe things happen for a reason, and I'm so glad everything worked out the way it did :)

We've been together for almost 4 years, and now we're finally getting married!! I'm so blessed to have found him.

I loved this ring/bridal set as soon as I saw it!! When Matt got down on his knee and opened the box and I saw it sitting there, I couldn't have been happier!!! I can't wait to marry the best guy I've ever known......only a month to go!!!!!!! wow.

So since we're paying for the wedding ourselves (!00%), we won't have the money to pay for a honeymoon in addition to our wedding. We're going to take a long weekend instead, and just get a B&B for our wedding night in our area we live in. Certainly not ideal, but this way, we can take some time--6 months to a year to save up for the "ultimate" getaway (maybe spend our year anniversary somewhere).

I'm sad in some ways, because part of me really wants to get married and then "wisk away" to some amazing location. I'm definitely jealous when I read about everyone's awesome honeymoons on this site! But I know in reality, it just can't happen right now. :(

Is anyone else waiting to take their honeymoon later, and if you are, why are you waiting???

I'm freaking out! I keep wondering if I can possibly get everything done and ready in time!! We have everything booked, but the little details are going to kill me!

Does anyone else feel this way?

What does everyone have left to do before the big day??

So as my wedding draws near (only about two months left!) I'm getting more and more nervous about money issues. My FH and I are basically paying for this whole thing ourselves, but found that we're going to be a little short when it comes to paying for all the food. We're having 150 people, at about $20 a person. We've been paying out of pocket so far, but I think we're looking into getting a very small personal loan in order to cover the food expenses. I'm getting very stressed out because if the personal loan won't be able to happen, what do we do?? Are there any other ways you girls can think of (or are doing yourselves) to pay for wedding expenses??? Any creative, low-cost ways to pay for the little bit we will have trouble covering?? Thanks girls....you're the best!!!


UPDATE: My FH's parents are helping us out...at least to be able to put the food on a credit card, and then we'll pay if off. Luckily!!! We only have about a month to go....PHEW, that was close. I'm very thankful everything will be working out...thanks to all of you for your advice/stories! :)

I ordered my dress in late Feb,/early March and it will be coming in to the little bridal shop I ordered it from in early July. My wedding is August 8. I was in-between two sizes, so I ordered the bigger size and I ordered the dress at the shortest length as possible (I'm only 5'4') and I'm going to add a bustle to my dress for my train (it doesn't already have one). How long do you all think alterations will take? I realize it's cutting it close, but I switched my mind about a dress I thought was "the one" and went to another shop to look at others because I wasn't 100% sure, and actually found "THE ONE." What's going on with your dresses/alterations for all of you and how much will yours cost??

Yeah so I almost gave my dress away to my FH. A lot of times, when we're winding down from the day, we'll sit on the couch next to each other, both with our laptops on TV trays, and just talk, check email, etc. I was on this site, typing a post, and then scrolling down so I could show him all of what I posted so far. My wedding dress was the very bottom post (first post I did) and when I got to the bottom, my dress flashed right in front of him, and then I freaked out and scrolled it right back up. I was so excited to show him this site and our stuff I had posted, I totally forgot I had even put my dress on here....I thought about not putting it on the site, just in case, but had anyway!!! He didn't see much, all he saw was the color (ivory) but he already knew that because of trying to coordinate all the colors around it. YIKES!!! I thought I was going to have a heart-attack....

I can't believe I did that, though!!! I almost gave it away. Wow. Luckily, I reacted quickly enough. That was a close one!!!!

Anyone else do that, or something similar??!?!?! I have to know I'm not the only absent-minded one!

I saw this guestbook somewhere, and I really think it's a cool idea. I think taking photos of your guests is extra special, because I feel it would be more personal. This guestbook leaves a few lines for each photo, so your friends and family can write little messages. I also like the fact that you'll have a photo of each guest/couple/group that attends your wedding....plus I think that I would remember who was who easier by having a photo instead of just a signature, especially after years and years of being married.

The pic is a Polaroid Guest Book kit, which includes a photo guestbook, available in several different colors and can be personalized on a metal plate for an extra charge, a Polaroid Camera, and a few boxes of instant film, all for $169....I don't think that's too bad.

I also like the fact that throughout the wedding, either before, after the ceremony, or during the reception, people have something fun to do and to keep some people busy while my FH and I get our pictures taken after the ceremony. I'm having a friend of mine be in control of the Polaroid...and I thought about draping a solid colored sheet from a tree branch to have a photo backdrop.

Here's the web site where you can find/order this:
http://www.adessoalbums.com/begin-now-kit-for-polaroids.html

So, are anyone else's bridesmaids ordering their dresses late?

I have 8 bridesmaids, three of which are out-of-state. Only one of my bridesmaids has their dress already, and my wedding is only two months away! The other 7 girls have just now ordered them in the last week or two, and now they're having to pay a rush fee and also the dresses won't even come in until a week or two before the wedding. And then, what about alterations? I know of at least one that won't need any--her dress fit perfectly.

I know you can get speedy alterations depending on where you go, but would anyone else be mad about this?? I'm SO not a bridezilla what-so-ever, but I can feel the anger slowly bubbling. I've sent periodical "reminder" emails to all of the bridesmaids with very detailed instructions about the dress and where you can buy them on at least four separate occasions since November of last year. My wedding is in August, so they've known about the dress for a long time. Even if money was an issue, the dresses are only $139, and they could have been setting money aside if that was the case.

Any of you have similar issues, and if so, how'd you handle it?? I've tried being as nice and helpful about it as I can, but COME ON!!!

Sorry...had to rant...

So we have dark blue tablecloths for all the guest tables, but it would be extra for the head table and cake table, gift table, etc. The standard linens are white, which I'm not thrilled about since our colors involve ivory, dark blue and pale yellow--no white.

I'm thinking it would be cheaper to try to get dark blue or pale yellow table runners to at least bring in our colors on top of the white (which I don't think we can change). Does anyone know of a cheap place I could find table runners in a bunch of different colors??? Please help! :)

i'm also using two other hues of blue (since dark midnight blues are hard to find sometimes) in order to avoid everything from looking too dark, along with a very pale yellow combined with ivory, because again, this pale yellow I chose is hard to find sometimes. Hope this helps some of you! :)

Hey all! I've almost gotten all the invites sent. Just a little stack left to send out. I've designed them myself from scratch. I am a professional graphic designer, and if anyone wants, I'd be happy to give some design advice, let me know your colors, theme, fonts, etc. and I'll try my best to help out. Just let me know ;) I truly love design and wedding stuff, and would love to help any of you in any way I can!!!

I finally have my wedding invitation posted! However, I never said I was a photographer, so don't mind the crappy picture.

What do you all think??

Ideally, I love for my make-up to include dramatic eyes, with everything else neutral. I found a few pics that might work, but I'm still really unsure. Do any of you have suggestions?? Does anyone have some make-up pics that I might like?? Please help!!!

So I fell in love with this cake the moment I saw it. I snagged it from theknot.com site. Ours will also be round, but with four tiers, ivory, and we're adding some yellow flower accents as well as the blue hydrangeas. The ribbon will be the dark, navy/blue. We're also going to keep the "quilted" pattern, along with the little dots, which will also be ivory. We already have had our cake tasting....very tasty!!! Probably one of my FH's favorite parts of the whole planning process...a very close first place to the dinner tasting, which was also very delicious!! Our flavors, starting from the biggest tier first, are: Almond pound cake, Raspberry Sour Cream, Red Velvet, and our top tier is Chocolate Raspberry. Our cake ended up costing $510 and we put down a $100 deposit to reserve our date. How much did everyone's cake cost? Is this reasonable, or somewhat average? I kinda thought it wasn't a bad deal. It'll feed 150 people. Thoughts everyone??

Our wedding ceremony will be in the backyard/forest area behind this historical mansion. There's a gazebo type of structure we'll be getting married at. Then, steps away from the ceremony, is a deck that is covered by a tent which is where our reception will take place. Our wedding starts at 7:30 pm, and with the shade and darkness the trees will provide, the candlelight and string white lights will be beautiful. I can't wait until it all comes together!! The location for me was the most important part of the wedding (except for the dress, of course!). My FH and I decided right away what each of our #1 priority would be, so that we could budget from there. His, naturally, was about the food...haha. Mine was the location, and luckily, he fell in love with this place too!! :)

We've picked out some table linens already, which are similar to this photo. They're dark blue tablecloths, that have a little shimmer...perfect for the candlelight and an evening reception! I'm very excited to see them come together with our blue and yellow centerpieces. Since I really didn't want any white in our wedding colors (they're a very pale yellow/ivories and midnight blue).

These are my flowers for sure. I'm using this bouquet as my bouquet, and then for the bridesmaids, I'll be doing the same, except smaller, and with more blue than yellow. I'm also using the same type of flowers in the centerpieces. They'll be in square vases with a green and yellow leaf wrapped around the bottom on the insides of the vase. The flowers are: blue hydrangeas, yellow ranunculus, and green hypericum berries. Also, I'll be using the blue hydrangea and yellow ranunculus with the green berries for a small accent as boutinierres for the guys. I'm also going to make pomanders (flower balls) myself using faux cream hydrangeas, with accents of blue hydrangeas that will hang by a navy ribbon. I thought I'd hang them on the outside aisle chairs, putting them on every other one. This is a really cheap project and easy! All you have to do is get a green styrofoam ball (at craft stores) and faux flowers and cut the buds off and stick them into the ball and hang it by a ribbon. A very cheap and easy DIY!! This project will save me tons of money by doing faux flowers instead of having my florist do it...it can be really expensive. Love it!!! :)

For all of you girls that are frusterated with wedding dress shopping, I feel for you! I went to David's Bridal a few times, and found a dress I thought was "the one" but I was still unsure and just never ended up buying it. Plus, the veil I wanted was $120!! Yikes! There's no way I was going to spend that money on just a veil that I would only wear for one day anyway. Plus, the service I got at David's wasn't that great any of the times I went, so that really turned me off. I really started my search thinking I knew exactly what type of dress I wanted: not strapless, a-line, flowy, ivory, with hardly any train. I ended up going to some tiny bridal shop in the middle of nowhere (I'm from Indiana) and tried on every type of dress, even if I didn't think I'd like it. My dress ended up being ivory, strapless, and form fitting with it flaring down at the bottom, with a medium length train. It's crazy because I found a dress that was almost the opposite of what I THOUGHT I wanted. It just proves that you should try on every dress possible!! My dress ended up being cheaper than the David's Bridal one, plus I got a gorgeous ivory veil for only $40!! :) This picture doesn't do the dress any justice...it's so much prettier and sparkly in person. I'll have to put some pics up with me wearing it once I try it on again when it comes in. I can't wait until it comes in this month!!