Dress Shopping

As I begin to write this i realized that a lot of this is similar to venue shopping:

1st - Envision your day. Is it inside? Outside? What season? What colors? What dresses fit this location?

2nd - Dive in and explore this amazing vast space we call the world wide web. There is so much to see and help and overwhelm you.

3rd - Do ask questions! You can learn a lot from the pros. They can help understand your vision and whether the dress fits best with the venue. They can help with cost saving ideas and alternatives to the traditional wedding dress.

4th - Talk $$$! The same dress worn once may be online for you to buy. The salon may knock off money as long as you use their tailor or buy bridesmaid dresses there.

5th - Shop around! Get as much information as possible before you visit. Go in with pictures to help the salon choose dresses that you think you'll like.

6th - Visit multiple shops to see what styles and prices are out there. Take pictures (if you can) so that after the overwhelming day is over you can organize your thoughts. I brought a friend that discretely wrote down information as i purposefully asked the consultant detailed questions about the dress. This really helped later when going through the dresses i tried on.

Wedding Party Woes

The planning is in full swing and it is time to find the people who will stand behind you through the journey as a married couple. This is such a personal choice for every bride. Thanks to the advise of my cousin, I chose to have family in my wedding since they knew me the best and have always been there for me.

I chose my cousin's wife who i look up to as an amazing wife and mother. If I could be 1/2 her I would be happy. I chose my younger cousin that has been happily married for years to a man who flew to Honduras just to ask for his sweetie's hand in marriage. I asked another cousin because she is like my sister. We grew up spending a lot of holidays together since she lived a few hours away.

If I could do it again....

I began to question my friends and family about their weddings. I asked them if they could go back to that day, what would they have done differently?

1) "Chosen people to be in the wedding that I had more of a lifelong connection with. I'm not friends with many of the people in the wedding party anymore."

2) "Do it ALL! I didn't do a bachelorette party or shower and I really regret that."

3) "Don't try to be super woman! Assign people to help you pick up guest from the airport..."

4) "Cameras were a waste. Drunk people forget the flash or forget the camera is even there. There are also the obscene up the skirt or down the pants pics that we really didn't need."

Engagement Photos

We knew we were going to be sending out save the dates, so why not get some professional pictures done to celebrate the engagement? On a trip down the coast we asked my talented cousin to take some great shots to capture us, as a newly engaged couple.

We traveled through a gnarled group of trees and climbed up the ir trunks to find the sunlight. We posed under Spanish moss as it swayed in the breeze just above our heads. Climbed up the rocks to get the amazing beach as our background. And we ventured down the beach and talked as she snapped more candid pictures of us.

Engagement shots are a perfect way to get to know a photographer and their style. They will help you choose the person or studio that will capture your wedding the way you want them too.

Officiating

You now know who you are marrying, but who is going to marry you?

This may be easily answered if you are a regular member at your local church or synagogue. But what if you aren't?

We had two close couples that we admired and we looked back at their weddings. They both had family or close friends officiate their weddings. This created a more intimate wedding with officiants that they truly knew and could confide in.

We chose to ask my cousin and her husband. A couple that had been together since high school and truly knew the definition of love. They represented to us what we looked forward to having together. They are people that will always be in our life as we start our journey as a married couple.

We chose to go with The Universal Life Church - themonastery.org - for their ordination. Once they are ordained, check with the county you are getting married in to see what paperwork your officiants need to provide

Venue MUSTS!

1) Do ask questions! You can learn a lot from the pros. The coordinators at these sites have done more wedding that you and usually have great recommendations. They can help understand your vision and whether it fits best with their venue. They can help with cost saving ideas and alternatives to the traditional wedding.

2) Talk $$$! We booked our venue as a banquet and not as a wedding package and saved lots of money. Venues with a hotel attached were much more willing to lower per person cost because they would get $ from your hotel guest. Corkage fees, cake cutting fees, table cloth fees...these can be unexpected budget busters.

3) Shop around! Get as much information as possible before you visit. Websites, emails, referrals, reviews, and books can give you a lot of information.

4) Visit your top 4-6 venues to truly see if being there solidifies a big YES or NO. Being there can really help you picture your day in that space. It wasn't until I walked into my venue that i knew. I walked out, took a picture of it and sent it to my fiance with the words, "i think we found our place!"