Bride vs. Groom

Move along just to make it through.

2011-04-18T17:26:00.000-07:00

An entire year has gone by since my last post. Funny, it's also the day I happened to have a desire to create a new blog. I never did our wedding recaps. What happened? Life. So why not capture it? Coming soon ~ I hope you'll check me out: and that's why I love you so. ♥

How sweet it is.

2010-04-18T22:21:00.001-07:00

I was so surprised and very honored that our wedding was posted on Style Me Pretty!!

photo by Ohana Photographers

Thank you to SMP for the super sweet post and to our lovely coordinator, Paola Spagnoletti of Just Chic Events, for submitting the entry. We could not have pulled off the wedding we envisioned without all these wonderful vendors, whom we love and would highly recommend:

Day-of Wedding Coordinator ~ Paola Spagnoletti of Just Chic Events

Photographer ~ Chris Austin of White Haute Photography

Second Photographer ~ David Baxter of Ohana Photographers

Lighting and drapery ~ Mars and Nancy of Flowers on Mars

DJ ~ Michael Antonia of The Flashdance

Make-up ~ Julie Han (aka miss cakeface)

Bouquets and boutonnieres ~ Liza of Letters 4 Lilly

Cake ~ Laurie Mura of I Believe It's Cake!

Maybe I'll get around to the recaps one day soon...

Pre-party (aka rehearsal dinner)

2010-03-21T18:05:00.000-07:00

We had our rehearsal and rehearsal dinner the evening before our wedding. I wanted to keep that evening free in case we had last minute things to do, but it wasn't possible, due to venue issues (a whole other post to come).

Our day-of wedding coordinator, Paola of Just Chic Events is so organized and patient (we have a talky group of friends and family). The rehearsal went smoothly and quickly thanks to her.

We wanted the rehearsal dinner somewhere that was relaxed, fun, and not too expensive. Our first idea was Lucille's bbq but unfortunately it does not exist in nor around downtown LA. So, we went with Korean bbq at Road to Seoul.

Family + friends + all-you-can-eat K-bbq + beer = fun rehearsal dinner.

The restaurant gave us a Choco Pie to congratulate us on our wedding. :)

Soon to be married.

After dinner, the girls and I checked into The Standard Hotel - Downtown LA.

The Wow Room.

Big Foam Foot.

A fab way to spend the night before our wedding!

Showered with love.

2010-03-08T20:06:00.000-08:00

A week after returning from the most amazing bachelorette trip to NYC, my bridesmaids along with my mom, threw me a lovely bridal shower at Marmalade Cafe' in El Segundo.

the best bridal party

mom and sister

We had a delicious brunch followed by super cute and yummy cupcakes by my oh-so-talented friend, Laurie Mura of I Believe It's Cake!

red velvet is my fave.

Laurie also made our gorgeous wedding cake, which I will be showing off on here soon!

I loved going around and chatting with each of the tables.

The weirdest thing for me was opening presents in front of so many people! It was like re-living my kindergarten birthday party, with a few sexier gifts.

I feel incredibly lucky to have the most amazing bridesmaids, family, and girlfriends. Thank you, thank you, thank you. ♥

Concrete jungle where dreams are made of.

2010-02-18T20:52:00.000-08:00

Two things I love to do more than anything with my girlfriends are shopping and eating. What better place to do both these things than in New York City?

For my bachelorette trip, my three bridesmaids and I headed out to NYC. I had so much fun and words cannot express how thankful I am to my wonderful bridesmaids. Unfortunately, the other three girls in our group weren't able to make the trip out and they were dearly missed.

Rather than a silly penis veil (which so would not go with any of my outfits), the girls had me wear the Chubby Bunny for Hello Kitty bow headband in the limited edition black sold at the Three Apples event at Royal-T Art Gallery. It was fabulous.

It was ridiculously cold but so worth freezing our LA asses off. We managed to accomplish a pretty good balance of

touristy stuff:

ice skating in Central Park

Christmas tree at Rockefeller Center

posing for pictures in Times Square

more posing in Times Square

controversial Obama ad

Empire State Building

walking across the Brooklyn Bridge (this is how I saw the Statue of Liberty :P)

shopping:

Dylan's Candy Store

just a few purchases from my faves: boutiques on the Lower East Side, Brookyln Industries, Top Shop, Marc Jacobs accessories, Uniqlo

eating:

pizza at John's Pizzeria

delish dinner at the Stanton Social

best bread ever at Bruschetteria on the Lower East Side

McDonald's french fries are so damn good after a night of drinking

Serendipity frozen hot chocolate

The Burger Joint

and drinking:

Stanton Social

W lounge

Silhouette fun at the W

NYC is amazing. This was my first trip out, but definitely not my last. Thank you Emily, Maryn, and Tritia for the fabulous and unforgettable bachelorette trip.

It's official...

2010-02-08T11:51:00.000-08:00

...because it's Facebook official. ;)

This girl

is MARRIED.

Was it a perfect night? Hell no. Was it an amazing night? F*N YES!!!!

SO much more to come.

Be our guest be our guest be our guest.

2009-12-27T13:44:00.001-08:00

One of my biggest projects for the wedding has been the invitations. The insanely expensive type of invitation that I wanted was not in the budget. I have a love-hate relationship with Adobe Illustrator. It has amazing functions but some things are just so damn complicated. After designing it, I let it sit on my computer for a few (several) months, since invitations did not need to go out until December. I figured the easy part would be printing and sending them out.

Well, December crept up quickly and I ran into several issues during the printing. First of all, the paper was too thick to print on our own printer. Gah. Thank you, mrs. a, for letting us borrow yours! Then, the yellow I used in Illustrator was printing brown the on the printer. Gah. Finally, though I set the size on Illustrator to the size of the paper, it was getting enlarged in the printing. Gah. I am easily frustrated, especially when technology does not work. Lucky for me, I have a very patient, computer-savvy, perfectionist fiance'. He spent several painstaking hours fixing each page. Thank you, mr. c for doing everything for me that I don't have the patience for. You spoil me.

While he printed, I made address labels and return address labels. We used our customizable stamps by Stamps.com purchased from Walgreens during the summer upon a deal alert from this guy.

4 different engagement photos taken by our wonderful photogs, Chris and Erinn Austin.

After printing, we folded each page and perforated the RSVP postcard and it was ready for assembly. I went back and forth on how to bind it. I tried ribbon, I tried thread, I tried staples. I know it wasn't the best looking option, but I went with staples because it was the easiest and I was already behind in mailing them out.

i love this thing. thanks, mrs. gb.

ready to assemble.

The invitations finally went out last Tuesday, with, of course, one more complication. Unfortunately, when mr. c went to mail these out, they weighed 1.2 ounces, 0.2 oz over the 44 cent stamp rate. Gah. So, he had to purchase 17 cent stamps and stick them on each envelope:

I am completely happy with the final result:

it reads: leave us a message...but nothing boring.

Invitation Cover: Kelly Paper Solar White Classic Column $32.59/250 pages
Invitation Pages: Kelly Paper Solar White Classic Crest $21.90/250 pages
Envelopes: Kelly Paper Pewter Class Crest $55.95/250 envelopes

How lucky we are.

2009-12-27T13:05:00.000-08:00

We are so lucky to have such ridiculously talented friends.

My long time friend, Laurie, recently started baking and designing the most amazing cakes. When she started posting pictures of her cakes on Facebook, I knew I wanted her to do my wedding cake. She makes cakes for all occasions and her creativity never fails to impress. Here are just a few showcases of her talent:

Can you believe these are EDIBLE?!

I am super excited about what she is designing for our wedding. I know it is going to be amazing. If you need a cake or just wanna see crazy food art, check out I believe it's cake!

My make-up is being done by my high school friend, miss cakeface. If you need make-up tips, you should definitely check out Beauty Booger! We did a make-up trial last month and I could not be more happy with the results:

Thanks, miss cakeface. :)

Here are a few more pictures taken with the photobooth on my new mac book:

I love these lashes.

taking pics of yourself feels kinda awkward. :-)

I'll be getting my hair cut and styled by another high school friend, Kylene. She works at Carlton Hair Salon at Westside Pavillion. I am always happy with the results, like for our engagement shoot:

If you need a great haircut on the westside, make an appointment with Ky.

If you liked it then you shoulda put a ring on it.

2009-12-15T23:43:00.001-08:00

mr. c spent a lot of time designing an engagement ring perfect for me. I didn't even know what I wanted, but apparently he did.

Perfect and lovely it is.

While I was teaching, I got to wear it everyday. I keep it in the box when I don't wear it. Since I started working in a lab again, it stays in the box most of the time because I can't wear it with gloves. My first day, I almost threw it in the trash with my gloves! Eek!

On Saturday, we went back to the same jeweler in LA's jewelry mart to get our wedding bands. Gah, wedding bands are expensive! But, it is something that is going to last a ~~few years~~ lifetime right? ;) Since my engagement ring is custom, I had to leave it there so the jeweler can create a perfect fit for the wedding band. So, as he says, I am "unengaged" for the next two weeks.

Please Mr. Postman, look and see.

2009-11-03T22:10:00.000-08:00

I've taken quite a long break from posting and wedding prep all together. I just got back from a week in Hawaii for a WORK trip. Amazing.

view from the Sheraton Waikiki

But I can only use the new job and new apartment as an excuse for so long. Now, it's November and we are less than 100 days away from our wedding!

I love getting things in the mail. Thank goodness for online shopping, especially Etsy!

We got some ties that don't suck for our groomsmen from here:

I purchased a customized feather hair piece from here:

I'm looking forward to receiving our bouquets, boutonnieres, and corsages from here:

One last thing we got in the mail from our photographers, Chris and Erinn Austin:

One super swanky DVD of high-res images from our engagement shoot.

After looking through hundreds and hundreds of pictures of ourselves, we chose several to print out at Target to decorate our new apartment. Here are a few more of my faves...

We sure are cute for two ugly people.

2009-09-27T12:59:00.000-07:00

I love our photographers, Chris and Erinn Austin of White Haute Photography. Who knew taking pictures could be so much fun but such hard work? The most difficult thing... having to "look into each other's eyes" without laughing.

Seattle is an amazing place to take pictures and an amazing place to visit. We started our engagement session at Gasworks Park. Gasworks Park is located next to Lake Union and is a converted plant for manufacturing gas from coal.

While we waited for our giant bouquet of red balloons, we took a few pictures in the park. I don't know what this thing is but it was quite nice:

This "play barn" was once the exhaustor-compressor building. Personally, I think it is too dangerous for kids to be running around in:

Erinn was super excited with the arrival of our balloons. She was determined to get this shot and did so as gracefully as possible, having to lie in the dirt. It paid off:

"Acting..." or not:

These last couple in the park are in front of former plant:

After a quick change at the hotel, we headed out to downtown Seattle. I just saw this shot on a guest post Chris Austin did on The Broke-Ass Bride this past week:

There are so many cool alleyways throughout downtown Seattle:

Several hours later, we ended our session in Pike Place Market area:

These are just a few of the many posted on Chris and Erinn's blogs. Check them out here, here, and here.

Thank you, Chris and Erinn. We are looking forward to seeing you at our wedding.

One day we'll get out of this sh*tty apartment.

2009-09-26T11:23:00.001-07:00

Things have been busy...but not wedding-related busy. Due to state budget cuts, I had to take a break from teaching. I miss my teacher friends, my classroom, and my students. I decided to go back to using my science B.S. and I started a new job working in a lab. One good thing is, with a new job, comes a new apartment.

Packing and moving is a bitch. UNpacking is a million times worse. Cleaning the old apartment in hopes of getting a good amount of our deposit back is a gazillion times worse.

But, alas, we finished and turned in the keys. My last picture of our first apartment together:

My lonely ihome and ipod blasting Michael Antonia's Seattle mixes

His mixes made cleaning so much more bearable...and possibly slowed me down because I was dancing half the time. Now I can listen to my ipod at work (can't do that as a teacher). He has posted enough dj mixes to keep you going like the energizer bunny. Go get yours on The Flashdance.

Who wouldn't want this guy spinning at their wedding?

Seriously.

Lucky me (and my lucky friends).

You got the wicked style.

2009-08-26T15:54:00.000-07:00

I finally bought my dress from here. Correction, my wonderful MOM bought my dress. Thanks, mom.

I'm over the colored shoes. Besides, the yellow Charles by Charles David's that I bought, I already wore for our engagement pictures. They are really more of a casual summer sandal anyway. I am going with my original plan and wearing the fluke-Nordstrom-sale Stuart Weitzman's, which are STILL regular price in store by the way:

Stuart Weitzman Gigiritz from Nordstrom

I bought this necklace from Etsy seller treeandkimball. It is something a little bit bold to go with my no frills dress.

Wistar by treeandkimball

Now what to wear in my hair...I got some help from the ever fabulous and always stylish East Side Bride. Thank you, ESB. I'm so moving on from the big flower and in search of feathers. I can't afford the lovely Sara Gabriel shown here and here, but yay for Etsy.

#1: Love these feathers, is the beaded star too much for a wedding? Maybe a vintage button would be better.

Dreamy Star Ostrich Feather clip by Batcakes Couture

#2: No beaded star but too poufy?

The Cream Puff by Batcakes Couture

#3: Love the button, but too flat?

Chastina by YJdesign

#4: Cute, but not enough of...something?

Lovina by YJdesign

#5: Cute, but too small?

Justina by YJdesign

#6: Too big and too much going on?

Madamme Bride by Dreamcatcherstudio

and #7: Just for fun, but too costume-y?

Deco Flapper Sequin Beaded Feather Headband sash by Blue Sugar Bridal

And wondering what dress to wear now.

2009-08-19T17:51:00.000-07:00

As previously mentioned, time and money went into our engagement session. So, yes, this entire post is going to be on our attire, props, and preparation for our amazing engagement session with Chris and Erinn Austin.

Attire

My bright floral dress was a cheap find at Forever 21. Unfortunately, cheap can equate sh*t-quality, so I had to get the zipper replaced. Damn, so much for cheap. I wore this with my purple satin sandals from Nordstrom BP and a pink hair flower from h&m. mr. c wore this magnificant Matthew Williamson suit from h&m (the colorful detail is sweet, if you can see it) and white wingtips from ebay. This set of outfits was worn for the second half of our shoot, walking through various alleys and cool spots in downtown Seattle and Pike Place.

I had been dying to wear the black and ivory dress that I bought months ago from Anthropologie. I wore that with a black satin headband from h&m, my favorite red patent pumps from Nordstrom, and my yellow Charles by Charles David sandals from endless.com shown here. mr. c wore skinny black pants from h&m, white shirt, black and white Ben Sherman tie from Nordstrom Rack, and his dirty beat up chucks. This set of outfits was worn for the first half of our session, at Gas Works Park, a former gasification plant. It is amazing.

We only wore the first two outfits during the four hours Chris and Erinn spent shooting pictures of us. We love the sneak peeks and can't wait to see the rest.

Props

Okay, there's really only one prop to talk about and that is the balloons. Yes, I know that balloons have been used and used again in various engagements and weddings. I DON'T CARE. The red balloons have a significance to us. If you remember, mr. c proposed to me from inside a giant 6-foot round red balloon. If you don't know, then check it out here or here.

I love originality but I loved the idea of round red balloons to play on our engagement more.

Our ten 2-foot round red balloons (and one mini balloon) were delivered to the park and they were spectacular. Thank-f*n-god because they were pricey. The balloons themselves were $3.00 each and we purchased them from Mayflower Distributing Company in Garden Grove. They are a wholesale and retail store. Obviously, wholesale price would have been cheaper. mr. c mailed the balloons up to M&M Balloon Co to add the helium and deliver them to the park the day of. We won't mention the silly cost to fill them up.

After we were done with the balloons, we didn't let them go. We gave them away to kids in the park. Their parents probably had a hell of a time getting them into the car.

Miscellaneous Preparations

A couple of weeks prior to leaving for Seattle, I got my hair cut by my fabulous friend and hair stylist, Kylene, at Carlton Hair Salon at Westside Pavillion.

I got my makeup done at the MAC counter at Nordstrom in downtown Seattle (THE very first Nordstrom EVER). I got a wonderful tip about undereye concealer from my makeup guru friend at this fun blog. The MAC girl (unfortunately, I can't remember her name...I think it was Eunyce) was so lovely and helpful, unlike the rude-old-hag-curly-haired b*tch from the MAC counter at Nordstrom in South Bay Galleria.

It's like a dream.

2009-08-17T00:34:00.000-07:00

We are back from Seattle, where we had our amazing engagement session with Chris and Erinn Austin of White Haute Photography. We had such a blast with them! Lucky for me, Erinn was super excited about the photos and posted a few sneak peeks on Facebook immediately after we got back from dinner. Details about Seattle and our shoot will be posted soon, but for now, some sneak peeks of our session:

photo by Erinn Austin

photo by Erinn Austin

photo by Erinn Austin

photo by Erinn Austin

Leaving on a jet plane part 2.

2009-08-11T04:05:00.001-07:00

And we are off to Seattle for a short vacay and our engagement session. We have to leave for LAX at 5:30AM and I barely finished packing. So, I am wasting the rest of the night away watching season 3 of Entourage and looking through my favorite wedding inspiration blogs.

We have spent some time (and money) planning out our props and attire for our engagement session. Here are a few photos that have inspired me.

Big round balloons:erin hearts court

Colorful umbrellas:

erin hearts court

Lovely attire:

max wanger

Great shoes:
via Green Wedding Shoes

Bright colors:
white haute photography

Bold accessories:
e.d. austin photography

Hopefully we can avoid too many of these lovely faces:

monica and chandler's engagement photos

Another one bites the dust.

2009-08-06T16:39:00.000-07:00

My friend and bridal party member, miss e., who you may remember from her assistance in mr. c's proposal, is finally engaged! I say "finally" because she and mr. r have been together for TWELVE years! Oh my! I am so excited not only for her engagement but for her upcoming wedding next year. miss e. has amazing fashion sense (thank god, since she is a buyer for this store) and she has an eye for all things lovely, so I know her wedding is going to be absolutely fabulous.

We went to check out one of the places that I loved online in the search for our venue.

The Smog Shoppe is even lovelier in person! There are so many amazing details throughout the venue. I was so happy to actually see it in person and, for partially selfish reasons (a.k.a. so I can attend a wedding here), I hope that miss e. books it! It is absolutely PERFECT for her whimsical vision of their wedding. Even the sign is a sign -- these are her colors:

It's a sign.

I know she will add her own stylish touches to this already gorgeous venue.

miss e. checking out the hidden kitchen. I love the tables and benches.

What a beautiful backdrop for the ceremony.

A bridal suite with private restroom and a grand staircase entrance.

Eclectic furniture and decor.

How fab are these bathrooms?

Congratulations on your engagement, miss e. I am so excited that we get to share this crazy experience together.

Come with me my love to the sea.

2009-07-30T19:11:00.000-07:00

On her wedding day, she was relaxed, excited, glowing, and beautiful. I hope to hold it together nearly as well as my friend, mrs. w. To prepare for their 10:30 am wedding ceremony, mrs. w was getting ready with a cocktail in hand at 6:30am. Lucky for her, she is a total morning person. I, on the other hand, would probably be late for my own wedding if I had to get ready that early.

mr. and mrs. w were married at one of their favorite places -- the beach. How awesome is it for guests to kick off their heels and walk barefoot on the sand to their seats?! I love how the groomsmen wore their shirts open collar and no jacket. I think this was a great way to distinguish between the mr. w and his groomsmen.

mrs. w is not a shopper, but she did not stop until she found a dress that was flattering and comfortable for all her bridesmaids. I love her selflessness.

I don't know how she did it, but mrs. w looked so incredibly cool and collected as she walked down the aisle with both her parents to "Sea of Love" by Cat Power (from the Juno soundtrack). That song along with her happiness was more than enough to bring tears to more than a few eyes.

The reception was held at The Chart House, which overlooks, what else but, the beach! Her table numbers were so cute and personal. To say mr. and mrs. w are baseball fans really is an understatement. Each of the eight tables was a different baseball team and stadium that they went to together!

I really loved mrs. w's dance with her father as they sang the words of Anne Murray's Could I Have This Dance to each other. This is exactly why we are not doing these dances...I cry too much.

Remember my post about the delish favors from mr. and mrs. a's wedding? mr. and mrs. w had a different, but equally wonderful, "favor." Animal lovers that they are, mr. and mrs. w skipped the favors and made a donation to the Best Friends Animal Society.

This bride and groom had no time to rest. After the wedding and a little bit of downtime, they had a wedding afterparty at our favorite spot for happy hour. What an awesome way to end a fun-filled wedding day.

Congratulations, mr. and mrs. w.

Oh make me over, part 3.

2009-07-30T09:26:00.000-07:00

I've made several of these pomanders in various sizes and fabrics to be incorporated throughout a number of our centerpieces in different ways.

Sneak peek #3:

Oh make me over, part 2.

2009-07-29T15:05:00.000-07:00

Sneak peek #2:

Frame (settings) and rose cabochons from Etsy seller, PinkyNoodles. I love her carnival of fun shop!
4 x 6mm Czech glass baby bell flowers beads in coral lemon yellow from Etsy seller, jewelsnfindings.
More baby bell beads in jet (black) and milky white luster from Etsy seller, mountainshadowdesign.
I added my Alice Kennedy Timeless Treasures fabric to the backs of these crystals (that came on this candelabra) to make them more fun.

Round crystal beads came with a different candelabra.
Black round and yellow faceted acrylic beads and the metal beads and chains from Athenian Fashions in LA's garment district. Thanks to Stephanie, who was very helpful and taught me how to attach the metal beads to the chains!

Two centerpieces completed. Now where am I going to store them until February??

Oh make me over, part 1

2009-07-27T18:46:00.000-07:00

For the past week, I have been working on turning all that trash into (what I hope will be) fabulous centerpieces. So far so good.

I've decided not to post each finished centerpiece until after the wedding so that there will be some surprise elements for our guests.

Instead, I will post some sneak peeks as I progress through this never-ending list of centerpieces.

Sneak peek #1:

Hopelessly devoted to you.

2009-07-20T10:45:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday, after the Renegade Craft Fair, we walked around the garment district in search of fabrics and beads. We used this and this as our guide. I found both fabrics and beads, but right now, I am obsessed with the fabrics we bought to make our pomanders.

We went through a few of those fabric stores that advertise the $1/yard fabrics. All those fabrics were crap. I know, many of those stores have nicer fabrics inside. However, inside was a mess...stacks upon stacks upon stacks of fabric. Keep in mind, I was not looking for yards and yards of fabric, so this was not worth the time and effort.

We ended up at Michael Levine, a REAL store.

Oh. My. Gosh.

It was fabric heaven. Rows and rows of fabric, neatly organized by fabric type and then by color. Ahh, my kind of store. It was like "Ooh look at this" and "Ooh look at that." I even changed our colors a few times with each fabric that caught my eye.

As you might have guessed, fabric here was not $1/yard. Everything I wanted was $8.00 - $8.50 per yard and absolutely 100% worth it!

I am in love with Timeless Treasures by Alice Kennedy. Her entire Taxi collection represents our wedding perfectly,in our original color scheme:

Timeless Treasures Alice Kennedy Taxi collection - fabric inspiration

How can you ooh and ahh with me if you don't enlarge it!

I am so so SO excited about these two purchases:

Timeless Treasures Alice Kennedy Kiwi collection
You can't see the pattern if you don't click on it!

Timeless Treasures Alice Kennedy Taxi collection (Taxi Leaves)

I also wanted this one but sadly watched another girl walk off with the last remaining yards (which, of course, makes me want it more):

Timeless Treasures Alice Kennedy Taxi collection

Of two things you can be sure...one, you will definitely see the first two fabrics we purchased throughout our centerpieces. And, two, you will definitely see the third fabric and one or two of the others incorporated somewhere else...possibly in attire.

Feeling hot, hot, hot.

2009-07-14T18:36:00.000-07:00

We spent about 3 hours at the Pasadena Rose Bowl flea market on Sunday. During that time, the temperature kept rising from the 80s to the 90s.

See the resemblance?

lobster.

me.

A painful price to pay for more fun finds at the flea market.

a yellow suitcase.
This is going to be our wedding card box. We would also like to incorporate this into our Trash-the-Dress session.

a yellow stool.
This will be used under the jewelry box shown here for one of the centerpieces.

a bell jar.
We will incorporate this into a centerpiece with some of the other glassware shown here.

oval picture frames.
Minus the needlepoint, these will be used for the head table decor. I need 3 more.

large oval picture frames.

Minus the floral pictures, these will be used first in our engagement session. They will be used again for another centerpiece.

Yes, this looks like junk and yes, these are very vague descriptions of their use in our wedding. Quite honestly, I am not sure exactly HOW I am going to turn all this trash into wedding treasures. I have ideas but I don't want to reveal all of those just yet...I would rather show than tell. Be prepared for a lot of trials and even more errors.

Isn't she lovely made from love?

2009-07-13T13:45:00.000-07:00

I heart the Renegade Craft Fair. The view from the California Market Center 13th floor penthouse is amazing. We could see the backside of our venue from here. These are my favorite vendors:

oh, hello friend.
She designs the delightful jewelry that I wrote about here.

Check out her etsy shop here and her blog here.

It was so nice to meet you, Danni. You are super sweet just like your shop.

All my purchases from oh, hello friend. You might recognize three of these from here. This means I loved her stuff just as much as I did online. I wanted to buy EVERYTHING (but had to restrain). mr. c helped out and bought me the lemon sherbert one.

This is one of her new designs and my now favorite necklace.

ex libris anonymous
He turns old hardcover books into journals. What a great idea!

Check out his shop here and his blog here.

I bought mr. c "The Golden Book of Science for Boys and Girls" to help him become a doctor.

Thea Starr
She specializes in kimono fabric flower accessories, perfect for weddings.

Check out her etsy shop here and her website here.

A gorgeous alternative to real flower bouquets.

I talked to her about customizing a (bigger) bouquet for me using these black and cream flowers.

Mehoi
She designs cute accessories that would make unique wedding party gifts.

Check out her shop and website here (where I got all the following images from).

necklaces.

earrings.cuff links.

tie pins.
money clips.

destroyed by design.
She makes adorable animal shaped jewelry, which are customizable! Another possible bridal party gift.

Check out here etsy shop here and her website here.

acrylic necklaces.

acrylic earrings.

Crayon Fawn
She makes these funny hair accessories. Maybe not for the wedding ceremony, but oh so cute for an engagement session.
Check out her etsy shop here (where I got the following images from).

sushi hat.

cupcake hat.

Steppie
Nothing to do with weddings, but just because I love pandas.

Check out her etsy shop here and her blog here.

Panda rings are too cute.

You're just a product of loveliness.

2009-07-10T10:35:00.000-07:00

There are so many crafty things going on this weekend!

Renegade Craft Fair

When: July 11-12, 2009 11am - 7pm
Where: California Market Center Penthouse
Admission: free!
Parking: $10 with validation

The Broke-Ass Bride posted about this yesterday. I am super excited about her post because my new favorite Etsy vendor, Oh Hello Friend, is going to be here. She makes the most lovely jewelry! I love everything she makes. Here are a few of my favorites from her Etsy shop:

oh hello friend. lemon sherbert

oh hello friend. chang(ed), set III

oh hello friend. blossom

oh hello friend. flower nest

I hope this is still there tomorrow when I find her booth:

oh hello friend. this is love

Rose Bowl Flea Market

When: Sunday, July 12, 2009 9:00am - 4:30 pm
Where: Rose Bowl in Pasadena
Admission: $8.00/person (They also have earlier admissions, as early as 5am, for an added cost)
Parking: free!

This is where we found our centerpieces shown here. It only comes every second Sunday of the month.

image from here.

Rubber Stamp Convention (RSC)

When: July 11 - 12, 2009
Where: Carson Community Center
Admission: $6.00 one day or $8.00 for two-day pass
Parking: free!

I know you can't read that! Click on the image!

I know, it sounds really geeky, but I've been a few times and I always walk out with something new to add to my craft supplies. It's not just rubber stamps! They do tons of demos and there are other vendors that sell paper, paper punches, trinkets, and embossing stencils. My favorite things are the box patterns from Darcie's Country Folk.

favor boxes?
I know you can't read that! Click on the image!

bridesmaid's gift box? I know you can't read that! Click on the image!

Leaving on a jet plane.

2009-07-10T10:15:00.000-07:00

With 3 photography sessions lined up with our amazing photographer, we would like to shoot at 3 distinctly different locations.

We want to do our engagement session this summer. I asked Erinn (my photographer's talented wife/second shooter) where this field is that she shot this lovely senior portrait of Lauren:

Who would have thunk that flowers bloom in the SPRING and may not last through the SUMMER? Certainly not me, who SHOULD have considered that, having taught first graders this year.

Change o' plan.

It turns out Chris and Erinn are traveling to somewhere I love --Seattle, and we are going to meet them up there! Right now, plane ticket prices have skyrocketed so we are hoping that it goes back down soon.

In my search for prospective photo locations in Seattle, I came across Sarah Rhoads' blog. Her site makes me excited for Seattle!

Sarah and Jared:

Seattle cityscape.

I love this tree.

Laura and Ryan:

Such a beautiful field.

It's like a dream.

Kathryn and Michael:

This reminds me of Twilight!

My favorite - Leda and Jonathan:

This couple is gorgeous.

This bridge is lovely.

I. Can't. Wait.

The way you [DIY] the things you do, part 2

2009-07-06T20:26:00.000-07:00

Remember this:

that I made here?

I just found this lovely DIY wedding paper pomander from Once Wed:

I wish I saw the Once Wed pomander sooner. I was trying to layer too many flowers to keep the styrofoam from showing. She wrapped the ball entirely in seam binding to hide the styrofoam. Thank you, Once Wed, for your wonderful DIY projects.

I didn't have seam binding (I am not even sure what that is). I tried ribbon first, but that didn't work because it won't lie flat. I remembered I bought this thin mesh "thing" (possibly drapes?) for $1.50 in the "As Is" section of IKEA. I cut a thin strip (~1"), wrapped, and pinned at the top.

Instead of paper flowers, I cut fabric flowers. Using what I learned from my almost favorite book, Martha Stewart's Encyclopedia of Crafts that I also talked about here, I finally bought some Stiffy (that mr. c cannot stop laughing at) from Michaels:

It is super easy to use. I just brushed on a thin layer of Stiffy onto the fabric with a foam brush, soaked up any excess with a paper towel, and let it dry flat on a rack.

I used the Carla Craft Ume paper punches for about half of the flowers. The small one is easy to use, even with fabric. After punching about 10 large flowers, my hand hurt so much I was ready to chuck that POS across the room. Okay, it's not really a POS, but I will keep the paper punches for their original purpose. Thank goodness for mr. c's gift also talked about here. I used my Pazzles Creative Cutter Inspiration to cut the remainder of the large flowers.

Then I was good to attach 30-35 of these:

to this:

to make this:

DIY-ing it attempt #2.

What you waitin' for?

2009-07-06T00:18:00.000-07:00

Last week, I received 3 boxes of discount glass jars purchased from save-on-crafts to be used for centerpieces and possibly a reception snack table (instead of just candy). Originally, I was looking for vintage bell jars and apothecary jars at the flea market, but those we found cost way more than I wanted to spend per centerpiece. I had to take a picture of this find with my BB:

Yay or nay on this centerpiece idea? :D

Rose Bowl Flea Market find: Apothecary jars $48 each (freaky doll heads included!)

Quite honestly, it doesn't matter to me whether it is truly vintage or vintage-like, as long as it looks good and doesn't break the bank. mr. c found me save-on-crafts online and Megan Marie of project: bride also gave a thumbs up review of her purchases, so I went with it.

My review, based on what I needed (glass bell jars and apothecary jars):

Variety of sizes and shapes of the jars is good.
Costs of jars are pretty cheap.
Shipping was pricey (as expected with all the glass), but very quick.
The quality of the glass is okay, with a few bubbles and imperfections.

Overall, I am completely satisfied and excited to do something with these.

My favorite purchase is this set of three bell jars, to be used for one centerpiece.

Glass Stem Bell Jars Set of 3, $16.99

I also bought this set of three apothecary jars...

Set of 3 Glass Apothecary Jars Clear Glass (10-3/8" - 8" - 7-1/2" tall) $19.99 Special

these three mini apothecary jars...

Individual Mini Apothecary Jars with Lids: 4-1/4" $2.99, 6" $4.19, 5" $3.99

and four of these (same) apothecary jars.

Discount Glass Apothecary Jars with Lids 11-3/4" $10.99 each/4 for $8.99 each

I bought the last four apothecary jars for the snack table. 11-3/4" sounded like a decent size, and height-wise, it is. However, looking at the jars, you can see the neck is smaller, but I didn't consider that it might be too small for even my hand to fit in. Instead, I will be mixing all the apothecary jars around for a couple of centerpieces and for a part of the snack table.

From the box that the set of three apothecary jars came in, they might also be found at discount stores, like Big Lots or Marshalls /TJ Maxx or Wal-mart (although I refuse to go there). I also saw a few at Michaels, with a 40% off coupon, will be a pretty good price. But, Michaels has a limited selection, so I am still happy with my purchase from save-on-crafts.

In addition, save-on-crafts has many other discount craft items. If we had not been so lucky to find the lovely birdcages at the flea market shown in my post here, I would probably buy this set of three gorgeous birdcages for just $35!

Bird Cages Decorative Antique Cream White (3 Birdcages) $35

The more I look at them, the more I want them now. In fact...if it turns out we need a couple extra centerpieces, I might just have to buy them. :)

Everybody seems so happy today, it's a sunshine day.

2009-07-01T11:15:00.000-07:00

The Reception
The party was definitely good times. When you go to a wedding that you only know your date and the bride and/or the groom, you tend to bolt as soon as the cake is cut (if not sooner). A wedding with all your friends is so much fun! Before we knew it, we were being played out of the reception hall to the last minute last song request of Journey's "Don't Stop Believing" (the song completely ruined by drunk girls in every LA club).

The digital photobooth from Cheesy Photobooths was a MAJOR hit. mr. c and I were deciding whether the photobooth would be worth the $1000+. We realized quickly that it was mostly our friends that were being photobooth whores that night and we had so much fun with it. So survey says, HELL YEAH!

These are only a few of the many taken by us in the Cheesy Photobooth.

One of my favorite parts of the night was when a certain someone (ahem, mr. c) requested a certain Bone Thugs n Harmony song...and passed the mic to the bride to spit some rhymes..and she rocked it! That girl can drop the first two verses of "Let's Ride" like no other. Yet another reason why we love her.

Bone Thugs rappin' bride photo by SA.
FYI...there might be a youtube video out there if you can find it. ;)

We have a collection of wedding glassware that we sometimes seem to "misplace." Sorry my friends that have given out these favors or are planning to use these favors...don't be mad. While a forever keepsake is a nice idea, I haven't used your wedding favor at my latest dinner party. I will remember your wedding more through pictures.

My favorite kinds of favors: yummy treats. mr. and mrs. a gave two. The first were delicious chocolate mints. They gave us a bag full of the extras. Yum. The second was a take out box with arare (rice crackers to represent mr. a's Japanese culture) and fortune cookies (to represent mrs. a's chinese culture).

200 + created and stuffed by the bride and groom

Instead of your typical fortunes, these contained wonderfully cheesy pick up lines like this:

Go ahead and use this one at your next club night.

My notes from this reception:

I might be a horrible "host" at our reception because I will most likely be at one of three places all night: dancefloor, photobooth, bar.
We are definitely getting a photobooth. The question still remains: digital or classic? We love the look of classic photobooth pictures, but they don't print out double copies like the digital photobooth and people (including myself) like being able to take a copy home.
SLIPPERS for the ladies! mrs. a had a basket of about 20 pairs of Old Navy slippers for any girls that wanted to swap out their heels to get their dance on.
Speeches at the beginning of the night to avoid slurring words.
Super cute idea for escort cards, created by the bride:

Duh, click on the image so you can read it!
front: How well do you know the bride and groom?
inside: answer = table number
back: entree selection

mr. and mrs. a, your wedding was fabulous and fun, as a wedding should be. Thank you for putting your (sometimes undeserving) trust in mr. c to officiate your wedding (aka potentially ruin your wedding). We are lucky to have wonderful friends like the two of you and we wish you all the best in your new life together. We can only hope that you and all our friends will enjoy our wedding as much as we enjoyed yours. Have an amazing honeymoon and we will see you in a couple of weeks.

It was with GREAT pleasure that mr. c was able to present for the first time, mr. and mr. a:

photo taken by miss s.

Everybody's laughin', sunshine day...

2009-06-30T12:59:00.001-07:00

The Ceremony
At 5:30, the sun was slowly beginning to make its way down. Unfortunately, not fast enough for those standing at the alter. Check out Mission Impossible: Budget Wedding in LA for his hilarious take on the heat.

I cry at almost every wedding (even weddings on TV) and this was no exception. My fiance', mr. c, was their officiant (Deputy Commissioner of Civil Marriages to be exact).

The (self-proclaimed) Wedding God

It was a lovely, short and sweet ceremony. Even though I heard the mr. c's speech several times prior, I still can't get over how beautifully written it was, with the utmost respect and love for the bride and groom, tied in with his undeniable sense of humor. Now I kinda wish he could perform our wedding. Just kidding, mr. wook...you are going to rock our wedding.

Things I gathered from the ceremony:

Short, sweet, and funny is the best combination.
The bride and groom really rocked their own vows. We will not be writing our own vows because I cry too much.
If you are not sitting in the front row or an aisle seat, it's hard to see...we are thinking of having our guests sit at their tables for the ceremony. Since chairs are not included in our venue, this will save us some money.
A microphone stand might be nice for the officiant because mr. c was having trouble juggling the mic and his notes and at one point, the rings.
I love the content of their ceremony programs. Each person in the wedding party, the officiant, and the ushers had a personalized one line description. And, on the back, they wrote a nice thank you to all their guests.

I know you can't read that! Click on the image!

Everybody's smilin', sunshine day...

2009-06-30T12:58:00.001-07:00

Congratulations, mr. and mrs. a!

photo by char.

I admit, I used our friends' wedding as a trial to see how our mutual friends "behave" at a wedding. I've gone to my share of weddings in the past few years, but this is the first with so many of the friends that we will also be inviting to our wedding. Sorry for you using you, mr. and mrs. a, but thank you for an amazing and "memorious" wedding. There are so many things that I want to share from this Sunday wedding in June at the Friendly Hills Country Club.

Friendly Hills Country Club image from Here Comes the Guide

My notes overall:

By far the most fun wedding that I have been to.
The Friendly Hills Country Club is a beautiful place to get married.
A Sunday wedding might suck for many because they have work on Monday. Not for me because I'm on summer vacay. Bring on the vodka tonics!
I saw my uncle's best friend. His wife is the groom's second cousin. Is that relevant to anyone besides me? No...but how random is that? I guess it just shows how small this world is.
I met EBM of Mission Impossible: Budget Wedding in LA. His fiance' is a lovely, sweet girl. And, he is a nice guy, always with his camera in hand, except when he is getting crazy on the dancefloor. We met, we chatted, and we took pictures in the photobooth:

I feel my luck could change.

2009-06-27T11:03:00.001-07:00

mr. c and I were so excited about our finds at the Rose Bowl flea market, we didn't want to wait another month for the next one. So, we went to the Melrose Trading Post (aka flea market) on Sunday. On the plus side, the entrance fee is much cheaper -- $2/person (or $1 with student ID) compared to $8/person at the Rose Bowl. However, this one is considerably smaller and we were not as lucky this week, not finding anything. Even though I know that flea markets are going to be hit or miss, I was still disappointed.

My disappointment lessened when we stopped by CB2, Crate & Barrel's more budget-friendly store. I LOVE this store. I wanted to buy so many things but had to focus on wedding finds only. We got all three of these:

cb2 lumiere candleholders on each side ($3.95 each on sale) and mahal vase in the middle ($4.95 on sale)

I so wish they had these in yellow or black:

cb2 hourglasses: green (60 min. $29.95; 15 min. $9.95) or gray (15 min. $7.95 on sale)

I thought again about adding gray or green, just so I could get these but the rational side of me kicked in and I (reluctantly) put them back on the shelf.

My disappointment lessened even more when we stopped by the Grove. The Sprinkles van just happened to be making it's first appearance on Sunday:

Even better, they were there to promote a movie, (500)Days of Summer, and gave away 500 free red velvet cupcakes. You can follow the Sprinkles mobile on Twitter here, but don't expect free cupcakes. Cupcakes are $4.00 each ($0.75 more than in the store). Yes, that is quite pricey, but if it ever came to South Bay, I would pay the extra money...I'm sure I'd be saving on gas and the headaches of the 405 right? The Sprinkles mobile will also available for private events. Check out the article in the LA Times here.

I was a splishin' and a splashin'.

2009-06-25T00:49:00.000-07:00

I've been splashed by Megan Marie of Project: Bride (who has amazing ideas, by the way)! Thanks, girl!

The Splash Award is given to alluring, amusing, bewitching, impressive and inspiring blogs. When you receive this award you must:
1. Put the logo on your blog or post.
2. Nominate up to 9 blogs which allure, amuse, bewitch, impress or inspire you.
3. Be sure to link to your nominees within your post.
4. Let your nominees know that they have been splashed by commenting on their blog.
5. Remember to link to the person from whom you have received your Splash Award.

I look forward to new posts by...

Mission Impossible: Budget Wedding in LA because he is honest and funny. Randomly, I am going to meet him on Sunday at a mutual friend's wedding.

ED Austin Photography because she is our photographer's wife and second shooter. I can't wait to work with both of them.

Erin Hearts Court because their photos are amazing. I am obsessed with the Yellow Balloon Engagement Session.

beauty booger because she loves all things make-up. I love that she is always trying new things.

Baby, now that I've found you, I won't let you go.

2009-06-17T17:45:00.000-07:00

My latest favorite obsession is the Pasadena Rose Bowl flea market.This past Sunday, we set out in search of treasures in the midst of all that trash for our DIY centerpieces. I have strayed away from my desire to use manzanita branches with pomanders for this...

Dining table full of purchases from the Pasadena Rose Bowl Flea Market

For her upcoming wedding, my friend, miss care, is asking her guests to b.y.o.C. (bring yo' own CENTERPIECE) with her color scheme guidelines, for the table they are going to be sitting at. How cute, creative, and budget-savvy is that!? I just barely met her last year, but she is one of the most creative people I know. She and her fiance' used my classroom a couple of weeks ago to film part of their VIDEO WEDDING INVITATIONS. Again, cute, creative, and budget-savvy!

mr. c and I are not as brave (and by brave, I mean trusting) as this lovely couple to put the centerpieces in the hands of our guests. But, I love that each of their centerpieces is going to be different and unique. So, I am now committed to DIY-ing all of our centerpieces by turning cheap finds into one-of-a-kind vintage-modern decor.

So, here are the pieces of trash that I am going to turn into creative centerpieces (hopefully not into pieces of trash in other forms):

Oops, and one more purchase that I forgot to mention...a 1950's ivory lace tea-length dress, probably to be worn for our Trash-the-Dress session with Chris Austin. It's totally not something I would normally wear and I love it.

Fruit salad, yummy yummy...

2009-06-13T11:56:00.000-07:00

...will not be on our menu (the fruit salad part...the menu is yummy yummy!).

After months of e-mails, too many phone calls, and negotiations, we booked our caterer. This vendor booking has been the most stressful, mostly due to the contract that eats up a huge chunk of our budget. I found our caterer through a post on Mission Impossible: Budget Wedding in LA. He had me at "drop our costs substantially," "crazy good," and "lack of service fees." Thank you, EBM, who I have been randomly stalking in this craziness that is the wedding blog world, just recently to realize that I actually met you prior at your double engagement party with two of our good friends. Now our friends will be lucky enough to enjoy the catering of Michael C. Events twice within a year.

Now Michael C.'s website is not at all my style and if I were to be the judge-a-book-by-it's-cover girl that I admit I sometimes can be, I would not look any further than the traditional-wedding-looking homepage. But, I'm glad I did. Michael C. is accommodating and professional. He is also super prompt with replies. Personally, I prefer e-mail, but he seems to like chatting on the phone. He drew up a menu and estimate quickly and I just as quickly rejected him because of my mistakes in my proposed food budget calculations.

I set our food budget too high.

Mistake #1: I thought "lack of service fees" was in reference to the services provided (chef, cooks, servers) so when I saw $xxx.xx in staff fees, I was like "Whaaaaaat?!"
I learned something new that day via dictionary.com:
service fee: n. An additional charge for a service for which there is already a basic fee.

Damn.

Don't get me wrong, I am thankful that Michael C. doesn't tack on service fees...but, still disappointed that staff fees are an added cost.

Mistake #2: rentals = expensive.

Damn again.

Lucky for us, Michael C. was able to work within our lowered budget and provided us with an estimate that we were much more willing to consider.

The tasting venue was quite a drive for us, way up in Santa Clarita, but as promised, worth the drive. Things that irked me: We didn't get to taste 2 of the 3 appetizers on our menu and he changed a couple of ingredients in some of the dishes without telling us and that mr. c called him on. However, he did throw in other options for us in the tasting that actually made us change our original menu. A couple of standout dishes:

Organic Broccoli Bisque - Creamy but light deliciousness. It reminded us of the Edamame Soup from The Open Door in Monterrey Park.

Wild Black Cod - Melt in your mouth yummy goodness.

New Zealand Baby Lamb Rack - Before the tasting, I was not a fan of lamb. Now it is on our menu.

Cannele de Bordeaux - Yumm.

Our final menu is even more yummy and even more amazing. My dilemma now is deciding which entree I want...lamb or black cod. I am drooling just thinking about it.

Now we're rockin' on the dance floor

2009-05-30T08:31:00.000-07:00

poster by Dolci Odille

Michael Antonia, aka the Human Jukebox, of The Flashdance is spinning (for FREE) at the Ace Hotel in Palm Springs on Sunday, May 31! I love Palm Springs and I love The Flashdance!

I am devastated to miss out on this crazy-fun event hosted by Mint Julep Social Events, but I will be lucky enough to witness his mad skills first hand at our wedding. How uber awesome is that? This guy is blowin' up all the wedding blogs, now an "essential" if you will, and I never get tired of reading about him! I have ~~told~~ bragged to everyone about Michael and how even mr. c's halmonee (grandma) will be actin' naughty at our wedding thanks to The Awesome-est DJ.

The way you [DIY] the things you do

2009-05-28T19:46:00.000-07:00

DIY-ing it attempt #1.

Scrapbook Paper Pomander
Construction Time: ~1 hour

Materials:
2-inch styrofoam ball
2 different color or patterned scrapbook paper
large flower punch (I used Carl CarlaCraft Ume-L)
small flower punch (I used Carl CarlaCraft Ume-S)
quilter's pins
6-inch ribbon strip

Click on image for larger view.

Directions:
1. Punch ~30 large and small flowers.
2. Make a loop with the ribbon and attach to styrofoam ball using stacked large and small flower with a pin.
3. Using that as your center point, continue to attach stacked large and small flowers with pins, allowing the flowers to overlap so that the white styrofoam doesn't show.
4. Adjust flowers as necessary to cover entire styrofoam ball.

Not too shabby for the first DIY-ing it. Punching "x" amount of flowers would definitely make my hand hurt. But, mr. c fixed that by getting me the greatest birthday gift ever...

Pazzles Creative Cutter Inspiration

According to mr. c's research on the forums, this is even better than the Cricut (everyone has seen those infomercials). With less than a month left of the school year, I am tempted to play with it, but I am trying to wait until summer vacay. I did test out a few flowers and mr. c made this hot little number:

For my next DIY-ing it attempt, I want to use fabric instead of paper. But, the punch won't go through the fabric. I learned that if I stiffen the fabric, I can punch my flowers or better yet, use my Creative Cutter Inpiration. Thank you Martha Stewart for this tip from her Encyclopedia of Crafts that I picked up at Costco:
This is my new favorite book...well, at least it comes ~~a close~~ second to "Twilight." Sorry, Martha, ya don't got nothin' on Edward.

A no-budget production of the Best Night Ever: My Marriage Proposal

2009-05-25T11:16:00.001-07:00

99 (RED) Balloons (2009)
Overview
User Rating: ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ 10/10
Director: mr. c
Writer: mr. c
Release date: January 3, 2009
Genre: my marriage proposal
Plot: Panda thinks she is going to a benefit with Frog at the Royal-T art gallery. Little does she know that she is about to get the surprise of her life by Monkey, her friend of over 10 years/boyfriend of nearly 3 years.
Cast (in order of appearance):

miss t......................Panda

mr. c.......................Monkey

miss e......................Frog

Additional Details:
My fiance' is the most hilarious, most creative, and most thoughtful guy I know (he never reads this blog so he will never know I think this. ;) shhh). Most people never even see the last thing because he is also a sarcastic ass. :) Like all things he does, his proposal was an over-the-top, planned-to-the-very-last-detail production. But, unlike most of his "surprises" where I have always had some idea of what's going on (shh, don't tell him), this one literally put me in complete and utter shock.

As with all huge productions, unexpected situations arise that create panic, and he forgot to push "record" on the camcorder so the actual proposal was not caught on tape. As nice of an idea this was, for me, this is a relief, because in my state of shock, I looked incredibly dumbfounded. Thus, instead of telling our proposal story over and over again, my creative fiance' took this as an opportunity to write and direct the Best Night Ever: My Marriage Proposal puppet show.

Without futher ado, 99 (RED) Balloons:

And it was all yellow (and black and ivory)

2009-05-21T19:52:00.000-07:00

from top left: adrianna papell yellow satin dress from nordstrom, cake from
the knot, calla lilies bouquet from the knot, oc by oleg cassini black silk/chiffon
dress from nordstrom, black jewelry from betsey johnson, yellow tablescape from
the knot, yellow candy bar from the knot, peterene black and white damask garter
from etsy, christian lacroix yellow leather pumps from zappos couture, stuart
weitzman black satin dorothy pump from nordstrom, wedding gown from
priscilla of boston, the yellow balloon engagement from erin hearts court photography

No boots with the fur here.

2009-05-20T19:31:00.001-07:00

I love shoes. I love Nordstrom.com. Those two things are a dangerous combination for my credit card, but an oh-so-lovely combination for my size 4/4.5 feet. Once in a blue moon (good thing not more often), I come across an I-must-be-dreaming deal. Check out these black satin Stuart Weitzman lovelies I got by what I think must be some fluke accidental sale price of $109.95 with free-shipping-on-any-shoe-purchase at Nordstrom.com.

Stuart Weitzman black satin Gigi Ritz
photo borrowed from nordstrom.com

Soooo, how can a sale be accidental?! The next day I got nervous they might not fit, so I was going to buy another size just in case since it would be free shipping anyway (besides, Nordstrom has a great return policy). But, my shoes were now listed back to $298! Whaaaat? I don't know, but I'll take it.

A couple weeks later, I found these super cute Kate Spades at Nordstrom Rack for $60.

Kate Spade black satin Kit slingback
photo borrowed from nordstrom.com

Truth be told...the leather/elastic slingback kinda hurts the back of my feet. I probably won't even last through our super-short ceremony in these!

Buuuuut, I'm not done shoe shopping. Now, I want to wear yellow shoes instead. I picked up these Charles by Charles David shoes on endless.com for $72.90.

Charles by Charles David yellow leather Dovey
photo borrowed from nordstrom.com

They are arriving tomorrow. They are kinda plain and not quite dressy enough, but I am going to use some Etsy inspiration and add some fabric in the form of a bow and/or a flower to make these shoes super rockin'.

Still, the hunt for my wedding shoes will not end. And, most likely, I will not want to return any of the runner ups. :/

It's in the photograph of love

2009-05-14T17:20:00.000-07:00

In search of a photographer, I looked through blogs, e-mailed several, and met with a few photographers. We met with Jason Q. Tran and Jordana Hazel (of Hazelnut Photography), both of whom we would have been happy to work with. If you want a friendly, take-charge kinda guy with a creative eye, Jason is your man. If you want a bubbly, fun gal to take gorgeous photos with a feminine touch, Jordana is your girl. Jordana's rates are also budget-friendly and along with weddings, her blog is filled with these gorgeous "Sexy Time" bourdoir sessions, if you are daring enough to strip down to your panties (Am I? Hmm...)

Jordana, along with 13 other photographers, participated in a Trash-the-Dress shoot at the March Air Reserve Base in Riverside. I want to go to there...

Trash-the-Dress with Jordana Hazel of Hazelnut Photography

I had to meet the guy organizing these amazing sessions, Chris Austin (of the new White Haute Photography, formerly Chris Austin Photography). After a few e-mails back and forth, Chris and his lovely wife, Erinn stopped by a Starbucks in Torrance to meet with us on their way up to a shoot in Malibu.

Here are a few of the many reasons I wanted to meet Chris and Erinn Austin...

An engagement session at Salton Sea:

photo by Chris Austin of White Haute Photography

A bridal shoot in Temecula:

photo by Chris Austin of White Haute Photography

A Day After Shoot in San Diego:

photo by Chris Austin of White Haute Photography

A true trashing of the dress TTD Session:

photo by Chris Austin of White Haute Photography

And one more by his lovely wife:
photo by Erinn Austin of ED Austin Photography

In addition to the amazing shots he captures, one of the many wonderful things we like about Chris Austin is that he is excited like we are about our amazing venue. We like that he researched the venue and the surrounding area BEFORE we met with him. He is constantly staking out sites for photography sessions in and around LA. Chris is creative, he has a great portfolio, and a "haute" new website and blog. We have three sessions lined up with Chris and Erinn and are excited to see what they have in store for us. First up, our engagement session.

The awesome-est DJ

2009-05-11T19:45:00.000-07:00

I am so excited to meet our hopefully DJ tomorrow!! Thanks to my favorite wedding bloggers, The Broke-Ass Bride and The Mason Jar Bride, for sharing of their amazing finding. We are meeting Michael Antonia, aka the Human Jukebox, of The Flashdance. If you don't know, now ya know...he was DJ at Speidi's wedding, but we won't hold that against him.

super hilarious photo of Speidi by Featherlove Photography

Everything about Michael Antonia radiates awesomeness. Check out the awesome blog where you can listen to his awesome DJ mixes. This guy even looks awesome.

The Human Jukebox photo borrowed from The Flashdance

**I vow to not use the word awesome in this blog anymore except in references to the Human Jukebox, who will tell us (more of) how awesome he is tomorrow.**

I can't wait to meet him. Cross your fingers he likes us too...

My fabulous coordinator

2009-05-07T16:50:00.000-07:00

I am not a fan of bridal forums and message boards because they are usually flooded with biiiiatches bringin' the drama fo' yo' mama. But, I must admit, Project Wedding helped me find my wonderful day-of-wedding coordinator, Paola Spagnoletti of Just Chic Events. Upon reading rave review after rave review about Paola and checking out her own wedding on her blog, I knew I ~~wanted~~ needed her services.
So, this ain't gonna be no platinum wedding (oh yes, my fellow teachers, multiple negation...AA Language Rule: more negatives = more negative statement), why the f* do I need a coordinator? Whoever says wedding planning is fun is lying. Kidding...sorta. It is super fun looking through blogs and magazines and ~~thinking~~ dreaming about dresses and SHOES. It is not so fun finding vendors, dealing with vendors (no offense, my lovely vendors), and trying to stay within budget. Thank you, Paola! Not only is she going to take the stress out of our wedding day, she is helping us stay within (or close to) budget, referring vendors that she adores that will give me the most bang for my buck, and showering me with advice and ideas.

You know, even though her contract says "Day-of-Wedding" coordinator, she is more of a "Year-of-Wedding" coordinator. She was giving me advice even before we met! I can't say enough good things about this lovely lady. She is everything you need in a coordinator -- detail-oriented, organized, creative, prompt with e-mails, affordable, and the list goes on. To top it off, she is simply fabulous!

lovely photography by Jordana Hazel of Hazelnut Photography

Our first wedding purchase

2009-05-03T17:53:00.000-07:00

The first thing we bought for the wedding was for my bridesmaids. I spotted this cute silk belt for myself at J. Crew a couple of months ago but really had no need for it...and definitely was not willing to pay $39.50 for it! Shortly after getting engaged, I found them on sale at J. Crew for $14.99 with an additional 30%, coming to a whopping $10.49 each!

J. Crew Satin Rosette Belt in golden yellow

At the time, I did not know that J. Crew loves teachers (and students) and give a 15% discount for showing your school ID. But, I really can't complain over the awesome price I paid!

Our wedding colors

2009-05-03T15:17:00.001-07:00

I always imagined my wedding colors would include pink. My bridesmaid, Maryn, has feared the day I get married because it would be the only day she would ever wear pink. I am sure she tried to come up with excuses to say no to being a bridesmaid for this reason alone. Even though I knew from the start of wedding planning that I wasn't going to use pink, I let her believe she would be dressed head to toe in Pepto Bismol pink. :)

photo borrowed from the Nausea-Heartburn-Indigestion-Upset Stomach-Diarrhea website

The inspiration for our wedding colors came from an overnight summer stay at the Viceroy Hotel in Palm Springs. This was the most relaxing trip we've been on. We were out by the pool all day enjoying the sun, pool, and cocktails. The room and decor were all so cute, everything in black, white, and yellow.

Viceroy Hotel room, Palm Springs, CA

Our colors are actually black, ivory, and yellow. I am also thinking about throwing in gray as a second accent color. We shall see.

Viceroy Hotel room key, Palm Springs, CA

And our wedding venue is...

2009-04-21T19:45:00.000-07:00

Brunswick Studio in LA's fashion district

Our wedding venue is truly an AMAZING space. We both loved it from the moment we stepped in and knew this was it. It is exactly what we want -- a blank canvas with a whole lot of character, if that makes any sense at all. It's a loft-style space with hardwood floors, exposed posts, and brick walls. This 6500 square foot space is large enough to hold the ceremony and reception. Surprisingly, the price is right, only because we got lucky and saw the place as it was undergoing renovations and the price had not gone up yet. Words cannot even do this place justice. It is simply GORGEOUS. Check out the fabulous photos taken by David C. Lee on the Brunswick Studio website.

photo borrowed from Brunswick Studio, fabulous photography by David C. Lee

Not so much...

2009-04-21T19:29:00.000-07:00

Terrell Moore’s Art Gallery (Inglewood)
This guy Terrell Moore is an artist living in what could be an awesome loft (if he cleaned it up) above his art gallery. The white walled art gallery along with his art would be great for an art show/cocktail party. The room had a round wall that would make a difficult reception set up…it might feel like people are separated into two different rooms – A list and B list? The “kitchen” consisted of a counter and a microwave. Plus, his bathrooms were too dirty for me. We now get invites to Ping Ping’s events. WOOOOO HOOOOO... not really.
UPDATE: He sent out an email saying he has now SOLD the place. We would have been SCREWED if we had gone with this guy (not that we would have).

The Open Space (Jtown)
This is near the train tracks in downtown LA…not the safest area but there was some nice graffiti art outside that would make for pretty awesome wedding pictures. As for the actual studio though, I was not getting a wedding vibe…or even a party vibe. It is a dance studio, with a ballet bar and a dance lesson going on while we were checking out the place. The price was right…but yea…not so much.

We like...

2009-04-21T19:07:00.000-07:00

Rec Center Studios (Echo Park)
Rec Center This is the first space we looked at and I was very excited about it. We really love the look of this space. From the outside, it doesn't look like an event space at all. The hallway leading in is an original bowling lane. I liked the sunken lounge area with its tall brick wall...perfect for cocktails and lounging. The main space has beautiful high ceilings with skylights, stark white walls and hardwood floors. There is also a loft space that could be used for DJ set up, as well as a kitchen/bar and changing rooms. However, the actual usable space for a ceremony and reception was not ideal for our projected wedding size of 125+ people. We would have to have the ceremony in the main space, move everyone over to the lounge area for cocktails, and transform the ceremony to the reception. It would make things a little difficult but we would be willing. Our other option would be to have the ceremony in a different location, but that would also mean added cost. The price was already slightly higher than we wanted to spend but again, we were leaning towards willing. The metered parking lot would constantly have to feed until 8pm. Yeah, that would be a fun job for someone.

photo borrowed from Rec Center Studios

Hangar 1018 (downtown LA)
This was a nice, big space, again with brick and white walls. It had a loft space for a DJ set up. There was a changing room and space in the back for catering set up. There was also a back patio area that I really didn’t think was usable because it was quite dirty. The main space was cohesive and would be nice for a reception and dancing, but no space for a ceremony. The price was again a little bit higher than we wanted to pay, but we liked the look of the space. There was street parking available, which was free after 6:00pm, and no option for a parking lot.

Hangar 1018 - photo borrowed from Hangar 1018 website photos

Lovely on paper...er, online

2009-04-21T19:02:00.000-07:00

Huron Substation
Although we didn’t actually check out this space in person, I am sure I would have loved it. It is a gorgeous space with an outdoor courtyard and indoor main floor and mezzanine with old brick walls, high ceilings, and exposed steel beams. Unfortunately for us, the place has grown quite popular, having been featured in publications and screenings, and is way out of our budget. There were also a few other drawbacks in the details. At the time, events could be booked only six months in advance (I believe her website now says 8 months). The owner only books six events per year, so by the end of the year, she may have already met her quota. With our projected guest list, it might be too small, holding a max of 125 people. You must use a preferred vendor for the site rep, for which a price is not listed. I believe there was a reserved parking lot that you could pay to use.

Huron Substation - photo borrowed from the Huron Substation portfolio

Smog Shoppe and Marvimon
After a quick email and response, I realized both these places were too expensive. But, I love them. If I had unlimited funds, I would check out either of these amazing spaces. The Smog Shoppe is in the Culver City art district and the Marvimon is in downtown LA. Both are quite fabulous and I wouldn’t mind attending a wedding here.

Smog Shoppe -amazing photography by Picotte Photography

Marvimon -amazing photography by Picotte Photography

The search for our perfect wedding venue

2009-04-17T22:32:00.000-07:00

The vision: urban…chic…industrial…brick walls…exposed beams...CHEAP CHEAP CHEAP…in L.A. Is that so much to ask?!
Upon countless hours of online research (mostly done by the groom) and several visitations, you can see the top contenders, major losers, and finally, our perfect wedding venue.

Bride vs. Groom?

2009-04-17T20:10:00.000-07:00

Yes, that does say "bride versus groom." Yes, we are getting married. No, this is not a death match.

I am an elementary school teacher and my ~~boyfriend~~ fiance is a graduate student. We are planning our wedding in this not-so-great economy on my not-so-great salary and his not-so-great stipend.

First order of business...what am I going to wear!? Hah, I wish. More like, how much money can we afford to spend? Boo, buzz kill. We set a $20,000 budget, with the groom's no doubt expectation of going over in order to have the wedding that I envision. However, I cannot resist a challenge (part of how our relationship came to be), and I am doing my damnedest to stick to the budget while still knocking the stilettos off of the ladies (because really, let's face it, as long as there is plenty of alcohol, the guys will be as ~~happy~~ content as they can possibly be at a wedding).

I admit, this blog is more for me to keep a record of our wedding planning process (much easier than a scrapbook). But, please join me in this battle of bride versus groom.