details, details...

This week I finally had a minute to take photos of some of our completed DIY projects. Although it was a lot of work doing these things ourselves, it was also very rewarding to see it all come together. I'm hoping these little touches will make our ceremony and reception very personal.

Our cake topper - ordered from Crafty Eddy and "blinged" by FI:

Our completed programs:

Ring pillow. I saw a similar pillow on a wedding blog post months ago and knew I had to have one. I found the material online, purchased all of the supplies and FMIL generously offered her time and impeccable sewing skills to come up with the final product. Just need to add a white ribbon under the button to tie the rings. L.O.V.E:Our dinner menus, one per place setting. Our venue does table side ordering with a choice of three entrees. To help our guests make their meal choices I thought these would be a nice touch. They were printed on our home inkjet printer on heavy, textured cardstock:
A closer look at our monogram on the menus: Flower girl's pomander. 3" styrofoam ball, many white and ivory silk carnations, heavy green Martha Stewart ribbon and a hot glue gun. Took about a half hour:

Bridesmaid gifts - Vera Bradley Purse Cosmetic, Small Bow Cosmetic and Crabtree and Evelyn toiletries. One other thing will accompany their gifts but, I'm keeping it under wraps in case my MOH peeks in (I'm giving her one, too):

And, not DIY at all but, after a long, long search for green reception shoes that were not meant to be, I ordered these silver ballet flats. Cute, comfy and I'll be able to wear them again:
CHECKS:

• Seating chart is DONE!!!
• Final count has been called in to our reception venue
• We had our final meeting with the DJ on Wednesday night and got our music squared away
• Photog/Video appointment is tomorrow morning

Then, other than a few little details (aisle runner, bathroom baskets, OOT bags, escort cards), we're done!

he who carries the rings...

...must have them tied to something pretty!!!

I am a green fanatic and, even though I am controlling myself on how much we use the color in our wedding, there are some things that I see and MUST have. This was one I spotted on a newlywed's blog:
I left a comment asking where she got the fabric and, lucky for me, she posted again with the designer and fabric style - Michael Miller Dandy Damask in Avacado. Putting Google to work, I found the exact fabric on e-Bay and pressed the "Buy it Now" button immediately! That was Thursday - my yard came in the mail today in all it's green and white glory. I heart that seller...she is getting some fabulous feedback from me today!

FI's ring (1 of 2) has been ordered and should arrive by Friday!

And, KUDOS to my darling FI. I was away this weekend and he took it upon himself to go shopping and to purchase the main gifts for his groomsmen (deluxe Leatherman-type multi tools). Handsome, sexy & on top of wedding stuff. Love it.

a little bit closer...

1. Flower Girl dress has been ordered!
I went shopping today with my flower girl, Amanda and her mom. I was thinking of steering her in the direction of either a green or light blue dress or, maybe silver. We found a matte silver dress with some white embroidery that was very sweet on her and she loved it. But, that was in the first store and she had been promised a girl's-day-out-shopping-spree so, one store and one dress simply would not do. So, that dress went on hold and off we went to another shop.

And, she saw it.

The poofiest, princessy, cream puffiest white dress you could ever imagine for a little girl. She was in L.O.V.E. even before it was on her. I'm talking full crinoline, sheer white organza skirt with white piped edging, white flowers and pearls at the waist and neckline and sheer organza cap sleeves. Serious poof.

Then it was on her.

I have never seen this little pixie grin so big. She twirled and whirled and lit up the shop in this cupcake dress.

How could we possibly say no? So, the dress is on order with the small alteration of alternating white and blue flowers and a blue ribbon tie in the back to pull in a bit of color. And, that little girl will float down the aisle on our wedding day and steal the hearts of everyone in the church. Hey, you are only seven once!

2. Card box has a slot and a base coat!
Thanks to my very handy FI, our card box has progressed from it's original state of country-not-so-chic decor to a lovely white box that will be a blank canvas for both our monogram and one of our favorite e-pics, when they are in.

3. Invitation proofs have been revised and sent back to the printer!
We looked them over today and sent them to my mom and dad for objective (?) glances and, after changing one line on the response card and moving up the RSVP date one week, they are off! Hoping they will go to print on Monday and that I will have them well before Thanksgiving...say a little prayer for me!

4. Room block decided!
There was hotel drama on Thursday morning that threatened to throw me right over the edge. Seriously. I won't get into it but, we had some words with hotel personnel. In the end, we will have a block at a local, newly renovated and beautiful hotel that I'm certain will take care of us and our guests.

closer and closer...

When I logged onto my computer Sunday and checked my blog, I found this...

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In the back of my mind I knew it was coming up but, seeing it gave me a jolt - of excitement, joy and (I can't lie) a bit of panic. Two days later, the countdown clock read 150 days left. Holy cow! Ultimately, I think we're in a very good spot. Our major vendors are all booked and most are more than 1/2 paid for, we have made all of our decor decisions and have purchased nearly everything we need. Just lots of little details left. So, why then did I wake up at 3:00 this morning obsessed about the details of the ceremony programs? I never did fall back asleep *sigh* this might be a lonnnnng day!

My sister (MOH) has told me that she and my bridesmaids scheduled my shower date for January 17th. Although a couple of my girls were disappointed that it would not be a surprise, my sister knew that I would want to know the date (I'm not a big fan of being surprised by a large group of people) - thanks, sis! All I know of the details is that it will take place at one of my favorite restaurants. I'm sure it will be fun but, mostly I'm just looking forward to spending the weekend with my sister who will be flying in for the weekend!

So, what else is new? Two of my bridesmaids chose their dresses:

They both look terrific and are comfortable. Just reaffirms my decision let let them all choose their own styles. And, a little addition to my attire - my mom bought this Bride hoodie for me when she was visiting a couple of weeks ago. I plan to wear it as I am getting ready the morning of the wedding. I know it's a frivolous thing but, I'm only planning on doing this once so, why not?

the search...

My bridal party is made up of four amazing women - Corine (my sister and MOH), Aurie (my cousin), Diane and Jess. Three of them have been married and all of them have been in several wedding parties (so have I). Knowing this, I decided to go easy on all of us in terms of their attire. I'm asking them to choose any black dress that they like at David's as long as it is between knee and tea length. Since they can choose the style that they are comfortable in, I'm fairly certain they'll be able to wear it again. Who can't use a black cocktail dress, right?

I mentioned that last week, my sister and I went shopping for her MOH dress. She ended up finding two that she absolutely loves and looks beautiful them. Two very different styles and fabrics but, totally up to her. And, here they are...

#1 - Jim Hjelm #5850T. The material is silk and it is absolutely beautiful on her. Plus, MOH will be the only one flying in and this dress is very packable. The salesperson scrunched it up in her fist and when she let go, all it needed was a hand smoothing and it was perfect again. (No, it's not a David's dress but, she loves it and she IS the MOH after all). The downfall: $$$
#2 - David's #F12723. So flattering on her and she felt very comfortable moving around it. Since my nephew will be just over 2 at the wedding, picking him up might be a bit easier in this one. The downfall: Would have to be steam pressed after her flight.