How Hiring A Wedding Coordinator Saved My Teeth!

Hey all,

So I'm a pretty good DIYer, have coordinated special events professionally in the past and coordinate people for a living, but soon realized that there is a REASON that wedding coordinators exist and do so as their full-time jobs!

Our wedding was fast approaching, time was slipping away and my 60hr+ week job didn't allow for much wedding planning/coordinating time, let alone sleep. I knew I was behind, but wasn't too worried...we were still 6 months out right.

Then the friends that have already gone through this process began to send emails and phone messages asking me a gazillion questions about details that I hadn't even thought of yet, what is the order of the procession, what are we serving for the rehearsal dinner, what are we doing for our send off, what about favors, what can they do to help....I DON'T KNOW!

Jaw on FIRE!

I soon found myself floundering between a crazy work schedule, less-than stellar exercise plan (mainly due to lack of time), and trying to cram in little bits of wedding planning here and there. The stress was setting in. My eyelid began twitching everyday. I soon broke a tooth due to grinding my teeth while asleep (I found out this out after waking up Mr. J with the noise). Metabolism slowed, positive attitude plummeted, and depression began to rear its ugly head. Sounds awesome right?! I'm so glad that I'm getting married.

Although I'm not new to high stress situations, the demands of wedding planning on top of my everyday life were taking it's toll on me emotionally as well as physically. After biting Mr J's head off for the 20th time and breaking down in tears, we finally decided that we needed some professional help.

After doing some research online, reading reviews and such we decided to reach out to The Attic Owner and Wedding Planner Alisa Lewis. Unfortunately due to a family obligation on top of her currently clients and knowing how much help we needed she realized she didn't have the capacity to take on our wedding, but referred us to another angel!

Enter Ali Messer and Soiree Event Design. Ali is AMAZING. She is very detailed and has a great network of professionals she's created along the way. Although we live such a far distance I know that she'll make sure everything is taken care of and that is a weight off my shoulders and hopefully off the rest of my body including my teeth!

Guest List

OMG!  How in the world does anyone narrow down a guest list?  We decided to get married closer to home vs going to a foreign country so that our families could be in attendance. Little did we realize that our families were soo large!  And our in-venue catering is $30/head minimum.

We also have a wedding party of 6 each side + their significant others + their kids.  We also have other friends/family all wanting to bring their kids and others that will be bringing newborns.

The ideal wedding that you had in your mind....only happens when you're in your 20's!

I don't know who's gonna make the cut, but if you don't please know how antagonizing it was for us!

Have you the wring?

Every time I think about a wedding the image from the Princess Bride pops into my mind with the minister with the voice asking "Marrwwage it what bwrings us togewver today....Have you the wring?"

While in Spokane we also popped into Pounder's Jewlers. to pick up my free pearl earrings from my diamond appointment!  Yay!

While there we were just looking at wedding bands and I got to chatting with the sales rep Kylie who is really sweet.  I gave her a bunch of ideas and she drew out what designing my own ring might look like if we wanted to do a wrap instead of another band.

It just seems like everyone with a princess cut diamond does a traditional white gold band or an infinite band with smaller diamonds.  I however, wanted to do something a little bit different.  I found a patterns on a ring that I liked and found another ring with an infinity symbol wrapping around the diamond which I love!

Unfortunately I had to leave "my precious" with them at the store for them to create a wax mold of what my ring might look like when completed.  There is also a CG photo of it.

Sooo excited. I hope it doesn't break the bank and that Mr J will pull an "as you wish".

Planning: Wedding Party Invites

 Hi Again,

I am reading more and more about how much fun people are having in the creative ways they ask people to be in their wedding party. I began researching different ideas online, pinterest, blogs, etc. My favorite by far was the creation of paper dolls of each person.  My initial inspiration came from this website at oncewed: http://www.oncewed.com/diy-wedding-blog/diy-bridesmaids-cards/

I liked her girls, but decided to go to Joanne Fabric & pick up some fabric remnants pretty cheap and make dresses out of them then adding buttons and some sticker rhinestones for flair. While there I picked up various shades of skin & hair colored paper since not all the party will be the same.

Since I'm not an artist, once back to a computer I began my hunt for a paper doll template. Many people who've done this in the past have made each single doll then attached them together. Although this might be easier to do there is something to be said for having each person actually attached & connected to the next. It's almost like symbolism that we're all supposed to be working together as one to make this wedding happen. I thought about adding a bride doll to each chain, but decided that was an additional step I just didn't have time for. Here are a few links to paper-doll templates found online:
Paper-doll template #1
Paper-doll template #2
Paper-doll Chain Template

Although I really liked the paperdoll chain template where the hands and legs form a heart in the middle I thought they looked a little weird...ahhh...they don't have necks.  That's when I found this photo of a necklace on Etsy: Etsy Erin's Ectera's Chain Necklace

I copied the image of the necklace and pasted it into word (see photo below), stretched it out to the size of doll I wanted(4.75" x 2.75"), printed the photo in black & white. I then used a glue stick to attach the photo to 1/2 of a manila file folder to create a more sturdy template. Then cut out the middle girl (Being careful to keep a straight cut between the next girls hands and skirt).

Since the gals in my party don't all have the same hair I cut off her wings of hair on both sides and made her bald to add my own haircut later.  I then folded her in half to create my paper-doll template. She now looks like this:

Aww she's so pretty!

After folding her in half I took a sheet of skin colored tag board, placed her on the edge the marked her width about 1.5".

Folded template along the edge of the paper mark largest width with the ruler

Using the ruler mark the same width of the template up the paper then connect the dots

Fold along the line that you just created

Keep folding that same width back and forth (like creating a fan)

In mine I ended up with a small section on my last fold that wasn't big enough for another girl so just cut straight up the last fold line-although if you needed more girls you could tape this section to another sheet of paper to continue your chain.

Set your template along the folded edge of your fan folded paper & trace around the doll

Using scissors cut the doll outline you created-remember to cut through all the folds of the fan, when you are finished open your chain to find the dolls. You'll also have a few little heart pieces that you can use for other decoration later.

 Using 8.5" x 11" paper I was able to create a chain of 3 dolls this size. I think I am going to trace this new doll chain template on the paper then cut out each chain again to not have the fold line down the middle of each girl. I will trace my original template girl on the other skin colored paper & glue stick that on the different girls that need it.

Items used in this creation:

• Computer & copy paper
• Glue Stick
• Ruler
• Pencil
• Scissors
• Manila Folder
• Tagboard in various skin colors and hair colors
• Fabric remnants
• Bone stick for folding would've been nice
• Tape (if you need more than 3 girls in your chain)

Check out some of my finished creations:

Yay girls!

Closer View Left

Closer View Right

I decided that I needed some sort of card to go with each girl asking them to be my

bridesmaid/maid of honor. I happened to have a packet of blank printable invitations and envelopes that will work perfectly..I hope the writing will still be legible with the flower border.

Since we don't have a date or venue picked out (the normal information you'd include in something like this)...what to include???....Poems are always fun.  I found some really great ones that I adapted a bit at this site: www.newtraditionshankies.com  Since that was sentimental piece I decided I needed something else a little more fun so created a Top 10 list of "why you should be my bridesmaid" and printed those on the back.

Next step is to write each girls name on their dress and write small blurbs about them on their backs (i.e. how I know them, for how long, etc.) so the rest of the girls will be introduced to one another. They are coming from 4 different cities & some have yet to meet. 

I covered their contact info with small pieces of fabric for their confidentiality

Then refold up each doll chain with the recipients doll on top and wrap each doll chain to the invite card in vellum, then write each girls name on the vellum and label envelopes.

Final Product:

This easy project has become much more complicated that I originally intended, but it's been a fun experience. I hope that my bridesmaids & maid of honor love them as much as I do & that everyone says "Yes!"

Dress....CHECK!

Yay!  I found a dress today!  Thank God!  Having an almost hatred for shopping, not EVER wearing dresses. I didn't know if I could try on anymore....but found one with the help of the beautiful ladies at Marcella's Bridal!

I showed my attendant photos of other dresses I had tried and the elements that I liked about them...she immediately said "I think I have your dress".  She talked to the owners daughter who also happens to be the General Manager, who went to open a newly arrived package of a dress.

They had, had a sample dress that another bride had ordered, but then later called to cancel her order and ask to purchase the sample since her wedding needed to be moved up to 2 weeks later! Her husband was in the military and was given orders to return overseas.  So Marcella (the owner) had just ordered another sample dress that had arrived ON THE DAY I went to try on dresses!

It looked like a bit much on the hanger, but once on...It was pretty great!  Very unique style incorporating lace, ruffles, inset corset & cup holders (no bra required!)  I stood in the dress trying to reach a friend on the phone to skype or facetime, but since it was a Thursday afternoon no one was answering.  Meanwhile our awesome attendant was talking football with my parents and showed us the tattoo on her foot that her and her father both got after the superbowl this year.

I couldn't pull the trigger just yet so decided to return that evening at 5:30 with a bunch of friends to check out the dress and arranged face-time calls with others not in Spokane.

All in all I think I wore that dress for a good 2 hours that day after it came out of the box.  So glad to have that done!

But the story gets better. Marcella, who will be doing my alterations said she can do them in one day so when I return to Spokane I can get my dress back altered later that evening!  Amazing!

Also when checking out I got to talking with her daughter and got on the subject of school.  She had also went to EWU for 3+years, but due to needing to work in the store, was unable to finish. I connected her with the professor of the interdisciplinary studies program I completed.  I hope it will all work out for her!

I later found out that the attendant I had earlier that afternoon that was sent home early had called that evening to check up on me and see if I decided on that dress. Such an awesome group of people! I can't recommend them enough!

Since there's a chance of Mr. J looking at this blog I can't post a full photo, but....here's a sneak peak.

Yep different on both sides!

Venue Check!!

Hi all,

We've got ourselves a venue @ Elkins Resort, Priest Lake, ID!  It should be pretty amazing if the weather holds out!  But I'm determined to be married on the beach if we have to get tents in the sand with heat lamps or pass out blankets...whatever we need to do it's gonna happen!

Below are a few photos from other people's weddings at the resort. Sooo pretty!  Pray for good weather on Sept. 27th!!!!

Dress Shopping #3...Where are you Dress?

Hey there,

So I'm now beginning to get discouraged that "THE" dress for me just doesn't exist.

I don't think that I'll ever have that sappy crying moment in a dress that I love, love LOVE. While in Spokane I randomly popped into a few places while on my mom's lunch hour.

This one was close....but was missing something.....and I'm not a fan of the zipper up the back-what happens if I blimp out and can't get it zipped or force it zipped then have back fat hangin' out or worse yet..get in the dress but the zipper breaks.  Lace up backs just seem so much more forgiving.  This might still be a contender...

Maybe I'll try shopping at home and find something I really love.

Like beadwork, drop waist, flowy ruffles

Backfat DANGER!