Glamping

I have fallen in love with a word - and a place - and an idea: GLAMPING! Glamping, or glamorous camping, is camping done in tents that aren't really tents but fantastic, gorgeous rooms made of fabric with comfy beds and china and gourmet food. For a girl who loves glamour and camping, I'm thinking glamping was made for me.

After perusing a few glamping sites to learn a little more about this amazing idea, I ran across The Martyn House, a glamping destination in Georgia. When I read that you can rent it out for only $1500 for an entire weekend (and for a wedding), my heart dropped a little in my chest, and then, when I saw these pictures - I nearly fainted from the cuteness.

There's no way I can do a destination wedding (my family is WAY too big and doesn't travel easily), but if I could, I would do it at The Martyn House, hands down. I love this place more than words can say (and I'm totally putting it on next year's birthday list).

If you want more pictures (check out the tents!), click here.

Let me know if this place has the same effect on you as it did on me!

Mayday

Today, I'm not a happy camper. It's gloomy outside, my hair looks bad and wedding planning seems anything but fun. What I'm realizing lately (and maybe all brides realize this at some point) is that there's a lot of fun to be had in dreaming up the details and brainstorming the ideas, and there's a whole lot less fun to be had in making those details and ideas happen.

Sure, it would be great for the wedding party to stay at one hotel. Now who's going to reserve those hotel rooms? Yes, Maui would make the perfect honeymoon. Now who would like to find the hotel? I love the idea of printing labels for the Save the Dates! Now who's heading to Kinkos to print?

Unfortunately, the answer to most of those questions has been ME, and it's beginning to take a toll. The save the date cards went out on Saturday (look at those pretty stacks above). Does that mean there's no chance I could change my mind and run to Vegas?

P.S. - If any of you have experienced something similar and have tips for getting things done while enjoying the process, I would LOVE to hear them.

Taking a Stand

It's a busy, busy Friday around here, but I wanted to pop in and say a quick hello and leave you with this oh-so-cute cake idea.

If I hadn't already planned for our family friend and my parents' neighbor to make my cake, I would totally dig the idea of doing multiple little cakes or pies on different cake stands. These could even be homemade by different family members. Whether it's your aunt with the famous red velvet recipe or your grandma with the lemon meringue pie that's simply delish', this could very well make your cake a family affair.

Love it, love it.

Looking forward to a weekend of fabric flowers, the beach and finally, FINALLY getting the Save the Date cards in the mail. (Yes, we know we're a billion months behind - please don't hold it against us.)

Wishing you all a relaxing weekend!

Looking Back

I know it sounds terrible to say this, but I didn't really know that much about my mom and dad's wedding until I started planning one of my own. I vaguely remembered some details, but not all of them, and the ones I did remember were very foggy. So, when I was back in Texas for my weekend of wedding planning madness, I asked questions - lots and lots of questions - and I learned that...

• My dad proposed over dinner at a steak restaurant when my mom was still in high school
• My mom was a BEAUTIFUL bride (check out that dress - stylish even now)
• The main color of the wedding was baby blue because that was my dad's favorite color
• My dad looks pretty swanky in a baby blue tuxedo
• My grandma and the bridesmaids' moms made all of the bridesmaid dresses themselves
• Both of my mom's parents walked her down the aisle and my dad's parents did the same
• The wedding was very early in the morning and followed by a cake and punch reception
• My parents were originally supposed to go to Houston for their honeymoon, but changed the location when my dad's brothers threatened to crash the party
• Their honeymoon lasted only two days and one night because my dad had no vacation time at work. They spent that one night "night clubbing" and had a blast

My mom kept a wedding book where she wrote down all the major details from the engagement to their one year anniversary. Her descriptions are short, but hilarious and so fun to look back on. It's always crazy to think of your parents as young and excited and in love, but they certainly were.

And speaking of beautiful, check out my mom's mom on her big day below.

Adventures in Registering

Saturday morning, bright and early, found Mason and I heading to the Valley, coffees in hand, to do the one thing all engaged couples have happy, happy daydreams about: REGISTER!!

We were headed to Target, Macy's and Bed Bath & Beyond to scan until our hearts were content, and we were stoked. We giddily filled in the requested information on the little Target computer, printed our registry number and handed it over in exchange for our very own scanner gun. (I told Mason he could hold it - this made him entirely too excited.)

Our first stop was the bath department where we immediately fell in love with every single towel on every single aisle. We scanned the grey ones only to delete them for the blue plaid and then the multi-colored stripes. We scanned hand towels and wash cloths and bath rugs and we were having SO MUCH FUN - until Mason checked his watch and realized we had been in the bath department for an entire hour. This was not good.

We quickly hurried on through kitchen and bedding - scanning pots and pans, slow cookers and toasters, throw pillows and sheets, air mattresses and camping stoves - and slowly losing our enthusiasm with each aisle and every scan.

By the time we made it to the electronics department (thankfully, our very last department), we were tired and hungry and crabby. We drug ourselves back to the service desk where Mason gladly handed over the scanner (that he had clasped to his chest with glee only a few hours earlier), and we headed to the food court for Chinese.

Happy and content at our food court table, we rested our aching backs and filled our growling bellies and decided the other two stores could wait - possibly forever - or at least until we had the time to do it online, from the comfort of a couch, with a glass of wine in hand.

Looking back on the day makes me laugh. I suppose it really is true about having too much of a good thing. Any of you have similar experiences? If so, I'd love to hear them!

Have a Seat

One request Mason made when we were planning our reception was that we designate our seats so that we're sure to have the best seats in the house (err, barn). I thought this was a great idea, and my wheels starting turning as I remembered all the cute Bride/Groom signage I had seen on the web.

This weekend, I got busy with the paisley yellow tape I bought last week, some nice, thick white paper and a few stencils. I used the tape to make a border around the paper, trimming it along the edges so that it was a little wavy and not straight across. Then, I used a black marker to stencil the words in the middle (have I mentioned I had forgotten how FUN stencils are??). Next I used a sharp knife to cut slits in the sides of the paper and ran the ribbon through the backside. The signs will now hang on the back of our chairs, tied with white satin ribbons.

Below is the finished product:

I must say, it was fun to work on a "small" project that I could easily complete in an hour or so, compared to slowly chipping away at the bigger projects.

What do you think?

Baby Lust

Ever since I got engaged (and ok, maybe a little bit before), I've had babies on the brain. That's why I'm LOVING rummey bears so much right now. I discovered this blog a couple months ago when Anna, the writer, was pregnant and preparing for her bundle of joy. During those months, she posted the greatest "bump" pics of her growing belly, and two weeks ago, when little Rosie was born, she started posting the best pictures of her newly expanded family. Check them out here as soon as you can, and save this one in your favorites. I promise you won't regret it.

Come back tomorrow to see how much fun I had with the yellow paisley tape this weekend!

Add It to the List

Ok, I know my last post was about NOT adding any more DIY details to the to-do list, but I couldn't resist (prepare for combustion in 3, 2....).

The way that The Barn is set up, we're only able to hang lights and banners across the room over the tables where people will be sitting/eating, which leaves the dance floor without any decorations. At first I thought this was fine, but then...I saw the tissue paper poms (pictured above).

It's not the first time I've seen tissue paper poms, but for some reason, they stuck with me this time and I can just see them dangling festively over us while we line dance the night away. Here's a quick picture tutorial - they don't look that hard, right?

Oh, and before I forget, if you love the details like me and you ship packages on a frequent basis (or you're just plain crafty), stop by your local Joann's craft store for some of the oh-so-cute packing tape pictured below. I picked up this exact roll of the yellow paisley last night for a little project I have in the works for Bride and Groom signs to hang on the back of our reception chairs, but they have all colors and designs.

Wishing you all a lovely weekend (and myself a productive one)!

DIY Overload

Saw this post on 100 Layer Cake just now, and couldn't help but feel relieved after reading the first paragraph. It's true - if I add one more DIY detail to the wedding, I feel I may spontaneously combust, and yet, there they are, plenty and plenty of cute details staring out at me from photos and blogs and magazines, begging me to add them to my list.

It's hard, I tell ya, loving the details.

The other day, during one of our many trips down the lengthy to-do list, I asked Mason if I absolutely must cut out slips of paper for guests to write notes on in place of a sign in book. (I saw it somewhere. I loved it. I added it to the list.) He told me that it was completely not required and was something we could do at the end if we had time after everything else. I took a deep breath and let it go.

That's what you have to do sometimes, I suppose. Just let it go...

Song Search

Last night on American Idol, I watched Lacey Brown sing "The Story," and I LOVED it - so romantic and pretty and the words are so great. I immediately added it to the small "possible first dance song" list we have going.

Not knowing who sang it, I did a little searching this morning and found out it's Brandi Carlile, a Seattle native. I listened to a couple different versions - acoustic and non acoustic - and some covers, and I couldn't find a version I liked better than Lacey Brown's on Idol. Hers was very mellow throughout, but the original version actually gets a little harder in the middle.

I suppose we could ask someone to sing it for us. That way they could modify it how we wanted. Check it out on YouTube when you get a chance and let me know what you think. Also, if you know of anyone who does a mellow cover of this song, please, please leave the info in the Comments section!

In the meantime, the first dance song search goes on...

Dig In

Today, I want to talk about FOOD - reception and rehearsal dinner food, that is.

Over the past week or so, we've finalized the menu for both of these events, and I'm happy to say that they're both in keeping with the "southern" theme of the Texas wedding celebrations.

The rehearsal dinner will be held at a TexMex restaurant and will feature all of my favorites like enchiladas, fajitas, chimichangas and tacos. The restaurant let us choose four dishes to include on our personalized menu, so we chose a little bit of everything. For dessert, we'll have sopapillas - puffy pastry that's fried and served warm with honey and powdered sugar. (Can you hear my stomach growling?)

For the wedding, we've decided on some southern classics, including bbq brisket, bbq chicken, baked beans, and potato salad - served buffet style, of course. A family friend will be cooking the meat, and my mom and grandma plan to roll up their sleeves and prepare the sides.

I think it'll be perfect - if I can somehow protect my dress from all that bbq sauce! What do you think?

*By the way, I love the idea of writing the menu on a chalkboard next to the buffet table, like in the picture above. A family friend is willing to lend her easel. Now I just have to find the perfect chalkboard.

A Cookie For You (And #23)

I knew I wanted to do something special to ask my bridesmaids if they would do me the honor of being my bridesmaids, but it took me a little while to figure out exactly what I had in mind. After a week or so of Google searching and mulling it over, and I decided on cookies from The Flower Pot.

The customizable "Will you be my bridesmaid?" dress cookies and the polka dot boxes they come in are so cute that I simply couldn't resist. I had each cookie delivered to the maids' work addresses, and waited (im)patiently until each one recieved her little surprise. (pictured below)

I'm now happy to report that each one said yes, and they all LOVED the gifts. Now we're on to more pressing matters: bridesmaid dresses. I'll keep you updated on the search!

In the meantime, if you run into any super cute, yellow/green/navy dresses, feel free to leave a link in the Comments!

*By the way, this sweet little gifty totally counts for Number 23 on the Birthday List!

Something Blue

I've noticed a trend lately of brides wearing blue shoes, and I think it's an adorable and totally creative way to incorporate "something blue" into the day. I've also seen blue necklaces and blue ribbons on bouquets, and I'd like to add something like that to my get-up, but I'm not sure if it'll blend into the scheme of things. I know some brides get blue garters, but mine is white with the WSU Cougar logo on it (Mason's choice), so no blue there.

That's why, when brainstorming about my something blue, I had a cute idea for fitting a little blue-ness into my day in an easy and simple way: blue toenails! After all, it will be the peak of summer and my shoes will most definitely be strappy (and I can't help but think they'd make for a great photo op). What do you think?

Wording for Two

Since our wedding will be a two-state, two-celebration affair, I've been struggling with the idea of invitation wording. I want to somehow fit information on both events on one invitation with a combined RSVP card. After browsing countless invitation sites, I've pretty much decided I'm going to have to make the invitations myself because most templates don't allow for that much customization.

When looking around on one of my many favorite wedding blogs, I found the above example from a couple who included their post-wedding party info on the RSVP card. I thought this was an interesting approach. What do you think? Know of any other good ideas for fitting both events into one invitation? I'd love to hear them!

Table Talk

Sorry that I've been away the past few days. I flew to Texas for a weekend of wedding planning madness, and I'm happy to report that I got A LOT done and I'm SO HAPPY with the way things are coming together.

Agenda item #1 was to buy all of the decorations for the reception tables, which includes fabric for table runners, fabric for flowers, baskets for fruit, candles, candle holders, silk greenery, metal watering cans, buckets for bird seed (for throwing at the end of the night) and empty wine bottles (which family and friends have been collecting).

My inspiration for the tables (and the wedding in general) is "country picnic chic," and we hit the craft stores with that in mind. Once we had all of the decorations, we set up an example table to make sure we had enough of each item, and I was so happy with the way it all turned out. My mom said it reminded her of a picnic in the French countryside. I couldn't agree more.

What do you guys think? Like? Dislike? All comments are welcome!

P.S. - I crossed a ton of items off my to-do list this past weekend so stay tuned for more of the details that have come together in the past 3 days!

Dancing to Dave

The Dave Matthews Band has been a big part of me and Mason's relationship since the beginning. My first Dave Matthews concert was at the end of my very first 10-day, whirlwind trip of Washington during the first year we were dating. (That's a lot of firsts.)

We camped in tents and soaked in the amazingness that is The Gorge and hung out with some really great people. Until then, I wasn't that big of a fan, but like many other DMB fans will tell you, seeing Dave perform live will win you over like nothing else. I've been a fan ever since.

For that reason, I suggested we consider a Dave Matthews song for our first dance as husband and wife. A friend of ours (Thanks, Heidi!) suggested a few, and so far, Steady As We Go is my favorite.

What do you think? Any other Dave Matthews suggestions?

Tip Top

I'm absolutely in love with all of the handmade bird cake toppers you see above, but I haven't decided if I'm brave enough to attempt to make my own. They seem simple, but when I actually think about creating one, it overwhelms me. I could order one, I suppose, but where's the fun in that?

I'm also considering something like this:
A little simpler, but still oh so cute!

Which one gets your vote? Know of any other cute cake topper ideas? Leave them in the Comments section!

DIY Weekend

Saturday was rainy and cold in Santa Monica, which made it easy to stay inside and get crafty. After a quick trip to my local craft store, I set out to make my own Fabric Poms using the tutorial found here, and I'm happy to report that my first attempt turned out even better than I had imagined.

I cut circles out of the fabric using a drinking glass as a stencil. For the base, I used a medium-sized styrofoam ball. Since I used a hot glue gun to glue the fabric to the ball, I set the glue gun on the lowest setting to prevent the glue from melting the styrofoam (even though it still melts it a tad).

All in all, from the cutting to the gluing, it took me about an hour and a half and a quarter of a yard of fabric to complete my first pom. (I'm sure it'll get easier once I get used to making them.)

I plan to tie ribbons to these so my bridesmaids and I can carry them down the aisle in place of real flowers. What do you think?