you're invited...

...to help me. surely someone who loves me dearly can write like this
or this
or this
or this
yes? anyone? k great. imma need you to write out our invitation text, to be printed a la these, with our monogram and/or silhouettes at the top:

and also our return address, to be made into a stamp and stamped on our invitations a la this:
aaaaaaand of course the individual addresses on the envelopes. that'd be super. the good news is we aren't having a seated dinner, so we won't have escort cards or any such foolishness. and also, you're off the hook for buying us this, or something equally awesome that will be on our registry (whenever we get around to actually making one...)

luminous luminaries

i sure hope the club allows burning candles, because we're going to need some at the reception. or a lot. look how adorable this diy project is - dip water balloons in melted wax to create tealight luminaries! love. there's nothing prettier than a delicate flame dancing behind a thin wall of wax.

black & white & adorable all over

my second favorite personalized wedding embellishment (after the requisite monogram) is: the silhouette. i think they're super chic, super pretty and super neato. guess what i've discovered? they're also super easy to make! woohoo! thank you photoshop. now to make an actual, good silhouette, you have to take a picture, in profile, in front of a white wall. since i keep forgetting to pin down my enfianced for this venture and therefore do not have proper photos, i played around with a few photos i already had, just for funsies. both pictures (from lou & j's wedding) had dark backgrounds, so the outline didn't come out so crisp, but i think they're pretty cute anyway. these are not the actual silhouettes i want to use, but you get the idea.

how festive and party-like is this?
i hate this picture because my neck resembles that of jabba the hut, but the pose is adorable, and i think captain fantastic looks pretty handsome
don't you just wanna kiss him? i do.

here are some things we could do with them:

programs...with the monogram, of course
coasters...i could diy these puppies with some silk-screening supplies and some chipboard coasters from a craft store on the cheap. for some reason i really love personalized wedding coasters - one of those completely unnecessary touches that just makes me clap my hands with glee. i'm thinking three different patterns: me, captain fantastic, our monogram.

how cute are these cookies? probably a little labor-intensive, but adorable nonetheless.
so one of these days, i'm going to get my camera, camp out in front of a section of white wall, and take a few dozen headshots to get this ball rolling for real. any other ideas of items just begging to bear an outline of my face?

lovely letters

i found these on etsy.com a while ago, and they spell how i feel about them. i'm thinking monogram. like the flower-covered-ribbon-hanging monogram or the middle-of-a-wreath monogram from the last decorations post. how hard could this be to make? anyone good with wire?

NEED.

things i must learn to do:

sew better (to make/modify/hem my own clothes)
make jewelry
generate hand-designed stationary en masse
needlepoint
bake from scratch

i wish i could do EVERYTHING myself. i have so many good ideas. sigh.

of course this presupposes that i have the follow-through to complete the aforementioned projects once i learn how to do them. let's add that to the list...

finish what i start

dekorashuns

so the wedding's not for 8 months, but i can plan details like decorative accents already, right? good. here are a few things i've found in my interweb wanderings that have struck my fancy.

* things that are round. topiaries, pomanders, balls of vines, whathaveyou. i like them.
i was thinking something like this in miniature form could be cute for tables. what is more country club that topiaries? topiaries IN an actual country club WITH black & white marble tile floors (in the entryway). perfect.
these pomanders are actually made of tissue paper! wowza. (see martha tutorial below)
topiary pomanders = best of both worlds. these are hanging from a tent's ceiling. they could also be arranged amongst vases with single candles/flowers on tables.
these are balls made of vines and christmas lights. i think they are very expensive. seriously though, how hard could it be to recreate with a pre-made vine ball and a string of lights? don't answer that.

* things that are made of paper or tissue paper. these are kewl because they are pretty, inexpensive and handmade - all components of my ideal wedding decor. i think all of the following examples are from martha stewart.
these are made of paper bags. paper bags! genius.
here is the aforementioned tutorial for tissue paper balls.

i envision a congregation of hanging balls of some sort behnd the band, which will be set up in front of a bunch of windows overlooking the golf course. pretty?

* things that involve monograms. duh.
love this. need this. will have this in some form or fashion.
this could be one fashion, which i like for hanging on double doors. like those of, say, a church. of course if i hang them on the door of my downtown memphis church they will a) not be seen by my guests since most people enter from the side door off the parking lot b) instead be seen gracing the shopping cart of one of the myriad neighborhood homeless people. notsomuch.

*things that involve candles. what's more gorgeous than flickering candles, i ask?
these are wine glasses with candles inside and little paper shades on top. too cute!
this may be the coolest thing eva: these are tin cans! with holes poked in them! and candles inside!
of course you can't go wrong with your standard paper lantern. i like these ones with the uneven ribs. they come in lots of des colores, but i think i like the natural ones best.

these are just a few of the ideas swimming around in my head right now. questions? comments? concerns? suggestions? the floor is now open.

bridesmaids, take three

ok. bridesmaid dresses again. this blog is thus far bridesmaid-dress-heavy, but that's kinda the point. bear with me. first of all i would like to thank kate's workplace for making an ad for a bridal magazine, thus necessitating kate's spending the afternoon perusing magazines for "inspiration" and helping me revisit some sites i had forgotten. i wish i were kate's assistant.

so here are a few other dresses i'd seen before, liked, then forgotten about come blog-post time. same color rules apply (ie bright-yet-tasteful shade of pink with a green or white sash). click on the pictures to visit the websites and see the full dresses and color swatches if you'd like.

there's this one, which is similar to the one i love that mom doesn't love:
and this one, which has a more structured-pleaty neckline (technical fashion term):

aaaaaand these ones, which have a variety of necklines and a cool style of skirt:
you can check out all of the silhouettes on that last website; they're all pretty neat. that could be an option for an everyone-picking-their-own-style-in-the-same-color deal.

so, some more options to mull over. i've requested fabric swatches from all of the above sites and have received swatches for the first strapless dress and the lilly dress from the first post. i know i've put a lot of energy into this, and it's really not the end-all-be-all of the world, but i want yall to a) be happy b) look cute c) fit in with my big vision....and we all know i can't make decisions to save my life. so there you have it.

oh and sashes are still a go. i think sashes will work with any of the options i've presented. i think we'll have to have a vote soon. or in 2-3 weeks when my swatches arrive...

and now, for something completely different, i am off to load up in this monstrosity
excuse me, amazing vintage vehicle, with captain fantastic and the pups for a camping & fishing weekend with mr. and mrs. biedenharn. i am taking long johns & a sweatshirt, what with it being october and all, and hope i'll have occasion to use them. yay fall!

dessert before dinner...typical

one of the more prominent effects of wedding planning that i'm currently suffering is an extreme craving for cake. nevermind the fact that for two weeks i've only been able to eat pretzels and toast (thanks to a digestive system that hates me) - i get daily, overwhemling urges to stuff my face with fondant and buttercream and orange-champagne filled devil's food and the like. yum. good thing muddy's bake shop is not on my drive home, or i'd have to do as the bishop suggested and put expandable panels in my wedding gown.

first i must confess that i love fondant. everyone knows it looks amazing, but i actually happen to love the taste and texture of it too. call me a freak. i have gazed longingly at fondant-covered cake art for years, and couldn't wait until the day when i could commission my very own. that day has come, folks. yesterday, mom told me that she's finally tracked down THE Cake Lady of memphis, and she is available for our wedding. woohoo! cue wedding cake blog post.

the first cake i ever fell in love with was this one:
love the flowers, love the colors, love it all. iffy on the shape though. i haven't decided whether i'm a round gal or a square gal yet. i'm leaning round. but definitely not octagon.

then there's this cake, which is simple and sweet and "me," minus the color scheme, which can obviously be corrected:
maybe with some flowers on top? i think it goes without saying that a monogram will be involved...even though i just said it. and no crystal-encrusted metal letters on top either. ew. gimmie something tasteful, un-sparkly and on the side of the cake itself, please.

of course i also drool over fabulous, intricate details like these (especially the blue & white one, gah):
and PAISLEY:
...but fabulous intricate details are expruhnsive. and then they get eaten.

so what about a combo of the first two cakes? something like this:
maybe with more swiss dots and less flowers?

i'm hongry.

bridesmaids reprise

i found this today and had to post it. sashes that i want + cause that is good = perfect. they don't come in apple green, or any shade of green, but they do come in white, which i'm starting to think i like better anyway? but seriously look how cute - with one of those rosettes attached, come on!
the website is www.whiteaisle.com - they print invitations, sell bridal jewelry and sell these cambodian silk sashes. you can click the picture to see the page on their site. what do we think?

also, mom says my beloved lilly dress from friday's post is "too casual" for a wedding in a cathedral. but they're made of silk shantung! nothing made of silk shantung to too casual! i refuse to believe that this dress is more casual than the strapless one, which is apparently acceptable. maybe if we did as i suggested in the last post and had a couple of different styles? i have fabric samples on their way to me in the mail, so we'll see if i'm satisfied with the color choices, then maybe we'll do a favorite-style-survey.

bridesmaids aka dressing my best friends

this is the picture that started it all, folks. i have no idea the photographer who took it or where it was or anything - i stumbled upon it in one of those embarrassing facebook stalking episodes many moons ago. at any rate, it shall be recreated at my wedding, no question. pretty much the one mandatory photograph i will hand to my fabulous photographer, josh malahy. love him. this photo also spawned my sash-obsession, because i think it pretty much necessitates sashes. they add to the effect.
so, glad that's out of the way. maybe start working on that shoulder tone, ladies, because if i have my way, this will be framed and displayed in the stone household until the end of time.

long before captain fantastic popped the question, but long after i knew he was The One, i had decided on my wedding color scheme. pink & green with accents of white. perfectly preppy. the more i stalked other people's weddings online, the more firmly i decided that i am allergic to both pastels and satin. bright colors and swirly patterns, though, i cannot live without. the inspiration for my wedding was thence dubbed vera bradley's pink pinwheel pattern. love. not exactly paisley, but close.
one of my most triumphant moments was when i found out that vera bradley makes TIES, and i almost had a heart attack from awesome at the prospect of the groomsmen smartly arrayed in these babies.

captain fantastic, however, in one of his unfantastic moments, crushed my dreams when he refused. le sigh.

so my original thinking for bridesmaid dresses was to do something like one of these dresses in a bright raspberry/fuschia silk dupioni with a bright apple/kelly green sash (tied in a big bow in the back, obvi) and white bouquets:
from aria bridesmaids
from charsa designs

then came my love affair with all things trimmed in ruffles and pleats. you can do a ruffly neckline and a sash, right? i think yes. my current obsession is this little number, in the same color scheme as above:
from coren moore (you can see the whole dress here)

HOW CUTE IS THAT?! come to think of it, the white sash is cute too, maybe with predominantly green flowers? hmmmm....

as far as bridesmaid accessories, i'm not going to force everyone to have the same hairdo or wear the same necklace or buy the same shoes , so don't worry (though this is extremely adorable)
i've also grown to kinda like the idea of bridesmaids in different dresses. the problems with that are a) usually you get a discount for ordering multiple dresses at a time, and i don't want to bankrupt my maids b) see above mandatory portrait with matching sashes c) i am somewhat obsessive compulsive, and it may drive me insane to have two girls in one dress and 8 in another. i'd probably try to make a certain number of people get each dress and then arrange everyone alternating for pictures...and no one wants that.

i actually like a lot of the dresses on the coren moore site. perhaps we could work out a style ratio agreement between the lilly, the julie, and the brooke? what do we think, ladies?

taking the plunge...into the blogosphere

i did it. i started a blog. about wedding planning. i am excited.

for some reason it took me approximately two weeks to work up the courage and pick the name. because i am a nerd, one with a tendency to stew and an allergy to decisions. there were many suggestions involving the dog's names, my favorite colors and patterns, my soon-to-be-mrs. moniker, etc. my betrothed made the following suggestion: "i have a good one! how about 'lauren gets stoned' - get it! you marry me, my last name is stone, your last name changes to…..never mind." i had to pass on that one though, as i'm only a dash of hippie; the kind of dash that comes from liking the outdoors, wanting to be more eco-friendly and still carrying traces of my sophomore year of college.

this blog came about when, after spending hours perusing wedding blogs, i realized that i, too, could have my very own, and it just might be a genius tool for keeping my slightly-ginormous bridal party abreast of my planning. because i know yall wait with bated breath for my next installment of wedding inspiration :) but just because this blog is for my nearest and dearest doesn't mean i can't do fun blog things, like only refer to my fiancé by a nickname. i'm thinking i'll use the one that my cousin created and likes to use, because it's cute and it makes me feel like i'm marrying a superhero (which i just might be) - captain fantastic. fabulous. he may prefer that i refer to him by his trail crew nickname, c-murda, or some other, manlier slash sketchier name, but too bad. my blog, my rules.

and so, without further ado, my first wedding blog post. today's topic: monograms. love them. need one. made one. i couldn't find my artsy paper and had to use a notebook, and my photographic skills last night were obviously lacking, but you get the point. it's a rough draft.

so that's the pre-marital monogram, for invitations, programs, etcetera. the post-marital monogram, for whatever i decide needs embellishment at the reception, shall contain a better-looking slash designed version of this:

i think i need a new camera. anyhoo, there you have it. what do we think - badass, yes?