booths and bouts

the thing that's keeping me up at night this week (well maybe not literally, but you know, figuratively) = guest book ideas. there are plenty of cute ones. filling out post cards that a trusty moh mails in batches over the next year; writing a wish on a rock or a piece of paper and putting it in a pretty vase for newlywed home display; signing a platter or a picture frame mat. all good ideas. not nearly complicated enough for me. heavens no. let's dream big. courtesy of this wedding at martha stewart dot com:
diy photobooth! yesssssssssssssssssss! real photobooths that shoot out a bunch of black & white photos on a strip are available for rent, but they're a) expensive b) too big and bulky to fit in our venue. i've seen it done with polaroids too, but have you seen how expensive that film is? bummer. so anyway, how cute would it be to hang up a sheet of fun fabric, like so
(minus the dog, because we all know they unfortunately won't be in attendance) and have our goofy guests pose for photos like so
to preserve our wedding memories foreverandalways? presh. the guest book comes into play thus: i envision a big ole book with blank pages with photo corners for inserting said photos and plenteous space next to them for the people in the photos to write sweet nothings for us to treasure. the tiny issue here is how to accomplish it. designate someone to man the camera during the reception? try to set up a self-timer on a tripod? have a photo printer present to create memories immediately? or just print them out and put them in their corresponding slots afterwards? hmmmm...ideas? anyone seen this executed in real life?

in other news, got the proof of our invitations the other day! there are some minor alterations (like how the name of the cathedral is wrong...) but they are pretty darn gorgeous anyway. and yesterday, mom & i met with the florist, which was way more fun and exciting than i ever dreamed. she was full of great ideas, sprinting about from freezer to freezer, grabbing handfuls of fabulous flowers in shades of pink and green and white and making mock-ups of bouquets....so neat!

AND i saw (and am stealing) the most fabulous idea yesterday, from a wedding i believe i saw on style me pretty (i read a shameful bounty of wedding blogs daily...) - fly-fishing boutonnieres!!!! come ca, except most definitely not orange
captain fantastic is an avid fly-fisherman. how perfect? extremely perfect. take a fly and attach it to a bout similar to the one below, in place of the second blossom


here's the best photo that was posted of the groom in the inspiration wedding
what's bad-a about this is that look, he's got a bout with a fly AND a pocket square! and i vote that it's not, as a bridesmaid quoted tim gunn as warning against, "too much look." we plan to outfit the boys with smaller flowers than this too. you dig?

lil bits

flowergirls. we have two. my cousin's 6 yr old, his cousin's 4 yr old. they don't come much more precious than these either, lemme tell you. but they need something to wear. our 4 yr old did inform me that she has "the perfect flowered nightgown for the wedding," but slumber party isn't really the theme here.

here's a thing: i don't-so-much love sleeveless fancy dresses on little girls. dunno why. for some reason it looks too grown-up and reminds me of pageant-style exploitation of babes. which is notsomuch the look we're going for here. the look we are going for is a little more tea party (a la j.crew)
slash antique lace (a la strasburg)however. i know that one of said chirins already owns this dress from a previous engagementsleeveless. bummer. in ivory. bummer? not sure. i know someone else will be wearing ivory...

maybe we can work with this. here is how. cue sash, either in the same green as the 'maids or, if i'm really lucky and can find it somewhere, in my vera bradley pattern. or maybe i'll just buy those on-sale pj pants and make my own. so there.

then we will add, and this is cute so stop rolling your eyes mom, this
presh? i think yes. hold on, it gets better. behold:
but here's what's awesome: forever ago, i found a martha stewart post talking about ribbon, and one of the ideas was to tie festive ribbon around your flowergirls' shoes. like above. but with their own shoes. therefore practically free. and adorable. and i put it in my wedding file as a "must do." and now j.crew is selling them. i should totally work in the fashion industry. i know.

speaking of vera bradley, what do we think about turning these into pocket squares for the groomsmen? brilliant and fabulous? a tiny touch of the pattern i love without being unmanly? for the love of goodness, please someone tell me you like this idea. please.

progress

i went ahead and bought those shoes from payless online last night. i didn't even wait to see if you liked them. it was thoughtless of me, i know, but i figured that heck, i like 'em and will wear 'em in real life even if i find new shoes for The Big Day. i also bought an accessory for after the ceremony when it's past my veil's bedtime. i can't share though, since captain fantastic reads this blog, and it's a SECRET. so shhh. hh. h.

we did a little couples online retail therapy last night as well. FINALLY found a duvet cover j'aime (and he aimes too...though slightly less vehemently), and instead of registering for it and being depressed when they sell out or no one gets it for us, we just went ahead and ordered it. and matching euro shams. and spent an obscene amount of money on a guaranteed dog-proof coverlet to coordinate with and protect said duvet from the big white bedhog. and matching standard shams. SO worth it though. so worth it. here she is (sans dog-proof accoutrements...they are the blueish color "mist," which frigginbetter go)


i digress. back to the wedding. recently i've been thinkin' ceremony decor. i need to figure out how to make inspiration boards like the big kids do so i can show you my vision...again. it's taking shape in my mind as such: monogram + topiaries + silhouette + candles + paper star lanterns + pink, green, white. imma throw in some ribbons and a few flowers for good measure. for lent this year, instead of giving up chocolate like usual (because we all know imma need it this time) i've decided to go the "take something on" route - i shall be creating something every day. there will obvi be a lot of wedding projects, but i've also been hording little craft idea gems i've found on the interweb. i'm excited. i think jesus would approve.

tickled pink (and green)

behold, i have a fan. and i am EXCITED about it. never in my wildest dreams did i think anyone other than my mom would actually read this blog, but apparently another person does. crazytown. guess i'd better step it up with the posting then huh.

i would like to take this opportunity to share the blog-love right back. all you throngs of loyal readers may recall how embarrassingly obsessed i am with our wedding photographer. like that time he managed to see into my soul and suggest that our photo shoot be reminiscent of a j.crew catalog? oh em gee. what you may not know is that i've also managed to become embarrassingly obsessed with his adorable family, via his wife's blog. it is not only filled with precious pictures of their kiddos, but also all sorts of crafty projects that she somehow manages to complete while overseeing the upbringing and daily needs of three small children. i can't wait till she starts bottling that and selling it on etsy. see her post about yours truly that had me squealing with delight yesterday, right here.

i'd also like to take this opportunity to recognize my sister-cousin slash matron of honor as the brains behind captain fantastic's ego-inflating nickname. early in the course of our relationship, she asked me how "captain fantastic" was doing, and i ran with it. apparently cleverness is genetic.

invitation status update: envelopes have been ordered and the calligrapher has been charged with creating the invite, response card + envelope and a shcmancy monogram with myriad uses (thank yous, napkins, decorations, etc). i finally accepted that i do not know how to do calligraphy and should just leave it to the professionals, so no diy wedding logo over here. whatevs. it'll be much nicer this way.

and also, look what iiiiiii foooooound:
at payless for $24.99 at that. whaddawe think?

solicitation

i need help tracking down two things:

a) captain fantastic and i are thinking we'd like to have the wedding videotaped for posterity. we're obviously not going to pop it in every night after dinner, but it'd be nice to have. my parents have about 5 minutes of 8mm film of their bridal party walking down the aisle, and it is so fabulous. we'd like to share footage of our big day with our little pebbles in the future. my request is this: know any good videographers? can't find. need help. thanks much.

b) what's the difference between nuptials on the beach and a wedding in a cathedral celebrated by the bishop? shoes. as in, i have to wear some. i'm digging the current trend of colored shoes that coordinate with the bridal party, so i've decided to think pink. satin is probably the most appropriate material. i want something adorable and festive on the toe, like a big bow or flower. enter problem: said shoes cannot exceed 2" in heel height. i don't want to spend my wedding day hobbling around all uncomfy-like. so here is my second request: find me some shoes that look like these:
mated with the hybrid offspring of these:
and these:
and inherited the heel-height of their patent-leather grandma. merci. my other option is to just get plain ballet flats and add some diy embellishment. and nobody wants to see that.

invitetations remix

behold, a decision has been made. shocking, i know. my mom & i met with our invitation go-to lady recently and picked what i want to do. i'm commissioning a calligrapher to write the text of the invitation, which will then be printed en masse. they will look similar to this:

...but a bit less fancypants and a bit more legible. the monogram/silhouette/etc-on-top idea got the oust because a) we're going to include reception information on the bottom and it just won't fit b) a little bird named mom not-so-covertly suggested that the silhouette idea was tacky. boo. never fear, there will be silhouettes somewhere...just not in invitation or cookie form.

on friday, this lady shall lunch with her current and soon-to-be mothers to finalize guest lists and choose calligraphy. per invitation go-to lady, these babies must hit mailboxes the last week of april. eek! it's getting close! only about four and a half months now!!