You can always rely on Martha Stewart to inspire your crafty, DIY, budget-savy and creative self. Check out this idea: Wrapping paper table runners !
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
Time to start visualizing...
Blog, meet Somerset Ballroom. I think the ceiling is really distinct and cool. Also, the photo below was obviously taken using a flash, so use your imagination to picture the mood lighting- the lights on the walls as shown, plus our lantern centerpieces. Lovely, just lovely. It's exciting to picture friends and family in those seats... eek! Speaking of seats, there is nothing wrong with those chairs, but I have to say, I just love the look of chair covers with the sashes! Since we have saved a lot of money on DJ and photographer compared to the normal price, we'll see if maybe we can sqeeze out some money for them! I will begin researching options, because often they are like 7 to 8 bucks per chair, but Corey's sister used ones that were around 2 dollars per chair! Awesome! I'll keep you poster, fellow budgeters!
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
Introducing...
The happy couple and our location! This is the Crowne Plaza in Nashua, NH (pictures taken from their website, cpnashua.com) where we will be celebrating our marriage on Aug. 5 next year! It's very beautiful.
The photo of the ballroom is the Somerset Ballroom. It's quite large, and since our reception will be 150 people or less and we are on a tight budget, we are only using half the ballroom. I will try to post photos of what that will look like when I get some, which will hopefully be soon. :) Happy planning to you!
Sunday, December 5, 2010
champagne and graphite
This dress by J. Crew is so simple and so, so pretty. The color is "champagne." I wonder if this looks too close to white or if it would be classy. Hm. Thoughts?
This dress is by J. Crew in a color called "graphite." I love gray bridesmaid dresses, with warm coral and pink tones in the bouquet.
Tips for saving $$$$ !!!
Here's what we really need- ways to save money. Economy, parents, life... yes there are endless reasons to save money when it coems to The Big Day.
Here are some things that have worked for us:
1. Find connections. Corey's sister had a DJ that she found through a friend. Because the DJ was friends with her friend (do you follow?), Corey's sister got a deal. It's nice to know a DJ! Anyways, he was great at her wedding. He wasn't too tacky or obnoxious, played great music, and just overall kept the night flowing smoothly. His normal rate was $1,500 but he played her wedding for $500. We called him up, said we loved his work at her wedding, and asked if we too could recieve that price. Well, he agreed! He is the friend of Corey's sister's friend (kinda getting far removed right?!) but I think he really appreciated the referrals going on in the family and wanted to help us out. Either way, I am glad we played on this connection and glad we just put ourselves out there and asked. Doesn't hurt to ask.
2. Negotiate, show them what the competition offered. This one hasn't been done yet, but it will be. A similar hotel offered an hour of open bar in the package for the same price. So, we're gonig to see what we can work out. They are sales people, don't forget.
3. Don't go straight to the experts. Find someone young and starting out. You have to decide what is most important. For example, I definitely want a DJ who knows his stuff, but I wouldn't mind getting a cheaper florist and skipping the limo. You know? Photography is one of the most important parts of a wedding. These photos will be cherished for a lifetime, so it's no small decision. We chose Peter Morse, a friend we met in college. He is starting up a new photography business, so his price was very affordable. But we didn't chose him only because of affordability; we looked at his work and found him to be a fantastic photographer with an artistic eye. It was a win-win. Because he hasn't had this business for years and is just starting out, we were able to snag a talented photographer, while still within our price range. You have to find that balance. Find what's important, how you can save, who you know, where the deals are, and be open to finding people starting new businesses if you trust them!
4. Print your own invitations. We bought Martha Stewart invitations with seashells on them (adorbs! aka adorable..) from Michael's. Go to your craft store, take a look, and you may be suprised. We are printing them ourselves, but they'll look so professional. Such a great steal.
5. Look outside of "wedding world." Take a step out of the bridal shops and craft stores and catalogues... you'll find inspiration everywhere if you keep your eyes open! I found a neat box at Barnes N Noble that we will use for people to put their cards in on the gift table. It has shells and cool vintage paterns on it, and kind of looks like a treasure chest (but not a gaudy, pirate one, just a normal decorative box, just to clarify). I paid maybe 10 bucks for it. Love it.
6. Don't let them upsell you. They are not really your friends, just nice sales people. When I got my dress, they found a perfectly matching veil. Veils are essential, so yes I did get it. But they also convinced me to get this head peice with it, just a little comb with some crystals on it, which cost like 200 bucks or something ridiculous. When we went to put the final payment on the dress, we asked them to take the head peice off of our tab because we really did not want it. Instead, I can get something sparkly that will look the same from Claire's for a few dollars. Or somewhere else. Just not the 200 dollar crystal one. I felt silly about it.
Here are some things that have worked for us:
1. Find connections. Corey's sister had a DJ that she found through a friend. Because the DJ was friends with her friend (do you follow?), Corey's sister got a deal. It's nice to know a DJ! Anyways, he was great at her wedding. He wasn't too tacky or obnoxious, played great music, and just overall kept the night flowing smoothly. His normal rate was $1,500 but he played her wedding for $500. We called him up, said we loved his work at her wedding, and asked if we too could recieve that price. Well, he agreed! He is the friend of Corey's sister's friend (kinda getting far removed right?!) but I think he really appreciated the referrals going on in the family and wanted to help us out. Either way, I am glad we played on this connection and glad we just put ourselves out there and asked. Doesn't hurt to ask.
2. Negotiate, show them what the competition offered. This one hasn't been done yet, but it will be. A similar hotel offered an hour of open bar in the package for the same price. So, we're gonig to see what we can work out. They are sales people, don't forget.
3. Don't go straight to the experts. Find someone young and starting out. You have to decide what is most important. For example, I definitely want a DJ who knows his stuff, but I wouldn't mind getting a cheaper florist and skipping the limo. You know? Photography is one of the most important parts of a wedding. These photos will be cherished for a lifetime, so it's no small decision. We chose Peter Morse, a friend we met in college. He is starting up a new photography business, so his price was very affordable. But we didn't chose him only because of affordability; we looked at his work and found him to be a fantastic photographer with an artistic eye. It was a win-win. Because he hasn't had this business for years and is just starting out, we were able to snag a talented photographer, while still within our price range. You have to find that balance. Find what's important, how you can save, who you know, where the deals are, and be open to finding people starting new businesses if you trust them!
4. Print your own invitations. We bought Martha Stewart invitations with seashells on them (adorbs! aka adorable..) from Michael's. Go to your craft store, take a look, and you may be suprised. We are printing them ourselves, but they'll look so professional. Such a great steal.
5. Look outside of "wedding world." Take a step out of the bridal shops and craft stores and catalogues... you'll find inspiration everywhere if you keep your eyes open! I found a neat box at Barnes N Noble that we will use for people to put their cards in on the gift table. It has shells and cool vintage paterns on it, and kind of looks like a treasure chest (but not a gaudy, pirate one, just a normal decorative box, just to clarify). I paid maybe 10 bucks for it. Love it.
6. Don't let them upsell you. They are not really your friends, just nice sales people. When I got my dress, they found a perfectly matching veil. Veils are essential, so yes I did get it. But they also convinced me to get this head peice with it, just a little comb with some crystals on it, which cost like 200 bucks or something ridiculous. When we went to put the final payment on the dress, we asked them to take the head peice off of our tab because we really did not want it. Instead, I can get something sparkly that will look the same from Claire's for a few dollars. Or somewhere else. Just not the 200 dollar crystal one. I felt silly about it.
Progress... and the emotional urges of a bride to be.
Okay so there's progress.
The good news is, most of the "big things" are set. DJ, photographer, invitations, dress, centerpieces, reception... all taken care of. I still need to ask a few more of my bridesmaids over Christmas break, pick out the bridal party attire with my MOH, and book a florist. Everything is going smoothly, considering we still have 8 more months to plan and square away the details.
There have been a few minor set backs though, as would be expected. For example, we originally planned on having 150 guests, then we began thinking we could cut it down to 110, but it's been very, very difficult pinning down the exact number. The problem is, with 150 or less, they rent half the ballroom, unless you want to pay $3,000 more for the entire ballroom. So, it definitely has to be 150 people or less, because that is all we can afford. I learned last night that the ceremony location in the Crowne Plaza (we figured having ceremony and reception on site would make it easy for out of town guests, no one gets lost, everything is simple and stress-free) holds only 120 people. If we have the 110 people, yes that would work, but what if more family come than we expected and 150 are in attendance? No way could I have 30 guests wait outside. Can you imagine?!
There's some working out to do. I only say all this so that if you too are a bride in planning, at times pulling your hair out, you may find comfort in my own personal stresses. I have to say though, overall, I really can't complain. My mother is such an artist and could make a shack stunning. Although, this isn't really relevant since the Crowne Plaza is stunning. But with the half ballroom business, having a divider up REALLY bothers me. One, I don't want a wedding in the other half of the ballroom. No. No. No. Two, TACKY TACKY TACKY. One of my prerequisites in looking at reception venues was no curtains. I hate seeing those stupid curtains lining the walls in photos. I cringe. Curtains on windows are fine, not on walls or not as dividers. What's worse than curtains? Dividers. Now I am wishing for curtains to save me from those ungodly dividers! Like I said, my mother is an artist and is so talented at decorating and making anything beautiful, but unless she has some gigantic mural to cover this divider, I feel doomed. And, I know the ballroom will be little now with a little bitty dance floor. Every other venue, Raddisson in Nashua, even the Purtian restaurant in Manchester, all have bigger ballrooms and dance floors compared to this half ballroom... which is funny, because it's the exact opposite as I thought. I thought we chose the venue with the biggest ballroom. It holds 300! But with the half ballroom, it now becomes the smallest. I hope my mind is just playing tricks on me and I am remembering this half ballroom in a skewed, unrational way.
The silly thing is, when a small set back or suprise comes along, like the ones mentioned above, tears always well up in my eyes and I literally have to fight them back! I begin to slip over the edge and have to fight back a hysterical sobbing. I know, ridiculous. I can't help it! I just smile and be grateful, because there is much MUCH to be grateful for, but still, I can't resist this urge to cry. I feel so silly. Like when Corey and I first got engaged, we dreamed of marrying at the Wentworth by the Sea Hotel or the Omni Mount Washington or the Mountain View Grand. When I learned we couldn't afford it, I felt my dreams being crushed into ashes and I just cried! More than once! I don't beg or try to make any one feel bad, but I just feel this squashing of the heart. I am such a diva, I can't stand it. I should just be grateful. And stop crying. Why must I cry?! I am not crying over anything now, but last night, picturing that half ballroom, oh man. I am such a baby. Goodbye.
The good news is, most of the "big things" are set. DJ, photographer, invitations, dress, centerpieces, reception... all taken care of. I still need to ask a few more of my bridesmaids over Christmas break, pick out the bridal party attire with my MOH, and book a florist. Everything is going smoothly, considering we still have 8 more months to plan and square away the details.
There have been a few minor set backs though, as would be expected. For example, we originally planned on having 150 guests, then we began thinking we could cut it down to 110, but it's been very, very difficult pinning down the exact number. The problem is, with 150 or less, they rent half the ballroom, unless you want to pay $3,000 more for the entire ballroom. So, it definitely has to be 150 people or less, because that is all we can afford. I learned last night that the ceremony location in the Crowne Plaza (we figured having ceremony and reception on site would make it easy for out of town guests, no one gets lost, everything is simple and stress-free) holds only 120 people. If we have the 110 people, yes that would work, but what if more family come than we expected and 150 are in attendance? No way could I have 30 guests wait outside. Can you imagine?!
There's some working out to do. I only say all this so that if you too are a bride in planning, at times pulling your hair out, you may find comfort in my own personal stresses. I have to say though, overall, I really can't complain. My mother is such an artist and could make a shack stunning. Although, this isn't really relevant since the Crowne Plaza is stunning. But with the half ballroom business, having a divider up REALLY bothers me. One, I don't want a wedding in the other half of the ballroom. No. No. No. Two, TACKY TACKY TACKY. One of my prerequisites in looking at reception venues was no curtains. I hate seeing those stupid curtains lining the walls in photos. I cringe. Curtains on windows are fine, not on walls or not as dividers. What's worse than curtains? Dividers. Now I am wishing for curtains to save me from those ungodly dividers! Like I said, my mother is an artist and is so talented at decorating and making anything beautiful, but unless she has some gigantic mural to cover this divider, I feel doomed. And, I know the ballroom will be little now with a little bitty dance floor. Every other venue, Raddisson in Nashua, even the Purtian restaurant in Manchester, all have bigger ballrooms and dance floors compared to this half ballroom... which is funny, because it's the exact opposite as I thought. I thought we chose the venue with the biggest ballroom. It holds 300! But with the half ballroom, it now becomes the smallest. I hope my mind is just playing tricks on me and I am remembering this half ballroom in a skewed, unrational way.
The silly thing is, when a small set back or suprise comes along, like the ones mentioned above, tears always well up in my eyes and I literally have to fight them back! I begin to slip over the edge and have to fight back a hysterical sobbing. I know, ridiculous. I can't help it! I just smile and be grateful, because there is much MUCH to be grateful for, but still, I can't resist this urge to cry. I feel so silly. Like when Corey and I first got engaged, we dreamed of marrying at the Wentworth by the Sea Hotel or the Omni Mount Washington or the Mountain View Grand. When I learned we couldn't afford it, I felt my dreams being crushed into ashes and I just cried! More than once! I don't beg or try to make any one feel bad, but I just feel this squashing of the heart. I am such a diva, I can't stand it. I should just be grateful. And stop crying. Why must I cry?! I am not crying over anything now, but last night, picturing that half ballroom, oh man. I am such a baby. Goodbye.
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
My favorite wedding blog!
Stylemepretty.com- the best wedding blog and my inspirationin planning my own wedding! These are my colors, coral, blue & grey to add a sophisticated element. Since we are having an evening wedding, I think the grey will add more formality. I hope my wedding looks like this one- such great style and hues. Thank you Style Me Pretty!
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