Saturday, November 29, 2008







First let me apologize for being MIA the past few days. We are in Virginia with my family and I haven't had Internet access until my sweetie was kind enough to set up a router.
I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

These are a few photos I've saved to my computer because I love the look of colored shoes with a bridal gown. I think for my 'Something Blue' I just may wear a fabulous pair of blue shoes! :)

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Birdcage Veils...




Up until about a week ago I thought I wouldn't wear a veil, however, I've become mesmerized with these lovely birdcage veils! I think it will make for some lovely pictures. I also think it's fitting since I'm incorporating lovebirds in a couple different ways. :)
I figure after the ceremony and photos I'll replace the veil with a lovely flower...pictures of hairstyles I love to come during a future post.










I have to admit that until about a month ago I had never heard of a "Groom's Cake". However, I just love the idea of it!!! From the reading I've been doing it seems pretty common that it be served during the Rehearsal Dinner.
I've been trying to come up with a few ideas that Pepe may like and here's my progress so far....
I've seen so many wedding photos lady where couples are opting to use cupcakes instead of a traditional wedding cake. Although I've decided against this for the reception, I think a "cupcake tower" would be really fun for the Grooms Cake.

The Whiskey Bits Bake Shop offers some really fun flavors:
Ginger Beer
Gingerbread cake, Guinness Stout beer with orange-spiced cream cheese frosting (Pepe loves Guiness).
Bourbon Oat
Oat spice cake, ginger, bourbon whiskey with caramel-spiced cream cheese frosting.

Since we are both Hokies and our wedding is slap dap in the middle of college football season how cute would it be to top the tower with one of these fun cake toppers? :)

Monday, November 24, 2008

A cure for my Monday blues...




Monday's are very uneventful work days for me so lately I've spent hour after hour searching the internet for unique finds to incorporate at the wedding.
Today I came across the site http://www.thehopejar.com/ and quite frankly I've fallen for their "fortune bottles", which are these beautiful vintage bottles each filled with it's own fortune.
Wouldn't they be fun to sit on each table? They'd be a great conversation starter.

Saturday, November 22, 2008

My pitter patter heart....


just ADORES this couples wedding!
These are some of the pictures I took with me to my first meeting with Jerri, our planner.

Freddy & Ma...




It's my hope that my lovely bridesmaids will enjoy following along with this blog, so for that very reason I didn't plan on exploring the bridesmaid gifts on this blog. However, I can't resist sharing this lovely site I came across. With that said, ladies, this is by no means what I'm going to get you it's just something I love! ;)
Freddy & Ma is this great company created by a brother and sister team. They allow you to customize handbags, pillows and plates in various shapes, sizes and designs! Their online customizing shop is just plain addicting!
Our colors are mostly ivory and greens with pops of Tiffany blue, coral and copper.
I haven't yet decided what color the bridesmaid dresses will be, but I'm leaning towards champagne.
Here are some of the bags I designed earlier today as well as a few pictures from their website.
Thoughts?

Oh yeah, only 328 days to go! :D

Friday, November 21, 2008

Sigh of relief...


We got some great news today that I can't resist sharing. :)
It's official, we got McCrady's for the Rehearsal Dinner! Pepe and I fell in love with this Restaurant when we visited in October.
Since our ceremony and reception site are actually in Mt. Pleasant, SC we wanted to make sure the Rehearsal Dinner would take place in downtown Charleston and be very representative of the wonderful culture that resides there.
The room has antique pine floor, padded silk-covered walls and 2 gorgeous fireplaces.
Perfect for a fall night!
President George Washington actually dined in this very room back in 1971.
I can't wait for our guests, especially those who've never been to Charleston, to experience the rich history and beauty of this venue.

Engagement Photos












So on January 11Th Pepe and I will be heading back to Charleston for our Engagement Session. I haven't had the pleasure of meeting our photographer in person, but I've heard great things and I love the work on her website!
In the meantime I want to send her some photos that I like from other couples engagement sessions so that she has any idea of my expectations.
I want the pictures to be fun, whimsical and seem almost spontaneous.
Here's some photos I adore and I hope they will inspire our photographer to come up with a couple of neat ides for us.

A special shout out...


I want to give a BIG CONGRATULATIONS to my first "official blog subscriber", best friend and bridesmaid the lovely Chelsea who was engaged to the equally lovely Teddy in San Fran, CA on Thursday, November 13th!

I had my fingers crossed that it was going to happen, how neat that we get to be engaged together? I told Pepe last night that when everyone else is sick of my wedding talk I know I have one friend who won't be! ;)

Cheers to the wonderful couple!!!

Thursday, November 20, 2008

The sweet smell of flowers!


"The Earth laughs in flowers." ~Ralph Waldo Emerson

Our color scheme is mostly ivories and greens with pops of copper, coral and Tiffany blue.
These are some of the flowers you can expect to see at the wedding.


Food for thought...


Today was my first "meeting" via telephone with the lovely Emily Weidle at Good Food Catering. We haven't made any final decisions yet, but we love Coast (Good Food Catering's restaurant), we really liked Emily when she showed us around their signature venue The Rice Mill, and judging by pictures we've seen their presentation is top notch!

Our next trip to Charleston is in January and we'll be sitting down for our first "food trial" and we can't wait to taste what they work up for us.
We've decided to go with a Heavy Hors d' oeuvres Reception because we want our guests to be able to mingle and not confined to a certain table during dinner.
I told Emily my main concern was that people wouldn't feel there was enough to eat. She eased my fears and I'm certain now their will be plenty to fill the tummies.

In the meantime here's a few pictures of items Emily and I discussed today.

Warning: These images may make you salivate! ;)

I have a Sweet Tooth...


Don't you just wish you could pick a couple of these right off the page and into your mouth? :)
It's amazing how many sites there are that offer online cake, cookies and candy shopping!
Although we've decided to have the "Cookie Bar" as favors for our guest I'm still hoping to offer or gift some of these yummy goodies at either the Bridal Shower, Rehearsal Dinner, etc.

Photo 1: These are toasted cocunut marshmellows and they are made of completely vegan & organic ingredients, which as a vegeterian I love! Word of mouth is that it's impossibly to eat just one! Find them along with other flavors @ http://www.sweetandsara.com/.
Photo 2: What I love most about this taffy is that it's offered in various flavors and comes w/custom labels. Check it out at http://www.mehlenbacherstaffy.com/.
Photo 3: Oh how I love cake, and these Petit Fours are the perfect bite-sized goodies. They are also available in different flavors and colors, plus they offer monogramming. http://www.dragonflycakes.com/
Photo 4: These are definitely a treat you don't see everyday, but these dark chocolate covered pears are rumored to be to die for! Apple is also available, but how cute would it be to have the pears and a label that reads "Emie & Pepe, the perfect pear"? http://www.recchiuti.com/
Photo 5: Das Foods is known for their caramel chocolates and there's something about this dark chocolate piece with toasted walnuts that just makes me think of Fall. http://www.dasfoods.com/
Photo 6&7: These just warm my heart, I love the dollop of icing perfectly placed on these mini cupcakes! This site has some amazing cookies as well and the packaging is out of this world.
Photo 8: Martine makes chocolates in some of the coolest shapes and sizes you've ever seen! These just happen to catch my eye because I love the monogramming.


Crazy Fact Thursday


It was the accepted practice in Babylon 4,000 years ago that for a month after the wedding, the bride's father would supply his son-in-law with all the mead he could drink. Mead is a honey beer and because their calendar was lunar based, this period was called the honey month, which we know today as the honeymoon.

Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Inspirational photos I love!

Right to left, top to bottom:
Photo 1-I love this rustic outdoor setting and how little decor is needed thanks to the beauty of the natural setting. I also love the different seating options.
Photo 2-This adorable little votive is called a 'Glassbaby.' I love that they can also double as a small vase! Plus not only can you purchase them in a large variety of colors, you can rent them for your event for only $5. They are available at www.glassbaby.com.
Photo 3- I want our favors to be edible, something guests enjoy, and something creative. I've been to quite a few weddings that have had candy buffets and I think a cookie bar is a nice twist on that idea. Friends & Family, you can look forward to more details on that later (I plan asking for your help).
Photo 4- What an adorable cake stand! I think it's the perfect color and I love the little birds perched on the side.
Photo 5- I've come across so many beautiful hair pieces and I think this gardenia looks incredibly realistic.
Photo 6- These gorgeous macarons are by Paulette and they come in so many flavors and colors!
I think they'd make a gorgeous set up for the Bridal Shower.
www.paulettemacarons.com
Photo 7- I'm gaga over these vintage postcards! I definitely plan on incorporating them into the event in a neat way. Stay tuned for more on that...
Photo 8- How lovely is this ring pillow? Just precious in my opinion!
Photo 9- I've yet to try on bridal gowns but as of right now this is kinda how I picture my dress looking. I love the sweetheart neck, the gorgeous silhouette and the lovely lace. I think it screams Charleston, SC!

Eskimo Love Song


I found this earlier today while I was scouring the internet for inspirational poems, sayings, etc. and I just love it!


You are my Husband.
My feet shall run because of you.
My feet shall dance because of you.
My heart shall beat because of you.
My eyes see because of you.
My mind thinks because of you.
And I shall love because of you.


By George Elliot
*fyi-I plan to incorporate lovebirds in some unique ways because I simply adore them.

I'm an "Etsy-holic"

Please tell me that you all have heard of this wonderful site!
If not please minimize this blog and go check it out!?
It's a wonderful online community where you can buy and sell all sorts of handmade goods.
I simply adore it!
So far they've been a great resource for me to find all sorts of items from invitations, to ring pillows, to cake toppers.
A lot of sellers will even customize their items to your colors, style, taste, etc.
I found the lovely Karissa @ http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5078685 and she's custom making our Save-the-Dates.
Oh and one more perk in case I haven't already sold you is that for the most part their prices are great!

Let me catch you up to speed...

One of the first trips Pepe and I took together was to beautiful Charleston, SC.

When it came time to decide where we would marry I knew right away I wanted it to be a destination wedding (is it considered a destination wedding when we only live 3 hours away?) in the low-country.

My fiance who hates being hot pretty much insisted on a fall wedding, so there you have it-time and place decided!
We both wanted to get married outside and we wanted both the ceremony and reception to take place at one location. That really narrowed things down for us.
We've decided on a venue with beautiful views of the Ravenel Bridge and the harbour (where he proposed), 28 Bridgeside.
We also have our photographer and I can't wait to take our engagement photos on January 11Th. I'll be back later to get your advice on that.
Lastly we've decided on the lovely Ooh Events and Out of Hand to help us with flowers, furniture rental and day of coordination.

So that's our progress thus far.

Now it's time for me to delve into the details!

Countdown, 332 days!


I'm starting this blog for a couple of reasons...

1. I've been very inspired by blogs like Kathryn's @ Snippet and Ink, Vane's @ Brooklyn Bride, and the lovely Southern Wedding Magazine blog to just name a few.
2. I was engaged on July 18Th of 2008. Since then not a day has gone by where I haven't somewhat "obsessed" over the wedding plans. I both love it and hate it.
Some people may know right away what they want, but unfortunately that's not me.
There are an endless amount of ways you can go with your wedding.
What I'm trying to do now is define my style and narrow the direction in which we want this wedding to take.
My groom, Pepe, has been very involved thus far. Don't get me wrong I love this, but it can be a challenge at times because in some ways we have different taste.
My hopes are that by starting this blog people will be willing to share their input with me.
Also, I'm hoping this will become a creative outlet for all this "wedding energy" I have.
Please feel free to share your opinion, your suggestions or any advice you may have.