Registry

Despite gentle urgings from my sweet fiance and queries from out-of-town guests, I've been reluctant to post information about our wedding registry for the following reasons:

1) We don't have a house yet!

2) I don't know what our finished house is going to look like!

3) How can we pick out furnishings and colors for a house that does not exist?

However, because "registering for gifts" is listed on Martha Stewart's Wedding Planner under "four to six months ahead," we persevered and registered! Important note: these registries (especially the ones at the larger stores) are subject to change, for the reasons above.

For those of you value brevity, we're registered Target and Dillard's. In Booneville, we registered at The Gathering Place, Jacque's, and Smee Drug Store. In Russellville, we're registered at The Copper Pig.

Now, for those of you who want "the rest of the story," read on...

Even though there is no house, we're still gathering house plans and paint colors. Below are some paint colors we like (these are darker in this picture, but it gives you an idea):

Thus far, we're thinking the big yellow color for the kitchen, the blue for the master bathroom, the small brown-ish color for the walls, the middle color for ceilings, and the lightest color for trim.

I've been looking and looking (instead of grading!) for bedding sets we like, and I send a huge shout-out to my sister for her help in brainstorming and mixing-and-matching ideas. So far, we LOVE this Duncan Stripe from Pottery Barn:

Hopefully, it's a compromise of fun colors (for me!) and simple stripes (for Michael). Now, according to Clinton and Stacy, this duvet cover has two components of a great outfit: color and pattern. The other two components? So glad you asked: texture and sheen. We found these two elements in the bee-yoo-ti-ful Rosette bedding from Anthropologie:

I'm thinking (actually, this is my sister's idea, so I'm giving her credit) that we can incorporate these pillows and fold the duvet at the bottom of the bed.

That's all I have for now... I'd love advice from people who have trodden this path before!

TJ MAXX ALERT!

Attention all you TJ Maxx "Fashionistas" out there, I need your help! I found this dress last night at TJ Maxx in Rogers, but it was not my size. Please help! If you happen to stop by your lovely local store, could you please do a quick search? The designer is Lilly Pulitzer, the dress is navy with a green print, 3/4 sleeves, and the length goes just to the knees. I think I could wear either a 10 or 12. It retails for $268 (yikes!), I found it on eBay for $80-$124 (better...), but at the wonderful TJ it was only $60 (yippee!). I will of course pay you back. This dress would be perfect for upcoming showers or a rehearsal dinner. Please let me know via this blog, my email, or phone call if anyone makes any progress in this area! Finally, I'm sorry I didn't post a picture of this dress, but I couldn't find any good pictures to copy and paste. Happy dress hunting!

Confessions

So I realized that I'm really going to enjoy blogging when it hit me that I can use these ramblings as an outlet for my ever-running inner monologue. You know, those thoughts that float through your head like, "I wish my life had it's own soundtrack" or "What would it feel like to jump through the trees like on Avatar?" And you think you're the only person who would ever think something so silly, until you work up the nerve to reveal your craziness to a close a friend, and then you realize you're both in the same boat.

In that spirit, I have a confession: I LOVE the show Hoarders. Michael rolls his eyes and would rather watch Pawn Stars (not a bad show, I must say). But I'm fascinated by the series of events that led this person to this place in his/her life. Then, it's interesting to watch how each person deals with the purging process, whether focusing on small items and issues rather than the mounds of trash trapping them inside, or making loads of progress only to be stopped dead in their tracks by a piece of the past.

And there is a small fear in me (confession #2) that the mound of clothes piling up just outside my closet door could be an indication of hoarding-tendencies to come. But, on the bright side, this mound and its crumpled contents have taught me an important new skill: how to "iron" with neither an iron nor a board (confession #3). You've probably already figured out this trick, but, for all my fellow non-homemakers or lazy girls out there, I feel I must share. Spread out the item to be de-wrinkled, either on a flat surface such as a dryer top or on your body (i.e. wearing it). Spray the item, not to soaking, just damp, with the ever-trusty Febreeze. Finally, and this step is key, set your blow-dryer to it's hottest setting, and blow at the item until it's dry and wrinkle-free! Warning: if you choose to put on the garment, then spray, then blow, the air can get way too hot and hurt your skin quickly, so pull the fabric away from your skin before blowing directly onto the item.

I don't see this technique working on any of my fiance's uniforms, but for a ruffle on a skirt or a comfy grey t-shirt, this is the way to go for me!

Save-the-Dates!

Yipee! They're here! Many thanks to Philip Thomas at Novo Studios for traipsing about the snow with us, getting on board with our "vision" for this shot, and capturing such a beautiful photo! (see below for more stunning shots!) Also, many huge shouts of thanks to Mandy, my sister and MOH, for designing the back and getting them printed so quickly! We're so excited with how they turned out!

front:

back:

My Security Blanket

I've been waiting for the 2010 edition of Real Simple Weddings to come out since summer of 2009 (when I realized/decided I was going to marry Michael). Real Simple is a trusted and true go-to source for classic, accessible design. Their samples and advice will be timeless, so it's well-worth the $13.95 (and who knew Borders doesn't allow us to use the 33% off coupons on magazines? I mean, we LOVE Borders, so this puzzles me...)

So, when I pulled it off the shelf, I was pleased and excited that the cover featured a bouquet very similar to some of my favorite inspirations. I held it up to Michael and said, "Welcome to your wedding, honey!"

In addition to the cover, more of our ideas were included throughout the magazine. Now, I know I'm not trendy, but it's so reassuring for an indecisive rookie to know we're heading in the right direction. The below picture shows us how to maintain a color theme while still being flexible with our attendants. (Hmm, where have we seen this before? :-)

Browsing the pages, I was not disappointed. The magazine features some real weddings, with tips for DIY-ers out there on a budget. One featured wedding had a budget of around $9,000! Yes, it can be done! Other very helpful articles included Flowers at a Glance, a tutorial for us floral novices, and a Silhouette Glossary with recommendations for real body types, not just curvy and tall. Also, a pullout guide includes a planning calendar, registry essentials, budget worksheet, photographer shot list, and big day survival kit list, because, seriously, who can keep all of this stuff straight?

Now I sound like I'm writing a recommendation or an advertisement, but I just wanted to help out other brides-to-be who can't afford a wedding consultant!

Please let me know what inspires you!

Engagement Pictures!

Michael and I chose Novo Studio (thanks to Nate Brown for the tip!) to capture our engagement and wedding, and we could not be happier with the results! Philip Thomas and his sweet wife Kristen have been so easy and SO FUN to work with! Philip is innovative and adventurous in his shooting style, and his editing is creative and careful.

I was a bit nervous when I woke up on the day of our engagement session to find the ground covered in a blanket of beautiful white snow. But Philip, on top of things as always, sent me an email saying he would proceed with the session if we wanted to. Michael offered that our pictures would be unique, and, before I knew it, we were bundling up and heading to Borders to begin a fun couple of hours.

Below are some of my favorite pictures!

Check out the rest of our so fun pictures by clicking here. Type in your own email address, and the event code is l+m_engagement09 . Also, see how creative Novo Studio can get by playing around on the blog or following along on Facebook. You'll not be disappointed!

So far...

Ohmygoodness! So much has happened since Michael proposed on Veteran's Day, November 11. Soon I'll post "The Story of Us" (to steal a phrase from a good friend), but in the mean time, I wanted to bring everyone up to date on the plans as they stand now.

We're getting married at 7 p.m. on June 19, 2010! The venue is the Chapel on the Creeks in Rogers (there is a small pond behind the chapel with a walking track around it; when I walked on the track, I admired the chapel, thinking it would be a lovely, picturesque location for a spring wedding, and wallah! Here we are). A reception will follow at the Holiday Inn, Rogers. For folks who want to book reservations, click here. We have a block of rooms, and this page is already set up. If want to call for reservations, the phone number is 1.479.845.1300. If you do call, make sure to mention our reception to get the reduced rate.

One of the main things we knew when we started planning the wedding was that we wanted Michael to wear his uniform (come on girls, guys in uniform, you know what I'm talking about!). So that made choosing colors much easier for this indecisive bride-to-be (it's still fun, exciting, and a bit-nervous-making to type that!). We decided to go with navy blue and white with natural accents of green. With that in mind, I created this inspiration board that I hope captions the feeling we want to create for our wedding. I'd love to hear your thoughts!

The Purpose

As of now, this blog is dual-purpose: chronicling my wedding planning, and, hopefully, assisting our wedding guests with rsvp-ing, directions, etc. (Also, as I haven't been to school all week, I have much-time to play and experiment, which is fun!)

So, here goes a small new adventure...