Lovin' this song....

Train's song Marry Me from their new album Save me, San Francisco is one of my new favorite's.  Every time I hear it I almost get all teary eyed from the sweet lyrics.  If you are someone looking to propose, get married or put together an engagement or wedding video this should be incorporated somehow someway :)  I am sharing this video from youtube.  There is not an official video for this song, but the lyrics are provided.   Have a little listen & enjoy!

So you're engaged....what's next?

He finally popped the question and you said YES!...now what?  All the planning of your big day begins.  You may have ideas of what you want for your wedding or maybe you have no idea at all of what you want.  The hardest thing and most important to think about first is the budget.  Once you have a budget in mind then you will be ready to look at venues, dresses, etc with an idea of what you can spend.

A great way to get ideas for what you would like for your own wedding is to look through magazines, blogs, and wedding websites like The Knot. Tear out or print images you like (decor, invitations, hair, flowers, dresses, venues, ideas of photography, etc.) and keep them organized and together.  By doing this you can be more specific when you meet with vendors or if you are a DIYer you'll have a more solid idea of what to do.

Some of my favorite blogs are www.stylemepretty.com, www.thebridescafe.com and http://ruffledblog.com/.  Check them out for great ideas!  

Soon-to-be-Wed!!

1 week from today I will be leaving MD heading towards NC to prep for the wedding!!  I can't wait to get back there and see my family and friends :)   2 weeks from today I will be a married woman and hopefully will have had the most amazing day of my life to date.  It has been a long process of planning and getting things together and our wedding day is quickly approaching!  I am so glad that I have had so much help in planning and looking for different decor items for the reception.  I know that it will be beautiful and I am so excited to see all the hard work come together for a wonderful time!

Twist on Traditional

I love ideas that are still keeping with tradition, but done a little differently.  The picture above is a great idea to honor family members (grandparents, parents or whom ever you like) that have been married.  I love the way the photos are linked together with ribbon and hung closely together in different shaped frames.  This is such a neat idea and a great way to honor family members.

Another cute idea  are the personalized lunch pails for the bridesmaids.  These are so adorable and a great idea for a bridesmaid luncheon or a way to make sure your bridesmaids eat on the big day!!  SUPER ADORABLE!

















The last two pictures are different takes on a traditional guest book.  The first picture gives prompts so people will have a way to start if they aren't sure what they want to say.  I love this idea and think that you could have a lot of fun coming up with your own prompts!

The last picture uses a rol-a-dex for guests to write their wishes/congratulations on a card and place it behind the letter of their last name!  Great way to keep everything organized and they would have more than a line to write on!

Paper Trail

There are a ton of different places to look for wedding related invites.  If you are more of a DIY kind of girl Mountain Cow has a computer program that you can use to do save-the-dates, invitations, and thank yous.  The program also has many more templates so you would receive continued use far beyond your wedding!  You can also order different types of paper, ribbon and envelopes from Mountain Cow as well!  It's a super easy program to use and the results are amazing.  The Mountain Cow website also has design ideas if you aren't quite sure what you want. So visit www.mountaincow.com for ideas or more information!

Another great online company is Wedding Paper Divas.  I used this company for my wedding invitations and they turned out beautifully!  This company has several different styles with  different price ranges.  Basically, there is a template and you can personalize everything from your wording and font to the color.  The company has specialist who look over your creation, revise it and have you sign off on it before it goes to printing.  Wedding Paper Divas has such a fun website with so many beautiful pieces - it was so hard to choose just one!  Be sure to check them out at www.weddingpaperdivas.com

Bride-to-Be Must Reads

Anyone who is planning a wedding or just loves the ideas of weddings should read the Bride Quartet series from Nora Roberts. These novels are set in the fun and sometimes hectic world of wedding planning, Nora Roberts leads the reader through the story of four friends and their struggles with life, love and family as they build their wedding planning company, VOWS.  The series starts with Vision in White, followed by Bed of Roses and Savor the Moment.  The fourth book in the series, Happy Ever After, is set to be on bookshelves November of 2010!  These are fun, must-reads for anyone who loves weddings, family drama, best friends, and a little bit of raciness that Nora Roberts is known for.

                {Coming November 2010!}

so classic

This bouquet of Anemones is simple yet stunning.  A way to keep your bouquet classic with a small surprise with the black center of the flowers.  Use the Anemones by themselves or mingle them with some of your other favorites.  No worries...if white or light pink is not your taste these lovely flowers come in an array of colors!!

{picture of bouquet from marthastewartweddings.com}

Is life really so simple...

Is life really so simple...

While enduring a huge move (8 hours from all things Southern and all I know) I have come to the realization that I am not quite sure what I want for a career. I am extremely happy with my fiance and life on the surface, but I need more than that. I feel like I am at the proverbial fork in the road and I have no clue which way to go. I have been prepped and on course for one road, but what about the other road? What is going to make me happy, what is going to give me the passion in a career that I long for, what is going to fulfill me? Tons of what-ifs; I know. Everyone strives for a happy life; however, I believe that a lot of people settle for what is expected of them not what makes them happy. So, in a awkward effort of trying to find my fulfillment I am going to start blogging about what makes me happy - weddings - in hopes that it will continue to spark interest and possibly open doors. We shall see...