Tonight Pete and I had fun sitting together working on assembling the favors. It’s a multi-step process, so we only got through about a third of them. I had printed, cut and hole punched tags that I wrapped around the favor with raffia. Then Peter assembled them in the bag with the other part of the favor. (more…)
Today I had my first hair and makeup trial. It was a fun experience but I’m still thinking about my opinion on the outcome. One thing I’ve never had before but loved was the false eyelashes. I could totally see myself becoming addicted to them!
My mom came to visit this week and ended up helping me get it together and put it in perspective. I actually got sick from stress, so she stayed for a couple extra days to help me get things done. I’ve had a to do list in my head for months, and getting it all out on paper was a long process, but well worth it. Once it was written down we could start checking things off and I didn’t have the stress of remembering so much.
We also managed to call about a dozen limo companies, and finally book one. We decided to go with a party bus and a Rolls Royce. I first noticed the Rolls for the bride at Lisa’s wedding, and I loved the “here comes the bride” horn. I can’t wait to be the one it’s sounding for! :)
We scheduled a second appointment with the florist. We decided to simplify the flowers to mostly roses. All the different types of flowers we had originally picked out just became to busy and we were over thinking how we could make them into something we liked. Since I love the type of roses that we picked out for the bouquets (vendela roses), we figured why not just stick with what I love? Here’s our new inspiration photo:
Another thing we did was schedule a hair and makeup trial for me. I’ve been holding off on this, so I’m glad to have it set up. I am also interested now in understanding more about airbrush makeup. I was under the impression that it was better and didn’t realize there could be any drawbacks. The woman I scheduled the trial with was telling me that she feels airbrush is not usually the best option. I guess we’ll talk more about it during the appointment. Here’s my inspiration photo for my hair:
We spent the entire day in the Hamptons and had a blast. First we went to Atlantica where we got to see the tent (for the cocktail hour) for the first time. Last time we were there it was April and still too cold to put it up. We saw photos and liked it, but in person it was amazing. We sat out on the deck listening to the ocean, feeling the breeze and watching the fabric of the tent billowing around us. Even though it was a hot day, it was very comfortable under the tent. (more…)
After dancing, we met up with Jonathan for dinner and a music discussion. We picked out many songs and came up with a good description of the feeling we are going for so we can tell the DJ what we want. Basically we want to have funky dance music that everyone can sing along to, but not songs that are played so much you’re tired of hearing them. Now that we have a lot of the songs planned, I am really starting to picture the party coming to life.
We also discussed how to keep the traditional wedding elements we want, but at the same time having a fun dance party that can flow naturally without too much interruption. The main way we are trying to acheive this is to have the dinner courses served during a set time, rather than stretching it out and getting up and down for dancing and then the next bit of food. We’re also going to try and group together some of the other wedding bits so they don’t interrupt the dancing multiple times. Sounds fun, right?
Today was an amazing day, but I almost forgot, I have to write about yesterday first! Yesterday Pete decided he didn’t feel up to dancing at our lesson. At first I felt a little weird, but I decided to go ahead and spend the hour dancing with our instructor. It was a really different experience. Rather than me and Pete both working on learning something one step at a time, then slowly putting it together and then adding the music, we were just dancing away and I learned new steps at full speed. We played about 6 different songs too. At the end I was really glad I decided to dance without Pete because it was exciting to learn so many new steps in one lesson. I learned more swing steps, more side steps, another type of side step and maybe some other things I can’t even remember right now. Sometimes it’s hard to describe what I learned because my brain doesn’t always quite understand the step, but if I don’t think about it too much, my muscles remember. The most interesting idea I learned today is that with swing dancing, as long as you can do two steps and a rock step you will always come out even no matter what crazy turns your partner is doing or making you do.
So, I want to tell you about our e-photo session, but I can’t say too much. While there are a few who have seen a sneak peak, they meant to be unveiled at the wedding. For those of you who don’t know what an e-photo session is, it is a complementary photo shoot given by your wedding photographer. The purpose is to get you feeling comfortable in front of the camera. And if you really like the pictures, you can purchase prints, etc. Let’s just say that out photographer and I were on the same page before we even opened our mouths. I had the perfect location in mind and she was in full agreement. When the day came for us to shoot it was very hot. I did have fun taking the photos but I was very exhausted. I guess because that weekend was so busy I felt really tired. By the time I saw the photos I had ambivalent feelings. But like a fine bottle of wine aging over time or a nice concrete slab undergoing chemical reactions in a process known as curing, my appreciation for these photographs solidified. Now I am bursting at the seams with excitement. All I can say is that they have managed to amalgamate the images of my lovely fiancée and myself with a visual style I really love. I’d say more but I’d probably reveal too much.
This weekend Pete and I had pre cana at the Brooklyn Diocese. Friday night there was a liturgy that was very similar to what our wedding will be like (minus the vows, ring exchange etc). The priest gave a really great homily, that Pete and I both enjoyed. Because we were at an interfaith pre cana, he said we are all there for a reason; somehow our journey has led up to the point that we decided to marry in the Catholic church, but we should not look at it as coincidence or chance. Those words made me feel very welcome and secure. Sometimes I find it really hard to paraphrase the words that led to feeling I walk away from church with, but I guess that’s the best I can do. (more…)
On Monday morning, Pete and I met with our stationer to review our concerns with the invites. She agreed and so did the printer, so they are being reprinted and should be in by Monday. That gave me a week to get the envelopes addressed, order the postage, get the wax seal, and assemble everything so they are ready to have the invite inserted and sent out as soon as they come in.
On Monday afternoon, I went to the post office to confirm the amount for the postage, and then I ordered the stamps. I then went to order the wax seal, but suddenly I noticed something I hadn’t before. They cautioned that the wax seal may make the envelope too thick, which then means you have to pay extra postage. So now I’m not sure if we should order it since I already ordered the postage based on the invite without the seal.
Once I finished with the post office I went to buy a color laser printer, because I figured it would come in handy for the invites, menus, programs, escort cards, gift tags etc. I brought the invite in to the store, to consult with the sales people. I got a great printer, but not for the envelopes. I tried every possible setting for thick material and it just couldn’t pass through. Then I got in touch with the stationer, since she had told me it is done “all the time” with both laser and ink printers. It turns out she was mistaken, the printers use a straight path ink printer, since the lined envelopes can’t bend enough to go around the drum of a laser printer.
So then today I started researching straight path inkjets. Canon has several, but those particular models are only sold through their online store, which would mean I have to wait for them to ship or pay high expedited shipping charges. And to be honest, I didn’t want to risk spending all that money and then it still not working. So back to the store I went, armed with my new knowledge. I found another printer in the store that has rear access to the paper path, so you can manually feed it straight through. The salesperson (who was extremely knowledgeable) assured me I could configure the software that came with the printer to use the rear access.
Once I got home I couldn’t figure it out, so I got on the live chat support. The “technician” was practically illiterate, and had no idea how to help me so I asked for someone to call me. I had to call them, and I got assigned a “ticket” number with the information about my product and issue. I was told I would be transfered to a technician who could help with my particular problem. After being transfered, the ticket number seemed to have no bearing, because I had to give all the information again (only to find out I was transfered to the wrong department). After being transfered to the wrong place for the third time, I politely requested that the correct person call me instead of transferring me again. She refused. So I then asked if I could speak to her manager and SHE HUNG UP ON ME! I once had an HP scanner and I had the same horrendous experience with their customer support. NEVER AGAIN!
After that I decided “I give up.” Two days wasted is enough. I’m returning the printer and hiring a calligrapher. On the bright side, the calligrapher I decided to go with comes highly recommended and can have them done by Monday like I originally wanted!
Everything seems much better from where we stand tonight than it did yesterday walking to the bridal shop. Once we got there, Stacy got a different person who was much more willing to help. I think he sensed that we were really upset and we weren’t being caustic, so he was willing to help us out and get Stacy fitted. After that we went on a mission to set up the tuxedo rentals, but on the way we stumbled on the perfect wedding band for Peter! He was having a hard time deciding what material he wanted the band to be made from, but once he tried on titanium he was really impressed. He’s never worn jewelry before, so the lightweight feel of titanium appealed to him. (more…)