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Today I went with Pete’s mom to a couple of florists to start getting ideas. I’ve been trying for weeks to get a mental image of what would fit in our beach theme but still be elegant at the same time. I originally had the idea that I wanted to avoid using so many flowers because I found it sad how many of them get cut and then die so quickly. While I was at the florists though, it was very easy to change my mind, and get swept up in the idea of traditional over-the-top floral arrangements. They do seem much prettier and fancier than any of the DIY centerpieces I have seen. Now that I’m back home, I’m just as confused as ever. I think I need to talk to Pete about it and sit with the idea for a while and see how we feel.

After seeing tons of positive reviews for the DJ company I was considering, I decided to ask Pete to come meet with them. We went over everything again and Pete got to watch the sample videos. I really like Ray’s upbeat personality and I think he will do a great job as MC of our wedding reception. Pete thought more about the band vs. DJ question and we talked in the car on the way there. I think I would enjoy either and I like the interactive nature of a live band but Pete really prefers the original songs. So we decided to book Variety Music. That’s one more big piece of the puzzle taken care of!

Today I finally ordered the bridesmaids dresses! I got in touch with a suit maker to confirm how much extra fabric we will need for the guys’ ties, and I ordered that as well. Now we just have to wait until they get here. I can’t wait to see them.

Today Pete and I went to look at a necklace I was considering wearing on our wedding day. As we walked up to Tiffany I was a little nervous (I know, silly). I had never gone inside before and I had no idea what to expect. I was nervous that we would not fit in with people who buy their jewelry there or something. That was definitely not the case! The woman we talked to spent a long time with us and gave us a lot of great ideas. Even though we decided the necklace I had my eye on wouldn’t have enough presence for bridal jewelry, I walked out feeling great that the staff at Tiffany is so kind and helpful!

Today I had a virtual fitting with Adrienne. She was in a bridal shop in Atlanta and I was on the phone with her while she tried on dresses and got measured. So now we have all the bridesmaids’ measurements and we are ready to order the dresses!!

Last Thursday, after hitting endless dead ends with finding someone close by to do my alterations, I went back and forth with a manager at Kleinfeld trying to convince her to let me come back to the store. In the end I was told there are no exceptions. However, she did tell me that the women on the list they gave me are the very same women who do the alterations in the store; they do work from home on their days off. I told her my frustration with how far they all are from Astoria, so she told me which seamstress was the best, and I made an appointment with her for today.

When I got there, I told myself I would be cautious and not work with her unless I was 100% comfortable with leaving my dress with her. Well, Stella is amazing. It was so worth the long drive to get to her. She has been a seamstress at Kleinfeld for 26 years! I stayed with her over an hour and in that time she completely transformed my dress to the vision I had in my head, with just a few pieces of scrap fabric and some pins. She also showed me how it will look with the bustle, and it’s fabulous. I felt very comfortable with her personality and I know my dress is going to be amazing because of her.

I have been wondering how I make sure the gown is not wrinkled after traveling out to the Hamptons. I guess because I’ve never been a bridesmaid or helped plan a wedding, there are so many little things I don’t know about. Stella is going to be with us the day of the wedding and steam the dress in the morning and help me get in to it. She also helps the moms and bridesmaids, does the bustle so we don’t have to get stressed out about doing it right, etc etc. I feel so relieved today after meeting with her and so blessed that she will be there on the day. The only sad part is that now I don’t get to see my dress again until my next fitting in July!

When we first thought about registering, we didn’t think there was anything we needed, but then it dawned on me that most people I know have wedding china set that is a treasured part of many holidays and I thought, that’s a nice thing to register for. Pete agreed with me, so I looked around and found a set that I really loved and a couple of backup options in case Peter hated it! I also saw a lot of other items that I loved while I was there, so I crossed over from my anti-registry viewpoint.

This morning Pete and I got up bright and early and went to a registry “event.” The store was closed except for couples registering for their wedding. It was a really fun experience. When we arrived at the store, we were offered mimosas, a scanner and a checklist to start out. I thought it would go pretty quickly since I picked my favorite options ahead of time and Pete wouldn’t have to look at every single thing, but we ended up spending about 2 hours looking around, asking lots of questions and enjoying some delicious food. The shop had several stations set up to demonstrate the different cookware and kitchen electronics and the food was amazing. For example, who knew there was such a thing as an indoor grill? I would never have thought to pick it out just seeing it on the shelf…in fact I didn’t even notice it. But after seeing it in action and tasting the skewers it made, we couldn’t resist. It’s also kind of perfect for us since we have no outdoor space! Now we just have to sort through everything and make sure we chose the right quantities etc.

We also went to Michael’s (craft store) today to get some ideas for flower arrangements and other decor. Maria had some great suggestions there too. I had originally planned to make a treasure chest instead of having a money bag. I liked the idea of a treasure chest for the “treasure,” but Maria pointed out that it’s a little pirate-y, which is true. Read the rest of this entry »

Today Maria came down and we went to the bridal shop for her measurements. I really liked the dress on Maria, and I can’t wait until we get them all in and start on the alterations. I also showed Maria & Mrs. M. the dress Laura picked, and they had some great suggestions as to how to make it look more similar to the other dresses…but still unique at the same time! Now we only have one more bridesmaid to finish her measurements…

So I have a wedding gown that I could love, if only I could get the alterations I want done. Apparently, no bridal shop will alter a dress they didn’t also sell to you, and Kleinfeld (the bridal shop I bought it at) won’t alter my dress either, because I purchased it in a sample sale. Kleinfeld gave me some recomendations, but the only one that is within a reasonable distance for me is a woman who doesn’t speak English very well and won’t even give me a ballpark estimate of the time or cost of the alterations I want unless I cart the dress over for her to look at. I was so happy when I saved myself over $2000, but now I’m paying for it in headache. I have been scouring all the posts on liweddings.com and other sites to see what other ladies have done. Surely I can’t be the only person in this situation? There must be someone reputable to do the alterations? Any ideas?