Speaking of all of those things we’ve checked off the list, this has to be one of the most exciting. You might remember that about halfway through planning we decided to scrap our plans for a super expensive caterer and hire a food truck.
The decision was part of a series of changes that I have not regretted for a single second. If anything, I think they’ve made our wedding a whole lot more fun.
After spending the majority of my morning begging the computer gods to let me into Target’s website so I could buy this (#2), I had happy surprise… well, two if you count the fact that patience is, apparently, a virtue, and I eventually got in.
The real news is that I received a super sweet email letting me know that a recent guest post I wrote for Kaptur’s blog is live. The post is all about Mark’s amazing proposal, and I used Kaptur’s awesome service to create my own little slideshow of the event! I even included a little background music.
Kaptur is a really great way to gather everyone’s pictures, videos, and updates from your wedding into one central location — you can even upload directly from Facebook! It’s easy (and really fun) to make slideshows and share them with anyone and everyone you know.
Thanks to Kaptur for including my story on the blog! I hope you’ll all check it out, and take a look around their site while you’re there.
It’s the little details that always get me. You can really tell that a couple poured their hearts into their wedding when the little details seem to represent who they are.
These days, many of us (Mark and I included) have developed an entire life together before we ever say, “I do,” so it is particularly special to be able to share a little piece of what might normally only be ours, on our wedding day. One great way to do that is through favors. Maybe you love to garden, or can your own vegetables… maybe you have an amazing collection of family recipes between the two of you that you want to share… maybe you just love jam. Whatever it is, there is something so special about a handmade favor.
Limoncello / Rosemary Salt and Clementine Sugar / DIY Succulents
I’ve decided to leave my favor decision to the very end… feeling like it’s sort of the “icing on the cake” (bad, sorry) of what I hope will be a great wedding, but there are so many ideas out there… I’m having fun dreaming up what might be the perfect little gift for our guests!
I want to be sure that our choice is a true representation of us… even if that just means it’s likely to be food. If there is one thing that Mark and I manage to prove every time we’re together… it is that we love to eat.
I’ve really been wanting to get into canning lately, so maybe I’ll stumble upon a great idea there… I’ve also considered these amazing little creations, since marshmallows are pretty much my favorite thing ever… and the same goes for caramel and Mark, but you never know what we might come up with in the end! I’m trying to remember to pace myself.
… we do still have well over a year.
I’ve been back and forth and back and forth on our budget. I know how easy it is for this part of the process to get out of control and I really am trying to keep a tight hold on it, but it’s kind of amazing how quickly it all adds up. We plan to pay for the majority of our expenses, and when you factor in rings and a honeymoon, even a small DIY-centric wedding starts to push the price of a pretty nice car… a pretty nice car that we kind of need.
So, of course I start looking for things we can do without… and I think this happens a lot. Often the first thing to go is the videographer. A little voice in your head starts to say, “NBD, I’m going to have tons of gorgeous pictures and surely uncle so-and-so will agree to man mom’s old camera or the errant iPhone…”
Then you see something like this…
[vimeo http://www.vimeo.com/28224273 w=500&h=375]
My Grandparents Wedding :: 16mm from 1944 from bliss* video productions.
Or maybe you get some really great advice from a friend who’s been there, and you realize that if you don’t hire that videographer you might just regret it for the rest of your life.
Your kids and grandkids might even regret it! (Okay… I’m probably getting a little dramatic there, but you see what I mean.)
The film above is amazing because it’s not just two static people, no matter how gorgeous, on their wedding day. You can see their personality and the way they interact… you can relive that moment in time.
Believe me, I am a massive fan of photography (and Mark does a little of his own) — heck, our photographer was the first person we contacted after booking a venue — so I don’t discount the ability of a great photographer to accurately and beautifully convey the emotion of the day… but a really great film can pick you up and take you there.
Needless to say… I am secure in our decision not to forgo a videographer, knowing that 20 years from now, when that extra line item in the budget is a distant memory, we’ll be able to sit down and enjoy our day all over again.
… which is not to say that I’m not on the hunt for a super affordable option, in case you have any recommendations!
Yay!
Bridget and I work together, so I snuck in early today to leave this pretty card and a vintage plate filled with buckeyes on her desk. She said yes… so I have myself a maid of honor!
… and she might be cursing me right now for leaving her with an entire plate of what are essentially homemade peanut butter cups, but better, because they’re made with Lindt 70% dark chocolate and just a little hint of cream cheese.
The recipe is over at Smitten Kitchen, one of my very favorite food blogs, and you have to try it. It’s a little tricky to get that perfect buckeye circle at the top, I demolished more than one in the name of practice, but the recipe itself is super simple and you won’t be able to put them down… which is clearly both a very good and a very (very) bad thing.
Is it wrong that – right now – my #1 source of wedding stress revolves around the dress? Maybe it’s just a convenient distraction from thinking about the budget (I’ll take just about anything that keeps me away from that topic).
All I can say is that I want the dress to be perfect… so perfect that his jaw drops the second he sees me… but at this point I have no idea what that means…
Although, at this point that’s kind of the way I feel about the whole wedding. So maybe it’s okay. I have yet to go shopping, or even look at very many dresses online. Right now, it’s all kind of a fuzzy mash of a million pictures (*thank you* unhealthy obsession with Pinterest) and a feeling in my gut… but, I guess it’s kind of a good feeling. Eventually I know it will all take shape. Right now it’s still kind of scary, but it’s a good scary… scary in anticipation of something amazing… kind of Christmas morning-ish?
I don’t know, it’s super late (for me) and I really should get to bed, but here’s a little fuzzy anticipation for your late Thursday night…
Sarah Seven / Amsale via SMP / Proenza Schouler via Once Wed / Dress via SMP
Photo Credit: We Heart Photography via Ever Ours
So we drove to Los Olivos and oh, let me tell you, it was a trip. I may or may not have been conscious when we left my parents’ house at 3am.
(Let’s just pretend, though, that I’m not an awful person and did not make poor Mark drive alone with a sleeping Laicie in the passenger seat for the first 5 hours. I did eventually come to and take my turn at the wheel, which makes it a little better, right? Honestly I’m always torn on this subject, but I have no control over my eyes… they call the shots.)
Once we were both fully conscious, we decided to break up the drive with an amazing pit-stop at Ridge and realized that we have to go back to join the utterly badass ranks of the many folks we saw cycling up that massive hill that leads to their Monte Bello Estate. We also hunted down some Rubios fish tacos (and yes… the 13 hour drive was worth it just for the tacos — don’t make fun).
Our love of wine and tacos ensured that we came flying into town and up the winding road that leads to Figueroa Mountain Farmhouse just in time for our 6:30pm appointment with the farmhouse’s manager, Gretchen.
Gretchen is wonderful. There are really not enough people out there praising her on the internet. She is warm and fun and absolutely easy to work with… I couldn’t have hoped for a better experience than the one we had touring the farmhouse.
And I couldn’t have hoped for a better venue.
In case you can’t tell from the photos, the place is picturesque. As our car peeked out over the mountain to reveal the farmhouse I told Mark it reminded me of the little house on the top of the waterfall in “Up.”
Mark was an Eagle Scout and we’re both big on adventure, so needless to say, we love the movie… but aside from the movie reference, I’m not sure how anyone could say no to the farmhouse.
The setting is gorgeous and the house is every bit as wonderful inside. The whole thing was shipped across the country and pieced together from three different sites on the east coast: a 1700’s barn/farmhouse from New Hampshire; a timber home from West Virginia; and a cabin from Tennessee. The sun room and guest house were added to complete the whole perfect picture.
Over the hill sits a little pond and an ostrich farm — and tell me, what is more fun than sawing open an ostrich egg for Sunday brunch? … honestly I’m a little freaked out by it, but I’m excited to find out.
The house sleeps around 14 and has a large parking area that can be used for camping, which we plan to encourage since we’ll also hold a welcome BBQ on Friday night. There are multiple fireplaces and loads of options for fun side trips to Los Olivos, Buellton, and Solvang nearby.
Mark and I not only fell in love with the farmhouse, we fell in love with the Santa Ynez Valley. We’ve always loved wine country, but there is something about this particular area that is so laid back and different from the rest… and now we’ll always have a good excuse to go back!
Farmhouse photos by Aaron Delesie.
Birdcage Veil on Etsy / Martha Stewart via Kirtsy / Jadeite Dishes via Our Nesting Place / Madden Photography / Meadowbrook Farm
I’ve officially started scouring ebay for the perfect jadeite dishes. Because it’s going to be a small ceremony and I already have about 25 sets of these, my mom has been awesome enough to offer to finish off the table with 25 sets of jadeite. We tried out the combination when I was home last and the two worked beautifully together.
So if anyone comes across any really fabulous and cheap jadeite (I’m thinking Fire King’s Jane Ray edition?) let me know!
For those of you with a bigger order, there are so many amazing vintage rental shops springing up all over the place. I just love that the option exists to rent vintage if you’re not into the standard bone china or basic furniture. 100 Layer Cake has a great list here, and if you’re in Southern California, be sure to add in Archive Vintage Rentals. Stephanie is a total joy to work with — really sweet and so so helpful.
After Arkansas, I started to compile a list (it may have gotten a little out of control).
For a while we seriously considered going overseas — or at least as far as Hawaii. It could be a small ceremony, just a few of our closest friends and family… or even just us. The idea of a romantic little ceremony really appealed to us, so I started thinking about places that were sentimental. Where have we been? Where did we want to go?
The Eolo Hotel sits about 30 minutes outside of El Calafate on the way to Perito Moreno Glacier and looks incredible. We’ve always wanted to go to Patagonia, but on the other hand, it’s Patagonia. The likelihood of many of our friends and family making it all the way out to the Eolo was pretty slim.
So… Greece?
When I was a little girl I always said I would get married in Greece, and for some reason, I’ve always envisioned my wedding to Mark on the top of a mountain. Mark combined the two (and threw in a gorgeous lake for good measure) when he discovered Drakolimni Lake in northwestern Greece. Again, it looks like a dream… it might also be a 5 hour hike from the nearest town.
Okay, so it’s possible that the two of us tend to gravitate toward the middle of nowhere. This wasn’t really a realistic option.
… but it’s gorgeous, right?!
I considered the south of France based on sheer beauty…
Photo Credit: Andrea & Marcus
… and Hawaii, for a million reasons.
Photo Credit: Sarah Rhoads
But ultimately, the big far-away trip just wouldn’t have allowed us to celebrate with the people we love, and the planning could have become a nightmare. It was unlikely, because of budget, that we would have been able to visit the place where we planned to marry and would have had to rely on pictures and word of mouth for almost everything… and I’m not saying that would have driven me crazy, but… yes, I would have had a meltdown.
So in the end, we decided to narrow the geography of our list. And by narrow, I mean the continental United States.
Okay, no… not really. Because Arkansas had already come into consideration we knew that we wanted to be a little closer to one of our homes, so we at least had to narrow this thing down to one of the coasts.
Since we’ve finally (and I use the word finally very loosely here) found our venue, I thought I’d take a couple of days to highlight some of the major contenders that didn’t ultimately make the cut. The process was a long one, since, as I mentioned, I may have started a lot little early.
In retrospect, the first venue I fell in love with might seem a little crazy… after all, it is in Arkansas. Hear me out, though. Mark and I are from opposite coasts. Our family live everywhere from upstate New York to Louisiana to Oregon. When it came to choosing a location, one particular place just didn’t scream, “pick me!” In fact, we almost felt like, rather than choosing sides, a neutral, interesting location might be a better fit… everyone would get to take a mini-vacation somewhere new.
Enter Thorncrown Chapel.
Photo Credit: Hudson Photography via Style Me Pretty
The gorgeous chapel was built by E. Fay Jones, a former apprentice of Mr. Frank Lloyd Wright. It sits outside one of the cutest little towns you’ve ever seen, Eureka Springs, buried deep within the mountains and woods of the Ozarks. Between Mark’s love of Frank Lloyd Wright and our combined love of the outdoors, it felt like the perfect place.
It didn’t take me long to start dreaming of the ideal underground reception location with the best bluegrass band, mason jars, loads of southern charm… maybe we could get Joe Purdy to come!!
Photo Credit: Hudson Photography via Style Me Pretty
Of course, ultimately, it just didn’t feel right. The closest I’ve been to Arkansas is New Orleans. I wouldn’t even know what to expect, and Mark is no different. The whole thing started to feel a little contrived, two kids from the coast celebrating their love with southern charm?
Yes, I grew up on a horse and am only partially ashamed to admit that I love country music, but I am not southern. In the end, Thorncrown just wasn’t the right choice.
… although, Joe, if you really would play our wedding, I could be persuaded to change my mind… so, let me know.
Seriously.
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