My Last Pre-Wedding Post...

   Today is my last day of being single, and I couldn't be happier. Tomorrow is a start of a new life, and I couldn't be more pleased. My dream is coming true. The man I love asked me to marry him just 6 months and three weeks ago, and I said yes. It's been quite the adventure getting here, but we made it. We aren't any worse for wear, we are both happy, and I believe in my heart that God made Sam just for me. I hope I can be the wife he deserves, and live up to the standard I've promised him.

   My father is finally here after a long night of driving out to the city with my future brother-in-law. The bouquets are finally being finished, thanks to my sister-in-law to be, who has more tallent for aranging flowers than I do. Thanks to my future mother in law, and the dear friends around me, I have a wedding, reception, and a meal for my guests. There are always bumps in the road, and I've hit all of them. There are always trials, heartaches, and the need to accept things at their face value, and I've overcome all of them. But I did it with help.

   I now put myself foreward, I present myself to you at my face value. I came to a realization this morning, I'm not the "Do It Yourself Bride", I am the "did it with help bride", and very humbly so. Family doesn't always mean related by blood or marriage, it's the people who love you, care for you, will do anything to see you succeed, and will help you reach any goal. My family has been here for me through all of this, and I know, family, and the marriage I am about to embark on, are the two greatest gifts a person can ever ask for.

   So here's to us, we've made it down a long hard road, and we see the love we have for eachother grow and blossom every day. And here's to the family who has kept it all together when we're not looking.

Ready for the wedding?

I find it amazing that we spend our whole lives planning for one day, and we don't take one day to prepare for the rest of our lives.

   I'm getting married in 5 days. It's crazy to think about. Last I checked I was still 7 years old riding around on my dad's shoulder and pointing at all the scary grown-up rides at Great America. My dad was the strongest man in the world. I was still playing with Polly Pockets, and I was convinced that one day I would be a world renown horse trainer like Pat Perrelli. And I always dreamed of my wedding day. It would be beautiful, at my grandparents home tucked in the California Mountians, and that my true love would look like the mix of Shia LeBeouf and Juaquin Phoenix, (okay, no one said I was very ambitious when I was a kid, because that would have been one ugly guy... Anyway!).

   Well, Polly Pocket is gone, I don't ride horses, and Great America is a thing of the past. My wedding isn't in California, and my man is way better looking than the Shia/Phoenix mutt I dreamed about. I always dreamed that I would be happy too, and I am glad to report, I was wrong, I'm happier than I ever could have dreamed.

   Since I met Sam, I've not dreamed about the wedding, but the marriage. The good times and the bad. We've traveled a long hard road to get to where we are, but I believe we are stronger for it. If we had not faced the trials we did, I'm not sure we would be getting married on Saturday. It was our love and devotion that kept us together when we were so far apart. And it was the simplicity in our hearts that made us believe we only needed eachother to be happy.

   I'm not sure if I'm ready to have a wedding, but I know I'm ready to be married. God allows us humans to love. And He also gave us the free will to love whoever we chose. I thank God for those gifts. They are the most precious things we possess.

The Monster-In-Law Myth

Jane:    "Maybe you should have someone play special music during the ceremony"...
Me:     "Jug of Punch"?
Jane:    "Please don't make me say 'no' again"

    Now you see an example of my wedding planning process for the past 6 months. We're 12 days before the wedding, and I came to a realization, she's not out to get me! She's not going to murder me in my sleep, she isn't going to hate me for chosing "army green" (as she would call it) for the accent color for the wedding. She doesn't bite, scratch, claw, hiss, cuss, or spit.

Yesterday She hosted my bridal shower. It was a lovely affair. She decorated my house, she made pizza, and she even put blueberries in the punch. She invited enough people to make my house seem small...

My own mother and I don't see eye to eye, and we haven't spoken since a week after Sam proposed. So, I felt like I've been planning the wedding alone. And everything is going right. I thought it was my new-found brilliance for organizing for the big day, but it wasn't. She did it. She's "ruined" my wedding plans more than once. She's told me I just cannot walk down the aisle to a song that encludes reference to alchahol and death (it's a light irish tune). And she has assured me that this wedding will come off without a hitch.

Isn't it funny how we look at the woman who does everything for our bennefit, is the hand behind all of our plans, and the force that guides us to the right decisions, and we call her The Monster-in-Law. But she's not that way, or at least mine isn't. I wouldn't trade that "monster" for anything.

P.S. She's having my reception inside.

I've been lazy, I know...

Alright, so I havent posted in a few days...as a matter of fact, I'm not sure when I posted last, but I'm back! The other day my blog had 45 page views! This is a new record for me, and it greatly surpassed the previous record of 13. Well, my blog flat-lined again. Which means I'm not doing my job. So, I'll tell you about yesterday!

   My girls came over at about 4:30 while I was getting things set up at the house, and creating a small "David's coming" presentation on my dining table. They got the grand tour of the house, (which you will get in a few weeks) and I got to show them all of my ideas for the wedding! They got to see my bouquet, the wishing jar, cake topper and all of my other lovelies!

   Next we went back to the main house and we tried on dresses! If I had had half a brain yesterday I would have spent most of my time taking pictures of our fun, but I can tend to be an "in the moment" type of person. The girls were introduced to their jewelry and tried on their dresses for my final inspection. And they look gorgeous! The dresses fit like they were tailored for each girl... Oh wait, they were! I let the girls figure out where the hem was going to sit on their dresses, and as long as they weren't going to be micro dresses, I was fine. They decided to have them just at the knee. To make sure the hems weren't too high, they each sat in their dress to see where the hem would fall.

   Then, we all headed out to the venue. I think we all agreed that the reception cannot be inside unless it is pouring rain and Dorothy is trying to fly her house again. Our guest list has gotten considerably larger since we rented it, and the inside is positively too small to hold upwards of 120 guests. Even 50 in that room would be a bit of a squeeze. It's a bit worrisome when you have such a small space to seat so many people, in the heat of June where there are only 5 windows that open, and only 3 in the seating area. So, I'm opting for an outdoor reception as well. The property is large enough that even David would agree that the wedding and reception can be held at the same location.

   We came back to the main house and talked wedding plans, ate supper, and everyone went home. It was a very full day. But I love having my girls around me. All in all, very good day.

   Today Sam and I are venturing out to the venue so he can see my vision for the wedding and reception. And, hopefully I can convince him that an outdoor reception is the only thing to do (He likes air conditioning). Wish me luck!

Love Birds and Fashion

Yesterday was a very long shopping day, and to show the fruits of my labor, I made today a craft day. Now, it's not very much, but I do have a few surprises!

As you all know, the theme for the wedding is Love Birds/Vintage. So why not have vintage love birds! I cheated a little, and bought a premade necklace chain, but I didnt like the finding, so I replaced it with a watch-chain style clasp (matching the clasp on my pearls). 

As you can see, I had to wire the chain to the back of the pendant because this necklace was designed to have a split chain. But, we make do with what we have. As you can see there is a small pearl in the nest. It lended a lot of character to the piece, and was a quick fix to give it personality. As you may remember my Tulle Poofs, I cut the pearl off of it's stem and used Janes "Freaking Hot 3000" hot glue gun, and glued the small pearl in place.

Next, I have this wicked-awesome knot hole, lent to me by my big sister-in-law Beth! I thought it was so cool when I first saw it sitting in her garage at her Memorial Day barbeque. So, I made a table decoration out of it. I found these birds at Michaels for $3 each. I really liked them, and they are a pretty good size for the knot hole.

I cut a chunk of cardboard and covered up the bottom, and using the "Freaking Hot 3000" again, I glued the cardboard into place. (I used glue as apposed to nails or screws because this piece is just borrowed, and I didn't want to put any cracks in the wood. Glue scrapes off very easily.)

Next came the nest, I just used a few handfuls of hay from the barn. I twisted the center to make it look a little more like birds had woven it, rather than a very clumsy girl.

Last, but certianly not least, I put in the love birds. I think this will be a real eye catcher at the reception! Or at least I hope it will. I set the birds in a little deep so anyone would have to have a double take on my craftiness!

I'll bet you think I forgot about the surprises! Well, I didnt! And here's where I get to show them off!

These are the bridesmaids dresses, lovingly sewn by Jane. Aren't they pretty? Each one is tailor-fit to each of the bridesmaids. I'm so glad they like the color and style. I chose this very versitile pattern because the dresses and necklaces are gifts to the girls. As you can see here, the necklace is already on the form to see where it will hang on the neckline.

And here is a photo of the necklace up close. (this photo was taken of the prototype before the pearl was added)

Well, I hope you enjoyed the post! I hope you come back soon for more DIY ideas!

My Wedding Bouquet

As you know, I've been trying to style my wedding bouquet, which, wasn't working for me. Flowers didn't look right, it needed depth, I don't like it... I even came to the point where I was going to sell my flowers to the highest bidder and buy a bouquet from the supermarket! But, I didn't have the right perspective. I still dont, which is why my dear sister-in-law Lana stayed up until 2 in the morning with me trying to create that lasting memory of a bouquet.

And here it is! Isn't it beautiful? I'll take you step by step through all the things in this bouquet that make it a part of me. It's beauty is enough to look at, but there's always a story behind what you see.

My felt flowers, which you've seen the tutorial for. They've all been hand embroidered by yours truly. My wedding colors, and a tribute to my late Grandmother Mary who made her living by creating things out of wool.

And then there are Janes contributions. She found the idea for this blue flower online. It is made from the left over lining from the bridesmaids dresses, cut into circles with slits in them, and the edges are melted over a candle. Then they are stacked until the flower is large enough to suit whoever is making it, and it is then sewn down through the center with a button, or, as pictured, 3 small pearl beads.

Here is the second of Janes ideas. I'm not sure how she made it, but it is a tulle poof. If I can convince her to make more, she will be starring in my next tutorial! But for now I just get to enjoy the delicate beauty of...tulle.

When I was told I needed to add depth to my bouquet, I never thought it would mean both the physical appearance and the story behind it. My wonderful man brought me home from California last October. It was only 1 week after my 19th birthday, and I came home with a duffle bag half filled with clothes. I had nothing. But, in my very tiny room, he left me a present. A beautiful bouquet. As soon as they were out of their prime for live flowers, I dried them. Unfortunately most of the flowers were too delicate and fell apart once they were dry, but two things survived, baby's breath, and 10 roses.

A lace doilie. This is part of Janes herritage for sure. When I first arrived, I started immediatly picking up on her southern womans wisdom. The first thing she told me was that "a woman is nothing but a simple cotton thread. But the thread twists, it weaves together, and the harder you work at it, the more beautiful it becomes." That was when I decided that I just had to have a doilie in my bouquet. I looked in antique shops and thrift shops, but I never found "the one." When Jane found out that I wanted one, she imparted with me a gift. The last doilie she made. It's beautiful vintage colors, and charm, coupled with its history made it an essential part of the bouquet. Thank you Jane.

I just have to say, isn't this bouquet handle cool? Lana's mother found it online, and sent it my way. I love silver, and this will match the embroidery/beading on my gown, and the silver in my veil.

And here are my final facets. Sam is wearing a small bird pin on his lapel for the wedding. And, symbolically, or some other such nonsense, I decided that I needed a bird too! So we could be two love birds meeting at the end of the aisle. And here, also, is my white lace daisy. Sewn on the only pure white flower of any of the bouquets. This, along with the one on my veil, and the one on my gown, is one of the daisies from my Grandmother Viola's wedding veil.

So, here it is. My bouquet is complete. Thanks to two very wonderful women in my life, and thanks to Sam, my life is complete too.

A Single Lace Daisy...

I've not accomplished much since I graduated. Sam and I have been working on the farm, and I was able to enjoy a long weekend with him (and long weekends in his line of work are few and far between).

   Three days ago I had the flu. Yuck. Stomach cramps lasted all night, and into the next day. But, they subsided, but in my dire illness (and yes, this is an extreme exaggeration), I finished my veil! It's beautiful. I folded the material (which is actually an old shawl) to stagger the design on each end, and sewn onto a hair comb with...fake, but pretty pearl beads. I wish I had a tutorial for you, but I'm not even sure how I did it. Weaving threads until it looked right, I just played it by ear.

Like I said, I had no idea what I was doing to make this work, so I just fiddled with it until it looked right. It took three days of playing with it until it took shape.

Although I don't look particularly "bridal" in this photo, I started writing this post before I even had the pictures! It's such a lovely piece though, and that is simply my opinion.

I really love the detail on the bottom of the veil. It was purchased in India in the 1920's, made of Indian silk and the design woven in is silver bound thread. They certainly don't make them like this anymore! It was a gift from my Great-Grandfather Fredrick to my Great-Grandmother Hazel. It was passed down to my Grandfather who gave it as a gift to my Grandmother. From there, my Grandmother gave it to me. It's simplicity is what attracted me to it, and it was the perfect fit for my vintage wedding.

And here's where I tell you that I lied! I said that my veil was finished, but when I sat down at the computer, I realized that it wasn't! So I quickly attached my Great-Grandmother Viola's lace daisy from her own wedding veil. As you can see, this photo wasn't exactly staged. But here's the proof that my veil is, now, indeed done.

And that's all folks!