The Wedding Room

DISCLAIMER: I ended up taking all the furniture and wall art out of this room a while back so it could be purely wedding focused (aka....I didn't want to get confused with having SO much crap everywhere), so excuse the lack of home decor that you are about to see! Maybe you have heard mention of the "wedding room" where all my wedding magic happens. After several requests for photos, I have put together a tour through my wedding room in all it's glory.

It started as an office, but I never created something I felt comfortable working in (my local coffee shop takes the cake as a comfortable office goes.) Next it turned into a guest bedroom, which served its purpose many times, but as the wedding drew closer, it turned into a storage unit, and not an organized one. This place was basically a pit filled with all things wedding from bags to boxes, DIY projects and oh so much more.

I needed a break from all the wedding stuff I have been doing so I focused on organizing, cleaning and decorating my home. (Ian was away for his bachelor party meaning I had 2 days of organizing madness ahead of me!). I started with the rest of the house and eventually moved into the wedding room. I started just cleaning out all the bags and boxes and putting things in their place in preparation for wedding transportation.

In the end I ended up with a totally clean and organized room along with several boxes of stuff ready to go on site at the wedding venue! Here is an overall look of the room where all the "magic" happens.

That small desk (to the right) is an extension of the room where all the table numbers are being made.

And now for the closer look:

I am using tons of letters and tons of jars, those are rampant among these parts. I have been on a massive search for the past 6 months and have collected each and every one from all around town. Bummer is that I need about 50 more (yay for rental companies!). This is a collection of the favor table, cake table and dinner table decor.

Next up is the supply table, but not before taking a glance at some amazing windows.

During the last DIY party it became quite evident that I was extremely unorganized. 6 girls and 1 pair of sizzors just doesn't cut it for very long. (unintentional pun intended). Ian ended up having to go back and forth to the store picking up all the odds and ends in the supply department. Seeing as we are having our final DIY party this coming weekend, I thought it was fitting to keep all of the supplies in one place and in an organized fashion. Oh and that massive pile of books will be table runners.....somehow.

Favorite tool so far: my glue gun. I didn't opt for a very hefty one, but this $7 item has worked wonders, and is extremely satisfying.

I had photos of the closet, but they didn't turn out all that well. That is a place for supplies such as twine, paper, fabric and all that other stuff that you are going to need for basically every DIY project. It also serves as the space to keep my wedding day attire, bags of stuff I haven't been able to start on yet, and more.

Last up is the corner of the room that still serves the orignal purpose of a "guest bedroom".

So there is a look into the world of my home and everything wedding. Getting organized was a definite breathe of fresh air for me as I was able to see what I actually had and what I still needed. I went all around the house grabbing all the wedding stuff laying around in other places and put it in here where it rightfully belongs making it so much easier to keep my mind on one room of stuff as opposed to a house full of wedding stuff basically everywhere.

DIYing Is Over-Rated

This coming from the girl who decided it was necessary to take on each and every individual project with a new idea for DIYing. So I can't necessarily say that I totally believe this title, though I thought it was fitting due to the "fine line" I'm about to mention. Essentially I feel like every portion, every table and pretty much every single thing that any guest will happen to lay their eyes on, should reflect us and be a personalized touch. Talk about a wedding planner's nightmare right? I have most recently come to my senses the conclusion that maybe that isn't the most important part. When I am in the moment, I won't quite care that my to-do list hasn't been complete.

So here is the fine line between DIY amazingness, and insanity. DIY where you can to save the big bucks, but don't think that saving $1,00 is worth being your own caterer. Believe me, I looked into it, and it is not worth it. But things like candle holders, vases, signs, and even table cloths can be great money savers not to mention can be exactly as you imagined. I'm going to go ahead and say that I have saved at least $1,000 if not more just by DIYing. (probably at the price of sanity, but there is always compromise!)

Lastly, DIY the important stuff. Those little details, those little touches that you really feel will make or break your day. But only those things that are personal to you, and for the rest, let it go and do it if you have time. No, guests aren't going to notice if you hang little letters from the outdoor lights during the cocktail hour, so skip it. And as for those bigger projects, find someone who knows how to make it and make it well. I swear, you will save a lot of time and money instead of staying up all night and learning out to sew just so you can make your own fabric flower bouquets.

I love DIYing, and though I will probably do very little of it after the wedding, it was a great experience and I will be happy to have each of my projects complete and propped up for all eyes to see. But, if these projects come at the price of sanity, pay a little more and get a professional (aka and amazing Etsy designer) to do the work for you. It will probably look 100 times better anyway!

Happy Crafting!

Bachlorette Party Recap

The bachlorette party has come to an end meaning I am one step closer to tying the knot. I wanted something super chill, so Napa seemed like the perfect spot. We started the day running super late (as always) and having to rush to the hotel and get ready really fast. We stayed at the Westin in Napa, which I totally recommend. The hot tub was gigantic! We went to Brix, met with our wonderful photographer Scott, an did a fun girl's shoot. (Photos coming soon!) This is my totally favorite spot in Yountville.

The next day we headed over to the Marketplace in Yountville to do some wine tasting. We started at this spot (totally forgot the name of it!) It was actually totally amazing. The outside was decked in French country adorableness. Milk bottles, fountains, over-sized farm tables and super cute outdoor couches made for an amazing wine tasting experience.

After a day of wine tasting, we decided it was time to hit up the town for a true bachlorette celebration! The girls brought streamers which we put up ALL over the room and the bathroom (as you can see below.) Here are a few shots of us getting ready and heading out and moving the party from Napa to San Francisco!

Overall, we had a total blast. We never get to hang out very much anymore, let alone hang out with wine and clubs and no men for a whole weekend. Love you girls!

The Best Song Request Ever

I got an RSVP and song request submission one day that said "This one goes out to Nikki. Player's gunna play by 3LW". I was literally laughing out loud in a coffee shop alone when I read that. Best song request to date. And here's the story. I made the mistake of telling my fiance, one of my bridesmaids and her boyfriend about my dream as a child. To think, I went 15 years without spilling the beans to anyone...and well, as of now the story is out. So I will begin the journey through my awesome musical library in 1993(ish) on the day I realized what I wanted to be when I grew up.

Me in the early years....Luckily our house doesn't look like that anymore!

As a young tyke I wanted to be a singer and my idol was Brandy. Since Brandy just went by 1 name I felt like I needed a name, a new name that would change my appearance and my life. Allison didn't quite fit the need, so I chose, Nikki. (with two k's. That is important.) I told my mom about this and she offered to pay for singing classes. For some reason I took this as a total insult and apparently didn't understand that she was trying to help me pursue my dreams.....that was pretty much the end of my musical career. Honestly, I am not really a good singer at all.

After telling them this, I started getting texts saying "Hey Nikki." So that explains the Nikki part, and now for the song.

Somewhere in this conversation we were talking about TGIF, all the old shows and all the good 90's music. I brought up 3LW and was trying to remember their famous song. I sort of started humming and singing and Delancey (the BM) totally got what I was singing. We started laughing and the boys asked what the lyrics were. Delancey started saying the lyrics which in turn put them in laughter. All of this lead to me falling off my chair and a night of continuous laughter all while making fun of us girls and our awesome music.

The moral of the story is that although song requests generally haven't gotten me anywhere, they are totally worth it if by chance you get a gem such as this!

Next up is a more serious note about our musical tastes and of course, the first dance song!

Bachlorettes and Bridesmaids

This weekend is the bachlorette party! We aren't doing anything too crazy but what we have planned, I am very excited for. Us girls never seem to get much time together anymore. With random work schedules, wedding plans and everything else it just doesn't happen as much as it should. So this weekend the group of us are heading to Napa Valley for a girls getaway and bachlorette party. We may head over to San Francisco on Saturday night to party it up and celebrate!

While we are there I thought it would be a totally perfect opportunity to do a mini photo shoot of all the girls together. Ok so maybe Ian and I can't seem to get an engagement shoot done, but the girls and I will do a BM shoot (or whatever you want to call it. The location is my all time favorite restaurant in Napa introduced to me by my parents and the place that Ian should have proposed to me. (Long story, basically I was definitely sure he was going to do it....and well, he didn't. And if you ask me, he should have :) ) The place has an outdoor terrace followed by a garden area with couches and fountains, followed by rows of vineyards and finally followed by old train tracks and rolling mountains. Srsly, this is a great place for a shoot in every way shape and form.

I'm going to try to style something cute, but who knows what will happen in the next few days! Either way I totally can't wait for this girls trip and a time to finally re-connect with everyone while celebrating!

Photos by the amazing Elizabeth Messina

The location for the shoot: Here is the gardens area as well as the terrace where we will be enjoying dinner.

Honeymooning In Style

So first of all, I am doing a ton of honeymoon research hence all the posts about it. I totally love all of your suggestions for what to do while we are in Australia (and now New Zealand as well!) and I have started researching and booking some of those places. My first concern is the 17 hour flight we have to sit on. I have to pack lots of entertainment. Enter the iPad 2. I am not a fan of the iPad only because I have a Mac Book Pro and an iPhone 4....so what else is missing from that that an iPad will solve? I have always said that the only thing an iPad is good for is if you are traveling, and hey, I'm traveling! I will probably get one, although I need to find some reason to have it besides the honeymoon, and the jury is still out on that. So far the only one I have is that I love playing Diner Dash on it. I beat the iPhone game version with a perfect score of 5 stars for 50 levels and the iPad will pose a new challenge. (Honestly this is the only game I have ever been addicted to...I'm not a loser, I swear.)

(I'm getting white!)

So basically the plane will consist of sleeping, computer time, iPad time, and movie time. I feel like such a couch potato saying that, but it's not like I have that many options.

Next up we arrive in Australia. Seeing as the seasons are different I have to shop for the exact opposite season than it actually is. Come on Nordstrom, get on it, I need some good stuff!  Here is a beachy 'fit that will be perfect for my idea of Australia weather. Just hoping it is in cold!

Source: Cover Up, Necklace, Shoes

And lastly, bathing suit time. I haven't purchased a bathing suit in like 3 years. Essentially I just never had a reason to until now.

Source: White, Gray

So there you have it. Shopping time here we come!

An Engagement Shoot of Sorts

We did an engagement shoot of sorts with the intention of getting a suitable photo for our wedding website. These are a few favorites.

We decided to do RSVPs via the internet to make it easier for everyone. We figure it keeps all the names and song requests in order and in one place online, (so much easier for me!) and people can simply go online and RSVP while at the same time getting all the info for the wedding all in one place.

So, without further ado, check out our wedding website that we have put together for our guests! Introducing www.aprileighth.net

{ wedding vendor guide }

Being Creative AND Giving Back. {Perfect Combo}

I've got some pretty exciting news. Steph Bubble, Alicia from Charity Wedding, Jenna from Heart Carry Press and I got together with an awesome idea which we are now opening up to all you brides, Wedding Bloggers, Twitter Peeps, etc. Basically anyone!

THE PROPOSITION:

Each of us will contribute as many fabric flowers as we can. These will be in all different colors and patterns, all different types of flowers, etc. After receiving all the flowers, I will create 7 bouquets (Honestly, if we get a ton of people to help with this, we could potentially create 10-20 bouquets that could all be sold with money donated to charity. It's up to us how much we want to give back!)

THE RESULT:

After the wedding I'll put these on Etsy and sell them. We will choose a charity and donate all the proceeds from the bouquets to that charity.

If you are interested in contributing to this send me an e-mail allison@engagedandinspired.com. I'll then send everyone an e-mail with more info, tutorials, fabric ideas, etc. etc. to make it super easy for you to contribute!

Hearting This Cake

I'm having one of those "Spill the Beans" moments right about now! I saw this and I HAD to share, even though I know better than to blurt out each and everything about my life...Oh well, here goes. The thought process came about when I was thinking how slightly boring some bridal showers and baby showers can be. It is really nothing against the people, I actually blame it on the time of day, what is there to do from 2-4 on a Sunday anyway? I decided to do a bridal shower brunch because it gives people a definite thing to do (eating amazing croissant french toast) instead of just sitting around. The theme and color palette of a brunch is also totally amazing, and though I barely ever eat it, brunch is my fave meal.

I then had this amazing idea that I plan to facilitate for my baby shower.  To peak the interest of people and give the event something exciting to do, I have decided to create a mystery. Basically the invites won't say if I'll be having a boy or a girl. When everyone comes we'll have a game where everyone guesses. And finally, the answer will be revealed. In the middle of a cake. Yep! A Cake! If it is a girl the inside of the cake will be pink and if it is a boy, the inside will be blue. To take it one step further, I am most definitely doing this cake idea.

Now I can't wait for my babes shower...

Source

He Liked It, So He (finally) Put a Ring on It

December 3rd 2009 started as any other day. I went to work at 6:00am then got home around 7:00pm with a massive to-do list seeing as I was hosting a fashion show just a few days from then. Ian insisted on us getting a tree that night. I had shipments of clothing come in that I needed to sort through and organize. But no, we HAD to decorate the tree.

I was unintentionally doing a lot of things to ruin his plans. Thinking about it now, I wasn't letting him get away with anything. I was way too high maintenance that day, but what could I say, I was freaking out about a fashion show that HAD to go well.

After getting incredibly upset about a few of the dumbest things ever, he finally got me to decorate the tree. (Not always my favorite thing to do seeing as it requires pulling out tons of stuff, organizing it, etc. etc) After we finished I began to open up all the boxes and sort the clothes. He went into the bathroom and locked the door. (He never ever locks the door) I tried to walk in to no avail. He came out after a few minutes and asked me to come to the living room. After being difficult I agreed and walked out in major PJs. Honestly, embarrassing....

He pulled me closer and I sat on his lap. And then just put his head against mine for several minutes without saying anything. I think that was the point where I finally realized what was happening. I honestly couldn't talk, but neither could he. You could tell he had never done this before (OBVI) because he was flustered and really didn't know what to do. He pulled out the little white box and again didn't say anything. He gave it to me while trying to mumble a few words. I didn't know what to do! Do I open it? Do I wait for him to say something? I don't think either of us really knew what to do.

He began his speech which really sounded like he was getting back together with me. And he repeated himself a lot. But it was very cute. It was incredibly cute. Then he told me to open the box. Something to know about Ian is that he is pretty frugal........that may be an understatement. So when I opened the box I wasn't really expecting very much at all. But OMG! It was massive! I couldn't believe that he actually picked out an amazing ring and that he got something sizeable. I was pretty stunned. (and every time we are together and someone compliments my ring, he gets secretly sort of excited I think.)

So that was pretty much about how my day went a year ago today. It was incredible and he is incredible so I was a pretty happy girl.

I don't know exactly why but I love these photos of us!

PS: Can I just say that writing this story gave me butterflies the whole way through and put a major grin on my face. He is such an amazing person that doesn't always get all that much credit from me. But I don't know what I would do without him in real life. . I can't wait for many many anniversaries to come to watch us grow together and do incredibly well, and for little Reaghan and Brooklyn to come into this world and make our lives a million times better than ever.