Fun and Unique Wedding Guest Books

Gone are the days of the traditional guest book! Now there are so many fabulous ideas for a unique and fun way to have your guests sign in. I am loving some of these ideas! Polaroid or Photobooth Scrapbook

Polaroid Guest Book

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Fingerprint Guestbook

Etsy is a great place to find all different and fun fingerprint images!

Fingerprint Guestbook

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Wedding Mad Libs or Advice

Wedding Mad Libs

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Wedding Advice

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Wine Bottle Guest Book

Wine Bottle Guest Book

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I LOVE our guestbook and can't wait to share it with you after the wedding!

Until Next Week!

-Jess

Follow me on twitter @jessdawnd and follow my Wedding Pinterest Board

What could have been {Winter wedding inspiration}

We are getting married in July, an absolutely stunning time of year in Sonoma County--not too hot and humid, rarely rainy and foggy, overall, pretty perfect weather. Despite our chosen date, I've found myself fantasizing about winter weddings. There's something so picturesque and magical about winter weddings that I find pretty unique. We went to a beautiful winter wedding last year, of my good friend Marian, and it remains one of the most memorable weddings we've attended. While we're set in our date, and in our summer wedding plans, here are a few things that would inspire me if I were planning a winter wedding.

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 Here's one of many gorgeous photos from my friend Marian's wedding, taken by the super-talented Alison Yin. (Marian's wedding was recently featured on Rock N' Roll Bride here!)

Source: Alison Yin Photography 

How do seasons inspire your wedding plans?

Feeling the Post-Wedding Glow

Well, over a year after I started blogging my eco-friendly wedding planning journey here in E&I, I am finally a Mrs. And it feels awesome!!! Our wedding day was the best day of our lives. We worked our butts off the week leading up to the wedding, crafting, running errands, and [trying to] make time for friends who were in town. We barely got any sleep that week and it was stressful beyond belief, but as soon as I saw Kyle on our wedding day, all of the stress over details melted away in a flood.

Our wedding was perfect.

As a perfectionist - and any other perfectionist can relate - I never say that word. Kyle and I went back to our beautiful hotel room that night, and we fell on the couch with grins from ear to ear and both said "It was perfect."

Everyone tells you that "things will go wrong, and it's okay." But honestly, nothing went wrong. A couple of things may not have gone exactly the way I dreamed it up in my head, but certainly nothing went wrong. It still holds true for both of us that this was indeed the best day of our lives. The time and energy that we put into every single detail paid off, and people noticed. Although we went over budget, the wedding would not have been what it was without those extra expenses. In the end, it was all worth it.

 Here's a photo our dear friend Dan took of me and Kyle at our rehearsal dinner at the end of the night, when we were about to say goodbye. We were so excited to finally marry each other, we couldn't let go.

I'll post wedding photos as soon as I can, and I've got another blog coming about the things they don't tell you about married life (what little bits I know of it, anyway). Thank you all for your support over the last year and for your help making decisions with me to put together the wedding of our dreams!!

Best of {Trends}

I'm not sure how or when trends start but in the wedding industry, like fashion, there's definitely trends that come and go. There are some trends that are really "in" right now that I absolutely love (and some that just miss the boat). But the ones I especially love appear effortless but with class and sophistication oozing out of them. I've included some of my very favorite "trends" below from low maintenance succulents and herb boutonnieres and bouquets to dirty iced cakes that scream "dig in." Then there's tablescapes with lace for a dreamy romantic feel or chevron table runners with the perfect twist of spunk. And last but certainly not least, the neutral mis-matched bridesmaid dresses, perhaps my favorite trend of all. If I could, I might try squeezing each of these trends in somewhere in the day but I'll refrain. In the meantime, I'll narrow down which ones are the most appropriate for us and match the romantic and fun wedding we've been planning.

What are some of your favorite trends? Are you including any of these in your plans?

Officiants {asking someone you know}

You may remember my post about finding an officiant, here. Well I am so relieved and happy to say that we now have ours! And better yet, he is my uncle (well, he's my dad's cousin to be exact, but same diff). If you are interested in having a family member or friend be your officiant, below, you will find what worked for me!

1. Talk to your fiance about who you both would want.

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From the beginning of thinking about finding our officiant, my fiance and I really liked the idea of having someone we know. We wanted someone whose marriage, family, and values we admired. It was important to us that the person was outgoing, comfortable speaking in front of a group, and had a great sense of humor. It was also a good chance to start imagining the ceremony we envision having. Things like readings, music, incorporating a special ceremony, etc.

2. Look into the legalities.

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I found this site with rules by state. Once you select the state, there is some helpful info and a list of clerk's offices in that state. We found it to be a great quick reference. We also called the office in the county where our wedding will take place and asked them some questions. For example, can our officiant be someone who was ordained online (Universal Life Church, anyone?)? And, can we waive the 3-day waiting period between getting the license and using it since we are coming from out of town? I highly recommend giving your clerks office a call.

 3. Pop the question.

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The hardest part for me was asking, because I didn't want my uncle to feel pressured into saying yes. When I approached it, I made it clear that while we would love for him to be our officiant, we completely understood if he didn't want to do it for any reason. Thankfully he said yes!

Are you thinking of asking a friend or family member to officiate your wedding?

Newlywed Holiday Cards

I absolutely love receiving all of the holiday cards in the mail this time of year.  There's something special about the bright & cheery smiles of my friends & their families, something I only feel when I receive snailmail.  I have to admit however, I am a bit sad that my fiance & I decided to hold off on sending out holiday cards until once we're married.  I guess that gives me plenty of time to look at all the designs & start planning next year's well in advance, right?!  {ha!} We'll likely use a picture taken at our August wedding for our card next year, but that doesn't mean I can't dream about the fantastic winter designs.  Some of my favorites include snow, which of course doesn't frequent the city of San Francisco.  Who knows, maybe come late November/early December 2013 we'll decide to forgo the obvious wedding picture & head up to Tahoe to take some snow-covered pictures of me & my Mr.

 

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Picturing Our Future

So happy to say that we can now check wedding photographer off of our to-do list! This week, we booked the amazing  Hugh Forte to photograph our wedding. Hugh first captured our tummies with the mouthwatering photos he shoots for his wife's Sprouted Kitchen blog. After learning that he was an equally talented wedding photographer, we knew that we had found our match.

Source of All Photos: Hugh Forte Photography

With so many talented photographers, narrowing it down to one was a surprisingly long and critical process for us. What I hear the most from recently married friends is that your wedding day is one of the quickest most surreal days of your life. You entrust your wedding photographer with documenting all the special moments that fly by so quickly. If your photographer can't capture the moment, it will be gone forever. Yes, I am being a tad dramatic, but really it is an amazing amount of pressure.

Source of All Photos: Hugh Forte Photography

How did you pick your photographer?

Two is Better than One {Second dress or not?}

I am a ridiculous bride. Before we knew our wedding date, venue, caterer...basically anything...I had purchased a wedding dress. I absolutely love my dress. It's everything I've ever wanted---completely over-the-top, and me. Despite that, I have a lingering desire for a second dress for the reception---something short and sparkly, that will allow me to dance the night away in July. According to Say Yes to the Dress, nearly 20% of brides wear a second dress. Personally, I find it a little hard to justify needing not one, but two dresses. But, that's never stopped me from dreaming (aka pinning up a storm). Here are a few of my favorites.

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Are you wearing a second dress?