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Permalink Reply by sandy francis on July 24, 2012 at 8:13pm

Congratulations!

I'm in the process of planning my wedding as well (well it's pretty much planned at this point). what I did first was sit down and speak with my Fiance about the type of wedding we wanted, i.e. formal? casual? eloping? hanging out with friends having a good time?. Once we decided on that (Casual, Small, close friends/some family only), we went ahead and booked a venue, which also had us set a date. 

I've looked at Off Beat Bride a lot for ideas, readings, pictures. I also put together a 'wedding folder' on my E-Reader that pretty much is just composed of pictures I want to incorporate in the wedding: colors, makeup, my dresses, venue, decorations, flowers, etc. I find having them on my E-Reader is helpful when I've met with my florist, the venue and with my dress designer (Dolly Couture- best wedding dresses EVER).

We also put together a spreadsheet on projected costs as we're paying for this ourselves with some assistance- my mom purchased both a wedding dress and reception dress for me, otherwise it's money we've saved for the day. to give an idea of what we need to save/where we need to cut back, etc.

I have also relied on etsy a lot. I am not crafty and don't pretend to be- I've got a vision in my mind of how I want our wedding to look and found for me, it was easier to seek out crafty designers on Etsy who have made the things I'm looking for, while they would still be unique in that no two made items from one person are the same. the blog I've most read besides Off Beat Bride has been Ruffled Blog as it's more of a rustic type of wedding blog, which is part of the theme we're going for.

good luck! wedding planning can be as fun or as stressful as you make it. I'm pretty hard headed and don't get pushed around by others (aside from talking it out and compromising with my fiance) when it comes to what I want. Thankfully my mom has been super supportive of my ideas and what we're doing. I'm pretty much of the opinion she (or he) who has the purse strings can have a say/vote/etc.

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Permalink Reply by Desilu on July 24, 2012 at 9:10pm

I 2nd Sandy... I planned my wedding to my now ex-husband (lol) within 4 months. And if your gut is screaming to wait, follow it! Anyhow... I did pretty much the same as Sandy as far as keeping something with pictures and colors and ideas with me at all times (e-readers weren't out then), plus the spreadsheet listing costs, estimates, due dates (for what), addresses of attendees, and after the wedding, a spreadsheet of gifts/monetary gifts from whom so I could send out the thank-you's in an appropriate amount of time. This was also before I gave in to my inner PUG, so it was a non-traditional traditional wedding, as far as coloring, dresses, etc went. My aunt is a seamstress, and she made all of the dresses, plus the satin pj's I gave as bridesmaids gifts. We went to the Garment District in LA to pick up the material, where I found a beautiful overlay for mine with blue, lavendar and silver in it (I later learned that my ex hated it!). I think the biggest issues came out of trying to please too many people (for me anyway). If you can avoid that syndrome and keep the peace between the families, then you'll be sitting pretty. Also, if I may suggest: the actual ceremony takes a whopping 20 mins (unless you're doing something like a full Catholic mass), so I would suggest having those the most important to you there for that, then inviting the rest for the reception. And if you can't afford a big reception, invite those who mean the most to the both of you... they have these cards now that announce the wedding after it has been done to send out to not-so-close family and friends. Some may have hurt feelings about it, but others may be relieved at not having to shell out the expense for attending a wedding.

Last, but definitely not least, CONGRATULATIONS!! Enjoy this, because before you know it, it will be you walking down the aisle and you won't remember any of this!!! Oh, and invest in the photos... they will be priceless to you in the future.

Good Luck!! xoxo

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Permalink Reply by Cecilia McCormack on July 26, 2012 at 4:58am

A girl I know had the CUTEST wedding. Check out the photos on her blog - might give you some ideas! http://anodetoreverie.blogspot.com.au/2012/07/our-wedding-family-an...

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Permalink Reply by Jenn Bailey on July 26, 2012 at 5:49am

Oh my gosh, thanks for sharing this album! Okay, I'm not engaged yet, but I heard it through the grapevine that it's coming. I can't help but already plan my wedding :)

Anyway, the bride is absolutely stunning. What a gorgeous gal in a gorgeous dress. And I love that her bridesmaids and even some of the men pulled off the vintage look too!

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