the one week countdown

and we have centerpieces!

i think they look pretty good, considering most of the parts used to make them were free. we got some really nice (looking haha) trays from dollar general, a few mock oranges (a boxload) out of my uncles yard, and some confederate roses. add the glass containers i have been picking up for months and a floating candle and ta da:

engagement pictures

all thanks to nathan morris!

Changes

So, as a bride-to-be, I have found that the best character trait one can have is the ability to roll with the punches. Luckily for those around me, I adapt well to change. It is with this in mind that I announce a little change in plans. To be short:

Buena Vista is out, and the Alabama Wildlife Federation is in.

The details are unnecessary. All anyone should need to know is that I am happy with the change and fervently planning the Sherrill-Gilmore extravaganza in Millbrook. I am excited that the wedding ceremony and reception will now all be in one place, with lots of room.

AND it will be a little more outdoorsy and pretty and wilderness-like, but still covered with enough room so there is 0 chance for a rain-out. Here is a picture that does not really do the size/aesthetics justice:

Right now I am focused on learning how to make pomander balls, which I am going to use to decorate the isle, figuring out how much it would cost to make an arch/cabana/chuppah, and making about a million boxes for favors. 

I hope all of you are incredibly jealous of how crafty and industrious I am, rather than secretly laughing at me for trying to do so much by myself. See yah in less than 3 months!

And you thought I forgot about you...

So, it has been a while since I updated, but I am loaded down with excuses (none of which you want to hear).

So much is going on with the wedding that I can not put it all in one update! My dress has arrived (and it is awesome), I have ordered the cake (which will be awesome), I have picked up lots of plates and glasses and forks and lanterns, and vases, AND I have ordered my flowers, which is what I will gladly tell you about today.

I alluded to the flowers earlier on here, but now I will devote myself to describing them in their full glory. My flower theme is GREEN.

First of all: my bouquet. There are a lot of directions you can take in a bouquet. You could go gigantic with tons of colors and foliage and big bows, but that really isn’t my style. As a matter of fact, if big bouquets are the equivalent of Rush Limbaugh, then I am probably Nancy Pelosi (in flower terms, of course).

My bouquet will be neat, relatively trim, and all green and white. The main attractions will be white and green roses, green mini-hydrangeas, and green button mums (also called Santini mums or Kermit mums), with a little green hypericum (also called St. John’s wart and coffee bean), and a few other trimmings just to fancy it up a little. It should look a little something like this, plus the hydrangeas (although I was unable to find a picture of a bouquet with the exact flowers I am using):

My bridesmaids will have a trimmed down version sans the roses. The groomsmen will have very simple boutonnières made up mostly of green button mums, my mom and Ann will have corsages with green roses and button mums, and so on and so forth. Basically, everyone is going to rock out the green, and I think it is going to look awesome.

 

Don’t believe me? Well go plan your own wedding.

"yellow is the colour of my true love's hair.."

It is a pretty abysmal and grey day outside this morning, so I figured I would brighten things up with a little color. Today, I am going to talk color palette. One of my biggest wedding decisions was choosing the right colors. Usually, in my life, I have found myself drawn to the loudest, the brightest, and the blingin’est (yeah, I made it up) sets of the color wheel, but I felt like, for this situation, it was more appropriate to tone things down. This rings especially true because we are going to be married outdoors in the fall, when Mother Nature provides the color all on her own. 

My decision: neutrals. More specifically, brown, green, and ivory. 

It all started when I came across an article about green bouquets. I thought it was a unique twist to the usual pile of petals you see bobbing down the isle. I also happen to be a pretty big fan of green and thought it looked elegant without overshadowing the most important element of the wedding-me.

 

After that it was time to think about bridesmaid dresses. I could not bear the thought of forcing my ladies into brightly colored puffs of taffeta that they would never be able to wear again. I mean bridesmaid dresses are a joke for a reason. You get swindled into shelling out tons of money for an ugly dress that you wear once and park in the back of the closet for the next 10 years. I also wasn’t too keen on everyone wearing the exact same dress because none of my bridesmaids have the exact same body type. Regan has hips, Lacey is top-heavy, and Camdyn is a gymnast, and I know I would not want to be stuck standing next to a gymnast in the same dress as me. I also had another issue in the fact that Regan lives about a million miles away in New Mexico. 

It was with all this in mind that I decided, number one, the girls were going to wear brown (espresso, really, but this is not the time to impress you with my vast knowledge of color), and, number two, I was going to let them decide on which style dress they wanted to wear. This is another trend I picked up on thanks to ye olde internet, and so far, so good. I found a website that offers bridesmaid dresses at cut rates, found a designer with the sorts of dresses I liked, picked the color (espresso) the fabric (iridescent taffeta) and the length (tea length), and told the girls to go crazy.  Now the girls are free to choose a dress that will actually flatter their body type, and they don’t all have to get together in Montgomery to make the purchase. Most importantly, the dresses don't really look like a classic bridesmaid dress, which means they can wear them more than once. This is the dress that Camdyn will be wearing (although in a different color):

 I don’t guess I have to explain why ivory is the last color. I think someone else in the wedding will be wearing it. 

At any rate, hope I brought a little color into your life today. Maybe tomorrow the sun will come out.

Hailey

i.t.g. injuries are not covered..

Good morning, my lovely readers. I was just sitting here, sucking down coffee as fast as my stomach could handle it and watching the rain, when it occurred to me: “I have to give the people what they want.” 

I can only hope what you want is yet another illustrious blog from yours truly. 

This weekend was a pretty good one, despite adversity. Apparently, in my overzealous attempt to get into shape by October, I became a victim to my own hand…again. You see, several weeks ago I was inflicted with my first “in-the-gym” injury of sorts-an “i.t.g. injury”, if you will. It seems I took things a little too far on the thigh machine at Planet Fitness. So far, in fact, that I missed work because I could barely walk the next day. I had a bad case of the “duck butt”, and spent several days hobbling around like a 90-year-old woman. Luckily, things healed up swiftly, and I was back on the treadmill a couple of days later, although I have not tried my hand again. 

In my latest venture, I tried one too many inverted push-ups (at least I think that is what they are called-I am never really sure), and I pulled a muscle in my shoulder. I am finally getting over this injury, after spending the weekend with my shoulders up around my ears and with a bottle of ibuprofen in my hand. This is thanks in part to due diligence from my mother, who rubbed it out with the strength of a German Schoolmarm. 

I only cried a little bit. 

BUT THIS ISN’T ABOUT ME.

It’s about the wedding. 

Sunday, Danzo and I went over to the greatest place ever-Michaels-where they were having a discount on their glass vases and such. This was pretty handy because we are planning on using some glass dishes as centerpiece decorations (with candles floating in them). Hopefully, it will look a little something like this (with a little less pinky purple-y and a little more green):

  

I picked up the first 4, with many to come in the probable future. Also, anyone who wants to donate vessels in which my wedding candles may float-FEEL FREE. 

On the subject of decoration, I am still toying with the idea of straying from the traditional guest book. I saw a really cool idea online for a “Wedding Tree”. It would look something like this:

 

 Instead of just writing your name in some silly ole book, you take a card (which would be near/under said tree), write your message on it (probably something like “Congrats!” or “Now When Are You Gonna Have Me Some Grandbabies?”), and clip it to the tree. I think it is a great idea, and not just because I have not already created enough craft projects for myself this far along. It’s pretty, and who doesn’t like pretty?

Also, while I am thinking about it, I know a lot of friends and family are reading this, and I wanted to get the message out-Danny and I are looking for any cute baby/little kid photos you may have of either of us, or any photos that you may have of us together, we are planning on using these to help bolster the decorations. Plus, we are pretty, and who doesn’t like pretty?

Okay. I think I am done. 

let's talk about cakes..

Let me preface by saying I am trying to load these up with links that define some of the words because it never fails these days that I start talking about iridescent taffeta or fondant, and I get a blank stare. Usually from my mom.

So this morning, let’s talk about cakes. I want to talk about cakes for two reasons. Number one: Cake is delicious; and
Number two: The next piece of cake I will probably eat will be my wedding cake, so I place a lot of importance on said piece of cake.

Not to mention, there is something about a big cake that just screams wedding, and Danny and I are set up for our first cake tasting on May 6th. So far in my race to deliciousness, I am torn. I originally had filled myself up with dreams of fondant and gum paste flowers, mostly based on the hours of “Ace of Cakes” I have watched when I should have been doing something else. 

Then I did some pricing.

It seems that bakeries are in the business of making money. Who knew, right? The first place I contacted was Icing Illusions in Montgomery. They are renowned in the Southeast for their wedding cakes, and I was indelibly impressed with the pictures they have displayed on their website, like this one:

Unfortunately, the only “illusion” I can seem to find at Icing Illusions is that they think I am going to pay $700 for a wedding cake, which will disappear in a day. That is a terrible trick.

Not to despair! I have also contacted a little place in downtown Prattville called Uniquely Yours. After temporarily panicking that the owner was actually my 6th grade Vice Principle (same last name, very different ladies), I discovered that the owner is actually a very friendly lady named Denise. Danzo, and I will be paying her a visit in a little over a week. 

It will probably be the most awesome thing ever.

Now I have a lot of ideas concerning my cake. I have spent hours scouring the million corners of the internet, trying to decide which direction to take this question of eggs and flour. I am still torn as to whether I want to go with white (which is not actually a color, to be honest), or with green with white accents. I found this cake on Martha Stewart Weddings and am in love with it.

The best thing about that website is that they pretty much tell you every detail of how to make the cake. They even offer templates to print off for the calligraphy designs (which are made with royal icing). However, I think, once again, my dreams and my pocketbook are not all-together on this thing, and I may have to tone it down.

Then there is my third option: making this cake myself. I already plan on making the groom’s cake (with the help of Mishan, who is now indentured to me). It is going to be a cupcake cake, and I have already pulled up directions for building my own stand, making chocolate cupcakes with raspberry filling, and creating edible monograms to top them off. It will HOPEFULLY look something like this:

I think Google is making me increasingly bold, as you can type in “How to..” for just about anything and come up with at least 20 suitable ways to make it happen. Not to mention, I have Martha Stewart on my side, and she says her cakes are a good thing.

In the end, everything hinges on how our cake consultation goes in Prattville. If positivity (which isn’t a real word) abounds, and she takes pity on two poor kids like us, then I will take it to the bank. If she wants more than I make in a month for a cake, well then it looks like I am going to have to borrow some spring-form pans and a cooling rack.

In the end, its only eggs and flour and sugar, but, right now, it feels incredibly important.

Hailey