For the Love of Bubbly

When planning our special day, there were a few things that we were certain we wanted to splurge on. One of those things was a full service bar. Both Evan and I like to drink fancy drinks and many of our guests are famous for antics that occurred during a full service bar event. I don’t want anyone to get too crazy, but I do want to encourage people to loosen up and mingle. From my experience, the best way to do that is to POUR THE DRINKS!

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A full service bar was never a decision. Where I struggle is, deciding what to do about a Champagne toast? I have been to so many weddings where half full bottles of Champagne sit on the tables after the toast. I have seen full glasses get poured down the drain when not all the guests take a glass during the beverage pass before the toast. This absolutely breaks my heart and must be a big drain on the budget to pour out such deliciousness. This isn’t Scotch. You can not re-cork it!

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I think part of the reason I feel so strongly about the waste of the Champagne toast is because of my love for the bubbly stuff. I don’t discriminate when it comes to sparkling drinks. Champagne, Sparkling Wine, Prosecco, I love it all. And I don’t need a special occasion to drink it. I’ll order it as a splurge when we are out, I’ll have it in a mimosa with a cold cereal breakfast or pop a bottle in celebration of Thursday. I fear that I am starting to sound like a lush, but really I just prefer Champagne as my drink of choice over a beer or a mixed drink. Some people splurge on fancy wines, imported beers or aged scotch, and I love Champagne. It is not a crime!

One idea that I am toying with is using a Champagne cocktail as a signature drink that would be passed during the cocktail hour. This way, I can incorporate my favorite beverage without fearing that it will go to waste. Guests can raise what ever glass they happen to have in their hand during the toasts and I will still be sure that we have enough Champagne on hand if any of my guests share the same love of the Bubbles as I do. There are a million and a half recipes for Champagne cocktails, but I’d like to narrow them down to “pink” drinks. Why, you ask? No good reason, I just think a pink cocktail is pretty and it will be a nice accent to the orange décor of the reception.

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Here are a few of the top contenders:

Orange/Pomegranate
1 shot Grand Marnier
1 shot pomegranate juice
Champagne or sparkling wine

Grenadine
2 shots orange juice
Dash of grenadine
Champagne or sparkling wine

Chambord
1 shot glass Chambord (French raspberry flavored liqueur)
1 tsp sugar
Champagne or sparkling wine

Fashion Week Tried to Kill Me

New York Fashion week is a dangerous place for a bride to be. I am usually a very decisive person and rarely second guess decision I have made quickly. I thought I had the whole female side of the bridal party taken care of. I picked out the bridesmaid dresses without effort during the last visit to New York. I knew the dress that would inspire my wedding dress from the moment I saw it in Bride Magazine. All of these things were certain, until I saw this…

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It was sitting in a lump on the cutting table in my brother’s studio the night before his fashion week show at Bryant Park. I saw this pink mass of a dress just in a pile and thought to myself, I bet this one is an incredible piece. Then they unfolded it and hung in on a hanger. Oh my goodness! My mother said, “You should get married in that.” Then my brother’s head designer and long time friend, Sam, said “I’m getting married in it.” Sam, this might be war.

After the quick visit to the studio, we went to the hotel and went to sleep. I didn’t dream about the dress. I really didn’t think about it at all. I was excited for the show. Excited to see all the clothes come to life on the runway.

The day of the runway show is always a whirlwind. We got up, wandered around the city and then got dressed to go early to hang out backstage. All the clothes are lined up around the perimeter of the backstage area and everything looks beautiful on the hangers, but there is still a lot of anticipation to see the clothes on the girls. The pink dress was getting a lot of interest from the photogs, but I didn’t pay much attention as photos are snapping all over backstage as the celebs arrive. It wasn’t until that moment that it came down the runway that I was certain I had to make a plea for it. I heard Mike Meyers from Wayne’s World whisper in my ear, “it will be mine, oh yes, it will me mine.” Here is one more photo to oogle….

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This dress is not a realistic option for a wedding dress. First of all, it is really heavy and difficult to walk in. The model who wore it in the show, Sessilee Lopez, is a super famous couture runway model and even she had a tough time getting down the runway and back in this monster of a dress. Second, there would be no way that I would be able to move in this dress other than down the aisle and back, meaning it would probably take more hours to make the dress then I would actually be wearing it. I would definitely need a second party dress to switch into immediately after the ceremony. And finally, this is a very difficult and time consuming dress to make. Sam already said he wasn’t making it again, so just forget that I ever saw it. That would mean that either I/my brother would have to force him, or I would just have to wear the pink one. This dress will definitely be the death of me.

Would it be totally insane to consider just wearing it as is?

Double Dress Dilemma

I know it sounds extravagant, but I am seriously considering having two wedding dresses. Having two dresses may be something often seen on Bridezillas, but I just can’t help wanting a formal dress and a party dress.

I am 100% wearing a long dress for my ceremony and for pictures. I must have the traditional long white dress. What I am still debating, is having another short party dress (still white) to change in to in the middle of the reception. This poses a lot of extra things to coordinate. At what point during the reception do you make the change? Who is responsible to bringing the party dress to the reception site? Who is responsible for bringing the long dress back from the reception site? We aren’t having a seated dinner, so do I change right after the ceremony, after the cake cutting or after the first dance?

I have come across some really adorable short wedding dresses, or as I like to call them, wedding cocktail attire. These are not helping. I just love the short sweet styles of Amsale, Oscar De La Renta and Casablanca Bridal.

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I am a very spoiled Bride and I know this. Not many people get to have a wedding dress custom made for them by their little brother who happens to be an up and coming fashion designer. For this reason, I wonder if I am getting a little greedy wanting to have two dresses. I have gone back and forth on this decision a number of times, so I’ve decided to list the pros and cons of having two dresses in order to make a final decision. Also, I need to figure this out with enough time to have said little brother make me another dress. And to answer the question that I’m sure you are thinking, “No I don’t care if he minds making two dresses, he is my little brother and he has to do what I tell him or I will put him in a headlock.”

Pros to having two dresses:
:) You don’t have to decide on long vs. short, you can have both!
:) It is easier to dance all night in a party dress.
:) A costume change can be impressive to the guests.

Cons to having two dresses:
:( You have to take time away from the party to change.
:( It might not seem like enough time in the formal dress if the ceremony is short.
:( I will have to designate someone to help me change and make sure the long dress gets home safely.

Ok, ok, so this little exercise hasn’t lead to a conclusive decision on whether I should have one or two dresses. Did you think about more than one dress? How did you decide?

Wedding Cake(s)

I am a big fan of cake. At the last wedding I attended, I ate 3 pieces. How do I make sure that my cake cravings are taken care of on my wedding day? Multiple cakes! Instead of a tall tiered cake, I plan to have several smaller cakes. I’ve seen these beautifully done on many a wedding website.

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I think the success of this multiple cake look is all in the cake stands. I got a little ahead of myself by purchasing two cake stands on ebay months ago. I did this before having a conversation with our friend who is making our cake or really doing more research to see if I can find matching stands for a better price. I bought these blue cobalt glass stands because I am a big fan of cobalt glass and I loved the etched glass look. I even performed a cake experiment to see what a cake would look like completed on the stand.

Not to shabby.

Even after this successful cake experiment, I am drooling over these stands:

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These adorable cupcake pedestals from Pottery Barn have nothing to do with our wedding cake display, but they are so darn cute, I had to share them.

I took another look at ebay this week to find that there are more of the cobalt glass stands that match the two that I purchased. I could very easily purchase the matching pieces to my set. The only other challenge that I have now is the size of these stands do limit the size of the cakes that we can have. I am not buying anything else until I talk to my cake girl. Did you buy anything too soon in the planning?

Shoes for the Girls

I want to make sure that my girls not only look beautiful, but feel beautiful, too. So I guess that means 5 inch stilettos are out. I am not good at picking out pumps that aren’t sky high, as a 5’2” gal, the higher the better. I am however, realistic in understanding that this may not be everyone’s philosophy. So begins my search for a gold sandal, with a low heel that is reasonably priced.

Here are a few of the contenders:

Name: Sizzle Coronado
Price: $64.95
Heel Height: 3 ¼”

Name: Nine West Ribbon
Price: $89.00
Heel Height: 2 1/2”

Name: Nine West Every
Price: $79.00
Heel Height: 4’

Name: Ralph Lauren Aela
Price: 74.00
Heel Height: 4”

I know, I know, the last two don’t have a reasonable heel, but they are just so pretty! I am pretty adamant that I want all the girls to wear the same shoe. Anyone have a favorite?

Love is in the Air

I am getting really excited about the decor for our ceremony site. Our florist, Wesley Berry, has been so helpful in recreating a display peice that I saw in an issue of Martha Stewart Weddings. The space where we are holding our ceremony is a music rehearsal room with really high ceilings, so I wanted something with height to fill some of the space. Last week, I was sent this picture with this note from Sandy, our florist.

"I finally have the "L" photo. It looks really unique. We can add the swirling lights inside. In the photo I didn't have them on. It was a real eyecatcher in the showroom and had many comments."

You know I am a sucker for passerby comments. I can't wait to see the whole thing come to life!

Photographer Booked!!!

It has been over a week since my last post, I was really on a role there for a while. Planning is in a slow spot, since our next Michigan trip isn’t coming until the first week of March, but I do have some exciting news (which you can probably tell from the title of this post.) We booked our wedding photographer!! We received great recommendations from our planner and I am so excited with our pick. Our photographers are Michelle and her husband Chris of Inspired Art! They are local in Michigan and have done photography at our venue and many others in Michigan and other destination locations. I am really excited to meet and work with them.

Here are a few of my favorite photos from their website.

It is funny that most of my favorite pictures come from their “unbridal” photo sessions. For those not obsessed with wedding blogs, an “unbridal” photo session (sometimes known as "trash the dress" sessions) is a photo shoot after the wedding, where you put the dress back on to take pictures that you wouldn’t want to take on your wedding day. This is often because these photo sessions put you in more creative places that could get you dirty. It seems like a ton of fun, but most likely we won't be able to do it since we leave for the honeymoon right after the wedding. It is a great excuse to wear the dress again. We will see if Evan will let me pack the dress as my carry on for a Michigan trip after the wedding...