wedding weekend!

This past weekend we celebrated the wedding of our friends, Miguel and Brigitte. What a beautiful wedding it was, probably one of the most stunning weddings I have ever witnessed. We were a little nervous with my due date being so close as Jon was the best man, but everything went well! Take a peek at the gorgeous affair.

Held in Muir Beach along the California Coast. Can't beat it. And for anyone who knows coastal northern California weather knows that it can really be hit or miss. The day could have easily been shrouded in thick fog, misty or bitterly cold. Instead it was sunny and beautiful.

Their first kiss as husband and wife! 

Decorated wedding shuttle. 

The place cards were also the favors and so creative. Since after the wedding a lot of guests were staying to camp with the bride and groom, they attached flashlights to cute hair bands so everyone could light their way! They were a big hit.

The reception took place on the edge of a cliff essentially. The view couldn't have been better. 

An awesome yurt for dancing!

Helping his bride rub in her sunscreen. So cute. 

 I'm totally bias, but Jon killed his best man speech. So good.

I carried a watermelon. 

Carrot cake! 

The garter removal! Check out everyone's glow sticks. So much fun.

 I love weddings so much, especially when the couple is as deserving of happiness as these two. 

Congrats to Mig and Brig!!!

One Year

Hold up, how has it been a year since the wedding? I think this must have been the fastest moving year of my life. And here we are, one month shy of our baby's due date. I would have never called that. Tonight we celebrate our first year as husband and wife and will have some of our wedding cake!
Jon, it goes without saying, I love you.

Photos by Kate Harrison.

What I learned...

I thought it would be helpful for future brides to have all my tips and things I learned in one post, while it's still fresh in my mind. 

Get professional hair and makeup. Even if your friend is great at hair and your little sister is great at doing her own makeup, it makes so much sense to hire a professional. This was one of the key factors in feeling like a pretty bride, having my hair and makeup done to a T. I've actually seen brides on blogs where it looks like they just put on a wedding dress and called it a day. I get the natural look thing, I do. But to be photographed you need more makeup than normal. 

Hire help. I was so happy that I had Enjoy Events there to help and didn't have to delegate tasks out to friends and family. They are guests and they should be there for everything and not running around behind the scenes. Everyone will be more relaxed knowing there are a couple go-to gals running the show. This is especially important if your wedding is at a private residence.

Have more cash on hand than you think. We had everyone's tip money ready to go...so we thought. There were so many key players within the main vendors we had forgot about. Bartenders, second shooters, caterer coordinators, you get the idea. I had to send checks in the mail after the honeymoon and it would have been easier to hand them cash.

You make your own rules. Don't listen to people voicing the 'wedding' norms when you want something different. We had one of Jon's groomsmen be our officiant. I can't tell you how many people said "but....isn't he a groomsmen? Where will he stand? How will he go down the aisle....errrr" Yeah, how did that work out? :) Another thing, I made the entire wedding playlist (except the dance part of the night). The DJ didn't like this so much, "no other bride has ever done this..." and kept suggesting their own playlists and classical music for when guests arrive, etc. Well, I stuck to my guns and we got so many compliments on the music.

You have to let things go. Especially hard for fellow type A personalities. The most important thing to me that I kept playing over in my head was me walking down the aisle. And the music that went with it. I decided on Canon in D and listened to it for weeks before the wedding. Fast forward to showtime....its not the same version nor the part of the song I imagined. YEAH. But you know what, everyone's waiting for me so there was only one thing I could do! And everything was still perfect.

{flowers, the next day}

Enjoy your flowers. If you are a flower person and your honeymoon is right after the wedding, you don't get to enjoy those hundreds of flowers you spent more than hundreds on. For me, this was a huge bummer. It's not like I would change when we went on our honeymoon, but it's just something to think about. We ended up giving them to family and neighbors.

Have your bridesmaids wear different dresses. It just looks better, trust me.

Do a 'First Look'. Oh man, this was one of the best parts of the day. There was so much excitement and emotion it was incredible. Jon was waiting at the end of this little bridge and I walked a few steps short of him and told him to turn around. Tears were flowing! And I was able to be in the moment with just Jon and not have that moment with him in front of everyone. Don't get me wrong, it was still amazing walking down the aisle and seeing him, but I was much more relaxed and soaking everything all in.

Have a real guestbook. I know there are so many cute and creative options for the guestbook these days and maybe you should have those too. But my vote goes to traditional guestBOOK because people will write long, beautiful, meaningful messages if there is space! Sometimes those other options you will just get a "Congrats! Love, Aunt Pam" or whatever. Reading the guestbook brought me to tears. Page after page of the happiest sentiments means the world to me.

Have kids at your wedding. Before I was even engaged I was in the "kids don't belong at weddings" camp. Ask anyone of my friends. Then someone named Landon came onto the scene and everything changed. ;) But really, we didn't have tons of kids there, just the ones related to us. (And baby Joaquin!) And it was so fun watching them run around and play with their cousins. They were constantly on the dance floor and just brought a happy and relaxed feel to things. I think more people will also come if they can bring their kids but as far as staying longer, that's still a toss up.

Never forget what it's all about, obviously. :)

OBSESSED

Jackie | Jamison from Couture Motion on Vimeo.

After seeing this video of Jackie and Jamison's wedding, I cannot stop thinking about it and watching it over and over. The music, the way they look at each other, the cool way she walks 'down the aisle' with her bridesmaids, the way they look at each other, how his family stands next to him, their cute dancing, did i mention how they look at each other?! I could really go on and on. So why don't you just watch it so you know what I'm talking about?

Weekend Scenes

Its been a tea kind of weekend. And past couple of weeks for that matter, minus the occasional weekend coffee.  Trying to cut back on coffee (due to sugar & half n half). Hasn't been hard at all!

I have begun wedding dress shopping! Had mixed emotions going in (would I love any?). Turns out....SO much fun. Let's just say I totally and completely understand the girls that buy a dress for the ceremony and another one for the reception. And let's also say I am so not supported in that opinion. Must decide between two different vibes/themes. 

Beefing up the liquor cabinet! Got some Pimm's. A lovely summer-y British gin. I've seen it all around the blog world and tried to order Pimm's Cup at a few bars with no luck. 1 part Pimm's, 2 parts Ginger Ale, lime and cucumber. Perfectly refreshing. Highly recommend. 

Fall cupcakes for an early birthday celebration for my sister in law, Cindy. From Teacake Bake Shop. A big hit with my nephew. He calls them "happy birthday". And he cannot focus on anything if he seems them and then becomes deliriously happy while eating them. Sounds about right?

I made this citrus, mint, feta salad from Smitten Kitchen. A nice break from leafy greens.And a nice prep before a week ahead with known heavy foods. Here's to a short work week!

Everyone needs a wedding logo

Here is ours! By the ever-so-talented Emilie Friday. I think I shall hire her to make my grocery lists. Kidding. But how pretty is it? I am thinking it can go on the envelopes for the save the dates and cocktail napkins. And as far as favors go, I don't know if I'm on board yet. I guess that will be determined if the budget allows for it at the end. In which case, this could be printed on paper bags (filled with treats), or a pint glass or even a beer cozie! I don't discriminate here.

Also, you've noticed I placed this logo on the side bar.

Click it and it will take you to all my wedding planning posts.

Amber Brown Vision

{The beginnings of my amber and brown glass bottle collection.}

Before I was engaged I collected mason jars like it was my job.  They are multi-purpose and thought I could easily work them into my future DIY wedding. Turns out so did everyone else. Now it is my mission to not use a single mason jar on that day. Hard task. I started to think about how else to make unique table center pieces without breaking the bank. Not only are there not the funds to have a florist do the tables, but it isn't really my style anyways. I like an eclectic, vintage, piece-y look. So I started collecting brown and amber glass thinking it may look good with some pink anemones and white ranunculus and maybe some succulents in vintage brass goblets. (Throw in some horseshoes on the table too) 

Only thing, it was all in my head and I had never seen it played out. 

UNTIL I saw this wedding on Style Me Pretty. 

{Photo by Jesse Leake}

Um, HI. Hello. This is totally what I was envisioning! 

I urge you to enlarge that picture, by the way. 

And then I sort of started to see it everywhere...

{Studio Choo}

Too late. No turning back now!

Help!

 Erin Jang

What is a more creative way to say "formal invite to follow"? I am referring to wedding save the dates. I was thinking of saying "juicy details to come!" but I don't know. I just will cringe if I have to include that trite ending.

Courthouse Chic

If one were to have a summer courthouse wedding, this one from Delphine Manivet would be a fantastic choice. They also have lovely long dresses that are more suitable for traditional weddings, you know, if you hit up their salon in Paris.

While on the subject, am I wrong to assume all brides go through a phase of wanting to scrap the whole thing and just go to the courthouse? Oye. It's not going to happen for me, but the idea has seeped into my head more times than I'd like to admit.

Um, WOW

I'm sorry if you feel this is turning into a wedding blog, I will tone it down, I swear. But I had to share this. This morning after I had an early dentist appointment, went on a job, go to work and walk into my office, I see the following:

I don't know about you, but this is maybe the second time I've had flowers sent to my work. No matter what, you go to jello. It is so exciting and sweet. But who from? Well, after stammering for a moment I reach for the card.
"Holly & Jon, I am so excited for your wedding. XOXO, Kate".
Kate, as in, our wedding photographer. Can you stand it? I can't stop gushing. What a totally classy and amazing gesture. Turns out, she asked Jon for my work address! Even though the whole side of my face is numb (dentist) this is one happy Wednesday!

Looking like an Etsy wedding so far...

I can't get over the fact that hundreds of wedding options are at my fingertips on Etsy. And I am supporting handmade. Yahoo for that. None married gals are surprised at what I've bought so far, married gals keep reassuring me to start early. My wedding checklist can now cross off a few items.

My nephew, our ring bearer, will carry this pillow down the aisle. 

There is a pocket sewn onto the back of it!

Mrs. my-soon-to-be-new last name made into an adorable 

hanger that will bear my wedding dress on the big day!

This isn't a necessity, but this To Have and To Hold tote will be perfect

for carrying my wedding binder to and from vendor meetings.

And something on the real checklist? We hired our kick ass photographer. Huge relief? Check.

My Wedding Palette

I can't pick just two or three. So all the colors above (minus a few) will be inspiring me over the next ten months. (All swatches lovingly gathered from 100 Layer Cake) What are our thoughts?

My best friend's wedding

Wow. This weekend takes the cake for the amount of fun that was had. 

Too hard to edit down 300 pictures into one decent sized blog post.

I wished the night would never end.

Wedding Weekend!

Tomorrow my best friend is getting married. 

I can feel the combination of tears and excitement brewing!

I love you, A.

Open Bar

Um, wow. This is a wicked cute save-the-date.

Shoot, does this mean the wedding planning has begun?

A Proposal in Chicago

 {Our view}

On the first day of fall Jon and I were walking to grab some deep dish pizza in the city of Chicago when Jon suggests we walk by Lake Michigan first. Only a few blocks from our hotel and with the weather being warm and not fall-like at all, I was game. We walk, and walk, and walk out on a pier, until Jon thinks we have hit the right spot. (Later I find out, he was just trying to find the most private spot away from people.) I know everyone loves a good surprise, but I knew he was going to pop the question in Chicago. I thought when we were on that pier he might do it, but after sitting, looking at the skyline and talking for awhile, Jon mentions we go to dinner. I agree, stand up, get my things and when I turn around, he is on one knee.

{Where Jon kneeled and asked me to marry him}

The next lil bit I'd like to keep between just him and I. But it was special and sweet and perfect. And the ring. Oh, ladies, the ring. I may or may not have uttered a profanity when I saw it. (Sorry to say)

{Engaged!}

Then we sat right back down on the pier and talked for another half an hour. Tears were involved. And then we continued on to dinner, as planned. We didn't call anyone (or tweet) until after dinner, so it was nice just knowing that for a couple hours, we were the only people that knew. I will say that one of my favorite parts of the night was infact calling all our family and best friends. It's not everyday that you converse with every single one (minus R&E!!) of your loved ones in a happy giddy fit!

 

 {He did good}

 {Not even our waitress knew}

Even though it was highly anticipated and at times I wasn't the most patient, after 4 years, 3 months and 17 days of calling Jon my boyfriend, the timing was perfect.

 {Jon calling family, me having a crazed photoshoot}