I’m officially obsessed with all things wedding. Now that I’ve figured out my job for next year, I’m no longer stressed with the idea of planning a wedding! And the worst is over – we have a date, a venue, and a tentative guest list. So I’ve moved on to searching for inspiration – I’ve been spending time every night searching for bridesmaids dresses, centerpiece ideas, honeymoon resorts in Greece, wedding bands – anything wedding related, I’ve been searching for it! And boy, there’s a lot of inspiration out there on the internets. It’s easy to feel like I’m wasting hours and hours on the web, so I sure hope the browsing is helping me figure out my vision.
I’d like to think I’m very slowly narrowing down my ideas by making note of things I like, but it’s surprisingly hard to try and pin-point what I actually like. For instance, a wedding gown with a pop of color – I see a picture and think it looks awesome, but I just can’t determine if that’s me or not. Then there’s also the budget, which is helping me narrow down things quite a bit! For example, I know that a photo booth and large floral arrangements will not be at my wedding. A third factor that’s been making the planning a bit difficult is the decision to have somewhat of a destination wedding. If you’re just joining in, Matt and I are getting married on Bald Head Island in North Carolina. While a ton of weddings happen there each year, bringing rentals and such over on a ferry can be tricky, which again, helps me narrow down my vision.
Things I’m sure about:
- Matt
- A church ceremony
- Not writing my own vows (though I’ll customize the traditional ones) – it’s too much pressure!
- Buffet/stations (as opposed to plated) and a seated dinner
- There will be cake, absolutely no cupcakes, pie, or other dessert can replace it!
- DJ – although not my first choice, they are great for dancing and we just don’t have the budget to ferry over a band
- No limo (maybe some kind of golf cart rental?)
- Colors will be some variation of teal, royal blue, and either coral or tangerine.
- Having a weekend coordinator who will help with island logistics and take over on the day-of
Things I’m still debating:
- Formal versus casual invitations
- The menu – way too much to think about right now! But there will be booze, and hopefully seafood (since we’re on an island)
- The dress! I have no idea what might look good on me, although I’ve pretty much ruled out a huge ball gown. I tried one on for fun and it looked horrible. I do want something that’s not too plain, but not too busy/out there either. And not too tight so I can eat and dance!
- Whether or not we can afford favors/welcome bags
- Bridesmaids dresses (I’d really like something different)
- First dance song!
So that’s what I’ve thought about thus far. And, if something is not on this list, then I’m probably still debating that too. It’s a start, right?
Kelli H (Made in Sonoma)
July 19, 2012 at 7:20 pmDef. a good start.
I feel totally swamped in wedding planning, and really, I’ve made no real decisions except booking our venue, photographer, & caterer.
I finally decided on colors last night.
Budget def. helps with your ideas because it narrows it’s down so much! I know we won’t have a photobooth either — damn those are expensive!
kath
July 19, 2012 at 8:17 pmI absolutely think you should go for a one-shoulder dress. I really loved that one you emailed me!
Laura
July 19, 2012 at 8:20 pmI agree, but it may be easier said than done…
Salley
July 19, 2012 at 8:42 pmI love your blog! So cute! I started reading it about a year+ ago (I read your sisters as well). Anyways, I live in the Virginia Highlands! I moved here in February from NYC where I was a wedding and event planner. Let me know if you want to meet up sometime and chat about wedding things. I love to give away the knowledge I have from my experience!
Heather
July 20, 2012 at 8:07 amHi Salley! My husband and I are moving to the Virginia Highland area in September from Boston. How has the transition been from being a northerner to living in the south? We were down there last month to check out apartments and I absolutely loved it. I hope I feel the same once we’re living there full time!
Salley
July 20, 2012 at 9:40 amHey Heather,
That’s exciting! I’m actually a born and raised southerner (SC) but I moved to NYC after college for 4 years. The transition from NYC to Atlanta has been really great. Atlanta has all of the offerings of a big city with the southern hospitality and open spaces. It’s really nice to have so many parks and trees around with far less noisy sirens and car horns. It takes some getting used to driving every day, but it isn’t terrible and the Highlands are great for walking around. The price of living is also far less than New York, which is nice. I think Atlanta has a young feel- lots of young people and couples around. I do a good bit of babysitting as well as my job as a PA. My boss has 3 kids and the school systems in Atl are amazing! There are tons of great grocery stores (also cheaper than NY) and lots of restaurants. There is constantly a festival going on somewhere and so many great places to check out music. I’m hooked! I hope that’s helpful! You’re welcome to ask me more!
Salley
Heather
July 20, 2012 at 9:38 pmThank you so much!! I’m getting so excited to move down there, especially since I just lined up a job (we’re moving for the husbands job). We hope we like it enough to buy a house and stay long term!
Laura
July 22, 2012 at 8:44 pmYou’re totally going to want to buy a house!!! Congrats on the job!!!
Becky
July 19, 2012 at 11:35 pmWe island hopped in Greece for our honeymoon and it was amazing. I highly recommend Hellenic Holidays if you’re thinking about going to Greece. They took care of EVERYTHING: tickets, hotels, resorts, cabs, ferries, excursions, you name it. It was the trip of a lifetime!
Laura
July 20, 2012 at 9:21 amThanks for the rec! Which islands did you visit?
Becky
July 20, 2012 at 8:56 pmCrete, Santorini, Mykonos & then Athens. They can customize trips based on what you want to see/do. Chania (a town in Crete) was amazing, and so was Santorini. The pictures don’t even do it justice!
Laura
July 22, 2012 at 8:45 pmThanks! I was debating Chania, but just can’t decide if we want to add another Greek isle, or stop over in Italy….
Stephanie
July 20, 2012 at 2:14 amLooking at pictures is good to get an idea of what you think you like and since you’ve already knocked off ball-gowns from your list, that’s a good start. I had something very different in mind when I tried on my wedding gown. I had gone to a handful of places and on a whim went back to the very first place I looked and found it – the whole crying and everything. And it had lace on it – something I didn’t think I’d be in to. I think it’s good to do like Say Yes to the Dress does… go with something in mind but be open to something different. Sometimes the sales people really do know better than we think!
My inspiration for what I ultimately got was Vera Wang and Monique Lhuillier. I’m still happy with my choice 5 years later 🙂 Good luck with the search! It’s so much fun!
Miranda
July 20, 2012 at 3:01 amThe coral and the royal blue are absolutely STUNNING together! Nice choice 🙂
Kristen
July 20, 2012 at 8:06 amIt sounds like you’ve got a great list of what you’re sure about – and that’s a good start. Good luck with the planning!
I always give one piece of advice (which was given to me before I got married) about trying on dresses: try on a few that you think are beautiful but that you would never have considered for yourself. Even if you don’t choose them, sometimes they have details or parts that you love that help you find your perfect dress.
Good luck with your planning!
Laura
July 20, 2012 at 9:19 amGreat idea, thanks:)
Heather
July 20, 2012 at 8:11 amLaura,
My husband and I went to Greece on our honeymoon! I can’t recommend it enough! We could’ve went through a tour company/travel agency but I love researching trips and planning them myself. We island hopped and absolutely adored Paros. We also went to Mykonos and Santorini, but Paros (by far a less touristy island) was the highlight of the entire trip. Feel free to email me if you have any questions!
Heather
Laura
July 20, 2012 at 9:19 amWow! How long did you spend at each? Did you fly or ferry from Athens?
Becky
July 20, 2012 at 8:59 pmIf I could do it again, I would have skipped Mykonos and gone to Paros instead. The ferries are the best way to go from island to island and then a short flight is best to get back to the mainland.
Heather
July 20, 2012 at 9:35 pmCompletely agree with Becky! My husband and I both agree we would have skipped Mykonos and spent more time in Paros. We spent about 4 nights on each island and ferried in between. I highly recommend renting a motorbike while there. Such a fun and awesome way to see the islands.
Laura
July 22, 2012 at 8:43 pmInteresting…so mykonos is just not that great? Did you think 4 days in each was enough? Sorry all the questions!
Laura
July 22, 2012 at 9:07 pmAlso, which town in Paros??
Heather
July 23, 2012 at 10:12 amMykonos was great, but it felt like a touristy, more expensive Paros. We stayed at the Mykonos Grand which was beautiful and there’s tons to do, so it’s definitely worth looking into.
In Paros we stayed in a town called Naoussa at the Stelia Mare. My cousin’s husband’s family is from Paros and own Café Aliprantis in the town center. They recommended Stelia Mare. It’s a boutique hotel and it’s by no means a 5 star American hotel, but they treat you like gold there and have wonderful recommendations. The beaches in Paros are out of this world.
We probably couldn’t used more than 4 days in Paros, but in Santorini it almost felt like too much time. I recommend spending a day doing Santorini Sailing. You can sail around the Caldera in a catamaran, get a great meal, and jump and swim in the water. Tell Captain Ted that Heather from Boston sent you. We’re facebook friends so he MIGHT remember me haha.
Becky
July 23, 2012 at 4:28 pmWe stayed at the Mykonos Grand, too! It was pretty! We thought Mykonos was really dirty and annoyingly touristy. Its also kind of a “party” island for all of Europe, so we were getting woken up at 5am when the people in the room above us came home from the clubs. If you’re into late nights and clubs, it would probably be a lot of fun, but we were more into sightseeing and relaxing.
I totally agree about sailing around Santorini. We did that as well. They took us all around the caldera and served us booze and dinner and took us to fun swimming spots. And we made some friends! It was a ton of fun!
Lisa
July 20, 2012 at 9:41 amI feel you! My wedding is in October but I’ve been lucky(?) enough to have over a year to plan. Having over a year to plan is great to think things through BUT it also gives you TOO much time to think things through. I kept switching ideas and …. I was STRESSED to the MAX!
I highly suggest you checking out theperfectpalette.com. If you head over to my site and check out my post from 2 days ago, you’ll see why. This website helped me so much tie in everything I wanted for my wedding. I hope it helps!
By the way, you and I have a lot of the same ideas! : )
Laura
July 22, 2012 at 8:47 pmI’ll go check it out! Thanks
Kat
July 20, 2012 at 11:04 amSkip the favors. Unless they’re amazing, they just give people something to complain about.
Also: Obviously this is your wedding, but I have been to WAY too many weddings in the last year riffing on the concept of navy and aqua/teal. Long story short, you will regret that color combination as soon as you get your photos back. While it effectively makes the bridesmaids look less attractive than the bride, it distracts from the bride in the worst way. Navy and coral on the other hand? Tres chic.
Stay strong, sister!
Laura
July 22, 2012 at 8:46 pmThanks for the advice:) Navy isn’t in the running (for that exact reason), but I’m pretty set on the teal/coral combo and the royal will be an accent color!
Sandy
July 20, 2012 at 12:11 pmFirst dance – “Just the way you look tonight” brings tears to my eyes.
sophie
July 20, 2012 at 12:14 pmOoh, I love all of your ideas! I’d say skip the favors…How many have you kept from the weddings you’ve been to over the years? I’ve only kept one — a sand dollar X-mas ornament my friend made for everyone with the wedding date on it (their wedding was on the coast of Maine).
As for welcome bags — you could do something relatively cheap, but useful — like make (and freeze ahead) mini banana chocolate chip loaves of bread, some nuts, and sparkling water or something.
Sarah
July 20, 2012 at 12:39 pmRegarding invitations, there are so many out there now that are “formal”/traditional, but with a fun twist. Even more traditional stationary like Vera Wang and Crane are worth considering. I had so much fun with fonts and colors. I agree with the other commenter that navy and either coral or tangerine is a much more flattering color choice. And I definitely agree that welcome bags are better (and cheaper) then favors unless you have a brilliant/unique idea for your favor. Everyone loves a little snack (particularly if it has a personal connection to you guys or the location of the wedding),bottle of water (and some advil for the day after!) when they arrive at their hotel–I particularly think this is important for a destination wedding when everyone is traveling.
Emily @ www.main-eats.com
July 20, 2012 at 8:56 pmThose colors are great! My husband is a composer and is just finishing up a website for custom first dances. He mixed ours from some of our favorite songs and we did a choreographed dance. Nobody expected it and it was a serious hit-it totally set the mood for the entire night!
Laura
July 22, 2012 at 8:44 pmVery cool! I would LOVE that!
Laura
July 29, 2012 at 4:45 pmI wasn’t sure if you didn’t plan on doing a photo booth due to budget or if you just didn’t like them. I just got married and used a living social voucher for my photo booth-I think it was $500 or $600 for a 4 hour rental which included props and unlimited pictures-it printed doubles so the guests got one and we got one for a keepsake and we got a digital album. If you can afford it and want it, I cannot recommend one enough-it was a HUGE hit with the guests and the pictures doubled as a favor!!
Laura
July 31, 2012 at 4:11 pmIt was bc of budget, but thats a great idea! I wonder if there would be extra fees bc its on an island though…
Ann
August 10, 2012 at 7:22 amAre you on Pinterest?? I love it and it would be a great way for you to keep track of everything that you like or is inspiring you for the wedding. Just an idea! Check it out 🙂
Laura
August 11, 2012 at 6:49 pmI am!!!