Group Pictures

Getting everyone ready for the surprise picture was probably the most nerve wracking point of the day for me. The guys were not cooperating and they were taking their time walking up to the location for the pictures. It was hard to time when I was going to come out because we were going to have a reveal picture for Jonathan to see me for the first time.

Luckily I had a great photographer who kept me cool and calm through this and things turned out better than expected.

The Flowers

Rob Greer's signature bouquet pose above, of my orange and white Dahlia bouquet

For my bouquet, I only used orange and white Dahlias to make it simple and classy. We made it a bit fully with seedy eucalyptus and wrapped the stems with cream colored ribbon.



The center pieces also included orange and white Dahlias, with orange, white, and yellow Gerber Daisy's, seedy eucalyptus, and 2 -3 stems of Bells of Ireland Seeds.


My mom, my dad, my sister and my bridesmaids were my florist the night before the wedding. We all sat in my hotel room and made an assembly line as one person cut the stems, the other counted and divided the bunches, another one took the price tags off the glass vases with soap and water, another cut ribbons and made bows on the neck of the vase, and my mom and dad arranged them. It was fun and also nerve racking because time was ticking sooooo fast. That night I slept in a refrigerator hotel room, the temperature in my room was so low to maintain the flower arrangements fresh and I was freezing but it was all worth it. The next day mom made my two bouquets, one was the back up.

Wedding Theme: Polka Dots and Pinwheels

When coming up with ideas to make my wedding different I really wanted it to be meaningful, but little did I know that everything would start with a tie we had bought a year ago before we even got engaged: a white with orange polka dots tie - Jonathan's wedding tie. The color scheme was a given ORANGE, and the accents would become yellow and white.


The tie polka dots later developed into hanging summer lanterns in an invitation which later became real-live orange and yellow lanterns at the venue.

Summer lanterns inspired pinwheels as boutonnieres and instead of bouquets. Shopping for the materials was probably the most interesting part because I needed to tie everything in. When walking into different fabric and art crafts stores I was stunned with a beautiful orange and white polka dot pattern that Natali found. This would be the connection!

The pinwheel theme continued to the center pieces with larger 12x12 inch pinwheels, and the polka dots continued into the yummy cake! When making 15 large pinwheels for the centerpieces and to place near the entrance of the venue I didn't want to use all the same polka dot paper because then it would make the bridesmaid's pinwheels and groomsmen's boutonnieres feel less special. Instead I bought a large scrapbook sized pack of paper with different orange patterns and made the pinwheels out of all the different patterns, still keeping true to my pinwheel and orange theme.


The polka dots continued into my veil that had tiny round crystals and our toasting glasses did too. It was about connecting small dots together. Making things look simple but with a lot of thought behind it.

I'm Back!!!

Now that someones wedding is done I don't have to worry anymore about her stealing my ideas, so IM BACK! YAY! I cannot say enough about that but because it's my blog, it's just about ME, so I won't.

Lots has happened since Jon transferred and we moved in. there are just 3 more months left and lots still to do. A lot of hurt people because I couldn't invite them, I truly am sorry but I am on a budget. I wish everyone could be there, so please don't hate me. I will try to post as much as possible without giving anything away until the final day.

I want to start off with a handful of Bridesmaids Dress Shopping Day Pictures! haha this was definitely a lot of fun! Thank you girls!
Stay tuned for Bridal Shower and Bachelorette pictures

Trying to get a head start. Too bad we found NOTHING in the fashion district in downtown.

Nice styles at the house of brides in Torrance. Pretty yellow above (Evette) and pockets with sweetheart top (Sam)

Evey thinking "ah I don't know, I don't even think I should fully try this one on"

My Models

These dresses cracked me up. Everyone photographed well in this dress but everyone hated how it fit them haha.

Everyone was trying on dresses as I was outside waiting anxiously :)

We started in downtown LA early morning to pick Sam up from Union Station, we went into every possible store at the outlets, hated everything. Could not find the perfect style or color. Natali and I had already taken a trip to the fashion district and I didn't find anything I liked there either so I knew it wasn't going to be easy. We were 5 smart beautiful girls on a mission for a gorgeous looking dress and on a budget. We googled shops and drove to Montebello, it was not what we were looking for. We got back in the car, drove to Torrance and found another shop we thought we might be lucky. We were at this shop for a while. It got all of us pretty excited about the styles they carried and the colors. We looked at several styles, and found a strapless with an option of straps. We were ready to get measured when the lady tells us the price... big shocker. So we got back in the car and drove to the Del Amo Promenade. We passed by a handful of stores and went in to one that had 5 orange dresses and it was the funniest thing because as they were putting them on, I could hear "no" "it's loose" "it's too tight" "it's too long" hahahaha
Luckily we found one just in time to grab something to eat and drop Sam off at Union Station!

We came back and went shoe hunting:)

Nude Wedges :) PRETTY!

Speaking of shoes... I've already bought 4 possible wedding shoes for me, wore them around the house and already returned 3 pairs. Hopefully my BCBGs don't hurt my big fat toe.

Small Wedding VS Big Wedding

Spending time with my family this weekend was amazing, it brought warm feelings back. It had been so long since I had gone to a family event due to school and work, but this weekend I was able to go right after work. It also really reinforced the importance of being one big happy family. Both on Saturday and Sunday we discussed the simplicity of a Vegas Wedding and how much more money saving it would be. AND IT WOULD, BUT I DON'T CARE. I want to share my day with my husband in unison with my family and his. I want my cousins who I spent Christmas' and Thanksgivings with, there with me, I want my aunts who took me to school, there too. I don't want to wait for my funeral to see my family in one place at the same time.

My wedding is about being the person I love, celebrating our 2 people family, with our families.

2nd Wedding Board

These are some party favors and decoration ideas.
Clippings taken from The Knot and Martha Stewart Weddings

I FINALLY FOUND THE PERFECT VENUE

Last week we went to visit Sportsmen's Lodge Event Center in Studio City and I liked it even though they did not have the capacity to hold the ceremony and reception outdoor. (Jon was supposed to write a guest post on the venue since he liked it soooo much especially for the price.) I had given up on my dream outdoor wedding so I was ready to put in a deposit. For about $10k they were including the ceremony and reception site, 1 hour of hosted hors d'oeuvres and cocktails, salad, entree, and no fee for bringing our own desserts. Thanks to Jonathan's dad who wanted to see the place before we booked it, it bought me time to continue to search and FIND.....

THE SPORTSMEN'S LODGE HOTEL

The Catering Sales Manager from the Event Center did not even mind mentioning that their partner, the hotel, had outdoor reception capability, even after I told her that's what I wanted!!! She wanted to keep the sale to herself!!!

I was able to contact the Catering Coordinator from the Hotel today, visit the venue and LOVED IT. It is everything I want! Outdoor ceremony with a cute white gazebo, a nice white tent to give us shade, and we can have it for longer hours, have a hosted bar for an extra hour longer than at the center, and still have our outside desserts. The best part is that it is still under our $10k budget! (I just need to rent my own chairs because I am picky)

They don't have many pictures of the venue online and I will resist posting the ones I took with my camera today.

The Plan: Pay Deposit on my birthday as my gift to myself!

Bridesmaids Dresses

I've spent most of my day today ripping pages out of my magazine collection to be able to find flowers, dresses, tips, and other pages faster.

I really want to share what I found for the bridesmaids. Since I'm really considering going to a dress maker for convenience, and to avoid an extra trip and fee getting an already made dress altered. I still haven't decided if I want identical dresses for all the bridesmaids or different styles but made in the same fabric and color. I am also still undecided about having junior bridesmaids. Jonathan's cousin has two daughters, but it's going to depend on him if he wants them to come out or not.


Dresses by After Six Dresses, styles 6580, 6579, and 6581. I really really like 6579 the dress in the middle. All three dresses are the same from the waist down, it's just the straps that differ.



This dress I like too because of the detail in the bust area, the ribbon tie, and the summer look of it. It is also in the color I want. This particular dress is called "Corrine" by Jenny Yoo.



These last two clippings caught my eye when flipping through the magazines. The top one is from Alvina Valenta who has tons of cute bridesmaids styles. The one just above is from J.Crew, who also have bride and bridesmaids selections on the websites.

All the links are embedded within each designer's name, right click to open in a new window.

Guest Post: Yolanda

Yolanda jump started on the bridesmaids dress search and put together 2 boards to share with details. Below are the slides! If we decide on a dress style that does not come in yellow, we will have to see the seamstress! Picture all these dresses in a bright yellow color and let me know what you think.

Today: Dissapointment, Excitement, Sadness

We woke up early this morning, filled with anxiousness and prepared with my check to see Hotel Menage. When we got there, I was filled with too many confused emotions. I was upset because the Sales Rep was late, but I was able to envision tables set up by the pool and a dance floor. Jon was negative the whole time. He kept bringing up the fact that it's not worth a $4000 fee for the pool area, that 160 people wouldn't fit, where would the ceremony be, etc etc etc. The bar was divided by a fence. The worse part was that behind the wall by the pool, was the 5 freeway, AND IT WAS LOUD. I started to cry. The one place that responded, had decent price points, was outdoors and was not booked, was right next to the 5 freeway with a huge pool in way.


Jonathan could feel my emotion overload and was pretty much prepared for anything. As soon as I said I wished the Westin would have responded, he thought of driving there and seeing the place first hand. We drove for an hour or so, drove in circles until we found a flat rate parking of $10, just to find a $7 flat rate parking lot behind it after we had already paid and parked. I thought I remembered the patio/garden being on top of one of the circular buildings, so I take Jon (who prefers to stay in ground levels) up to the 35th floor in a glass elevator. When we didn't find it, we decided to ask and find out where it was, and when he heard it was on the 4th floor, I thought he was going to kill me with his eyes! (hahaha sorry baby!)

We took a different elevator up this time....
I LOVED IT.

This would be the back drop to the ceremony. With chairs in a semi-circle shape.


This would be our reception. The perimeter would be the tables and the center would be the dance floor. The back part with the stairs and pool would be covered and the skyline would be our backdrop. Amaaaazzzing.

Ahhhhh... Unfortunately they were having a huge conference and no one from banquets or catering had time to see us. I don't even want to know how much it costs. I already know $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

I just want it! :(

Good News & Bad News

Two of the venues that I contacted on Tuesday replied back. The good news is that Hotel Menage in Anaheim sounds like they have decent price points, it's large enough for our party and it's outdoors!!! We're going to visit and see the venue on Sunday at 10am, AND I think I'm going with a checkbook.


The bad news, don't really matter now because of the good news, but The Santa Barbara Zoo replied back and the venue is booked and secured with a deposit for our date. Why are a lot of venues already booked??? How much time in advance are women planning their wedding? I started to do some brainstorming before the engagement and I thought I was planning with too much time in advance, but I guess I wasn't planning ahead enough.

I've also decided to throw in a couple of fun touches to the reception so I've started to work on those projects.

Soon to come: Bridesmaids Guest Posts and Mr. Tailgate Guests Posts

Destination Weddings

It is now an option.
Thoughts?
- Prices are more flexible and hopefully it's cheaper
- Destination weddings are more memorable
- You can do activities there with your bridal party and make it fun
- it's Prettier!
- It was one of Jonathan's original ideas, so then I get to have the honeymoon in Greece!

I started doing some quick google searches and found that the Hilton has outdoor seating! My number one problem with California venues. They have room for up to 1100 guest - beat that! They also have special spa and dinner quirks for the couple!

Venue & House Hunting

So far we have squeezed 2 venues and 2 condos in 2 weekends. While today was my 7th day straight of work, I'm still up and about venue and house hunting in between. Tonight and tomorrow morning I'll be doing a lot more research and try to book at least 4 venue appointments in the Santa Barbara/Ventura County Area for Saturday and hopefully Jon can find us 3-4 condos to see on Sunday.

Today I found these:
Santa Barbara Zoological Gardens
Limoneira Ranch

* Courtesy of Here Comes the Guide

On a side note: my sister brought be a Brides and Modern Bride Magazine and in one of the inserts was an offer for both magazines for the price of one. Mailing that in tomorrow!

On my days off

Today we went to see Coco Palms Restaurant in Pomona.
1. July 23, 2011 is already booked. FML...
2. but it's okay because I really wasn't sold on their venue
3. Their white tile was too white
4. The size of the balconies looked too small
5. The reception would be on a split level - separate balcony... I don't think so
6. Their $7 Chiavari Chairs were 1. silver and 2. plastic
7. They had a ton of fee's for everything
8. They would use up an hour of my reception time to convert the venue
9. Parking seemed to be mainly valet - I don't want to charge my guest to park there
10. There are a million and one things going on at the same time

At least we were able to get mock copies of what a contract would look like, based on a Friday date.

A lot on my plate

We have been doing a lot of house hunting research and a lot of venue hunting research that I just want to rip my hair out (but then I also don't want to be a bald bride, so that can't happen).

This weekend we are viewing the Coco Palms Restaurant, and we are waiting to hear back from Cannons Seafood Grill to make a viewing appointment. We are also planning to drive by some of the neighborhoods in Long Beach and see what we are looking at.

A co-worker suggested the Kellogg House in Pomona, which have great food prices pp but I am dreading the $4000 FEE. YIKES!

A mutual friend of ours recommended The Camarillo Ranch Mansion and after looking at some of her pictures and reading about it, I think we will definitely have to consider it. PLUS it looks like they allow outside catering and we can have the venue for MORE THAN FOUR HOURS!!! Thank you EVELYN!! One of my cousins also sent me a link where I have more options, since I have already worn out and viewed everything on The Knot.

I have also started to reconsider my 5 wedding criteria... aka my MUST HAVES:
1. Outdoor Venue
2. Site must be able to host Ceremony and Reception
3. Costs must be under $55 per person
4. Site must hold minimum 175 people
5. Site must allow amplified music - because we're dancing!

On another wedding topic, my mom's friend knows a seamstress and she can do my dress! All I need to start doing is dress shopping to find out what I like and what I want... and ta-da!

I think on Tuesday we will be submitting some paperwork to find out if we qualify for an EOM under his bank and how much we can get pre-approved for. If we get pre-approved for a small amount, we may have to consider 1 bedrooms OR adding his name to the loan (but increasing our interest rate). From what I'm hearing, I think I would much rather dive into an EOM loan than an FHA loan since we would not have to pay the PMI fee. Especially since we are looking into condos and we would already have to pay an HOA fee.

No pictures for today. I'm too scatterbrained for today's post but I really needed to jot these notes down. A lot of things going on, not enough time.

Venue Research with Evey

Calamigos Ranch

Gorgeous place. Very pretty set ups for outdoor weddings but after seeing their 2011 prices of:
75-150 Guest : $98.50
151-250: $96.50

plus an additional $10 per guest on Saturdays, 18% service and tax and a $1500 rental fee.

NO THANK YOU

Japanese Garden Cal State LB

For 160 guests or less, $4400, Non-refundable deposit of $1100, only available for 4 hours (for wedding and reception), $900 for every additional hour,

already a NO THANK YOU.

Descanso Gardens

Rental fee $5200 for ceremony and reception.
Meals cost between $40-$80
I loved the 360 Virtual Tour, the only I'm afraid of is that it says "Amplified Music: Indoors" dun dun dun. TOO EXPENSIVE WITH THE RENTAL FEES......

Party Rentals: Pico Party Rents