Wedding recap: Part 1

Cheers!

Let's not kid anyone, getting married is a stressful and overwhelming experience. I was completely unprepared for how much of my time, energy, emotions and relationship with Mr. T would be tied up for this one incredible day. However, our wedding turned out to be exactly what we wanted and somehow it all came together!

Getting Ready

Having decided that I would work flat out and be completely stressed on the day previous to the wedding, NOT on the day, I found that I awoke in my mother-in-law's home very calmly.

Mr. T's sister (and the best bridesmaid ever!) was so lovely, offering to paint my toes and clean up a 2-hour-long disaster of a manicure performed by a trainee on the previous day (Sadly the trainee had been so sweet I just couldn't bring myself to stop the horror).

We had decided to stretch the wedding budget to include a makeup/hair professional to take care of me in the morning and this turned out to be SO the right decision. I had a great time chatting with Charlotte of NW Makeup whom had (very interestingly) done special effects work in Hollywood before focusing on wedding makeup (which meant she could make anything look REALLY good or REALLY bad :-p). We had a trial previously and I have to say, Charlotte was always very careful with everything, from getting the makeup perfect to cleaning her brushes properly and that is definitely what to look for in a make-up artist! Left in good hands, all I had to do was sit back and sip a glass of champagne.

It's almost a wrap!

During this time, the bridesmaids arrived and worked together to get themselves ready. Having bought in all of the wedding flowers from a wholesaler (which saved a bundle) and assembled almost everything the previous day under the cloud of smoke and whip-cracking that was my ex-florist friend Dan, we only had the bouquets left to be wrapped in ribbon. The gals set to work and they did an amazing job!!

The man of the hour arrives

The last man to share a bed with my husband

Mr. T, meanwhile, had spent a late, whisky fueled night with the best people. They had stayed in the old stable-house of our venue, Ramster Hall, where apparently Mr. T had to share a bed with one of the Best Men (what happens in the stables, stays in the stables...) but he got up in plenty of time to issue last orders for getting if all together. I was told he was a stress case until guests started arriving at 1, but he was cool as a cucumber after that!

Part of the "B (est)" Team!

Mr. T had Best Men and Best Ladies in his party and as a team they were a beautiful sight to behold! While the guys were coordinated with their ties, I gave the girls the same flower hairclips/brooches and colour schemes as the bridesmaids to bring it together a bit and yet let them have their own personalities. I love how there is a connection both to the suiting and ties of the fellas and in the dresses the "Besties" chose. Also, Ali rocks those red gloves!

I consider this the "A" Team

Completely by chance, my girls really came together perfectly with their dresses! I had given them about 4 choices of colours and really let them do their own thing other than that. Somehow, despite coming along from all different parts of the UK and world, they all went with hues of pink! They each received a necklace I had made for them and the flowers to tie it together a bit more, but I just love how they look like themselves, not my own little wedding dolls!

The arrival

We saved a bit of cash by just getting a nice, normal saloon cab to drive me to the venue as, really, no one was going to see me arrive (part of the difference in chosing a single venue for both the ceremony and the reception). I was quite happy with that as it was never a dream of mine to ride in a horse-drawn carriage to my wedding (especially if I was already tempting fate with a white, poofy dress). No horse poo drama, no super slow clip-clopping anywhere and most of all I was even EARLY to my own wedding. I got some time to chill in the bride's suite and just have some laughs with my family and bridesmaids before it all kicked off.

And we're off!...

A change is as good as a vacation...

It has been ages since my last post and it seems like everything has been going by at warp speed. Married life has been great, if not principally different and I am currently on my first week of NO WORK! Of course, there are still millions of things to do in preparation for the big move to Kazakhstan.

We had our first big sendoff last week, with the packing up of all our heavy baggage. Because I am INGENIOUS and love my new husband so much, I decided it would be wonderful to lock myself out of the flat the morning of the movers arriving, just so I could spend an hour travelling to and from central London, visit my husband at work and mug him for his keys. That crisis averted, I set about trying to seperate what was going from what was not going(see pics).

It was certainly a hectic afternoon when the men arrived as we have a rabbit-hutch of a flat and three guys with many large boxes meant I spent most of my time on the balcony calling out orders. They did a sterling job though, very thorough and I wouldn't be surprised if all of my paintbrushes arrive individually wrapped! Fingers crossed everything arrives intact after their 2 month journey!

Some surprising items had to be left behind though as it will be sent via airfrieght. Apparently any type of printer is a no-go as there is a possiblity of ink cartridges being used as explosives. I argued that we could easily take them out, but it was to no avail. Booze is sadly off the allowable goods list too (travesty!). I may have snuck some small ice wines in though...

All in all, we took up a whole 63 boxes with the stuff in our flat! That's not even counting the wedding gifts that have been sent directly to their warehouse (we get to avoid VAT, value added tax, this way).

So now we are really testing the marraige living in a flat with no tv, games, books, radio, music players or laptop (my powercord fell in with the frieght)!

Soon to come, hopefully... Wedding recap with pictures, honeymoon coverage and reboot of the site...

Over-rehearsed

Having the official one month countdown on the way, the nitty is starting to get very gritty to say the least. For the past 2 weeks, Mr. T and I have been going back and forth about what kind of dinner to have the day before the wedding. As we are having a registrar ceremony, there isn't going to be a formal ceremony rehearsal scheduled and we will be blitzing on flowers and decorations for as long as possible so it seems a luxury to allow ourselves (gasp) a sit-down meal.

My mother-in-law-to-be was lovely and offered to set up a backyard casserole dinner that evening, but I had real reservations about this. I was A) aware that we were lumping her with a wedding hangover BBQ on the Sunday after all the festivities, B) also aware that I would then NEVER LEAVE wedding HQ for any kind of break, C) concerned that, as lovely and wonderful as I find my MILTB, she does get easily stressed about things going smoothly, and D) having a slightly nostalgic feeling for the Chinese restaurant rehearsal dinners I've been to in the past. Mr. T was worried about the money and organising space for 30 people issues and very pro the 'mum' route, a perspective I can relate to. The back and forth has made me feel a bit like this, to be honest:

Finally, I've decided to put my foot down on this one and have an evening out with close friends and family before the big day. Mr. T is a superstar and is taking on all the arranging (bargain!) We are unable to fund the whole shebang, but are hoping that getting a fixed-price menu option for people and individual payment for drinks at the bar, this will be a reasonable option for those coming. Otherwise, I think it will be a pizza night!

On a related topic, how good an idea is a stress relief kit? I may be giving something like this to all my bestest gals!

That Sweet Sugar Rush

One of the featured trends for Spring '11 fashion collections has been ice cream colours (like these pieces from Michael Kors, Christopher Kane, Luella and Marios Schwab). These lovely pastel shades make the perfect palette for Spring weddings and can be painted into every aspect, from the dresses and reception decorations to flowers. Have a look at these sweet images!

The newest collection from Oscar de la Renta features these soft gauzy, delicate shades for a romantic effect.

This recent bride chose a light, dusky lavender as an alternative to the usual white dress.

The bridesmaids dresses can take on a stronger shade of the ice cream palette, giving a very fresh, eye-catching look to the wedding party.

Don't forget the groom's all-important tie!

Use peaches, pinks, light blues, light greens, pastel yellows and lavenders in you flowers. Often hydrangeas, avalanche roses, and hyacinth are good options in this color scheme.

When it comes to the reception scheme, create a creamy effect with a white background and the bright, fresh ice cream colors as highlights (like flowers, napkins, and stationary).

Candy stripes also create that ice cream parlor vibe.

For those of you that want to take it even further, create your own DIY Ice Cream Booth with this tutorial at Eat, Drink, Chic!

Most of all, savor the sweetness of your day!!

Up, up, and away

Having just re-watched the movie "UP!" recently (my top two hankie movie), I suddenly felt inspired by balloons. There is something about these floaty, bouncy objects that seems to fill people with instant child-like wonder. It made me interested in how these colorful lovelies may have floated into the wedding dreams of others.

What can make a happy occasion even happier? Balloons!

For further inspiration, read Graeme King's love poem, "Balloon".

Today I made: A NECKLACE!

Having received so much inspiration from all the diy brides out there, I decided to sit down and really get to work making a few bits and bobs for my own big day. Having found all of my great gran's old costume jewelry I had an "aha!" moment and decided to make my own accessories. The first piece is this multi-strand necklace. It was a bit of a challenge as I seem to be missing one of my small pliers, but overall it seems to have turned out pretty nice! Next on the list is the bracelet!

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Heart and Art

Whilst Mr T and I benefit from having some budget for a wedding (thanks parents!), this couple really show that imagination and heart really matter on the day. Nothing beats what you make of it yourself! Will this be us soon?...