Lots of Various Updates....

I have sooooo many things to share with you guys, it's not even funny! If I did one blog for each thing I need to share I would be blogging for ages! haha So today I bring you a lot of different updates and projects. To start things off, I'll be sharing these beautiful baskets with you...

(Source: yours truly)

This basket will be used for the favors at my shower and then used for the fans at the wedding.

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(Source: yours truly)

And these baskets (there are two) will be used to hold our bubble wands. I'm going to ask my two youngest cousins Katy and Lydia if they will carry them around at the end of the reception so everyone gets bubbles.

All three of these baskets were given to me by a good friend of my moms and myself too. They were all used in both of her daughters weddings so they were a little ragged looking as far as the paint was concerned. But nothing a new coat couldn't fix, add some tulle and some purple (of course) ribbon and they're ready!
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Up next, I bring you the finished look of the headpiece for our flower girl. (Sadly, we will only be having one flower girl as one of the little girls we wanted can no longer be in the wedding.) I showed a sneak peak of the headpiece here. The ribbon roses were hand made by my mom. Now I bring you the finished product.

(Source: yours truly)

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And in an effort to hide this from Charles, I'll post it here. Baby if you're reading this by some chance, you better stop and close this page!!!!! I wanted to get Charles something special as a wedding day gift and I wanted it to be something he could wear. I started looking at cuff links and loved all the creative options I was seeing on Etsy.com. I really wanted something that would speak to his personality and found the perfect pair for him!

(Source: yours truly)

As you can see, they are Winchester 12 Gage shotgun shell end caps. lol With Charles's love of all things police and such, I thought they were perfect and unique! And I think they'll look great with his gray suit!

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And now to close this post I bring you the finished bouquets that my mom made for my maid of honor and my bridesmaid. I posted a sneak peak here and now I bring you the complete look...

(Source: yours truly)

I know that was a lot to take in so I'm sorry! lol Hope you like everything! :)

Again...

So here I am yet again apologizing for not posting in what seems forever. I'm so sorry I can't seem to keep up with my blog as of late. I'm still without a job and without easy access to hi-speed internet.

To say things are stressful and tight financially without a job doesn't even begin to cut it. And despite all that, the wedding is drawing ever closer. When I started planning, I never in a million years would have guessed I'd be unemployed. It's a huge challenge and is adding a lot of unneeded stress.

Time just seems to be getting away from me lately. I don't know where it's going! lol Christmas is under two weeks away and that is scaring the crap out of me! lol We have less than five months to go until the wedding and I know the big day is going to creep up on us FAST!

I haven't really worked on anything wedding related lately. My family has two birthdays in October and two in November (mine included) and then Thanksgiving and now Christmas and I just got back from a wonderful vacation with my sweetie! Things have been super busy for me.

However, I have gotten a few things done. My groom to be and his best man did get their measurements taken care of. My mom got her MOB dress ordered, I let my girls know what dresses they can pick, and I've shared the info about the flower girl dresses to one of the girls parents.

In any case, I'm sorry again for the lack of posting and will try and do better. For those of you who are sticking around...THANKS!

She's One Hot Momma!

Yesterday my mom and I went dress shopping for her mother of the bride dress. I haven't written about this in detail yet but my mom and brother will be walking me down the aisle (more about why later). Since she's walking down with me, I requested that she be in a floor length dress. I told her she could pick whatever color she wanted and whatever style. Neither of us understand the frumpy and dowdy mother of the bride dresses that seem to be everywhere. Next to your mother's own wedding day, this is one of the most important days of her life as well as yours, so she should look stunning! I think we managed to find a dress that accomplishes just that!!

Our first stop was to a local bridal store in Knoxville that we heard about at the Bridal Show last Sunday. It's locally owned and operated and the owner Elizabeth and her employees are incredibly sweet and very friendly! If you live around the area please be sure to check out The Gilded Gown! Our main reason for stopping in was because at the Bridal Show they had flower girl dresses advertised at $49! And they also have the tux that we want the guys in for much cheaper than anyone else! While we were there though, mom wanted to look around for dress options for her.

One of the dresses mom tried on is one that I picked out for her to try. It was a halter style chiffon dress and I wasn't sure if it would even work. The results however, blew me away. My mom could go to Hollywood and walk down a red carpet in this dress!! She looks so incredible (she always does but there's something about this dress!). See for yourself....

(Source: yours truly)
(Source: Alfred Angelo)

The sample dress they had was about 2 sizes too small so it wouldn't zip all the way but she still totally ROCKED this dress! All the ladies that worked at the salon ohhed and awwed over mom and this dress! We are 99% sure this is the dress she will end up going with. I just can't say enough how amazing she looked in it! I think she'll stick with the color black too which I really love, it's such a timeless look. The belt has rhinestones on it and the back sweep train of the dress has metallic silver beading detail. One of the best things about this dress....it's only $179! And, in November, the store is having a special on bridesmaid dresses and we'll get it for $20 off! So what do you think ladies?

While at The Gilded Gown, I found the most adorable flower girl dresses for our flower girls! I originally thought I wanted our flower girls in white but after seeing this dress I quickly changed my mind.

(Source: Alfred Angelo)

This dress is so adorable and I hope the girls might be able to wear them again too. They are only $99 a piece and the color is lavender. Obviously our girls will not be wearing fairy wings! lol I'm so glad we stopped in and found these beauties and moms stunning dress!

While stuck in traffic I was able to snap this beautiful picture:

(Source: yours truly)

All About The Little Girls

Our Flower Girls that is! I shared pictures of them here when I "introduced" them to you. But now it's time to share more about our little girls and their details.

First up, their attire. Obviously it is wayyy too early to order anything for them now. But I have found some dress that I am absolutely in love with. It was a bit hard finding dresses I like since our girls are on the younger side but I did manage to find some!

Even though my dress is ivory, I have decided to dress them in white. My criteria for their dresses: 1) not too formal, 2) no dresses that will make them look older than they are, 3) affordable - must be under $100 and 4) they need to be white.

Anyways, here's what I finally found....

#1

(Source)

I love this dress! It's so cute and it even has a little bling on it!
Price $79.99.

#2(Source)

This dress is very similar to the one above and I love it as well. It too has a rhinestone brooch on it to provide a little bling. The neck line is the big difference between this dress and the one above.
Price: $89.99

#3

(Source)

I also really love this dress. The lace on the hemline is beautiful!
Price: $49.99

#4

(Source)

This dress is only available in off white but it could work I think. I love the cutout detail along the bottom of the skirt. However this dress is silk and more on the formal side compared to what I'm wanting.
Price: $79.99

I've searched high and low for dress I like that fit my criteria and this is all I could find! I'm really leaning towards dress #2 or #3 right now. Which dress do you like best for our outdoor spring wedding?

On to their accessories! Instead of a flower basket or anything of the sort, I've opted to have the girls carry lace parasols. I found them at Michael's for $9.99 each. But of course, I couldn't leave them the way they were so a few additions were made.

Before:

(Source: yours truly)

After:

(Source: yours truly)

They will also have a headpiece/wreath with white and purple flowers and purple ribbon streamers to wear but we aren't finished making them. I'll have to share those with you when they are complete.

On to their gifts. I found these adorable little Red Velvet Lined Beaded Antique Heart Shaped Jewelry/Keepsake boxes at Exclusively Weddings when I ordered my toasting flutes and serving set. They were on sale for $9.99 each (originally $14.99 or more, can't remember). I paid the $5 (each) engraving fee so I could get the girls names on the boxes. They are so beautiful and I love them to pieces! These are something the girls will be able to use and treasure for years and years. I'm hoping to either make or purchase bracelets or necklaces for the girls and will put them in the boxes.

Eden's box:

(Source: yours truly)

Maggie's box:

(Source: yours truly)

Not bad for $29.98 huh? And I had a $25 off coupon so I basically got these beauties for $4.98!

What are your plans regarding the details for your flower girls?

Up next: Two Rings and a Little Bling