Bridesmaid Dresses

I am going to be honest with you, I had a harder time picking out my bridesmaid dresses, than I did with my own wedding dress!  I scoured the internet for the perfect dresses and was given plenty of suggestions from my maids.  I would have loved to be one of those brides who could give her maids a color and then let them pick whatever dress they wanted.  I could not.  I had a hard time even giving them a choice of four different dresses.  Luckily The Dessy Group has dresses that come in so many colors. I found a color that I liked, "Pearl Pink" which came in many different styles.  They also have many dresses with the same skirt with different tops.

I narrowed my choices down to the Alfred Sung collection from  The Dessy Group.  My color was going to be Pearl Pink which came in the Dupioni fabric.  From there, I found a really cute pleated skirt with five different top options.  

After even more deliberation and input from my bridesmaids, I finally decided on strapless for my three bridesmaids

 and the bateau neckline with scoop back for my sister who is the maid of honor.  

I was so excited to finally choose the right dresses for my bridesmaids and could not wait to see them all come together!

Here they are on the big day!

From being a bridesmaid myself, I knew that they would be standing a lot, so I wanted to give them a pair of shoes that would not be too uncomfortable.  I had chosen a pair for myself from Nordstrom's with a low heal, and found a cheaper version that are very similar at DSW.

Lastly, my neighbor went to a sale at the Children's Place and found matching dresses for the flower girls!  They are slightly different because one is toddler sized and the other is a child size.  I am also so glad that she was able to find them there on sale because from what I've found, once a child's dress turns white, the price doubles.  These are perfect for my soft, summer wedding!

It is so exciting to get big details accomplished for the wedding!  After choosing the bridesmaid dresses, I found that The Dessy Group has ties for adults and children in the exact same color and fabric as what I chose.  I was able to buy matching ties for all of the groomsmen, the fathers, and little bow ties for the ring bearers!

Hope you enjoyed!

Engagement Pictures

I was so absolutely excited to take engagement pictures.  This was going to be the first time that my fiancé, Ted and I would be taking professional pictures together.  I loved prepping for the shoot!  

We were so incredibly lucky to have my future in-laws book the Fresno, CA based photographer, Mario Friginal who is so incredibly talented!  He has some gorgeous photos and came with rave reviews.  I really suggest that you check him out, especially if you are in the Central California area.

So many details go into wedding planning, and engagement pictures are no exception.  I wanted to look as pretty as possible, who wouldn't?  Like I said, my future mother-in-law booked an amazing photographer and set a date, so the biggest part was a go.  Next, I had to pick out what to wear.  My fiancé was easy, kakis and a soft colored button up shirt.  For myself, I had to work a little harder.  

From previous photo sessions I had learned that in taking portraits, you should wear solid colors.  Stay away from prints, big stripes, polka-dots, etc.   They distract the eye and cause people to look at your clothing instead of your beautiful face!  As the bride, I knew that it was my only time to legitimately wear a lot of white.  

So, I went to Macy's and found a beautiful lace dress in cream.  

I also remembered that I had a top in my closet with a similar pattern and material from Forever21.  It hadn't fit for a while, but with my efforts to lose weight for the wedding, it fit again!  

I paired that top with a pair of dark jeans and had two outfits to wear for the pictures!

In the previous post, I told you about my Engagement Picture Props so that detail was ready to go as well! 

Because my fiancé and I both lived in Southern California, we entrusted his parents who live in Fresno, CA to book a few other appointments.  We had a hair appointment that morning at a local salon, and then I had my make-up done at the Clinique counter in Macy's at the RiverPark Shopping Center.  It was very easy, and like a simple version of getting ready for a high school dance.  I had my hair straightened with big curls, and natural looking make-up.

Okay, now it was time to meet up with Mario Friginal.  He knew of a place with beautiful scenery including Cherry Blossoms which I had requested.  

I started out with my hair down, in the white dress and Ted in a light pink shirt.  We walked around the trees with beautiful pink blossoms and these are the results!

 We decided to use this one for our Save the Dates!

We took a lot of pictures around the pink blossoms and then decided to change and try a few different places!  I then changed into the top and jeans, and Ted put on a light blue shirt and jeans as well.  We walked across the street and found another beautiful background!  Here are the results!

Along with the Engagement Picture Props that I made, we brought along a journal that Ted had made for me as a Christmas gift.  

Finally, Mario Friginal had one last location that he had always wanted to shoot at.  It was a fruit stand that was closed for the winter.  We got some very cute pictures including this one:

These are only a few of the pictures that we took.  We chose many more to print and use at the wedding.  I figured a fun way to fill space on the guest tables would be to put a framed picture on each table.   (We'll get to the rest of my table ideas later!)

Thanks for checking out my engagement pictures!  I hope you enjoy them, and that they might help you in finding a good way to plan yours!

Engagement Picture Props

Time for Engagement Pictures!

Needless to say, I have body issues, and I did not want pictures of myself looking the way I currently do.  I tried crash dieting, and attempted to exercise (emphasis on attempted).  However, there seemed to be no need!

The pictures and the experience were amazing!  I am so happy with everything that I accomplished and am thrilled with the results.

The first thing we did was book a photographer that we liked.  Luckily, my future mother in law is an amazing woman who found and booked Mariano Friginal, our photographer.  If you click on his name, you will see how amazing he is!

I then set about making different props for the session.  I knew that I wanted a wooden "N" (for my future last name!) and then a few other things to have fun with.  I made a trip to Michael's once again, and bought a few things.  I found my wooden "N" which happened to already be finished and in white.  I then picked up a pack of three canvas's (the cheep ones that are just on cardboard, not wrapped).  To help me decorate and add a little fun, I bought a stencil of a rose.  Because I recently moved, I had to buy a few new paints and paint brushes, but luckily I always go for the cheap ones!

I then worked on my props.  For the "N" I stenciled on the rose, taping it down and then dabbing the paint and never, ever, brushing it across.  To make the pink rose stand out, my bridesmaid and roommate Vanessa suggested that I paint some of the grey in between the petals.  Check it out!

I then painted the three canvases with things that would be cute for our Save the Dates.  With the first one, I wanted to play with the background so I added some gold to the grey and pink.  I then painted "save the date" which I thought might be cute for the pictures.

Of the three it is definitely not my favorite, pretty much because of the background, but I still like it.

From there I went with a more simple background and just painted a large pink heart.  

Instead of being obvious and writing "love" I put the date of the wedding as a cute touch.  (These pictures were going to be used for our save the dates by the way!)

Now it is time for my favorite!  I took the same rose stencil that I used on the "N" and started dabbing light pink paint, placing the stencil in random places.  

Next I traced out "love" in cursive and painted it thick in a dark gray.  

I really like how this one turned out and was excited to use it in the engagement pictures!

Hopefully you like them!

Will You Be My Bridesmaid?

Choosing a bridal party can be fun and if you're like me, you have had them picked out well before the proposal! When it came to actually asking my girls, I wanted to do something special.

A while ago I had seen a post on one of my favorite wedding blogs (besides this one) a really cute way to ask them. It was a wooden box that said "be my maid?" and inside was a bunch of little notes all about the wedding and bridal party.

I knew that I had wanted to do something of that sort, but wanted them to be able to use the boxes again so I set out to make mine a little bit more personal.

I started off with who would be in my bridal party and what role they would play. I decided on my sister as my maid of honor, my best friend, cousin and sorority sister as bridesmaids and then my fiancé's two cousins as honor attendants.  I wanted his cousins to be involved and thought that this would be a cute way for them to participate by helping guests to their seats, taking care of the gifts and reading scripture passages during the ceremony and such.

So anyways, I made a trip to Michael's Craft Store and got my supplies. Four hinged, medium sized wooden boxes, and two hinged, smaller wooden boxes. I then picked up craft paint in the wedding colors (I always go with the cheapest ones I can find).

I then found pretty scalloped cards that I printed all of the information from what their duties will include (keeping it positive), to a cute little bit of info about each of "my girls."

Michael's also has a bridal section so I picked up some fun goodies to put inside that matched the fun and pretty colors that I chose.  I included fun beads, a button that says "official wedding party member," a bottle of Essie nail polish in "ballet slippers," and pieces of an artificial, pink hydrangea.

Once I started on this project, I just could not stop!  I enjoy being crafty and this was right up my alley.  In order to make each one personal, and give them the chance to re-use the boxes, I painted their names in script on the top.

Needless to say, they were a big hit, and each girl said "Yes" the moment they saw the first little note.  I am so glad that I did this and it was totally worth all of the time, money (not that much) and effort!

So know that these are easy to make and a ton of fun for all of your girls!  If you would like for me to make you some, just let me know!

Where and When?

Our first step was to pick a date, and find a location.  Because I am a teacher, I knew that I wanted to have the wedding some time before school started again.  August 11th sounded like the perfect date so that I will be able to spend all summer planning the wedding and still have time to enjoy a honeymoon!

Looking all over Southern California we stumbled upon an amazing location to have our ceremony and reception.  The drive alone to Laguna Beach was gorgeous.  We arrived at the Hotel Laguna and Sarah, the catering manager was so incredibly sweet and welcomed us with warmth and excitement!  The ceremony and cocktail hour takes place in a beautiful rose garden with a wonderful white gazebo.

We then walked down stairs to the reception hall and I was completely in love!   As I walked down the steps, through the big beautiful windows, all that I could see was the ocean.  Right outside is the beach and not even 10 yards away is the water.  It is a beautiful location and will be a great place to share such a special day with the people we love!

Wedding Website

The Engagement

Engagements can range from a casual agreement, to the ultimate surprise and as long as love is involved, it makes for an amazing story.  Luckily I am able to have one of those wonderful stories!

For four years I was dating the most incredible, generous and hilarious man that I have ever met.  He treats me like a princess and no matter what as my best interest at heart, even when I do not want to hear it!  After meeting at UCLA our sophomore year of college, we immediately clicked.  Our first date was the first day of our junior year and we never looked back!

On the day of my 25th birthday, Ted took me around to my favorite places in Los Angeles with a surprise stop at the end.  When I opened my eyes, after a confusing car ride, we were at the place where it all started!  He walked me up to the front of Royce Hall at UCLA and got down on one knee.  It was a beautiful moment and he made it all the more special by proposing at the very place that brought us together!

It is so easy to find love and romance in every moment, and this proposal was incredible!