Tres Fabu Bridal of Portland Closing.

For those of Portland brides in search of a dress, Tres Fabu will be closing (their last day being TOMORROW) and all their sample dresses are 50% off! Including Pronovias, Watters and Maggie Sotteros. You may find an amazing deal if you go today or tomorrow.

For those of us (including myself) who had a dress there, make sure you pick it up by tomorrow! I'm really glad I didn't end up getting our suits from them now.

It really is a shame though. I hate to see places like this go out of business due to the economy. They were so wonderful to me there and I wish all the wonderful ladies who worked there the very best. I found my dream dress with them and I can't thank them enough for their assistance. Especially Destiny, she was such a wonderful girl and was so helpful.

In other news, all deposits have been officially paid! Woot! And back to my paper I go. Have a great weekend!

Ag! THESIS.

Hope you all are doing well.

I apologize now for the inconsistency of posting lately. My thesis paper got bumped up a week (eek!) and I have to present my paper to a panel this upcoming Tuesday! So needless to say, I'm working away on that all this week and weekend. I will try and post some things tomorrow or Saturday or at least get some stuff lined up for next week, but no promises.

Only 11 weeks until graduation and then I'm free to spend my time how I wish! Yay for crafting and blogging until I find a real job!

PS: Got a domain name and online portfolio set up. It's all starting to come together. Check me out at interiorlindsey.com.

Real Wedding - Joanna & Wyl - Threehttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif

Some more beautiful photos from Jo & Wyl's wedding. Plus some vendor raves.

Here are a few vendor's Jo would love to recommend.

"Our flowers. I honestly didn't care all that much about them beforehand, other than to make sure our florist kept out a few flowers (gladiolas, daisies) and included herbs and fruit her product. But the day of, when I saw my bouquet... I fell in love. There's something transformative about fresh flowers that make you feel special. Vendor: Viviana at Petal Play Design.

My dress. I got a sample Christos gown from a few years back at White Chicago, a designer gown resale shop. The dress was in perfect condition and it felt like it was made for me! I was comfortable all night and felt absolutely beautiful in my entire ensemble. I got most of my attire over the internet, actually My hair comb was Naugi, my earrings were Redot, my bracelet was White Aisle, my veil was Veilshop, and my shoes were from Zappos! It was much easier to shop at home than get swept up in the limited selection and high prices of a bridal shop. I made the sash myself, and used an old pin I had for my something old.

Our photographers. Oh man, I will recommend Carasco Photography to anyone that listens. Scott Nava literally laid in the street (a busy, downtown street, with cars driving my his head) to get the shots he wanted. His constantly creative eye discovered special places in my hometown that I'd driven by for twenty years and not realized were there. He brought out the best in me, Wyl, our wedding party, and all our guests. I'm still looking at photos and finding things that I think are special.

Our DJs. Rachel and Kate from Toast & Jam Djs were never, not for one second, cliche. We asked for very specific music (sixites motown, Sam Cooke, Oldies, Rat Pack and Big Band for the cocktail hour, and a list of specific songs) and they never once played something that didn't fit is fabulously. The dance floor was packed from the first dance to the last, with even the old folks whooping it up. K & R even handled the added challenge of Greek music and dancing flawlessly!"

Thank you so much to Jo and Wyl for sharing their day with us. Big thanks to Crasco Photography once again for sharing the beautiful photos. And of course, congratulations to the happy couple! We wish you the very best.

Real Wedding - Joanna & Wyl - Two

The wedding took place in the most beautiful Greek Orthodox church. The bride and groom were kind enough to share some Greek tradition with their guests and us.

"I kept many traditions that most Non-Greeks don't see in weddings. Obviously, the ceremony was different than most people's. A Greek Orthodox ceremony has no vows. What it does have is three parts - the Betrothal (ring exchange), the Crowning (the part where we actually become husband and wife) and the Dance of Isaiah (the celebration of the new marriage). We made sure our programs had detailed explanations of each part of the ceremony, since most of our guests were not Greek. Another tradition I kept was to carry a mati on me - that blue eye on the chain you see in the first few shots of the slideshow. It's to protect me from evil spirits, and also served as my something blue. I also carried a necklace my husband had given me and a gold coin to honor his Roma heritage (gypsies exchange gold coins as part of their betrothal ceremony). We also kept the tradition of the Greek money dance - instead of everyone taking a turn dancing with the bride and groom, the wedding party performs a circle dance and guests throw money on the dance floor. A couple of American traditions that we didn't keep were the bouquet and garter toss (I didn't even wear a garter) and the smashing of the cake."

More gorgeous photos coming later.

Real Wedding - Joanna & Wyl - One

I'm so excited to bring you this wedding. I have been following Jo and Wyl's plans for awhile now and it's so exciting to see how it all came together in a beautiful Greek fall wedding. Everything about this wedding is perfection. Personal, cozy, well thought out and warm. Everything a wedding should be. They're photography was done by the Crasco Photography.


Here is what Jo had to say on the overall wedding theme's and details:

"Looking back at these pictures, I think I finally get a clear articulation of the feeling I was going for on our day. Up until now, I'd just been following my instinct as to what felt right and good... Your wedding day is probably the one day in your life when you have permission to be as mushily romantic as you want to, and I was going to take advantage of that! Every texture, fabric, color, and arrangement was meant to evoke a sense of lush, cozy romance. I wanted to invite our guests to be relaxed and comfortable in an intimate atmosphere.

The season we chose for the wedding (October) really dictated a lot of our colors and textures. The deep burgundies and chocolates, the damask linens, the wheat on the cake, the lace, the herbs and fruit in the arrangements - they all were evoked by the richness of fall. Wouldn't it figure that our wedding day was one of the hottest October days in a long time!

My main objective was simple: To have fun (and get everyone else to have fun), get married, and look good doing it. I was so happy to see all of our guests, most of whom traveled from out of state, having the time of their lives. I've never felt such love and happiness surrounding us, and it made the little stresses of the past months fall away."

Check back later for more pictures from the ceremony and reception.

Has it really been 5 and a half years? (more mushy stuff)

(Lindsey' Junior Homecomming, September 2003. Jared, 18 & Lindsey, 16.)

Only 6 months until the big day and I can hardly believe it's actually been 5 and half years since that first date at Hudson Spring Park. I love you so much and I'm so excited to start our real life together.

PS: Sorry Jared, I couldn't help sharing one of these pictures. We honestly haven't changed that much in looks.

Happy Valentines Day.

(Summer 2008 at a friend's wedding in Columbus, Ohio.)

Happy Valentines Day to all of my readers. I hope you are are celebrating with the one you love and doing something special. Here's to celebrating love!

Next week: Hopefully a full picture post of Jo & Wyl's beautiful wedding as well as some other new goodies. My thesis paper is due soon, but I'll try and get some things lined up way ahead of time.

Figs & Ginger - Bridesmaid Gifts

Now you all know I have a LITTLE thing for woodland creatures. Since last year I've had a MAJOR thing for Figs & Ginger (they are currently on vacation hiatus, but they'll be back). I happen to own both pairs of these earrings, the birdies and the fawns both in the silver finish (the patina finish is shown here) and I wear them daily. They are the perfect size to wear everyday, but are more interesting than a standard stud. All pieces are made-to-order with care and are made of eco-friendly sterling silver by a husband and wife team.

If you are looking for a little something to give your bridesmaids these would be a fabulous little gift. Heck, just pick up a pair for yourself. They are the most versatile piece of jewelry I've ever worn (besides my engagement ring of course).


(I'm apologizing now for this weekend's posts as they will be on the mushy side. You have been warned.)

Pre-Wedding Beauty - The Wedding Workout

Looking for something to help you whip yourself into shape? Don't have the time or funds for the gym? Tight on space? I started this workout 4 weeks ago as part of my new years resolutions and the start of my new health and beauty routine for the wedding. I figured I'd do a little review.

The way this DVD is set up is you can either choose to do a workout routine built for strapless gowns (upper body focus) or a routine built for fitted or short dresses (lower body focus). Each of these combines a series of segments into daily routines (one for each day of the week and resting on Sunday). So everyday you are focusing on different things (one day I do cardio and lower body, one day I'm working upper body, one day I'm focusing on abs & core, etc.). OR you can create your own workout with the a la carte style menu.

To make a long story short, I'm loving this DVD. It's quick and efficient and so far it's been effective. I'm feeling better, with more energy and looking better too. It's certainly not for dramatic changes, but if you use it consistently you should start seeing some areas firming and toning. I'm noticing changes especially in my hip and butt (which has always been a tough area for me to tone).

Plus, it has some cute segments about walking in heals, what to eat leading up to the big day and "enjoy your honeymoon" aka striptease 101. *wink*

So I give this an A so far. I plan on continuing it up until the wedding at least so I'm feeling confident and beautiful in my dress. You can pick this up on Amazon.com or anywhere else you buy DVD's. Hope this helps some of you.

Real Wedding - George & Glenn

(Photography by Alison Pierce Photography)

In the most recent issue of Portland Bride & Groom this wedding was featured and I couldn't get over the amazing DIY details and perfect setting. And what's not to love about those amazing custom made suits and that big beautiful old tree that served as a backdrop for the ceremony. To see more photos and read more about the lovely little details head over to Portland Bride & Grooms website. Here are a few more of my favorites.

Freedom to Marry Week.

This week is the 12th annual Freedom to Marry week and with all the recent developments with proposition 8 it is more important than ever to show your support. If you have a second, please stop by Freedom to Marry and see what you can do to help support the cause.

In a couple hours I will be sharing a few photos from my recent favorite wedding featured in Portland Bride & Groom magazine.

Just a bit of fun. Word Clouds.

Not really wedding related (though I'm sure I could find a way to relate it) but super fun. Head over to www.wordle.net and make a word cloud! Enter text or a URL (in this case I entered the URL of my blog) and see what it produces. Some of you may see your names in this one. Have fun and happy planning!

Save-the-Dates are done. Vistaprint.com review.

Well, as promised here are our completed Save-the-Date cards (which are going out this week). Overall I'm fairly pleased. They weren't terribly expensive, but we did have to order 100 so we have a lot left over. The cutting was a little off, so some of the design that bleeds off on the right side would show up a little on the left side too. And the cutting in general wasn't very good (edges were rough and jagged) so I trimmed them up a little myself before sending them out. The printing quality was fair. Some cards were streakier than others and the colors are a lot lighter than they were supposed to be (vista, if you are reading this, you really should re-calibrate your printer!). But again, overall you get what you pay for and I'm glad they were done quickly and cheaply.

One more thing to cross off the list.

Teaser Shots - Joanna & Wyl

Remember Joanna & Wyl's engagement session photos? Well, I've been meaning to post the teaser shots she sent me. I can't wait to see the rest of the photos of their GORGEOUS Greek fall wedding. Joanna is one of the most stunningly beautiful brides I've ever seen and man, does she have taste! This is a fall wedding done 100% right. Photography by Carasco Photography.

Stick around in the next couple weeks to see the rest of Jo and Wyl's wedding. Have a great weekend everyone!

Yum! (and coming soon...)

Just love this photo. You know how much I love photography of all the little details. This shot is just perfect in my opinion. Photo courtesy of Christina Gilchrist.

Coming soon: Vendor review for out save-the-date cards designed by a friend and printed by Vistaprint.com. As well as my wedding work out and grooming routine. Plus, we are six months out as of February 15th! Nearing the home stretch now!

Our Alternative Solution to Groomsmen Attire.

Those of your with groomsmen all overt he country can feel my pain on this one. We originally wanted to rent suits, but after hear the price, the hassel it would be to rent them for guys all over the country and how ill the fit was going to be we skipped the whole thing and looked for a new solution.

Jared will be buying a suit for the wedding day, but for the rest of the guys we selected this green v-neck from gap.com and are going to pair it with a white shirt, brown tie, khakis and a brown belt and shoes. The sweater is so light weight they should be much more comfortable than they would have been in a stuffy, ill fitting suit and it will cost them a fraction of what a suit would have. I think it will look really nice and be a great way to add some color to our wedding party too.

I spent all morning frantically calling every gap in the state of Ohio to locate and order these sweaters since they were taken off the website. Talk about a headache. But at least they are purchased and ready.

One more thing to check off the list.

Bridesmaids in Patterns.

(Photo courtesy of Brooke Schwab Phototography.)

I've always loved the idea of skipping the usual solid colored bridesmaid dresses and opting for a pretty pattern or floral instead. As you probably know, I'm a huge fan of print and texture, so I really think it gives the bridal party some depth.

Later I'll post some of my picks for patterned bridesmaid dresses. For now, here are a few more pictures from theknot.com of pretty bridal parties in patterns.