This weekend Z and I hosted our fifth annual Thanksgiving party. What started as just a fun way to get together with friends before the craziness of the holidays sets in has now grown to one of our favorite days of the year. This year, more than 50 of our dearest friends stopped by our…
Category Archives: chit-chat
A week ago Sunday I spoke at the Dayton Wedding Connection about my experiences as a “DIY Bride.” I was asked to share what I learned through the process, and pass along some advice to brides thinking about DIY-ing elements of their own weddings. Since I’ve wanted to share some about my wedding for a while…
Can you guess who we’re supposed to be? Unfortunately this was the only wig I could find, so I ended up looking a little more “Marily Monroe” and a little less “Grace Kelly,” but oh well! My hubs makes a pretty great looking Jimmy Stewart, doesn’t he? :) Have a wonderful Halloween!
Last weekend, to celebrate our anniversary, the Mister and I headed to Columbus. We didn’t even realize that it was the “Experience Columbus Days” weekend when we planned our trip, but there were all kinds of restaurant and attraction discounts going on, including half-off admission to the Franklin Park Conservatory. Neither of us had ever…
In rememberance of St. Francis of Assisi, Dominion Academy held its first annual Blessing of the Animals yesterday (information about the service can be found here), and I stopped by with my camera. It was a lot fun–and the animals were so cute! The pictures I took are now available for viewing online, here.
Love the utensils! It’s amazing how such a small detail can make such a dramatic difference with a little TLC.
I had a lot of DIY elements at our wedding, too. We had a very small budget and I was planning from abroad. Plus, I just wanted that personal touch. :) I think our budget was $2000, though we probably spent more like $3000. Photographer cost $900, the reception venue $800, and the flowers $400. The flowers and photography were the MOST important elements for me, I was willing to spend the most on those. So, from the dress to reception food and “thank you for participating” gifts we did pretty good :) I made every invitation, all the programs (which Erin helped me format). My maid of honor and m-i-l made the reception cupcakes and mil’s bff made the icing on top. They were AMAZING. Also, in case you ever need to know: one large carrot just about renders one cup of shredded carrot. We had guessed three. Ha! I also did my own hair, make up, and nails. There were other things I would have liked to do if it could have worked out (like having some of my aunt’s cheeseballs at the reception with take away recipe cards or getting a repurposed vintage wedding dress). But all in all, no regrets. And i’m glad we did it that way. I took advantage of Michael’s 50% off coupons and each week I’d go buy one item, get a coupon, go back the next week, repeat. :) I used to have a list of that the $ I saved total. I know I saved 50% total on the my invitations. I should show you sometime :)
Michelle, I would love to see your wedding photos sometime! I did love my wedding–and the planning process–but I find it so wonderful to be able to photograph weddings, give my brides advice/encouragement/suggestions…and then be so thankful that I don’t have to do any of it again :) And, I do feel like “DIY-ing” so many elements of my wedding let me explore different sides of myself (creativity, event planning, etc.) that I hadn’t before, and that I’ve been able to use since.