Planes, Trains and Automobiles

Planes, trains and automobiles...all three might be possible modes of transportation for our wedding weekend next July. Almost all of our guests will be traveling by plane and/or car to reach our (not-too-far-away) destination wedding town of Hood River, Oregon. The actual wedding location is about 15 miles south of Hood River. So, high on our list of priorities is making sure everyone can get easily to and from our venue without worrying about getting back after enjoying some adult beverages. Thankfully, our ceremony and reception are at the same place, so we just have to arrange transportation to the the wedding and back to town (a.k.a. the after party). So this week, I've been looking at different options for transportation. Not all of them work for our location, but they sure are fun to look at!

My friends had one of these red buses at their wedding last summer and it was awesome! Guests love them and (bonus!) they are such a perfect photo opp!

Source

If I was getting married here in San Francisco, I would love to use trolleys! I used to live on the trolley line on California Street and even with that constant buzzing of the trolley line out my bedroom window, I never got sick of them.

Source

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School buses would be super fun and actually would work with our location...

Sources: top, bottom left, bottom right

As for the trains, there is actually a train in town that you can take around the area. Might be a fun pre-wedding day activity.

Did you provide transportation to and from your wedding? Any fun ideas that I'm missing?

Hair Today

My goodness. I feel like each time I do a post these days, we're hitting a wedding countdown milestone! Tomorrow will be the official one month mark and I'm definitely starting to feel it. While I swim among the thank you notes, seating charts, and craft projects, I'm really looking forward to heading up to Sebastopol for my hair trail next week! I'm still not 100% sure what I want to do with my hair, but I'm hoping a pile of photos will provide the needed inspiration for my stylist to come up with something fantastic.

I love braids and twists. I know it's trendy, but I like the boho feel to it (I do live on the Berkeley border after all). I'm thinking a loose braid or twist is a must. Aren't they gorgeous?

Sources: 1, 2, 3, 4

The wedding is fairly casual and I typically wear my hair down, so something pulled all the way up doesn't really feel like me. That said, I definitely want my hair to feel special (and to stay off my face when dancing). I'm thinking a side pony is a great solution to achieve both a casual and special feeling together in one style.

Sources: 1, 2, 3

So take one part braid and mix in one part side pony tail, I guess this is what you get!

Sources: 1, 2, 3, 4

What do you ladies think? Any advice, do's or don'ts for wedding day hair?

not wed yet {the bachelorette party}

I cannot believe my bachelorette party is this weekend!!! My maid of honor, Monica, has been planning for months to coordinate what she affectionately calls, "the best bachelorette party EVER." Here's what I know about the weekend: we rented a house with a swimming pool and outdoor bbq in beautiful Santa Barbara, we are going wine tasting; hiring a driver of course, and we are going out for a night of dinner, drinks and dancing on state street (I think). Regardless of what we end up doing, I know I'm going to have the time of my life because I'll be surrounded by over a dozen of my favorite girlfriends. This post is dedicated to what I'll be wearing this weekend. I already have both dresses picked out, but figured I'd throw some inspiration your way for those of you brides-to-be out there who still need to shop for your last "fling before the ring" attire. ;-)

Since we'll be spending one of the days out in the sun wine-tasting, it's important to have a casual, but fun and flirty sun dress. Here's some inspiration below.... BTW I found/bought that turquoise necklace online for only $40!! In person it looks like it is worth hundreds! What a find!

photo credits: left, top-right, bottom-right

And for the night we hit the town I envision myself in a white & sexy little number. FYI, I bought the BCBG dress on the left. LOVE it!

photo credits: left, middle, right

Here's some inspiration from my last bachelorette party fashion post:

And finally, here's a sneak peek at my party invitation (Monica knows me so well).... and a shot of me wearing the fabulous dress I recently bought- that one will be for the wine-tasting extravaganza. OOOOH, I'm so excited!!!!!

photo credits: invitation &  Taya's Dress

What do you have planned for your bachelorette weekend? Are you doing something local or traveling somewhere new? Would love to hear your fun stories!

Over a Year Till I Do & Halfway Dressed

Okay, so, I’m going to admit it:  I have never been one of those girls who has dreamed about her wedding day since she was a little girl. When I got engaged last November, the questions started piling up fast. “Where will you get married?”, “What do you want your dress to look like?”, “What is your vision for your wedding?”.  Almost 9 months later (yes, I realize 9 months is an entire engagement period for some couples), I still can’t completely answer any of these questions, but I certainly have a better idea of what I want and how to best make it happen. I never thought that I would care as much as I do about my wedding dress.  I started my search by aimlessly and casually browsing through Bridal magazines mentally tearing apart everything I saw.  Searching for wedding dresses on Pinterest only confused me further, because the styles and silhouettes I was gravitating towards were all so different.

Source: Dove Sparrow Photography, Watters Brides, Samuelle Couture, Jenny Packham, Lindee Daniel, Melissa Blackburn

After looking at three bridal shops (Panche Bridal in Santa Barbara, Lovely Bride in Los Angeles (my favorite shop!), and Camarillo Bridal in Camarillo), I discovered that I have expensive taste. At each shop, the dresses that I liked most were on the higher-end of my dress budget, and I was not completely in love with any of them.

The search continued while I was visiting some friends in San Francisco a month ago and decided to try my luck at Glamour Closet, a discount bridal shop that sells sample wedding dresses at up to 75% off retail. I was in luck! I walked away with a Monique Lhuillier lace corset (very similar to the photo below) at a price too good to pass up and a new vision for my "wedding dress."

I had never thought about looking at two-piece dresses. I had wrongly mentally labeled them as 90's prom dresses gone wrong. But, once I started trying on two-piece dresses, I began to see how this concept would give me more flexibility, more creative control, and maybe even keep me within my dress budget.

Source

And so, my search for a perfect bottom continues. I am leaning towards designing my own (maybe even two: a long skirt for the ceremony and short skirt for the reception) with the help of a local tailor. The following are my inspirations so far.

Source: Sarah Seven, Bonzie on Etsy, Carol Hannah

Have you thought about or gone the two-piece dress route?  Do you have pointers for designing your own dress? Am I crazy??

Milkfed Press Stationary Giveaway

Victoria, the design genius and creator behind Milkfed Press is one of the most raved about stationary and invitation work in Northern California. All her work is custom designed that is catered to her client's needs and combines every bit of craftsmanship possible: binding, typography, design, and letter press printing- with a very antique touch! Look at some of her work:

We love her! And we want to share some of her work with you with another giveaway! Here's what you have to do:

Like the Milkfed Press Facebook page & our Engaged&Inspired Facebook page,

Email me your name and address to EngagedandInspiredNatalie@gmail.com-

and the first to do this will have 7 Shake It! 8 1/2 x 11 Letterpress Prints mailed to them!

Good Luck!

and congratulations to Dalena Nguyen for winning last week's Milk&Honey Shoe Competition!

Here is her shoe design here!

What To Do With Your Wedding Dress After

I got married a year and a half ago. To this day my dress has been hanging around my house waiting for something to happen to it. This day and age, what do people do with wedding dresses?!

There are a few obvious options, preserving it, selling it, or keeping it in the closet with hopes that your daughter will "say yes to your dress".

Unfortunately I am not one of those sentimental people that wants to hold onto my dress for my future daughter. I hope to heavens that she is cool enough to have her own style and her own wedding day look. I really don't want to force it upon her because I have been holding it for 30 years. The whole concept just doesn't seem all too practical to me.

As for the sentimental side, I did take some of the petals from the bottom and add them to my wedding shadowbox in the form of a flower to keep a piece of my dress forever. But the whole thing? I don't really need it sitting around!

Another idea was to preserve it. I feel like that is even less practical seeing as it is sitting in a box that you can't even open! That just seems like a real pain.

I tried selling it with little luck. Maybe I should try that one again. I was hoping the concept of used wedding dresses would become a much bigger ecosystem. Not just for my sake, but for practicality's sake.

After months hung on the door to my crafting closet, I HAD to move it. My office is far too full as it is. Finally I nailed a nail into the wall of the guest bedroom and hung it there so it was out of the way and added a tinge of decor to the room. It is fine there, but of course I worry about it.

So now what? What is everyone doing or planning on doing with their dress after the big day? Would love some ideas or suggestions to help me out a little as I am starting to feel a little stumped on the whole thing.

Holman Ranch Wedding: Where To Stay

I am incredibly lucky that I have the chance to go to my wedding venue all the time. After getting married at Holman Ranch I started doing a lot of wedding coordination, planning and design work there and I absolutely love every second of it. After getting insanely familar with the area, I now would have done some things different for my own wedding. I don't regret what I did at all, but I thought I would share for all you Holman Ranch or Carmel Valley brides that need a little direction with booking rooms

We stayed at a small cottage style hotel in Carmel-By-The-Sea for the wedding. It was super cute & quaint and all my girls and I fit into the suite at the hotel. Though it was utterly my fault, in the end, that was my biggest regret. First, I wouldn't have put myself in the suite. People were coming in and out of there all night the night before and all morning the day of because it was the only room that could fit 20 people and it has cute balconies. All I really wanted was just a little peace and quiet, but unfortunately the big suite turned into the party spot!

Second, we booked out the entire hotel. I really like the idea of everyone staying in the same spot, and I used to think booking out the hotel was awesome, but I have since changed my tune a little. At night, everyone wants to hang out with the guests of honor in the biggest room on the property. I'm not saying I didn't want to hang, but it would have been nice to escape for 5 mins to a little peace and quiet if I wanted to. The morning was equally overwhelming the morning of the wedding (becuase of all the people that wanted to hang out in my room while I was trying to get ready!)

If I did it again, I would have booked my room at Bernardus Lodge, and left it as option for people if they wanted to spend that kind of money. It is very close to Holman Ranch and it has since become one of my favorite spots to go.

There aren't tons of rooms but the grounds are large giving people a few more options than hanging out in my suite the morning of the wedding. They have a pool, bocce ball, huge patios with firepits, and a restaurant which would have given me the fun factor I wanted, but also the space I needed at times. Since it is only 10 minutes from Holman Ranch instead of 30, it also would have been much better for the schedule. :) Which I was a crazy person about following.

That is what I would have done. Another great option is the Carmel Mission Inn. It is pretty nice and actually fairly inexpensive giving a good alternative to Bernardus pricing.

Watercolor Wonderment

Tomorrow will be the 3 month mark for our wedding day. EEK!! Time to start thinking about our invitations. We want to somehow relate them to our fly-by-the-seat-of-our-pants Save the Dates, except without all the pirates... I'm really in love with the idea of incorporating watercolor, because that brings in a little of the water element of the Save the Dates, and, well, it's just darn pretty. Watercolor stationary is popping up more and more, and I just think it's so romantic.

love & lobster

Plus the watercoloring adds that handmade element that we loved (and loathed) about our Save the Dates.

source: jtru designs; invites by wedding paper divas (left and right)

Here's even a cute little DIY for that beautiful white font look I love!

Check out the step-by-step for these gorgeous "Will You Be My Bridesmaid?" cards over at Glamour & Grace. Just stunning! I wish I had been that creative for my girls.

What do you think of the new watercolor trend? Yay or nay?

My Guide to Bridal Shows

My first experience with a bridal show was an awful one. I don't know if there was one definite thing that made it horrible, in fact I'm pretty sure it was several things. During my visit to a bridal show I made several mistakes from when I arrived and not preparing for all of the information I was going to have to carry around. I was lucky enough to have the Mister to accompany me and carry everything and since I am an introvert, he also started the conversations with most of the vendors we wanted to talk to. At the end of it all, I vowed never to return to one EVER again. [Spoiler alert! I'm going to another one!] I don't want anyone to be discouraged from attending bridal shows upon reading this. In fact, I want to encourage people to visit them no matter what stage of planning you're in. Not only are bridal shows a wealth of information, but many vendors offer discounts and many times you can be entered into drawing for free stuff! So here are my tips!

Source: My photo, Agape Creative Studios

Who - It's important to consider exactly who to bring with you to the bridal show. You're going to want to bring someone who is interested in your wedding planning and someone who can help you think things over and keep you from booking things impulsively. Bringing friends can be fun and it can make a great girls outing. Bringing family members such as your mom, mother in-law or sister can help make them feel included but they can easily overwhelm you with their own opinions if they're out spoken. Bringing your fiancee along can be fun, but remember that some guys aren't too interested in things like that. First consider if your guy would be okay going with you in the first place. If he doesn't don't take offense! I'm sure he will help in other ways! If this is the case sit down and discuss with him what you'd like to get out of the experience and what your plan of action should be if you find a vendor your're interested in. If your mister does come, remember that he may find other guys that were drug to the event by their significant others and catch up on the score for the big game. (There always seems to be a game of some sort that fall on these days.) If your man stands by you the whole day (congrats!) make sure to reward him! Treat him to a guy movie or beer after and let him know how great it was to have him by your side.

What - So what exactly should you bring to this? Remember that many vendors are going to want your information! So bring a pen (and your willingness to write the same info many times) or even prepare ahead with label sheets containing your information. It should be your name and contact information (mailing address, phone number and email). Bonus points for adding your wedding date also! This will save you time and save your wrist! I also recommend bringing a bag of some sort or have extra room in your purse. Most bridal shows provide you with a bag to store your goodies, but if they run out you don't want to be stuck lugging piles of paper from booth to booth. Lastly, you're going to be on your feet for several hours, so make sure you have shoes you're comfortable in!

When - When you attend the show (and which show if there are multiple in your area) really depends on how good you are with crowds and what features they have through the day. (I should note that the Mister compared it to a girls version of Comic-Con). Sometimes there are several different shows put on during different times of the year. Make sure to look into which vendors will be attending the upcoming show and which will meet what you're looking for. For example there is a local bridal company here in Fresno that put on a bridal show twice a year. One is smaller than the other which would be better suited for those who tend to shy away from big crowds but may not have some of the smaller vendors in attendance. If you choose the bigger show and are not a fan of crowds, try attending earlier in the day when less people are likely to be there.

Source: Premier Bride Showplace

I plan on attending another bridal show and hope to apply these tips. I anticipate having much more success this time around and will report back on how it goes!

Does you have any bridal shows local or travel to attend any? What was your experience? Do you have any other tips I may have missed? I'd love to hear your feedback!

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{Wedding Planning} : What I Leaned From Planning My Dream Wedding

Did you like the sneak peek I shared with you? A big thanks to Cassi Claire for those beautiful images. Also for this incredible graphic she made for my facebook page.

Amazing, right?

After planning our wedding for the past 17 months, I'd like to think I learned a thing or two. Overall I am happy with the result but there are definitely a few things I would have done differently.

{Wedding Day Advice}

Be Prepared for the Unexpected...

Everyone always tells you that things will go wrong. Deep down I knew this, but truly didn't believe that much could possibly go wrong after all of my meticulous planning. Well- let me tell you...I felt like a million things went wrong! Starting with the day of the rehearsal, I left an important bag at my florist, an hour away from my house! She called me and left a voicemail which I received shortly after driving the hour home from our initial meeting. I for the life of me could not understand why this was happening on a day when I had so much to do, but, of course, it ended up working out. My dad offered to drive me there to pick up the bag, and then we went to lunch. It was a perfect little father-daughter afternoon on my last day as a single lady and one of my most treasured moments from the weekend : )

Other things went wrong too. During the ceremony, our reader read the wrong passage first and then abruptly stopped in the middle of the second reading and just sat down, I forgot props I made and pictures I wanted to get, and we had about 10 minutes to take bride/groom photos but the funny thing is that everyone kept commenting how flawlessly the entire day went. Nobody knew the difference when it came to the readings and thanks to our awesome photographer, we only needed 10 minutes to nail the shot. So I guess the take away here is that nobody even noticed all the little things I thought went wrong.

*A Word About Contracts Be careful what you agree to in your contracts. Agree to the minimum you think you will need. Vendors will always let you add more services, but not all vendors will be flexible in removing services from an agreed upon contract. For example, the minimum number of people to reserve the room we got married in was 50, which we knew we would have. So when the hotel asked us for an estimated number of guests we told them 125-150. They went ahead and listed 125 on our contract as our minimum number of guests and held us to that number when it came time to pay the final balance. Luckily, we were only 3 people short, and they allowed us to use those 3 people to count as vendor meals, but then the night of the wedding, an additional 4 people (who we already paid for) just didn't show up. Live and learn.

On the other hand, when I originally met with our florist, I ordered church altar pieces. After meeting with our church, they expressed a preference for a different florist, one they usually work with. I called my wedding florist and asked to remove the altar pieces from the contract and they did it no problem. Just something to be aware of.

*People Will Surprise You People will disappoint you. People who I thought wouldn't miss our wedding for the world weren't there, people who told us they were coming, just didn't show up and people came to our wedding, stayed over in the hotel and didn't give us a gift. It happens. There were also those people were amazingly supportive, and sometimes its the last people you expect it to be.  Your true friends and family will support you no matter what and those are the people you want to celebrate with.

Thank you for reading, following and encouraging me during this process. I will miss blogging here each week!  I hope you will keep up with me over at The East Coast Bride or on Pinterest.