overload

It is hard to believe it is already Thursday and a new weekend is staring me in the face. I am still recovering from last weekend’s bender.

Not that kind of bender unfortunately.

It was a full-on jam-packed weekend starting with a rager of a baby shower. Balloons hanging from the rafters. Diaper cakes. Banners. Cookies. Games. Music. Like I said, a real rager!

Although baby showers are not in my wedding jurisdiction, I am really spending a lot of time at them. I think I am almost ready to take on the DIY diaper cake. From what I am told, you just need a ton of diapers and rubber bands. Roll ‘em up, group ‘em together and hide all of your mechanics with some ribbon. I think I can handle it.

I aspire to make one this stunning...

The shower was a display shower as all the trendy ones are these days. It makes sense for baby showers, right? Either the boxes are so big that wrapping them is a total waste of paper or the little outfits and things are so cute that you just want them out on display for everyone to peruse. Plus, everybody wants to be green. This particular display shower looked like Christmas for the kid’s first 3 years. They cleaned up!

The theme was “Celebrate the Peanut”. The whole peanut thing is picking up in the baby shower world. It ran full swing in every detail. I provided the centerpieces which were a traditional vase arrangement of cut flowers in the shower’s color scheme. But look closer. I told you peanuts were everywhere so I subtly incorporated actual shelled peanuts into the arrangements. Hopefully people noticed them and you can find them in this picture. I ate some too while arranging.  Maybe next time I will make arrangements full of chocolate...

Having not seen most of my relatives since Christmas, we kept the momentum going. I spent the majority of the weekend with various family members. We covered everything from who’s walking to who walked out and absurd Facebook statuses - one of our favorite topics. Come on, you know you do it too. I suppose I’m good until spring.

Or at least until the next shower anyway.

The weekend also included one of my Nearly-Famous DIY wedding invitation parties. Yes, I just dubbed it that. Does it have a nice ring to it?

One of my 2011 brides got her bridesmaids together so we could hand make the soon-to-be-released invitations. Sorry, no teasers here. I can tell that all 120 are finished, return-addressed and even have coordinating thank you’s. We only ran into one minor (nearly major) hiccup. All was solved and completed by sundown just in time for the super bowl. Let’s just say “the eagle has landed” and leave it at that.

Oh!  And I just might have found the local and inexpensive tailor that I have been searching for thanks to a referral from one mf my SILs.  Stay tuned!

Did Christina Aguilera really mess up the national anthem? I was too busy eating and rounding out the gossip. I found out on Monday who won.

-The perennial bridesmaid

what's in your pocket

Everybody wants a pocket on their wedding invitation these days.  It's currently all the rage.  The pocket stores the response card & envelope, hotel info, directions and whatever other info accompanies the actual invite portion of the invitation.

What did we do before the evolution of the pocket?

Anyway, here's an example of a pocketfold invitation that we put together earlier this year.  It is a 5x7 horizontal layout with the pocket on the bottom.  We went with a modern template.  The script is right aligned and the complementary scroll image is on the left which we hand stamped.  The color scheme matches the colors of the wedding - navy, yellow & ivory.

-The perennial bridesmaid

the plunge

When getting married, it's known as "taking the plunge" because you're plunging into marriage with another person. 

One guy close to me took this idiom quite literally... 

After his wedding, him and his new wife honeymooned in Jamaica.  After approaching a 50 foot cliff over the White River, he decided to take the plunge and did a cannonball!  Well that wasn't adventurous enough, so he thought he was up for a massive belly flop from 50 feet above.  I know what you're thinking...

SMACK!  That's the sound his belly made when it slapped the water.  That wasn't the only impact that the belly flop made.  His brand new wedding band flew right in the river never to be seen again. 

Less than one week he had that ring.

Needless to say, his wife wanted to "ring" his neck.

Moral of the story:
Guys, lock your jewels in the safe when necessary (such as 50 foot belly flops). 
Don't do any extreme sports or work with them on.
Consider getting them insured. 
Do anything to avoid such an early loss!

-The perennial bridesmaid

blues

Bridal blues. You heard of ‘em? After months of wedding plans, tastings, fittings & trials comes the main event and then? The honeymoon? Some brides experience a sort-of depression known as the bridal blues once their wedding is all said and done.

I think I am experiencing bridesmaid blues, if there is such a thing. I’m feeling quite melancholy. Maybe it’s because I’m left here in the rain with no exotic vacation.

I think it is simply because last weekend’s wedding was just so spectacular that I can’t believe it’s actually over! I keep remembering the delicious food and wishing I went back for just one more seafood cake or actually sampled the pasta station. Perhaps I should have had another lemony, signature cocktail affectionately named the Spanktini, a shout out to the groom. I regretfully never made it to the dessert buffet either because I just couldn’t pull myself off of the dance floor. I didn’t even taste the chocolate on chocolate 3-tier, square, monogrammed wedding cake that the bride & groom comically toasted and fed themselves instead of the messy cake smash on one another.

Bummer. It must have been a good party because I don’t miss out on chocolate for much.

The weather turned out to be just right for late March. It was the kind of early spring day that brings the deer out of the woods, the daffodils up and the geese flying…and they did. All of nature and 150 guests circled around the veranda at the Manor House to watch as my brother and sister-in-law exchanged their written vows. The ceremony was so very them. Sweet and nice injected with bits of humor. It was like watching a segment of their comical, everyday banter except they were in formal attire…and there was a photographer capturing every move.

The music was on point as well. Jason Mraz and John Mayer really can create a modern feel at an otherwise traditional outdoor ceremony. And who knew Slick Rick, Beyonce, Rolling Stones, Lil Jon, Dion, U2 & Guns ‘N Roses could be such a good time at the same time at the reception! Did I mention Guns ‘N Roses? Playing the air guitar to Sweet Child of Mine with the groom as we did as kids is definitely a fond memory. I’m just nervous to see the video. Swinging my hair around like Slash might have been cute when I was 7 but perhaps not so much as an adult in a gown. Time will tell.

Everyone looked fabulous.  Especially the bride in a stunning, rouched waste, v-neckline gown with an ornate flower in her hair.  Even my dad, with 2 left feet, had a way with his classic tuxedo. His dressy Chuck Taylor’s really put a spin on the threads that only he can.

Now that the vows have been exchanged; the toasts have been made; the feast has been had; and the newlyweds are on the beach somewhere; it’s time for this bridesmaid to shake the blues! One down, how many more to go this year?

-The perennial bridesmaid

do or diy

What have I been up to? Hmm, well there were 100 invitations & 100 thank yous last week for 2 separate weddings. That about sums it up. But if you want more deets, read on…

Day 1: 100 wedding invitations
Vintage looking, horizontal pocket fold #10 (legal size)
Team of 5 assembly line style. (always good to recruit your bridesmaids for DIY projects)

• Fold pre cut 8"x9.25" blue cardstock in half.
• Adhere pocket on bottom.
• Adhere accent cardstock on top.
• Stamp pocket.
• Stamp front of invitation.
• Save text piece for another day as details need to be ironed and laid out.

Time: 3 hours

Day 2: 100 wedding TYs
Simple but stunning 4.25"x5.5" card. We'll call it simply stunning.
Team of 2

• Fold pre cut 8.5"x5.5" yellow cardstock in half.
• Stamp base cardstock with background stamp.
• Stamp thank you sentiment on ivory cardstock.
• Punch sentiment out.
• Adhere sentiment to stamped cardstock.

Time: 2 hours

Tip I learned the hard way:  Kinko's and Staples will cut your cardstock for you.  They can cut up to about 100 sheets for approximately $1.50 per cut.  1 cut = 2 minutes, so easy.  I learned this AFTER cutting 100 invitations by hand.  Each piece of cardstock invidually. Ouch.

I promise to post pictures some day soon to keep things interesting for ya. Yes, I am for hire as I do really enjoy designing & creating these custom invitations and thank yous.

-The perennial bridesmaid

girls just wanna have fun

and we did.

Bachelorette party #1 of 2010 went down Saturday evening. It didn’t end ‘til the wee hours of the morning Sunday. We had a girls’ night out in the city including the 3Ds: dinner, drinks & dancing.

Days later and I’m still exhausted.

The bachelorette had a fabulous night amongst her bridesmaids and closest friends.  We did not subject her to tiara veils, bridal sashes or blinking anything. Judging by the series of pictures that are being passed around, everyone enjoyed themselves…except maybe the limo driver.

On nights like this, I wish cameras hadn’t been invented to document the turn of events & rapid decline in judgment. Cameras and the internet for that matter. Before I could say ‘bachelorette’, I was tagged in a variety of unflattering 3D pictures online (see: dinner, drinks & dancing). Through bleary eyes, I reviewed the pictures and untagged the most unflattering shots of myself. Does everyone do this at some point to preserve their cyber image?

Now I remember why these parties take place weeks, if not months, prior to the wedding! My recovery time has drastically increased in the last few years. I just can’t party for 10 hours straight anymore and bounce back. Where has my 22 year old self gone?

As I pushed through the day yesterday, I found myself in on the planning of another bachelorette party, just 2 weeks away. You think that’s comical? I opened my email today to find yet another invitation to a 3rd bachelorette party!

Soon it will be time to do it all over again. Until then, I’m on bed rest.

-The perennial bridesmaid

here goes...

If you’ve been following along, you know by now that I launched this blog to track my journey through 2010’s wedding season and all of the events and prep work that comes with it. I hope you’ve been reading along because you’re entertained by the situations I’m involved in and not just because we’re related. Heck, maybe you’ve even learned something (like country crock is not butter).

This weekend begins an intense 20 day stretch of non-stop wedding madness for my first two 2010 weddings. I am a victim of my calendar. If you didn’t make it on there, I hope to see you next month!

Here’s a preview of my commitments and appointments from March 6th to March 26th…

• bachelorette party extravaganza
• june wedding invitation crafting
• march wedding thank you crafting
• favors favors favors
• hair trial with the MOG
• vintage dress shopping for june wedding
• bridal shower
• wedding vase centerpiece assembly
• spa mani/pedi (ahh, can’t wait)
• wedding rehearsal followed by rehearsal dinner
• hair & make up (I wish this one was on the list everyday)
• finale: first wedding of 2010!

Consider this a teaser, if you will, because I expect a multitude of good stories to come from the next 3 weeks’ experiences. I can assure you that there will be some disastrous stories, if I have anything to do with it.

Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go take a nap.

-The perennial bridesmaid

countdown

If you’ve been keeping up with the countdowns on the right of this page, you’ve probably noticed that the list has grown. In the last week alone, I’ve added 3 new couples & dates including my little brother’s 2011 wedding which is 488 days away. On the list they go!

Now seems as good a time as any to mention that there are ONLY 50 days to the first wedding on the countdown list…my other brother’s big day!

Just this week I received another playful save the date. It is a caricature of the couple and their 2 beagles! The design really captures the four of them so well and actually looks just like them! It is too fun not to share with you all. Below is a picture of the magnet on my fridge. Just 233 days left for them.

-The perennial bridesmaid

surprise

It has been a month since I officially launched 10,000 weddings. That means one month of the year of the weddings is down. January primarily consisted of planning for all of the upcoming events although yesterday was the first wedding event of the year. It went off without any major snafus other than a minor heating issue that was quickly solved. So the guests left their coats and gloves on for the first hour…there was alcohol to warm them up!

The shower was held at one of the bridesmaid’s houses. She lives in a beautiful, old farmhouse where the barn has been renovated into a magnificent ballroom. No exaggeration. We couldn’t have asked for a better venue. Forty guests easily fit into this room complete with an enormous bar, pine hardwood floors & ceilings that I am guessing are 20 feet high. It was the backdrop for a great day!

The shower was a traditional luncheon complete with the dreaded but fun bridal bingo. It kept the guests busy and stirred up some friendly competition while the bride unwrapped her gifts. She acquired so many amazing things including a stunning hat made of ribbons & bows! Where did this tradition stem from? I must find the answer before forcing another woman to put the paper plate/ribbon contraption on her head. Why do we do this?

In my research I have found out where the overall tradition of bridal showers stems from…sort of. There seem to be lots of variations on this one...bridal showers evolved in the 1800s as a means for a bride to acquire all things needed to establish a home. The alleged first bridal shower took place in Holland. A dutch girl was marrying a poor man who wouldn’t be able to afford all the luxuries she’d need to start their home so her close female friends showered her with gifts.

The story also says something about a rich father who didn’t approve of his daughter marrying the poor fool. I think I’d like to leave that part out in my version.

Ever wonder why showers traditionally are surprises? Originally a shower took place at the bride’s house. The other women would just drop in one day and surprise her with all of these wonderful gifts. Can you imagine 40 of your closest friends just showing up unannounced these days? I know I would be scurrying to clean the bathroom or something instead of admiring a new waffle maker. Its funny how that tradition has been modified, isn’t it?

Traditionally the woman that would throw the bride a shower would not be related to her. Apparently it was considered rude if the bride’s mother or relative was requesting friends to shower her with gifts. I guess mom didn’t want to look like a gold digger so she’d assume her daughter’s closest friend would coordinate the event, And that’s how a maid of honor evolved. The other girls with the gifts were typically the bridesmaids.

Can we work on upgrading those titles now? Maid just seems so politically incorrect.

-The perennial bridesDIVA

the perfect fit

My first bridesmaid dress for 2010 has arrived! I waited until I got home to put it on because in my experience it usually falls off the top, slides down the back or adds three sizes to the hips on the first try. No one needs to see any of that. To my surprise, this dress fit perfectly! Everything is covered that should be and the length is almost perfect. The right heels will fix that. Up until now, I thought that the bridesmaid dress designers were in cahoots with the tailors & seamstresses in my neighborhood.

They see me coming with a plastic garment bag in tow and start laughing with dollar signs in their eyes.

A few years ago I took a green number to a dry cleaner/seamstress to have the strapless top taken in just a pinch. It fit like it should but the work seemed a little shotty and I was shocked to find out the going rate to sew a few inches of fabric. Not to mention this lady was flaky and kept postponing my pick up date. That obviously made me panic and have nightmares that consisted of me in my underwear at the wedding. Finally, after 3 weeks, $60 and 2 inches I was on my way with the altered dress.

Fast forward a year and I had a spaghetti strap dress with triangle tops that flopped right over when I put it on and exposed everything! This was a tailor emergency and I needed to step it up a notch. I went to a divo tailor in my neighborhood that everyone raved over. He hemmed all of the girl’s designer jeans in town and personally tailored Phillies’ Shane Victorino’s threads as well. He had to be good with that rep. I was happily surprised to see that his only employee was a grandma with very broken English stitching away in the back. Perhaps it was his grandma. Either way, I liked it. Something about this scene seemed very authentic to me. This team could handle all of my bridesmaid alterations moving forward...hopefully. This had to be the answer that I was searching for!

Two weeks later I went back for the spaghetti strap dress. I put it on and jumped up on the pedestal in front of the mirror. Hmm, it fit better in the hips than before but something was wrong…I was more exposed than before I started! Was it possible that they took too much fabric off? I begrudgingly handed over $75 to grandma’s boss anyway. The divo told me that he would be happy to alter an old bridesmaid dress into “couture”. He went on to show me his photo of him and Shane posing amongst rows of garment bags in his tailor shop.

I haven’t gone back.

I threw in the towel and self consciously wore the over altered spaghetti strap number. What was a girl to do? Drink her insecurities away at the reception? Seemed like the right answer to me. So I over served my over exposed self.

-The perennial bridesmaid

diy invitations

DIY invitations…love it.  This is the first impression that a wedding guest will have of your occassion.  Why not handcraft it? 

I will be doing several runs of handmade wedding invitations this year. The first batch went off without a hitch…so we thought.

I met with the bride and groom (my brother and future sis-in-law) to consult as early as last Labor Day to select colors, designs and layouts. Several weeks and several modifications later, the bride and I began cutting all of the cardstock to size. Stacks of luscious navy, saffron & ivory cardstock were building high by October. Our plan was being followed out on point. We had closely mapped out a schedule to complete assembly of the invitations by December so they could be mailed the second week of January with no stress over the holidays.

The plan included an assembly day in November with a half dozen of us to complete specified tasks in order to construct the invitations. The invitations are a modern gatefold with a pocket at the bottom for the response card & envelope plus hotel accommodation information. We had enough pieces pre-cut to make 100 invitations although the final count to mail would be 88. We calculated a 10% error rate. We quickly learned that a 20% error rate would have been more realistic. Note to self. Luckily we ended up with 88 acceptable invitations but not one to spare.

Fast forward six weeks ahead to this weekend. Here’s where the hitch comes in. There are exactly 88 completed invitations, as needed. Bride and groom go to stuff the envelopes in preparation for the big mailing. Oh no, 75% of the pockets were no longer adhered! The response card had popped it open. The disaster was quickly solved by the bride and groom who used double side tape which proved to hold better.

Lessons learned: 20% error rate on DIY invitations AND heavy duty adhesive for adhering pockets.

What we did right: Starting 3-4 months in advance of when invitations need to be mailed. This means starting the DIY invitations 6 months prior to the wedding! I will be starting invitations in the next week or so for the vintage June wedding…

-The perennial bridesmaid