Tuxes

We are getting the men's tuxes from Paulucci's, in downtown Lewiston. Originally I wanted just a nice plain black suit, or even a gray one, nothing fancy since, after all, my dress is pink and tea length, and the wedding is outdoors! but plain black suits START at $99, plus shoes. Paulucci's is running a special through mid-August on tux rentals, $69.99 each, which includes everything but the shoes, so tuxes it is..

We found a tie that corresponds perfectly to the bridesmaid dresses, and decided to skip renting coats because a) they don't fit Calvin and his dad very well without tailoring, which they won't do for rental suits, b) I know the coats would come off two minutes after the ceremony, forming a large pile under a table somewhere that we'd probably forget and have to race back the next day to pick up, and c) it's an outdoor wedding, casual-ish, and it will still be warm, so why make them sweat and look gross in the pictures (yes, pictures are my only concern, their wellbeing is not my problem. I kid, I kid, of course I'm concerned about their comfort, I'm just saying, it works out conveniently to where we all win!).

So we'll save $10 per set without the coat, which will cover the $8 cost of renting shoes. Overall, not bad. Plus, my dad and brother will be renting them as well, I just discovered, so we will do a total of 7 tuxes, and I think that may make Calvin's free, I have to double check. At any rate, YAY is what I'm thinking. Calvin's dad and brother, and my dad and brother will cover their own suits, so we just have to cover Calvins, and two of his groomsmen, for around $200. Not bad at all.

forever21 has my heart forever

I found the PERFECT hair accessories! The bridesmaids will be in aqua, to complement my pale pink dress, and these hair accessories come in the same colors! I was thrilled to see the pink, then I clicked on another color and gasped aloud when I saw the color of my bridesmaid's dresses! Basically, it will be that all of my accessories will be aqua, and all of their accessories will be pink, so we switch, you see?

And I haven't told you the greatest part! okay, so I'm the biggest cheapskate on some things. I HATE paying nickel-and-dime stuff, including shipping, fees to use debit cards, etc. It's a little pointless because I usually even it out driving around to a member bank to withdraw money so I don't have to see a $2 hit in my bank account. Anything that theoretically I could avoid by working a little harder (ie. driving up to SPOKANE to pick these up instead of paying $5.95 for something that weighs less than an ounce) drives me crazy, even if it could cost more. Thanks mom. So I googled Forever 21 free shipping code. And whaddaya know? The code SURVEY worked!! "You have qualified for free shipping" are the six words that MADE MY DAY. So I got two more sets of these, and it was STILL cheaper than it would have been with shipping! Score!

UPDATE

So the last time I posted corresponds pretty closely with the last time I had time (ie. didn't have a job). I work at the Lewiston Tribune now and I LOVE my job, but it is time-consuming. Plus, my computer broke for a while AND we don't have internet at Calvin's family's property.

ANYWAY...

is it of any surprise to you that my wedding plans are drastically different now, 4 months later?

Here's the for sure (no, really this time, like deposits are paid and done and gone)

What: A tiny 30-ish-person wedding

When: Sept. 11-12 (overnight, most will stay at the inn, but it is smaller so a few people may have to stay in hotel rooms in Orofino)

Where: The High Country Inn in Ahsahka (near Orofino, about an hour from Lewiston, Idaho)

Photographer: Cali Janae Photography

Dress: Bellina Bridal

Theme: a little bit country, with a little bit rock 'n' roll

Colors: variations on blue and pink, ranging from aqua and pale pink to bold blue and fuschia.

Flowers: Roses, various colors

Maid of Honor: Rachell

Matron of Honor: Stacy

Junior Bridesmaids: Lexi, Neesha, Hewekse (they are all MAYBE because I can't ever find them to try on their dresses!!)

Flower Girl: Dominique

Ring Bearer: Darius

Mini Flower Girl: Olivia

Mini Ring Bearer: Lewis

We will be serving a full dinner on Saturday after the ceremony, followed by roasting marshmallows, and then retiring to bed. Sunday morning, we will be treated to a delicious home-cooked meal from Jo, the proprietor of The High Country Inn.

A reception for people in Spokane (Lindsey's side of the equation) will take place Friday, Sept. 17 at the Spokane North Stake Center on Regina Ave. The theme will be Alice in Wonderland.

A barbecue will be held for Calvin's side the week after THAT, Sunday, Sept. 26.

GAH!

Wedding plans upended again! However, this time I'm sticking to it:

Date: Sept 18th, 2010

Place: my maid of honor's parents' home on Five Mile Prairie in Spokane, Washington

Theme: Alice in Wonderland

Photographer: Cali Jenae Photography

Cake: Awesome Cakes by Ash

Bridesmaid dresses: Aria Dress

Rental company (for chairs): A to Z Rental

As for the theme, it's not going to be hardcore goth alice in wonderland, it's going to be springy, mad hatter's tea party style, with kooky broken teacups and pocket watches etc as the centerpieces. It will be cool. and eclectic. and thoroughly us!

It looks like Calvin and I are moving to Lewiston somewhat permanently since his family is here and jobs are a bit more plentiful than dead Spokane.

However, this means I have to possibly uproot all of my wedding plans and reconstruct them somewhere between Lewiston and Pullman. This was a pain at first, but now I'm thinking it could be an opportunity. After all, Calvin wanted a good old-fashioned barbecue, now we can find some big old barn somewhere and have it there! Well, I'm looking into it. I'm considering either Red Barn Farms (though it could be out of our price range) and the Dahmen barn. I think that since the Dahmen Barn is white, it may not clash with my dress in pictures, so major bonus.

(aside: man, the day I started thinking about the color of the facility in relation to my dress is the day I realized I could very well turn into a bridezilla if I don't watch myself!)

Lewiston's wedding industry is pretty small, but I'm realizing that means it's actually going to be easier to pin down what will work best for us. Not to mention, I believe our photographer will be at school in Pullman, so I don't have to feel bad about making her drive all the way to Spokane for our wedding!

Other types of sites I'm considering (however briefly) are the Hells Gate State Park (they have group use areas you can rent for weddings) and the Hells Canyon Resort (may be a little small but it's a good just-in-case venue to have). But I'm just going to sit on it for now and we'll see what works out.

I found a great photography site by a local photographer who compiled a list of resources too: Digital Arts Photography

(obviously this post was kind of just so I can keep things straight but I wanted to keep you all in the loop too!)

no internet!

I've been without the internet for the past few weeks and it has been lonely! I've had to put most of my wedding planning on hold until I get the internet again. So I've been trying to get wedding planning books and magazines, but man, they are expensive! I found this awesome book, the Anti-Bride Guide at Hastings, but it was $20. Totally eating into my wedding budget there. So I'm going to order it on Amazon when I have a debit card again. Until then I just have to settle for my single Shape Brides magazine (already read and tagged my favorite pages) and hope to get the internet back soon! I'll post next time I can find time on a computer.

Some updates:

I found a letterpress operator in Portland who can do my invitations for a fantastic price so I just need to edit the invitation so it's not a full-bleed and we'll be good to go!

My local printer, 2 blocks from my house, can do Save the Date and RSVP postcards for under $15 per hundred, which is cheaper than Vistaprint AND and supports a local business. Score.

The bridesmaids are having their dresses made by hand from a person I found on Etsy.com. I got a lot of bids from people wanting to do the dresses so I'll reveal the winner and the dress style once we figure it all out.

One or more of my bridesmaids may be pregnant at my wedding, thus the handmade dresses.

We are so far registered at Target.com and CB2.com.

I am definitely getting the Maggie Sottero Rasharna dress done in blush, not all white. Not sure if I'll buy an authentic Maggie or have it handmade and modified a little though.

I think I'll be buying my own silverware for the guests at a restaurant supply store or website, since the cost of buying vs. renting is just about equal, plus renting can incur extra fees if we lose so much as one utensil. Plates will need to be rented though unless we do a major borrow-a-thon, which would be kinda cool.

I'm still undecided on photographers and we still don't have engagement picture sessions lined up.