First Look [Surprise]!

My photographer mailed off our first disc of wedding photos today(YAY), but before she did, she sent me a little surprise.

The First Look- Katie & Eric from Sara Mannino on Vimeo.

A slide show of the first look! The slide show song was our first dance song(Let It Be Me by Rosie Thomas), which the photog sneakily asked me about in an email two weeks ago(b/c it's somewhat unusual, I thought she was just curious). I had no idea she was making this!!

I know I promised those DIY projects. We had plans almost every evening this past week that kept me busy, but I'm going to get to them soon! Thanks for being patient :-)

50 first dates: an engagement shoot

Have you seen this video? It's amazing!

Says the photographer, Axioo:

"We attempted the challenging "50 First Dates" concept into their theme. Stories of their dates doing movies, dinners, walking int the park, lazing around the weekends, grocery shopping, self-photos, lunches, playgrounds. We are madly in love with their photos! It really shows in every shot."

Adrian Sanny Prewedding from Axioo on Vimeo.

seen via: Rock 'n Roll Bride

Not only are the photos lovely and the idea genius--I want her wardrobe! This must have taken AGES of shooting to get so many adorable scenes!

happy weekend!

this weekend I plan to:

1. Grocery shop with a meal plan for the week (I'm a big fan of planning ahead!)
2. Sort books (our living room has looked a little bit like this for over a month)
3. shop for bookshelves at IKEA (hubs want this corner bookcase. he's got a crazy amount of books!)
   
4. Research affordable vacuums (we need one so bad! Too bad no one bought us our $400 Dyson :-/)
5. go through more CA reception and honeymoon pictures and edit away!

Here's a sneak peak!

Be back next week with more DIY projects and pictures!

also, huge congratulations to Callie of august15bride who is getting married--you guessed it--tomorrow! Thinking of you, girly!

DIY Details: Card Box

And thus begins the DIY series---a.k.a. all the projects that I didn't get the opportunity to blog about pre-wedding. Hopefully this will be a good distraction while I wait to blog my recaps!

My original idea for a "card box" was to just have a lined basket to match the ones I used for our petal cones and programs. Like this one from Kaboodle:
But both the coordinator at our reception venue and all my family warned by against an uncovered card holder because of the risk of theft. Our reception was held at a coutry club where golfers or others might wander in and grab a card or two (I couldn't believe that! I was apalled when our coordinator said it had happened before.) So I was stuck. The only other option I'd heard of via Weddingbee was birdcages...and those just weren't my style.

I loved Mrs. Avocados' suitcases

by Kelli Nicole, via Weddingbee and That Bride

but it still didn't solve the problem of a more secure card holder

Then my wonderful aunt jet went up to her attic one one of our crafting days and came down with a box that looked just like this:

source

Then she got out a box cutter, brown spray paint, and a pile of silky cords in different shapes and sizes, all in my wedding colors! ("for embellishment" she said)
[Seriously, the jet's house/garage has any kind of crafting and building tool you can imagine.]

I picked this ivory colored rope and set it aside.



Then we started with the box. I took out the biggest greeting card I could find and used it to measure the hole, and added an inch. The hole was about 1.5" x 9". I cut it with the box cutter after tracing the lines with a ruler. Old hat boxes have really thick covers with several layers....so be careful when cutting!


photo by me

Next, We had to change the color of that vintage floral wallpaper stuck to the box.
In order to neutralize the color, we started with 2 layers of white spray paint.

The next week, we got to work on the brown. Ok Aunt Jet got to work while I took pictures:

We painted at least 3 coats if not 4, about 10 minutes apart. Then we left it for another hour or two to dry.

As I was contemplating how to decorate the box, I remembered Miss Taffy's post on Weddingbee about the rope signs she made for her seed-themed shower.
Voila! We had our card-box idea.

I carefully traced with white chalk the word "cards". After many tries and much erasing, I got out craft glue and traced the chalk, on letter at a time. I wrote it in cursive not because I liked how it looked, but because the rope frayed very easily and I didn't want to have to cut it more than at the beginning and the end.

After carefully laying the rope over the glue outlined letters, I held the rounded letters ("r" and "d" were the hardest to keep together) with my hand for 10 minutes or so until i was confident they wouldn't slide around.

My first try, I felt that the letters were too off center and disproportionate so type A me ripped the rope off the box. re-spray painted the top, and started over!

see how big the "c" and "a" are compared to the "d"? yikes!



The second try was more successful (though still not centered!)

The glue dried within a day, completely clear....and this is what I ended up with!

photo by Uncle Cam


photo by Little Hands Photography

Just another tease

We interrupt our regularly schedule program to bring you....
more teaser photos!

I asked my photographer last week if she wouldn't mind posting a couple more photos for me to feast on while she edits and sorts through our 3000+ pictures. (What can I say...I'm an impatient lady!)

But I was duly rewarded when our photographer posted a few of the detail shots last night!

And here they are for all of you to see! (click to enlarge)

Cait's wedding, pt 2: the trial[s]

I've known about Cait's wedding for longer than I'd had my date set, and I knew I was going to make it to her big day no matter what our situation.

I hesitated buying plane tickets, because I wanted to clear the unpaid time off with my new boss first. When I finally got around to it, the airfare was pretty expensive.
In order to keep our newlywed budget in tact, I ended up flying out friday morning (the day of Cait's wedding) with a return flight on Saturday evening.

Because of a three hour time change, I convinced my mom and grandfather to meet me near the airport with two cars (so I wouldn't have to rent one), in order for me to make the 2.5 hour drive up to Western MI. I planned to arrive an hour early to the wedding to spy on pictures being taken, or just relax at my cousin's girlfriend's house.

All was well Friday morning...my plane arrived 10 minutes early, and I met my mom, grabbed the car and was on my way.

After about an hour cruising up I94, I decided to stop at a rest stop/visitor center on the MI border to reapply makeup and change into a dress. I gave myself about 15 minutes leeway, and right on time I hopped back into my car to go.

Key in the ignition, check the lipstick in the rearview, and start the car.

I said--start. the. car.

I was getting nothing. But level headed, logical me was not about to panic. I've had a dead battery before. I got this...no problem

I calmly pulled my jumper cables from my trunk, popped my hood and asked the older couple in a mini van next to me if they wouldn't mind giving me a quick jump.

The gentleman, (I'll call him John) was more than helpful, offered to take over and I think I'm set. But after the fifth try and not getting a single response from the car...I'm getting nervous.

The couple asks me where I'm headed and I just lose it. "My friend's wedding...I'm still an hour and a half away!" I blubbered. I called our mutual friend JR, but he had already arrived and if he would have headed back to pick me up, we would have both missed the wedding.

John tinkered around under the hood for 15-20 minutes and said he thought it might be the starter, but there was nothing more he could do. He apologized and headed to the bathrooms with his wife, telling me to see if I could hitch a ride. I thought I would have to just head home.

At this point tears are streaming down my face and my makeup is falling apart. I wanted to call Cait so bad to tell her I couldn't make it, but didn't want to distract her on her special day. I was a mess!
Then John walked back up to my car window with another couple in their early 60s.
"This is Larry and Janice, and they're heading up past Grand Rapids. We just met them in the bathroom and told them your story. They'd be happy to take you up with them."

I just blinked through my tears, got out of my car and profusely thanked them. He wouldn't take my money for his help and time. John said, "We just heard a sermon about helping others. For all I know you could be an angel in disguise."

I grabbed my bag and walked over to Larry and Janice's van. I tried to gain composure, introduce myself and explain my situation again. Larry and Janice from Kansas City, MO, were heading up to Cadillac, MI to see family and for a class reunion. We were both leery of one another at first...the whole car ride I kept thinking--I'm hitch-hiking! What am I thinking?!

Larry and Janice wouldn't take money either, and I don't have any contact information, but I'm so grateful for their kindness. It makes me a little sad that I'll never see them again, but God was so good in keeping me safe and providing me with such kind people that day!
Larry and Janice dropped me off on a highway exit to meet my cousin's girl friend, Nicole, who brought me the rest of the way to the wedding.

I realized shortly after we left the rest stop, that I was going to miss Cait's wedding ceremony. I was pretty devastated and tried to hold back the tears the rest of the drive. I arrived at the wedding just as all the guests were walking back from the ceremony site to the reception tent.

What I saw of Cait's wedding was lovely, and I can't to see more of it. In the meantime, this tear jerking video of the wedding was posted yesterday. You need to check it out to see what I missed!

I'm not kidding! Go! you can come back here when you're finished.

Cait and Wil have the funniest siblings ever and their toasts were spectacular. It was a big wedding, so it was hard to grab one-on-one time with the bride and groom, but we managed to snap this.

taken on my camera by bride's bro

The dances were beautiful and we sent them off with a smokey sparkler tunnel to blissful married life :-)

guest photo by s.c.

(Oh, how did I get home being stuck carless in MI, you ask?...my mom and grandpa save the day again and make a 5+ hour road trip to come get me. I arrived home with barely an hour to pack up and head to the airport for home! And I couldn't have been happier to be at home, in CA, with my hubby.)

If you're still reading this, I'm amazed. I tend to be really long-winded. More exciting picture heavy posts are coming!

Next up: pre-wedding celebration re-caps!
Bachelorette party, bridal brunch and rehearsal!