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Describe your ideal wedding!

audball

Ideal_Rock
Joined
Oct 2, 2008
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I know this has also been done in the past, but there are so many new LsIW...I want to hear all about your (soon to be official!) plans!

Give me the IDEAL details of your dream day :)

WHO will attend? Big party, low key, elope alone?
WHAT will your theme be? Will you even have one?
WHEN is your ideal time of year to get married? It's all about seasons, weather!
WHERE do you dream of tying the knot? A certain city, a particular venue?
WHY do you think this is your ideal situation? Is there a reason you want the big wedding or want to run away alone?
HOW do you plan to pull it off, plan, and pay for it?! How much time to plan, save, etc?

Feel free to share any and all details you've got spinning around in your head. Dresses, flowers, colors, venues, themes, etc...

:naughty:
 

audball

Ideal_Rock
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I can start!

We want to ELOPE! It will be planned and everything.

We likely won't have a theme since it'll just be the two of us. Or maybe it'll be simply romance :)

My favorite time of year to get married is the fall. I just love fall. Unfortunately due to my school schedule, unless we want to wait for 5 years to get married (we don't), I have two options that won't conflict with school. A 5 week space from mid July to mid August, or a 3 week space from mid December to the first week of January. While I love the winter too (would be my preference over summer), both of our birthdays are just 2 weeks apart in December already, plus Christmas and New Years, it'd make for quite a full month! So I think summer it will be. The nice thing will be is that our dating anniversary is in July and we had a lot of milestones that summer so we are okay with this. We'll be very cautious about the where because of the summer heat and rain, so we'll likely be compromising to an indoor venue instead of outdoors in fall like we wanted, but it'll be ok!

In terms of where, we've bounced around a few ideas. A few years ago I found this bed and breakfast in Tennessee that has an all inclusive elopement package that includes lodging, exclusive stay at the B&B, photography, a mini wedding cake, everything we need. And it's affordable. Unfortunately, the 'indoor' option isn't our favorite as an alternative back up if it were to rain and we're concerned about the heat since it'll be summer. The other bummer is that since the place is small and quaint, the guest rooms are equipped with just full size beds. FF and I share a King now and a Queen can be a squeeze (he's a big guy, 6'3" and not a skinny minnie...) so we're concerned with not being comfortable there. This is the place and the package we wanted.
http://butterflyhollow.com/candlelitexclusive.htm

So we've been formulating a new plan. The things that were important to us are a beautiful venue, great photos, and comfortable accommodations. Butterfly Hollow had 2 of the three. We had to add indoor to the beautiful venue requirement just to anticipate any weather problems. So, we googled the heck out of elopements and there was one place we just kept going back to. San Francisco City Hall. IT IS GORGEOUS. I also found a photographer that has done a ton of elopement shots there and is very familiar with the venue. I adore her portfolio. We would get to pick a swank hotel in San Francisco with a King bed and a giant tub for 2 and we could use it as a mini moon too and spend a few days in the city (neither of us have ever been to California). So I think we've pinned down the 'where'!Here is the photographer we love. She has a whole page of SF City Hall elopements that will show you the venue too!
http://www.rebeccawilkowski.com/blog/category/city-hall/

There are lots of reasons why we want to elope. I'm not close to my parents at all. I don't want my dad to walk me down the aisle and I don't think he'd be understanding/respectful of that. Both of our parents are divorced and we don't want to deal with that awkwardness. Andrew is incredibly shy and can't picture being in front of so many people without getting really anxious/nervous. Neither of us are drink and dance all night party people so a big evening wedding doesn't feel right to us. Then there's the money and the planning. We don't want to spend that much money to throw a party we don't really want to attend. We plan to have a very casual backyard bbq kind of thing for close friends and family a few months afterwards to share our photos (and maybe video!).

It shouldn't be too hard to pull off. The arrangements should be minimal and while there will be some cost involved, it'll be far far less than if we were to invite 100-200 people.

I have a few dresses in mind and am torn between going short or long. Either way it'll be not poofy so it'll be easy to move around in. I do want a bouquet. I'm thinking white cala lillies (about 7) in a simple arrangement. On the photographer link above, go to page 3 and look at "Jennifer + Ted" who are the third down. I want her bouquet! We're thinking FF in a gray suit with a bright sunny yellow shirt (no tie) and a matching white cala lily bout. And fun grey and yellow argyle socks! We thought it would also be cute if we got some cupcakes from a local bakery and in some of the after ceremony pictures, we could feed them to each other somewhere in the building. And maybe have a short first dance (we could have our song on one of our phones) for some other cute pictures.

Ahh...ok, you're turn!
 

madelise

Ideal_Rock
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Sep 23, 2011
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Oh, how I wish I could elope! I'd love to elope in a tropical foreign country (Or at least Hawaii) on some "different" colored sand.. Black sand, green sand or pink sand beaches.. And NOT have to deal with the inevitable crappy guests?

SO and I (Okay, really just I) have been debating this lately. I mean, my *DREAM* dream wedding is to do something LARGE and fairytale like. White peonies everywhere. White decorations everywhere. But I'd have to be a total bridezilla, and UNHAPPY, in order to pull it off. And since I don't have the unlimited funds to hire a wedding coordinator, that won't happen. :lol:

So my realistic dream is to elope.

But SO just confirmed to me recently that his mother would not only be devastated not to be part of a lavish wedding, but also will insist on hosting a less formal "wedding" reception for his side of the family to come to. And if I'm forced to partake in any such event, I will go bat$hit crazy if I don't get to do it my way (OMG the terror of his mother making everything from HIS culture.. curry at a wedding? EW? I hate curry! Or ANY foods that have strong scents!), so.. I guess I'll have to forget about eloping.

I'm putting my foot down that I do not want children to attend. The cut-off age is 15 (or so. I haven't decided as it's not yet time to plan). I don't care if a closer family member has a child who is a genius in high school at the age of 10-- I don't want children there. I want to be able to have a jello shot bar and not worry about kids sneaking a few pieces of the "candy", and accidentally having a couple of drunk toddlers. I don't want children running around screaming or chasing each other. I don't want that rude 12 year old who has their crack berry or iPhone out on the dinner table the whole time. I just don't. It'd cause me more drama later to be the big bad bride that smacks the 12 year old at the dinner table, than to just disallow them from attending. Maybe I'll have a separate room, or a completely separate location to host these kids at, with a pizza party and a babysitter or two?

And I won't do those invitations with the whole Mr. Name + Guest. I don't want anyone to bring their "flavor of the week" that I've never met before, and won't ever see again. To me, a wedding is supposed to be intimate, and shared with people whom we love, and also love us.

As for anything else.. I have no set plans or desires yet. I mean, I don't even know when or where it'll take place, so I don't want to put too much effort into plans yet. I have (too many) things and DIY crafts bookmarked from Pinterest and other sites to pick from and inspire me when the time does come around..
 

audball

Ideal_Rock
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That sounds like a great start madelise! I've been telling my family for YEARS that I'm going to elope so they won't be surprised. And Andrew's family knows how shy he is so I don't think they'll be shocked either. Ours will be planned, and I think we'll tell people before hand so that should help. His Mom may be a little sad, but I think after she sees the pictures/video she'll be so happy we did it our way that she won't care.
 

madelise

Ideal_Rock
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Lol, I think I'm going to push for a reception a few weeks AFTER eloping. Then maybe we can both be happy.. I could play a clip of the vows or something on the projector? Who knows.


I love this picture. I love how the sea's white foam contrasts so beautifully with the black sand.. and feel like it would be breathtaking to wear a white wedding dress on one.. The first one is in Iceland, the 2nd is in Hawaii.

VikBeach.jpg

1138132_f520.jpg
 

audball

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BOTH are gorgeous!! Holy cow!! I think we'll do something similar. It'd be nice to share the photos, so probably 4-8 weeks after I think. So much to think about! I also know eloping is for me because when I think about planning something that is just for the two of us, it panics me enough, let alone to plan a whole event!
 

pandabee

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I <3 all your threads audball! So creative! I only have a loose idea as I've never been one big on wedding planning, but ever since I started dating DBF that has all changed. I have a very loose idea based on my favorite things.

WHO will attend? I've always pictured it to be a low-key event. I have a good amount of family between my mom and dad's siblings and all my grandparents are still alive so I hope that they would all be able to attend. I have a general idea of who of my friends and coworkers that I would want to be there to celebrate my special day.
WHAT will your theme be? something involving Tiffany blue...I'm not a Tiffany girl but I LOVE turquoise!! Something about the color...it's exciting and calming all at once!
WHEN is your ideal time of year to get married? Probably early summer or spring. Will probably just depend on my work schedule and what is most convenient but I do love the warmer months.
WHERE do you dream of tying the knot? This is something I haven't put much thought into. Also depends on where we end up for our jobs.
WHY do you think this is your ideal situation? In the end, a wedding is just an extravagant party that is merely the tip of the iceberg. It's a celebration. But you have to pay for it. I don't intend on going all out for the wedding but there are things that I would not hesitate to splurge on because those things can be kept or passed on: things like photos, jewelry. Many of the other things won't last beyond that special day so I don't want to empty my savings for say, a wedding dress, no matter how gorgeous it is.
HOW do you plan to pull it off, plan, and pay for it?! Haven't thought about this. But like I said above...I don't want to be going into debt just by planning a wedding! Doesn't sound like a smart way to start a marriage. After I get engaged and a date is set, we will just have to budget accordingly and try to spread the costs out. And because I love being crafty, I plan on trying to DIY as much as I can!
 

madelise

Ideal_Rock
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ETA: Aud: If you do, you'll be living my dream wedding! :appl:

Pandabee, I agree with your thinking of splurging on jewelry/photos, but skimping on $$$$$$ :$$): dresses and other not very lasting details! And I, too, love DIY-ing! Its just a matter of how to fit in time to do all the crafts, :lol:. Do you Pinterest?

And as a nod to your 'investing' in photos, are you planning to do a photo booth? Those are all the rage in my area, and I'd love to peruse one someday, at my event or someone else's. You can have the company do duplicate sets, so the guest keeps one set, while you get to make a scrapbook of all your attendees in another : )
 

audball

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pandabee|1333402173|3161932 said:
I <3 all your threads audball! So creative!
Aww, thanks pandabee! I'm trying to keep the livelihood going!!
 

audball

Ideal_Rock
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pandabee|1333402173|3161932 said:
I <3 all your threads audball! So creative! I only have a loose idea as I've never been one big on wedding planning, but ever since I started dating DBF that has all changed. I have a very loose idea based on my favorite things.

WHO will attend? I've always pictured it to be a low-key event. I have a good amount of family between my mom and dad's siblings and all my grandparents are still alive so I hope that they would all be able to attend. I have a general idea of who of my friends and coworkers that I would want to be there to celebrate my special day.
WHAT will your theme be? something involving Tiffany blue...I'm not a Tiffany girl but I LOVE turquoise!! Something about the color...it's exciting and calming all at once!
WHEN is your ideal time of year to get married? Probably early summer or spring. Will probably just depend on my work schedule and what is most convenient but I do love the warmer months.
WHERE do you dream of tying the knot? This is something I haven't put much thought into. Also depends on where we end up for our jobs.
WHY do you think this is your ideal situation? In the end, a wedding is just an extravagant party that is merely the tip of the iceberg. It's a celebration. But you have to pay for it. I don't intend on going all out for the wedding but there are things that I would not hesitate to splurge on because those things can be kept or passed on: things like photos, jewelry. Many of the other things won't last beyond that special day so I don't want to empty my savings for say, a wedding dress, no matter how gorgeous it is.
HOW do you plan to pull it off, plan, and pay for it?! Haven't thought about this. But like I said above...I don't want to be going into debt just by planning a wedding! Doesn't sound like a smart way to start a marriage. After I get engaged and a date is set, we will just have to budget accordingly and try to spread the costs out. And because I love being crafty, I plan on trying to DIY as much as I can!
I love your ideas!! Any inspiration photos you want to share?
 

audball

Ideal_Rock
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Messages
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madelise|1333402533|3161935 said:
ETA: Aud: If you do, you'll be living my dream wedding! :appl:

Pandabee, I agree with your thinking of splurging on jewelry/photos, but skimping on $$$$$$ :$$): dresses and other not very lasting details! And I, too, love DIY-ing! Its just a matter of how to fit in time to do all the crafts, :lol:. Do you Pinterest?

And as a nod to your 'investing' in photos, are you planning to do a photo booth? Those are all the rage in my area, and I'd love to peruse one someday, at my event or someone else's. You can have the company do duplicate sets, so the guest keeps one set, while you get to make a scrapbook of all your attendees in another : )
Heheh, how close are you to San Francisco? We'll need one witness in the state of California? :naughty:

I agree with you both, splurge on things that will last. For me, number one priority is definitely photography.
 

madelise

Ideal_Rock
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Haha, on the other side of the state! :wink2: But that is only a 40 minute flight from here!

Oh you'll :love: SF! And if you're in for people watching, going to the Castro area for their gay nudists is so much fun. The people are so 'lax that I wasn't used to it for a bit!

If you do end up in NorCal, please please please don't leave until you've rented a car and done the 17 mile drive in near Monterey and Carmel. (AND THE CROOKED STREET (LOMBARD STREET) IN SF) It goes through so many different beaches, all within one scenic route. And the properties there are like from a dream! I'm hoping to do my engagement shoot there, actually :naughty: Well, all through different areas of NorCal.

Pictures!

223630_2060900156193_1055340010_32034124_1186185_n.jpg

Ghost_Tree_041009-1.jpg

lombard-street-the-crooked-street-in-san-francisco-1.jpg
 

audball

Ideal_Rock
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OMG madelise! Thanks for the tips! That all looks sooo cool! The other thing we HAVE to do if we're going to be in SF is go see the Full House house! Haha.
 

audball

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Hey madelise...what's the ring in your avatar? I've wondered forever! Is it your future engagement ring? Just a ring? :) Inquiring minds want to know... :naughty:
 

madelise

Ideal_Rock
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haha, the first thing I said while we were on our way to the crooked street was "OMG FULLHOUSE!" I didn't think to look up the actual address of THE house, but now that I've googled it.. I must one day go to see it! I didn't get to do all that I wanted to do when I went this last time, so I need to go back anyway! So little time, so much to see!

The photo in my avatar is my promise ring "upgrade". I started a thread a bit ago asking for everyone's opinions on promise rings.. I've been meaning to do a SMTB thread on it since there aren't too many pears out there. I had a promise ring from when we first started talking nuptials, and when I graduated from CC, he gave me $ to upgrade that so I can reach the full carat weight.. In the time between my first to graduation, just a year, prices had gone up so much that it would have costed my whole budget and buy back value.. just to buy the same stone! So I just made a new one :) and now I rotate between the 2 babies + a few of my other rings. I don't want to post photos here as I've already diverted the attention off your main post :!: and don't want to keep others from chiming in to the OP! I should do a SMTB thread.. and I'll link it here when I'm done : )
 

audball

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Awesome! Or you could post pics in the Calling madelise! thread if you want. That's 'our' thread to do with what we want! ;-)
 

audball

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Awesome! Or you could post pics in the Calling madelise! thread if you want. That's 'our' thread to do with what we want! ;-)
 

SweetAsscher

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Sep 11, 2011
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audball said:
I can start!

We want to ELOPE! It will be planned and everything.

We likely won't have a theme since it'll just be the two of us. Or maybe it'll be simply romance :)

My favorite time of year to get married is the fall. I just love fall. Unfortunately due to my school schedule, unless we want to wait for 5 years to get married (we don't), I have two options that won't conflict with school. A 5 week space from mid July to mid August, or a 3 week space from mid December to the first week of January. While I love the winter too (would be my preference over summer), both of our birthdays are just 2 weeks apart in December already, plus Christmas and New Years, it'd make for quite a full month! So I think summer it will be. The nice thing will be is that our dating anniversary is in July and we had a lot of milestones that summer so we are okay with this. We'll be very cautious about the where because of the summer heat and rain, so we'll likely be compromising to an indoor venue instead of outdoors in fall like we wanted, but it'll be ok!

In terms of where, we've bounced around a few ideas. A few years ago I found this bed and breakfast in Tennessee that has an all inclusive elopement package that includes lodging, exclusive stay at the B&B, photography, a mini wedding cake, everything we need. And it's affordable. Unfortunately, the 'indoor' option isn't our favorite as an alternative back up if it were to rain and we're concerned about the heat since it'll be summer. The other bummer is that since the place is small and quaint, the guest rooms are equipped with just full size beds. FF and I share a King now and a Queen can be a squeeze (he's a big guy, 6'3" and not a skinny minnie...) so we're concerned with not being comfortable there. This is the place and the package we wanted.
http://butterflyhollow.com/candlelitexclusive.htm

So we've been formulating a new plan. The things that were important to us are a beautiful venue, great photos, and comfortable accommodations. Butterfly Hollow had 2 of the three. We had to add indoor to the beautiful venue requirement just to anticipate any weather problems. So, we googled the heck out of elopements and there was one place we just kept going back to. San Francisco City Hall. IT IS GORGEOUS. I also found a photographer that has done a ton of elopement shots there and is very familiar with the venue. I adore her portfolio. We would get to pick a swank hotel in San Francisco with a King bed and a giant tub for 2 and we could use it as a mini moon too and spend a few days in the city (neither of us have ever been to California). So I think we've pinned down the 'where'!Here is the photographer we love. She has a whole page of SF City Hall elopements that will show you the venue too!
http://www.rebeccawilkowski.com/blog/category/city-hall/

There are lots of reasons why we want to elope. I'm not close to my parents at all. I don't want my dad to walk me down the aisle and I don't think he'd be understanding/respectful of that. Both of our parents are divorced and we don't want to deal with that awkwardness. Andrew is incredibly shy and can't picture being in front of so many people without getting really anxious/nervous. Neither of us are drink and dance all night party people so a big evening wedding doesn't feel right to us. Then there's the money and the planning. We don't want to spend that much money to throw a party we don't really want to attend. We plan to have a very casual backyard bbq kind of thing for close friends and family a few months afterwards to share our photos (and maybe video!).

It shouldn't be too hard to pull off. The arrangements should be minimal and while there will be some cost involved, it'll be far far less than if we were to invite 100-200 people.

I have a few dresses in mind and am torn between going short or long. Either way it'll be not poofy so it'll be easy to move around in. I do want a bouquet. I'm thinking white cala lillies (about 7) in a simple arrangement. On the photographer link above, go to page 3 and look at "Jennifer + Ted" who are the third down. I want her bouquet! We're thinking FF in a gray suit with a bright sunny yellow shirt (no tie) and a matching white cala lily bout. And fun grey and yellow argyle socks! We thought it would also be cute if we got some cupcakes from a local bakery and in some of the after ceremony pictures, we could feed them to each other somewhere in the building. And maybe have a short first dance (we could have our song on one of our phones) for some other cute pictures.

Ahh...ok, you're turn!


Ahhh! I love your idea! I was married in SF City Hall and I have some beautiful photos! You should go to the Starlight Room. It's at the top of the Sir Francis Drake hotel and has amazing city views. You can celebrate with some champagne.
And I'd be totally happy to help out with any thing you need since you're in Florida and I'm here. (FYI I make wedding cakes and I'd be more than happy to make some cupcakes or a mini wedding cake for you!)
 

LoveLikeCrazy

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So, i came to join the par-tay!

I will def be having an intimate romantic affair. This means more emphasis on me and my SO and our vows, rather than on planning a party, etc. The only people we plan on having are immediate family (my mom, dad, bros (2) and sig others as well as my best friend and her SO and his dad (+1??) and a few of his friends that are his real family, if you catch my drift). So i have currently 3/4 destinations in my head, ill explain them first and then give my idea on pros and cons.

1) For the longest time i have wanted to get married in Maui, on a beach with an amazing photographer to catch every stinkin moment. While i am not set on a certain on a particular beach, i have chosen a photographer (haha). Seriously though, i want a certain style of photography because for me, i know thats what i am going to take home with me forever :) So here is the link to him...be prepared to be blown away... http://www.gordonnash.com/

PROS: It would be far enough away and very expensive to go (flight) so i will not offend people who aren't invited (which is basically everyone i know haha)
: It would be SUPER romantic
CONS: Price of flight is expensive as is everything else...also once i'm married i want everyone to go away (honeymoon!), but unfortunately thats harder to do when you are stuck on an island together!!

2) A white sand beach on the florida coast, or florida keys
Both of our parents as well as one of my brothers and sis in law live in florida (near tampa). For convienece, i have looked into this very briefly. I would want to find a really nice beach thats accessible to them, but i also don't want a big party scene(i fear this would happen in the keys). I also do not have a good photog picked out from there either and to fly the one from my home state would be an excessive cost in my opinion...

PROS: Close for family, easy to jump on a cruise for a honeymoon (yay!)
CONS: No photog...not as romantic as hawaii

3) Cruise ship wedding at a destination port.
My brother got married on a royal carribean cruise and TBH their pics sucked. I could get married at a port, through a local hotel or whatnot, but then i do not know what i'm getting. It was tossed around a bit, but i think this option is totally tossed out due to the fact people i bring will be too close for my honeymoon lol, and it seems too difficult to plan because i am simple yet slightly OCD. And then the photos...

4) This is the newest option. My home state. Newport is a gorgeous litle quaint town on the water. Forbes just named it "the prettiest town in america". I LOVE this part of my state. Here is a link to the actual resort i would get married at...
http://www.castlehillinn.com/ And probaly get married overlooking the stone cliffs over the water. This is gorgeous and romantic and there are a ton of awesome spots to take photos. I actually want to do my enagagement photos in newport on the cliffwalk. Its a walk along the cliffs on the water passing by all the mansions in newport, ri. This is kinda cheesy but i cannot find a site with any pics so i am just attaching a link to a site with a decent amount of pics on it http://www.newport-discovery-guide.com/newport-cliff-walk.html

as for photographers, this would by far be the easiest as i have seen the work of an amazing husband wife duo and they are out of RI. I would have them do my engagement, wedding and trash the dress photos. Here is their site http://rebecca-arthurs.com/.

PROS: GIve the family a reason to come "home". Can get married and then fly to honeymoon. Get my photog, a romantic site that has significance to us and we will be able to come and reminisce and visit frequently.
CONS: People will be po-ed they aren't invited.

So, as far as dresses etc, i have no clue. I know i definately want a my bridal bouquet to be hot pink and bright orange gerber daisies. I want to do trash the dress pics after the honeymoon, so we can come back i get all made up again and do the pics at a beach where we went after our first date :love: I do not plan on having a reception of any sort. Hmm, i guess thats all i have to say now haha.

Looks like destination is the way to go around here! :)
 

audball

Ideal_Rock
Joined
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Messages
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SweetAsscher|1333419687|3162159 said:
Ahhh! I love your idea! I was married in SF City Hall and I have some beautiful photos! You should go to the Starlight Room. It's at the top of the Sir Francis Drake hotel and has amazing city views. You can celebrate with some champagne.
And I'd be totally happy to help out with any thing you need since you're in Florida and I'm here. (FYI I make wedding cakes and I'd be more than happy to make some cupcakes or a mini wedding cake for you!)
AhhH! That's soo sweet! Thank you for the tips! I would LOVE some local help! Now I just have to figure out how to contact you offline...do you have contact with any other PSers? I'm in contact with tons so maybe we have one in common that can connect us!
 

audball

Ideal_Rock
Joined
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Messages
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redsoxgrl|1333419934|3162166 said:
So, i came to join the par-tay!

I will def be having an intimate romantic affair. This means more emphasis on me and my SO and our vows, rather than on planning a party, etc. The only people we plan on having are immediate family (my mom, dad, bros (2) and sig others as well as my best friend and her SO and his dad (+1??) and a few of his friends that are his real family, if you catch my drift). So i have currently 3/4 destinations in my head, ill explain them first and then give my idea on pros and cons.

1) For the longest time i have wanted to get married in Maui, on a beach with an amazing photographer to catch every stinkin moment. While i am not set on a certain on a particular beach, i have chosen a photographer (haha). Seriously though, i want a certain style of photography because for me, i know thats what i am going to take home with me forever :) So here is the link to him...be prepared to be blown away... http://www.gordonnash.com/

PROS: It would be far enough away and very expensive to go (flight) so i will not offend people who aren't invited (which is basically everyone i know haha)
: It would be SUPER romantic
CONS: Price of flight is expensive as is everything else...also once i'm married i want everyone to go away (honeymoon!), but unfortunately thats harder to do when you are stuck on an island together!!

I love this idea! I know it would be more expensive, but if you can swing it, it seems like everything you've ever wanted!Holy Crap!! That photographer is AWESOME. I LOVE the sunset pictures!! Swoon!

2) A white sand beach on the florida coast, or florida keys
Both of our parents as well as one of my brothers and sis in law live in florida (near tampa). For convienece, i have looked into this very briefly. I would want to find a really nice beach thats accessible to them, but i also don't want a big party scene(i fear this would happen in the keys). I also do not have a good photog picked out from there either and to fly the one from my home state would be an excessive cost in my opinion...

PROS: Close for family, easy to jump on a cruise for a honeymoon (yay!)
CONS: No photog...not as romantic as hawaii

Why would this have to be no photography? You could always hire one here just like anywhere else. I know some AMAZING photographers in the area that have done friend's wedding since this is where I live. For me this is the least desirable option, but that's probably because I live here and it's not so much a 'destination' for me!

3) Cruise ship wedding at a destination port.
My brother got married on a royal carribean cruise and TBH their pics sucked. I could get married at a port, through a local hotel or whatnot, but then i do not know what i'm getting. It was tossed around a bit, but i think this option is totally tossed out due to the fact people i bring will be too close for my honeymoon lol, and it seems too difficult to plan because i am simple yet slightly OCD. And then the photos...

I thought about this option as well since I'd never been on a cruise. But I came to the conclusion you did, photography would be bad since you can't do your own or hire anyone. There were also a lot of restrictions on things you couldn't do which didn't seem appealing.

4) This is the newest option. My home state. Newport is a gorgeous litle quaint town on the water. Forbes just named it "the prettiest town in america". I LOVE this part of my state. Here is a link to the actual resort i would get married at...
http://www.castlehillinn.com/ And probaly get married overlooking the stone cliffs over the water. This is gorgeous and romantic and there are a ton of awesome spots to take photos. I actually want to do my enagagement photos in newport on the cliffwalk. Its a walk along the cliffs on the water passing by all the mansions in newport, ri. This is kinda cheesy but i cannot find a site with any pics so i am just attaching a link to a site with a decent amount of pics on it http://www.newport-discovery-guide.com/newport-cliff-walk.html

as for photographers, this would by far be the easiest as i have seen the work of an amazing husband wife duo and they are out of RI. I would have them do my engagement, wedding and trash the dress photos. Here is their site http://rebecca-arthurs.com/.

PROS: GIve the family a reason to come "home". Can get married and then fly to honeymoon. Get my photog, a romantic site that has significance to us and we will be able to come and reminisce and visit frequently.
CONS: People will be po-ed they aren't invited.

This sounds gorgeous too! I'm really torn between Hawaii and your home state as options. I like RI since you could be close to family and still get great pictures and be able to leave them all behind to either go to Hawaii on your own, or a cruise, or something. If you take them all with you to Hawaii, you'll be kind of stuck with them! Hahah. The venue choice is gorgeous and I think the photographer's portfolio looks great!

So, as far as dresses etc, i have no clue. I know i definately want a my bridal bouquet to be hot pink and bright orange gerber daisies. I want to do trash the dress pics after the honeymoon, so we can come back i get all made up again and do the pics at a beach where we went after our first date :love: I do not plan on having a reception of any sort. Hmm, i guess thats all i have to say now haha.

Your ideas sound so lovely! Can't wait to watch your wedding unfold on the BWW forum!

Looks like destination is the way to go around here! :)
 

atp223

Shiny_Rock
Joined
Aug 27, 2011
Messages
290
I'm already engaged, but neck deep in planning, and wanted to share while I'm waiting at the drs office!! Hope that is ok :).

We are sort of doing a destination wedding in that it will be in the Bahamas. However, my mom was born and raised in Nassau (though Greek by descent). So we are getting married in the church my parents got married in 35 years later :). My dad was in the navy when I was younger, and has always been kind of ambitious, career-wise, so we moved around a lot. Hence, I have several places I could consider to be my "hometown." But we've gone to Nassau regularly since I was born - so in some ways it is the one place that has remained constantly in my life. We are planning a regular (big) wedding reception following the ceremony, just as if it were in the states.

We (well I) have a lot of family in FL and in the Bahamas, so it's not THAT far for a lot of people (on my side). My friends have always known this was what I wanted, and always are interested in coming to Nassau with me (I go every year bc it's a cheap vaca when you have places to stay and a car to drive!). So the younger generation (eg our friends) are really excited!

However, we ARE running into some resistance from FI's family. Apparently some of the extended family is less well-off, and his parents feel like our wedding will be financially burdensome for some of their siblings and FI's cousins to get to. BUT I am super close with my auts, uncles, and cousins! My FI can't even name all of his or say if they are married or not (aunts and uncles!). And my fam is actually bigger than his, so its not like there are just too many. I am personally of the opinion that if you can't remember all their names, they can't be that close to you or that important that we need to change the plan to accommodate you!

Sorry if you are picking up on defensiveness - his parents are superficially supportive but I've seen some emails (not from snooping, FI shared!) that indicate otherwise.

But anyway, that is the plan as of now! But kudos to those of you eloping - weddings are SO expensive! My parents are paying for it, and gave me a very generous budget, but I still feel like we are going to have to cut some stuff out (and do really simple flowers, maybe a dj instead of a band, etc) to stay in budget. It's so stressful!

I still think it will be super fun, don't get me wrong! I just can't wait till all the vendor contracts are signed and save the dates and invites are ready to go out so that I can stop planning for awhile :). It's taking over my life!
 

pandabee

Ideal_Rock
Joined
Feb 29, 2012
Messages
2,910
madelise|1333402533|3161935 said:
ETA: Aud: If you do, you'll be living my dream wedding! :appl:

Pandabee, I agree with your thinking of splurging on jewelry/photos, but skimping on $$$$$$ :$$): dresses and other not very lasting details! And I, too, love DIY-ing! Its just a matter of how to fit in time to do all the crafts, :lol:. Do you Pinterest?

And as a nod to your 'investing' in photos, are you planning to do a photo booth? Those are all the rage in my area, and I'd love to peruse one someday, at my event or someone else's. You can have the company do duplicate sets, so the guest keeps one set, while you get to make a scrapbook of all your attendees in another : )

I do have pinterest! am I allowed to post a link here or in my signature? I would love a photobooth. I have no idea how much they are to rent. Personally though, I find myself so awkward in them because I never know how to pose haha. but they are a lot of fun!

audball|1333403553|3161954 said:
I love your ideas!! Any inspiration photos you want to share?
While looking through my pinterest board, I realized my board is mostly the little details like rings, shoes, dress, cake etc haha. I only have a couple posts of venue. I would post pictures but it won't let me add the URL into pricescope and it won't let me do the regular [ img ] [/ img ] that you typically do.
 

audball

Ideal_Rock
Joined
Oct 2, 2008
Messages
4,946
The more the merrier, atp! :) :wavey:

My father was also born in Nassau! Though I never spent any time there growing up. I've been once, it's beautiful! I love that you want to marry in the church your parents married in. So sweet.

I see how the travel/expense may be a problem for some. It's so hard. You can't please everyone. And I tend to agree, it doesn't sound like your FI is that close to them so I'd be siding more with you. I completely understand the defensiveness. I don't want to have to explain anything to anyone about my choices, eloping is the perfect fit for us. And yes, they are. We're paying ourselves and our planned elopement is still going to run several thousand dollars between airfare, attire, lodging, and attractions while we're there. Granted ours will be a wedding/honeymoon, but still, it's costly!

Feel free to vent with us all you like!
 

audball

Ideal_Rock
Joined
Oct 2, 2008
Messages
4,946
pandabee|1333472560|3162540 said:
madelise|1333402533|3161935 said:
ETA: Aud: If you do, you'll be living my dream wedding! :appl:

Pandabee, I agree with your thinking of splurging on jewelry/photos, but skimping on $$$$$$ :$$): dresses and other not very lasting details! And I, too, love DIY-ing! Its just a matter of how to fit in time to do all the crafts, :lol:. Do you Pinterest?

And as a nod to your 'investing' in photos, are you planning to do a photo booth? Those are all the rage in my area, and I'd love to peruse one someday, at my event or someone else's. You can have the company do duplicate sets, so the guest keeps one set, while you get to make a scrapbook of all your attendees in another : )

I do have pinterest! am I allowed to post a link here or in my signature? I would love a photobooth. I have no idea how much they are to rent. Personally though, I find myself so awkward in them because I never know how to pose haha. but they are a lot of fun!

audball|1333403553|3161954 said:
I love your ideas!! Any inspiration photos you want to share?
While looking through my pinterest board, I realized my board is mostly the little details like rings, shoes, dress, cake etc haha. I only have a couple posts of venue. I would post pictures but it won't let me add the URL into pricescope and it won't let me do the regular [ img ] [/ img ] that you typically do.
Hi pandabee! I don't know if you're allowed to post links to pinterest. I'd guess not since it link to your personal information, right?

I wonder why you're not able to post links or pictures...what a bummer! I'd message the moderators and find out if they can help you!
 

SweetAsscher

Shiny_Rock
Joined
Sep 11, 2011
Messages
377
audball said:
SweetAsscher|1333419687|3162159 said:
Ahhh! I love your idea! I was married in SF City Hall and I have some beautiful photos! You should go to the Starlight Room. It's at the top of the Sir Francis Drake hotel and has amazing city views. You can celebrate with some champagne.
And I'd be totally happy to help out with any thing you need since you're in Florida and I'm here. (FYI I make wedding cakes and I'd be more than happy to make some cupcakes or a mini wedding cake for you!)
AhhH! That's soo sweet! Thank you for the tips! I would LOVE some local help! Now I just have to figure out how to contact you offline...do you have contact with any other PSers? I'm in contact with tons so maybe we have one in common that can connect us!
I think I have gypsy's email, she might have mine or the email I share with my husband. I'll shoot her a message and see if she's willing to help. And I know she's local too, or near the area.
:)
 

Snow_Miser

Shiny_Rock
Joined
Jun 14, 2010
Messages
130
[/quote]
I'm putting my foot down that I do not want children to attend. The cut-off age is 15 (or so. I haven't decided as it's not yet time to plan). I don't care if a closer family member has a child who is a genius in high school at the age of 10-- I don't want children there. I want to be able to have a jello shot bar and not worry about kids sneaking a few pieces of the "candy", and accidentally having a couple of drunk toddlers. I don't want children running around screaming or chasing each other. I don't want that rude 12 year old who has their crack berry or iPhone out on the dinner table the whole time. I just don't. It'd cause me more drama later to be the big bad bride that smacks the 12 year old at the dinner table, than to just disallow them from attending. Maybe I'll have a separate room, or a completely separate location to host these kids at, with a pizza party and a babysitter or two?

And I won't do those invitations with the whole Mr. Name + Guest. I don't want anyone to bring their "flavor of the week" that I've never met before, and won't ever see again. To me, a wedding is supposed to be intimate, and shared with people whom we love, and also love us.
[/quote]

Madelise, you are a girl after my own heart!

I have a few ideas for what I want in a wedding, and SO agrees for the most part, but he doesn't understand why I wouldn't want kids at our wedding, that or he doesn't think it's fair to ask our friends to leave their kids with their parents or a sitter.

Between both of our friends (who all got married pretty young and started having kids right away) and some of my older cousins, we'd have at least 20 kids under the age of ten at our wedding--and we're only planning to invite maybe 50 people!

We went to a wedding recently and a couple brought their 8 month old daughter. She made those cute little baby talking noises all through the ceremony, and the parents NEVER TOOK HER OUT! Yes, it was cute, but also NOT something I want to here during any wedding, much less my own wedding.

The way I always put it to my SO is that I work with kids all day every day. OF COURSE I love kids, but it would be nice to have an adult only party, since I spend so much of my time with kids.

I guess I'll be the big, bad bridezilla who tells everyone that our wedding is an "adult only" event.
I'll post more later when I'm on my computer, hard to post on an iPad.
 

audball

Ideal_Rock
Joined
Oct 2, 2008
Messages
4,946
SweetAsscher|1333517368|3163070 said:
audball said:
SweetAsscher|1333419687|3162159 said:
Ahhh! I love your idea! I was married in SF City Hall and I have some beautiful photos! You should go to the Starlight Room. It's at the top of the Sir Francis Drake hotel and has amazing city views. You can celebrate with some champagne.
And I'd be totally happy to help out with any thing you need since you're in Florida and I'm here. (FYI I make wedding cakes and I'd be more than happy to make some cupcakes or a mini wedding cake for you!)
AhhH! That's soo sweet! Thank you for the tips! I would LOVE some local help! Now I just have to figure out how to contact you offline...do you have contact with any other PSers? I'm in contact with tons so maybe we have one in common that can connect us!
I think I have gypsy's email, she might have mine or the email I share with my husband. I'll shoot her a message and see if she's willing to help. And I know she's local too, or near the area.
:)
Yay! Gypsy is my hero! She is the one who found my engagement ring stone! She emailed me last night and I told her she could share my email with you. I know she's in CA, but not sure where. It's a big state!
ETA: the more local help for me the better! We definitely want to make sure it's the trip of a lifetime (at least to that point in our lives...) that we'll thoroughly enjoy and not regret! Thank goodness for all the knowledgeable, helpful PSers to help make our day special!
 

audball

Ideal_Rock
Joined
Oct 2, 2008
Messages
4,946
I'm totally with you on the kid thing. At least for the ceremony at the least. Reception could depend for me, meaning it would depend on the style. If it was going to be an uber formal sit down dinner that was long and (to kids) boring, I wouldn't want them there. But if it were fun, dancing, maybe I could slide on the reception. But no no no no no babies crying, cooing, or doing anything to distract from the ceremony. Sorry, nuh uh, not going to happen.
 

LoveLikeCrazy

Brilliant_Rock
Joined
Mar 26, 2012
Messages
730
audball|1333376203|3161678 said:
In terms of where, we've bounced around a few ideas. A few years ago I found this bed and breakfast in Tennessee that has an all inclusive elopement package that includes lodging, exclusive stay at the B&B, photography, a mini wedding cake, everything we need. And it's affordable. Unfortunately, the 'indoor' option isn't our favorite as an alternative back up if it were to rain and we're concerned about the heat since it'll be summer. The other bummer is that since the place is small and quaint, the guest rooms are equipped with just full size beds. FF and I share a King now and a Queen can be a squeeze (he's a big guy, 6'3" and not a skinny minnie...) so we're concerned with not being comfortable there. This is the place and the package we wanted.
http://butterflyhollow.com/candlelitexclusive.htm

Oh my god, this place is perfectly charming! FULL SIZE BEDS?? I also share a king with my FF and he's not tall at all...a queen was a squeeze with us too. So i can see how with A being so tall, that could make for an uncomfortable few nights sleep. :( When i have a bad night's sleep, i don't have a good day. So i would be worried this might put a damper on your first few days as newlyweds

So we've been formulating a new plan. The things that were important to us are a beautiful venue, great photos, and comfortable accommodations. Butterfly Hollow had 2 of the three. We had to add indoor to the beautiful venue requirement just to anticipate any weather problems. So, we googled the heck out of elopements and there was one place we just kept going back to. San Francisco City Hall. IT IS GORGEOUS. I also found a photographer that has done a ton of elopement shots there and is very familiar with the venue. I adore her portfolio. We would get to pick a swank hotel in San Francisco with a King bed and a giant tub for 2 and we could use it as a mini moon too and spend a few days in the city (neither of us have ever been to California). So I think we've pinned down the 'where'!Here is the photographer we love. She has a whole page of SF City Hall elopements that will show you the venue too!
http://www.rebeccawilkowski.com/blog/category/city-hall/

OH...MY...GOD! The city hall is STUNNING!!! I checked out the photog link and these photos are absolutely gorgeous! I love the feel inside, it reminds me of walls i would imagine in a castle haha. I think that is an absolutely gorgeous place to get married. I have never been to cali either, but the venue obviously lends itself to not have to worry about the weather or the humidity!!

There are lots of reasons why we want to elope. I'm not close to my parents at all. I don't want my dad to walk me down the aisle and I don't think he'd be understanding/respectful of that.
I agree with this as well...except I'm close to my mom, and not super close to my dad...i've never had that "daddy's girl" feeling, he's always been kinda distant (my parents are married still).

Both of our parents are divorced and we don't want to deal with that awkwardness. Andrew is incredibly shy and can't picture being in front of so many people without getting really anxious/nervous. Neither of us are drink and dance all night party people so a big evening wedding doesn't feel right to us. Then there's the money and the planning. We don't want to spend that much money to throw a party we don't really want to attend. We plan to have a very casual backyard bbq kind of thing for close friends and family a few months afterwards to share our photos (and maybe video!).

I hate how weddings turn to huge parties too. I like the backyard bbq idea. I might have to borrow that ;-) Good way to have low key get together. I'm kinda like A. I don't like lots of people and i get very nervous. I think it would take away from my day because i would be anxious/sick 90% of the time. My FF doesn't like cameras...hes fine in front of people though haha. I'm already dreading all the photoshoots i want starting from the engagement lol! He is self conscious about his smile. He has a space between his front teeth, but i think its character and i love his smile, his bright blue eyes and the way he smiles when he looks at me!

I have a few dresses in mind and am torn between going short or long. Either way it'll be not poofy so it'll be easy to move around in. I do want a bouquet. I'm thinking white cala lillies (about 7) in a simple arrangement. On the photographer link above, go to page 3 and look at "Jennifer + Ted" who are the third down. I want her bouquet! We're thinking FF in a gray suit with a bright sunny yellow shirt (no tie) and a matching white cala lily bout. And fun grey and yellow argyle socks! We thought it would also be cute if we got some cupcakes from a local bakery and in some of the after ceremony pictures, we could feed them to each other somewhere in the building. And maybe have a short first dance (we could have our song on one of our phones) for some other cute pictures.

I love cala lillies! SO simple, yet classic. I think in the city hall they would look perfect! Love the little details like the socks. I recently noticed that in someone's wedding pics (Facebook world) they took a picture showing his socks and they were so unexpected and added such a cool touch to the photos! As for the cupcakes, i love that idea too! I also love the first dance idea. I also am doing something similar, as i want that aspect of the big wedding...i want to have "our song" and hear it and be brought to the day. I never thought of the phone idea though!!

Going back to the socks...i want hot pink crinoline under my dress...same idea as the pop of color with the socks. I was trying to find a good pic, but heres an idea after a quick google search...someone's post on another forum haha http://gallery.weddingbee.com/photo/my-pink-crinoline-2. Maybe if you end up with the long dress, you can get the same below as SO? What a cute picture, you holding up your dress and him showing off his socks!!! :mrgreen:
 
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