#223: the photog.

i was inspired today by miss tulip of weddingbee. she posted her engagement photos and boy oh boy, did i love them.

so you all know about my huge crush on jessica claire. but her prices (though worth it in spades, i'm sure) give me major sticker shock. her packages start at $7,500. GULP! that means i would have to do everything else practically for free to stay within my budget. though i think that maybe if i were to sweat blood (like buckets of it), perhaps i could make it happen, i'm also all about being a comfortable, easy going bride the day of, you know?

so, when i saw that miss tulip's amazing photos were done by punam bean photography whose packages begin at $2,500, i felt...hope. not only did i HEART the images, but i got a sense of the photographer's style and personality on her site (i'm guessing she's a 'her'...) and needless to say, i likey'd!

so i've decided i want to start hunting down photographers via looking at more and more blogs aka photog blog stalking. brooklyn bride has a list of photogs oh her site so i figure it's a great starting point for this little mission of mine.

jillian kay starts at $2,400
the image is found starts at $4,000 for coverage and packages at $5,500.

hm. and then none of the other sites post their rates. and so the search continues...

what is the ABSOLUTE max you would spend on a photographer, keeping in mind that you love photography and that it's uber important to you? or, what's the max percentage of your budget you would allocate to photography...er, if your budget was $10,000?

#222: small and big.

from jessica claire.

i like this idea. you like?

#220: ferrero steal my heart.

i don't know a SINGLE person who doesn't like these bits of yummy. what a great (and economic!) favor/place card idea.


from knottie pbell

#219: off-white, white, beige.

did you know you could filter dresses on nordstrom.com by color? well you can, and i did. it was pretty much a treasure trove.


$228 calvin klein.


$178 calvin klein


$568 tadashi


$360 bcbg


$295 tracy reese
(side note: gosh, if they had a floor length version, i'd be all over it.)


$368 david meister

#218: hey mr. dj...

happy december everyone! december happens to be my FAVORITE FAVORITE FAVORITE month in the entire universe. i'm on an (un)healthy high for 31 full days straight. it's pretty fantastic.

so, i was considering what kind of music i'd walk down the aisle in. canon d? NEXT! i'm too abnormal to walk down in classic wedding music. here are my top choices. the song would play during the boys' entrance, the lighting of the candles by the mothers, the bridesmaids' walks, and then...for me.

that's right. 1 song. no switcheroo when the doors open for me. just. 1. song.

the frontrunners:
songbird - eva cassidy
by your side - sade
make me whole - amel larrieux
no one - alicia keys

any other suggestions?

#217: more vases.

this is even cheaper than ikea. i searched on craigslist for vases and look at what i found. 22 mismatched glass vases ranging from small to large for ten bucks. TWENTY TWO VASES! for TEN BUCKS. and guess who totally digs the mismatched concept. this girl.



if i was planning a wedding, i'd be all over these vases. all over them.

#216: not just for swedish meatballs.

i'm always praising the prices at ikea. so i thought i'd look again for some inspiration. and i found...


$2.99 at ikea for a lovely black bowl.
how about filling it with a tower of lemons for a small round table centerpiece.


$6.99 for a 6-pack of...beer glasses.
is it just me or would these make great vases.


$7.99 for a 51oz white pitcher. stuffed with pale pink carnations. you hear me?