A sweet deal

When I bought my wedding dress, I received a TON of coupons. Some of them are useless for us (like "receive $20 in spa credits in Barbados), but some of them have turned out to be quite awesome.

Case in point: Shutterfly coupons. We received two coupons--a free 12x12 memory book and a free 18-month calendar. I made a "kitty cat calendar" featuring my two loves, and for the memory book, I made what is going to be the guestbook at our wedding! I used the 20 pages to tell "our story" and there is plenty of room for signatures around the pictures. And all I had to pay was shipping!

Check it out. :)

Making the ceremony more than just a ceremony

The most important part of a wedding is the actual ceremony, because that is what turns two people into one couple, at least in the eyes of the law and God. Jordan and I have already made a commitment to one another, but the wedding ceremony is going to be one step further into this commitment. So how to make it significant and not just repeated words?

Drawing from many different sources, I have written out our entire wedding ceremony, to be conducted by a non-religious (or at least non-denominational) officiant. Some of it is from poetry, some from actual wedding ceremonies, and some from Celtic traditions (though I'd never admit that last part to his grandmother :P). I will borrow Chaucer's words for the exchanging of the rings. I have also created a promise in my own words that I will read aloud to Jordan before we are pronounced husband and wife. He will also write his own vows.

Here are some of my favorite words that will somehow be incorporated into our wedding ceremony:

Bill Swetmon says that a good marriage must be created, and here is how:

"It is never being too old to hold hands. It is remembering to say "I love you" at least once a day. It is at no time taking the other for granted. It is having a mutual sense of values and common objectives. It is standing together facing life. It is forming a circle of love that gathers in the whole family. It is doing things for each other not in the attitude of duty or sacrifice, but in the spirit of joy. It is speaking words of appreciation and demonstrating gratitude. It is not looking for perfection in each other. It is cultivating flexibility, patience, understanding, and a sense of humor. It is having the capacity to forgive and forget. It is giving each other an atmosphere in which each can grow. It is finding room for the things of the spirit. It is a common search for the good and the beautiful. It is establishing a relationship in which independence is equal, dependence is mutual, and obligation is reciprocal. It is not only marrying the right partner, it is being the right partner."

And this is a blessing from a traditional Celtic marriage ritual:

"May you be blessed with communication, intellectual growth, and wisdom.

May you be blessed with harmony, vitality, creativity, and passion.

May you be blessed with friendship, intuition, caring, understanding, and love.

May you be blessed with tenderness, happiness, compassion, and sensuality.

Love has its seasons, the same as does the Earth.

In the spring of love is the discovery of each other, the pulse of the senses, the getting to know the mind and heart of the other; a blooming like the buds and flowers of springtime.

In the summer of love comes the strength, the commitment to each other, the most active part of life, perhaps including the giving of life back to itself through children; the sharing of joys and sorrows, the learning to be humans who are each complete and whole but who can merge each with the other, as the trees grow green and tall in the heat of the sun.

In the fall of love is the contentment of love that knows the other completely. Passion remains, and ease of companionship. The heart smoothes love into a steady light, glorious as the autumn leaves.

In the winter of love, there is parting, and sorrow. But love remains, as do the stark and bare tree trunks in the snow, ready for the renewal of love in the spring as life and love begin anew.

Now is the time of summer. Jordan and Samantha have gathered before their friends and family to make a statement of their commitment to each other, to their love."

I think that crafting our own ceremony and vows will make it that much more meaningful and special for both of us. I like to think of the ceremony as being poetry in action.

The Proposal!

These are pictures of the night Jordan proposed, one of us with the a capella group and one of us after he proposed. That is my ring!

The proposal isn't really part of the wedding planning process, per se, but it's a great story and I love to share it!

Background information: Jordan and I attended the same middle- and high-schools, though we didn't really know each other until the end of his senior year of high school (I was a sophomore at the time). He left for UGA in 2003 and we began chatting (and flirting) over AIM soon afterwards. I needed some advice on a summer program in 2004 and he had been before, so that was when we really started talking more often. He says he knew he wanted to ask me on a date when I showed up at his pool party wearing my favorite cherry skirt, hehe. ;) On September 21, 2004 (I was a senior in high school), he asked me if I wanted to go on a date, and by December 6 of that year, we were dating exclusively! Well, after I graduated from high school in May 2005, I decided to go to UGA as well, so by August of that year, we were no longer in a long-distance relationship, which was great, but it definitely took some getting used to!

The proposal: On November 18, 2006, Jordan asked me if I wanted to go on a late-night picnic to North Campus (something we did fairly often at the time). Once we were there, he said that a campus a capella group would be performing on the steps of the University Chapel and that some friends of ours were going to show up to watch it. After our picnic of fried chicken and cheesecake, we wandered down to the Chapel to watch the performance. They sang a few songs before starting Come What May from Moulin Rouge (one of our favorite love songs). I was pretty excited, but nothing prepared me for hearing Jordan start to sing the male part rather than the performing group! After singing the first verse, he got down on one knee and said, "Samantha, I love you more than anything else in this world. Will you marry me?"

To say the least, I was quite shocked. I actually didn't even say or do anything at first (something he loves to tease me about!). He asked, "Well?" and I yanked my glove off and said, "Yes!" A friend of ours was videotaping the whole time, so we have a copy of the proposal, but unfortunately it doesn't play on any computers so I can't share it until I find a way to upload it! Jordan thinks he sang terribly, but I think it's cute beyond belief. :)

We will be getting married one day short of five years to the day of when he first asked me out on a date. <3

The Mansion on Forsyth Park

The first picture is of the Courtyard (with a permanent silky white tent cover) done up for an event. The second picture is of the Ballroom set up for an event as well. Finally, the third picture shows one example of a suite in the hotel part of The Mansion.

Today's post is about the venue we've chosen for our wedding ceremony. The Mansion on Forsyth Park is in Savannah's historic district, close to downtown and the River. It is a restored mansion from 1888 and is directly across from beautiful Forsyth Park. It functions as a hotel with over 100 gorgeous suites, a spa, an art gallery, and a restaurant. In addition, The Mansion hosts many weddings, either in the beautiful Viennese Ballroom, in the Marble Garden Courtyard by the pool, or in Forsyth Park across the street.

Jordan and I originally were going to have our wedding in Forsyth Park in front of the fountain and the reception in the ballroom of The Mansion. I didn't want to risk having bad weather ruin our ceremony, nor could we afford the $7,000 food and beverage minimum (plus 29% taxes and fees) for the cheapest Mansion reception. In the end, we decided to have our ceremony in the Marble Garden Courtyard at 10 am (and in the case of bad weather, we will get moved to the ballroom for no charge) and we'll have an 11 am lunch reception at The Lady and Sons Restaurant nearby! The Southern Lunch Buffet is only going to be around $21 per person, and the price includes all taxes and fees, refillable non-alcoholic drinks, and a dessert buffet (saves on the price of wedding cake!). Not only that, but Jordan loves Paula Deen's cooking, and I'm hoping she'll show up for a photo-op! :)

Although neither of us are from Savannah, we both love it! Jordan is a huge beach buff, and I absolutely adore historic buildings. Having our ceremony at The Mansion was one of the things we decided to splurge on. It's going to cost $2,000 to rent the Courtyard, plus chair rental fees. Thankfully, though, we get a one-day wedding coordinator, who will make sure that everything for the ceremony goes as planned so that I don't have to worry about it. I'm hoping that we'll also be able to stay in one of The Mansion's beautiful suites for a few days before our honeymoon too! ;)

Fleurs de mariage

The first picture is of pink and white peonies. The darker pink color is the one I want to use. The second picture is of the purses I bought for the bridesmaids to carry their bouquets. The third is of a bouquet style I like, except with all pink peonies and ranunculus...you can see some stephanotis if you look hard enough. :) The final picture is the design of the ribbon I want on my hand-tied bouquet, along with the pearl pins.


So, this is an entire post dedicated to my wedding flowers. Some brides consider their flowers to be one of the most important aspects of their wedding day. Me? Not so much. I mean, I do love flowers...I think they are gorgeous. But at the same time, flowers die, and it always depresses me when they do. Also, my fiance has terrible allergies, and the last thing I want on our wedding day is for him to be sneezing all through the ceremony.

So here is my solution to both problems. We will be having the bouquets made out of artificial flowers. I'm not talking about the cheesy paper/plastic ones you can find at a dollar store, though. These flowers will still be beautiful (and, unfortunately, pretty expensive). They are called "new generation/real touch" flowers...and they look very real!

I have decided to go through this company: http://www.angelsaccents.com/ I browsed through all of their albums and the bouquets are quite stunning. Also, I can personalize how I want my bouquet to look and the company will handmake it especially for me. Since it will be expensive, I'm only getting my bride's bouquet from here.

The bridesmaids will be getting "purse bouquets". This is a neat idea I found on the same website. Their flowers will be bunched in white satin and pearl purses. :)

My flowers of choice are bright pink peonies and ranunculus, with white stephanotis accents. The bride's bouquet will have pink ribbon and white pearl accents. The bridesmaids will carry all pink peonies, and the Matron of Honor will have one white peony in the center of her bouquet.


PS. I BOUGHT MY WEDDING DRESS TODAY!!!! :D

A wedding on a college student's budget

This is a picture of the fans we'll be placing on our
guests' chairs at the ceremony since it will be
outdoors in Savannah in September. We'll be
choosing turquoise and hot pink to match our colors.



Since I work in a public library, I have been greedily hording wedding books and magazines since last May. I have scoured the catalog, had books shipped from all over the state of Georgia, scanned pictures of my favorite ideas, and poured over articles on how to save money while still having a dream wedding. Unfortunately, the latter have been less than helpful. I don't know what "budget" the writers of these articles are using, but it's definitely not that of a college student with loans and only a few scholarships.


So here I am, a year and a half into planning and sixteen months away from my wedding, and I've been doing all I can to save money and still manage to put on a gorgeous (and memorable) event. A blog post by another bride in a similar situation got me thinking of how helpful it might be to compile a list of websites and other resources I have been using to save money. So here it is!


1.) Do what I did! Go to your local library and search the catalog for non-fiction "wedding" books. You might be surprised at what you'll find (just be sure not to check out anything prior to about 1998 or else you'll find some awesomely tacky stuff). If your library doesn't have copies, ask someone who works there if they participate in a "holds" system where you request a book from another region and they ship it to your library free of charge. Once you find what you're looking for, check it out and find a scanner. Scan the ideas you like and add them to your "ideas" picture folder.


2.) For any specific aspect of your wedding, google's image search might be more helpful than you'd think. For wedding flowers ideas, for example, I searched for "pink wedding flowers" and "pink peony bouquet" and found TONS of ideas! I'm having my bouquet made of "real touch" artificial flowers, so I get to design the bouquet myself. I've collected a slew of images exemplifying every single aspect of the bouquet that must be present, and I'll present the designer with the folder when she starts to create it. You can also do this with "wedding hairstyles", "wedding makeup", etc. It's always easier to work with an image than with a description.


3.) Believe it or not, facebook can be helpful too! If you have an account, add the "Weddingbook" application and you'll see a forum FULL of other brides (and sometimes grooms) posting questions, concerns, and suggestions. If you have a question that you don't see addressed, post a new topic and you'll be practically guaranteed to have at least three answers within a week! Also, facebook participates in "ad targeting", which means that once the program realizes that you are getting married, wedding-related ads in the sidebar will start to appear. This is actually how we found our photographers! Browse the adboard every now and then and there's no telling what you might find.


4.) Once you book any of your vendors (photographers, florist, ceremony venue), ask for recommendations! Often these people will have previously worked with some really amazing vendors in other aspects of a wedding and they can give you a first-hand account of their services. This won't always save you money, but if there are one or two areas in which you're willing to splurge (photography and ceremony venue are mine), they can give you a good head-start on who is the best in the business.


5.) If you live in or near a large city, visit http://www.perfectweddingguide.com/ and browse the site and/or sign up for their mailing list (my suggestion is to create a new email address just for wedding stuff, or else your inbox might get flooded!). There are other similar websites also, like http://www.ourweddingday.com/ and http://www.theknot.com/, but I'm a big fan of the first one especially. Just find the city in which you live and there will be tons of information for you right there.


6.) A similar option, if you're getting married in a popular city, is to visit that city's website. For example, I am getting married in Savannah, GA, and on that city's tourist page ( http://www.savannahvisit.com/ ), there's an entire section devoted to weddings! If you can't find similar information, do another google search, this time for "[city of choice] weddings".


7.) Go to a bridal show! Many large cities have these, and not only are they fun (e.g., free food and cake tastings, contests, prizes), you are bound to get some great information! The one Jordan and I went to had a money wind-machine and the amount the groom managed to hold on to gave us a discount on our tuxedo rentals. They also host tons of local vendors, and there are often trunk shows, which are a way to save money on your wedding dress. You might find a designer wedding dress for half or more off!


8.) If you're not set on the idea of having real flowers, or if you or your fiance are allergic, consider artificial flowers. This can save you hundreds of dollars right away! There is something called "new generation/real touch" artificials now that look and feel like real flowers, although they are almost as expensive as the real thing. Another benefit is that they will last for years after your wedding, whereas real flowers will surely die. What we are doing is having the bride's bouquet made of real touch flowers, and the bridesmaids will get regular artificials. Our reception flowers will also be artificial.


9.) Another way to save money on flowers is to get married outdoors or in a well-decorated location. We are getting married in the courtyard of a Savannah mansion, so there will already be greenery; all we have to do is provide a few urns of flowers and we'll be set!


10.) Enter contests! It won't take much time and there's no telling when you might win something. I've entered many contests, and though I haven't won anything yet, my luck might change at any moment! After all, there's nothing to lose except a few minutes of your time.


11.) I've never quite understood why anyone would spend several hundreds or thousands of dollars on wedding reception favors. If they're not edible, they'll probably get thrown away within a week, and if they are edible, they'll probably be gone before the reception even starts! Why not spend the money elsewhere if you're not terribly attached to the idea of giving each of your guests something expensive? I personally prefer edible favors, but I'm making the packaging double as a placecard holder to save some money and space. Here are some websites that have cute (and cheap) ideas (PS: look for sales!): http://blissweddingsmarket.com/ , http://www.favorsbyserendipity.com/ , http://foreverandalways.com/ , http://orientaltrading.com/ , https://www.exclusivelyweddings.com/dynamicIndex.asp . Another benefit is that these websites will often have more than just favors.


12.) If you're getting married in a hotel, private home, or some place similar, ask about their reception costs. Often, these places will charge a ridiculous amount of money for food and drink. If your guest list is small enough, consider hosting the reception elsewhere--at a restaurant for example! In our case, The Mansion wanted to charge us around $7-8,000 to feed 100-150 guests. Instead, we opted to go to The Lady and Sons restaurant, where feeding the same number of people will only cost around $2,500! And the room rental fee was way lower as well.


13.) Don't get fooled into thinking that the packages listed by vendors (such as photographers, reception venues, etc.) are the only options. Don't hesitate to ask if you can personalize your own package (AKA leave out the extras that you don't need--honestly, do you really need white chair covers on the already beautiful chairs at that hotel?). Always Always ALWAYS ask if there is any way to lower the price. The worst anyone can say is "no" (or maybe, "you're cheap", but if they say that, you might want to find a new place).


That's all I've got for now. This monster is long enough. :)

I had that "ohmygosh" moment

In reference to my previous post, Someone is looking out for me, and to them I am immensely, immeasurably, and undeniably grateful!

Ladies and Gentlemen, I have found my wedding dress. OHMYGOSH I AM SO EXCITED!

I went into David's Bridal this morning to try on a few gowns I had seen online, and some of which I had already tried on several months ago. But you have to understand, I was getting desperate. Apparently, one of the dresses I had written on my list does not look as striking online as it did on me. It was the second dress I tried on, and the moment I walked out of the dressing room and stepped onto the viewing platform, my heart honestly skipped a beat or two and I fell in love.

The dress itself is white satin; the bodice is covered in lace and pearls, with a lace-up corset back; and the skirt is organza with pick-ups. Although it doesn't come with a halter strap, I can have one added from the same ribbon used on the lace-up back. Also, it's cheaper than many other wedding dresses ($599) it's on sale right now for $50 off, so even my practical side is satisfied. Amelia is my "Wedding Consultant" and she was just wonderful the whole time...she wasn't pushy, and she was incredibly helpful and super sweet.

This was just a wonderful experience all around. I didn't buy it today because I still had other places to go to try on dresses, but I'm positive I have found my wedding dress. I've made an appointment to meet with Amelia again on Monday to purchase the dress, as well as some accessories. For anyone who wished me luck, thank you so so very much...you might have made the difference. ;)

I've included a couple of my favorite pictures for this post, but I will post more on our wedding website! (Please, ignore the awul faces I'm making in some of them...Jordan has quite a talent for photographing me at my worst. :P)

Biggest obstacle so far

Believe it or not, minus lack of funds, the hardest thing that has come up in our wedding planning so far has been finding THE dress.

I know exactly what I want. I want a corset/lace-up bodice, preferably halter style, with (not too much) beading, an organza or tulle pick-up skirt, in white or off-white. Okay, easy enough, right?

Not so. I've tried on dress after dress, always finding something wrong with each one. I did manage to find what looks to be the perfect dress...except it's an older style and no one (I do mean no one) within 250 miles of here has it in stock for me to try on. And I've heard horror stories of brides buying dresses without first trying them on. I personally don't have $800 to blow on a possibility.

I've also heard stories of brides who tried on maybe three dresses, and then managed to find THE dress, bought it that day, and were ludicrously happy with their choice. Why can't that happen for me? Am I too picky? Is my sense of style so off-the-wall that no one makes that dress I've been imagining for more than a year?

I have tried on at least 15 dresses and I have two more appointments this weekend. Wish me luck! (Oh, and if you happen to find that dress I'm dreaming of, call me! :P)

A much needed place to vent/share

So, I'm back into blogging after a several-year hiatus. This time, it should be much different than my angsty xanga days. I've created this blog to keep track of my wedding planning, as well as to vent and share my ideas with friends and family.

Even though the wedding is still 16 months and 4 days away, I've been planning for several months now (well, ever since I was about eight in all honesty). I have so many ideas that it's hard to keep track of everything in my "My Pictures" folder and Gmail, so that's why I'm here.

Each new post will be about some aspect of my wedding planning or wedding woes, and I'd like to invite everyone to leave a comment with advice, suggestions, or commiseration. Happy reading!