IS IN!!!!!!!!!!!

Mr. Postman dropped off a rectangular box this past Friday.  I went out to meet him because I couldn’t wait.

I squealed.  I ran inside.  I promptly told the dogs that this was my dress and made them go stay in the kitchen so it didn’t get dog hair and paw prints on it. 

I tore it open.  Inside was an opaque vinyl garment bag (how nice of Amanda to send it this way!) and a thank-you card inside (how nice again!).

i quickly zipped the bag open, squealing again, and put it on.  

hmm…it’s beautiful, it’s MY DRESS, without a doubt, but it needs some alterations.  So I pulled it tight to get a better idea, put the accessories on and voila!  

I was a BRIDE!  But I was ME!  And it was AWESOME!  It was everything I ever wanted AND it’s reusable.  The way it’s designed, after the wedding I’ll be able to hem it to the knee and it’ll make a cozy, beautiful sun dress  Wow, I’m such a recycling hippie.

But seriously, I am so relieved.  Every bride, from what I hear has 2nd thoughts and the more I thought about the dress (before it arrived) the more I doubted my decision.  Don’t ask me why.  I was doing exactly what I wanted to do.  I was having my dress made out of the fabric I wanted, into the style I wanted, by a ridiculously talented dressmaker.  But still, the doubts came, but disappeard completely once I put the whole ensemble together.  I mean, completely.  I am in LOVE with my gown.  It’s so ME and it’s SO beautiful!!  I can’t wait to wear it to become Adrian’s wife

In other news, checks we have done so far:

• Ceremony site (Rose Well House on IU campus)
• Reception site (Neal-Marshall Black Culture Center Grand Hall)
• DJ (Tom Marshalek from The Dance Machine)
• Flowers (Harvest Moon Flower Farm)
• Rentals (Master Rental)
• dress (Amanda Archer handmade creation)
• Caterer (Bloomingfoods Co-Op)
• Photographer (Jason Miller with Silvertree Photographics)

First off:

THE DRESS IS DONE!!!!  eeeeeeeee!!!!!!  

Ok now that I’ve got that out of my system I can move on.  

NO wait.  Seriously.  MY wedding gown.  My custom-made wedding gown.  is finished.  and it’s beautiful.  and by next week, I should be able to put it on!  It’ll be moments like that that I’m glad Adrian’s at work all day and I’m at home alone so I can prance around in it and edit pictures in it…

Second update:

We met with our first choice for a caterer (Bloomingfoods Co-op) and decided on a DJ (Tom Marshalek with The Dance Machine).

 Adrian and I both knew going into this that we wanted a fun party for our closest friends and families.  What better way than with good food and good music?!  To be honest, Adrian wasn’t all gung-ho about the DJ thing like I was.  He still isn’t.  But in my line of work, I’ve seen a TON of DJs.  I totally get why he’s a little scared.  I’ve seen the cheese in person.  I’ve seen the DJs that don’t know when to be quiet, or the ones that don’t realize this isn’t a show all about them, or the ones that totally didn’t listen to the bride & groom’s requests and just played whatever they want.  I’ve even seen the DJs that will stop a song that’s rocking out before it’s over leaving dead silence hanging in the air while the crowd that was just having a good time groans in disappointment.  

But our guy is not these guys.  I’ve seen some great ones too in my line of work, don’t get me wrong.  But Tom is the absolute best choice for us.  He and I have worked together at two wedding receptions in the past couple of years.  Only two, and at these two he impressed me exponentially.  We even got to talk quite a bit at the most recent one only this past month.  He’s a lot like us.  Heck, we even found out recently that he’s our neighbor!  He lives like one street over.  How small a world is it?!  Anyway, he gets it.  And he truly loves what he does and I feel that really makes a difference.  When vendors “do weddings” just to make money, or in their “off season”, you can tell.  When they do it because they love it, it shows.  Tom is excellent, end of story.  Adrian still may be a little hesitant, but he won’t regret it.  I appreciate so much his trust in me in this.  And for the record, this is the only aspect of our wedding planning so far on which we haven’t seen eye-to-eye.  I mean, iPod weddings may work for some, but for a rockin’ party, you need someone whose sole purpose is to crank out some excellent music!

As for Bloomingfoods, we both agreed on this from the beginning.  After meeting with the super-friendly and totally laid-back (like us) Alan Simmerman from the near west side store, we felt even more sure about our decision.  We’re still awaiting a price estimate which will help us make our final choice, but we’re pretty set on them.  All organic, vegetarian, and super ridiculously delicious food.  How can you go wrong? 

In other planning news, we’ve also discussed the whole officiant thing.  I mean, technically, the officiant is the most important (read: necessary) vendor.  And when we think about it, it feels very strange to us to have anyone marry us that doesn’t already know us well.  So we’re heading very seriously down the track of having a friend who gets ordained online marry us.  We discussed possible friends of ours over lunch one day and came up with a couple of names.  We’ve since narrowed it down to one that we think is the best for the job.  Next step:  Asking said friend.  And no, we’re not giving away the name until he/she is asked!  :)  Nice try, though.

So yeah, I think that about covers it on the wedding planning front.  More as things progress!

Jenny the Bride

I was shopping on my new obsession today and came across the MOST ADORABLY PERFECT flowergirl dress ever! Adrian and I plan to ask his niece, Vienna (pictured below)

to be our sweet little flowergirl. Apparently, she has already offered, so we anticipate zero objections!

BUT ANYWAY, back to that DRESS! It’s so perfect because it’s our colors, it’s an adorable design, and it’s something Vienna could wear again (we want everything to be as reusable as humanly possible! Recycle, recycle, recycle…)

ALSO!! Yesterday, the fabric I purchased for our reception tables came in!!

The fabric is by Amy Butler and I LOVE THEM! They’re perfect! I Etsy-shopped again and got them from seller “fabricsupplies”. As you can see I got those 7 quarter-yard fabric pieces (+ more from the same seller) and plan to place them on the center of each table with my centerpieces on top (more on those later) and then AFTER the wedding, have the pieces made into a quilt! I got this idea from Shelterrific, as she did the same for her wedding. I thought it was such an awesome idea to recycle (see? again!) something from the wedding and have it be a part of your daily life! I am so excited to do this!

In other news, tomorrow, Wednesday May 21st, at 1pm Adrian and I have our very first wedding-related appointment! We’re going to go view the Grand Hall (remember–reception location) to be sure this is where we want to do it. I know this is where I want to do the reception, but Adrian needs to see it again to be absolutely sure. After that, we’re going to take a walk around campus to (hopefully!!) settle on a ceremony site. I AM SO EXCITED to get these things checked off our list!

I’m going to bring my camera tomorrow (of course. It’s permanently attached to my hand) and get some pics of all of these things for my blog readers (family? You are out there, right? Pleeease comment and let me know you’re keeping up! This blog is mainly for you! AND we LOOVE YOU!)

Thanks for reading!

Love,

Jenny the bride

OK, so we’re getting VERY close to the one-year mark (as in one year until our wedding date!)!

The goal this week is to get our ceremony & reception sites booked. I have filled out the form for the Neal-Marshall Black Culture Center Grand Hall (pictured below–photos by Grise Photography (me)) and have been in contact with Timothy Womock who is in charge of booking at Neal-Marshall for Adrian & I to come view it before paying for it. Hopefully we’ll be able to do so this week and get it booked!

I, personally, LOVE the space and have photographed two receptions here, one of which Adrian attended. He wants to go back, though, since the last time he saw it was 2 years ago. Can’t blame him.

As for a ceremony site, we’re firm on an outdoor campus (IU) location, just not sure WHICH outdoor campus location yet. We should be able to come to a final decision by Friday though (the dreaded One Year Mark).

I’ll update as it happens!

Jenny

I am so excited!

WE HAVE A PHOTOGRAPHER!

Adrian’s good friend from high school is a professional photographer (Jason Miller of Silvertree Photographics) and has agreed to photograph our wedding!  I am THRILLED for two reasons:

1) I know this has been something that has meant a lot to Adrian,

2) Jason is extreeeemely talented, personable, and fun (all the things I was looking for in a photographer!).  All that and he’s a personal friend, so we’ll feel comfortable around him and have a great time!

Now we’ve just gotta meet with him and discuss specifics (or really, Jason and I need to talk shop!).  We’re also thinking of doing an engagement session somewhere down the line at the IMA grounds where we spent the weekend we got engaged!  But I’m getting ahead of myself…

So what’s the ceremony site update?

All of the sudden we’re open to IUB’s campus for our outdoor ceremony.  What changed our minds?  The trouble we’re running into finding an alternative!  That and it really is a gorgeous campus, and by that time there will hardly be any students (our wedding falls after graduation on purpose), AND it’s CLOSER to our desired reception location (the Grand Hall at IU’s Neal-Marshall Black Culture Center).

Still have to talk about it and view possible locations, but I think we’re getting nearer making a decision!  We’ll, of course, keep you updated

Jenny

The Bride

Well, we have our first appointment to view a possible ceremony site!  Tomorrow at 10am Adrian and I are going to have a guided tour at Deer Park Manor.  We are set on an outdoor ceremony (with a backup plan of course in case of inclement weather!) and could go either way for the reception (indoor/outdoor).  I’ve photographed two weddings at Deer Park and love the grounds.  It’s a beautiful 40-acre nature preserve with a gorgeous limestone mansion.  And the entire estate would be ours for the weekend if we do decide to go with them.

BUT–it’s only ONE of our options right now.

We also love the idea of a reception at the Neal-Marshall Black Culture Center Grand Hall on IU’s campus.  I have photographed two receptions there and it’s just loooovely!  Hardwood floors, floor-to-ceiling windows!  And extremely budget-friendly ($75 per four hour period).  If we do the reception here, though, we’re not sure yet on where to hold the outdoor ceremony.  Adrian doesn’t like the idea of an on-campus ceremony and I’m not in any way stuck on the idea either.  Eagle Pointe Golf Resort here has some pretty options and I’m currently in communications with Jake King, the director.  We will likely set something up with him to view our options soon.  The only issue with Eagle Pointe is that it’s pretty far from Neal-Marshall, so we’d have to keep that in mind.  The Terrace at Eagle Pointe is a great place to have a reception, too, so we could do both there.   So see, we have lots of options to look into.  At least we have one appointment made!

As for a ceremony officiant, we are looking into the idea of getting one of our friends ordained online at ULC.net as one of the options.  All in all, we want our ceremony to be really personal and reflect us as a couple, and all of us as a family.  We’re still looking into officiants who do this as a living, Justices of the Peace, judges, county clerks, or even our Mayor.  With all that in mind, the idea of a close friend of ours officiating the ceremony still sounds like the most personal option.  And yes, it’s legal.

I’ll let you know how tomorrow’s appointment goes!  I’ll bring my camera.

Jenny

The Bride

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