Lurkyloo's PJ: Morocco/Attic/UK Lower - Greetings from WDW!!! [Archive] - The DIS Discussion Forums

lurkyloo

11-05-2007, 04:35 PM

We started talking about marriage after about a year of dating, with the understanding (I think!) that after two years would probably be a good time. DF knew I'd always wanted to be proposed to in Disneyland, in my favorite spot, the Court des Anges in New Orleans Square.

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/CourtofAngels.jpg

The problem was that we go to Disneyland a LOT! So every time we passed through New Orleans Square my tummy would do a little flip-flop and I'd wonder if this was the moment! I began to regret being so specific in my proposal fantasy. :rotfl:

But DF still surprised me. We were in Disneyland for a marathon opening-to-closing trip, which started and ended with a 2-hour wait in line to ride the just-opened Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage. We had a really late reservation at the Blue Bayou for dinner, so we collapsed on the bench in the Court des Anges to wait.

Finally DF stands up, so I start to stand up, but then he kneels down and says, "Will you marry me?" I was totally in shock - the moment finally came and I was thinking "Wait - what? Now?! It's too soon!" etc. (yes, after hoping for a proposal on every trip to Disneyland for a year, the first thought I had was "It's too soon!" :upsidedow )

I plopped back down on the bench and said yes, DF started crying, we decided he'd probably better get off the ground, and as the other group of people in the courtyard started to leave, the mother said to me, "Congratulations!" (Apparently he'd been waiting for them to leave but finally gave up and went for it). We had a lovely meal at the Blue Bayou and DF told me how had just decided to propose without a ring because we'd had such a great day and he wanted to have many other great days together for the rest of our lives. What a sweetie!

Here's the ring we eventually got. It's a new ring I found on a fashion jewelry site called Fragments.com, but it looks old fashioned, which I love. I don't usually wear jewelry, and I thought a solitaire just didn't feel like me, so I started looking at right-hand rings (a lovely diamond-industry ploy to sell rings to single women ;) ). The first couple people who saw my ring thought it was just a setting for a stone :headache: but lately more people get what I was going for - hee hee!

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Engagement%20pix/050_0195_1.jpg

lurkyloo

11-05-2007, 04:38 PM

Hi caryndisneydiva and BaBeeCee14! :wave2: Buckle yer seatbelts - I just looooove to write about this stuff! :cutie:

Lisella

11-05-2007, 04:50 PM

I'm so glad you started a journal! I love your proposal story and what a beautiful ring.

Can't wait to read more popcorn::

lurkyloo

11-05-2007, 04:50 PM

OK, maybe this part won't be too interesting to most of you because, hey, who wouldn't choose a Disney wedding? But we really agonized over it, so it might be helpful for anyone on the fence...

We knew we wanted to be married sooner rather than later, and we thought February would be great for getting off-season prices no matter where we were married. Of course, I had been thinking about a Disney wedding since I discovered this board last year, but I didn't want to force it if there were a more suitable option.

So we investigated possibilities in Los Angeles and in my tiny hometown in Northern California. At first we were really leaning toward using the Jim Henson Studios in Hollywood, where DF teaches puppetering classes. They are located in Charlie Chaplin's old studios, a neat Tudor-style collection of buildings.

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Henson.jpg

But I started to become overwhelmed by all the stuff we'd need to bring in: tables, chairs, dishes, heat lamps, waitstaff, catering - everything! Plus, for even a modest gathering of 50 people with paper plates and box lunches plus cupcakes, we were looking at more than $15,000. The site fee alone would have paid for an entire Escape wedding!

I started stressing out. DF asked me what I really wanted. I said I wanted to get married in the Court d' Anges at Disneyland, but when I'd called a year ago to ask, I was told Disneyland weddings cost $60,000. He told me to call again. This time when the snarky receptionist at Disneyland's weddings department said, "You do know that a Disneyland wedding costs $60,000, right?" I said, "Yes - please connect me with a wedding planner."

I explained to the planner that I didn't want a 150-person spectacle in the shadow of Sleeping Beauty Castle, I just wanted a simple ceremony in the Court D' Anges before the park opened and a reception at the Blue Bayou. She said, "Well, they won't let us use the Blue Bayou, but we are developing a range of lower-priced in-park weddings and you could have your reception on a balcony at the Grand Californian."

I was ecstatic. She said I had to wait a few weeks because they were only starting to figure this all out. Well, when I finally heard back from her, it turned out these "lower-priced" weddings are going to have a $25,000 minimum for just the ceremony portion, and they top out at 25 guests! At least in Florida you can have 50 guests at a Magic Kingdom wedding for that price! I was devastated - it was so far out of our price range. I called DF from work sobbing about how now some other bride was going to get to be married in Court d' Anges when I was the one who'd thought it up, etc., etc.

So we went back to the drawing board, and I tentatively began pitching the idea of a WDW wedding. He liked the idea that we could get so much service and so many cool options for a third of the price of a Los Angeles wedding. He didn't like the fact that it was so far away - many of my relatives live in the Midwest and Back East, but almost all of his are in Northern California.

But the more we looked at the alternatives - and their attendant hassles - the more we both began to think that a WDW wedding might actually work. We knew we didn't want the usual cookie-cutter hotel wedding, but we didn't want to elope. (Well, *he* didn't want to elope :rolleyes1 ).

We started looking at an Escape wedding. I wanted to be married at Sunrise Terrace at Wilderness Lodge, but there's a 10-person limit (including bride and groom), and DF's immediate family is seven people, so that was out. Then we ran into all the hassles of fitting a meal into the rigid and inconvenient Escape Wedding timeslots. 5:30 and 9pm are the only times you can make large-group reservations at nearly all Disney restaurants, and neither works great with the ceremony times. Plus, we wanted to have a dessert party. On top of all that, DF really felt strongly that if we were going all the way out to Florida to be married, we should at least be getting married in one of the parks.

We really liked the idea of Epcot - reasonable minimums (on weekdays...in winter...) and a wide variety of ceremony locations. Our favorites were Japan and Morocco, but neither of us had been to WDW in 14 years, so we needed to go back out there to decide.

Next step...Planning Session!

mla1977

11-05-2007, 05:01 PM

This all sounds so exciting!

lurkyloo

11-05-2007, 05:02 PM

While most of my family and friends seem to think that 6 months is plenty of time to plan a wedding, you all know that the bridal magazine timelines start at 12 months, and many people begin planning even farther out than that! When we finally decided to go for a DFTW, I felt like I'd been plunged into the process midway. I also stopped reading bridal magazine timelines because they made me hyperventilate. :rotfl:

We set up a planning session about 3 weeks after we signed the contract. We were tentatively planning for a Japan ceremony, and I was pretty sure I wanted the Attic for the reception, just from pictures I’d seen. This is where I wished we’d had more time to research, because I feel like there are probably a lot of cool and unusual places you can have a reception and ceremony at Walt Disney World, but DFTW is not forthcoming at ALL about alternatives. When I asked for nonstandard reception sites, they sent me info on Whitehall and the lawn at the BoardWalk. :rolleyes: Later I heard about a girl who was doing a reception in the bird area at Animal Kingdom, but it was like pulling teeth to get any info on those options, and they flat-out refused to show us any AK sites at our Planning Session when I asked three weeks before.

Having seen them, I love the sites we picked, but for a long time there was this little nagging doubt at the back of my mind, like “Maybe there’s someplace even cooler…”

All the gory details of the Planning Session are in this thread:

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1580678

When we saw Japan and Morocco in person, we instantly fell in love with Morocco. At first I really wanted to use the interior courtyard with the balcony above it. I loved the wall fountain as an altar, and I thought it would be really cool if when we exited there were people up above showering us with petals. DF and our WC looked at me like I was crazy… DF said the place felt claustrophobic.

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/IMG_4450.jpg
http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/IMG_4453.jpg

We also considered this area, but it would have been a weird setup with seating, and our walk to the altar would have been about 20 seconds (this is a big deal to me because, as you’ll hear later, I have very specific music I want for each portion of the processional, and it’s way longer than 20 seconds :cutie: )

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/IMG_4460.jpg

DF and our planner convinced me that the main courtyard would be best. I really wanted to have the seats face the archway but use the fountain as our altar.

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/IMG_4467.jpg

However, this would have put the guests out on the walkway. And as I know now, the #$@%! Epcot Segway Tour runs along the walkway. Even with the seats between the fountain and the archway, the tour will still be coming awfully close. Here’s what it will look like when the Segway Tour ruins my wedding :rotfl:

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/IMG_4462.jpg

This is as close as we got to seeing our Dessert Party site, Upper UK, since the BoardWalk Inn chef moved up our tasting by 30 minutes. I’m hoping the high wall and permanent umbrellas don’t spoil our photos.

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/IMG_4482.jpg

I always liked the Attic in pictures (mostly because it looks like it needs NO decorations), but I fell in love with it when I saw it in person.

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Atticcompsmallcopy.jpg
http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Attic2widesmall.jpg

First of all, the floors are SO shiny! I suppose that’s a silly reason, but…. MAN, are they shiny! And I love all the windows (though they may be murder for picture-taking) and the view.

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/IMG_4499.jpg

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/balconyadjusted.jpg

This is where we want to put our sweetheart table – our WP just about had an apoplexy but finally agreed we could sit there. I guess they usually put you on the deck or something? :confused:

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/IMG_4504.jpg

I think our iPod will be set up in the far corner on the little side table, under the stained glass window hanging.
http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/IMG_4493.jpg

DLR2WDW

11-05-2007, 05:30 PM

Your locations look beautiful! I was thinking the other day...It must be difficult for the planners to go through all of the location options with every couple since each couple has different numbers of people, different budgets and certain locations are available only at certain times. I think they must narrow down the options based on their knowledge of the couple and all of the other factors. I think you have chosen GREAT spots and it sounds like you have everything well planned!

mla1977

11-05-2007, 06:00 PM

I'm so excited that you put the pictures of the Epcot view up. I've been wondering what it looked like from there.

PrincessBrideKatie

11-05-2007, 06:10 PM

I love your PJ so far!

M&M126

11-05-2007, 09:02 PM

I'm so glad you started a PJ. I love your story about meeting your DF. That is too cute! I cant wait to hear all the detailed planning in the weeks/months to come! :)

TamTab

11-05-2007, 09:15 PM

Love your pj so far. looking forward to reading more!

caryndisneydiva

11-06-2007, 02:23 AM

i felt the same way you did about meeting a disney loving straight man!!! great pj so far!!!

Kristen14

11-06-2007, 10:13 AM

Yay! I'm glad you started a PJ!

BayouPrincess

11-06-2007, 10:34 AM

I'm loving the PJ so far! :love: The proposal part is sooooooo cute. He was trying to be all smooth. How sweet. You're a lucky couple. It seems as though you are meant for each other. I wish you a lifetime of happiness!

shasess

11-06-2007, 11:08 AM

Great PJ, so far!!!!:thumbsup2

lurkyloo

11-06-2007, 03:27 PM

Thanks for your sweet comments everyone! I hope there's something helpful to be found among my numerous opinions.... :rotfl:

The Dress

I thought dress shopping would be easy, since I love dressing up and I thought I had a good idea what kind of dress I wanted. Basically, I wanted something slinky and sexy and modern, not pouffy and lacy and princessy. I wanted Casablanca 1831!

(Not THE dress)
http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/secretstuff/Casablanca1831.jpg

However, when I tried it on, it made me look kinda dumpy and short - and I'm 5'11"! It took me three or four shopping trips just to stop feeling weird in a big formal gown, and all I could think was "Why does it have to be white?" This is partly cuz I'm super-pale and look bad in white (and worse in ivory!) and partly because I was getting tired of the Wedding Industrial Complex's notions of what a wedding dress should be (white, cheaply made, exorbitantly priced).

Also, at less than 6 months out, I was running out of time to order dresses from certain manufacturers. I think I tried on about 70 or 80 dresses over two weeks. I found lots that looked OK, but nothing that screamed “The One!”

This one was nice, but I decided the skirt would look dated when I looked back at my wedding pictures:

(Also not THE dress)
http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/secretstuff/Lieja_B.jpg

I loved this one, but it didn’t love me (clingy 100% silk + love handles = yikes!)

(I WISH this were THE dress)
http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/secretstuff/TaraKeely.jpg

Finally, I decided just to get the one that made my waist look the smallest. Ta-da! (Please excuse Missy Poutypants – she probably hasn't eaten in days!)

(The Dress!)
http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/secretstuff/AllureP681.jpg

It is, of course, very princessy and pouffy, but it wins the smallest-looking waist award hands down. I found it at the biggest and one of the most expensive bridal shops in Southern California. I tried on a sample that they’d marked down from $1,350 to $700, and it fit like a glove. However, it was the wrong color for me (café), and it had a ballpoint pen mark on the front, snags in the bodice, makeup stains inside, a broken zipper pull and a missing brooch at the hip. The shop would not budge on the price, but they said they’d put a ribbon on the zipper pull and assured me they could get the stains out. Oh, and they would gladly sell me a new brooch for the hip.

I read Bridal Bargains, and I felt like I was being taken for a ride. So I started looking for the dress online. The salon wouldn’t let me take a picture, but I did know it was an Allure gown. As it turns out, it was one of those gowns that manufacturers don’t advertise so that you can’t find out how much they’re worth. They sell them to bridal salons for $300-$500 and then the salons mark them way up – in this case, to $1300! I was lucky enough to find a picture on a British dress shop’s website, and then I found an eBay seller who was selling the dress through her shop in the Midwest. She sold me the dress brand new, in Diamond White, for $500, including shipping!

It was supposed to come in the first week of December, but she called me Saturday and said it had arrived! I should get it within the week. Here are some gratuitous pictures of the dress in her shop.

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/secretstuff/3006_1_sblJPG.jpg

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/secretstuff/3341_1_sblJPG.jpg

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/secretstuff/31d2_1_sblJPG.jpg

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/secretstuff/3699_1_sblJPG.jpg

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/secretstuff/350b_1_sblJPG.jpg

BayouPrincess

11-06-2007, 03:40 PM

I'm trying to imagine how someone 5'11" feels short and dumpy! :rotfl: Being actually not too short 5'6" but definately dumpy "pooh sized"....

All the pics of dresses you posted are very classically elegant, I really, really like the one you chose...while it is a little princessy, I can certainly vote for the "smallest waist" version!

You will be gorgeous in your dress :bride: and your DF won't be able to take his eyes off of you.

lurkyloo

11-06-2007, 03:43 PM

You will be gorgeous in your dress :bride: and your DF won't be able to take his eyes off of you.

Oh my gosh - can I take you with me to WDW? You are too sweet! :goodvibes

caryndisneydiva

11-06-2007, 04:54 PM

i' 5'9", i understand completely how a tall girl can feel short and dumpy. it's called too many pick ups...anyway, good for you on your dress! i hate these shops that just rip off brides because they can. congratulations on finding such a beautiful dress and for such a good price! i'ts gorgeous! what is your df wearing?

lurkyloo

11-06-2007, 05:38 PM

what is your df wearing?

He's wearing this snoozeriffic budget number from Jim's Formalwear (the sneer costs extra!). Actually, he looks really good in it, but it's probably the one area of the wedding I don't have strong opinions about, so we went with his request to look like James Bond. :rotfl:

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/Tuxedo.jpg

Actually, I was kinda stressing out that we're going to be wearing formal clothes at a 9am wedding - definitely an Emily Post no-no. But I want the dress I want, not something that ettiquette says I should wear. And DF wants to look like James Bond!

BayouPrincess

11-06-2007, 05:46 PM

:love: I'm a big fan of James Bond, so I think the tux is quite nice.

Who cares what Emily Post says, it's a wedding (regardless of time) so I think you should wear what you like.

You're going to look fantastic and Ms. Post can take a flying leap. Of course, this is why I get into trouble because I don't pay attention to all of that. :rolleyes1

BTW...the answer is yes! you can take me with you! :rotfl: :thumbsup2

disneydreamgirl05

11-07-2007, 12:47 AM

You're dress is absolutely gorgeous!! :goodvibes I can't believe that the bridal store would not give you a discount for stains that were already there! That's not good sales tactics! I'm so glad that you found another though. I know you're going to look beautiful!!:bride:

Lisacope

11-07-2007, 01:37 AM

Totally a rip-off!!!

I found "the dress" at a fancy-schmancy store in Seattle that wanted $3660 (plus tax would be $3960 !!!!!) and went home depressed because I didn't want to spend that much. A friend of mine told me to look around on the internet and I found a store in Idaho that is selling me the dress for $2500 (no sales tax and free shipping!!!)

lpizzuro123

11-07-2007, 09:33 AM

Love your choice for THE Dress. Your first NOT THE DRESS is one of my choices to try on when I go dress shopping (which I really need do soon). I have enjoyed reading your report and look forward to seeing you in a picture of THE Dress.

Linda

pintradingwedding

11-07-2007, 01:06 PM

But we went with the Indiana Jones temple of doom white jacket tux :)

i'm having a BLAST living vicariously through your wedding planning!

lurkyloo

11-07-2007, 01:38 PM

Hi! I'm glad to know I'm not the only one frustrated by the whole wedding-dress-shopping thing. What a scam!

I posted a couple pix of my invites in another thread, but I'm sticking in a bunch more here for the record...

Invitations

I was going to design my own invitations but kinda ran out of time, so I copied ones I saw in a magazine and liked but couldn't afford (gulp!). I am very lucky to have a friend who owns a letterpress stationery business, so he printed the invitation cards, the reply cards, the envelopes, and the thank you notes, which look like blank reply cards (and also come in our supersecret stealth third color, pink).

I designed the folders and the Itinerary/Transportation Schedule and had them printed from a PDF on a color copier at a print house. They look just as good as offset printing but cost half as much!

The labels I found on Martha Stewart Weddings.com. I was agonizing over whether it would be tacky to use printed labels instead of hand writing the addresses, but my printer friend pointed out that it would be more tacky if the invitations couldn't be delivered 'cuz my handwriting is so bad! :rotfl: I figure, if labels are good enough for Martha, they're good enough for me!

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/fullset2copy.jpg

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/invatationcopy.jpg

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/replycardcopy.jpg

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/schedulecopy.jpg

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/fullsetinenvelopecopy.jpg

snubie

11-07-2007, 01:47 PM

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/th_fullset2copy.jpg

These look beautiful and they fit so nicely with the Morocco location.

BaBeeCee14

11-07-2007, 02:09 PM

I absolutely love your invitations. The colors look great together! :thumbsup2 I was having trouble figuring out how to word my invitations. After reading yours, it really helped. Thanks!

lurkyloo

11-07-2007, 02:18 PM

I absolutely love your invitations. The colors look great together! :thumbsup2 I was having trouble figuring out how to word my invitations. After reading yours, it really helped. Thanks!

I'm so glad you said that - I agonized over the wording because we are paying for our own wedding and have been out of the house for many years, so there was no need for a line about parents inviting you to the wedding of, etc. Yet the style of the invite needed a line of text above our names to balance the design.

Also, I have an aversion to spelling out all the dates and locations the way they say you should - to me it looks really pretentious (I remember a Dave Barry joke was about being invited to a wedding at "'Two Hundred Ninety Eight Harbour Oaks Manour Court Drive Terrace, Next to the Seven-Eleven.'' ...:rotfl: )

BaBeeCee14

11-07-2007, 02:40 PM

I'm so glad you said that - I agonized over the wording because we are paying for our own wedding and have been out of the house for many years, so there was no need for a line about parents inviting you to the wedding of, etc. Yet the style of the invite needed a line of text above our names to balance the design.

Also, I have an aversion to spelling out all the dates and locations the way they say you should - to me it looks really pretentious (I remember a Dave Barry joke was about being invited to a wedding at "'Two Hundred Ninety Eight Harbour Oaks Manour Court Drive Terrace, Next to the Seven-Eleven.'' ...:rotfl: )

:rotfl:
Don't worry, they sound great. Df and I are also paying for the wedding on our own so I didn't see the need for all that other "marriage of their daughter...". Plus I think it sounds better your way, its not as wordy. Anyway, can't wait to hear more!;)

Kristen14

11-07-2007, 03:01 PM

I love the James Bond tux!

I've been following Emily Post very closely, just so I have something to back me up when people get upset ;) ... but I threw her advice out the window when it came to formal wear! My wedding is at 2:30, and it'll be semi-formal (even though she says not till 6:00). DF and the groomsmen will be wearing tuxes (no tails) and my girls will have long black evening gowns.

It's your day and I doubt anyone will be offended if you're a little dressier than the etiquette books say. :thumbsup2

lurkyloo

11-08-2007, 12:26 PM

It's your day and I doubt anyone will be offended if you're a little dressier than the etiquette books say. :thumbsup2

:hug: :goodvibes

lurkyloo

11-08-2007, 12:27 PM

As you prolly figured out from the invites, our colors are turquoise and orange, with the super-secret stealth color fuchsia (don’t tell anyone)! I picked Pantone colors because – for printing, at least – you can get an exact match no matter where they are duplicated. They show up differently on computer screens, though, so if you hate these colors, just remember they don’t look *anything* like this! :rotfl:

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/Pantonecolors.jpg

We’re going for a vaguely Moroccan theme in some of the elements, but didn’t want to do a full-on attempt at capturing a culture we know very little about. The cake is about the most themed element.

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/MoroccanCake.jpg

Our flavors are (top to bottom) chocolate with peanut butter cup mousse, red velvet with cream cheese, and chocolate with peanut butter mousse. It’s kind of a narrow spectrum, but after years of getting fruit- and liqueur-filled cake at weddings (both of which I hate), I decided to be selfish in this department!

The cake table will have simple crossed sashes in turquoise and orange, laid out like this:

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/Displayidea.jpg

Another thing I’m not a fan of is swirly, foofy “clouding” on cake tables….

This is our cake knife.
http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/Alligatorknife.jpg

I wish they made a goofy little server to go with it – maybe we could use this spatula…

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/turner4.jpg

…Or this cheese knife! What do you think?

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/cheeseslicer.jpg

This was going to be the surprise groom’s cake until I decided the money would be better spent elsewhere. Maybe for our anniversary, though – it’s so cute!

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/1098601097_db7fa2b16f_o.jpg

lov2b@disney

11-08-2007, 01:07 PM

Hi! I'm brand new to the boards, just want you to know I'm enjoying your PJ. I love the colors you've chosen, invitations are beautiful and the cake WOW!
Looking forward to hearing more!!

Pezalicious

11-08-2007, 01:22 PM

I love your cake!! It's so pretty and unique!! The groom's cake is cool, too, though I completely understand cutting that out. I might have to try and make that one, though.. it doesn't look *too* complicated, and I do love to bake cute cakes!!

Your cake server is cute, too! I'm a buyer for a family store, and we used to carry that line. It's Koziol from Germany and they've got some really cute stuff! However, we recently had to drop the line because they've stopped importing the stuff over here. If you want one of those spatulas and haven't purchased it already, you might want to do so now, just in case they run out and you can't find one. This is a bit expensive ($32) and not the same line, but I thought it was cute and might work for you. http://www.chiasso.com/store/item.aspx?ItemId=51766

http://www.chiasso.com/assets/items/fifi_orange.jpg

lurkyloo

11-08-2007, 03:20 PM

love2b@disney: Thanks for reading! There is a *ton* of useful info on these boards - I hope I can help a little!

This is a bit expensive ($32) and not the same line, but I thought it was cute and might work for you. http://www.chiasso.com/store/item.aspx?ItemId=51766

http://www.chiasso.com/assets/items/fifi_orange.jpg

Oh wow - that's really perfect! I had heard that Koziol's stuff was being discontinued and wondered why I keep finding it everywhere. That makes sense now - they're just not importing it anymore. I'm going to go check out that server!

Pezalicious

11-08-2007, 03:29 PM

I'm glad you like it! I was surprised that the colors pretty much match your theme. :goodvibes

caryndisneydiva

11-08-2007, 08:04 PM

i love that cake!!! i'm so glad that you're not going with the traditional server, i'm not either, they bore me! i like the spatula! and i'm with you on the fluffiness on cake tables...

lurkyloo

11-08-2007, 08:23 PM

We are flying DF’s childhood pastor out to officiate our wedding. I happened to meet him a few months after DF and I began dating, and I knew right then that if I were to marry DF, this was the fellow I wanted to officiate! We’ve met with him a few times to talk about the ceremony and just marriage in general, and he’s been very respectful of my beliefs (which are different than DF’s) and incorporating aspects into the ceremony.

I know this doesn’t help someone who is trying to choose an officiant from Disney’s list, but I would say to be sure the person you pick really listens to you and what you want. I would be horrified if the officiant skipped or mangled some of the parts of the ceremony that are important to me.

Also, if you’re on the fence about bringing someone to officiate or having a friend ordained so he or she can officiate, I say go for it. We are paying for the pastor’s flight and hotel room, but with the wedding discounts and his willingness to take a cheaper flight, it’s not too expensive and totally worth it.

Our only attendants will be DF’s brother as Best Man and my brother as Man of Honor, so that’s why I don’t have any pictures of bridesmaid or flower girl dresses. I think bridesmaids are nothing but trouble, and I can say that ‘cuz I’ve been one! They don’t like the dress or they think it’s too expensive, and you have to choose all their accessories and pay to have their hair done and buy them bouquets and give them cheap jewelry they’ll never wear again – ugh!

Having said that, my brother is turning out to be just as high maintenance as any Maidzilla. (Let's just say he's not a big Disney fan... :sad2: )

So here’s what I told him he had to wear:

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/ManofHonor.jpg

autumnbride2B

11-08-2007, 09:43 PM

A person does not have to be ordained to perform a wedding in Florida. Any notary public can also do it.

Kristen14

11-08-2007, 11:45 PM

Lol, I love your brother's dress. I can't believe I just said that :rotfl: Your cake server is just too cute. I want some of those for my house!

lurkyloo

11-09-2007, 01:27 PM

Music is a big deal for me. I’ve been a radio DJ and played in bands, and I had a pastel yellow Sony Walkman permanently attached to my hip throughout the ‘80s! :cutie: One time when I was a pouty teen I removed my headphones long enough to declare “I wish my life had a soundtrack…” to which my dad replied, “It DOES!”

So the wedding – especially the ceremony – is my chance have a soundtrack that everyone else can hear for one day in my life. (DF pretty much sticks with movie scores, and he likes what I’ve chosen).

When we picked Morocco as our ceremony location, I started thinking about using music from the movie “The Wind and the Lion (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Wind_and_the_Lion),” which was my mom’s favorite film. If you can get over Sean Connery playing a Berber, it’s a really fun action-adventure-romance film. One of my fave movie composers, Jerry Goldsmith, wrote the score, which I thought had a nice Moroccan feel. Then I watched the movie again and realized it actually takes place in Morocco - bonus!

For the reception I’m thinking (a bit schizophrenically) about doing Main Street, U.S.A. music from Disneyland for the cocktail hour and a samba/bossa nova/jazz mix for the rest (we’re doing an iPod instead of a DJ – no way am I having the Macarena or the Chicken Dance played at my wedding!).

I linked the names of each song to samples of the songs so you can hear them… cuz I’m a nerd!

Ceremony:

Entrance – “Main Title from The Wind & The Lion (http://www.amazon.com/gp/music/wma-pop-up/B000000O67001001/ref=mu_sam_wma_001_001/104-0980376-9183144)”
Right now I’m thinking about having no prelude – just kicking off with this dynamic movie-opening song as DF’s parents are seated.

Mom’s Song – “I Remember (Love Theme) (http://www.amazon.com/gp/music/wma-pop-up/B000000O67001002/ref=mu_sam_wma_001_002/104-0980376-9183144)”
As a way to remember my mother, who passed on about three years ago, we’re going to have them play this song after DF’s parents are seated and before anybody else walks down the aisle. The song makes me and DF cry, but it is basically my mom’s theme song, and I think she’d really love it.

Officiant, Best Man & Man of Honor – “007 (http://www.amazon.com/gp/music/wma-pop-up/B000002V0S002002/ref=mu_sam_wma_002_002/104-0980376-9183144)”
We had to work in something from a James Bond film ‘cuz we’re huge fans, so this alternative Bond theme from the movie "From Russia with Love" should make our three guys feel pretty cool as they walk down the aisle!

Groom’s Entrance – “Life’s Incredible Again (http://www.amazon.com/gp/music/wma-pop-up/B00065JTC4001006/ref=mu_sam_wma_001_006/104-0980376-9183144)”
A love for “The Incredibles” was the first thing DF and I had in common. This song played when Mr. Incredible was getting back in shape and everything started to go well for him again – I think it’s a great entrance for DF!

Bride’s Entrance – “Off to Work (http://www.amazon.com/gp/music/wma-pop-up/B00065JTC4001007/ref=mu_sam_wma_001_007/104-0980376-9183144)”
This is my favorite song from the soundtrack to “The Incredibles,” and I played it over and over when DF and I were first dating. It’s the perfect fusion of John Barry’s, Henry Mancini’s and Jerry Goldsmith’s styles. I only wish I were wearing a slinkier dress so I could kinda glide down the aisle to this song!

Exit – “Two Hornpipes (Tortuga) (http://www.amazon.com/gp/music/wma-pop-up/B000FTCF2M001007/ref=mu_sam_wma_001_007/104-0980376-9183144)”
OK, we *had* to have something from the “Pirates of the Caribbean” movies, so why not the song from the barroom brawl(s) on Tortuga as we exit?

Reception:

First Dance – “Wave (http://www.amazon.com/gp/music/wma-pop-up/B000002AEJ001003/ref=mu_sam_wma_001_003/104-0980376-9183144)”
I’m going to weave three different versions of this Antonio Carlos Jobim song into the reception. For our first dance it’s Sarah Vaughn singing with a big orchestra. This song played over the end of my favorite movie, “Next Stop Wonderland (http://www.amazon.com/Next-Stop-Wonderland-Hope-Davis/dp/6305803765).” The cool thing about this version is that it starts out slow but has a jazzy break in the middle so we can bust out our swing dance moves!

I’m also going to print the lyrics in our guestbook, which is a glossy coffee table book of our engagement photos:

Wave
So close your eyes for that’s a lovely way to be
Aware of things your heart alone was meant to see
The fundamental loneliness goes whenever two can dream a dream together

You can’t deny, Don’t try to fight the rising sea
Don’t fight the moon, the stars above, and don’t fight me
The fundamental loneliness goes whenever two can dream a dream together

When I saw you first the time was half past three
when your eyes met mine it was eternity

By now we know the wave is on its way to be
Just catch the wave don’t be afraid of loving me
The fundamental loneliness goes whenever two can dream a dream together

Mother-Son – “Movin’ Right Along (http://www.amazon.com/gp/music/wma-pop-up/B00006IZP8001016/ref=mu_sam_wma_001_016/104-0980376-9183144)”
DF and I are huge “Muppet Show” fans, and he had to work a Muppet song into the wedding somehow. This should be a pretty hilarious mother-son dance – the song is mid-tempo and nearly impossible to partner dance to, plus neither of them know how to dance (Well, OK, DF can swing dance, but you can’t swing to this one!). I can’t wait… :dance3:

Father-Daughter Dance - ???
I’m letting my dad pick the song we dance to. I figure it’s only fair, since I’m picking all the rest of the music. We’ll see what he comes up with…

AbbyPan

11-09-2007, 02:35 PM

Lurkyloo! I'ts been forever since I've posted, but i am so happy to see your PJ!
I love your ring and your venues. I totally understand why you love Morocco, it's so beautifully themed. ...and the way you guys met is just so sweet...I don't care how much we love Disney, its just so hard to believe that you wished it and, Voila, it came true, that never happens, right?

I still have to read pg 3...i'll be back!!!

:goodvibes

snubie

11-09-2007, 03:35 PM

Mother-Son – “Movin’ Right Along”
DF and I are huge “Muppet Show” fans, and he had to work a Muppet song into the wedding somehow. This should be a pretty hilarious mother-son dance – the song is mid-tempo and nearly impossible to partner dance to, plus neither of them know how to dance (Well, OK, DF can swing dance, but you can’t swing to this one!). I can’t wait… :dance3:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/music/wma-pop-up/B00006IZP8001016/ref=mu_sam_wma_001_016/104-0980376-9183144

We actually used this song as our recessional song after the ceremony. We had such fun walking back up the aisle as a married couple and everyone was giggling at us. We were married in Rhode Island and RI is mentioned it in the song so it was also appropriate for the location.

lurkyloo

11-09-2007, 04:37 PM

Lurkyloo! I'ts been forever since I've posted, but i am so happy to see your PJ!I still have to read pg 3...i'll be back!!!:goodvibes

Welcome back! (I've been reading your trippie - love it! ;) )

We actually used this song as our recessional song after the ceremony. We had such fun walking back up the aisle as a married couple and everyone was giggling at us. We were married in Rhode Island and RI is mentioned it in the song so it was also appropriate for the location.

That is so COOL! I think the beat is perfect for a recessional, and it's great that your guests were actually listening to the song, since you chose it so specifically!

Lisacope

11-09-2007, 05:15 PM

lurkyloo

11-09-2007, 05:31 PM

How is your ceremony music going to work? Will someone be holding an Ipod and know what music is going to be played with each part, and then will that person make the music fade-in and fade-out as people make their entrance, or will you choreograph the ceremony and figure out how long the music should be for each section and have that section of music be that long?

They made us pay for a sound system and a tech to run it. We are going to give them a CD with all the songs on it and specific instructions about which songs can be faded out and which have to play through to the end. I'm just crossing my fingers that it works - I know another Epcot bride who had a song that was supposed to play in the middle of the ceremony, but it was skipped and then played as her recessional instead :scared:

I tried to time the walk to the altar on our site visit, but I don't think I did it right because everything came out to only 30 seconds - yikes! Some of the songs I'm going to edit down using software on my computer, but some I think we'll just have to vamp a little at the altar until they're done - I really don't want them faded out. I figure if they're roughly a minute or 1:20 they won't be too long... I'll let you know how it all turns out! ;)

Lisacope

11-09-2007, 08:25 PM

I am tempted to try to time portions of the ceremony and have music played for them - but I know I would be so stressed about making sure that it all came out correctly!

Good luck - I hope it all works out!

lurkyloo

11-12-2007, 01:53 PM

Hooray! My dress came Friday - a month early! I was really anxious about it because I ordered the same size as the sample I tried on in the store, even though I was warned that sample dresses can be stretched out. But when I put the dress on Saturday, it fit perfectly (mind you, it has a major corset and a huge skirt, so I don't exactly have to be Twiggy to fit in it :cutie: ).

So long, diet! :rotfl:

lurkyloo

11-13-2007, 12:36 PM

You know how they say that you should pick the three things that are most important to you about your wedding and then just not sweat any of the other stuff? Unfortunately for me, every aspect of the wedding falls into the “most important” category – except flowers. I like flowers, but I don’t know much more than that I like my flowers bright and ginormous.

Apparently this means I like dahlias. The bouquet I’d brought a picture of for our planning session meeting with Rose was dahlias, but she said they’d be out of season in February and hard to get. So she layed out all her cards with different flowers on them and asked me to point to the ones I liked, in the hope that we’d find some alternatives. Here’s how it went:

Me: “OK, how about this one?”

Her: “That’s a dahlia.”

Me: “Oh, OK. What about that one?”

Her: “Um, that’s a dahlia too.”

Me: “Sorry – this one?”

Her: “Dahlia.”

Me: “Argh! OK, that one then.”

Her: “You already pointed to that one.”

etc…

Finally Rose said she’d try really hard to find a grower who could get dahlias in February. I have no concept of floral seasons – I live in California, and I’ve seen dahlias in grocery stores year-round. Rose said if, if, IF she could get the flowers, they’d cost twice as much. However, when I eventually got my floral proposal, my bouquet came to $250 – which seems to be the bouquet cost in all the BEOs I’ve ever seen.

So the flowers and colors will look like this

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/Dahlias.jpg

In the shape of this orange bouquet, with a turquoise ribbon with little tails all around it like in the picture

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/OrangeBouquet.jpg

I gave Rose my only picture of the boutonniere I liked, so I don’t have it to post, but basically it’s going to be an orange cushion mum with some unusual greenery that kinda squiggles like a pigtail. I’m not too concerned – I just told her I wanted something unusual and not your standard rose with baby’s breath.

Cushion mums
http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/mums.jpg

Oh, and DF wants a turquoise hidden mickey in his boutonniere. We are totally cheaping out on other personal floral – the groomsmen and my dad get boutonnieres cuz they’re in the wedding, but we won’t have any for DF’s parents (gulp!). They prolly won’t notice…

I didn’t want any altar arrangements, but seeing the arch in Morocco, it looks kind of bare. I mean, I don’t want it to look like we were sashaying through Morocco with our pastor and just paused at the arch and decided to get married. I want a focal point!

Rose’s first proposal was two potted palms, but with baskets and stands and all it worked out to nearly $400. I can get potted palms at IKEA for $25 apiece, and I’d get to keep those! So now I have Rose working on either vases of banana leaves (which they really should just go get from the Jungle Cruise and give me for FREE) or branchy twiggy things, possibly with Chinese lantern seed pods:

Banana leaves (just to refresh your memory) with bonus dahlias!
http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/Banana1.jpg

Branchy Thingies
http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/redbranches.jpg
http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/wrappedvases.jpg

Lanterns
http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/Lanternbranches.jpg

At the planning session, I asked for these lovely centerpieces for the reception…

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/Pinkcenterpieces.jpg

to be arranged in these blue vases:

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/VaseRefPic.jpg

However, I didn’t let myself get too attached to them. When the floral proposal was done, they came in at more than $1,500, so I slashed those babies right out of the budget! I figure the Attic is already so well themed, and the tables are so small, and there are so many things I’d rather have than something as short-lived as centerpieces…

I will have a vase to stick my bouquet in on our sweetheart table, but I’m not paying for a floral refresh or anything. I figured I could make or buy a fake bouquet for far less than $110 that will look good from 50 feet away in those Magic Kingdom photos.

Last week I found this bouquet for $18! It actually looks a lot like one of my first bouquet inspiration pictures, before I settled on dahlias. It may look super-fake in person – we’ll see – but I’m betting no one will be able to tell in the MK pics.

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/FakeBouquet.jpg

caryndisneydiva

11-13-2007, 12:49 PM

$18? that's a great buy! even if they look super fake, you won't be able to tell in your mk pics!!! i'm with you on the centerpiece dilema, mine came to 1750...

Kristen14

11-13-2007, 02:09 PM

The flowers look gorgeous! My bouquet thru Disney was $265, and I wasnt told I picked hard to find flowers... so you're doing good!

IrishLily

11-14-2007, 01:39 PM

lurkyloo

11-14-2007, 01:51 PM

I love, love, love your invitations. I could've sworn that I already posted this, but I can't find it anywhere, so I'm going to just ask again. How did you get your invitation design to print all the way to the edge of the paper? Did you buy the paper with the design already on it? If so, where did you get it? I thought you said the design was from Martha Stewart, but I could be wrong.

THANKS!

Hi! I think we may have had this conversation on the thread where I posted my invites, but of course it's buried by now :rotfl:

The design is one I found in a magazine and copied. It isn't Martha Stewart, but I can't remember who it is. All I remember is that to buy them was going to be $1,100! :scared1:

The actual invites were printed on 11x17 sheets and then cut out by a friend of mine with a letterpress stationery business. Unfortunately, there's no way to print anything all the way to the edge. You have to print on a bigger piece and cut out.

You could do invites the way I did the folder: Print your 5x7 (or whatever size) invites on a bigger piece of paper, like 8 1/2 x 11 or 11x17, and then cut them out. I had the folders printed from a PDF I made on a color copier at a pro printing place, and I paid them something like $9 to have them cut the folders out for me. Getting color copies instead of real offset printing saved a bundle. You could probably even do it at Kinko's!

Hope this helps!

IrishLily

11-14-2007, 03:55 PM

It helps a ton! Thanks!!

Clearly I need to start keeping track of my posts...

lurkyloo

11-14-2007, 06:43 PM

OK, this part might be boring for some of you, but it might also be helpful for a few people. The handling of transportation is probably my biggest problem with DFTW. It was also the most confusing part, so I’ll put in everything I know and see if it helps anyone. Also, I will try to find some pictures – any pictures just to make this post more interesting… Oh - and I put some of it in white to keep the surprise in case some of my guests stumble upon this post. (I'm trusting they'll be savvy enough to find this post but not savvy enough to figure out how to read white text... :upsidedow)

The Schedule
We are having a charter bus pick up guests at the 4 hotels in our room block and take them backstage at Epcot for the ceremony. DF and I will ride in a limo to the ceremony because we’re getting there early to take pictures. After the wedding all of us will be transported by Friendship Boat from the dock at Morocco to the dock at BoardWalk Inn for the reception. At the end of the reception, our guests will be taken back to the 4 resorts on the bus, and DF and I will take one of the boats from BoardWalk Inn to the Beach Club. That night, another charter bus will pick everyone up at the four hotels and take them to the Dessert Party in Epcot and back.

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/disney_bus.jpg
Don’t get on this bus, wedding guests – it’s going to Animal Kingdom!

The Bad News
Disney has a five-hour minimum for the charter bus, which I think is very sneaky – it’s too short a period to cover an entire ceremony and reception and too long to justify having the bus come twice: just to pick up for the ceremony and just drop off after the reception.

Because we want to add the Friendship Boat, we have to pay to keep the bus sitting idle from 8:30am when the ceremony starts til 2pm when the reception ends. Of course, we weren’t forced to add the boat, but we would have had the same problem if our reception were also in Epcot and guests were walking to the site, so we aren’t the only ones being fleeced.

Our alternatives are the one-way bus (a.k.a. the minibus) and town cars. However, the one-way bus only picks up at 2 hotels. Of course if we’d known about this at the beginning, we would have only blocked 2 hotels. But we didn’t find out til after our save-the-dates had gone out listing 4 hotel choices. Grrrr! :mad:

The town cars are only an option on paper. When you ask for one they tell you that the company they contract with is unreliable and will step over your grandmother to take somebody to the airport, even if the driver is scheduled to pick up your guests. So why does Disney contract with this company? Oh yes, because they are in cahoots with the bus company….

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/towncar.jpg
Evil town car stranding wedding guests

The Dessert Party
This is the one event for which most brides seem to skip the bus. However, all but 5 of our guests have never been to Walt Disney World and have no idea how to get around. We felt weird asking them to use Disney’s bus system to get to the party, especially since there are no resort-to-resort buses, and they can’t take the Epcot bus because they don’t have admission and we all need to meet at International Gateway.

The Breakdown
:sad: (That’s me having a breakdown trying to figure out cheap transportation).

One-way Limo to Ceremony: $144.45
Pre-Ceremony/Post-Reception Motorcoach (8-hour charge [for 4 hours’ use] @ $89.25/hour): $714
One-way Friendship Boat to Reception: $250
Dessert Party Motorcoach (5-hour charge [for 3 hours’ use]): $446.25
:sad1:

caryndisneydiva

11-14-2007, 06:57 PM

i'm in the same boat (without the friendship boat :dance3: ) with transportation. we have to have 2 buses because we have so many people. when i went to book my reception, there wasn't a place that i could find that i didn't need the bus. this is the only part of my dftw that i truly feel i have no control over. i can deal with food, photography, videography and floral...but transportation has eluded me because of my guest count. since yours is less than mine, you might have more options...

strap on some :cool2: and here we go...

1. you know the bigger limo that they offer, instead of the rolls/anitque ford, i think they call it the stretch? why can't you hire more of them? you'd probably need maybe 4? i'm not sure how much this costs though...

2. lets say disney refuses option 1, why can't we hire our own transportation? we can hire our own photographer and videographer...just a thought. i'm sure that their own towncar company is just TERRIBLE, but orlando is a tourist town, and i'd venture to bet that there is more than one transportation company out there who would be willing to do your wedding.

lurkyloo

11-14-2007, 07:30 PM

These are great ideas, and when my planner freaks out at them, I will tell her they were all yours! :rotfl:

I'll see what I can find out... :cool2: ON!!!

Kristen14

11-14-2007, 09:04 PM

I put some of it in white to keep the surprise in case some of my guests stumble upon this post. (I'm trusting they'll be savvy enough to find this post but not savvy enough to figure out how to read white text... :upsidedow)

Lurkyloo you crack me up!

Kristen14

11-14-2007, 09:09 PM

For some reason the whole charter bus thing has never bothered me :eek: Although my floral bill is another story!!!

I'm going to completely fill 2 buses... hopefully I wont need a 3rd! And we're getting a limo and the rolls. I guess transportation is one of the only things with Disney that hasnt caught me off guard.

figmentfan814

11-14-2007, 10:01 PM

I was reading through your post about transportation and thought I would chime in about the buses for the dessert party. We were also concerned about people finding their way to the International Gateway. However, after some insisting on my part I was able to get my planner to allow our guests to meet at the front gate (since a lot of ours won't have tickets either.) Our planner said that it is a really long walk for our guests, but they will allow you to do it if you are persistent. That was a great way to save a little extra for us and to make it easy for our guests. Only my DF and I have to enter through the International Gateway since we'll be in our wedding attire. :bride:

JaxTeach

11-14-2007, 10:22 PM

I share your frustration with transportation, but they really have that all figured... they know everything we're going to ask and they know just how to scare us into agreeing with their ideas... Just reading the words "It is at Epcot's management's discretion whether they allow you in through the International Gateway in formal attire..." was enough for me to first laugh, think "There's no way they won't let us in, we're doing it anyway," and book transportation the following week for fear of not attending my own Dessert Party. :scared1:

I love you transportation post, you had me laughing with your "evil town car stranding guests." :rotfl2: But according to DFTW it's the truth! :rolleyes:

lurkyloo

11-15-2007, 03:20 AM

I However, after some insisting on my part I was able to get my planner to allow our guests to meet at the front gate (since a lot of ours won't have tickets either.) Our planner said that it is a really long walk for our guests, but they will allow you to do it if you are persistent. That was a great way to save a little extra for us and to make it easy for our guests. Only my DF and I have to enter through the International Gateway since we'll be in our wedding attire. :bride:

Hmmmm..... this is also a very good idea! I am going to see what DF thinks about this (although I feel bad taking out the DP bus because people just got the transportation schedule I stuck in the invitations that says they'll be getting a free bus ride :) )

lurkyloo

11-15-2007, 03:22 AM

Rora

11-15-2007, 07:56 AM

I love your PJ!! Thank you so much for making one and helping all of us other Brides out!!

lurkyloo

11-16-2007, 01:06 PM

We knew from the start that we didn’t want to use Disney Photographic Services for our wedding, due to the crummy combination of high prices, lack of digital photo rights, and a style that doesn’t fit with the fresh, modern look we want.

Now that DPS offers a dessert-party photo package, we briefly considered using them for our Illuminations party. But our photographer gave us a great quote on the DP, and this way we can save money, have all the digital rights, and get the same style of shots for both events.

Finding a photographer was a little overwhelming. Many of the popular outside photographers did not have a style that suited us (although they all sound like really great people to work with!). I started lurking on the Knot boards to get other recommendations. It’s funny, but they have their own set of favorite photographers who are also not really our style… :)

Rootography was one of the many results I turned up from digging through pages and pages of Google results. The prices listed on their site were out of our range, but I emailed to ask if they could customize a package for us.

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Engagement%20pix/111_0432.jpg

I was impressed to get a real live phone call back from Nathan Root, and even more impressed by his eagerness to work with us despite my insistence that we couldn’t afford him! DF and I loved the work Nathan and his soon-to-be wife Jensey have on their site (www.rootography.com), so we arranged to meet with them during our Planning Session visit to Walt Disney World.

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Engagement%20pix/096_0369.jpg

Even better, they emailed us a few days later to offer us a free engagement portrait session! We took pictures at Wilderness Lodge and the Polynesian. Like many people, I feel pretty awkward in front of the camera, and I usually end up looking fake. But we had so much fun just hanging out with Nathan and goofing off, that it didn't feel weird at all. The three of us had a blast, and I think the results show it.

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Engagement%20pix/130_0488.jpg

Here’s a link to all the pictures, if you’re not bored yet!
http://rootography.instaproofs.com/enterEvent.php?id=28985&returnURL=/collection.php?event=28985

We were able to customize a photography package that includes ceremony, reception and dessert party coverage, two photographers, and discs of all the images. I highly recommend talking to the photographers (and videographers) you’re interested in about customizing a package to suit your budget – the good ones can be flexible!

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Engagement%20pix/024_0078_1-1.jpg

I cannot wait to see our wedding photos. Right now I’m making a guest book on Blurb.com using some of our engagement pix – I’ll post it when it’s done!

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Engagement%20pix/155_0559.jpg

Yesterday we got a message that one of our engagement pictures has been entered in the Roots’ year-end photo contest! If we win, we get a ginormous 16x20 canvas print of one of our pictures – whohoo! It’s by popular vote – if you want to check it out, we’re #6, and the link is below:

http://rootphotography.blogspot.com/2007/11/100th-post-extravaganza_14.html

A lot of wonderful DIS brides have helped us out by voting - thank you!! :goodvibes And the picture that’s beating the pants off us in the contest is the one that pretty much sold us on using the Roots, so I don't feel too bad...

caryndisneydiva

11-16-2007, 01:13 PM

are you able to use your photographer for your dp?

lurkyloo

11-16-2007, 01:22 PM

are you able to use your photographer for your dp?

Yes, and it's saving us $150! Also, I know Randy Chapman does a lot of dessert parties, so this has been going on for a while....

lov2b@disney

11-16-2007, 02:49 PM

The pictures are beautiful, natural and fun! I'm still looking for a photographer I think we will take a furthur look! Thanks for sharing!

Bostonbride6292008

11-16-2007, 04:18 PM

I really like your pictures. It is always important to have a photographer that knows the style you like. You guys seem very comfortable with them.

ohgosh

11-17-2007, 02:40 AM

oh wow. you know, i had grown pretty fond of Randy's work, but i think i may be a convert. i prefer silly photos to the ultra sappy stuff you normally see. and oh boy, the colors! i'm not sure if its the camera, or its just been too long since i have seen some green trees and blue skies....

so basically what i'm trying to say is thanks for sharing :thumbsup2

mla1977

11-17-2007, 10:25 AM

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Engagement%20pix/130_0488.jpg

This is my favorite picture. I start laughing everytime I see it!

lurkyloo

11-19-2007, 12:10 PM

The pictures are beautiful, natural and fun! I'm still looking for a photographer I think we will take a furthur look! Thanks for sharing!

I just can't say enough good stuff about the Roots - I hope you like them too! :goodvibes

I really like your pictures. It is always important to have a photographer that knows the style you like. You guys seem very comfortable with them.

I agree! DFTW brides are lucky -- there seem to be a lot of really friendly wedding photographers in Orlando!

oh wow. you know, i had grown pretty fond of Randy's work, but i think i may be a convert. i prefer silly photos to the ultra sappy stuff you normally see. and oh boy, the colors! i'm not sure if its the camera, or its just been too long since i have seen some green trees and blue skies....so basically what i'm trying to say is thanks for sharing :thumbsup2

I'm with you on the ultra sappy stuff - when I told Nathan Root I didn't want a picture of us smooching under my veil or me peering over my bouquet or looking pensive he was like "Right on!"

This is my favorite picture. I start laughing everytime I see it!

:cutie:

lurkyloo

11-19-2007, 12:11 PM

For a long time I didn’t want a videographer. I liked the idea that our wedding would be preserved in the Roots’ glamorous photos of us, and these carefully captured images wouldn’t be competing with jerky, muffled video of me scratching my nose and stumbling over my train… Also, as with photography, I wasn’t crazy about the traditional-style wedding video and the cheap feel of video vs. film’s richer look.

But people always talk about how the whole day was a blur, and they needed the video to go back and see all the stuff they missed. Plus, I worried that I would regret not having friends and family members on tape.

So kind of at the last minute (3 1/2 months; I think most wedding timelines say 9 months to a year or something!), I started looking. I’d heard of companies that shoot on Super 8 for a vintage ‘60s look, but they were all pretty expensive and, realistically, the footage looks cool but it’s really jumpy and low-res (great if you’re going for that! Not great if you want to remember every detail…). Film was totally unaffordable. And most of the wedding video samples I saw were either unacceptable – shaky camera work, bad lighting and sound – or just too traditional for me.

Thank goodness for Craig’s List! Among the Orlando-area search results I found Star Fruit Productions (http://starfruitprod.com/). The demo on their site caught my eye because it looked like it was shot on film, and the unobtrusive documentary style mixed movie-style cinematography with guest interviews and a great soundtrack (the song transitions are a little jarring on the demo, but the full-length real sounds great!).

http://starfruitprod.com/wedding.php

Sage at Star Fruit was very accommodating when I wanted to customize one of their standard packages to fit my budget and requirements. We’re having two cameras at the ceremony and one at the reception, and we get 3 DVDs and a copy of all the raw footage on mini-DV so that we can always edit our own version at some point if we want. One bummer is that Disney won’t let Star Fruit grab sound from Disney’s sound system, so the officiant and groom have to wear two microphones – how dumb is that gonna look?

I will be sending Star Fruit a CD or two with all the song selections from our ceremony and suggestions for the reception. And we get our video just a month after the wedding! I can’t wait to show it at our at-home reception.

So videography was the last thing I wanted, and now it’s one of the things I’m most excited about!

caryndisneydiva

11-19-2007, 07:09 PM

One bummer is that Disney won’t let Star Fruit grab sound from Disney’s sound system, so the officiant and groom have to wear two microphones – how dumb is that gonna look?

i'm using starfruit as well and NO ONE has mentioned this microphone issue to me. how did you find this out?

lurkyloo

11-19-2007, 07:16 PM

Well, when I saw the video package included microphones, I asked my WP if Star Fruit could just plug right into the sound system Disney's using to play our ceremony music and broadcast the groom and the officiant. The WP said no dice - something about an outside vendor screwing up their sound board once blah, blah, blah and then tried to convince me that it won't look dumb for them to wear two microphones each... :confused3

Are your guys going to be miked by Disney at Sea Breeze Point? I think if you're not using the soundsystem to play music, it shouldn't be a problem...

caryndisneydiva

11-19-2007, 07:18 PM

lurkyloo

11-20-2007, 01:40 PM

I uploaded the guest book I designed to Blurb.com yesterday. It'll be about 2 weeks before we get it, but they have a preview of it available in their store. I wish they'd let you see the whole thing - it's just the first 15 pages, but it's so cool that our book is right out there for anyone to buy (anyone who is really into pictures of us smooching, that is!)

http://www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/116370

We picked the largest format (13x11) which is why it's so spendy, but the smaller books start at 12 bucks for up to 40 pages. I think I'm going to publish my planning journal as a Blurb book when it's all over...

MistressOfAllEvil

11-20-2007, 01:55 PM

sunsh1ne

11-20-2007, 02:09 PM

i love your blurb book. I am goign to look into it mroe. To make a favorites album or something. can you give me more info on that??

lurkyloo

11-20-2007, 02:18 PM

Once again, love it. Love everything you're planning! :love:

:blush: Hi, Wedding Twin! :wave2:

i love your blurb book. I am goign to look into it mroe. To make a favorites album or something. can you give me more info on that??

It is really cool - you download their software (PC or Mac) and choose which size book you want. You can either build it from scratch or use the layouts they have in each category - photo book, journal, guest book, cookbook, vacation, etc. Then you pick which page template you want for each page and drag and drop your photos from your computer, from Flickr.com or a couple other sources. You can add text, borders, backgrounds, and colors and rearrange pages.

You can make the book as many pages as you want, but the base price includes 40 (most other sites only include 20 and charge a buck or more for each additional page). Books can be softcover or hardbound with a dust jacket.

Now I am singing their praises so far - I'll definitely let you know how I like the finished book. Some people say they don't like the paper Blurb uses, but others say it's really nice....

caryndisneydiva

11-20-2007, 03:55 PM

i can't wait to hear how your book looks when you get it back! it looks great on the site!

i was going to do that for my pj as well, but it's over 120 pages long in a word file...even with the pics smaller and the smallest font in 10 pt type...ugh.

Lisella

11-20-2007, 04:39 PM

Your book and your pictures are beautiful! Not sure if I posted yet on your journal, but I'm loving it! Thank you for sharing :goodvibes

Kristen14

11-20-2007, 04:58 PM

The book looks great! It makes me want to get professional engagement pics!

sunsh1ne

11-20-2007, 06:06 PM

i was woundering how i would go about posting myplanning journal? it would be a nice keepsake

lurkyloo

11-20-2007, 06:23 PM

Your book and your pictures are beautiful! Not sure if I posted yet on your journal, but I'm loving it! Thank you for sharing :goodvibes

Thanks for reading! It makes me think I'm not totally crazy...:rotfl:

The book looks great! It makes me want to get professional engagement pics!

You totally should! You're going with Randy, right? I think he only charges about $75 for an engagement shoot. You can use the pix for your guest book, Christmas cards, invites, personalized stamps - it's great!

i was woundering how i would go about posting myplanning journal? it would be a nice keepsake

What I've done is created a photo-and-text book in Blurb, and I'm going to copy and paste the text from my planning journal posts on the DIS into the text boxes. Then I can drop in the photos I've posted from the folder I keep them in on my computer.

As Caryn pointed out, these Planning Journals get kinda long, but I think if I make the font size really small, it shouldn't be too many pages. I hope!

oneyodafan

11-20-2007, 07:56 PM

I love your book! I'm going to pass that along to my SIL.

lurkyloo

11-21-2007, 01:49 PM

Pezalicious

11-21-2007, 02:34 PM

Plan on not having one, but keep shopping around and trying some on, in case you find one that really suits you. Yeah, wearing a veil will make you feel all purdy-purdy-princess like, but if you can't find one that you really like and settle on something less than perfect, you might end up not feeling so princessey on your big day.

MistressOfAllEvil

11-21-2007, 02:45 PM

OK, so...the veil thing is stressing me out. I bought two different styles on eBay and am borrowing another from a friend. All are fingertip length, one is a single layer with sparkly tulle, another is two layers with rhinestones, and the borrowed one is two layers, oval, with rhinestones and edging (sorry I don't have pictures!)

I don't like how I look in any of them! (hence no pictures ;) )

I've always been creeped out by the symbolism of the veil, but I figured I just didn't have to wear it over my face, plus it would make me feel all princessy - and when else will I ever get to wear one?

But the only veil I've ever tried on that I liked was a $650 ripoff at a swanky bridal salon. I tried to find a similar one, but nobody seems to do angel-cut veils except that one manufacturer. (I am not glamorous enough to pull off the birdcage veil that looks so good on Caryn! Plus I'd hear no end of it from the grannies, who want to see my face :rotfl: )

Anyway, last night I told myself I didn't have to wear a veil, and it made me feel a bit better, but then I thought I'd regret blowing my only chance to look all princessy and bridal....

What do you think?

I was going to totally skip the whole veil thing. I don't care for traditional veils. I asked DF and he doesn't really care for a veil and I didn't want the hassle. UNTIL I saw the birdcage veils that Caryn posted up! That's totally more my style and makes it worth the hassle. :woohoo: But, if it weren't for Caryn and those veils, I would be going completely without! And I would be A-OK with that too. So dig deep down inside and figure out what you really want. If you're worried about regretting not wearing a veil then I bet you probably should wear one! Okay, I don't know if this helps at all.. but :hug:

Bostonbride6292008

11-21-2007, 02:49 PM

I dont think a veil is necessary but I would keep looking. You never know what you might find on ebay or online bridal stores.

PrincessBride010103

11-21-2007, 03:03 PM

i think u might regret it if you dont wear the veil...i didnt want to wear a veil either until i put one on...it just makes u feel so bridey :bride:

Kristen14

11-21-2007, 03:07 PM

I'm having the same dillema... i HATE every veil i've seen. and im not planning to wear it over my face, just have it hanging down in the back. I'm leaning towards skipping it too. Let me know what you decide! Maybe there's a totally un-ungly yet cheap veil out there that we dont know about!!

lurkyloo

11-21-2007, 06:34 PM

OK - I'll keep looking. Maybe I just haven't seen "The One" yet. :cutie:

caryndisneydiva

11-21-2007, 07:15 PM

i wasn't a fan of veils at all, the symbolism behind them is BS and i just didn't want my face covered-until i found my birdcage...my grandmother also had a really good point, you only get to wear a veil once, it's what sets the bride apart (well, that and the big poofy dress), so that's why i stopped whining about it...

what is it about the fingertips that you don't like? is it the line it makes with your dress? have you tried anything longer, like a cathedral? you could always get one and then have it cut to the length that you want...i think a cathedral would look good with your dress...

we've all seen this happy little bride in the david's ad's, but i think the veil looks great on her!!!

http://i136.photobucket.com/albums/q184/caryncraig/f07_T9211.jpg

here's another example...
http://i136.photobucket.com/albums/q184/caryncraig/nancy_cathedral_stairs.jpg

this one is from target, and it's super cheap...i might get it, and take the top layer off...

http://i136.photobucket.com/albums/q184/caryncraig/41Ul7vCM8vL_SS384_.jpg

don't worry about a veil, when you see it, you'll know it's the one. and you don't have to wear one if you don't want to...

sunsh1ne

11-21-2007, 07:47 PM

i also did not want a veil at all. then i got a fingertip veil but at my last fitting i tried on the catherdral veil and i was like wow i feel like a bride. i am so happy i made that choice. it is definatly worth the once and a lifetime moment. i agree with the above post try differnt legnths you never know!! good luck

figmentfan814

11-22-2007, 09:51 PM

Also keep in mind if you don't find the exact one that you like it is relatively easy to make one on your own. We modified my mom's veil to personalize it for me, but I know all the materials are pretty cheap to make an entire one yourself. Even if you add crystals, lace, etc. a veil that fits exactly what you want can be really affordable.

MistressOfAllEvil

11-26-2007, 09:25 AM

LurkyLoo!!! I wasn't on all weekend! So I missed out, but I wanted to say HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!party: :bday: :cake:

caryndisneydiva

11-26-2007, 09:28 AM

HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY!!! :cheer2: :cheer2: :cheer2:

lurkyloo

11-27-2007, 01:55 PM

Aw.... thanks for the birthday wishes, guys! I was at Disneyland!! :yay:

lurkyloo

11-27-2007, 01:58 PM

i wasn't a fan of veils at all, the symbolism behind them is BS and i just didn't want my face covered-until i found my birdcage...my grandmother also had a really good point, you only get to wear a veil once, it's what sets the bride apart (well, that and the big poofy dress), so that's why i stopped whining about it...

what is it about the fingertips that you don't like? is it the line it makes with your dress? have you tried anything longer, like a cathedral? you could always get one and then have it cut to the length that you want...i think a cathedral would look good with your dress...

don't worry about a veil, when you see it, you'll know it's the one. and you don't have to wear one if you don't want to...

Thanks for all the research, Caryn! I think I like the length of fingertip veils, but I haven't been able to figure out the right combo of fullness and placement to keep it from looking too foofy or too flat. I like that Target one you found - maybe I can modify it....As FigmentFan said, I could add rhinestones if I really want them....

I'll keep y'all posted! ;)

lurkyloo

11-27-2007, 02:18 PM

I've been having trouble communicating to Disney Floral what I want for my altar pieces, so I had my fiance draw it for me:

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/bananaleavesdrawing.jpg

Kristen14

11-27-2007, 02:38 PM

I love it! What kinds of leaves do you want to use? They look very tropical.

lurkyloo

11-27-2007, 04:18 PM

I love it! What kinds of leaves do you want to use? They look very tropical.

:) I've asked for banana leaves. At first they had me with spindly-lookin' potted palms, but I wanted giamormous. My suggestion was that they cut a few from the banana plants on the Jungle Cruise and give them to me for FREE! :rotfl:

Kristen14

11-27-2007, 04:22 PM

Lol.. you crack me up! They may have a few in the Polynesian they can spare too!

lurkyloo

11-28-2007, 02:53 PM

Additional Floral

I just realized that I’ve only posted about our personal floral and (lack of ) centerpieces. There are a few other things on our floral proposal, so, to be a completist, here they are…

Chair Covers
%#$@! chair covers! I didn’t want the black plastic Wal*Mart-lookin’ chairs they give you at Epcot, so my plan was to sub in Disney’s classy-looking wooden chairs at a reasonable $5 apiece. But then I found out they charge you something like $250 just to deliver the wooden chairs – whatever it was, in my case it worked out to nearly twice as much as the cost of the chairs! Grrr…. So I had to do chair covers at $8.50 per chair. I always used to cite chair covers as an example of something ridiculous I would never pay to have at my wedding…sigh…But at least I get to have pretty turquoise and orange gauze sashes on them!

Aisle Petals
One thing I have insisted on this whole time is fuchsia rose petals scattered in the aisle – not mounds and mounds, just a scattering. I think it will look really nice in pictures. Everybody keeps telling me they will blow away before the ceremony, but I don’t care. If I want to throw away 50 bucks on MIA rose petals, I can! [stamps foot]

Toss Petals
Another frivolous thing I should probably cut out but insisted upon because I think they’ll look cool in pictures... I considered doing these and the aisle petals myself by ordering freeze-dried petals from www.flyboynaturals.com, but they sell them in such large quantities that I would only have saved a few bucks. Disney is charging me $3.50 each for little chiffon bags to be placed on each seat, and I won’t have to make the bags myself in the days leading up to the wedding.

Cake Table Sashes
They’re going to lay two flat sashes – one turquoise, one orange – in a cross pattern on the cake table. I am not a big fan of “clouding” as they call it – the big swirls of gauzy material one often sees on cake tables. I’m hoping it looks something like this:

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/Displayidea.jpg

lov2b@disney

11-28-2007, 03:07 PM

:) I've asked for banana leaves. At first they had me with spindly-lookin' potted palms, but I wanted giamormous. My suggestion was that they cut a few from the banana plants on the Jungle Cruise and give them to me for FREE! :rotfl:

OMG! That is funny!!:rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:

Sorry about the chairs! :scared1: I'm sure it will be beautiful with covers!

I want rose petals too!:) $50-to line the aisle and where you stand?

I agree with the cake table, no clouds here either!

MistressOfAllEvil

11-28-2007, 03:28 PM

Everything looks so beautiful and elegant! :thumbsup2

lurkyloo

11-30-2007, 04:05 PM

I really fell for the idea of using a big coffee table book full of our engagement photos as our guest book at the reception. Of the websites that offer this service, Blurb is the one I decided to go with because they had more layout options and way better prices, and they offer dust jackets. Plus they have a huge 11x13 size I couldn’t find elsewhere.

I thought I’d just plug some of our photos into one of their layouts and send it off, but it turned into a big (fun!) project when I realized what all I could do with Blurb’s software. I have a background in graphic design, so the perfectionist in me spent hours tweaking each layout. Luckily, DF is a Photoshop pro, so I had him touch me up in a few places (shhhhh! ;) ), and he even replicated his face in a shot where it was obscured by a branch!

We are really happy with the finished product – the glossy book jacket makes it look like a coffee table book. I insist that we wear framer’s gloves when we handle it :lmao: considering people will be balancing canapés in their hands while they write in the book at the reception…

Let me know if you have any questions about Blurb, too!

I’m going to bore you with photos of every page, I’m afraid… My shots of the book aren't that great, but you can see the kinds of layouts Blurb has. Start scrolling! :rotfl:

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/1.jpg

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/bookfirstpage.jpg

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/bookring.jpg

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/booksipea.jpg

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/bookblank.jpg

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/bookcastlekiss.jpg

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/booktrees.jpg

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/bookfield.jpg

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/bookbusheskiss.jpg

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/bookbeachchair.jpg

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/booktotemgoof.jpg

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/bookkissfence.jpg

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/booktotemtwins.jpg

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/booktiki.jpg

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/bookjungle.jpg

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/bookkiss.jpg

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/bookbridge.jpg

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/bookpath.jpg

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/bookbunny.jpg

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/booktree.jpg

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/bookfeet.jpg

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/bookbackcover.jpg

lpizzuro123

11-30-2007, 04:24 PM

lurkyloo

11-30-2007, 04:42 PM

The book looks great. I love all your photos. Seeing all these photo books being used as guest books is swaying me in this direction. I originally wanted photos at the wedding of the guests who are signing the pages but this is a great idea also. I might not just use engagement photos but also photos of us through the years (especially at Disney). I do have a questions about the type of page that is offered. I do not want the ink to smear and I was wondering if it is glossy paper - or maybe just using a special pen.

As far as passing your book around to have people sign it, I think I would use some type of book cover and not get the jacket messed up. It would be great if you could make some sort of plastic clear cover so people could see the cover but it will not get ruined.

Linda

Yes! I just found out that people are making library-style book jackets using this product

http://www.shopbrodart.com/shop/cb/product.aspx?pgid=3345&catnum=10590001&attvalueid=48692&attid=23440#prodGrid_bookmark

so we may do that. Although it'd be easy enough to just leave the jacket at home...

The pages are not glossy - they are matte. I bought two of these archival-quality pens for use in guest books - they write on anything and won't fade:

http://www.americancrafts.com/subcategory.php?id=27&sub=97

I also like your idea of pictures of the guests. I was thinking about doing that with a Polaroid camera before I learned about these books. It would be really nice to have individual shots of all your guests with their comments right there on them!

MistressOfAllEvil

11-30-2007, 04:48 PM

I really like the picture book idea and I think yours came out great!!

I think I'm going to stick with the guest book like Caryn is using where the guest fill out the pages and answer questions and stuff. But... Maybe for the at home reception, I'll do the big picture book as our guest book since we'll have pictures back by then and everyting. IDK. Too many fabulous ideas and I get panicky! :scared1:

lpizzuro123

11-30-2007, 04:48 PM

MistressOfAllEvil

11-30-2007, 04:53 PM

I am thinking of use the guest book from The Guest Book Store. Each page is personalized and you can include a photo taken at the wedding. There ar ealso questions on the page like How far did you travel? Your wishes for the bride and groom? A memory about the couple? etc. I have about 11 months to think about this. I have really enjoyed reading your PJ and am learing so many things using these great boards.

Linda

:thumbsup2

This is what I'm talking about!

But srsly Carrie, your book is Amazing. lol, I also think it's funny that you do graphic design. Here we go with the twin thing again... I finished all my core classes before I went to Disney for my CP and I was registered for all graphic design classes the semester I got back. Only, I panicked and dropped everything and registered for all business classes instead. It's worked well for me and I'm doing great. I just didn't think I could mix my creative side with work, that's too much pressure. :laughing: I'm a HUGE scrapbooker (I should post pics of my pages in my PJ) but I'm only so-so compared to what some people can do. Some times I daydream about the photoshop skills I wish I had :rolleyes1

disneydreamgirl05

11-30-2007, 06:46 PM

I just love the picture you getting on to your DF for being in the tree!!!:lmao:

lurkyloo

11-30-2007, 06:53 PM

Here we go with the twin thing again... I finished all my core classes before I went to Disney for my CP and I was registered for all graphic design classes the semester I got back. Only, I panicked and dropped everything and registered for all business classes instead. It's worked well for me and I'm doing great. I just didn't think I could mix my creative side with work, that's too much pressure. :laughing: I'm a HUGE scrapbooker (I should post pics of my pages in my PJ) but I'm only so-so compared to what some people can do. Some times I daydream about the photoshop skills I wish I had :rolleyes1

You made a great escape - graphic design does not pay! :coffee: (that's a graphic designer reading the Help Wanteds)

You and Caryn should both post your scrapbook pages in your PJs!

BaBeeCee14

11-30-2007, 10:33 PM

caryndisneydiva

11-30-2007, 10:38 PM

You made a great escape - graphic design does not pay! :coffee: (that's a graphic designer reading the Help Wanteds)

You and Caryn should both post your scrapbook pages in your PJs!

i think i posted 3 of my pages in my pj...there in there somewhere lol...i'm about to start scrapping my rsvp's and they'll be posted soon!

lurkyloo

12-01-2007, 12:49 AM

Lurkyloo,

Your book looks awesome :thumbsup2. I'm really starting to lean towards the idea of a photo book/guest book. Was it hard to do? For someone who has no graphic design experience whatsoever...would I be able to do this? I was also thinking about just making a photobook on shutterfly, but those pages might be glossy..:confused:

I think the Shutterfly pages are not glossy, but check out that thread about Shutterfly books that's going right now - Malibelle posted pix of hers. Even if they are glossy, you can get those Slick Writer pens - they work on glossy!

The thing I didn't like about Shutterfly (besides the boring layouts) was that they charge you per page for every page over 20. Blurb gives you 40 pages for the starting price. :thumbsup2

I totally think you could do a Blurb book - they have tons of great photo layouts, text layouts, and covers to choose from, and you can just drag and drop your photos right in. The software is free to download - you could play around with it and see! :)

Bouncy bounce

12-02-2007, 02:05 PM

What location did you use for taking your engagement photos?

MariaLovesJon<3

12-02-2007, 02:20 PM

Your engagement picture book is AMAZING! You can totally see your personality shine through on all of your pics! :thumbsup2

RangerPooh

12-02-2007, 03:02 PM

Your book came out great!

hope1826

12-02-2007, 05:12 PM

Your engagement book is BEAUTIFUL :cheer2:

cseca

12-02-2007, 06:54 PM

I love your engagement book! Great job!

lurkyloo

12-02-2007, 10:19 PM

Thanks guys!!:cloud9:

What location did you use for taking your engagement photos?

We used Wilderness Lodge and the Polynesian - they both had a great variety of backdrops!

Bouncy bounce

12-02-2007, 10:42 PM

Thanks guys!!:cloud9:

We used Wilderness Lodge and the Polynesian - they both had a great variety of backdrops!

Cool! yeah i think we might use the wilderness lodge since that is where we are staying. then i wanted to look into the wide world of sports (i've never been there and i dont know if we even can go there) but we are both huge sports fan and that is what brought us together. So i thought that would be cool.
thanks for the info

Keira1387

12-02-2007, 11:55 PM

I love your engagement book! Such a cool idea!!!

lurkyloo

12-05-2007, 05:50 PM

Hooray! They finally got my floral proposal right, and I was able to slash the cost of my altar arrangements from $150 each to $40 each! :yay:

So now it looks like we'll be just a few churros [or Mickey Bars] over our minimums :rotfl:

Huzzah!! :woohoo:

Kristen14

12-05-2007, 06:15 PM

Congrats on saving all that money!! Who are you dealing with at Disney Floral?? Rose is my florist... she's great! ;)

Bostonbride6292008

12-06-2007, 03:01 PM

I adore your guest book! Its soooooooo cute!

DisneySweetie

12-06-2007, 10:07 PM

Great guest book! And thank you so much for posting the type of pens you will be using. I really didn't know what to do about that. My photographer said that a sharpie should work fine but the guests would still have to wait a little while before turning pages. I didn't want that. I'm going to go hunting for slick writers this weekend.

Are you putting a sign on your guest book table telling people to sign it with sentiments? I really want to encourage all my guests to sign it and fill in all the blank spots. I don't want it to look or feel like a half empty yearbook, you know? Hahahaha! I was thinking about not even putting it out until cocktail hour. And then having my DJ announce several times that people should sign it. Is that tacky? I don't know what to do.

lurkyloo

12-07-2007, 01:59 AM

Yay - thanks guys! :goodvibes

Are you putting a sign on your guest book table telling people to sign it with sentiments? I really want to encourage all my guests to sign it and fill in all the blank spots. I don't want it to look or feel like a half empty yearbook, you know? Hahahaha! I was thinking about not even putting it out until cocktail hour. And then having my DJ announce several times that people should sign it. Is that tacky? I don't know what to do.

I don't think it's tacky! I was thinking about a sign, but what I'll probably do is have one of my guests sign it beforehand - or maybe even my planner! - and then leave it open to that page on the table where people get their favors. Surely that's not too subtle a hint... an inscribed page...pens lying right there.... Or maybe I'll just get my FMIL to bug everyone about signing it - she can be very persuasive!

Regarding the pens, I think they're sold at most scrapbooking-type stores, but let me know if you can't find them - I have some links to online retailers on my 'pooter at work...

meryll83

12-07-2007, 03:57 AM

I have some links to online retailers on my 'pooter at work...

Hahaha! :rotfl: I always say pooter!

I absoultely luuuuuuuuuuuuurve your book and think I am definitely going to look into this, it's such a great idea for a guestbook, completely personalised.

We had a lot of photopass pictures taken on our last trip, so we may have to use these, shame we weren't dressed up for the occassion! But we don't really have many other nice pictures of us together, so I suppose they will have to do! I just worry that we look far too casual so it might look a bit ridiculous......:sad2:
Unfortunately with us being from the UK, we won't get back to WDW before the wedding, an engagement shoot would have been fab though, your pictures look amazing. I want one!

Can I ask what the text is at the start of your book? Is it your engagement story or a poem or something else?

lurkyloo

12-07-2007, 01:21 PM

Hi! Well, I think a book of your Photopass pix would be great for a guest book - it doesn't have to be all formal and dressed-up! Blurb ships to the UK, too! (The only reason we dressed up for our pix was that is my skinniest-looking dress :rotfl: )

Alternatively, could you find a photographer in the UK to do engagement pix? Or a very talented relative?

The text at the front of the book is the lyrics to "Wave," a bossa nova tune written by Antonio Carlos Jobim in the '60s. (It's a standard now, and has been covered by many many singers, including Frank Sinatra.) We're going to weave three different versions of it into the music at our reception. It's the song we're having our first dance to, and I think the lyrics are terribly romantic and could describe our courtship!

Wave
So close your eyes, for that's a lovely way to be
Aware of things your heart alone was meant to see
The fundamental loneliness goes whenever two can dream a dream together

You can't deny, don't try to fight the rising sea
Don't fight the moon, the stars above, and don't fight me
The fundamental loneliness goes whenever two can dream a dream together

When I saw you first, the time was half past three
When your eyes met mine it was eternity

By now we know, the wave is on its way to be
Just catch the wave, don't be afraid of loving me
The fundamental loneliness goes whever two can dream a dream together

lurkyloo

12-09-2007, 04:40 AM

... I think....

OK, I need your opinions. Today I discovered that the feathery hair clip thingy I've been wanting is called a "fascinator" - Caryn mentioned hers in her PJ, but I thought it was all part of the birdcage veil. Apparently you can get them separately (but not very many places in the US, it seems - all the sites are British or Australian!).

So I'm thinking I want to wear one of these instead of a veil, but I have two concerns, so let me know what you think:

1) I'd planned to wear a ginormous necklace, but that would totally compete with the fascinator, so I'd be back to the drawing board in the jewelry department.

2) I'm worried it will eventually look trendy and dated in my wedding photos. This is a big deal to me - I even passed up a gorgeous Pronovias wedding gown because I was worried the pickup skirt would look "sooooo '07" in 20 years. I don't want some future snarky teen of mine telling me I look like a can-can girl in my wedding album....

Here are some of the ones I like...

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/il_430xN11090801.jpg

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/bridalveil.jpg

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/prod-7100-1_large.jpg

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/ebony.jpg

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/colboltroosterandhackle.jpg

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Astrid-fascinatorjpg.jpg

hope1826

12-09-2007, 07:42 AM

Hiya,

I LOVE the fourth one!! The third is great also.

Also I think depending on how you wear it (similar position as shown in #4), you still might be able wear your gynormous necklace without it competing.

Is it really so bad to look dated in your pictures? I was looking at a picture from my grandparents 1943 wedding today, and everything about it - from her gown to their hairstyles to her flowers and the car they were in date them, but it is an AMAZING classic 1940's picture. I also LOVE my parents' early 70's wedding photos. So as long as you look and feel amazing, who cares about being dated. Although, I don't think I would be saying this if we were in the mid 80's.

What color would you wear?

DigitalLove

12-09-2007, 09:05 AM

The fourth one is my favourite.. and I don't think that that particular one will ever look dated. Fascinators are really big over here in England at the moment, and are much more popular now than wearing a traditional type of hat at a wedding! I love them... You can get such unusual and flamboyant designs but I think the fourth one you chose looks really quite classic! Have a look on good old ebay... there are always loads of them on the UK ebay site

Christina

xx

yearbook50

12-09-2007, 09:44 AM

I love the fourth one!!

momofbride010103

12-09-2007, 10:02 AM

OK Lurky you have just made me laugh so hard because, yes I now have one of those snarky teen daughters who has made fun of my 80's dress with the shoulder pads!!!!! I paid a small fotune to have it preserved so someday my daughter would love it too and want to wear it!!!!! But no she has asked me to CUT a piece of it off to put inside her gown with a pin. Yep just wants me to take the scissors to my beatiful Eve of Milady Dynasty era gown!!:rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:

No I really want her to have her own gown to wear on her day (because what goes around comes around) HAHAHHA!

Any yes sadly my dress still turned yellow in spite of "The whole being Preserved thing":scared1:

caryndisneydiva

12-09-2007, 10:45 AM

i LOVE the fascinator idea. i did get one with my birdcage, but it's a separate peice with its own comb so i can wear it when i take the birdcage off for my reception! any of the ones you've chosen would be great!

caryndisneydiva

12-09-2007, 11:12 AM

here are huge necklaces found on swarovski...they are slightly pricey, ranging from $300ish-520...

http://i136.photobucket.com/albums/q184/caryncraig/910886W240.jpg
http://i136.photobucket.com/albums/q184/caryncraig/910673W240.jpg
http://i136.photobucket.com/albums/q184/caryncraig/913617W240.jpg

there are some other ones, but they were $1000.

a quick look on ebay found this one

http://cgi.ebay.com/Swarovski-Crystal-DIVA-Necklace-New-2007_W0QQitemZ370000547526QQihZ024QQcategoryZ2748Q QrdZ1QQssPageNameZWD1VQQcmdZViewItem

DisneySweetie

12-09-2007, 11:15 AM

The fourth one is fabulous. Go for it! It actually reminds me a bit of the 20s. It seems like the 20s look is always coming back into modern fashion. But what do I know?

Maybe you can post a photo of your necklace.

I really like this "fascinator" option that you have found. I am wearing a flower in my hair. But I am wearing a veil during the ceremony and then taking it off. As much as I don't like what a veil stands for, for some reason I didn't feel like a bride without it. Anyway, maybe having a flower would look less trendy or dated? Just an idea.

PrincessBride010103

12-09-2007, 11:58 AM

disneydreamgirl05

12-09-2007, 03:20 PM

I love the fourth one!! It's gorgeous!

helloirishkitty

12-09-2007, 03:46 PM

I'm another vote for #4... I think it will look timeless in your pictures, not dated :)

Tabetha

12-09-2007, 04:24 PM

Love #4. May steal it. I don't think you'll look dated. It's "classic", not trendy!

jacqu3lin3

12-09-2007, 07:31 PM

Another vote for number 4 :thumbsup2

caryndisneydiva

12-09-2007, 10:09 PM

i forgot to vote...i like #3, doesn't it match your colors? it's very different, which is what i like...

lurkyloo

12-10-2007, 12:31 AM

Wowee - thanks for all the ideas and votes guys!

Is it really so bad to look dated in your pictures? I was looking at a picture from my grandparents 1943 wedding today, and everything about it - from her gown to their hairstyles to her flowers and the car they were in date them, but it is an AMAZING classic 1940's picture. I also LOVE my parents' early 70's wedding photos. So as long as you look and feel amazing, who cares about being dated. Although, I don't think I would be saying this if we were in the mid 80's.

What color would you wear?

:rotfl: HIGH-larious!! OK, you make a good point - as long as the outfit looks... not ridiculous... it doesn't matter if it echoes the era. I would *love* to look as glamorous as your grandmother must've looked!

Colorwise, it's a toss-up between white and turquoise. I look better in turquoise, but white, of course, looks more bridal and maybe less Moulin Rouge...

Maybe you can post a photo of your necklace.

I really like this "fascinator" option that you have found. I am wearing a flower in my hair. But I am wearing a veil during the ceremony and then taking it off. As much as I don't like what a veil stands for, for some reason I didn't feel like a bride without it. Anyway, maybe having a flower would look less trendy or dated? Just an idea.

I do have a "real-touch" gardenia that was the first hair accessory I bought. It is really neat, but I think it needs something more - another flower or feathers or rhinestones or something. I can't wait to see pics from your wedding! :goodvibes

Here's the necklace I want - my friend is pretty sure it's made of chandelier crystals, so we're going to try to make one:

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/CarvalliNecklace.jpg

The fourth one is my favourite.. and I don't think that that particular one will ever look dated. Fascinators are really big over here in England at the moment, and are much more popular now than wearing a traditional type of hat at a wedding! I love them... You can get such unusual and flamboyant designs but I think the fourth one you chose looks really quite classic! Have a look on good old ebay... there are always loads of them on the UK ebay site

Thanks for the UK eBay tip - I'm surfing it right now! I actually had this epiphany while looking at a British wedding magazine. It's one that's all about flowers, but it had some weddings in it, and this one bride wore a gorgeous gray Edwardian suit with a giant fascinator. I thought "I wanna look that good!"

OK Lurky you have just made me laugh so hard because, yes I now have one of those snarky teen daughters who has made fun of my 80's dress with the shoulder pads!!!!! I paid a small fotune to have it preserved so someday my daughter would love it too and want to wear it!!!!! But no she has asked me to CUT a piece of it off to put inside her gown with a pin. Yep just wants me to take the scissors to my beatiful Eve of Milady Dynasty era gown!!:rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:

No I really want her to have her own gown to wear on her day (because what goes around comes around) HAHAHHA!

Any yes sadly my dress still turned yellow in spite of "The whole being Preserved thing":scared1:

OMG - you totally have to post a picture of your dress! :thumbsup2 And thanks for the heads up on the gown preservation - I'd heard it was a ripoff....

here are huge necklaces found on swarovski...they are slightly pricey, ranging from $300ish-520...

a quick look on ebay found this one

http://cgi.ebay.com/Swarovski-Crystal-DIVA-Necklace-New-2007_W0QQitemZ370000547526QQihZ024QQcategoryZ2748Q QrdZ1QQssPageNameZWD1VQQcmdZViewItem

Those are gorgeous, Caryn - thanks! I never even thought about Swarovski. I think I'll look on eBay some more....

i forgot to vote...i like #3, doesn't it match your colors? it's very different, which is what i like...

Yes! Turquoise! Unfortunately they say it's out of stock right now, but I've emailed to see when they'll have it again. I love "different" too! ;)

MistressOfAllEvil

12-10-2007, 09:21 AM

Okay, I'm a little late to this newest development, but I wanted to say that I like #3 and #4. Before I decided to go with the birdcage veil, I was going to just have a huge (4") silk red rose. I still have it and might use it in conjunction with the veil. So, I totally support the fascinator idea!

BaBeeCee14

12-10-2007, 12:56 PM

Thanks Carrie! I appreciate the info ;). By the way, I love #4... I think it would look so great on you!

hope1826

12-11-2007, 07:37 PM

Colorwise, it's a toss-up between white and turquoise. I look better in turquoise, but white, of course, looks more bridal and maybe less Moulin Rouge...

Could you get two and wear the white (#4) one for the ceremony and a turquoise one (#3) at your dessert party? Are you wearing your wedding dress to your dessert party? I think you have to get both, especially since so many of us voted for numbers 3 AND 4!!

My DF loves the tiara I have, but I LOVE circlets... so I plan on wearing my circlet at the ceremony and then changing into the tiara afterwards.

lurkyloo

12-14-2007, 06:36 PM

Wow - #4 looks like the big winner! :cutie: I also like the idea of wearing two different ones for the ceremony and reception. I can't afford to be a two-dress bride like in all the magazines, but maybe I can be a two-fascinator bride! :thumbsup2

Tomorrow I'm going to this ginormous craft store in Downtown LA that's said to be like the mother of all Michael's to look for fascinator supplies. Then if I screw up, I'll just order one of the ones I found online.

But the big news is....

:banana: :banana: :banana: Our BEO is only $69.80 over the minimum expenditure for our date! :banana: :banana: :banana:

I became very competetive about sticking to the minimum expenditure when we were repeatedly told not to worry about whether or not something counted toward it, since we were *of course* going to be well over it.

:mad: Grrrr....

But now we're living proof that it actually is possible to have a Wishes wedding for the minimum expenditure! True, our guests will be bringing sack lunches... just kidding! :rotfl:

lov2b@disney

12-14-2007, 06:53 PM

Congratulations on your facinator and your BEO:yay:

You are an inspiration, I hope I can do the same!!:goodvibes

lov2b@disney

12-14-2007, 06:57 PM

Congratulations on you BEO :yay: You will be my inspiration, I hope I can do the same!!:goodvibes

Two fascinators sounds like a great idea!

caryndisneydiva

12-14-2007, 06:59 PM

wow carrie! congratulations on your beo, that is GREAT. i tried and tried and tried so hard, but i tried to keep it to not double the minimum. you did really really well!!!

i'm excited to see how your make a fascinator project will work out! have you started on your necklace? everytime i see a chandelier i think of you...

:santa:

helloirishkitty

12-14-2007, 10:56 PM

Congrats on your BEO!! That's really impressive and I'm sure Disney is not happy about it!

Good luck on your fascinator making project/search... I wish I was crafty :rotfl:

hope1826

12-14-2007, 11:02 PM

YAY!! I can't wait to see pics of your TWO hand made fascinators!!:cheer2: I'm sure they will look amazing!

And congrats on being so close to the wishes minimum!! You are officially my Disney Wedding Hero and I only hope I can come close to your greatness. They haven't even sent me my planning package yet, and I keep adding crap. Today I decided that I do NOT want rose petals scattered on the aisle at SBP, I want a rose petal CARPET down the aisle and at the alter. I don't want to see a speck of floor below that carpet. So I'm going to need a miracle to be that close to my minimum.

cseca

12-14-2007, 11:30 PM

WOW!!!
You are my hero too!!!!
I am so trying hard to keep to my minimum. But everytime I talk to my family they kept saying I should get this and that... LOL!!!
I finally have to tell them that if they want those they have to help me pay for them... :rotfl:

Great job!!!

pooh98378

12-15-2007, 12:57 AM

Congrats! That's awesome!! I only remember one other person that came close to their minimum! :)

HolyCowImADisneyBrde

12-15-2007, 09:13 AM

WOW! Less than $70 dollars over!!! You've totally just become my planning hero! :)

BayouPrincess

12-15-2007, 12:21 PM

i'm excited to see how your make a fascinator project will work out! have you started on your necklace? everytime i see a chandelier i think of you...

:santa:

Caryn, that's hliarious....we were at DH's Office Christmas party last night at the casino in our area...the crystals on the chandelier were the shape that carrie wants...I immediately thought about her.

Carrie!

BIG UPS for sticking that close to the minimum. I will use you as my inspiration. I have to stick to that minimum pretty closely in order to do this.

I can't wait to hear more about this fascinator....you are going to be a beautiful bride...you look stunning in everyday...your DF may just pass out when he sees you in your wedding garb. You will be breathtaking!

orangetiggs

12-15-2007, 12:29 PM

is there any chanve of posting your BEO so we can see, i'm hoping to stick to the min as well so it will be good to see

BaBeeCee14

12-15-2007, 04:09 PM

Congratulations on sticking so close to your minimum!! :banana:

FIREFLY01

12-16-2007, 01:01 PM

MistressOfAllEvil

12-17-2007, 10:49 AM

Holy Smokes Carrie!

That's amazing about your BEO. You are a Rockstar! :thumbsup2

I set my own minimum since I'm doing an Escape (to include dinner and a few extras.) I'm panicking though b/c at the last minute I added more floral than I said I was going to. I was lured by aisle petals at SBP. But, I can always take it off it its too much. Just waiting to see what my numbers are going to look like. Perhaps I should email my planner now and find out what's going on. Especially if they want us to pay up soon here. :scared1:

Keira1387

12-17-2007, 11:15 AM

Wow, that is amazing that you stuck to your budget!!! That just proves that it can be done! I just hope that I can do it too!!!

figmentfan814

12-17-2007, 01:13 PM

lurkyloo

12-17-2007, 01:29 PM

They haven't even sent me my planning package yet, and I keep adding crap. Today I decided that I do NOT want rose petals scattered on the aisle at SBP, I want a rose petal CARPET down the aisle and at the alter. I don't want to see a speck of floor below that carpet. So I'm going to need a miracle to be that close to my minimum.

:rotfl:

Just to warn you, they are going to tell you that the petals will blow away and try to talk you out of this... ;)

lurkyloo

12-17-2007, 01:32 PM

BIG UPS for sticking that close to the minimum. I will use you as my inspiration. I have to stick to that minimum pretty closely in order to do this.

I can't wait to hear more about this fascinator....you are going to be a beautiful bride...you look stunning in everyday...your DF may just pass out when he sees you in your wedding garb. You will be breathtaking!

Oh man, can I take you with me? You can be my personal pep talker! You are too sweet! :cutie:

lurkyloo

12-17-2007, 01:34 PM

is there any chanve of posting your BEO so we can see, i'm hoping to stick to the min as well so it will be good to see

PM me your address and I will email it to you! :thumbsup2

lurkyloo

12-17-2007, 01:37 PM

Wow That Is Great I Was Excited About Only Being 2000 Over My Wishes Min, But Wow You Did Awesome! Congrats!!! Does Your Beo Include Photo And Video In It???? Cause I Took The Smaller Of Both Packages 6hr? I Think.....

We are going with an outside photographer and an outside videographer. We never even considered using Disney for these, so I'm just la-la-la pretending that we don't have to spend money for them above and beyond what we're paying Disney :rotfl:

Although, I guess we are using Disney for the MK photo shoot...

lurkyloo

12-17-2007, 01:40 PM

That's great that you were able to stick to your minimum :goodvibes We're about $3000 over (about what we expected) because our biggest challenge was the number of guests that we are having - 62. Was your BEO for the 35 guests or 50? Also, I can't remember off hand how many are in your bridal party?

Yes - it's those darn guests who put all of us brides over our minimums :lmao: We are having 35 guests and only two people in our bridal party. And those two people are both guys, who are of course cheaper than girls because they don't require bouquets! :thumbsup2

DisBride2007

12-17-2007, 10:38 PM

But the big news is....

:banana: :banana: :banana: Our BEO is only $69.80 over the minimum expenditure for our date! :banana: :banana: :banana:

That's pretty impressive... our final price was pretty darn close to the minimum, but our BEO was over by about $4k. Let it be a lesson to the kiddies out there... :lmao:

lurkyloo

12-18-2007, 02:11 AM

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/FascinatorSupplies.jpg

So I bought a ton of supplies over the weekend, but now all my creativity has deserted me and I'm just staring at this pile of stuff... I think I'll prolly just buy one! :rotfl:

caryndisneydiva

12-18-2007, 02:16 AM

i do that very often...

why don't you begin by taking the focal point of the piece (flower, tulle?) and build it around there?

Kristen14

12-18-2007, 09:11 AM

Way to steal my thunder Lurkyloo :cool2: I thought I did pretty good, mine ended up $1900 over... for 70 guests.

cseca

12-18-2007, 12:57 PM

WOW!
less than 2K over for 70 people...
How do you people do this?!?!?!?!?

I need a lesson...

I'm having 30 people and already I'm over by A LOT... sigh...

lurkyloo

12-18-2007, 01:07 PM

i do that very often...

why don't you begin by taking the focal point of the piece (flower, tulle?) and build it around there?

Good idea! Alternatively, I will dump it all in a box and mail it to you to assemble! :rotfl: Cuz, you know, you don't have anything to do these days....

lurkyloo

12-18-2007, 01:12 PM

Way to steal my thunder Lurkyloo :cool2: I thought I did pretty good, mine ended up $1900 over... for 70 guests.

:worship:

Holy smokes! 70 guests?! How'd you do that?!

WOW!
less than 2K over for 70 people...
How do you people do this?!?!?!?!?

I need a lesson...

I'm having 30 people and already I'm over by A LOT... sigh...

For us, not having a traditional reception with a DJ is helping a lot. Also, no centerpieces....

caryndisneydiva

12-18-2007, 02:50 PM

Good idea! Alternatively, I will dump it all in a box and mail it to you to assemble! :rotfl: Cuz, you know, you don't have anything to do these days....

DO IT DO IT!!! i'll make it for you! i LOVE to make things! and that'll give me the opportunity to drive mark CRAZY thinking that i've bought yet another wedding accessory!

Kristen14

12-18-2007, 04:46 PM

Holy smokes! 70 guests?! How'd you do that?!

:confused3 I dont have a desert party... maybe thats how? Other than that my food/drink ended up at 104.50/pp. Then I made my own centerpieces (and paid for $700 flower petals and set up). My photography is extra b/c I went with Randy.

that'll give me the opportunity to drive mark CRAZY

lol... you're funny Caryn :rotfl2:

lurkyloo

12-18-2007, 05:27 PM

DO IT DO IT!!! i'll make it for you! i LOVE to make things! and that'll give me the opportunity to drive mark CRAZY thinking that i've bought yet another wedding accessory!

Seriously? That would be awesome - but you're so busy! I would hate to add another item to your checklist just when it's getting so short! ;)

caryndisneydiva

12-19-2007, 11:07 AM

send me a pic of exactly what you want and the supplies that you have and we'll see what we can do! i love projects!

lurkyloo

12-19-2007, 12:54 PM

Wow! OK.... let me think about exactly what I want.... I'd better do some online research today instead of working! :upsidedow

lurkyloo

12-19-2007, 01:19 PM

Accessories

OK, I thought finding the dress was the hardest part, but now I'm going nutty about accessories.

First, the easy stuff...

Shoes
They had to be flats 'cuz I'm about 4 inches taller than DF, and I wanted pointy so you could see them in all that dress. I was all about comfort until I realized all the comfy shoes are also hideously frumpy looking. These, on the other hand, are cute cute CUTE, and shiny, and they were on sale for $35, and they're named after Audrey Hepburn, fer cryin’ out loud! Also, they are not horribly uncomfortable… just a little uncomfortable…. (please excuse the classy paper towel photo backdrop)

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/Shoes.jpg

Purse & Emergency Auxiliary Back-up Earrings
I got this purse for $5 on eBay! The earrings were only $8 at Nordstrom Rack, but I still think I’m going to return them.

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/PurseEarrings.jpg

Necklace
This is my latest dilemma…. My dress is really plain, so I want a big honkin’ necklace. I fell in love with this one from an ad for wedding dress designer Simone Carvalli.

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/CarvalliNecklace.jpg

I actually called the designer, and they were totally clueless about the necklace and had no ideas how I could track it down. Then I had my crafty friend look at it, and she figured out it was made of chandelier prisms. So I ordered a bunch of them (in aqua, cuz I’m so pale that clear would be, like, invisible on me), and my friend and I tried to figure out how to make a similar necklace.

I liked the idea of using this pretty aqua ribbon from her wedding, but I’m not sure about how it turned out… I think I want something that looks less crafty/handmade and more like a ginormous Harry Winston necklace…

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/Necklace.jpg

So I’m talking with a jewelry designer on Etsy.com and hoping she can fulfill my grand vision.... :rotfl:

But what do you think? Will a big honkin’ necklace compete with the foofy feather fascinator I want to wear in my hair? Or can I rock the excessive accessories like those Maggie Sottero models do…?

caryndisneydiva

12-19-2007, 02:38 PM

ok, i have several opinions, as usual...

LOVE LOVE LOVE THE SHOES. being a tall girl myself, i totally understand the flat shoe dilemma. it is so hard to find cute flats! i think i have those audrey shoes that you bought in black.

now, onto the necklace and earrings...what do the first pair of earrings look like? you said that the ones pictured by your purse were back ups?

the necklace-i like it a lot, is it as big as you want it? i think the reason you think it looks crafty is because it's on the ribbon, what you COULD do is go to Michael's and buy a regular necklace chain. they also sell these little wire circle round things that are made for beading and charms. you can use them to attach the crystals (aqua is a great choice btw) to the necklace, that way it won't look crafty.

i don't think a big necklace will compete with a fascinator at all see pic...
http://i136.photobucket.com/albums/q184/caryncraig/kathyriya_01_lg.jpg
that girl has a big necklace and sparkley earrings on and she's also wearing a birdcage along with all of that.

i would make earrings to match your necklace and use some of that aqua ribbon in your fascinator, that way it is all incorporated and your look will be cohesive. i'm a big fan of accessorizing, it's the only way to really personalize your look...hth!

lurkyloo

12-19-2007, 03:09 PM

i would make earrings to match your necklace and use some of that aqua ribbon in your fascinator, that way it is all incorporated and your look will be cohesive. i'm a big fan of accessorizing, it's the only way to really personalize your look...hth!

I like it! I forgot to say that I have set aside two chandelier crystals (with the drop beads) to use as earrings - so those are my No. 1 pair at this point. I should take a pic. I love the idea of the ribbon in the fascinator, too.

Part of me wants to abandon that necklace entirely and just get this one off eBay. It seems easier, but then I'd have to track down earrings... What do you think?

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/SwarovskiNecklace.jpg

caryndisneydiva

12-19-2007, 03:13 PM

I LOVE THAT NECKLACE...i bet swarovski makes earrings to go with it...i actually like that necklace bettter than the chandelier crystal one...

lurkyloo

12-19-2007, 03:19 PM

I LOVE THAT NECKLACE...i bet swarovski makes earrings to go with it...i actually like that necklace bettter than the chandelier crystal one...

Yes! OK (for some reason I feel like I'm hijacking my own thread! pirate:)... I had the same thought! But I looked on Swarovski's site and on eBay and didn't see matching earrings. Any suggestions for where I might find them?

BayouPrincess

12-19-2007, 03:32 PM

I like it! I forgot to say that I have set aside two chandelier crystals (with the drop beads) to use as earrings - so those are my No. 1 pair at this point. I should take a pic. I love the idea of the ribbon in the fascinator, too.

Part of me wants to abandon that necklace entirely and just get this one off eBay. It seems easier, but then I'd have to track down earrings... What do you think?

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/SwarovskiNecklace.jpg

I like the chandelier necklace with the changes Caryn suggested, BUT WOW, the ebay necklace is great. I :love: it!
I second what Caryn said about the turquoise accents. I think it will look stunning. You should have no trouble pulling off the big necklace and the facinator! You'll be gorgeous!:bride:

MistressOfAllEvil

12-19-2007, 03:45 PM

So I’m talking with a jewelry designer on Etsy.com and hoping she can fulfill my grand vision.... :rotfl:

But what do you think? Will a big honkin’ necklace compete with the foofy feather fascinator I want to wear in my hair? Or can I rock the excessive accessories like those Maggie Sottero models do…?

This is the best site. Still though, nothing is striking my fancy.

Oh and Carrie?? You are FIERCE! Of course you can rock the over-the-top accessories, BETTER than the Maggie Sottero models do!

caryndisneydiva

12-19-2007, 03:55 PM

i did a quick search on ebay for blue topaz chandelier earrings...

here's the search page
http://search.ebay.com/search/search.dll?sofocus=bs&sbrftog=1&dfsp=1&catref=C6&from=R10&satitle=blue+topaz+chandelier+earrings&sacat=-1%26catref%3DC6&bs=Search&sargn=-1%26saslc%3D2&sadis=200&fpos=ZIP%2FPostal&sabfmts=1&saobfmts=insif&ftrt=1&ftrv=1&saprclo=&saprchi=&fsop=1%26fsoo%3D1&fgtp=

there are some ok things on there...though everything on there that i really loved was john hardy and hundreds of dollars...

then i did a search for blue topaz earrings...i think you might like this, it's a set
http://cgi.ebay.com/Bridal-Wedding-Blue-Topaz-Crystal-Necklace-Earrings_W0QQitemZ270196282297QQihZ017QQcategoryZ9 2841QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

here's the search page from ebay
http://search.ebay.com/search/search.dll?sofocus=bs&sbrftog=1&dfsp=1&catref=C6&from=R10&satitle=blue+topaz+earrings&sacat=-1%26catref%3DC6&bs=Search&sargn=-1%26saslc%3D2&sadis=200&fpos=ZIP%2FPostal&sabfmts=1&saobfmts=insif&ftrt=1&ftrv=1&saprclo=&saprchi=&fsop=1%26fsoo%3D1

BayouPrincess

12-19-2007, 03:55 PM

I just found these earrings on ebay...
http://i6.tinypic.com/6t1ydyg.jpg

I looked for blue topaz chandelier earrings.

Here is a Link (http://jewelry.search.ebay.com/blue-topaz_Dangle-Chandelier_W0QQ_trksidZm37QQcatrefZC12QQfromZR10QQ frtsZ0QQsacatZ86020) to the search.

Kristen14

12-19-2007, 04:04 PM

Oooh i love the necklace... and those earrings look like they'd match perfectly!

lurkyloo

12-19-2007, 04:21 PM

Wow, you guys - thanks! I didn't turn up half as much cool stuff when I searched eBay yesterday! I love a bunch of these.... and that's my problem - I'm the type who buys 5 different things to try and then returns the 4 that don't work, but it gets kind of expensive doing that on eBay and hoping you can sell the unwanted stuff later! :cutie:

romymichelle21

12-23-2007, 12:34 AM

Hi Lurkyloo! I have to say - I'm not a Disney bride (yet... still workin' on that one with DB! ;) ), but I've been checkin' out a lot of the PJs, and I'm totally into yours! I love all the bright colors - finally something my style! - it seems people still go for mainly pastels, but I'm glad I'm not the only one with a little kick to my preferences :woohoo: Also, I have this craaaazy collection of wedding sites & pics saved up, and I'm good at lookin' stuff up - so if I can help at all by throwing links or whatever, I will :)

Oh - :thumbsup2 on the Blue Topaz necklace from eBay! Also - depending on how true the lighting in that picture is, Aquamarine earrings might match as well, so maybe you could ask the seller if the blue in the photo is accurate :) Or maybe just check eBay for Aquamarine earrings and see if any are darker stones (I know I have an Aquamarine ring, and it's almost identical in shade to my Blue Topaz one).

Anyway - just thought I'd come out from lurking and say hello!

lurkyloo

12-24-2007, 03:22 AM

lpizzuro123

12-24-2007, 09:12 AM

I know this is a few days late, just wanted to say I love the necklace on e-bay. Let us know your final purchases.

I am also the same way (and it driveds my DF crazy). I will buy 3 or 4 things, bring them all home and decide which I like best. As long as I remember to return the things I don't want. Her is always saying I have things in the car to return (which is true). But this just makes things so much easier to bring things home and decide on them then in the store. Especially since I am usually shopping on my lunch hour and I am always rushed.

I have loved reading your report and looking forward to more.

Linda

romymichelle21

12-24-2007, 05:59 PM

Ok, well, I don't know if you're still looking for the blue topaz stuff on Ebay, but I found some really cute (I think) earrings that might work for you :goodvibes

Item numbers: (Can't post links yet :headache: ) 220184077354, 130184223846, 170180719757, 360008209529, 320199603433.

The first 2 are ending today - but I guess maybe there's a chance you'll get this first, or they'll re-list? The second 2 are my personal favs, and the last isn't even earrings, but it's a million dollars!! :rotfl:

Also, these necklaces: (I don't know if you settled on the other one - but I was already browsin'!) 190185401799, 360007202328. The second is very pretty in a whimsical kind of way!

lurkyloo

12-25-2007, 02:54 PM

Ok, well, I don't know if you're still looking for the blue topaz stuff on Ebay, but I found some really cute (I think) earrings that might work for you :goodvibes

Thanks for these! I had fun going looking for each of these - man, that million-dollar necklace is gorgeous! :)

romymichelle21

12-25-2007, 10:03 PM

Thanks for these! I had fun going looking for each of these - man, that million-dollar necklace is gorgeous! :)

Haha, I'm glad you were amused! I wonder if I can post links yet? Hmm. (Nope - just tried - must be 10, same as pictures).

Anyway, they have the "million dollar necklace" for $220 somewhere else in their shop. I guess the million dollar thing was... advertising for free shipping. Or something :confused: . Item #320197454073.

What the heck are all us chicks doin' on the wedding boards on Christmas? :rolleyes1 . Hope you had a great day with DF! :santa:

lurkyloo

12-28-2007, 03:03 PM

What the heck are all us chicks doin' on the wedding boards on Christmas? :rolleyes1 . Hope you had a great day with DF! :santa:

:rotfl: Thanks!

Well, I'm sorry I don't have much new to post today....

...I got the Swarovski blue topaz necklace I won on eBay, and it is beautiful. The pricetag said $315! (I won it for $45.) I'm wondering if that means it's real blue topaz, or if Swarovski stuff is just really overpriced :D I haven't decided yet whether I'm going to wear it or keep trying to make the necklace I saw in that Simone Carvalli ad.

... Over Christmas my dad and I tried to pick out a song to dance to. He's a huge music fan, especially jazz, and I told him he could pick the song - it seemed only fair, since he has to dance to it. Well, it was cute - he only suggested instrumentals. When I told him people usually pick songs with lyrics, especially those that reflect the emotions of the day, he was flabbergasted. But then, this is the guy who thought three months before the wedding was kind of early to start planning....

He loves Lyle Lovett, and I think it would be hilarious to dance to "She's No Lady, She's My Wife" - but the rhythm is a little tricky for a foxtrot, which is what my dad wants to do....

She's No Lady, She's My Wife
She hates my mama
She hates my daddy too
She loves to tell me
She hates the things I do
She loves to lie beside me
Almost every night
She's no lady she's my wife

The preacher asked her
And she said I do
The preacher asked me
And she said yes he does too
And the preacher said
I pronounce you 99 to life
Son she's no lady she's your wife

And I can't remember
How I met her
Seems like she's always just been hanging here off my right arm
And I can't remember
How I ever
Thought that I just couldn't live without a woman's charm

And even though
She loves the smell of French perfume
And even though
She walks around in high-heel shoes
All I know
Is I'm the one who pays her price
Man she's no lady she's my wife

And I can't remember
How I met her
Seems like she's always just been hanging here off my right arm
And I can't remember
How I ever
Thought that I just couldn't live without a woman's charm

Yea she hates my mama
She hates my daddy too
She loves to tell me
She hates the things I do
She loves to lie beside me
Almost every night
She's no lady she's my wife

lurkyloo

12-31-2007, 04:47 PM

Our rings are in! I am a bad bride - I do not have a picture for you. But you can use your imagination and picture two plain silver-colored bands that look like platinum, but are really cheap, cheap palladium :rotfl:

I know... I had never heard of palladium either! But when we went to the Jewelry District in Downtown L.A. to get our bands, the salesman actually talked us out of $1,300 worth of platinum rings and into cheap, cheap palladium bands for $130 each! Whohoo!

Sure, the rings are the one part of the day that's with you forever, but they're also one of only about three aspects of the wedding that I am not micromanaging into perfection. I kind of really don't care! And the only reasons we were going to get platinum were that I don't wear yellow gold and we didn't want to have to replate white-gold bands every couple of years. So when the guy told us palladium is stronger than platinum (12 whole percent stronger!) and shiny and cheap cheap cheap, we were sold.

True, I feel like I just bought a "Magnetbox" TV off the back of Fat Tony's truck, but at the same time...we saved $1,000! :banana:

Ahem...sorry. OK, so the other part is that I really wanted us to each pick a secret inscription for the other person, but we were stumped as to what those would be. Finally, hours before we went to try on the rings, I hit on the idea of using lyrics to Muppets songs. DF became a puppeteer because of the Muppets, and now he teaches puppeteering at the Jim Henson Company because of the Muppets, so they're kind of a big deal to us.

I printed out a bunch of possibilities, and we each picked one for the other person's ring but didn't say which. I can't wait to see what my ring says on February 4th! (Unless it's "Why do we always come here/I guess we'll never know/It's like some kind of torture to have to watch this show"...:rotfl: )

BaBeeCee14

12-31-2007, 04:54 PM

I love the whole secret inscription idea! Its so cute! I wanted to have our rings engraved too, but don't know what to put.

lurkyloo

12-31-2007, 04:59 PM

I love the whole secret inscription idea! Its so cute! I wanted to have our rings engraved too, but don't know what to put.

I gotta say, I now think song lyrics are the way to go. Of course, you can only get about 4 words in.... but at least you and DF will know what they mean! :thumbsup2

caryndisneydiva

12-31-2007, 06:51 PM

that is soooo sweet! my engagement band was supposed to be palladium, but they didn't have my setting in stock and i got sick of waiting to wear my rock, so i have platinum. i wanted palladium though, because it won't get that grayish black patina that platinum gets over time!

disneychickforever

12-31-2007, 10:54 PM

Hi Lurkyloo!

I think the colors are cool :) and the awesome Morocco theme, that's so original!

The Attic is BEAUTIFUL! How many does it fit?

lurkyloo

12-31-2007, 10:59 PM

i wanted palladium though, because it won't get that grayish black patina that platinum gets over time!

Oooh - I didn't know that! Score another one for palladium :rotfl:

Hi Lurkyloo!

I think the colors are cool :) and the awesome Morocco theme, that's so original!

The Attic is BEAUTIFUL! How many does it fit?

Up to 50 people, supposedly, but there's no room for dancing, even with 35 people. That's OK by us though! :thumbsup2

disneychickforever

12-31-2007, 11:20 PM

Up to 50 people, supposedly, but there's no room for dancing, even with 35 people. That's OK by us though! :thumbsup2

Lol ah I see. Well it's still very pretty!

monana

01-01-2008, 09:01 PM

That's awesome that your able to stay so close to the minimum. i sure hope were able to do that, but we'll see when we start getting RSVPs from our guest.

lurkyloo

01-02-2008, 03:18 PM

Whohoo!

We just paid for our wedding! :banana:

Holy crap - I'd better start working on this thing... :rotfl:

lov2b@disney

01-02-2008, 03:21 PM

Congratulations! I look forward to knowing what that feels like!!

DisBride2007

01-02-2008, 04:50 PM

OK, so the other part is that I really wanted us to each pick a secret inscription for the other person, but we were stumped as to what those would be. Finally, hours before we went to try on the rings, I hit on the idea of using lyrics to Muppets songs. DF became a puppeteer because of the Muppets, and now he teaches puppeteering at the Jim Henson Company because of the Muppets, so they're kind of a big deal to us.

OMG I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this idea... because of the secret inscription and because of the Muppets. I still regret not incorporating "He'll Make Me Happy" into our ceremony.

BaBeeCee14

01-02-2008, 05:14 PM

:woohoo: Congrats on paying off the wedding Carrie! It must be such a relief to get that out of the way!

Keira1387

01-02-2008, 10:41 PM

YAy Carrie!!!! That must make you feel so good now that the wedding is paid for!!:thumbsup2

MistressOfAllEvil

01-03-2008, 10:02 AM

Congratulations on paying the wedding off! :cool1: It should be all smooth sailing from here on out! Or at least that's what I'm telling myself.

BayouPrincess

01-03-2008, 10:36 AM

Congratulations Carrie! One more thing checked off the "to do" list! :woohoo:

figmentfan814

01-03-2008, 01:35 PM

Congrats on paying off the wedding! Our payment date is coming up in a few weeks and I know it will be nice to have it taken care of so we won't have to worry about it anymore :yay:

caryndisneydiva

01-03-2008, 01:58 PM

once you pay for it, i think it feels so much better. it's like, the disney decision making is done for the most part and it's a huge load off...

Lisella

01-03-2008, 06:27 PM

Congrats! This must be a huge item to check off the to-do list :goodvibes

lurkyloo

01-03-2008, 06:32 PM

Aw, thanks everyone! :goodvibes I only wish the wedding were paid off and not just paid for :rotfl:

lurkyloo

01-04-2008, 06:05 PM

I was trying not to let it bother me that half of my guests have not booked hotels a month out from my wedding... but today I found out that 2 of my resorts are sold out and realized that I only have buses going to my four original hotels. :scared: How in the $%#@! are they going to get to the ceremony? It's before Epcot even opens!

My planner's assistant calmed me down a bit by pointing out that my All-Star Movies guests can just walk to All-Star Music to meet my bus. And I guess anyone who can't get into Port Orleans French Quarter can walk over from Riverside. But the whole point of the bus was to save people walking...

She also said we could rejigger the bus schedules, if absolutely necessary, but consarn it - I printed those things months ago and sent them to everyone already! :mad: I'll be DANGED if I'm going to screw up that schedule just because some of my guests were didn't book their reservations before the cut-off date.... :headache:

To refresh your memory, here's a picture of my perfect, not-to-be-changed bus schedule :rotfl:

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t63/lurkyloo/Planning%20Journal/schedulecopy.jpg

disneychickforever

01-04-2008, 06:13 PM

Aw! I'm so sorry to hear that. I saw we go kick their butts ;) (jk)

That really does stink. What'd I'd do, is that if they were to lazy to make the reservations on time, they have to find their own transportation to the wedding. You a stressed enough! And they shouldn't put anymore on you!

Remember that it's YOUR special day (well your's and your DF's) And no one can ruin it unless you let them. I know it's so hard to follow (I probably won't be able to when the time comes honestly) But it's best to remember the two important things. You are marrying the love of your life, and you will be together forever. And you are getting married at DISNEY WORLD! The happiest place on earth!

Everything will fall into place, Just have a little faith, trust, and pixie dust. And if worse comes to worse, book the rooms for them, and say that they should have done it further and your services cost $100 plus the cost of the room!

lov2b@disney

01-04-2008, 06:14 PM

Your schedules are beautiful! So sorry, just remember they had the information, you tried to make it easy for them, they chose not to do it!!!
So a little inconvience is what they get!

I think I will send out a reminder now! and monthly until May!

caryndisneydiva

01-04-2008, 08:31 PM

that really stinks. at least your people are trying to stay on property. i have like a dozen staying off. AGGRAVATION. here's what i'm doing to combat that problem, i'm going to send out emails to all of our wedding guests starting next week to discuss the transportation issue. i didn't do a newsletter, so this is the closest thing to it. i'm going to do it three times before we leave for fl, and once when we arrive just to make sure all of the bases are covered. after that, i wash my hands of it. i will make sure that they are amply informed (emails, welcome bags, word of mouth) and if they miss the ceremony then so be it.

monana

01-04-2008, 11:36 PM

i think caryn is right has the right idea. you've done what you could, and now it's their turn to figure out what they are going to do. sad to say i'm guessing my guest will end up doing what your guest are doing. so i think i'll just end up sending emails and then go from there.

caryndisneydiva

01-04-2008, 11:39 PM

i had this same conversation with my father when we found out how many people opted to stay off property and he was very succinct when he said, "NOT MY PROBLEM" and my father is normally the worry wort who would obsess over everyone getting there. he IS george banks...

lurkyloo

01-05-2008, 12:54 AM

Thanks - you've all made me feel a lot better. I wavered on the "not my problem" thing for a few hours there, but you're right: I gave them 5 months to make reservations, so it's their problem now.... :cool2:

lurkyloo

01-05-2008, 12:57 AM

double $#@%& post!

caryndisneydiva

01-05-2008, 01:12 AM

it was quite shocking to hear, "not my problem" come out of my fathers mouth...but he's right. we have enough stress, guests have to have some responsibility!

BayouPrincess

01-05-2008, 02:35 AM

I agree with the other girls. As much as we want to have everything work out for everyone, sometimes you can only help people as much as they want to be helped. I will never understand why anyone would want to stay off property anyway. :crazy:

caryndisneydiva

01-05-2008, 02:53 AM

Ember

01-05-2008, 08:42 AM

Oh, how I relate! My father, his wife, my two grandparents, my uncle and cousin all chose to stay in a condo off site. I tried to work out transportation with them and they insisted they would just take their own car. THEN they decided to park at one of the resorts and use my transportation after all! But I hadn't counted on those 6 extra people and it seriously messed everything up!

Honestly, it's still something I fell kinda bad about, but then I think - IT WAS NOT MY FAULT!

And in hindsight, I can't say I care overly much! I also had guests switch resorts, others back out last minute... You name it! If I could do it again I wouldn't bother trying to help with transportation they could just deal with it themselves and I'd have had Mickey there!

lurkyloo

01-06-2008, 12:13 AM

If I could do it again I wouldn't bother trying to help with transportation they could just deal with it themselves and I'd have had Mickey there!

I love it! Transportation was the biggest sticking point for us - there's no way to do it cheaply, and it's complicated for everyone involved, but it seems like you have to do it....

2002Disneybride

01-06-2008, 12:20 AM

As a (former) Disney bride, I just wanted to say I thoroughly enjoyed reading your PJ from start to finish! I lurk and read things here and there-your choices are so different-I love the colors and the cake! Sounds like you are going to have such a special affair! :goodvibes

I loved the music clips as well-that is so neat to incorporate muppets!

I also loved Root Photo's website...

Hmmm...maybe I need a vow renewal! :rotfl:

Just wanted to let you know how much I enjoyed reading!!!

lurkyloo

01-06-2008, 08:11 PM

MistressOfAllEvil

01-07-2008, 11:11 AM

Carrie ~ I'm late chiming in on this... but I totally agree with the "NOT MY PROBLEM" philosophy!!!!

My parents still have not booked their room (and they're handling my sister and niece's reservations too.) We had one couple price out POFQ and then not book it and now it's full. So, they're staying off site. I've had 4 people back out of the wedding in the past 4 days. We're an escape wedding. It's not like we started with 100 people.

Whatever. Whoever can be there will be there! I'm soooo over it at this point. :cool2: :cool2: :cool2: :cool2: :cool2:

okay, i think I did less to calm you down and more to work myself up! ugh. sorry. :headache:

Kristen14

01-07-2008, 11:31 AM

Another vote for "not my problem"! My FFIL doesnt have a tux yet, and i dont care!! He can come in his PJ's! he's not in the wedding. Of course this makes the monster in law just so wonderfully happy... but again, I DONT CARE :cool2:

Mermaid_Ariel

01-07-2008, 12:17 PM

Yet another vote for "not my problem"! Quite frankly, I would be annoyed enough at this point to say that it's the guest's responsibility to figure out transportation since you have it all set for people who met generous deadlines. They could call always call a cab.

Sorry this is happening, though. I can't even imagine how stressful it is with guests not cooperating with all the hard work you've put into things. :hug: Just remember, things WILL all fall into place and 10, 20 years down the road you won't even remember these things.. just all the happiness the day brought you! :woohoo:

caryndisneydiva

01-07-2008, 12:41 PM

Just remember, things WILL all fall into place and 10, 20 years down the road you won't even remember these things.. just all the happiness the day brought you! :woohoo:

good point!

to add to kristen, my fmil doesn't even have a dress yet. we leave in 2 weeks. i even sent her links to three dresses i found and she didn't like any of them. i'm over it.

BaBeeCee14

01-07-2008, 01:21 PM

I am also going to vote "not your problem". Seriously Carrie you have enough things on your plate right now and you just can't babysit everyone. You have made more than enough effort to make things convenient for your guests and if they don't want to take that road - let them deal with it. Let them stress out about how they're going to get to your ceremony. The important thing is that you'll be there marrying the person you love. Lots of :hug:'s for you!

lurkyloo

01-07-2008, 01:34 PM

You guys are great - thank you! This morning my planner's assistant emailed to say all the Value Resorts are sold out during our stay... I was starting to stress again, but then I read your replies. I feel better again! :goodvibes

lurkyloo

01-07-2008, 01:37 PM

Carrie ~ I'm late chiming in on this... but I totally agree with the "NOT MY PROBLEM" philosophy!!!!

My parents still have not booked their room (and they're handling my sister and niece's reservations too.) We had one couple price out POFQ and then not book it and now it's full. So, they're staying off site. I've had 4 people back out of the wedding in the past 4 days. We're an escape wedding. It's not like we started with 100 people.

Losers! :mad: Do you get any kind of refund on the cost of dinner for those people who backed out? That might be some consolation...

DisBride2007

01-07-2008, 01:41 PM

As a former Epcot bride I have to point out that the guests can't just "get themselves" to the ceremony. They have to take the bus because they will be taken through backstage. I know it's like the least fun thing to think about, but it would really be a shame if someone ended up missing the ceremony because they couldn't find the bus.

I know you already have your schedules printed but if there has to be a last minute change, it's not that big of a deal. We ended up just leaving messages in everyone's room as to where and when to catch the bus. You could divide that task up among family members and have it done in no time. Incidentally, even if the pick-up times hadn't changed, we would have had to do that anyway because the bus pick-up area was not necessarily clear to everyone, especially if you're dealing with a resort like CBR where there are about twelve bus stops.

I gave my sister (MOH) a check-list of who was supposed to be getting on the bus and from what resort, that way she was in charge of people getting on the bus and I didn't have to worry about it.

Sorry, I know you don't need more stress... but it's better to figure it out now and not the day before the wedding!