Amy & Jeff: 10/24/11 20th Anniv. Vow Renewal **8/4 - We surrender!**

[ericamcl]

I've been lurking on this thread and thought it was time to post...lol

I hope DFTW at least acknowledges your cancellation letter - and I'm glad things are starting to look up on your VR!!

 

[tinkerbell 766]

Well, today we are officially 5 months away from our vow renewal.

Interestingly enough, we faxed in our cancellation letter to DFTW and haven't heard a single word back from them. The day after we faxed it, we tried to reach our planner and of course had to leave voice mail. We told her we just wanted to confirm that they'd received our letter of cancellation. Still no call back. I don't even know what to make of that.

In the meantime, we've gotten our cake figured out. We're going with It's Tasty, Too after reading Joanne's reviews. We gave our inspiration photo to them and to the Swan bakery and the Swan came back at $200 more for the same cake! Yikes!!

We're also going through quotes from other florists, as it looks like our original choice might not be able to really capture the vision we're going for.

And ... I found a dress!! I'm having one custom made by a designer on Etsy. She has great feedback, and I'm very excited to work with her. I know I'm taking a huge chance getting a dress I've never tried on, but I figure by now, SOMETHING has to start going right, and I've decided my dress is going to be that thing! We're right down to the wire as far as getting it in time for our VR, but fortunately not so close as to need a rush fee.

Ooh, and our aisle runner came! And we bought tablecloths from Bed Bath & Beyond for the guest book table and altar table that match it perfectly. AND my jewelry is due to arrive today! VERY excited about that!!

So that's where we are today! Things are moving right along.

Amy sweetie - Yay for going with Heather!!!! I am sure you will be thrilled with her!!!
You know, I had exactly the same experience with the first florist I started working with!!! She just didn't seem to 'get it' at all and wanted to start adding in colours etc that I didn't want!!! I wonder if it is the same florist you have given up on??? I am sure it will all work out in the end for you!! It did for me and I was bowled over by my floral!!
Amy sneak peeks of the dress??? I am sure it will be stunning!!!
You are right - everything will be plain sailing from here on in!!!

 

[dolphingirl47]

Well, today we are officially 5 months away from our vow renewal.

Interestingly enough, we faxed in our cancellation letter to DFTW and haven't heard a single word back from them. The day after we faxed it, we tried to reach our planner and of course had to leave voice mail. We told her we just wanted to confirm that they'd received our letter of cancellation. Still no call back. I don't even know what to make of that.

In the meantime, we've gotten our cake figured out. We're going with It's Tasty, Too after reading Joanne's reviews. We gave our inspiration photo to them and to the Swan bakery and the Swan came back at $200 more for the same cake! Yikes!!

We're also going through quotes from other florists, as it looks like our original choice might not be able to really capture the vision we're going for.

And ... I found a dress!! I'm having one custom made by a designer on Etsy. She has great feedback, and I'm very excited to work with her. I know I'm taking a huge chance getting a dress I've never tried on, but I figure by now, SOMETHING has to start going right, and I've decided my dress is going to be that thing! We're right down to the wire as far as getting it in time for our VR, but fortunately not so close as to need a rush fee.

Ooh, and our aisle runner came! And we bought tablecloths from Bed Bath & Beyond for the guest book table and altar table that match it perfectly. AND my jewelry is due to arrive today! VERY excited about that!!

So that's where we are today! Things are moving right along.

When it comes to DFTW, nothing surprises me anymore. I had the same problem when I cancelled my vow renewal. Fortunately as mine was attached to a cruise, I could get my travel agent to check if the cancellation has gone through.

I am glad that you found a dress. I had mine custom-made in China by a seller than I found on Ebay. I have not regretted at all going down this route. My dress is a perfect fit as it was made to measure and I absolutely adore it. Do you have a link to what it will roughly look like?

I am glad that you have your cake sorted out and hope that you will find a florist that shares your vision.

Corinna

 

[pixie921]

I've been lurking on this thread and thought it was time to post...lol

I hope DFTW at least acknowledges your cancellation letter - and I'm glad things are starting to look up on your VR!!

Thank you, and welcome!!

Amy sweetie - Yay for going with Heather!!!! I am sure you will be thrilled with her!!!
You know, I had exactly the same experience with the first florist I started working with!!! She just didn't seem to 'get it' at all and wanted to start adding in colours etc that I didn't want!!! I wonder if it is the same florist you have given up on??? I am sure it will all work out in the end for you!! It did for me and I was bowled over by my floral!!
Amy sneak peeks of the dress??? I am sure it will be stunning!!!
You are right - everything will be plain sailing from here on in!!!

When it comes to DFTW, nothing surprises me anymore. I had the same problem when I cancelled my vow renewal. Fortunately as mine was attached to a cruise, I could get my travel agent to check if the cancellation has gone through.

I am glad that you found a dress. I had mine custom-made in China by a seller than I found on Ebay. I have not regretted at all going down this route. My dress is a perfect fit as it was made to measure and I absolutely adore it. Do you have a link to what it will roughly look like?

I am glad that you have your cake sorted out and hope that you will find a florist that shares your vision.

Corinna

Corinna, I hope my custom dress experience is as great as yours!

And since you and Joanne asked, here is a photo of basically what my dress will be like but I am going to have spaghetti straps and a corset back.

We were supposed to receive our last floral proposal today (the florist had promised it to Karen) but as of now, it hasn't come. And since it's after 6, I'll be surprised if we see it before Tuesday. I'm bummed because I wanted to really go over all the options with Jeff while I have him home for 3 whole days. Ah, well ... maybe through this whole process I'll develop more patience, LOL!

On a happy note, my Etsy jewelry did arrive today, and I'm very happy with it! I'll have to get photos of it and post them later. ALSO ... my ring came today! It's so pretty, but I'm so sad -- it was too big! So we quick popped up to Tiffany's and returned it, and of course they didn't have the new size, so once again I had to order the ring. More waiting!

 

[tinkerbell 766]

Did Karen just get you the one proposal? She got two or three for me and they all seemed reasonable and good so it was difficult to choose!!! It's a shame that you maybe won't be able to go over the floral with Jeff, but I am sure he trusts your judgement. Paul left all the floral etc to me saying that he had no idea about colour etc (he is right, he is useless with colour!!!)
I love the dress, it's gorgeous!! It's quite different from the original choice though isn't it? Lots of ruffles from what I can see from the picture!!! You will look like a real princess in that!!
I am glad you are happy with your jewellery!! Shame about your Tiffany ring but at least there is plenty of time to put it right!!

 

[dolphingirl47]

Corinna, I hope my custom dress experience is as great as yours!

And since you and Joanne asked, here is a photo of basically what my dress will be like but I am going to have spaghetti straps and a corset back.

We were supposed to receive our last floral proposal today (the florist had promised it to Karen) but as of now, it hasn't come. And since it's after 6, I'll be surprised if we see it before Tuesday. I'm bummed because I wanted to really go over all the options with Jeff while I have him home for 3 whole days. Ah, well ... maybe through this whole process I'll develop more patience, LOL!

On a happy note, my Etsy jewelry did arrive today, and I'm very happy with it! I'll have to get photos of it and post them later. ALSO ... my ring came today! It's so pretty, but I'm so sad -- it was too big! So we quick popped up to Tiffany's and returned it, and of course they didn't have the new size, so once again I had to order the ring. More waiting!

OMG, that dress is gorgeous. You will look absolutely stunning in this.

I am sure that your experience will be just as positive as mine. I looked out for sellers with great feedback and made a point of reading through some of the more recent feedback. So I knew that I was going to get quality. I do now own 4 custom dresses from 2 different sellers and I am delighted with all of them. I have 3 evening gowns and my wedding dress. Yesterday I ordered another custom dress. This one is a tea length dress which will form part of my Halloween costume.

I can't wait to see your photos of your jewellery. It is a shame that your ring did not fit. By the way, I was brave enough to look at some Tiffany stuff yesterday. They just opened a Tiffany concession in one of our department stores in town. They do have some gorgeous jewellery and some of it is actually pretty reasonable. I saw a ring that I really liked and that was only $100.

Corinna

 

[Jilian]

I absolutely LOVE that dress. Is it a Jim Hjelm replica? I fell in love with his dress that looked really similar to that and I came really close to ordering a knockoff from China but was too nervous to do it. I hadn't even thought of trying etsy.

 

[pixie921]

Did Karen just get you the one proposal? She got two or three for me and they all seemed reasonable and good so it was difficult to choose!!! It's a shame that you maybe won't be able to go over the floral with Jeff, but I am sure he trusts your judgement. Paul left all the floral etc to me saying that he had no idea about colour etc (he is right, he is useless with colour!!!)
I love the dress, it's gorgeous!! It's quite different from the original choice though isn't it? Lots of ruffles from what I can see from the picture!!! You will look like a real princess in that!!
I am glad you are happy with your jewellery!! Shame about your Tiffany ring but at least there is plenty of time to put it right!!

Karen actually requested quotes from 2 different florists. She felt that they were the 2 most likely to have the ability to do what we were looking for. The first one hit the nail on the head, and was super-fast in getting it to us. I'd like to see the other, though, just for comparison sake. And our original florist is still checking with her rental place to see if they have anything like what we're looking for.

Jeff is pretty much "whatever you want, baby" but he's got an engineer's eye and that can be really helpful sometimes, LOL. We can go over things whenever they finally get here, but he's been working so much that I generally have about 1-1/2 hours of time in the evening to squeeze in dinner and a quick chat before he falls asleep with one of the dogs on the couch!

Yes, the dress is definitely very different from the first! But I'd actually been eyeing it for a while during my Etsy browsing, and when I found I needed a new dress, I began to give it serious thought. It screams "fairy forest" to me.

OMG, that dress is gorgeous. You will look absolutely stunning in this.

I am sure that your experience will be just as positive as mine. I looked out for sellers with great feedback and made a point of reading through some of the more recent feedback. So I knew that I was going to get quality. I do now own 4 custom dresses from 2 different sellers and I am delighted with all of them. I have 3 evening gowns and my wedding dress. Yesterday I ordered another custom dress. This one is a tea length dress which will form part of my Halloween costume.

I can't wait to see your photos of your jewellery. It is a shame that your ring did not fit. By the way, I was brave enough to look at some Tiffany stuff yesterday. They just opened a Tiffany concession in one of our department stores in town. They do have some gorgeous jewellery and some of it is actually pretty reasonable. I saw a ring that I really liked and that was only $100.

Corinna

Thank you Corinna! I am excited to have it, and I love that since it's custom it will come made to my measurements. Especially to my height! I'm only 5'1" and I can't imagine what the cost would have been to hem a dress like that if it was a stock design! That's wonderful that you've found 2 dressmakers that you're pleased with.

How fun that you have a new Tiffany spot! I'm glad you decided to have a look! And $100 is *very* reasonable for a piece of Tiffany jewelry!

I absolutely LOVE that dress. Is it a Jim Hjelm replica? I fell in love with his dress that looked really similar to that and I came really close to ordering a knockoff from China but was too nervous to do it. I hadn't even thought of trying etsy.

Hi Jilian! I believe it's actually her version of a Monique Lhullier (I have no idea if I spelled that right!) dress. I hadn't thought of Etsy either ... I stumbled onto the fact that some sellers made dresses when I was doing a search for something else.

 

[KristiLyn]

Love that dress!! It's gorgeous!!!

 

[pixie921]

Love that dress!! It's gorgeous!!!

Thanks Kristi!

 

[pixie921]

A happy day for me! My new ring came -- that was really fast! They only reordered it for me Friday! And it fits, so that's one more thing I can check off my to-do list.

I couldn't resist taking a picture of it nestled in its little blue box and bag:

And here it is on my left hand ... had to wear it there to take a decent photo

I think it's a pretty good complement to my original set:

I'm really happy with how they look together!

 

[elleinad16]

I love your ring! I am so happy for you!

 

[dolphingirl47]

A happy day for me! My new ring came -- that was really fast! They only reordered it for me Friday! And it fits, so that's one more thing I can check off my to-do list.

I couldn't resist taking a picture of it nestled in its little blue box and bag:

And here it is on my left hand ... had to wear it there to take a decent photo

I think it's a pretty good complement to my original set:

I'm really happy with how they look together!

I am glad that the ring arrived so quickly. It is really gorgeous and I agree that it goes nicely with your existing set.

Corinna

 

[bohannonb]

wow you have totally inspired me!

 

[tinkerbell 766]

Amy sweetie - the ring looks stunning on you!!!

 

[pixie921]

Thanks for the compliments, girls. Only now we are having second thoughts about the rings!

I had Jeff take his out last night so I could take a couple pictures of it before I packed them away 'til October, and while he was wearing it, he started saying things like, "You know, this really is a big ring. I wonder if it's gonna get in my way at work?" And "You know, I thought I'd like that it was flexible, but every now and then it sort of pinches." And of course I want him to be happy and love his ring, because unlike me, once a ring is on, he never takes it off (I actually only wear mine when we're going out, not usually around the house as I'm often doing crafty things and don't want to get glue, etc. on them).

So now, we have to make our minds up whether to keep the rings or try to find something else. It's basically up to him -- if he decides the ring isn't the right fit for him to comfortably wear all the time, back they'll go.

In the meantime, we are sending back our contract for our cake today and will do the same for our new florist on Monday (booked through Karen). I'm quite happy with the new florist (Tommy Murphy at Greenery Productions) because he really seems to have a great grip on my vision for our decor.

 

[dolphingirl47]

Thanks for the compliments, girls. Only now we are having second thoughts about the rings!

I had Jeff take his out last night so I could take a couple pictures of it before I packed them away 'til October, and while he was wearing it, he started saying things like, "You know, this really is a big ring. I wonder if it's gonna get in my way at work?" And "You know, I thought I'd like that it was flexible, but every now and then it sort of pinches." And of course I want him to be happy and love his ring, because unlike me, once a ring is on, he never takes it off (I actually only wear mine when we're going out, not usually around the house as I'm often doing crafty things and don't want to get glue, etc. on them).

So now, we have to make our minds up whether to keep the rings or try to find something else. It's basically up to him -- if he decides the ring isn't the right fit for him to comfortably wear all the time, back they'll go.

In the meantime, we are sending back our contract for our cake today and will do the same for our new florist on Monday (booked through Karen). I'm quite happy with the new florist (Tommy Murphy at Greenery Productions) because he really seems to have a great grip on my vision for our decor.

Oh, it's a shame that the rings have not turned out how you hoped. I do understand the issue though. When my old wedding band still fit, I was wearing it 24/7 and once I had to take it off, it felt like I was missing a part of my body. So I understand why it is so important that the ring is comfortable.

I am glad that you managed to sort out your cake and the florist though.

Corinna

 

[LuluLovesDisney]

I love your rings!! I know what you mean about work, though. My husband ended up getting another simple band made of tungsten so he could wear it to work without worrying about scratching it or anything. Just an idea!

 

[pixie921]

Oh, it's a shame that the rings have not turned out how you hoped. I do understand the issue though. When my old wedding band still fit, I was wearing it 24/7 and once I had to take it off, it felt like I was missing a part of my body. So I understand why it is so important that the ring is comfortable.

I am glad that you managed to sort out your cake and the florist though.

Corinna

I love your rings!! I know what you mean about work, though. My husband ended up getting another simple band made of tungsten so he could wear it to work without worrying about scratching it or anything. Just an idea!

Yeah, we returned the rings over the weekend. I'm a little bummed, but in the grand scheme of things, it's not that big a deal. I know we'll find something we like.

On the larger scale of bummer things, my mom informed me today that they might not be able to come to our vow renewal. There's a real possibility that, for the first time in his life, my dad might get laid off. Jeff and I have been through it more times than I can count, but my parents have no idea how to deal with the situation. They're old enough to retire, but not in a position to be able to do so. Plus, I can't imagine my parents home together all day.

Anyway, my mom is worried they won't have enough money to come to Florida in October. We're providing them with a 1-bdrm villa at BLT, they were going to drive down, and they were only planning on visiting Epcot once and then spend a lot of the rest of the time with my brother's family (they live near WDW), so their expenses were going to be low to begin with, but that may still be too much for them. The worst part is, we really can't wait long for them to decide because if they aren't coming, I need to try to rent out that reservation. We really can't afford to just lose a year's worth of DVC points. Then again, I hate to take away the option for them to come just in case by the time October rolls around they might be in a position to do so.

Ugh.

 

[Jilian]

I'm sorry to hear about your parents possibly not being able to go I hope they can make it!