Moving to Fairfax!!

Hello Blogger Familia!

David and I are moving 23 minutes down the road to a little townhouse in Fairfax April 15th :)

We found this place about 2 weeks ago and sent in an application immediately and were approved 3 days later, so awesome!

The place has a garage, a back deck and fenced in yard for our dog Achilles, so I am really excited to move in and get settled. David is excited too and he was not as thrilled about moving originally. Now that we have a place and it's a really nice area with everything we need and more, he is completely on board, thank goodness!

We also officially signed our lease and were overwhelmed to know all the things that need to be done prior to moving in. I almost forgot how much goes into renting a townhouse...

There is a lot to be done. Packing up everything, loading the cars and trucks, driving to our new home, unloading everything, then unpacking, then painting a few rooms, getting all the utilities signed on and squared away...so many things!

But we are still excited to move and start this chapter together as an engaged couple about to be married this october. I cannot wait!!

I will post pictures after we move in and get all settled in the new place. To Be Continued...

The Gown

So my favorite designer right now is Maggie Sottero and I love her gown creations because she creates designs that have a lot of lace and elegance, which I am all about right now.

I would put up pictures of the dress that I finally said 'Yes' to but I know that my fiance reads my posts and that would spoil the surprise for him. So all I can tell you is if you wanna see Maggie Sottero's wedding gown designs you can search her on google.

The specific design that I went with is a fit n flare/mermaid/trumpet style with a sweet heart neckline and lace from top to bottom of the dress. Mermaid can be very exaggerated but the shape of my dress is not exaggerated at all, it is very subtle and forms to the shape of my body in a way that is very flattering and elegant. I'm really excited and can't wait to wear it.

We went to Rosalin's Bridal Boutique in Falls Church and I had never been there before but I knew they carried Maggie Sottero wedding gowns. The gown I tried on first was the dress I ended up saying 'Yes' to and that one really impressed my sisters and future mother-in-law...they all loved it and pretty much compared all the others to that one. I tried on about 7 different dresses all the same style but with subtle differences. In the end we all decided we liked the first one I tried on so of course that was the last dress I tried on before we left the boutique. I went back a second time to have my mom and sister-in-law take a look at it and decide if they agreed as well that the dress was perfect for me....and they did! It was a unanimous decision and I told the lady that it was the one I wanted and where do I sign? Lol.

Since it's a designer dress it still has to be made. They said they would have it complete for me by July. I'm thinking it will be more end of July which will be a great Birthday gift for me since my Birthday is end of July. David's Birthday is also end of July.

We're thinking this year for our Birthday's we'll have a joint Birthday Party with friends and family. By then we should have our own place and can invite people over for a barbeque or something. Can't wait :)

In conclusion, I picked a wedding dress and it's everything I imagined...it's really close to the dress I envisioned and I can't wait to have my fiance see it on our wedding day. Thank you to my mom, mother-in-law and sisters (bridesmaids) who helped me make my final decision in purchasing the gown of my dreams (cheesy, oh well) :)

Anthomanic Florist

So I found this florist off the suggested vendor list given to me by Jo Anne and Will from Rock Hill Plantation. I wanted to find a florist in Stafford so we wouldn't have to transport the flowers a long distance. The florist is called Anthomanic and I really like her style. Check out her website!

http://www.anthomanic.com/

This is the florist, Amanda - she is really nice and I am doing a phone interview with her next Wednesday to get an idea of service, specific items, and pricing. I can't wait :)

I love her style and it feels very hip and fresh. I already know I am going with fall colors (oranges and golden yellows with a mix of purples berries). I'm excited to work with her!

These colors are really bright - who ever did the photography did a superb job! What do you think of my colors? Until I see them in person with the dresses and fabrics I want, I won't know for sure how good it will look together but I feel pretty confident it will be a combination :)

My colors :)

Found a Photographer

It's been a little difficult finding a photographer for the wedding. I have been looking at all kinds of photographers and on their websites and I found a few that I really liked. The only thing was the cost. My favorite ones that had the kind of style I was looking for had packages starting at $3,000 and up from there. I decided early on in my wedding planning that I wanted to spend $2,500 maximum for my photographer.

I contacted one photographer that I really liked who is located in D.C. and actually did the photography at my older sister's wedding, Diana. I really liked his style and even though his price had gone up since he did my sister's wedding, I was willing to talk to him and figure out a good price. But after 2 emails and one phone call where I left a voicemail (because no one answered) and had given all my information and then never hearing back from him after two weeks, I decided to look elsewhere. I looked into a photographer literally down the street from where we live who was recommended by David's mom, my future mother-in-law.

It's Lee Wedding Studio and when I arrived I thought I would be meeting a woman but it turned out to be a man and he was really nice. He is vietnamese and not only is he a photographer he also has a typewriter, printer, fax machine repair and sale business. I thought that was pretty cool. He knows the business and he presented me with all the wedding packages he has available and told me that for the number 2 wedding package I could receive two photographers, 12 hours of service, 200 printed copies of the best photos, DVD copy of those photos, 30 page photo album, and a 24 x 30 photo with frame. I would receive all of this for under my budget. $2,130 for all of it. 

I was like "Wow, that's a deal!" Under budget and it has everything I want. Here is an example of his photography style.

He has an elegant style and according to a friend of my future mother-in-law's he is a real perfectionist. I am happy with this choice :)

I have another Nephew!!

Welcome to the world baby Archer :) 

 

DOB 12.09.2013 @ 6:11 pm - Congratulations New Mom Buzzie!!

Colors and Decor

These colors are not exact but what I was thinking for reception decor was having autumn orange table cloths with sangria/wine colored napkins. Basically purple over orange.

For the centerpieces I just want a few mason jars filled with berry twigs, grains and maybe a single golden flower mixed in somewhere. Ignore the box because that is not included in my idea but I liked the colors these mason jars were painted.

I got this idea off line about creative ways to display your table seating chart. Since I am going for a Rustic theme I wanted to do my table seating chart on an old window and either write the names myself on glass or print out the names on paper and attach them to each window pane. There is more then one way to display it but I think this is really cute/creative and it goes with the theme.

These are some wedding favors/thank you cards I thought were super cute and I kinda wanted to incorporate them into my wedding program. I really like that tree design and since there is a giant oak tree in front of the plantation house where our venue is, it just seems perfect, like a bow to the venue (which is gorgeous).

These flowers are not exact either but just to give an idea of what I have in mind. I really wanted orange and gold/yellow flowers with purple berries mixed in for my bridesmaids bouquets. My bouquet will probably have some red thrown in there as well. I just don't want any light flowers in there, just pure fall colors with berries to accent the bridesmaids dresses which will be sangria colored which is like a wine purple but a little bit more bright and lively. 

At our venue there is a gazebo where we will be exchanging our vows. The picture is not the exact gazebo but it is the same style. What I have in mind for flower arrangements on the gazebo is just a few green vines with some golden flowers, some grains and other random fall foliages scattered in there. Nothing too extravagent, just simple.

So these are just some ideas I have. I really like them. I'll have to find a florist next after I secure a photographer. Step by step we're getting there.

Revealing my Bridesmaids

So I wanted to wait until after Thanksgiving to tell my girl friends that I wanted to ask them to be bridesmaids. I had this idea that I wanted to send each one a little card that simply stated "will you be a bridesmaid?" and do the same for my maid of honor.

I have 7 total bridesmaids and each bridesmaid is very special in my life. I decided to ask my younger sister Anya to be my maid of honor because we were really close growing up and we are close in age so we had this special bond with one another and I couldn't think of a better person for the role. I decided to ask my older sister Diana to be my matron of honor because she is already married but she is my other sister.  I only have two sisters and I wanted both to be involved in my wedding in a big way.

I asked Dorsa to be one or my bridesmaids because she a third sister to me. I asked Harmony to be a bridesmaid because she's a great friend and we have a lot of fun and laughs together. I asked Laurene and Johanna also because they've always been there for me and they're both very sweet and they're old friends from high school years and college years. The last person I asked was Becky and she is Bryan's girlfriend (who is David's Best Man). She is super cool and the times we have hung out together she has been really cool and genuine so I wanted her to be a part of my wedding as well :)

These are the cards I sent to each girl (although my sisters already knew they were bridesmaids) so they could get a nice note in the mail and find out that I wanted them to part of my special day.

 

Just a fun little idea I found off of etsy. I'm in love with etsy right now. It has been giving me some great ides for my wedding. There are some crafty ideas for centerpieces and wedding favors and thank you notes...it's my new addiction.

I will write another post about some color and decor ideas I have decided on for my wedding.

Yaaaay!!