Wedding: My Bouquet

Right away, when we got engaged, I started thinking about my bouquet. Even before everything else (kind of strange I know, but it's how my mind worked at the time) :) When I envisioned how I wanted my bouquet, cascading, long ferns and so much "depth" that you couldn't see where I was holding all those lovelies together!

Something very similar to these:

Then I thought; eh, I don't know - maybe something more unique. Like brooches and gems spread out throughout the bouquet. I quickly realized, in doing internet searches, that these are no only unique but have become very much the new "trend". I usually am not one to follow trends, but this one I fell for. HARD!

PRETTY!!! I was in love with both styles. So I thought, why not combine the two looks?

I was so obsessed committed to finding a bouquet that I loved! I decided right off the bat that I wanted them to be faux flowers, so I could forever keep my masterpiece. I also decided that I wanted to find someone to make this art because, well, I was scared to do it myself and mess up.

In comes my wonderful bouquet "designer"! I found Seth through Etsy (an online store filled with all sorts of homemade goodies and such!) Seth's site is AfternoonDelite, which you have to go check out to see all the beautiful creations!!

All the flowers are made by hand. You can choose from a whole sleuth of fabrics, flower types and jewels. Seth is so great to work with and will customize everything to your liking. As things are being worked on, you will receive pictures of each flower, jewel and/or item just to ensure you like it. Send a message a message today? You'll most likely hear back within a few hours of that message! It's awesome!!!

Right away I had all my items I wanted to include in my bouquet and work with someone on, so when Seth messaged me back and let me know I fit into the schedule; I sent them all over in excitement. Here are some of the inspiration boards I created:

After about a day or so going back and forth through conversation with Seth, I received this listing on Etsy: 

"Flowers: pompom felt balls, cotton hydrangeas, rannunculus, burlap composite flowers, rolled rosettes

Flower colors- few green, ivory and few yellow- orange beads for centers and details on some of them
Fabric - cotton, satin, burlap 
Jewelry- like the photos you provided, not too much bling
color of jewels -green, pearl, vintage, silver (not shiny but metal like) maybe some clear I will send pics when i have the materials all gathered and you can choose the ones you like =)
Skirt: lace or burlap depending on burlap in bouquet ( we can decide this when the whole bouquet is done and ready to be skirt)"

SOOO excited, man! I can't even tell you how perfect this whole thing is going to be. And, here is my final inspiration photo, because Seth said something very similar can be done - and I'M SO IN L-O-V-E with this one!

Yup ladies and gents - this could be my bouquet's twin! :)

So, that is the story of my bouquet. Can't wait to share the finished product. What plans do you have for your bouquet? Are you going with real flowers, faux flowers? Do you have a design in mind, and are you as scared about flowers DIY's as I am?

Wedding: Picking of the Venue

"My Reception!? My Reception!?" 

Sorry, I just had to put that in there! Love that movie!!! :)

Back to talk of the venue. 

Neither of us wanted to get married at a country club. We knew we wanted some place unique with character. Of course, this project was slightly difficult since we aren't close by to just go visit spur of the moment. But, that didn't stop us from sitting down one afternoon, dual laptops, and making our list. 

We each choose from website, after website of venue recommendations. And, in the end, we had a long list. That of course, we broke down to just a few and emailed or called each place to get some information on them.

In the end, we booked appointments with two locations: 

Jones River Trading Company, Kingston, MA

Waypoint Event Center, New Bedford, MA 

Right off the bat, I couldn't wait to see Waypoint. Just from the pictures, it looked beautiful. And, Jones River has such a beautiful outdoor area...I could see us there as well!

After our visits to both locations, it was very evident that Waypoint was the place for us! We are soo excited to be having our wedding there! Not to mention, the coordinator Jen is fabulous to work with!

How many venues did you look at? Did you have trouble narrowing down any of the choices?

just keep spinning...

I took my first spin class.

Since then I've taken about 3 or 4 more.

I'm really enjoying it! If you've never had a chance to try it, but have always wanted to: DO IT!

Yes, to be honest, at first, I was scared. I mean, a room filled with bikes does not exactly scream FUN. But, bite the bullet and just go, it's so much fun!

My first 3 classes were by myself. Then, Shane came with me to one. After that, I'm not sure if I will continue to go alone or if he will commit to it as well.

I'm not sure if all spin classes are like this, but ours is pretty awesome. the instructor's name is Kristy, and she is really great. She sets up some jamming music, shuts off the lights and on with the black lights. From there, it's an hour of ups and downs and some moments of feeling like your legs are going to fall off. She does trivia of all sorts (last time it was listing off all the different types of protein)

DO IT! It's totally worth it and amazing for your body :)