I have to say, there sure are a lot of wedding-related shows on television these days.
Say Yes to the Dress - New York (and there's also one set in Atlanta)
Four Weddings
Bridezillas
Platinum Weddings
Amsale Girls
My Fair Wedding with David Tutera
My Big Redneck Wedding
Amazing Wedding Cakes
My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding
Swanderosa
That's TEN shows, and I don't even know if I have managed to list them all! Seems like TLC and We are dominating, with CMT contributing two shows capturing a country angle.
P stumbled on an airing of Four Weddings one night after tying one on, and when he told me later that he had watched it, his commentary had me cracking up. Boys and wedding shows don't really mix well.
I haven't seen all of these shows, but my favorite is probably Say Yes to the Dress or Amsale Girls - I loved shopping for my gown and I love watching other brides find their perfect fit.
Do you watch wedding shows on television? Which one is your favorite?
Sunday, March 25, 2012
Put a ring on it!
In a twist on tradition, I actually had a hand in Mr. C's selection of my engagement ring. (No pun intended.)
When we finally started seriously talking about getting engaged, Mr. C was concerned about shopping for a ring. He isn't much for shopping. This is a man I have to drag to the store a couple of times a year to get new jeans, or whatever. I had actually had my eye on a ring I had spotted on an antique jewelry website, and it turned out the office for that store was in the diamond district, not too far from where we both work in Manhattan. So we decided to go there together after work one day in August.
We went down some back hallways in the bowels of one of the big stores on 47th Street until we found the right office, and scooted inside a room smaller than our closet, to meet with Stu. After introductions and confirmation of what we were there to see, Stu pulled a folded piece of paper out of a filing cabinet, unfolded it over the desk, and out spilled the ring. I almost gasped out loud - it was even more beautiful in person!
The band size was too small for me to slip it all the way on, but I could picture it fitting properly. The cushion cut diamond actually looked bigger than I expected, but not in a "too big" way, and the trapezoids on either side seemed so unique. I kept picking it up and looking at it, then putting it back down. And then picking it back up again...and putting it back down. It was so pretty!
While I was mesmerized by the ring, Mr. C and Stu chatted about the ring's value, diamonds in general, and looked at a couple of settings without diamonds, and a couple of loose stones. Then we left. Mr. C said he wasn't really sure how to rate the ring, since it was the first he'd seen. I told him I thought it was beautiful, and tried to keep my crazy "cake" face from overtaking my body.
Since Mr. C wanted a bit of "comparison shopping," for kicks, we walked down to Tiffany's. We went to the engagement floor, which was neat, but the salespeople seemed rather disinterested, they only had one setting for cushion cut diamonds, and the markup was totally crazy. Still, it gave Mr. C an idea of what else was out there.
Later that week, I popped over to Michael C. Fina to try on a bunch of rings on my own, and couldn't find anything I liked better than the first one. I told Mr. C so when I got home.
That was pretty much the end of it, until about six weeks later, when I noticed that the first ring was showing up marked as "sold" online! I asked him casually if he had bought the ring yet, and he told me he hadn't. When I pressed him, he stuck to his guns and said no, he really hadn't bought the ring. I couldn't believe it! After all that, it was gone?! I tearfully informed him the website said it was sold, and he sighed and told me that he had quibbled over the price with Stu, and they weren't able to reach an agreement. He figured Stu must have sold it to someone else in the meantime. He assured me that he had some other jewelers bidding to make a replica, but I was sad. It had just felt like that ring was meant to be my ring. I apologized to Mr. C for making a mess of things, and for acting totally crazy, and reassured him that I would love whatever he chose.
Fast forward to our proposal in October - when Mr. C got down on one knee, I was completely shocked to see "my" ring in his hand! Turns out he had completely pulled one over on me, and his story about the ring being sold to someone else was all a big fat lie! He had gone back to purchase the ring the following week, and had been waiting for the right weekend to propose ever since.
So now you've all learned I'm totally gullible, not to mention I act like a bower bird when presented with sparkly things. But boy, do I love my ring.
How did your engagement ring come to be yours? Did you shop with your significant other, or did he/she go it alone?
When we finally started seriously talking about getting engaged, Mr. C was concerned about shopping for a ring. He isn't much for shopping. This is a man I have to drag to the store a couple of times a year to get new jeans, or whatever. I had actually had my eye on a ring I had spotted on an antique jewelry website, and it turned out the office for that store was in the diamond district, not too far from where we both work in Manhattan. So we decided to go there together after work one day in August.
We went down some back hallways in the bowels of one of the big stores on 47th Street until we found the right office, and scooted inside a room smaller than our closet, to meet with Stu. After introductions and confirmation of what we were there to see, Stu pulled a folded piece of paper out of a filing cabinet, unfolded it over the desk, and out spilled the ring. I almost gasped out loud - it was even more beautiful in person!
While I was mesmerized by the ring, Mr. C and Stu chatted about the ring's value, diamonds in general, and looked at a couple of settings without diamonds, and a couple of loose stones. Then we left. Mr. C said he wasn't really sure how to rate the ring, since it was the first he'd seen. I told him I thought it was beautiful, and tried to keep my crazy "cake" face from overtaking my body.
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| Image via Hyperbole And A Half, which cracks me up every time. / Drawing by Allie Brosch. |
Since Mr. C wanted a bit of "comparison shopping," for kicks, we walked down to Tiffany's. We went to the engagement floor, which was neat, but the salespeople seemed rather disinterested, they only had one setting for cushion cut diamonds, and the markup was totally crazy. Still, it gave Mr. C an idea of what else was out there.
That was pretty much the end of it, until about six weeks later, when I noticed that the first ring was showing up marked as "sold" online! I asked him casually if he had bought the ring yet, and he told me he hadn't. When I pressed him, he stuck to his guns and said no, he really hadn't bought the ring. I couldn't believe it! After all that, it was gone?! I tearfully informed him the website said it was sold, and he sighed and told me that he had quibbled over the price with Stu, and they weren't able to reach an agreement. He figured Stu must have sold it to someone else in the meantime. He assured me that he had some other jewelers bidding to make a replica, but I was sad. It had just felt like that ring was meant to be my ring. I apologized to Mr. C for making a mess of things, and for acting totally crazy, and reassured him that I would love whatever he chose.
Fast forward to our proposal in October - when Mr. C got down on one knee, I was completely shocked to see "my" ring in his hand! Turns out he had completely pulled one over on me, and his story about the ring being sold to someone else was all a big fat lie! He had gone back to purchase the ring the following week, and had been waiting for the right weekend to propose ever since.
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| So sparkly! I snapped this with my phone the day after we got engaged, just before we got on the road back to NYC. That's Ford F-150 upholstery right there, y'all. :) I am also hiding a completely destroyed manicure (remember all that teak sanding?) |
So now you've all learned I'm totally gullible, not to mention I act like a bower bird when presented with sparkly things. But boy, do I love my ring.
How did your engagement ring come to be yours? Did you shop with your significant other, or did he/she go it alone?
Saturday, March 24, 2012
This must be the place...
After we decided that Austin was the city we wanted to get married in, I embarked on a mission to find the right location. Though we didn't know too much about what we wanted, one thing I knew for sure - we are not ballroom people. No beige walls, hotel carpet, or uplighting necessary.
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| Ixnay on the allroombay. Image via / photo by Ars Magna Studio |
If we were gonna do this thing in Texas, I wanted it to feel like Texas. Mr. C and I also agreed we wanted the ceremony and reception to be held in the same place, and I was hoping for an outdoor ceremony. After much internet research and finding some locations that had available dates in the fall, I decided to visit four locations in Austin:
Cedar Bend - This beautiful tucked-away house on the outskirts of Austin had a lovely yard with a pretty ceremony site, great property, and a rustic feel. The proprietor, Jillian, was sweet as could be, and she and her husband were the first to get married here a few years ago. They also offer all-inclusive packages including florals Jillian does herself! The space seemed to me like it would be great for 100-150, but with 150 or more, some tables would wind up being outside the covered locations. Rain plan = renting a tent. Since we didn't really know how many guests we'd be expecting, but we were thinking right around 150, that was something to think about. In addition, the tables would be outside - no air conditioning or heating if it the weather is too hot or too cold.
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| Image via Cedar Bend Events / Photo by Paige Newton Photography |
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| Image via Cedar Bend Events / Photo by JWG Photography |
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| Image via / photo by Ku Photography |
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| Image via / photo by Urban Grey Photography |
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| Image via / photo by Elizabeth Jayne |
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| Image via / photo by Studio 563 |
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| Image via / photo by Nessa K Photography |
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| Image via / photo by Nessa K Photography |
Once I got home to NYC I talked with Mr. C about those two options. And we chose....
Pecan Grove! The site coordinator, Ashley, was super on top of things and seemed like a great girl to work with. I loved both the ceremony site and the pavilion itself, and they had a few changes lined up for the winter to make it all even better. The food couldn't be beat, and the location would be comfortable for us no matter how many guests we wound up with. We would have to figure out some transportation options, but we were okay with that being part of the deal. And with Austin being a destination for us and so many of our guests, we figured why not give them something to talk about after attending our Texas wedding?! A meal of famous Salt Lick BBQ is an experience everyone should have!
I called Ashley as soon as we decided, and we locked in our date in late September. Not quite October, but close enough...a September bride I would be!
How did you choose your wedding venue? Was anything too "wedding-y" for you? Did the guest experience factor heavily into your decision?
Friday, March 23, 2012
Friday fun
I know I haven't gotten too far yet with sharing all the fun planning I've been doing for our wedding, but I'm so excited about this, I have to share: I stopped for a bit of shopping on my way home tonight, and stumbled across this little beauty at the jewelry counter.
And just like that, I have a wedding necklace!
It just might be the easiest thing I've done so far. (Aside from saying "yes," I suppose!)
Did you find your jewelry easily, or embark on a long search?
And just like that, I have a wedding necklace!
It just might be the easiest thing I've done so far. (Aside from saying "yes," I suppose!)
Did you find your jewelry easily, or embark on a long search?
Wednesday, March 21, 2012
First things first...
Mr. C and I kept our engagement to ourselves for that night, and most of the next day, and then started to call our parents and friends to share the happy news. The first question they would ask us was usually about when and where the wedding would be. We quickly realized we needed to figure that out, or we'd be hearing that question a LOT.
Deciding on the time of year was pretty simple. We wanted to avoid the main sailing season, and I've always loved autumn, so October would generally be our target month.
Deciding on the location was a bit more of a discussion. We started with our current hometown: New York. We thought about having the wedding in New York for about, I don't know, .2 seconds. We both agreed that as much as we love living here, it isn't the most "us" (nor the most economical!) so we crossed it off our list. Based on our love of sailing, next we thought about Newport or some other coastal town on Long Island Sound, but they all seemed like they might be kind of hard to get to for our guests. So we turned to our home states. Mr. C's home state of Michigan, while beautiful, didn't seem quite as "us" as mine, the Lone Star State of Texas...but then my hometown of Houston didn't hold that much appeal for us. And then we thought of Austin!
Austin is a city that Mr. C and I haven't actually ever been to together, strangely enough, but we've both visited on separate trips. Cool city with great music, fun activities, easy to get to via car or plane...and most of all....awesome barbecue! Oh, it just seemed like the right choice. Thus began the journey of planning a Texas wedding from all the way up here in NYC.
Did your friends and family demand details right away? How did you pick your wedding location?
Deciding on the time of year was pretty simple. We wanted to avoid the main sailing season, and I've always loved autumn, so October would generally be our target month.
Deciding on the location was a bit more of a discussion. We started with our current hometown: New York. We thought about having the wedding in New York for about, I don't know, .2 seconds. We both agreed that as much as we love living here, it isn't the most "us" (nor the most economical!) so we crossed it off our list. Based on our love of sailing, next we thought about Newport or some other coastal town on Long Island Sound, but they all seemed like they might be kind of hard to get to for our guests. So we turned to our home states. Mr. C's home state of Michigan, while beautiful, didn't seem quite as "us" as mine, the Lone Star State of Texas...but then my hometown of Houston didn't hold that much appeal for us. And then we thought of Austin!
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| Image via Flickr / photo by Philip Kromer |
Did your friends and family demand details right away? How did you pick your wedding location?
Tuesday, March 20, 2012
Popping the question...
Our engagement was a very special day indeed...but before I tell you about that day, you should know that during the four-year period between when we met and when we got engaged, we moved in together (a year after we met), experienced job changes (both desired and undesired!), cooked many great meals with each other and our friends, and spent lots and lots of time sailing.
Mr. C has been sailing since he was a kid, and he introduced me to sailing the first summer we were dating, by taking me out for a week on his sailboat on Lake Michigan. I absolutely loved it, and convinced him to ship his boat out to NYC so we could enjoy it more often.
After she made it to the east coast by way of an 18-wheeler (!), we spent two summers sailing her in the waters of the Hudson River, Raritan Bay, and Long Island Sound, and then in the spring of 2011, Mr. C sold her to a friend of ours. But we couldn't go without a water-going vessel for long...within two months, we had found and purchased a larger sailboat, together! Osprey is our new boat, and we spent last summer sailing her all over the NYC/Connecticut/Rhode Island area. We even took her on an extended racing trip that included stops on Block Island and Martha's Vineyard.
All that back story is to explain what we were doing when we got engaged. At the end of the sailing season, we had spent all day in the boatyard in Rhode Island on October 8th, sanding Osprey's teak toe rail. Sanding teak is dirty work - the dust gets everywhere. At about 4:30, Mr. C told me to wrap it up, but I wanted to keep working! We were so close to being done... He somehow convinced me that we needed to finish up while it was still light out, and he suggested we head to our yacht club's clubhouse on Narragansett Bay for showers, drinks and maybe some dinner. Not suspecting a thing at this point, I agreed that sounded good, and debated whether or not to spend time washing my (very teak dust-filled) hair - y'all know when you wash your hair you take so much longer than a guy does to get presentable! He stealthily managed to suggest that I might want to wash my hair, again without raising suspicion! I was totally clueless as to what was about to take place.
While I was still getting ready in the women's showers at the club, I heard the cannon go off signaling the end of the day and the lowering of the flag, and I rushed to wrap it up and get out to the lawn before the sunset disappeared. Sunset is my favorite time of day, and I knew the view would be incredible overlooking the harbor. Mr. C and I got glasses of wine and headed out to the adirondack chairs on the lawn to enjoy the view. Shortly after we sat down, Mr. C began to talk to me about our life together and how happy he was...and then he said "so, I was wondering"...and suddenly there he was, down on one knee in front of me with a beautiful ring in his hand! The words "will you marry me?" came out of his mouth, and I immediately started to shake and cry. I was so utterly, completely surprised, I even said "are you serious?!" more than once - and he likes to remind me of that repeatedly. I finally said yes, after what felt like forever, but Mr. C says wasn't really all that long (I'm glad one of us was calm!)
Also unbeknownst to me, he had arranged for friends of ours to be behind us photographing the whole thing, so we have a whole series of happy photos to document the event:
Surveying the harbor:
In shock as he puts the ring on my finger:
Mr. C has been sailing since he was a kid, and he introduced me to sailing the first summer we were dating, by taking me out for a week on his sailboat on Lake Michigan. I absolutely loved it, and convinced him to ship his boat out to NYC so we could enjoy it more often.
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| First sailing adventure was a success, and boat is ready to ship to NYC! |
After she made it to the east coast by way of an 18-wheeler (!), we spent two summers sailing her in the waters of the Hudson River, Raritan Bay, and Long Island Sound, and then in the spring of 2011, Mr. C sold her to a friend of ours. But we couldn't go without a water-going vessel for long...within two months, we had found and purchased a larger sailboat, together! Osprey is our new boat, and we spent last summer sailing her all over the NYC/Connecticut/Rhode Island area. We even took her on an extended racing trip that included stops on Block Island and Martha's Vineyard.
All that back story is to explain what we were doing when we got engaged. At the end of the sailing season, we had spent all day in the boatyard in Rhode Island on October 8th, sanding Osprey's teak toe rail. Sanding teak is dirty work - the dust gets everywhere. At about 4:30, Mr. C told me to wrap it up, but I wanted to keep working! We were so close to being done... He somehow convinced me that we needed to finish up while it was still light out, and he suggested we head to our yacht club's clubhouse on Narragansett Bay for showers, drinks and maybe some dinner. Not suspecting a thing at this point, I agreed that sounded good, and debated whether or not to spend time washing my (very teak dust-filled) hair - y'all know when you wash your hair you take so much longer than a guy does to get presentable! He stealthily managed to suggest that I might want to wash my hair, again without raising suspicion! I was totally clueless as to what was about to take place.
While I was still getting ready in the women's showers at the club, I heard the cannon go off signaling the end of the day and the lowering of the flag, and I rushed to wrap it up and get out to the lawn before the sunset disappeared. Sunset is my favorite time of day, and I knew the view would be incredible overlooking the harbor. Mr. C and I got glasses of wine and headed out to the adirondack chairs on the lawn to enjoy the view. Shortly after we sat down, Mr. C began to talk to me about our life together and how happy he was...and then he said "so, I was wondering"...and suddenly there he was, down on one knee in front of me with a beautiful ring in his hand! The words "will you marry me?" came out of his mouth, and I immediately started to shake and cry. I was so utterly, completely surprised, I even said "are you serious?!" more than once - and he likes to remind me of that repeatedly. I finally said yes, after what felt like forever, but Mr. C says wasn't really all that long (I'm glad one of us was calm!)
Also unbeknownst to me, he had arranged for friends of ours to be behind us photographing the whole thing, so we have a whole series of happy photos to document the event:
Surveying the harbor:
In shock as he puts the ring on my finger:
Many, many hugs:
I have to say, Mr. C isn't usually a romantic, but what an amazing memory he created for both of us by proposing the way he did. The photos make it all the better - he knew just what I would love the most.
How did your engagement happen? Was it a planned event? A simple question? Do you have photos, or just sweet memories?
Monday, March 19, 2012
Time flies for flying pigs!
Wow, I can't believe how fast time has gone by. I had every intention of starting this blog off back in January, but alas, it was not to be. I'm back, though, and ready to regale you with wedding planning tales.
Where to start?! I suppose at the beginning would be best. How did two crazy kids like us find each other, anyway?
match.com. Yep. P winked at me online four and a half years ago, and we are one of those match.com success stories. He likes to say we met at a bar, which is technically true, but before we met at a bar...we met online. We did have a fabulous first date at a bar, which followed P's dating formula - wine at the first bar, location change to bar with bench seats, sweet kiss on the curb. Seems like it worked...because here we are, engaged to be married!
Now, if you go to the match.com blog, they will show you all the fun success stories of couples that met on match.com. (We're not listed - maybe I'll send in a note!) In 2011, they published statistics that said that 12 couples who met on match.com get married or engaged every day. I wonder how that compares to people who met in college, or at a bar?
I'm hoping to incorporate a humorous match.com profile writing activity into our wedding, for kicks. Maybe a mad-lib style profile, on the back of the ceremony program, or at the dining tables? Could be fun!
Do you know any couples who eventually married after meeting online?
Where to start?! I suppose at the beginning would be best. How did two crazy kids like us find each other, anyway?
match.com. Yep. P winked at me online four and a half years ago, and we are one of those match.com success stories. He likes to say we met at a bar, which is technically true, but before we met at a bar...we met online. We did have a fabulous first date at a bar, which followed P's dating formula - wine at the first bar, location change to bar with bench seats, sweet kiss on the curb. Seems like it worked...because here we are, engaged to be married!
Now, if you go to the match.com blog, they will show you all the fun success stories of couples that met on match.com. (We're not listed - maybe I'll send in a note!) In 2011, they published statistics that said that 12 couples who met on match.com get married or engaged every day. I wonder how that compares to people who met in college, or at a bar?
I'm hoping to incorporate a humorous match.com profile writing activity into our wedding, for kicks. Maybe a mad-lib style profile, on the back of the ceremony program, or at the dining tables? Could be fun!
Do you know any couples who eventually married after meeting online?
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