Conference for the Engaged

What a weekend! Yesterday from 8am-4pm Sig. Keswick and I were in Vienna for the Arlington Diocese's Conference for the Engaged. As part of our Pre-Cana preparation, we are supposed to attend a conference such as this or meet one-on-one with a married couple for several times in addition to meeting with our priest. We chose this option as it was easiest to schedule between my work and his school projects, etc. Honestly, it was a very positive experience! We were curious and a little anxious on the drive in the wee hours of the morning but we enjoyed it (or at least most of it). It helped us learn more and understand the Catholic church's perspective on the sanctity of marriage and really reminded me how spiritually significant and important of an undertaking we will be making in less than six months - and I liked that. Sometimes you get caught up having the perfect wedding (however you define it) and it was a nice reminder how the marriage will last long after the cake, the flowers, the favors, even the photographs and memories.

We also sat a table with 3 other couples and they were really great to get to know. One couple even goes to the same church as us AND the bride's Filipino, so I felt an automatic connection from her from the beginning - especially since I feel like I know nothing about Filipino weddings but am dying to learn more but don't know where to look. The other two couples were also really nice and all 3 brides and I exchanged contact info so we can hopefully get together to talk about our experiences, good and bad. Especially with all my far flung bridesmaids, I really hope it will help me stay motivated and excited to be able to share the excitement and frustrations with someone else that's going through the same thing and that can empathize. (Although one of my girlfriends from school just got engaged this weekend and I am more than elated for her and her fiance *eeek* so crazy to say that! And I can't wait to share all my knowledge with her so that she doesn't experience the same confusion or stress that I did, or at least help her avoid doing so.)

Even if you're not Catholic or religious, I strongly encourage everyone to undergo some kind of marital preparation. There are so many *important* things to know/learn/ remember after the honeymoon phase that will help a marriage last, like communication and sacrifice, that we often forget in this fast-paced life.

Bridesmaids Dresses: Part 5 of 5

Yay!! After several months of searching, we have our bridesmaids dresses - and they're ordered and paid for. I went to the Amsale Bridesmaids Dress Buying Party at Hitched a week ago eeeearly (5 PM) - yes, I actually left work 30 minutes early just to make sure I got there on time. Kati and I went straight to the chiffon dresses (new for Spring 2009). We / she tried on all the beauties I first spied online and we fell in love with them all over again. They were so flattering, forgiving, and I loooooove the dresses in Cerise.

And now, for our lovelies:
Amsale 456c (shown in Cerise, crinkled chiffon)Amsale 454c
Amsale 455c

Amsale 450cAmsale 451c
I decided to pick out 5 dresses so the girls could choose the dress that's most flattering on their figure and they felt most comfortable getting and they will all be wearing the same color in Cerise, which is my favorite color of all time. Seriously.

It was kind of a tedious process to order them as I was seeing them for the first time during the trunk show and then had to decide that night if we were going to get them to take advantage of the 15% discount. So we tried on dresses, I looked for wifi at 2 different internet cafes to email the girls the pictures, couldn't find one, and just called all 7 of them. They were all on board if I thought they were a good choice, and Kati and I definitely loved them. Some were concerned if they would have to wear a strapless bra under all of them, I assured them that was not the case with Amsale 454 (the halter top with ruffles) - it's definitely thick enough at the top at the neck to wear with a converted strapless/halter bra. Some were a little concerned about the color, too, but Kati and I have very different coloring (she's more fair and porcelain colored and I'm more olive toned) and we both thought they still looked good on both of us. I didn't necessarily have to convince the girls, but I definitely wanted them to feel comfortable in trusting me. My sister, the Maid of Honor, will likely go with a longer, tea length option rather than the cocktail dress to look a little different from the rest.

I do hope they turn out well. I just love them so much and really have high hopes that the girls will like them too and that they'll look as stunning as I think they will.

Free Shutterfly Photobook

Hi all. I've been trying to think of a good keepsake to take the place of the traditional guest book: Signed wedding barrel stave to use as a lazy susan, signed matted picture, and of course a photo book. Sig. Keswick isn't a big fan of the signed matted picture, so my choices were narrowed slightly last night. And then, this morning, lo and behold, in my Inbox was an email from Shutterfly: Free 8x8 Photobook until March 10! Just visit their website and get started :) I've already begun mine.

Photo: Courtesy of Shutterfly

Music Sheet Envelopes - loooove

Browsing this morning and discovered the wonderful work of Tracy K, aka Adnagam on Etsy. According to her shop announcement, "I'm like the In-n-Out of paper. They only sell burgers and I only sell envelopes (and sometimes notecards.) I feel like the art of handwriting notes is escaping us, so send a friendly note and make someone's day! "

I saw these beautiful sheet music envelopes and had to share. They're so bright and fun yet simple and elegant. They'd be great if you're musicians or just love the look of something vintage. She's also on Twitter! Happy <3's Day!

Save the Date Handkerchiefs

Mike and I are busy finishing our Save the Dates to mail out on Monday. But, since we're on the subject of Save the Dates, I thought I'd post a couple that I'm almost sad we didn't think of (almost because I still love mine and how well they tie in with our wedding).

These finds are thanks to Lucky Luxe Couture Correspondence via Elizabeth Anne Designs and Victoria with Roses.

Happy Valentine's Day everyone!

James Beard Award Semi-Finalists!

So excited to see the latest trim for this year's James Beard Award nominations! Grub Street has the list. There are some definite surprises - but in a good way. Congratulations to Heart's Delight chefs Gabrielle Hamilton, Bryan Voltaggio, Josiah Citrin, David Myers, Kendal Duque for their nominations and making this round of cuts!

Goin' to the Chapel . . .

This weekend Mike took his LSAT (yaaay!!!) and then we drove down to Charlottesville to meet the priest of the church where we will be marrying (and see the church for the first time ever!!) and also meet with the florist (more on that in a coming post). The drive down was marvelous. It was warm and sunny and we were giddy from Mike's recent liberation. We (almost) got lost because of the GPS when we were almost to the church. Rural Virginia is no place for GPS, even if you're 20 miles from Charlottesville. However, we arrived with 7 minutes to spare before mass. I'd seen pictures of the inside from a former bride on The Knot but I was so excited to see it firsthand. I don't think I've ever been that excited while sitting in church. I was just taking everything in. Mike could attest. I was giddy. However, when I went up to communion, I had the hotel's phone number on my hand and was so embarrassed when I held my hand up to receive the host - from the priest!

Anyways, the church where our future wedding will be is so cute, even in the doldrums of February and the priest was very nice. I wanted to take more pictures, but Mike wouldn't let me. So I'll leave this with you. It's a bit more modern, and not what you would typicall think of as a "quaint wedding chapel" but it's lovely on the inside and actually feels like a holy place, which was important to me. I didn't want to get married in a place that I didn't feel "Catholic."

Bridesmaids Dresses: Part 4 of 5 (hopefully)

As promised, here is the report from our visit to Hitched in Georgetown last week. (Don't forget about their Bridesmaids Dress Buying Party this Thursday!) Below are the stand-outs:
Callie by Thread: Elijah by Thread (not sure why it's a guy's name):

And Kiki by Thread. We also loved these dresses by Simple Silhouettes:

A-Line: def sans sash, but that's just me. I'm trying to go for the "not bridesmaid" look.

Empire: This was much cuter and very flattering on my friend.

There was also a strapped cocktail option that my friends both liked, but it's not online. These are more traditional and in the $250-$275 range.

Comparisons: Kat and Mallory* and loved the quality and feel of the Threads dresses, but they're significantly more expensive -$350 to $375. They also thought they were the most flattering, but they're not as fun and the colors are okay (bright-ish pink but with an orange "tinge" in the silk shantung) for what I'm looking for. Right now, I'm leaning towards the Melissa Sweets from my previous post, some Amsale dresses, and the Threads dresses, based on color, dress type, and price. The Threads dresses come in an awesome color they call "Popsickle." It's kinda bright, but lots of fun, however, not sure if all my girls will be 100% pleased about it, I'm guessing maybe 85%.

With so many choices, it's rather difficult to pick just a few! I had decided to give my girls options between at least 2 dresses, but it'll probably be around 3 as some have requested a dress that didn't require a strapless bra - oh for the "blessed" among us. *le sigh.*

Honeymoon Giveaway in Greece

Attention all! J.Crew is giving away a free honeymoon in Greece on their website!

According to the website, it's a "trip for two to Santorini, Greece, 50night stay at the luxurious Tsitouras Collection Hotel and beach-ready J.Crew wardrobe for two*."

To enter, click here.

Bridesmaids Dresses: Part 3 (of 4 or 5)

After my horrific experience at Jingles in Richmond, my friends and I visited Bella Rosa. It was WONDERFUL. They had so many dresses, the store was a great size, we didn't need an appointment but easily got a dressing room, and the sales associate was so attentive and professional - she even repeatedly apologized for not being able to be with us more because they were so busy - and they were busy! My friend Bekah tried on maybe 12 dresses while Brittany and I rated them. It was so different from our first experience - we were there for over an hour! Because this was our first serious research trip, we couldn't place an order, but she was happy to give us swatches of the top 6 dresses we liked. (More on that later.)

Late last week, two wonderful friends went with me to a third store to look at bridesmaids dresses. This was at Priscilla of Boston in Tyson's Corner (after stopping at Tiffany's next door). I had a few in mind from doing more research online with Bekah and from the dresses we liked at Bella Rosa. And now, for the dresses:

Vineyard Style 1414

Amsale Style G456C in Cranberry (in love with the color)

Melissa Sweet STYLE MS307

Melissa Sweet STYLE MS219

Melissa Sweet STYLE MS120

Some runners up, but unfortunately, they don't come in colors that would go with our wedding:

http://watters.com/product.php?coll=wtoo&showid=751
Waters, too STYLE 306

http://watters.com/product.php?style=4331
Waters & Waters STYLE 4331

http://watters.com/product.php?showid=973&coll=watters&style=4335
Waters & Waters STYLE 4335

**Photos are courtesy of Priscilla of Boston and Amsale.

All these dresses came in GREAT colors (Cranberry / Raspberry). However, they all seem a bit expensive (in the mid to high $200's). But they're quite cute. My girls loved the last 3 Melissa Sweets, and I do, too. However, my friends tonight said they felt like the Melissa Sweets weren't as good quality as the dresses we tried on tonite (Simple Silhouettes and Threads). However, Simple Silhouettes and Threads are up to $200 more!! * le sigh *

Soon, I'll post about my visit to Hitched in D.C.

Rebuffed: Bridesmaids Dresses Part 2

Two weekends ago I visited Richmond to see some friends and go bridesmaids dress shopping. We visited 2 different stores and had 2 very different experiences. The first was Jingles. I had called them 3 days prior to our visit to see if we needed an appointment to look at dresses (they were fully booked for appointments because of a trunk show). My friend had tried to prepare us as she had researched them prior to our visit and reported that she'd read comments online that the shop can be a little snobby, even though they have some nice dresses.

The woman who answered told me no, only if I wanted my girls to be measured for their dresses. When we arrived, the first woman who greeted us asked if we had an appointment. I told them about my phone conversation. This first woman was very nice and even apologetic that their dressing rooms were all in use, but she may be able to squeeze us in after a group of girls was finished. I thanked her and we began our browsing. A second woman asked us if we had an appointment, ready to record my answer on her trusy clipboard. I told her the same and she was very rude and said, "Well, we you need an appointment. We're very busy today, with the trunk show and all." I told her we understood and we would be okay just browsing if if need be. A THIRD woman asked us the same question (mind you, the shop is very small and the section with the bridesmaids dresses is right in front of the front desk, so even if you wanted to have a quiet conversation with a potential client, you would still only be standing a maximum of 10 feet away from anyone else in the store! Well, the first one was able to get us into a dressing room 15 minutes before her 2:30 appointment. Between the 3 of us, we were able to try on 7 different dresses in less than 10 minutes. On our way out, we said thank you and let them know that the dressing room was available. We will not be returning.

Paying tribute

Last fall I asked my maternal grandmother, my last living grandparent, to send me something that I could keep with me on my wedding day in case she wasn't able to travel from the Philippines. I wanted her to know that she was very special and her presence at my wedding was very important to me. Within a few weeks, I had received a card signed by her (although I could tell it was difficult for her to manage) and a few keepsakes of hers: 1) a rosary because Catholicism is very important to her, 2) a handerkerchief because she's always warm and 3) a fan because she has a strong Spanish heritage (and she's always warm). She always had either a fan or a handkerchief with her. I was very touched when she sent me all three, along with her card.

Unfortunately, Lola Rose (Lola = "grandmother" in Tagalog) passed away early last Wednesday morning. My family, including my sister in London, flew to California to say our last goodbyes to her before they sent her to the Philippines. Her death was, and probably will be for some time, especially difficult for my mother, sister, and me because we were closest with her and we all looked up to her. She was the model wife and mother to us, ever loving, selfless, and kind. She was intelligent, witty, and funny and always knew the right thing to say when you came to her with your problems. Lola once told Ingrid when Ingrid said she looked lovely that day, "Dear, beauty is 99% youth."

Now I struggle with the best way to remember her at our wedding. I know she'll be with us in spirit, but I still want to recognize her . However, I don't want to seem inconsiderate or rude if I don't recognize my other 3 grandparents especially. I thought about having their wedding pictures displayed somewhere. I also thought about having a rose in the front row in memory of her, but will I need 6 roses (both pairs of my grandparents and one set of Signor Keswick's)? That may seem excessive and lose its meaning. I definitely think simpler is better, but finding something appropriate and fitting for such a great woman is a tall order.