The Lighted Tree

Lately I have been pretty bad in regards to projects. I tend to have an enormous amount of ideas running through my head that I have a hard time focusing on just one. This results in various semi-completed projects. I have made it my goal to finish up my old projects before I move on to new ones. (We'll see how long this lasts.)


Example A, my wishing tree that I wrote about three months ago. I had brought up the idea of adding LED lights to the vase, and you all agreed that would add some pizazz. Fast forward three months, I still have not added any lights. Honestly, I kind of forgot about it.

While I was at Party City this past weekend with my mom, I walked past a small box of LED string lights. My wishing tree flashed through my mind and so I bought this box of $4 lights.

{Image via Party City}

I almost did not buy them because I wasn't sure how this was all going to work. Would the string and the bulbs show through the beads? Would the beads block the lights? The logistics didn't seem to be in my favor, but I figured for $4 it was worth a shot.

Being that these lights are on a string wire, it actually made it easier instead of buying individual lights. I was able to start the string wire at the bottom and pour the beads into the vase at the same time. This left the on and off switch at the top for easy access. 

My wishing tree went from this:

To this:

The Colorfill beads that I used to fill the vase are designed to hide objects, but let light shine through. It actually worked perfectly! You don't see the on and off switch or the string wire, you only see the light glowing.

This is just what my tree needed to be complete. It looks wonderful during the day, but it looks extra special at night. That tree will shine beautifully once the sun goes down. 

Have you used lights for any of your projects?

Cake Toppers: Part Two

I truly take to heart all of your comments, and you were all especially helpful in my last post about cake toppers. The mini bunting received quite a few votes, but my reservation on that is there will already be quite a bit of bunting throughout the reception. I don't want to overdo the bunting, I think small touches might look better.

Many of you mentioned that the cake is beautiful and very detailed on its own, and does not need any type of intricate topper. Knvprincess143 made a great point by saying that the cake has a shabby chic feel to it. Another option that received many votes were the wooden letters, but everyone said they seemed a little too modern.

I liked the idea of having our last initial on top of the cake because it would add to the beauty, but not take away from it. I set out on a search to find a shabby chic monogram, and this is what I found.

{Image via Etsy}

For a reminder of what the cake looks like, here it is again.

{Image via The Cake Blog/Cake by Wendy McClendon/Photo by Brian Clay}

Imagine that cake topper adorning the top of this cake, surrounded by luscious blush pink and cream flowers. I think that it would add a nice touch to the cake, avoiding the possibility of taking away from the beauty of it.

What do you all think? Is this the winner or should I keep searching?

Cake Toppers

I've always figured we wouldn't have a cake topper. I never understood the point of them, and to be honest...I still don't. I have no idea what purpose they serve, or what the heck we will do with it after the wedding. I mentioned this to Mr. Buck recently, that I wasn't  planning on getting a cake topper.

He looked at me and said, "but why not?" I responded with, "well, it doesn't really serve a purpose. I don't think it is necessary." Again he looks at me with a straight face and says, "So? Is anything really necessary? Just get a cake topper."

So I guess I am getting a cake topper.

Don't get me wrong, I think they are adorable. I guess I was being boring and a little too practical for my own good. I am glad Mr. Buck made me step back and realize...who cares if you don't need it? Have fun and just get one.

Hive, I need your help. I am stuck between various options that I love. First I should probably show you my cake inspiration. I am hoping that we can have this exact cake made, because I am seriously crushing on this ruffled beauty.

{Image via The Cake Blog/Cake by Wendy McClendon/Photo by Brian Clay}

Now that you have an idea of what my cake will (hopefully) look like, let me show you some cake toppers that I have had my eye on.

Option 1: I love the idea of these wooden initials. They are customizable so we can order them in any color that we like.

{Image via Etsy}

Option 2: I am worried this could be a little too rustic, but I think it would play off the cream ruffles nicely.

{Image via Etsy}

Option 3: Tiny little bunting is way cute, and we would most likely order it with our initials.

{Image via Etsy}

Option 4: These tree stumps can be totally customized with any color or objects that you want. You can even add people or keep it with no people.

{Image via Etsy }

{Image via Etsy}

I think all of these are great options, but I can only pick one. Obviously. It would look quite odd having various cake toppers on one cake. 

Hive, what is your favorite out of these cake toppers? Do you plan on having a cake topper?

A Bridesmaid Dress Of The Green Variety

We received a call a few weeks ago that the bridesmaids dresses had arrived. I had not seen the dress in the specific color that I had chose, so I was slightly nervous. Why was I nervous? A famous dude named David Tutera made me nervous, that's why!

I am sure most of us have all seen that awesome show, My Fair Wedding. Now don't get me wrong, I love David Tutera's weddings just as much as the next girl. They are always fabulous in every sense of the word. Yet, I think he gets something wrong when it comes to the color green. As most of you may know, David Tutera despises green when it comes to weddings.

In the article titled David Tutera Dreaming Bigger, written by Jennifer Florendo, he talks about all things wedding. He is quoted as saying, "I don't hate green as a color in anything other than two things: fashion and lighting. When you light people in green, they look sick. It looks like Halloween. And I don't like green in fashion for bridesmaid's dresses, or in general. I just think it's not a great color."

This frightened me. Did I make a mistake choosing green as the color for the bridesmaids dresses? I'll let you decide:

Sister Doe looking quite beautiful in green.

I think we hit the nail on the head with this dress. The style is flattering and the material moves nicely and is breathable. Oh and the color....THE COLOR. I personally think this color of green is marvelous. I even think that David Tutera might be cool with this shade of green. 

Hive, what is your opinion on green in weddings? What do you think of my bridesmaid dresses?

A Little Fear Of Mine

One year ago I started my first DIY project. (Just DIY it!... Sorry, can't help myself.) Since that time I have completed, redone and thrown out many more. In my extra bedroom right now I have boxes and stacks of all my wedding projects. My projects are starting to overtake my home. The other day I walked into the room and tripped over a bag of moss. Because that's totally normal, right?

On another note, remember how I mentioned my color scheme is sage green and blush pink?

I had to stop and ask myself the other day, WHY is it that the only sage color that I currently have throughout the wedding is the bridesmaids dresses? I have no idea what happened. I think I originally tried to force myself into a particular color scheme, then at some point I just said screw it and went with what I thought looked best.

I am anticipating walking into the wedding and seeing all of my projects, design and hard work displayed beautifully together for the first time.

Yet, my concern is that instead it is going to look like a barn threw up mismatched crap with some pretty flowers thrown in.

I know that seems unreasonable, but really...think about it. I have all of these wonderful projects, but I have never seen them together displayed properly. The fact of the matter is that there is no dress rehearsal. There is a rehearsal....but no dress rehearsal.

I won't see everything together until the wedding, and I am just hoping that it will all flow together the way I have envisioned it.

Does anyone else fear that your projects and style won't look the way you had hoped?

An Open House Invite

Last Friday I got home from work to find a beautiful envelope in my mailbox. I quickly opened it to find the most adorable little storybook invitation sent to us from our venue. The invitation is to their open house they are having in just a few short weeks. Invited to this open house are all of the couples getting married there in 2012. At this open house we will be able to taste all of our menu options, hours d'oeuvres, and of course my favorite part, the cake. We also get to view linen and floral vase options.

In this story book is love quotes, information on the open house, history of the venue....and it is all customized with our names.

I have been looking forward to this day ever since I booked the venue over one year ago. Now the time is here, and this little story book invitation made me just that much more excited. I have never heard of a venue doing this before, and I think it is a fantastic idea that they decide to hold an open house for all of their brides and grooms. That way they can cook all the food options and we have an opportunity to try and see everything all at once.

Now if I could just get our family members to stop trying to bribe us to take one of our spots at the open house. Not going to happen! I do promise beautiful photos and yummy descriptions though :)

Does your venue hold something similar to an open house? Are you looking forward to your food tastings as much as I am?

Silk Tulle vs. Bridal Illusion

As of right now, I am still veil-less. My head is naked and I need to find the perfect veil to grace it. I know that I want a fingertip length, single layer veil with an unfinished edge. My problem is that I am having a hard time making a decision on what type of material.

I don't know about you, but I had never heard of silk tulle until Princess Kate. (I'm sorry, I mean Catherine... oh let's get real, she'll always be Princess Kate.) The way her veil flowed was just dreamy.

{Image via The Fan Club}

My only issue is, that if I get a veil made of silk tulle...I am worried it will look like nylons on my head. I know, I know...ridiculous. But it is a serious concern of mine.

The other option is bridal illusion, which is what most veils are made out of.

{Image via Lover.ly}

However, with bridal illusion I am worried about the poof factor. I want the veil to lay nicely, and flow effortlessly.

I need to figure out my veil situation so that I can get it off my mind and move on to obsessing over something else.

Hive, how do you weigh in on the silk tulle vs bridal illusion? If you have tried on a silk tulle veil, what did you think of it?

Music Issues

You guys, I have a confession. I am not one of those cool people that know all the words to every song. Oh no, I am quite the opposite. In fact, I relate fairly well to Phoebe.

{Video via You Tube}

I don't know about you, but ever since that episode I am not able to properly sing Tiny Dancer. It's Phoebe's version all the way. Anyway, I tend to guess lyrics then eventually just assume I am correct and continue singing my version. 

For YEARS I was screwing up AC/DC's Dirty Deeds. I thought the part that said "done dirt cheap" was "thunder chief."  Looking back, I realize those lyrics don't make any sense. I just figured AC/DC is super awesome so they can sing whatever they want, even if it didn't make sense. Until one day my family caught me singing along and quickly paused the song to ask what the heck I was singing. Needless to say, they have been having fun at my expense ever since. 

My point here is that I tend to listen along to the rhythm of songs instead of actually paying attention to the lyrics. A great example is that creepy song by Foster The People, Pumped Up Kicks. It's a happy little diddy, but oh.my.gosh....the lyrics are freaky and probably not okay. Am I right? 

When it has come to picking music for the wedding...I have to admit that I am failing miserably. Again, I am listening to the rhythm of songs instead of taking into account the lyrics. 

One of mine and Mr. Buck's favorite bands is Steve Miller Band. Who doesn't love The Joker? I thought hey, this is perfect for the garter toss. It has the absolute perfect beat. I brought this up to Mr. Buck. His response?

"Miss Doe, do you really think it is a good idea to have a song playing about a midnight toker?"

Well shoot, I guess I never really thought of that. Scratch that song, probably not the best choice. Although it is a fun song, just maybe not for our wedding. 

I keep running into this problem though. I pick out great songs, but the lyrics just don't match up well for the wedding. I need some help in the music department because I am completely hopeless.

Do you have music issues like I do? Has there been a song you wanted to use for your wedding, but won't be able to because of certain lyrics?

Oh That's Not Cute

When it comes to fun wedding things, I have somewhat of a wandering eye. As much as I love my table numbers, I was thinking that maybe I wanted to add some personalization. I'm sure many of you have seen the "through the years" idea for table numbers. I have always loved this, and I started to think that maybe I would like these instead. Here is a mock up of one that I had started on.

Cute, right? Here is the problem.

I stopped being cute around 1996.

I know my family and Mr. Buck all disagree with me and say that it was just a "stage" I went through. To give you a better idea of what I am talking about, picture a mix of Manny from Modern Family and Sue from The Middle.

{Image via Pop Culture Play Pen}

{Image via Confessions of a Mean Mommy}

I was chubby, had glasses and braces, somewhat nerdy....I was just slightly awkward. Okay, I was really awkward. It's totally fine, I know this and I have come to adore those years of mine. It gives me a good laugh from time to time.

However, I am not interested in showcasing this at the wedding. 

My issue is that if I do "through the years" table numbers, then I will end up skipping those awkward years. That might make for some confused guests trying to find their tables. 

I also really do love the table numbers I have already worked on. I simply want to add some personalization somewhere in the wedding of us when we were young. I don't know how to go about this though. 

One thought I have is putting together a collage of all our cute pictures from when we were young. Then I could have it displayed at the welcome table where guests can see it when they arrive. That way I can pick our favorite photos and not have to worry about being sequential. Then, I could do a second collage of photos from the past ten years of us being together. That way it will all tie together.

Nothing is set in stone, but I would like to get this figured out. 

Hive, do you have any suggestions of how I can include cute pictures from when we were young? Do you plan on doing a collage of photos from years past?

A DIY Wedding Hanger

Lately I have been drooling over all of the beautiful wedding hangers out there. I don't know what has come over me, why do I care so much about a hanger? I have no idea, all I know is that I wanted one...bad. At $20-$40 each though, I didn't want one that bad. I started to toy with the idea of crafting my own. It couldn't be that hard, could it? Well, let me show you my first few attempts:

Okay, I know that looks bad. Did I just scare you? I will tell you that it does take a few tries. I promise though that once you get the hang of how the wire bends, it's smooth sailing. I encourage everyone to not be scared of this project and give it a shot. You can make these beautiful hangers for less than $5. So here we go.

These are my supplies that I used. The hangers I got at Target, and the rest I bought at Michaels. That tool that you see there is actually a three in one. It includes needle nose pliers that also bends the wire as well as cuts the wire. The wire and jewels I bought in the jewelry department. Make sure you buy thick enough wire. If it is too thin it will be very easy to bend. Which might sound great, but it is not. It will be much too flimsy and not look good. The thicker wire will be slightly harder to bend but will look much nicer.

The first thing you need to do is just start bending the wire. I don't have any photos of that process. Come on, i'm not superwoman. It's a little difficult to bend wire and take photos. Basically though you just have to wing it. Leave yourself some extra wire on each end and just start bending and twisting. I used a tube of chap stick to wrap the wire around for circular shapes. That helped quite a bit in keeping the circle smooth. The pliers helped in pinching the wire together and bending the shapes. You also want to make sure that each letter is relatively the same size. You really just need to go with it, and if you screw up then start again. You will get the hang of it.

Once your wire is bent, you need to drill a hole in the bottom of the hanger. Mr. Buck helped me with this and he did an awesome job. First he measured the bottom of the hanger and marked where he would make the drill hole. This way it would keep things even.

We then compared bit sizes to the thickness of the wire. We wanted the bit size to be just slightly larger so that the wire will fit in nice and snug. We ended up going with the bit size 5/64.

Drill away, baby!

Next you need to line up your wire underneath the hanger to decide how much of the extra wire you need to trim off. You want it to be centered with the same amount of room on each end. 

{So sorry I have to blur that out.}

Take out your trusty glue gun (mine still has moss stuck to it) and add a tiny bit of glue to the end of the wire. Don't put too much or else it won't fit well into the drill hole.Once the wire is in the hole, just let it sit for a minute to let it fully dry.

I added a white bow to mine and a small Swarovski crystal. It isn't perfect, but I don't think it looks half bad! Especially for under $5. 

{It KILLS me that I have to blur that out.}

What do you think of my wedding hanger? Do you plan on making a special hanger for your gown?

A Good Font

I love me a good font. Seriously, I could sit for hours downloading fun fonts. Part of my job is to design real estate publications and flyer's. Which means I get to have fun with fonts on a daily basis. Although I usually need to stick to the practical fonts and don't get to have fun with the really cool fonts. What calls for a really cool font? Why a wedding of course!

Right now the only part of my invitation suite that I currently have is my possession is the envelopes. They were sent to me early so that I could work on getting them addressed. (I think my invitation designer figured out that I am a crazy lady and need SOMETHING to do while she is working on the rest of my invitations. God bless her.)

This means that before I can start addressing all of my envelopes, I need to find the greatest font of all time. I refuse to pay for fonts, so I do limit myself to the free ones. My goodness though, there are some amazing free fonts out there! Here are the three that I have narrowed down, and I need your help deciding which one to use.

Option 1-There is the always classy  Monterey BT:

Option 2-The intricately beautiful Albermarle Swash:

Option 3-The very graceful Freebooter Script:

Help me out Hive, what font do you like the best? Do you know of any great fonts?

A Helpful Book

Christmas is over and New Years has since past. From the look at the proposals board though, there were quite a few engagements that happened during that time period. This time last year I was recovering from the excitement of my own engagement and discovered a book that proved to be very helpful to me.

The one thing I hear people tell me most often is, "I can't believe how calm and level headed you have been during your planning." I always laugh and say, "well, the engagement isn't over yet. I still have time to be a bridezilla." For the most part though, I am a fairly calm person. However, I read a book at the very beginning of my engagement that helped shape my mindset. It is called, How I Planned Your Wedding, by Susan Wiggs and Elizabeth Wiggs Maas.

{Image via How I Planned Your Wedding}

It is a true story written by a mother and daughter who tell the story of them planning the daughter's wedding. It is an interesting book because not only do you get the brides point of view, but the mother's perspective as well. In fact, both my mom and I read this book at the same time in January 2011.

We all know how it goes soon after you become engaged. You buy every wedding magazine known to man. While it is full of beautiful photos, most prove to be useless and full of the same information and advertisements. (We tend to learn this hundreds of dollars later, and only after our magazine holder starts to fall apart.) How I Planned Your Wedding is quite different, it is full of realistic, helpful, and well thought out advice. It is a very funny book, written by a girl who had to deal with real life issues, and a mother who only wants to make her daughter happy but has to wrestle with her own wants and opinions as well.

I attribute part of my calm during this process due to this book keeping it real with me at the start of my engagement. This is quite a charming book that I recommend to both brides and mother of the brides as well. It is an easy read, one that I finished in only two days.

Oh did I mention there is a shot out to Weddingbee as well? Oh yes, in fact this book is how I discovered Weddingbee! On page 101 and 102, she writes the following:

"...on a blog that consumed my life for a good chunk of the engagement: Weddingbee. Go there at your own peril. Just make sure you don't have anything to do for the next week or so because you'll spend the whole time browsing through message boards and blog entries by other brides-to-be like yourself."

That my friends, is how I discovered this beautiful website. Another reason to pick up this fun book.

It is entertaining and thought provoking. Most importantly though, it puts things into perspective. It helps you realize that though everything may not go as you had planned, if your wedding happened...then everything went perfect.

Do you have any great book finds that helped you out during your planning?