Sneak Peek: Engagement Invites DIY Style

Happy Friday...

Who is happy the weekend is finally here? I am!

We're hitting the road to Charolettesville tonight and I'm excited! We're going to an alumni event at Aaron's alma mater and meeting up with a good, good friend of mine from college. Woo hoo.

We'll be back on Sunday and attending a tasting hosted by Marco Polo Caterering. Yum! I'll have plenty of details on all of that next week, as well as some pictures of our engagement party invitations (woo hoo)!

Here's a sneak peek...

Have a wonderful, wonderful weekend!

Butterfly Ribbons as Escort Cards

I talked a little in my intro about my love for butterflies. Everyone knows me for loving butterflies and people always give me butterfly stuff: stationary, artwork, jewlery, and just about anything with butterflies on it.

At first, I didn't want to submit to a butterfly theme for our wedding, because it was too themey, but t it kept coming up - my love for butterflies that is - and if you remember, Mr. B proposed at the butterfly cottage.

So finally one day my co-bride (a coworker who's engaged), suggested I go ahead and submit to my original idea of having a butterfly theme. She said, "You're getting married in a garden, so it can be garden-chic... with butterflies!"

I love it!

We could totally pull off garden chic and I would love to see hints of butterflies everywhere.

Of course with any new wedding revelation comes with it a search through the blog and google images; and I have to admit garden-chic with butterflies has faired well thus far because the inspiration is flowing abundantly.

Take this amazing escort card display:

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Tell me you aren't loving this idea! I am so, so, so excited about this! It could really work for us being that our guests will enter the reception from the patio area outside. Do you think we could pull this off? I can just see the pretty ribbons swinging in the wind!
Tell me about your theme!

Tell me about your escort cards too!

Oxon Hill in the Spring

I told you Mama Brooch and Mr. B visited our venue not long after we picked it, but I couldn't bethere because I had to work. Well, I finally had my chane to check it out and ironically, it was exactly one year and one day before our wedding! It was my first time being there since we had found it, more than 6 months prior and can I say it was sooooo much better than I imagined it? Yay!

It's really hard to describe the feeling I had pulling up. I was really, really anxious all morning to get there and when we finally did, I just felt overwhelmingly proud and like I wanted to show off all the little details of it all! My two best friends (the FSIL and MOH) went with me. They were so sweet to take off work and show such enthusaism about seeing it! We went out the night prior (it was a girl's night out and one of my other bridesmaids was there), they slept over, and the next morning we headed to over into Oxon Hill. Just like me, they were pretty impressed pulling up. I'll never forget my FSIL saying, "oh wow!" I can hear her saying it now!

I had this whole debate about whether we'd walk in the front door or walk around the house to the garden (which is how our guests will do it the day of our wedding). They said they wanted to do it the they everyone would and so we decided to walk through the garden. I'm so glad that we did! I was speechless when we turned the corner! I was beside myself looking at all the flowers, lush green trees, and potomac river in the distance! And of course, the look on their faces was priceless. That's when my MOH said, "oh wow!" 

I made a total fool of myself too, because I yelled out, "Look at all the eff-ing [yes, I cursed] flowers!!" Just when I did, an older lady walked around from behind the house! I smacked my mouth with my hands and gasped! I was so embaressed, but hey, I was excited! See there were no flowers in November when we found this place. Everything had literally come to life and it was beautiful!

The visit far exceeded my expectations. It was really, really cool to be at the venue exactly one year and one day before my actual wedding too, and the place looked better than ever! I'm sorry to gush with even more pictures of our venue. I know you'll get tired of them soon, but hopefully there is an Oxon Hill bride loving me for it!

*Photos by me*

Did you find out things about your wedding venue that you loved after you picked it?

Jumping on the Jam Perserves Bandwagon

We're jumping on the increasingly popular, Southern-inspired homemade jars of jam bandwagon! Can I get a Yeeeeeehaw? Just Kidding!

This was a really easy decision for us. We didn't spend a lot of time debating it like we did with other details. We just saw it, liked it, and said done! It happened so easily and I couldn't argue with a quick decision cause we hardly come by those!

One night when I was flipping through real weddings on one of my favorite wedding blogs, a certain something caught Mr. B's attention (he was watching television). He must have seen it out of the corner of his eye, because I had no idea he was paying any attention, but he leaned over and said, "Oh that's nice!"

It was a cutesy backyard, woodsy type of wedding and I guess because he had never heard or seen the jars of jam favors before, he jumped all over the idea. "Those are perfect, let's do that!" he said. Wha?? Really?? I honestly couldn't believe he liked the idea. It was one of those things I was planing to bring up later when he was in a really good mood or something. The more we discusesed it though I should have realized his love for this type of thing. It's quiant, fun, Southern, and all the things we want our wedding to be about.

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Don't know how to make jam?

No biggie!

That's what wedding blogs are for!

One reason I love wedding blogs, is because of the vast array of information available to brides at the click of a button! Check out all of these great recipes for jams from our favorite wedding places online!

Strawberry Jam recipe fom Intimate Weddings -- right here.

Raspberry Jam (and homemade bread) recipe from Project Wedding -- right here.

Another Raspberry Jam recipe from Intimate Weddings -- right here.

Sweet Cherry Jam recipe (and a few free printables) from Giverslog -- right here.

Blueberry Jam recipe from 100 Layer Cake -- right here.

As luck would have it, Mr. B's nana makes perserves!! This is an awesome opportunity to include her in the planning process and do some bonding with my future grandmother-in-law! I'm going to plan to spend a weekend at her house making the favors, but before I go, I'm going to collect up all our materials, which luckily, shouldn't be too expensive!

We're going to need fabric. I love the fabric Jam Jar Toppers (and free printable labels} here at Domestifluff. We'll also need jars! There's a bunch of awesome resources for reasonably priced mason jars, such as this Commerical Square Glass Jar from for $1.99 by the Container Store here. And labels, which can be found here at iDiY.

We just have to figure out what we want our labels to say... I've seen "Spread the love," which is a very clever (and popular) jam jar label. Or how about, "How Sweet it is?"

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So I love this idea because it's budget friendly, homemade, garden-inspired, and everything else that goes right along with the theme and feel of our down-to-earth wedding! I know our guests will love these favors too and better yet, they'll use them!

A lot of favors usually end up in the trash, but not these! I can see our guests waking up the Monday morning after our wedding and using the jam on their morning toast, hopefully reflecting on the fun and fabulous wedding they attended the night before!

What were your wedding favors?

Do you like "Spread the Love," or "How Sweet It Is," for our label?

Happy Monday!

Happy Monday folks.

I hope everyone had an amazing weekend. Mine was very relaxing. We went to an event at the Rockville Town Center in Maryland for an open house by MK Catering and a few other vendors. Stay tuned for more about that later this week.

On a different note, I was pretty bad on my diet this weekend (ate everything from strawberry banana pancakes to McDonalds, and I never eat either). I'm back on track today, but the rainy weather has me completely unmotivtated to hit the gym (my usual lunch routine) and run. 

I'm thinking about joining a running meetup though! I've been copied on all of their events for more than 6 months now and I think it's about time I go and see what it's all about. They run pretty much every evening, which would be great for me since I haven't been motivated to go at lunch lately.

To get me motivated, I thought I'd share some pictures from the 10 mile race I ran earlier this month. I was so happy that day. It was awesome.

Love my city...

Look at all the people!

That's me in the pink stripes...

Waving through the big crowd...

My dad surprised me at the finish!

Love you, dad!

Sorry we couldn't get a better picture of you!

It's finally hitting me... I'm tired!

Ahh. So excited here. I did it! I did it!

I just started running about 2 years ago and never thought I would actually run in races! Let alone a 10 miler! I'm really proud of myself for doing this, but I want to do more! My next goal is to run a half marathon and then a full marathon! It would be a dream to run in the Suntrust National Marathon in DC next March (right in time for my wedding too)!

One last note... I'm totally inspired by other runners. Many of which have blogs, just like me! Check out Running with Blue Sponge and Running to the Wedding for other running bloggers!

:: Tulips ::

Are my favorite...

These pictures were taking last spring nearby the Iwo Jima Memorial in Arlington, Virginia. In this area, you see tulips and dandelions popping up everywhere in the spring -- you'll see a lot of two-tone tulips like this at my wedding too!  

{Photos by me}

Blossoming Beauties

SO in love with these...

{Jen Haung Photography via Merci New York}

The Invitation Inspiration File Keeps Growing

A few days ago, I shared that Mr. B and I wanted to make our invitations and provided some examples of invitations we found inspiring when we were planning a fall wedding. Obviously, choosing to get married in a different season changes a thing or two, including the design and colors of a the invitations, so that's why I have twice as much inspiration as the next bride :)

That and I also have this theory that kind of like falling in love with her wedding gown, a bride has to have a connection to her invitations. A few people I know (some that aren't even engaged yet) know exactly what kind of invitations they want, but something like that would never happen to me. I mull over decisions. I'm very indecisive. I fall in love with something, quickly fall out of love, and in love with something else. Nevertheless, I think I'll connect with the invitations that are for me. Is that crazy? To think paper will speak to me? Haha! Probably.

My indecisivenss is pretty tiring for Mr. B, because he never waivers when it comes to figuring out what he wants. He just knows it when he sees it, but it's not that simple for me. Another reason why I have so much inspiration :)

So although it may not seem like it with jumping from fall to spring motifs and DIY to designer, I am getting closer each day to finding and crafting our perfect invitation. For instance, I know that I want romantic. I want our invitations to be timeless and have some fancy script.

I also like soft colors and I wouldn't mind a picture of flowers as a part of the design, or even a butterfly. All of which would be fitting for our "garden theme." Of course, the color green has to be in there somewhere and I want a package deal too. I don't want my guests sorting through unorganized pieces. I want an open and close dohickey, where they recieve a pocket with all of the various peices organized nice and neat.

Here's the invitation I liked way before I got engaged. I'm not crazy about it now. It's just too modern. I like the flowers and we will most definitely have daisies at our wedding, but the connection just isn't there anymore.

I do love the green. One of the great starting points for me has been the color. That is the one thing I do know for sure - that we're definitely using the color green, and maybe some yellow, or pink. When I'm searching through big websites like Wedding Paper Divas, I always sort by color. Here are a few from there I really liked:

Wedding Paper Divas

So, I definitely like swirals and flowers, but again, none of these are the one! I know what you're thinking! How much inspiration do you need? A bit more. Please! Amuse me!

So none of the above will work, even though finding them and ordering them would be easy and quick. Of course, I want something more. Something more unique. Who would of thought I'd care so much? But being engaged MAKES you this way. It's got to be some kind of chemical imbalance in the brain when a wedding is lurking. It makes you really think, so much so that you end up spending hours debating paper weights and fonts.

A few other invitation favorites?

How about these beauties from Blush Paperie:

Blush Paperie

I've learned if it's got fancy type, and the words whimsical or florish in the name, it's probably up my alley. Like these lovelies from concrete and honey, which are yet another favorite for the invitation inspiration file. When I found them, I quickly sniffed out the source, which was by no surprise Style Me Pretty and I started saving all the pictures I could find.

Like I said, I'm getting closer.

:: sigh ::

Stationary by Laura Hooper, Photo credit to Steve Steinhardt, Designer is Beth Helmstetter

Do you have a lot of invitation inspiration?

Did you know your invitations when you saw them?  

Gimme love, love!

I just realized I don't have any labels about LOVE!

That's just wrong.

Hello!!! Wake up, Sara! Weddings are about LOVE and you've got to talk about LOVE if you're getting married... To get us in the mood to share our mushy LOVE stories and tap into the warm fuzzies, I searched the web for pictures that made me think of LOVE. I didn't have to go far because our photographer has taken lots of LOVEly pictures...

(Yes, that's us!)

Photos credited to (our very own) photographer: Kelly J. Mihalcoe. Check out here website and blog, she's the best! When did you know you were in love? How does it feel to be in love? What's the best thing about love?

Aisle Decorations

While a lot of big decision are still pending, we're making a lot of headway on the small stuff. Things like whether to have a DJ or band, buffet or seated dinner, and how we want our ceremony site to look. We stumbled across a video of a wedding at our venue (Oxon Hill Manor) and we weren't impressed at all with the way the ceremony looked. I can't share the video, because that would be way too rude, but just to give you an idea...

They had a aisle runner and it was plain white. Everyone from the flower girl to bride (its seemed) triped walking down it. Not only that, there were no rose petals, no extra flowers, candles, pedestals or anything to make the space shine! Granted, the gardens at Oxon Hill Manor are gorgeous all on their own, but a little something can go a long way. Also, the aisle was hardly centered. The runner kept moving each time someone walked down it. Ahhh!!

Watching this video brought up a lot of good points for my man and I to discuss. Do we want a aisle runner? Definitely not! What we do want is loads and loads of rose petals. We want ... well, it's easier to show you than tell you. I found this picture on the internet during our conversation and we agreed, it's perfect!

We love the mass of rose petals and the stakes in the ground that clearly define the aisle. However, you will not see an archway at my wedding!! No offense to brides who will be having one, I just have a serious aversions to both runners and archways! I don't know what it is, because everyone (from my best friend to mom) seem to think they are just perfect for weddings, but I'm not going for it! Sorry guys!

I want a gigantic cross at the end of the aisle. Yes, a cross! I know it's not easy to envision (and it's sure as heck not easy to find a picture of one online), but I want us to stand in front of a cross to represent our faith in Christianity. Ever seen the movie Fireproof? There's a big cross in the wedding in that movie..

I swear...

See...

{source}

Apparently, they had an arch too, but check out the cross in the back, which is where they stand when they say they're vows. Just like what I want! Sweet, huh? There's another picture of this type of thing here in one of my previous posts.

Anyway, besides the whole aisle thing, I should mention that Fireproof is a really good movie. Any engaged couples out there taking the Love Dare? More on that later...

Brides, do you love or hate arches? Are there other popular wedding pieces you despise?

New South Wales Wedding

Find Real Wedding Inspirations @ Real Weddings Magazine

I love looking at real weddings because you can see the ideas you have for your wedding in action. You're able to travel outside of your mind's eye and see your ideas in motion at an actual wedding. It's really helpful and one reason Olive Weddings! This New South Wales Wedding was one I was happy to stumble across for that very reason--it has so much of what I imagine at my wedding (like grey suits).

I've fallen in love with grey suits...

I like grey because it's not as informal as tan and not as formal as a black tux. In my opinion, these fellas look truly stylish in thier light grey ties (the groom is wearing a white tie) and pin strip pants. I'm not crazy about these bridesmaids dresses (I think I'd like them more if they were knee length), but I am crazy about the hair bands. I'm a stickler for unique accesories and today's wedding party is begging for something to stand out from the rest. The colors this bride chose are soft and lovely, and needless to say, the bouquets are big and beautiful.

A few other things I love...

Check out that old-timey car! We actually saw one yesterday at a Bridal Showcase we attended in Fairfax and literally, fell in love! I have no doubt our getaway car is going to be a step above the rest and something close to this timeless beauty!

Circlular, Square, or Rectangular Tables....

I have no idea if it will work at our venue (Oxon Hill Manor), but I want long, rectangular tables! For awhile, I wasn't too crazy about them, but they've grown on me. I really just like how it pulls the whole room together to one main focal point. It also reminds me of a big family dinner, which in essence is what our reception is all about.

Do you love rectangular tables? Grey suits? Hair pieces and old cars?

:: Renee Dow and Jonathon Howie :: 

{Photo credit: Sugar Love Weddings via Real Weddings Magazine}