Hair Trial

Friday, I had my first hair appointment. I know it’s early, but I do things that way and I was DYING to cut my hair and my boy wouldn’t let me on the orders of our stylist.

So fed up, I went to see why I had to wait. And I got it. My hair looked girly sweet ( though I’m not sure about the ribbon yet) and I felt pretty despite my frown in this picture!

I got it done at the spa. They are seriously lovely there. The prices were reasonable ($35 for the trial) and the lady was so nice.

I really loved the atmosphere and I am dying to go back and book a massage with the hottie who I saw roaming the halls. LOL!

I look forward to getting my hair done that day and perhaps establishing a long relationship with this place.

Grooms are rockin’ too!

I love my honey! And I bet you love yours too or you wouldn't be marrying him. Seriously.

So, why in all the hoopla of wedding planning do most brides neglect their honeys and focus on their dress, their hair, their accessories and shoes and underwear…

And then go straight into planning what the girls will wear.. Which dress on which girl? Matching dresses? Mismatched? What color? What shoes? What hair, makeup, jewelry?

But when it comes to that lovable duffer sitting on the couch beside you, nothing. Until right before the wedding when you drag them all into a tux shop and then randomly point at one, they get measured and done.

I HATE this. I am the kind of girl that wants my man to look just as hot as I do. I read GQ, help him pick out posh hair cuts and new styles. (I keep trying to get him into super slim suit pants to no effect.) And he wants to look good. I groom him almost as much as I do myself and sometime more so.

So, I have been putting thought into his outfit and the guys. I want them to look good too. Seriously.

I have been contemplating since the day we started thinking about a wedding what color he would wear, how he should wear his hair, boutonnieres or not (a definite not), cufflinks, suspenders or no? (no), a fedora (maybe?) what shoes, what tie, what undies and socks for my man.

Because I WILL look gorgeous on my wedding day… but so will he.

Shoes

Walking around in my wedding shoes has made me glad that I’ve started adjusting to them now. I used to wear heels every single day, but lately I haven’t worn heels since sometime my first year of college. Plus, I’ve never been fond of stilettos.

So, acclimating my ankles and feet to the shoes and molding them to my feet will be a process that I will enjoy greatly. Mostly because I know that I am saving myself mucho pain later.

I also think I am going to invest in the high heel gel inserts. Yes, I believe I will.

Dress!!!

I got my dress today!!! It’s so perfect.

More later, pictures this weekend!

Random bits of thoughts

I love fall and I am ready for the change of seasons for many reasons. I love the crisp cool air, the rain that never seems to end here, the changing colors on the trees, the sickly sweet smell of decay (dead leaves) in the air, the foods (soups/chilies/warm), football, and mostly the start of school and Halloween (my favorite holiday).

But after fall, comes winter and with winter… our wedding day. Which the closer it looms the more I am looking forward to and the more I have to do. I know that there are so many things that I am doing early and maybe out of sequence. But it’s the way that feels natural to us. Yes, I would like to have my hair trial at the end of September. Why? I don’t know. I just do. I think it comes with the territory that right now I am hating my long locks (my stylist and Jonathon refuse to let me cut it until December 19th at the earliest) and if I see something tangible I won’t want to cut it so badly.

With my to do list seemingly to shrink (thank heavens) and more time can be devoted to enjoying friends, family and the process. Our first shower is next weekend. I am looking forward to the shower, and not for the gifts. I can’t wait to see some people that I know will be there. Friends and family members I haven’t gotten to see in the past few months.

I guess what I’m saying is… enjoy the process… no matter how early you are doing things, or in what order.. the point is… the process of planning a wedding is a preparation for you (and your boy) to find bliss. Engagements shouldn’t be tangled webs of problems. Don’t feel bad or think you are wrong or strange if you do something out of The Knot’s sequence of events or Martha’s master plan. You are not Martha!

Wedding earrings

These beautiful little orange and white cameo earrings are my wedding earrings. I got them from etsy for $4! Quite a bargain. I wanted to mimic the cameo in my necklace with my earrings and I wanted them to be dainty.

Plus, they are so cute? Ne sais pas?

Rehearsal Dress

Cindy from lookylu clothing is making my rehearsal dress as you know.  And this was some of the options.  I have opted for no trim around the bottom, just a normal white trim and the plain orange ribbon in the ruffle. There were actually many more options, but I just wanted to get the whole dress and the ruffle I like on it.

Cindy is incredible to work with. She listens to exactly what you need, works fast, asks for feedback and is all around awesome. If you want a sexy, flirty, fun and completely custom dress made…. go to etsy and lookylu.

The Dress

So, annoyed with searching for a beautiful, cute, but not hundreds of dollars dress… I looked at the one place you ask and shall receive. Etsy!

I placed an order on Alchemy and got several bids. Then, a home town – St. Louis fashionista offered to make a dress. She showed me one that she thought would work.

I agreed! And for $58 you can’t beat it.

Here’s the dress. It will be made in white eyelet with orange ruffles and an orange band around the bottom.

I am so smitten with my dress.

LookyLuClothing on Etsy is making it. I’m so smitten.

Wedding Blahs

I don’t know about you, but today I am tired of wedding plans. I am tired of weddings. This could be because of family crap, and maybe I will vent about it later. However, today I want to talk about something inspiring.

1. Korres Sage and Thyme face wash. It makes my oily skin feel soft and clean. It’s completely natural, made in Greece and makes me happy.

2. Jonathon, the love of my life who isn’t afraid of my tears, who pulls me close when my heart is breaking and make me feel safe and calm and alive.

3. The Black Dahlia book, which is engrossing, intriguing, shocking, and all out good.

4. Rain, because now the lake looks much better.

Cultural Traditions

Wedding traditions are completely cultural. In America, white dresses are completely common. However, in India the most common color is red. There are many differences (as I bet we all already know) between wedding traditions. Most traditions regarding attire are based on what makes the bride feel beautiful and happy in that culture.

In college, I spent a summer in India. I fell in love with the amazing culture, the people, the religion, and the customs. I got henna when I was in Mumbai. I loved the way it looked on me. The sienna color on my skin is stunning.

It was one thing that I knew I would want at my own wedding. I knew I would want henna. Jonathon wasn’t sold. He is a traditionalist (and a democrat which is odd I know) and he didn’t want me too. However, when he saw how important it was to me he relented. I’m glad because henna does make me feel beautiful. Although, the condition is I must wear gloves at the ceremony.

It’s also traditional to have the groom’s name hidden in the design. Then, he tries to find it. I think I want to incorporate this into our first time seeing each other pictures. I think I’ll be behind the door of the chapel and I’ll stick my hand out for him to find his name and when he does, I’ll let him pull me out from behind the door.  Cute? Mais non?

*Top image from Style Me Pretty. The middle images are my own.

Rehearsal Dinner Dress

I am now looking for my rehearsal dinner dress.

Did I tell you my second dress fell through the cracks of a horrible seamstress and I gave up on it?

But the problem with my search for a rehearsal dress is that I love short bubble hem dresses (like the ones to the left.. OMG how cute are they?! I wish I knew who made them. I also wish I remember where I found this picture.) However, my wedding is December in the mountains of NC. Do you know how cold it is here in December? Yeah, it snows in October. Seriously. It’s cold. Now, admittedly the places we will be at are heated, but the trek to the truck may be chilly.

I really want a short dress though. It’s a style matter. I can’t decide if it’s better to suffer for fashion or be warm?

Beauty Tip

I was remembering last night as I tried for 15 minutes to scrub off my eye makeup (seriously it took 15 minutes) a random beauty tip I wanted to share with you guys. (I also wanted to apologize for being a sporadic blogger lately. Jonathon and I are mired in all the house buying funness and at the moment I've been so busy with mortgage brokers, banks, lawyers, sellers, inspectors, and appraisers I've been too tired to think let alone blog, post work.) So, to make up for my lax ways I thought I would share my favorite stay put eye makeup tip. I know this is important for teary brides who want to look pretty all day. (Yes, I am including myself in this.)

As a freelance makeup artist I put on my eyeshadow elaborately (when I'm not at work). I want my shadow and my liner to last all day. So, this is how I go about that.

1. I put on primer (I use Laura Mercier) all over my face including my eyes. Follow that up with mineral foundation (eyes too!).
2. Then, I grab my trusty Urban Decay primer potion. I put it on my lids and under my eyes. I find it conceals my moderate circles and makes my face look fresher.
3. Then, work quickly here I apply whatever eye shadow I plan to wear for the day. It varies by brand so much I won't mention a specific one.
4. Create whatever look you want with the shadow.
5. For eyeliner I use Urban Decay 24/7 liner. It stays on... forever! You really have to scrub it off if you use it with the primer potion.
6. Apply some mascara.. lately I've been using Benefit BadGal Lash in plum (which imparts a subtleness that makes my green eyes brighter without looking purple on). However, it isn't water proof so you would want to use a waterproof mascara. And you are done.

I promise to tell you all about the house situation, wedding updates, Save the Dates and more soon. Bear with me during this time of craziness.