Wedding Web Notes

A Whole Lotto Lotto Favors

2012-01-31T13:28:00.011-06:00

You guys, I spent a ridiculous amount of time trying to think up a favor for our guests. Like a serious amount of time that could have probably been spent doing other things that were more important. In hindsight, I had no reason to stress about the favors. Our photobooth photos could have been our favor, as well as our Sweets table, but I just really wanted something fun at each seat to show our guests how much we appreciated having them with us!

Since I thought so long about it, I feel like it's only fair to share some of those options as well as the big winner. The runners up were. . .

Hershey's Kisses in spring time colors to match our wedding colors which were baby blue and sage green and chocolate (get it?!) brown (but obviously I'd eat all the pink ones to keep them in our color scheme).

Hershey's Pastel Kisses via Oriental Trading (Great prices there!)

Tazo Tea in Berry Bloom White or Tazo Zen Green Tea. Funny story, these are my two favorite teas EVER. I drink them constantly (as well as Tazo Passion Tea; those are my top three), and thought it was serendipitous that they matched our wedding colors. Yes, it's true, I almost handed out tea bags as favors. That is something I would love, but not everybody drinks tea.

Berryblossom White Tea via Shopping.com

... And then I wanted mugs! Custom printed mugs for our guests would have been awesome (back when I researched, Bargain Mugs had the best prices FYI). The only reason I didn't do mugs was I'd have to pay a lot of extra money in shipping to make up for the super short turn around time we needed (I know, I was totally last minute on this one) But that was also very close runner up. They would have been amazing.

As you can see, a LOT of indecisiveness here. Well, I finally stumbled upon this image, and - be still my gambling loving heart - I knew that this would be the favor for our wedding.

"Lotto Ticket Favor Idea" / Bride Ideas/ Bliss Weddings

I know, right?! I instantly started Googling for some more inspiration photos, and found out that there's even been talk about lotto favors on the Weddingbee Boards! And Jellyfish made some too!

Google told me that most brides had been using Glassine Envelopes (like int he above photo) or lottery ticket holders.

Lotto Ticket Holders via Oriental Trading

Well. . . I didn't want either of these options. I didn't want to have to order and wait for envelopes, and I didn't like the look of the paper holders.

I went to Hobby Lobby, looked around, and came back with jewelry making bags. They were buy one get one free so I got 200 small ziplock-type bags for $2.59.

Personal Photo

I tried to find scratch offs in our wedding colors, but after a few stops to different stores/ Gas Stations, I decided that the dark blue on the Money Pot was close enough! It was easy enough, all we did was put the ticket and a penny into each bag.

Personal Photo

Remember our wedding invitations?

Personal Photo

Well, I designed labels to match. On one side they said, "A Whole Lotto Love" (Hardy har har, other options included 'thanks a lotto' and 'if winning ticket, return to bride & groom'), and the other side had our names the same way our invites did, and also said "Thanks for sharing our special day."

Personal Photo

Personal Photo
Personal Photo
Personal Photo

I also put color cardstock, cut to size, in the back of each baggie. It covered up the ugly back of the ticket, and gave the bags a little more weight. I almost didn't do that (because of the extra work), but it made a big difference, so I would really recommend this if you're using baggies for a project like this.

I was super happy with how this project turned out. . . As was my grandpa who won $7! Success!

I was so relieved to find a (relative inexpensive) favor that I loved, especially after stressing about it for so long. In the middle of the favor hunt? How's it going?

DIY Giraffe Invitations

2011-12-12T19:49:00.005-06:00

Hive, have you seen the new Randomizer series? I have, and it's awesome! It seriously put me into "wanting to do recaps" mode just so I could participate. I feel like before I can start recapping, I should share one of my favorite things with you: our invitations!

Our invitation suite was a DIY affair. . . and it ended up taking longer than I thought (which is how it always happens, right?!). I'll break the whole process down for you, but it'll probably be easy to do in pictures :-D.

The first step was to create the invitation suite. As much as I loved all those modern invitations I kept talking about so many months ago, I really wanted something that looked fresh, but ultimately traditional. I spend all day, every day designing hip, modern things . . . for my wedding, I decided to follow my little designer-heart and create something that I loved, even if it wasn't exactly "cool" and seemed traditional. That was my inspiration. . . .

That and I really wanted an invitation suite with multiple pieces. I don't know why, but I wanted my invitation to have a whole bunch of pieces for people to read and look at. This is also why I didn't want pocket fold, I wanted just pieces everywhere. Weird, I know. I made the pieces a few different sizes so they'd "stack up" nicely.

And lastly, I wanted something that could dictate the look of other printed materials for our big day (table numbers, programs, escort cards, etc). Having one look I could essentially "re-use" over and over made things easy, and look cohesive. But more on that later!

I designed the whole set in Adobe Illustrator, using the fonts Burgues Script and Mrs. Eaves (for the small caps).

We didn't have a 'theme', but since I used hearts on our Save the Dates, I carried hearts over into the invitations.

The Invitation (5x7"), RSVP card (3.5x5"), and Reception card (3.5x5"). (Click for a larger view.)

Our Map (4x6") and Accommodations card (4x6"). (Click for a larger view.)

Next, I cut out bellybands while Mr. G embossed the flap of our envelopes with my Cuttlebug.

I believe Mr. G said at this point, "Now, you can't say that I haven't done anything for this wedding ever again." Haha.

Well. . . after I got all our invitations printed (through gotprint.net), Mr. G took off for his Bachelor week of skiing/camping with our Best Man. Luckily, the Giraffe Parents picked up the slack!

The photo above shows how I used our not-theme of "hearts". You can click the photo to make it larger and see more clearly, but there were hearts everywhere! The address labels were heart shaped, as were the return address labels, and every bellyband had a heart tage around it that listed our guests' names.

The labels on the front of our envelopes were printed on my parents' HP printer, and the cut out with my Cricut (the same goes for the labels on the back). Our labels on our RSVP envelopes were smaller versions of the ones you see here (but with our address, of course!).

The back with our return address labels and Cuttlebug embossing. Gotta love those metallic envelopes!

I made the envelope liners using the heart-gyle, I had designed for our website. I bought a ream of 11x17" blue paper from OfficeMax, and was able to print 3 liners per page. . . Of course, I also bought a ream of blue paper from Staples so I could compare the "blueness" of each. Needless to say, 6 months after the wedding, I still have a ton of blue paper.
I stacked all the pieces of the invitation from big to small (with a small wallet sized e-photo of us on the top), wrapped a belly band around it, wrapped baker's twine around that, and attached a heart tag with the twine.
Okay, okay, Daddy G did the stacking and tying, but I put them in the envelopes!

There were so many! The DIYing went on forever!
So there they are! They whole kit and caboodle (. . . until recently, I thought it was 'kitten caboodle'). I'm pretty happy with the final product and I head a lot of nice things from our guests, and that's what counts :).

If I did it all over again, I probably still design my own invitations, but I don't know if I'd go through all the work of doing the extra pieces! I spent a looooooong time trying to set up my Cricut to cut the hearts correctly and I got super frustrated at times. I loved how it looked, but I don't think I needed all that stress at the time.

Did you take on the daunting tasking on DIYing invites? Would you do it again?

Giraffe Showers

2011-11-27T08:01:00.005-06:00

Hive, I had my bridal shower a looong time ago. I mean, I've been married for six months now, so that should be indication enough that's it's been a while. It was actually last February, so we're getting closer and closer to the 'year away' mark. I loved my shower, and had always wanted to share it with you guys, but it happened right before crazy-wedding-frenzy-mode and I never got the time. I was thinking about it today, and I decided that there's no better time than the present!

My mom planned my shower, but after mucho begging from me, I got to help. I know, I know, Wedding Planning for Dummies actually told me that I should have absolutely no part in planning the shower, but I still lived at my parents' house, and I have all the crafting goodies my mom could've have needed (not to mention I love planning parties) so she let me help.

It all started with the invitation. Mama Giraffe chose a theme of "bright colors, polka dots, and stripes." She was worried at first that it didn't match our wedding colors, but it turned out great and was so "me." After an extensive online search for invitations and finding nothing, she had finally agreed to let me help and had me create them. She "art directed" the whole thing, I just created it on the computer for her. She made up a rhyme for the invitations, and continued rhyming throughout the rest of the shower.

She used bright colors for the rest of the decorations. I made the "Congrats" banner with my Cricut and scrapbooking paper. The photos on the table were in bright frames from IKEA and had a picture of us from each year Mr. G and I have been together.

One of the coolest thing Mama Giraffe did was buy a large platter from Target and porcelain markers from Michael's. Everyone signed the platter with the markers, and later my mom baked it at 350. That set in the marker so now I can have it forever :).
The centerpieces looked amazing, and they were all created by my mom. She bought bright colored paper plates from Party City, fun vases from Walgreens, and "Festival Pom" flowers from Jewel. The flowers were placed on the plates and each table had a different bright candy on them. I repeatedly visited the people at the Pretzel M&Ms table because they were so good (my table had gummy bears).
Mama Giraffe put together favors of mini loufas and mini shower gels and bath bubbles for everyone. The tags on the favor bags went with our rhyming theme and were labels stuck on to different scrapbook paper.
I also got a billion presents!
Whooo all our dishes!You might also notice my super super cute outfit. My dress came from Kohl's (new, especially for the shower, and on sale!), and the adorable and perfectly matching headband came from the amazing Mrs. Sloth. It was so very nice of her to send it my way and I appreciated it so very very much.

If you remember, Mr. G and I have a thing about Uglydolls, and he even used one to propose; My super talented and amazing friend Helena ordered me a Wage Uglydoll and dressed in up in my wedding dress. She later gave me Babo in a tux. This was quite possibly the best gift ever, and we displayed them at our wedding and now display them in our home.
Overall, my shower was one of the best days ever, which is way I had to share it with you. I had so much fun, and continued to have fun with my thank you cards.

Mr. G and I set up the presents in my parents dining room and posed with all our awesome new stuff. (Seriously, it was so awesome. It's hard to believe so many people were so generous and just bought new things for us).

So there it is - the best shower ever! I had a great time, and I think I even had a better time because I got to help plan all the fun and games (and boy were there games!).

Help plan your own shower? Did you enjoy it more because of it?

Bridesmaid Hair, Take Two!

2011-09-18T16:16:00.005-05:00

As I told you guys a couple weeks ago, I was a bridesmaid in Bridesmaid Marie's wedding. That's the way to do it folks: if you're planning a wedding, find an engaged bff and plan them together - it makes it way more fun!

Anyway, I shared some hairstyle photos with you guys, and I ended up looking pretty hot :-), so I figured I better fill you in on the details!

Even though I showed the Hive a couple of options, the next day I threw 'em out the window and bought these babies to the hair salon with me.

Hairstyle Chat / Braided Updos

Renaissance of Inner Fashion Blog / French Braid Inspired

I know, I know, they're awesome. Believe it or not, the first image was the leading inspiration for my own wedding hair, until Mr. G mentioned (at the rehearsal dinner!) that he wanted me to wear my hair down. I was glad that the hairstyle got to make an appearance somewhere :). I've always loved braids and you can certainly dress them up and dress 'em down.

So how did it turn out, you ask? Awesome! Better than I could imagine.

The super nice lady who did my hair did a french braid that started at the top of my head, and wrapped all the way down the side, to the bottom. Then we curled the rest of the hair and tucked it in with bobby pins (70, to be exact - Mr. G and I counted them when we took them out at the end of the night). It's kind of hard to describe, so I'll let the pictures do the talking. I'll show you a few so you can see it from different sides.

All of these are personal photos, most by me and the Mister.

My hairstylist was so nice!Getting ready at the Groom's Grandma's house.
I love that Mr. G got this photo of me blowing bubbles - it's a great view of the top of my head and the non-braided side. It's all natural - no bump-it at all!

Okay, okay, I admit it. Those last two photos had nothing to do with my hair, I just wanted you all to see what a good time I had. Rock on, team, rock on!

Hair inspiration? How do you find it?

Why You Need to Hire a Videographer

2011-09-13T06:49:00.006-05:00

Hive, I know I've been absently recently. There's a lot going on, and even though I haven't shared my recaps yet, I feel like this is a very important post for me to write, so I'll be dropping in some images from the big day. Don' worry about them though, I'll catch you up on everything once I start recapping.

In the beginning, I was anti-video. Don't get me wrong, I think wedding videos are gorgeous, and watching a few made me tear up a little, but I also thought it was a dumb investment. I scrapbook, and love flipping through albums, so spending moolah on photos made sense, but on video?

How to Hire a Wedding Videographer / Wedding Photography Directory

I mean, when was the last time I watched one of my parents home videos? I showed some baby ones to Mr. G a few years back, but that's pretty much it. Who wants to watch a video of themselves? And, better yet, who wants to pay a ton of money for it?

Frankly, I never even considered video because I thought it was a stupid idea. Sure it'd be nice, but I just didn't think it was a "worthy" or "worth while" expense.

Now, you're probably wondering why, then, did I hire a videographer for my wedding? Well, Mama Giraffe kept saying that I should and that I would look forward to watching the video every year on my anniversary. This to me really sounded like a bunch a mushy stuff that I wouldn't do, so I let it go.

But then. . . .But then Mama Giraffe told me she regretted not having one. This changed it all for me. I might not want one now, but I would hate to be 34 years into marriage wishing I had a wedding video.

Mama Giraffe on her wedding day, with my Pawpaw

Of course, wedding viedography wasn't in our budget, so we had a crazy whirlwind of searching through "budget" videographers (one who even put his hand in front of the camera!!), but that is a post for another day.

I'm here to to tell you why you need a videographer, because even though I was anti-video, it's now become one of our best wedding decisions. Even though we only have the rough copy of our movie, it's amazing and I cry every time I see it.

Reason 1. Vows
Mr. G and I chose to say both our own vows and traditional vows. We're not normally "mushy people" so it meant a lot to hear his feeling about me, professed in front of everyone. It's funny because I remember, literally thinking "Pay attention so you can remember what he saying!" But. . .of course, four months later, I couldn't remember the beautiful, touching, perfect words my groom said to me. But hey, we have it on video!

Saying mushy vows :) / photo by Miller + Miller

Reason 2. Speeches
We had a speech by my MOH, the best man, one bridesmaid, and one groomsmen. They were wonderful! Every speech brought laughs and some brought tears, but they were perfect. Looking back, I remembered that the speeches were funny, but I could only remember bits and pieces. Watching the video totally refreshed my mind, and when I texted BM Mang to mention how funny her speech was, she told me that she didn't even remember it all! Better yet when GM Mitch (and speech giver) came over to visit, he even wanted to watch the video!

Clearly Best Man Washington said something funny, but what? / photo by Miller + Miller

Reason 3. Guests
Our videographers did a cool thing, where during dinner, they went around to a handful of people (10-15 I think?) and had them give us well wishes on video. This was great because at the time we were eating, so were our guests, so it's nice to see our friends and family relaxing and just saying "hello!" (Also, we have cousin Allison wishing us a happy marriage and mentioning how good our food was, which is something I want to remember!)

Oh hey guys, thanks for saying hi! / guest photo

Reason 4. What you didn't see
Y'know, as the bride and all, I walked down the aisle last. I didn't see my bffs follow before me, nor did I see my groom come into the church. Also, when I made that walk, I couldn't see anyone besides Mr. G - both my eyes and heart were super focused. It's nice to watch my video and see all the things I didn't get to during the big day.

We had musicians?! I didn't even see them! / photo by Miller + Miller

Reason 5 - the most important one. Family
Hive, I'm going to get serious here. I lost my grandpa this weekend, and I'm actually going to the wake today and funeral tomorrow. My heart is do deeply broken that I don't know when it will heal, but that's really why I wanted to write this post.

In the photobooth

Grandpa was at my wedding four months ago, and seemed in perfect health. He and I had a wonderful time together and even got into the photobooth! A month and a half after the wedding, he had a fall and was taken to the hospital. Turns out the fall was a seizure caused by one of the seven tumors in his brain. We had no idea. He spent the last few months having brain surgery, going to rehab, getting radiation, and fighting like no man ever did before, but he did not make it. I know he is in a better place, but I also miss him more than I ever thought I could.

But, like I said, at the wedding, no one had any idea that this would be coming in the future.

My pawpaw, as I affectionately called him, gave the blessing before we ate dinner at the reception, and now I have it on video and can watch him whenever I want, and remember how happy and proud he was at the wedding. It's one thing to look at photos, but now I can hear his voice. And, for that, I would pay a million dollars, which makes what I paid for our videographers seem like not that much.

A wonderful man giving a wonderful blessing / photo by Miller + Miller

I don't know if it was serendipitous that I ended up hiring a videographer, since I was so against it in the beginning, but I am so glad I did. Now when people ask me what to budget for in their wedding, I will tell everyone to make room for video, because really, some things are priceless.

Bridesmaid Hair Options

2011-09-01T07:11:00.003-05:00

Can you believe it's all ready Thursday? This week is fllllying by! Just in time for a long weekend.

And, this little Giraffe has big plans this weekend, it's finally time for Bridesmaid Marie's wedding! I've been counting down the days here, folk. Since she and I spent the last couple of years planning weddings, we've been one down and one to go since my big day in May. I was totally wedding burnt out for a few weeks after the wedding, but that passed and now I can't wait!

Bridesmaid Marie and I at my bachlorette party

We spent last weekend making programs and super cute place cards (I'll ask her if I can share them), and now the big day is almost here! Poor Marie has one heck of a cold, but hopefully she can sleep it off.

I'm pretty much ready for this weekend, but there's one thing I haven't thought of yet, and that's how I'm going to wear my hair. I have an appointment at 8am on Saturday, so I'm thinking I better figure it out!

Believe it or not, searching for hairstyles as a bridesmaid, is pretty much just like searching for ones as a bride (although Marie told me I was not allowed to wear my veil. Bummer. I paid a lot of money for it and I've only worn it once). I'm thinking half up/ half down or maybe all up because it's going to be a warm weekend and because I want to get my party on without hair in my face. Although, I haven't really worn an updo since prom, so I don't want to look outdated.

Here are the contenders:

The Bride's Heart

Zimbio / Wedding Updo

Beautiful Hairstyles

The Winning Look / Bridal Updos

Anybody else hairstyle hunting? Where did you find good inspiration?

DIY Save the Dates: Assembly

2011-07-23T07:11:00.007-05:00

So, I realize the last post I wrote about Save the Dates was in January, but, as I started to move on to sharing my invitations with you guys I felt like the right thing to do would be finish off my STDs. I'm just going with a "better late than never" attitude on this one, and besides, it is on my list of things to blog about before we get our pro pics, so I'm finally getting back to it.

Where we last left off, many moons ago, I didn’t choose an STD, then I designed a million save the dates, and then we finally decided on one, and then realized I needed a postcard to put that sucker on, and then I finally shared them with you.

I never shared the assembly or budget, though, and I've always wanted to let you know how we put them together because it was so easy and simple; so, finally, our STD assembly!

To refresh your memories, here are our STDs (the bottom two photos are digital mock ups).

Okay, so basically, we had a post card and a business card sized magnet. We stuck the magnet to the card, put them in an envelope and sent them on their way.

It all started with trying to figure out how to put our magnet on our postcard, which led to me looking up how Bees before me did it.

I think I've should've pulled a Sewing here. That genius thought to mention "MAGNET!" right on her postcard. At the time, I hoped our guests figure it out . . . because I know Grandma G didn't when I showed it to her. Oh well! I think the difference between the matte postcard & glossy magnet were difference enough.

Best of the Bee: Save the Date Final Phase by Sewing / Weddingbee

Mrs. Sewing used re-positionable tape for her STDs, and we were going to, but we found something better when we got to Michaels.

Glue Dots via Amazon

Yes, that's right: Glue dots.

Mr. G and I had been looking at sticky squares, and decided to use adhesive photo corners (even though I think they're a pain) because it seemed like it might work better than our original plan on tape. This was when we were in the scrapbook aisle. We had to make it to the other end of the store to get something else, and we happened to see Glue Dots in another aisle.

And, let me tell you, they're wonderful. They're cheap and they come in a pack of 200 (which was way more than we needed). They also come in a mini size if you need it, and, most importantly, the ones in the green box are removable (which is important because our guests had to be able to remove their magnet).

Oh and did I forget to mention that they're in a dispenser? So the Glue dot literally just rolls on, and you don't even have to worry about peeling and sticking it yourself? Yeah, they were made for this project I think.

After having the magnets and postcard printed through Vistaprint, we got to work.

I started with lining the envelopes. All I did was make a template our of paperboard, trace it onto wrapping paper, cut, and repeat.
Then, I tucked a cut out liner into an envelope, and because I'm lazy, only glued the top half down. As long as no one used a letter opener, the bottom half of the liner wouldn't fall out. . . And if then did, I'm over it :-D.
Then Mr. G stuck on a Glue Dot, and stuck a magnet to it while I stamped the fronts and back of our envelopes (or, if I wasn't paying attention, stamped the fronts of our envelopes twice, which only happened twice, thank you very much).

I realize I cut off Mr. G's head in this photo, but I wanted you guys to see the Glue Dot dispenser, which is the neon green thing by Mr. G's hand.

After that, we simple stuck our postcards into their envelopes, and they were ready to be sent on!

I still love how these turned out, many months later, especially. because of what the guests saw as soon as they (painstakingly carefully) opend the envelope.

And that's it! I hope the world's easiest assembly was worth the wait :). Tune in for the budget breakdown.

Did you DIY your STDs? How did your assembling go?

Very Sashing Details

2011-07-21T13:26:00.002-05:00

Sashing? Dashing? Close enough, right?

This is so strange, but it's true. For some reason, when I made the easy decision of picking out my dress, I decided I had to have a sash. In fact, I got my heart all set on it. I'm not 100% sure why I had to have one, but I think the artist in me was drawn to the pop of color, and the opportunity to use it to coordinate our wedding colors and make them even more cohesive (... because I was a crazy bride like that).

If you look back at the image of my dress that David's Bridal provides, you'll see something around the waist.

Screenshot from David's Bridal / Style T9309

Just so you guys know, the sash in that photo doesn't come with the dress (included is a length of 2" white ribbon, there's even two teeny loops to hold the ribbon onto the dress), but they suggest it with the dress, as well as a thicker, fancier sash, like the purple one in the photo below.

Screenshot from David's Bridal / Satin Sash

I know, it's a lovely sash. It's kind of hard to see in the photo, but there's all kinds of pretty embroidery at the bottom.

Naturally, I had to have it.. . .But then after I tried it on in the store, in the color Pool (as seen below), I found out that it wasn't offered in baby blue (or the DB color "capri").

Screenshot from David's Bridal / Satin Sash

Long story short, I was crushed.

What's a girl to do? Well, I maybe have been a little mopey after mucho Googling couldn't find me a sash I wanted, but then I got my act together. At this time, etsy's alchemy was still around, so I started the hunt for some one who could make a sash for me, in the color I wanted, all for the price of $50.

I discovered seller BusyBeeHolidays (was the 'Bee' in her name a sign?), who hadn't made a sash before, but definitely seemed up for the challenge.

She started by sending me fabric colors and embroidery options to choose from. I ended up choosing one that I loved (yay!), and then I gave her another $5 because I chose an option too big for her embroidery hoop, so she'd have to get a new one. Not a bad deal, I'd say.

Then BusyBee began sending me photos of my sash as she made it, step by step. Watching the whole process come together was so exciting (and such a relief, actually, after I was super worried that I wouldn't get the sash I dreamed of). The more photos I saw, the more excited I got to see the real thing in person.

And, because a photo's worth 100 words, here's the story in photos.

Photo of me with the sash that I posted on Alchemy for reference.

The option I chose for embroidery.

A sample of the embroidery for me to approve.

Ah! Coming together - embroidery on my sash.

Then some pearls for good measure. Now all it needed was a hem. . .

Perfecto!

Love!

I'm not going to lie, this was one wedding project that was pretty easy because I just had to sit back while someone else did all the work :-D.

Dying to see the real sash in action? Me too! I can't wait to share the pro pics with you all in the future.

Did you having something custom made for your wedding? Scale of 1-10, how awesome was it?

A Dress for a Giraffe

2011-07-18T21:36:00.001-05:00

Just to clarify by "a Giraffe", I mean me.

I realized I've never told you about my wedding dress/dress hunt. Why, you ask? Well, it's not really a good story.

Really. It's just not much of a story at all.

Here's what happened.

Mr. Giraffe proposed, and that night I bought 3 wedding magazines. I flipped through one, saw an advertisement for a dress, and decided I wanted that one. A month later, I was home from college for Thanksgiving, I headed to store, tried on that dress, and was sure I wanted that one. We set a date 2.5 years in the future. Then 1.5 years later, I headed to the same store, tried on the same dress, and bought it.

That's really it, the whole shebang. I didn't cry, but I was happy and wanted that dress. When I first went to try it on, another girl was in the dress I wanted, so to kill time, I tried about 5 other dresses. I wasn't planning on even trying other dress, but by doing so, I confirmed I had what I wanted.

It may sound like a boring dress experience, but it was pretty much how I roll. I hate hate hate trying on clothes normally, and don't really getting excited about big shopping ordeals so I pretty much did what I normally do when shopping. Find something, pick it out, buy it. I would've hated a big fussy dress ordeal, so I'm glad it worked out the way it did.

I don't like fancy or frou-frou things, so I automatically knew what I was looking for. . . or, more like I knew what I wasn't looking for: no lace, no beads, no bling, no train, nothing tight, nothing too fancy.

And I'm sure you're all wondering what this dress is, eh?

Screenshot from David's Bridal / Style T9309

But, let's be honest, you want to see who really makes that dress look good?!

Anybody else have a super easy dress hunt? Really?

It's Whats on top that Counts

2011-06-25T07:46:00.004-05:00

Hehe - that title could mean anything!

Anyway, Hive, it's about time I got you guys caught up on everything I didn't get to before the wedding. Thanks for bearing with me as I took some time to come around. I still have residual weird angry and bitter feelings about coping with our wedding actually being over, but BM Mang just sent me some photos she took on our wedding day and looking through them really perked me up. I'm thinking that I'll be back on top of the world when we get our pro pics.

Anyway - back to why we're here! I have a big topic to talk about today - you know what it is - the elusive cake topper!t

via Super Weddings

Originally I wanted a monogram cake topper, like the one above, but preferably with lower case Helvetica letters in .75" thick clear acrylic. . . .Yeah, that was what a had in mind. It's only a trifle super specific.

But then I was thinking and Mr. Giraffe, bless his poor non-designer heart, does not share the same love of Helvetica that I do.

Famous Helvetica poster (there's an "I hate you" one too!) via Veer

Anyway, we started to brain storm. What was something we both loved, that could really represent both of us, and look good on our cake?

The answer was simple, Uglydolls!! I mean, they've been a big part of our relationship, and Mr. G even used one to propose. Our favorite Uglydolls are Babo and Wage (. . .which both happen to be in our wedding colors, thank goodness) so we knew that we had to use them.

I had our cake topper made on Etsy back when they had Alchemy. All I needed was etsy seller Amazing Owl and a photo like this:

A quick Illustrator mock up.

I know what you're all thinking, but just you wait.

Ah! Could you just die with cuteness?! I could! I cannot wait to see these guys on our cake. Well, I mean, I've all ready seen them on our cake, but I mean in pictures of course ;-).

What are you guys topping it off with?

Don't Cry Because it's Over...

2011-06-03T12:54:00.002-05:00

"Smile because it happened."

Or at least that's what Dr. Seuss tells you to do. . . or the quote that Mr. Giraffe keeps telling me to do.

See, here's the thing, Hive. . . In the interest of full disclosure, I'm going to be honest with you all. I feel conflicted about our wedding. I can look back and key into my feelings on that day and I remember how I felt: entirely blissful, glowing, sheer happiness. That's the thing, I remember feeling that way, I remember telling Mama Giraffe that it was the best day of my life, I remember crying uncontrollably right after our ceremony (but before pictures -oops) because I was so overwhelmed with emotions and happiness.

I know that's how I felt; I remember it, but I don't feel that way anymore.

Mr. G and I had a long talk about this while we ate dinner our the beach during our honeymoon, but I'll break it down for you guys.

It's over.

The wedding is over and gone and I am so heartbroken about it. Yes, I realize that this is ridiculous, and possibly crazy, but its true. Moving and my new-ish job have kept me really busy, which is good, but it wasn't that long ago that I was busy with wedding stuff literally every weekend.

It's never going to happen again.

I knew that this wedding was only a one day deal going into it, but I feel like I didn't get to enjoy it enough, that it went too fast. Jetting off for our honeymoon a few hours after the reception was wonderful and kept me in a giant happiness bubble for a week, but now that bubble is gone. I don't want to blog anymore because it makes me sad. Sure, I have other projects to share with you that didn't make it to the 'Bee pre-wedding, but part of me keeps thinking "that's all in the past now." Mr. G looked at me like I was crazy when I told him that our 2.5 year engagement wasn't long enough.

The worst part? The last 2 weeks before the wedding were so stressful that I just wanted the day to finally get here. I wish that I would've relaxed more and enjoyed the ride, rather than let the stress get to me.

I remember reading 'Bee posts about post-wedding-depression and I didn't think anything of it, but I'm telling you guys, it's legit. As happy as I was on the day, now the thought of it is just bringing me down. How horrible is that?!

Luckily, finally moving into a home with Mr. G and starting our life together is a pretty big and exciting adventure, but I'm still dealing with letting go of our wedding. It was beautiful, and it was great, but I need to let it go. I need to smile because it happened, right?

Anybody else in the same boat? How are you dealing with it?

We're back!

2011-05-23T19:02:00.004-05:00

Hello Hive,

Oh, I'm sorry if you don't recognize me. I know the name Mrs. Giraffe sounds strange, but I swear I'm just the same as that Miss Giraffe from a week and a half ago. Really.

I logged into the 'Bee on the second day of our honeymoon to see all the well wishes you guys left for me and the Mister. It was wonderful. Thank you.

Mr. Giraffe and I just returned home from Mexico on Sunday and I'm back at work today so we're trying to get settled into a routine. Y'know, a routine that means packing and moving into our new townhome and how to start the process of changing my name. Man, I thought I'd be done with projects now that the wedding is over. . .

Anyway, I have a billion pre-wedding things to share with you, still, hive (like hello? invitations!), and I promise I'll get to them soon. No, worries, though, it'll be a while until we get pro pics back, but then I'll have even more to share. Hang in there, it was a wild night.

It was the best day of my life, and I can't wait to clue you all in on the good, the bad, and the better.

But, hey, to tide you over until the pro pics come in, here is a pic my sister took on her iPhone. Epic for sure.

Can't wait to tell you allllllll about it!

Until Next Time

2011-05-13T23:02:00.003-05:00

Hive,

Here it is. The day, the big one, go time.

The forecast is calling for rain, rain, rain, and thunderstorms. . . But I am ready.

I just had a crazy last two days and a wonderful rehearsal dinner with way too much chocolate cake. This last month has been such a wedding planning super storm that I haven't been around much. No worries, though, I have a ton more to share with you, a little more about Dadzilla and some DIY projects that happened to work their way in here some where.

I haven't blogged about the honeymoon, but I'll just let you know that by 10:35 tomorrow morning, Mr. Giraffe and I will be in Cancun, on our way to a sunny beach. I have a whole week ahead of me there :-).

Thank you for the support over the last 8 months and staying with me during some crazy projects. You, hive, are awesome, and I'm so honored I got to share my journey with you.

Lox & Sloth - I'll be thinking about you this weekend. Bring it, girls.

To the rest of the Bees and Pengy - thank you for all the support and for listening to me as I got crazy this last week. You guys are amazing.

Mr. Giraffe - You have my heart; you always have. I love you and I cannot wait to be your wife. Here's to us, baby, and here's to our future.

Signing off for now.
I'll see you on the other side.

Much love,
Miss Giraffe.

Fit for a Toast

2011-05-05T08:54:00.006-05:00

Okay Hive, here's a little new flash for you: A good toasting flute is hard to find. In the interest of full disclosure, that little tid bit should have read "an good toasting flute is hard to find a week and a half before your wedding" . . . But I digress ;-).

Last weekend, Mama Giraffe and I hunted the mall, party stores, other stores for the perfect toasting flutes. For those of you on a hunt of your own, the a few places we looked (that typically carry a handful of styles) were Bed, Bath, & Beyond, Party City, Carson's, Hallmark, A different Hallmark, Macy's, Another Carson's, and a handful of other places. There's also quite a few to be found online, but that would entail not waiting until the last minute.

Mama Giraffe had absolutely no idea what she was getting into when she told me she'd like to buy toasting flutes for us :). I think it's my style, I wanted something simply, classy, but would remind me of my wedding. Tricky, eh?

Where to begin? Well, I was initially leaning towards the Misaka Love story, because I liked the cake server and cutter a lot. (FYI- Carson's had all Mikasa Love Story on Sale last week, so keep an eye out for sales when shopping for pricey flutes).

Mikasa Love Story via Bed, Bath, & Beyond

Funny story, I didn't like the flutes at all. The bottom looked too heavy for me, and even though they had two style of flutes (both match the server), I wasn't feeling either of them. But, as a side note, the Love Story cake stand is probably the cutest I've evern seen. Someone go buy it.

Then came the Mikasa Ribbon flutes. To be honest, I loved these at first, but then I was worried the looked too simple, and wouldn't look wedding-y enough to satisfy my taste for making something all sentimental. Also, these flutes don't have a matching cutter & server so I had to let them go.

Mikasa Ribbons via Bed, Bath, & Beyond

The Mrs and Mr flutes at Hallmark stole my heart the minute I saw them. . . But they were also the very first set I saw so we decided to hold off on buying them. You know, the grass is always greener, right? Anyway, Mama G and I left these at Hallmark and we on our merry way. Also, like the Ribbons, they didn't have a server so whatever, yo. They aren't for sale online, but just picture flutes that said "Mr." and "Mrs." on them.

After going round and round, and stopping to think about some Kate Spade Toasting flutes, we found ourselves at a different Carson's so I could look at the Ribbons again.

Kate Spade via Carson's

Kate Spade via Carson's - The bottom of these makes 'em super heavy!

And then, something amazing happened. See, Mama Giraffe got the Mikasa Cheers Wine Glasses as a Christmas gift (a set of 4), and she loved them so much that she purchased a second set. They're so cute, and I love them too. . . and I saw the Real Housewives of OC use them in an episode a few weeks ago. Ahem. Well, when we were at Carson's, the Cheers set was on display and I got so excited and called Mama G over. I pointed out all the cute serving platters and pitchers and glasses that matched her wine glasses.

The Wine Glasses that Mama G has - Mikasa Cheers via Carson's

Mama G gets all excited and says, "Look! They have champagne glasses! You could use those as flutes!"

Mikasa Cheers via Carson's

As I turned to look at the glasses, my heart skipped a beat, because next to them were the most perfect toasting glasses I'd ever seen.

Mikasa Cheers Flutes - image via Amazon

Aren't you just in love?! I know! I cannot wait to toast with these babies! I cannot believe that after going to a billion stores and worrying that I wouldn't find flutes I love, that these ending up right in front of me. Who would've thought?

Oh, and because I like to play this game in my head sometimes, if I was super rich (you know you play the game too!), I would buy a ton of these (matching!) Mikasa Cheers Celebration glasses for the reception, and make everyone toast with them!

Mikasa Cheers sentiment Flutes - Screenshot via Macy's

Now you're probably wondering why, after I nixed so many glasses that didn't have making cutters, what I decided to do. The Mikasa Cheers set does not have a cake server and cutter, but I ordered this one (and paid an extra $5 to get it here on time - oops) from The Wedding Outlet and am having our names and date engraved on the server. After looking and so so so many fancy cutters, I know that this simpler one is perfect for me.

It's funny, because originally, I had no interest in flutes or servers. I just figured I'd use whatever the venue had for us to use. . . But then, and this is funny, I thought about how the cave server from my parent's wedding is in a drawer in our kitchen at home. We use it for birthdays and Chirstmases and all kinds of things. That's something I want down the road, y'know, little reminders of this big day :).

Phew, and that ends the long (and exhausting) saga of find flutes. But, hey, it was worth it in the end :).

What are you toasting with at your wedding?

But. . . I don't even Like Shoes

2011-04-30T18:28:00.005-05:00

It is so easy to get wrapped up in wedding craziness. All these books, blogs, and TLC shows convince you that you need things (that you don't really need), and to be something (that might not actually be you at all).

I'll admit it, I've been sucked up in this a few times. You can't help it really; I read all these posts on the 'Bee about two shoed brides and fancy shoed brides and all kinds of shoes! The Bees who are writing the posts are always so excited, and those feelings come through the posts. And, well? I wanted that feeling. I wanted to be a bride who had shoe excitement. I really did.

So what did I do? I spent (or possibly wasted) hours of lunch breaks looking at shoes online, from sites like Zappos and Endless.

Such. Pretty. Shoes!! Calvin Kline via Zappos

The thing is, folks, I spent hours look at fancy heels - supposed wedding shoes - and I just got angry. Angry and grumpy and upset. I fell for how pretty and nice the shoes looked, but none of them looked like shoes I could wear, and none of them looked comfortable.

Confession time: I've only ever own two pairs of high heels in my entire life. One pair I bought for my highschool senior year Turnabout, which I wore just for photos and then promptly took them off.

The other pair, I purchased for our engagement shoot.

By the amazing Sara & Ryan of Miller + Miller Photography

Ahem, yes. Notice that photo? Yup, those shoes were more of a prop than anything. I clearly didn't even wear them.

Yes, they're adorable, and yes I spent a whole week trying to walk in them. Can't teach old dogs new trick? Probably! I had such a hard time trying to walk normal and not wobble, and after a few minutes my feet hurt, and, really, I just decided that heels are not for me.

I don't like shopping for shoes, I don't have fancy shoes, and even though I own three pairs of rubber rain boots and one super cute pair of black boots from Macy's, I wear the exact same Reebok gym shoes everyday to work, and wear one of my 5 pairs of Crocs on the weekends. Really.

I like the shoes I have, and I don't like buying new ones, and I don't like wearing fancy shoes.

What kind of bride is that?!

So, I moved on; I stopped looking at shoes online because it just frustrated me. If I don't like shoe shopping normally, why was I making it harder on myself? Why would I force myself to do something I don't like? Exactly my point.

A few weeks ago, Mama Giraffe and I were going out to lunch, and stopped into the DSW next door. She held up some fancy shoes that were on clearance. I tried them on, they fit, so I bought them for $14.00. Simple as that.

No, they're not sexy, but I can walk in them and I didn't spend a lot of money for something I didn't care about. I'm a-okay with that.

Not bad, right?

But, I do love gym shoes, and I do love to boogie down, and surely can't dance in my inch-two in heels, can I? So, seeing as I only spent $14 the first time, I was able to drop $45 on a pair from DSW for the reception. And yes yes yes, I LOVE them.

Now I'm excited!! Oh, and maybe how about some new shoe clips from ban.do? I think that's also a giant Y-E-S!

They definitely look better on the side of the shoes, so that's how I'll be wearing 'em!

There you have it, hive. The story of one Giraffe who didn't feel bride-y enough because she got angry whenever she looked at fancy shoes? Well, that was quite a happy ending!

Two shoed bride? Reception worthy gym shoes? Let's hear it!

Why I Love Washington

2011-04-27T22:11:00.001-05:00

There are very few people in my life that can rival Mr. Giraffe for the amount of love I have for him. One of these people is Best Man Washington.

See, although Washington is easily Mr. G's BFF (although he refrains from using the term "bff"), I would like to point out that I knew him first. I met Mr. G a week after I moved down to ISU, but that whole first week I bonded with Washington who lived on my floor.

A very young Washington, back in '05

Washington attended ISU with us Giraffes (although he graduated a couple of years before us), and has since moved away from good ol' Illinois. Washington will be flying in all the way from, unsurprisingly, the sate of Washington for our big day.

Washington Consumer Protection Law

I think wedding planning makes you really thing about your friends. I mean, at risk of sounding like something that rhymes with schimdzilla, in 20 years when I sit back while my flying car does the driving for me and I look at photos of our wedding, who do I want to see there?

I'm lucky enough to have Washington fly all the way in and stand up for us on our very big day. He is easily one of my favorite people ever, and I would do anything for him. When I lost my grandma, Washington was there for Mr. G as well as myself, during what was a very dark time. I'll never forget the summer I spent sobbing in my apartment because of my loss, and then going out to Chili's and laughing about something stupid that Washington said, and, yes, I'm sure he said those things just to make me laugh. He made me smile at a time when smiling was not easy for me, and I appreciate it more than he knows.

I think, as a bride, I'm lucky to be nearly as close to the Best Man as the Groom is. I don't think this happens very often, but it means a lot to me for sure. I know that Washington will have Mr. G's back for anything that day, and I know he's saving me a dance for that night (...I know because I asked him to.)

Recently, Mr.G flew out to the sate of Washington, to spend his bachelor week of skiing, climbing, and hiking with Best Man Washington, and he had a great time. I'm so happy he got to do that, because hey, every groom needs to have fun before he's tied down to the ol' ball and chain. (Just kidding!)

The Giraffes, Washington, and Washington's awesome girlfriend, Glass

But really, I'm really starting to realize how much it means to have the people you care the most about take part in such a special day. It's really pretty awesome, and despite the fact that last-minute-crunch-time is threatening to make me lose my mind, I know that I'll have a great group of friends waiting for me at the end of that aisle. . .Along with a pretty hip groom, who I'm sure will look rather dashing in a tuxedo.

Picking your bridal party? How did you decide?

Giraffe Loves Cake

2011-04-26T21:36:00.003-05:00

Hey Hive, I know I haven't been around much, but I'm in crazy wedding crunch time mode, and I don't know how this wedding sneaked up on me! Seriously, though, I might turn into a crazy person in the next 17 days. Let's see what happens.

One of my favorite things in the entire world is cake. In a perfect world, I would replace every meal I ate with chocolate cake and VitaminWater. It'd be pure bliss, I tell you.

Because of my love affair with cake, I had no doubt in my mind that we'd need an amazing (and tasty!) cake for our wedding.

My previous cake experience had been pretty limited to birthday cakes, but man oh man, wedding cakes can blow your mind. The things bakers can do? Unbelievable!

Prettiest cake ever by Maisie Fantaisie via InspirationWed

As much as I love a fancy, all out, bottoms up kind of cake (which I do!), I knew it had to be something a little more simple for these Giraffes. Our wedding is super traditional, and although I didn't necessarily want a super traditional cake, I do want something a little more understated, that could tow the line between traditional and not.

Oh, and I also knew it had to be a round cake. I cannot picture myself getting married celebrating with anything other than a round cake. This is one idea in my head that I just cannot let go!

It all started with the inspiration photos (warning: these can be dangerous if you're hungry)...

via the Knot
via Simple Wedding Pictures
via Cake Central
via Wedding Cake Pictures
via Sedona Wedding Cakes
via Sedona Wedding Cakes

I think it's easy to see some similarities. Mr. G & I were really drawn to dots, swirls, ribbon, and simplicity.

But where did that get us? We knew what we liked, but we couldn't quite find the right photo to pass onto to baker. . .sooo I did what any crazy bride-to-be would do!

I built my cake in Adobe Illustrator!

I know, I know, it's a little crazy, but I knew exactly want I wanted and that seemed like the best way to do it. I passed on my Illustrator photo to the baker, and they can make it match. I'm so excited!

I think our cake will be simple and sweet, and just all around perfect! I am sooo excited/happy/want to eat about this cake!

How excited are you about your cake?

PS - Want to design your own? Here, use the Giraffe template!

How to DIY a "Years We Met" Flag Poster

2011-04-20T12:24:00.004-05:00

So, I've told you all about Martha's Flag Conversation Starter and how I had to have it. Well, team, here is how this Giraffe makes her dream come true.

Just to remind you all, to recap my last post, the whole point of this poster is that guests will write their name on a flag and stick it into the year where the met you.

What you need:

Foam core, based on size of your poster. I bought my foam board from Hobby Lobby, because it was 50% off, and they sell it in sizes much bigger than Miachels (Michaels only did as big as 30" and I needed 32". Michaels' board is also more expensive.)
Years Poster. More on this below.
Straight Pins. I bought mine from JoAnn's
Styrofoam Rectangle. (JoAnn's)
Half Yard of Fabric. (JoAnn's)
Card Stock (all ready owned)
Spray Adhesive (All ready own about 18 cans of it. For this project I used the Tacky brand, just because it was closest to me at the time.)

First, you need your year poster. Martha has one to download from her website. IT's the same one the photo below.

There's a couple of reasons that I didn't use Martha's poster. For one, she says just work with your printer to cut off the years you don't need . .. I think her poster starts with the '60s or something and Mr. G and I weren't born until the late '80s so I simply decided to make my own.

Quick Tip #1: Martha recommends having a copy shop print & mount this for you, but I think that this is sooo easy so everyone should just DIY it. Also, getting things mounted on foamcore can be pretty pricy so this is the way to go.

The bigger the poster, the more money it costs to get printed. Keep in mind, also, that if you want to use an unconventional size, it'll cost more. I wanted a semi-unconventional size so I had to dig for a company that would do that and do it cheaply since we're over budget a liiiittttle bit. I used a kgb deal, and got $30 to posterXXXL.com for only $10. I ended up spending a total of $11.98 on my 18"x32" poster. Perfect. Of course, I picked the size after I had designed the poster, so then I had to re-design it for a new size. Do do that ;-).

Step 1. To start, I glued two pieces of foam core together. I did this because my foam was only .25" thick, and I was worried people would stick pin all the way through it. You can order .5" foam core off the internet, but I didn't want to wait and shipping would have been more money since it's oversized. It was cheaper this way.

I laid my board down on my garage and covered it and spray adhesive. You can kind of see the spray adhesive in the photo - it's the shiny part. The I just laid the second piece on top of it.

After that, I sprayed on more spray adhesive. I wasn't careful, because I knew my board was much bigger than my poster, so I just made sure to get a bunch of adhesive on the board. Then I simply laid & smoothed out my poster on top of that.

Then I used my metal ruler, X-Acto knife, and cutting mat and cut it out. Easy Peasy.

If you look in the photo, you can kind of see the double layers of foam board.

I then let it sit against the couch for a day while I did something else.

Onto part two! Here's where the res of your supplies come into play. First, I gathered my pins & Styrofoam. Yes, I paid more money to get green and blue dress pins. Whatever, it was worth it :-D.

I also realized that I could leave the plastic on the Styrofoam, making less of a mess.

I used spray adhesive to cover the Styro-Rectangle with glue. . . And then I had Mama Giraffe wrap it up like a present with the pretty shiny fabric I bought because that step was too difficult for me.

Thanks, Mom! No, I won't shop my blog friends this photo of you in your PJs.

The bottom does not look good. At. All. But no one will see it, so I'm over that.

After that I used a scissors and paper cutter to cut of cardstock (with at least one blank side) that I all ready owned. I didn't measure it or anything. I also put it in piles of ten to keep organized.

Then, I simply stuck a pin through it and stuck the pin into the Styro-Rectangle.

And there you have it!! I told you it was easy!

Want to see the final project, one last time? Wellll, okay!

Sorry about the giant flash spot!

And there it is - if you look at the to of the photo, you can see that it almost come to Mr. G's waist. I like the size of it. Well, actually, I love everything about it. This is on project that I am super happy with (unlike that dumb card box). I just love it!

Now, if only I had a sign that told guests what to do with it. Oh wait, maybe I do. . . ;-)

Some Martha Inspiration

2011-04-18T12:39:00.000-05:00

Okay, by "we", I mean "me". . .But anyways! Do you guys remember when I told you that I had to have cake flags? Despite the fact I knew they're totally unnecessary, I made them anyway?

Yup, this is another one of those kinds of projects, except it's so much more!

See, let's go back in time about two years. That's right folks, two whole years. Despite the fact that everyone and their mother (okay, well, my mother) told me not to waste time on a project like this when I had other more important things to do with my time (like uhhh get a marriage license), I did it anyway.

See, two years ago, I saw this unique little idea on the Martha Stewart Weddings website, and then I book marked it, committed it to memory, and promised myself that this would indeed be the ice breaker to end all ice breakers and people would worship Miss Giraffe for being so cool and creative, but only if they don't know Martha and check her website first. Soooo right, after all those promises of people worshipping me, I had to make it happen.

What crazy DIY project was I lusting after, you ask? It's just a coincidence that this other project I have to have also involves flags; Martha calls it the, Conversation Flag Starter. . .Although I named mine something else ;-).

Martha Stewart Weddings / Direct Link

Basically, it's a poster set out for your guests. It's made up of numbers that represent years, and your guests write their names on super cute coordinating flags and stick them into the year that corresponds to when the met you (or your Mister!).

Martha Stewart Weddings / Direct Link

Martha has a how-to on her site, and you can also download her Years poster there too.

Are you drooling over that poster as much as I am? Don't lie, I know you are! I don't know what it is about it, but I just had to have it.

You guys are going to love how we Giraffes made this idea our own. Martha gave us a great starting point, but I, of course, had to make some tweaks along the way.

What DIY projects did you had to have? Was it this one? Just kidding! How'd they turn out?

It's ON, People!

2011-04-13T21:18:00.003-05:00

Here's the thing, Hive: I have so much to tell you. I mean seriously. I'm such a bad blogger. I've been here since October and have yet to tell you about our wedding bands, our wedding venue, our officiant, the food (ohhh man, the food!!), our musicians, the cake, the 40 dozen pastries we're serving, our invitations, the millions of signage that matches our invites, the plus one conundrum (which isn't what you'd think), my dress (which I've purposely kept under wraps), Daddy Giraffe trying to buy flip flops, my shoes, the shower, my other shoes, the honeymoon, my list of bridal FAILs, and so so so much more. I've been too busy talking about my nails... oh, and speaking of which, I have more things to say about my nails. Look out for that.

Out. Of. Control.

Photo from Amazon/Direct Link to Book

But am I blogging about any of that stuff today? Nope. Now, I'm sure that you're dying to hear about our wedding venue (which is quite important), but guess what? Welllll, it's time for the
That's right, team, we're counting down. Believe it or not, we're exactly one month until our big day as of today. I cannot believe it! As much as I want to share all the details with you guys (which I really really do), it seems like so much is going on that there's not time for that!

To top it off, I started a new job this week, which I absolutely love and have never been happier. For the first time in a year, I find myself relaxed and happy when I get home from work. I've spent the last year being stressed and frustrated so I am so glad that time is over. I also get to do the kind of graphic design that I've always wanted to do. And, yes, my new job is letting me take a (paid) week and a half off just a month after I start for the honeymoon. It's perfect, it really is.

My Giraffe and I have taken the first steps towards becoming (town)home owners. This is a big deal, but we're not talking about it, because we're still finalizing things, and I don't want to jinx anything. Let me tell you, the idea of a place of our own is almost too good to be true. After the wedding, I was planning on moving into the apartment Mr. G shares with his brother, so this is a very big deal.

And, of course, there's things that still have to bee (!) finialized fore the big day. I mean, programs, seating chart, escort cards!? Yeah, there's those for sure! I'm going to do my best to keep blogging (And try even harder to keep reading the Bee as well), but as time gets sparse we'll just have to see.

Hey good lookin', where will you be in a month? Oh giving smooches at the alter? Oh, okay then! Giraffe photo by friend V.

May 2011 girls, where you at? What do you have left on your to-do list? And everyone else - how was your last planning month, relaxed or stressful?

For Those that Can't Be There

2011-04-11T20:54:00.003-05:00

So many Bees have blogged about loss in the past, and I think its so important. A wedding is a happy occasion, but sometimes it seems impossible to be happy about everything involved. That fact of the matter is, most people have experienced loss at some point, and coping with the feelings of that loss and your wedding day is not easy. I think it's good to be honest about something like this because, no surprise here, so many of us are going through the same thing.

My grandma on my mom's side was like no one else, you guys. I challenge you to find another 70 year old woman that gets blonde highlights in her gray hair, wears gold pumps, and shops at Charlotte Russe and WetSeal. My grandma was awesome. Sure I went to college for graphic design, but she learned Photoshop way before I ever did, and even taught me how to burn my first CD when I was ten. It's a good memory, I promise. We were super close, and as Mr.G says, "I swear, you and your grandma were literally the same person." She had a great sense of humor, for sure.
Her getting sick was a surprise. My grandpa just got over cancer when we found out she had it. Fastforward a bit and both she and grandpa had beat cancer. Life was good. Then, unexpectedly, she complained about back pain and went to the doctor to get it checked out. Turns out the cancer was back, and within two weeks she was gone.

Her death was unexpected, and it was a very dark time for this Giraffe. I remember sitting on the tiled floor of the hospital just sobbing on the phone to Mr. Giraffe. (Mr. G had called off work as soon as he got off the phone with me and drove four hours to meet me and support me while I was a mess.) I spent the summer after that trying hard not to leave my apartment and watching Elizabethtown like 100 times. Thank goodness for Mr. G, Bridesmaid Marie, and Best Man Nick, because if it had been up to me, I would've spent those months in a dark apartment not talking to anyone.

When my grandma first got sick, Mr. G and I first started talking seriously about getting married. I remember saying, "Can we get married young? So she can be there?" And we thought she would.

I resented my older sister for a long time, because I was grieving and it hurt so bad that our grandma was able to attend her college graduation, and not mine. And now? It's so hard to picture my wedding day without my grandma there. It hurts to think about, and, even though its been 2.5 years, still makes me so sad.

When I first heard about the idea of a Generation Dance (where couples dance on the floor with the bride and groom, and the couple that's married the longest is the last on the dance floor), I think my heart broke a little. As wonderful as the idea is, my grandma was buried on what would have been her & grandpa's 55th wedding anniversary. It just doesn't seem fair to do that dance at my wedding when the last couple on the floor would be married some 20 years less than that. It doesn't seem right if it couldn't be my grandparents.

So how will I be remember my grandma on my big day? I've thought about the flower on the chair, and things like that, but I know my grandpa is still mourning this loss, and a visible thing like that would just upset him, I'm sure. I've decided to include a small line in our program in memory of her (As well as a line for my grandpa on my dad's side). I know it's not much, but it means a lot to me. I know our guests who knew her will see it, and I think they'll appreciate it too.

Sure, I'm struggling with the idea that my grandma won't be at our wedding, but I think it'll be all right. It's hard to believe that such a joyous occasion could bring such up such sadness within me, and that's why I'm choosing to keep a good attitude about it. Instead of thinking about how my grandma won't be physically present on our big day, I'm thinking about how she'll be watching over Mr. G and I. She'll be with us, and I'm 100% sure of it.

Oh, and want to see the most wonderful photo of all time? I found it when cleaning out my grandma's stuff. She got married at 16, and in the photo she's 17 and pregnant with my aunt. My grandpa said that in this picture, "She was so proud."

How are dealing with those that can't attend your big day?

A Giraffe Photo Display: Part 2

2011-04-07T20:05:00.008-05:00

Don't worry folks, this is the last post about our photo display (until recaps, of course). I know that you've all been waiting patiently, so it's about time I shared our wonderful results.

Firstly, big big props to friend Brooke, who was nice enough to let me share the crush I had on her wedding and the inspiration it gave me.

I told you guys about the first step of our photo display where we bought new frames and spray painted them. I told you it was easy, but let me tell you that step two is ever harder. Step two would be choosing the photos!

Mr. G and I ended up with more photo frames than we had planned for. I wanted 5-7 frames, but thanks to Mama Giraffe heading to her TJ Maxx, we ended up with 10 (which is awesome). Since we had so many frames, we decided we could use all kinds of photos from the whole time we were dating. I mean, how fun would it be to share photos of baby Giraffes?

Oh man, I'm definitely just 18 here. I can't believe how time flies!

Okay, so that was the plan anyway. Why didn't the plan work out? Well, we decided we'd start by choosing a couple of our engagement photos first, because I all ready had them in my iPhoto library. The things is, though. . . we ended up choosing 23. It couldn't be helped! Our e-pics are just that good! It's funny because out of all those photos, we definitely have different favorites.

We finally narrowed it down, and of course our super fave rock star awesome photo of our shoes was the first to make the cut. I swear, one day I'm going to have a mega huge canvas (just like the Elephants!) of this taking up two thirds of my living room. . . And then maybe an identical one right next to it in the last third of the living room because its just that epic. (Get it, anyone? Epic? E pic? Hilarious!)

Photo by our photogs, the rock stars known as Miller+Miller

After we picked out our shoe photo, we had to narrow the rest down. We used the logic of using only one photo in each setting. For example, we each loved a different photo of us on the beach, but we didn't need two. We let the one that looked a lot like our save the date photo go because our guests have all ready seen something similar, and this way they'll get the treat of seeing our mugs in a different way.

Hey good lookin' - Fancy meeting you here! E-Pic by Miller+Miller

Of course, this logic didn't hold through for the whole process. We ended up with two photos of us in the field, and another two of us in our match Chuck T's (although they're both super different than the one above), but I'm okay with it! We ended up choosing photos that we really really loved, so who cares if they're similar? I'm so excited about the result.

Oh... and speaking of result, I know you're looking for it! Feast your eyes on these babies!

Personal Photo by moi, but all e-pics by Miller+Miller

Doesn't that brown just look gorgeous? I love it! The best part about spray painting, besides having the frames be in our colors of course? If you see the brown, white, and blue 5"x7" frames in the back, they're actually the same frame. By painting them, they all look different and I didn't have to buy other more expensive frames for variety.

All right, let's go full circle and finish it up with a budget breakdown (...I'm kind of curious myself).
1 4x4 Square frame - $3.24
1 3.5x3.5 Square frame - $5
4x6 frames - 3 at $3 each, 1 at $2 = $11
5x7 frames - 4 at $3 each = $12

Spray paint from Home Depot
Two at $3.44 =$7.36

Spray Paint from Lowe's
Two at $3.78 = $7.56

Ten photo prints from Winkflash (with shipping) = $2.44

Grand Total = $48.60 or $4.86 a frame which isn't too shabby! I don't feel bad about spending $50ish on this project, because it's one I'm so excited about! Also, I feel like it's totally worth it, because we'll get to take all of photos home and display them after the wedding. It's the gift that keeps on giving, yo! But really, every time I think about these photos, I just get more excited. I am so very very happy we took the little time to do this project, and even happier that I saw Brooke's photo first, because without her I wouldn't have done this. Hooray for everything!

What DIY projects are you super excited bout?

Wedding Day Nails

2011-04-06T10:03:00.004-05:00

As we get closer to the big day, I've been thinking more and more about my wedding day look. You guys know I'm all ready thinking about hair (Still working on it!), and now I started thinking about my nails.

My wedding is on a Saturday, but seeing as I have the Friday before off of work, I think I'll get my nails done then. Bridesmaid Marie has the day off too, so she'll be joining me. Yay!

It seems like such a silly thing to think about, but I just keep thinking of those gorgeous pro-pics with close ups on the bride's hands/rings/nails/bouquet. See look - a lovely photo of a first dance, with nails on full view! See, that's reason enough to fancy up your fingers.

Photo by our rockstar photogs Miller + Miller via their blog

I told the bridesmaids that they don't have to get their nails done, but if they do, to please get french tips. I think french tips are super classy, and they always always look good!

Photo via Skinology 101

If that's the bridesmaids, what about the bride? Originally I wanted to go French Tips too, but I wanted to do something a liiiiitle more fancy/exciting than normal. Turns out there's quite a few options that are French Tip classy, but also pop and fresh.

Photo by tiffanybridetobe via Weddingbee Gallery

Photo from Wedding Come True / French Manicure with Silver Tips

Photo from Glam Me Up Blog / French Tip Tutorial

Photo from Elle and Ish Blog / Konad Manicure Post

Photo from All Women Talk / 7 Nail Trends to Try

Who knew french tips could be so hip? It's pretty cool that there are so many options for somethings that seems so simple. So what did this Giraffe decide?

Photo from Her Royal Princess Kate Blog / A Royal Manicure

Hahaha, just kidding! Although, I wouldn't be completely opposed to putting my own photo on my nails, but really, I'm thinking something simple, but classy. Like this:

Photo from Fashion Accessory Box / French Manicure - Elegant Choice for your Nail / Blue added in Photoshop by Giraffe

A little different from a normal French manicure, but just enough to give me the extra "oomph" that I'm looking for. Love it! I'm going to try and not break my own nails so I won't have to get fake ones, but we'll see how that goes.

Anybody else getting fancy nails for the big day? What look are you going for?

A Giraffe Photo Display: Part 1

2011-04-05T19:26:00.005-05:00

By now, you've heard about my wedding crush, and my crush inspiration. My inspiration (from friend Brooke who is so awesome for sharing - thanks, girl!) is something like this:

Photo shared by friend Brooke / Photos by Colin Lyons/E-Pics in Frames by Colin Lyons *

Lovely, right? I know. Now that I had the inspiration, and the OK from our venue that there would be space, Mr. Giraffe and I set our to find the perfect frames.

Hobby Lobby had frames that looked just like Brooke's funky fresh ones, and they were 50% off. Unfortunately, even after the 50%, they would still be $10 a piece which was a no-go for the Giraffes because that means I couldn't afford the 5-7 frames I wanted, and I didn't want to pay a lot for something I was going to paint anyway. I hit up some local resale shops, and found nothing.

Then, Rock Star Mama Giraffe suggested Marshall's & TJ Maxx! Jackpot! I found a ton of 5"x7" and 4"x6" frames all on super clearance for $2 and $3. I went to two different Marshall's and two TJ Maxx's. Both stores had the same frames, but this way I was able to get a bunch. I did buy a different clearance frame at Target also, for $5, because I wanted a little more variety.

Then I bought spray paint in our wedding colors. Tip: Hardware stores now have all the fun colors craft stores have. By going to Home Depot & Lowes, I was able to get paint for $4 instead of $6 at Micheal's.

First, I laid out the photos and stuck sticky notes on them so I'd remember which frame was which. As you can see, the bright, neon-y green color and icky off-white definitely makes them look kind of tacky - don't worry, it gets better!
Then, in the backyard, we set them in four different groups, one for each paint color: baby blue, light green, white, and a super sexy brown.

Mr. Giraffe is wondering, "Why are we painting those green frames green?"

After that, we simply started painting. In the end, they got a second coat after the first one dried.

Yes I realize that here, I am just about to paint a light blue frame another shade of light blue.

It was all sorts of fun, and despite it being warm for a Chicago day, I got cold which resulted in me putting on my winter coat with my sweat pants and making faces.
Almost done . . .

This is when Mr. G told me he never spray painted before. What?!

*All photos in this post, except for the first one, taken by Miss and Mama Giraffe.

Doesn't that brown just look good enough to eat?! It's such a beautiful color that my heart just skips a beat. Love!

Anyways, aren't you just dying to see how it all turns out?!! Just wait, it's ten kinds of fabulous!

Displaying photos at your reception? How?

Wedding Crush Inspiration

2011-04-05T07:34:00.000-05:00

Remember when I introduced you to my wedding crush sometime last week? Well, I'll get you up to speed real quick. Friend Brooke got married and had one of the prettiest, hippest weddings of all time and I'm totally crushing over it.

Her wedding looked something like this:Photo shared by friend Brooke / Photos by Colin Lyons

Riggghhhhhttttt? Lovely! Although, there's one thins I haven't shown you from Brooke's wedding (on purpose, of course). Hold on to your hats here people, its awesome! See, Brooke & Jim had amazing engagement pictures, and they found the best way to display them at their reception.

Photo shared by friend Brooke / Photos by Colin Lyons/E-Pics in Frames by Colin Lyons

All of Brooke's photos are by photographer Colin Lyons, of which Brooke said only good things about. For more of Brooke, visit her Etsy site.

The bright colors, fun pictures, and pop and fresh frames? Don't you just love it!? As soon as I saw these pictures, I mentally filed them away, making sure that I didn't forget about them in the future. This was I project we had to do!

I actually printed on that first photo of the frames and brought it with me when I met with our reception coordinator. I got the okay that we had a space to do this, and then Mr. Giraffe and I got moving on it!

Tune in tomorrow to see the Giraffes, take Brooke & Jim's project and make it our own!

Anybody else get inspired by a friend's project? What was it?

A Permanent Wedding Gift

2011-04-04T07:52:00.003-05:00

Big news going on here, Hive. See, remember when I told you about my secret, which was actually Mr. Giraffe's secret?

Well, if you don't, I'll remind you. Three years ago, Mr. G got a giant Miss G tattoo on his back.

Giraffe Personal Photo

I know, hardcore, yo! So after working up my courage for the last almost three years, I finally did the same for Mr. Giraffe. I was terrified, and sweaty, and made the artist stop twice because of said freaking out (otherwise, it should have only taken 7 minutes), but I did it!

Normally, I'm a pretty conservative and straight-laced person, so I'm pretty proud of myself that I was able to work up the courage to go through with it! I love it, love it, love it, and am so happy with my decision. Mr. Giraffe is happy too and I'm so excited that this is something we could share with each other.

Giraffe Personal PhotoGiraffe Personal Photo

Tattooing your person's name onto your body definitely isn't for everyone. I know a lot of people think it's a seriously crazy idea, and others believe the superstition that it'll cause some sort of break up, but I don't think that way at all. I'm just happy and excited, and I cannot wait for a photo on my wedding day of putting on fancy shoes, right next to the tattoo that will keep Mr. Giraffe with me at all times.

Anybody else get a tattoo right before they're wedding? Besides the awesome Miss Sloth that is.

My Wedding Crush

2011-03-30T08:51:00.003-05:00

You know how every once and a while you see photos of a wedding and it just takes your breath away? You know, your heart skips a beat, and then you feel instantly smitten? While you're drooling over to-die-for photos, you finally realize that your knee-deep in your first (...or second or third) wedding crush.

Typically, I find myself wedding crushing over super prettyfied weddings on super swank wedding sites, that never feel like they're created by real people.

Well not this time! I have been drooling over this wedding for a long time, and its 100% legit. It's hard to believe a regular person could pull off something like this, but I promise you its true! I'm a little embarrassed to admit it, but time and time again, I go back to look at the photos from this wedding because they're just so amazing.

I went to college with Brooke and Jim. We had our graphic design classes together, and Brooke is such a creative person that I had secretly been stalking her facebook dying to see her wedding photos. It all started after she posted the most amazing E-pics I'd ever seen.

Brooke's wedding inspired some projects for us, but you'll have to wait for those posts in the future ;-).

With her permission, I'm sharing some of her photos here. All of her photos are by photographer Colin Lyons, of which Brooke only had amazing things to say about. For more of Brooke, visit her etsy site - I swear, she's a rock star!

Everything was done with such bright colors! The pinks and oranges make me smile!

Photo shared by friend Brooke / Photos by Colin Lyons

I swear, the reception details will make you 10 kinds of amazed! Their programs are beyond awesome.

Photo shared by friend Brooke / Photos by Colin Lyons Photo shared by friend Brooke / Photos by Colin Lyons
Photo shared by friend Brooke / Photos by Colin Lyons

Photo shared by friend Brooke / Photos by Colin Lyons Photo shared by friend Brooke / Photos by Colin Lyons

I know, I know. Hey, I wasn't going to say it, but "I told you so." I'm sure you guys are all enamored with such an unbelievably beautiful day. I swear, every time I see the photos, I just can't help but smile because they are just so fun (and that is exactly what I want our day to be).

I can't wait to share what we did that was inspired by this crush!

Oh and a huge shout out to rock star Brooke for letting me share her photos with the Hive.

Do you have a wedding crush? Has it inspired your big day?

A Venue fit for the Giraffes

2011-03-29T22:34:00.003-05:00

This past weekend, Mr. Giraffe and I sat down with Jen. the catering manager (who I've been e-mailing with for the last forever!) of our reception venue. I want to tell you all about that, but you'll have to wait until later ;-).

Today, I want to introduce you to our lovely reception venue. I haven't really blogged about our awesome venue at all, simply because you have to book it a year and a half out, and when I started blogging in October, the decision had all ready been made months before. We had booked it and hadn't had to get back to it for a while, so I really didn't have anything to say about it.

To get you guys caught up, we're receptioning at a magical place called Idlewild Country Club. Idlewild is about 20 minutes from our ceremony venue, but in the suburbs everything is 20 minutes apart so it works out perfectly.

The first time I visited Idlewild was at about 4:00 on New Year's Eve back in 2008 (holy cow). Mama Giraffe warned me not to fall in love with it simply because it was all decorated for the holiday, but I did just that. It is such a pretty venue. I have a bunch of pictures I took of the venue all empty, but who wants those?!

Recently, I discovered Idlewild's facebook page, complete with all kind of fancied up photos.

Idlewild Country Club on Facebook / Idlewild Weddings Album / found via Idlewild Website

Sigh... Love...

Anyway, you might be too busy staring at those photos, but I'm going to continue you on, just in case. Why did we choose Idlewild as our venue? Well, it was #4 out of the 4 venues we visited, and unlike the first three, it hit everything on our list.

Here's what the Giraffes were looking for (and what we're getting):
On Site Catering - Call me lazy (which I am for sure), but going out and finding and hiring a caterer seemed like too much work. Wouldn't it be nice if the food just came with the venue?

A space all to ourselves - We visited two different venues where you got a partitioned space (aka a giant fake wall that breaks one room into two). One place had a lovely outdoor balcony, but I hated the idea that guests would be sharing the balcony with guests from other weddings. Idlewild is closing the whole upstairs so its all ours. We get the lobby, bar area, and rest of the space that is all connected, and we don't have to share it with anyone. Yay!

Chair Covers - Okay, okay, I realize I'm crazy but chair covers have always been a priority to me since the very beginning of our marathon of an engagement. Once places wanted $700 for chair covers, and another $400. Idlewild includes them in our package. This was enough to have me.

Good food- And boy, is it tasty. More on that later!

Location - The 'burbs are so spread out that it's hard to keep everything 'local.' Unlike the city, we don't have any public transportation either, so I didn't want it to be too far. The goal was no more than a half hour away, and Idlewild fits that perfectly.

A good deal - I didn't want to feel like we wouldn't be getting our money's worth, or even thought it is quite expensive, that we're getting ripped off. Idlewild was by far the best deal we found.

There it is guys. You might think our reception venue sounds awesome, but hold your horses, just wait until you see the food!

Did you "reception shop" with a certain list in mind? What were your priorities?

A Book of Giraffe Guests

2011-03-27T17:45:00.002-05:00

Also known as the Guest Book.

You see, we're having a guest book as most weddings often do, but I'll tell you right now that its not as easy as you would think. To save time (and possibly my sanity), I've decided to buy a guest book rather than DIY one.

I was obsessed with the idea of a photo guestbook for a while, but my narcissistic self has all ready put our photo on all kinds of wedding things so we're going a little more traditional with this one.

Funny thing, being traditional about this is the one reason I didn't want do. You know why? Wellllll, a "traditional" guestbook really isn't my style. In fact, what comes to mind is something like this:Online shopping at HotRef.com / Direct link

It's pretty, but it's not me & Mr. G at all.

Obviously, something not my style would turn my off a little to the guestbook, but the amazing world of etsy, is once again turning everything around for me.

I've found just short of a bazillion options on Etsy for guestbooks. There are more standard guestbooks, customizable guestbooks, handmade journals that could double as guestbooks, and then some.

Now, the only hard thing to do is decide. Here's a few of the lovelies I've got my eye on right now.

Etsy / ClareMagnolia Shop /Direct Link

Etsy / ModernShabby Shop /Direct Link

Etsy / MSSquaredesgins Shop /Direct Link

Etsy / Grimm's Shop /Direct Link
Etsy / HelloShunshineDesign Shop /Direct Link
Etsy / ModernShabby Shop /Direct Link
Etsy / The Handmade Boutique Shop /Direct Link
Etsy / Grimm's Shop /Direct Link

There you have it, folks! Well, I did say "bajillion" earlier; I told you there was a ton of options. Clearly, I haven't made up my mind at all here. Oh man, I better figure that out soon!

Going the traditional Guestbook route? Where did you find yours?

Wedding Worthy Up Dos

2011-03-23T13:34:00.000-05:00

You guys, there are many things that I don't care about, my appearance being one of them. This doesn't mean that I always look sloppy, but I'm certainly no fashionista, and most days I leave the house without looking at a mirror.

I don't know, that's just the way I've always been. It took me until my senior year of college to finally brush my hair all the way through every day. I know, I know, its terrible, but I've just never been into it. Nowadays, I do brush my hair, but that's about it. (Although, I carry around a pony tail in case there is a hair in face situation). When I had long hair, I'd twist it up into a hair lump everyday because it was always in my way, but I don't do that as much anymore.

Suffice to say, I want to do something a little more fancy for the wedding. Granted, a little more fancy might be be enough, so I think I might go big. I'm thinking maybe an up do? Those always look nice in pictures.

Granted, my lack of hair smarts, kind of mean that almost all up dos look identical to me, but I reallllly am making an effort to find something that I like and that is appropriate for a traditional wedding.

(source)

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That's it, but I don't think this is over yet, team. Updo, half up do, quarter updo? Up do and a half? You haven't heard the last from this Giraffe :).

How did you choose your wedding hair? Really, i could use some tips!

Gifts I Didn't Give My Bridesmaids: Part 2

2011-03-21T21:15:00.001-05:00

I all ready mentioned Gifts I Didn't Give my Bridesmaids, but then I realized I forgot to mention a few things! There were a few more things I really considered to give as gifts, and although it didn't end up giving them, I wanted to share them with you guys! Of course, I have great ideas ;-), so I thought you guys might be able to find some inspiration for your girls here!

(source)

Love Letters from Great Men - After seeing the first Sex and the City movie in the theater with 2 of my BMs, I thought it would be so sweet to give the book of love poems Miss Bradshaw had and Big later emailed to her. I love poems and love poems would be totally appropriate for a wedding-ish gift.

Why didn't this work out? Turns out the book didn't really exist. After the movie though, this book was created.

(source)

Matching Adidas Tracksuits - Yes, it's totally true, I wanted to pull a Sue Sylvester here. I thought it would be both hilarious and awesome if the Giraffe Girls and I could spend the day getting ready in our super cozy Adidas Tracksuits. I mean, they even come in our wedding colors!

(source)

So why didn't this amazing idea happen? I thought of it after I all ready bought their gifts. Bummer.

(source)

The Monogrammed Gift Bag - I was obsessed with the idea of getting super cute personalized bags to put the gifts in for the Giraffe Girls. It's so easy to order them in colors that match your wedding ones, and I think having your name or initials embroidered on a gift bag shows thoughtfulness.

Why not? Well, I thought it'd make more sense to put money towards a gift, not just a bag. If you don't catch the bags on sale, $18 really doesn't seem worth it.

... Secretly though, I'm still a little bummed that I didn't do the gift bags ;-).

So that's it, all the gifts I wanted to get, but didn't quite get for the Giraffe girls!

What are you gifting your bridal party?

Let's Talk about Not Having Babies

2011-03-21T15:04:00.001-05:00

You guys have heard me talk about waiting for marriage here and here, so I figured I'm just going to keep with the possible over-sharing and fill you in on some more super personal details of a Giraffe life ;-).

Growing up, the Giraffe Parents (emphasis on Mama Giraffe here) were very open about sex. I've received the talk probably hundreds of times, from when I was younger through when I was in high school. I mean, granted, I was mortified when I was in junior high and Mama Giraffe sat me down to explain how "Even though Bill Clinton thinks oral sex is not sex, it still is."

I did tell you I was mortified.

Anyway, moving right along, I think that largely because of the way I grew up, I've always been educated about safe sex.

In college, I knew that I was waiting until marriage, but seeing as ISU hands out condoms like they're candy, I did make sure to have a couple, just in case I decided to change my mind. No, I wasn't planning on changing my mind, but if Mr.G and I decided to make that choice, I wanted to be prepared.

This bring me to where I am now. See, I think you guys all know where this is going. As the wedding approaches, and that "waiting til marriage" is almost over, I had to start looking into birth control. I like babies, but now is not the time, you guys! I'm serious, "get on pill" is on my wedding to-do list.

Sure, he's super cute, but we are not ready for baby Giraffes!

Now I realize this is super personal, and you're probably wondering why I'm sharing it on the internet with a bunch of strangers. Well, I was seriously freaked out about getting birth control. Seriously. I was freaked out out to the point that I was willing to put off even getting the pill because I was so scared to go to the doctor. I'm here to let you guys know that it is no big deal, and completely normal. If there's anybody else, like me, whose worried about this, then relax. I'm here to tell you all it's not so bad.

I had always planned to get on the pill. Most of my friends are on it, it's easy to use, and it doesn't involve any scary needles. I called my gyno to make an appointment, but the problem is their office opens after I leave for work, and closes before I get home, and they're not open on weekends.

This is when I started to get nervous. See, its two months before my wedding and I have to find a new doctor and talk about my personal life with them? (Yes, I do realize the irony that I post it on the internet for everyone, but am nervous to discuss it with a doctor I don't know). I turned to some 'Bee friends (thanks girls!) who smartly suggested Planned Parenthood (PP).

I looked up the nearest PP, which wasn't far from my house at all and made an appointment. Quick FYI for you, I went to a PP Express, which means they don't do exams so keep that in mind if you're making an appointment.

I don't want to get political here, but there were people on the opposite end of the parking lot, near the street, holding signs that said "Planned Parenthood Kills Babies." Don't let this deter you. I was all ready super nervous and uncomfortable, and those people almost had me turn around, but they didn't say anything to me or even really look at me when I went inside. If you do see these folks, just ignore them. Trust me, its not that bad.

It was incredibly awkward to fill out a form that asked how many male and female partners I had and what kind of sex I had with them, but it would have been rude to tell them that that was none of their business ;-).

Anyway, I met with two very nice ladies at PP who talked to me about different types of the pill, then I got a prescription, which was filled at the front counter, and that was it. My insurance covers it too, so I only paid $10 a pack.

It was not a big deal at all. I don't know why I had worked it up in my head to be some giant thing because it really wasn't. I sweat so much out of nervousness, that as soon as I got home I had to change my shirt. Ridiculous.

Honestly? The most awkward part of the whole thing was the giant plastic vajayjay that was sitting next to me, so people could practice the Nuvaring. That thing was looking at me, I swear.

They say there could be some side effects to taking the pill, but to try it out for at least two months to know. I've been on it about two weeks now and haven't noticed anything.

Anybody else on the Pill? Are you pretty happy with it? I think I am, but we'll have to see.

Ps - Need to find out more about Birth Control? Try here.

Fancy Cakes, Take Two!

2011-03-15T21:35:00.004-05:00

You guys have heard that I need cake flags for my wedding. I have to have them, as simple as that.

I figured cake flags have to pretty simple to make, and they are. In fact, it was the easiest DIY yet! Ten points for the Giraffes!

To start, I needed to find the perfect blue paper. Here's a bit of advice for you guys. Scrapbook paper (at 12"x12") was $.59, and I couldn't find the right paper so I was going to get a big 16"x20" blue sheet of artist paper for $1.60. It was giant, and cheap, but it wasn't quite the right color, but I was going to get anyway.... until I walked past the poster board aisle and saw I giant super big piece of poster board for a whopping $.89 in the perfect shade of blue.

So I bought six.

Anyway, I headed home with my giant poster board and decided to get working. (Ps - I did all that shopping at Hobby Lobby, my Michael's only had neon colored poster board).

My poster board was so perfect, I took a photo for you all. Sorry about putting it on a laundry basket.

Oh... I also bought one other thing from Hobby Lobby.
Ah! Giraffe paper!

Anyway - here's how to DIY your cake flags.

Step 1) Cut giant poster board into 8.5" x 11" sheet.
Step 2) Print out your cake flag design on your pages. (I stole Cupcake's phrase. Thanks, Cupcake!).
Here's a tip, I printed blue dotted lines around each 'flag' so I'd know where to cut. I made the lines slightly darker than the blue board so it wouldn't be noticeable if I didn't cut straight (which happens a little too often). They're hard to see in the photo, so I put a giant red circle around 'em.
Step 3) Grab your paper cutter and scissors! I used my paper cutter to cut strips out, and then I used a scissors to cut a triangle out of the end, to make the flag points. This actually went super quick; way faster than expected!
Step 4) Dip one end of a toothpick (oh yeah, you're supposed to buy tooth picks first) into glue and stick your flag to it. I used regular ol' white Elmers glue and then lined up the flags on wax paper to dry.

I think most people cut out a long strip of paper and wrap it around the tooth pick so that both sides look pretty, but I'm too lazy for that.
That's it! It's that simple! And the finished product is so fun!
I love our flags! Looooove them! I'm so happy I took the little time it took to do this project. I think it'll cake our cake look just that much better. Overall this project only cost me a few dollars, and I think its totally worth more than that :).

Don't feel like making your own drink flags? Feel free to use The Giraffe's:

Anybody else rocking the cake flags?

Dresses (and dissapointment) for Team Giraffe

2011-03-14T13:00:00.004-05:00

I realize I haven't mentioned my wedding dress at all yet, possibly because there's no exciting story. I saw it in a magazine, said I wanted that one, tried it on 2.5 years before the wedding, went back a year later after I first tried it on and Mama Giraffe bought it for me. I didn't change my mind, worry, or spend hours looking at dresses. It's just not my style. I hate trying on clothes normally, and I'm far from a fashionista so the whole dress process was 100% me.

That being said, wedding planning has made me crazy and I've had wedding superstition all in my head. I'm convinced its bad luck for Mr. G to see my dress, so I'm keeping it under wraps until the big day.

But then, come to think of it, I haven't shared my bridesmaid dresses either. . . Frankly because I don't like to think of them. I'm going to be honest with you,here, Hive. Bear with me.

See, shopping for bridesmaid dresses (BMD) was not a good experience. There was lot of drama, arguing, anger, and tears. I'm normally a strong person, but I spent the end of day crying, and I could only be comforted by BM Mang and Chipotle.

It was horrible and a mess, and I don't like to think about that day. It was nothing like I had imagined it would be, and it certainly was not fun.

What does this mean? Well as far as the next-to-impossible task of choosing one dress for six different girls, I found it. I mean, I found a dress I loved. It was also way more money than I wanted my girls to spend. This might sound bridezilla of me, but by the end of the day, I was so emotionally exhausted and ready to give up, that I just went with the dress.

Yes, I love the BMD a lot, but I hate the cost, but sometimes it gets to a point when you have little energy left, and I just hit that point.

But that's not just it; I have even more of a bad taste in my mouth about the whole thing.

The BMD were purchased from House of Brides, a Chicago-land bridal shop, everyone working there is very nice, and I had visited it once before, when I was just looking. It seemed like a good place to go with, but well. . .you'll see.

I'll be honest, I'm still pretty pissed off about this. At the time of purchase, House of Brides had my BMD listed on their website for $143 (now its available for $111 and my girls' dresses haven't even come in yet). Funny story, my girls all paid $207. I called HoB to ask if they'd match their website prices, but they don't because, "we're paying for the consultant and all the help they gave us."

Huh. . . seeing as half my girls called in their order so no consultant was even used, and, not to mention that I would've used a consultant even if we hadn't gone with HoB, I don't know why we have to "pay for one". The store, when I brought up the web price to them, did tell me, since I mentioned it, that they would take $15 off.

Why am I ranting to you guys? This is why: if you order of the HoB website, you can use their store for alterations. I asked if I could have my girls just order off the site, and they fed me a bunch of garbage about how all the dresses had to be ordered through the store so they could come in at the same time - it was some BS for sure. Long story short, they totally did it for the money and I totally fell for it. House of Brides has great dresses and a great selection, but if you want to use them, order off their website - nearly all the prices are cheaper.

And that my friends, is why I haven't been thinking about my BMDs. I'm still hurt about the shopping experience and I'm still bitter (and more so annoyed) at the price.

Oh and the dress in question? That brown color will be the trim and the rest will be baby blue.

House of Brides
House of Brides

Cute? Definitely. Worth all the headache and heartache? Probably not.

Anybody else have a bad wedding related experience? How did you get over it (because that's the part I'm having trouble with)?

Old Navy Tank Dressse on Sale!

2011-03-12T08:30:00.005-06:00

Hey all, just a PSA from you friendly neighbor Giraffe here.

Looking to stock up on cute goods for your beachy honeymoon? Because that's what I'm doing! You guys know I got a great deal on new swim suits, but I've been looking to pick up other things, too.

I've been wanting some cute/light dresses to wear over my suits or when lounging around, so today I'll be heading over to Old Navy!

That's right, Hive! Today, and today only, Old Navy Tank dresses are only $9! They're normally $19.50 so it's a great deal. They have 6 different styles, 3 print and 3 solid. You guys wouldn't jude me if I bought them all, right? Just kidding (... kind of).

old navy tank dresses

Stock up, Hive!

Dish Envy

2011-03-11T12:51:00.006-06:00

I'm going to start out disclaimer-style and let you all now that I'm 100% aware of how ridiculous this post is. I mean, seriously, I am out of control here. After you finish reading this, we don't have to mention it ever again. (Please don't mention it ever again?)8

You see. . . I have dish envy.

Yes, it's true. I had a wonderfully amazing shower recently (that I still have to share with you!) and I received so many awesome gifts. I was totally overwhelmed with generousity and I can't believe that people spent so much money on things for Lil Ol' Me . . . oh yeah, and the Mister, too.

Mr. G and I were lucky enough to receive all the dishes we asked for. Due to Mr. G having 8 Giraffes in his immediate family, and me having 4, we wanted enough dishes so that we could have everyone over at the same time.

Long story short, we registered for four 16 piece place settings and received them all. That's enough for 16 people! Woah.

I love our dishes, and I share them with you soon, but guess what happened? Yes, the dish envy.

I received a message from Eziba in my inbox yesterday showcasing the loveliest dishes ever.

Eziba Screenshot

Now do you believe me? Just lovely. Please, someone, go buy them!

So why am I sharing with you a set of dishes that I'm drooling over but not going to buy?

Here's why: Mr. G and I literally spent hours and days arguing over what dishes to register for. I swear, I've never been so mad at him, and he wasn't doing anything wrong, his taste is just different than mine. After a week of fighting, we finally agreed, and now I love our dishes and I love that we own the whole set.

Despite my dish envy, I'm not going to return all my new dishes just to buy those Ezibe ones.
And that, my friends, is I think my first almost-married compromise. Word.

No, chance are I really wouldn't take our new dishes back, but it's nice that I'm actually thinking of my future home decor as "our" future home decor. Pretty cool, huh?

You and yours disagree on decor? Did you fight it out? How'd you make it work?

Gifts I didn't Give my Bridesmaids

2011-03-09T13:01:00.002-06:00

There's been a lot of talk about bridesmaid gifts around late, like from the lovely Miss Jaguar and Miss Hippo. I always told myself, way back before beecoming a bee, that I would totally blog ablout this is the future because..

Well, because it isn't easy!

After I began shopping, the whole deal was pretty painless and I've got gifts I'm so excited about, but pre-shopping? I was not excited. Not at all.

See, all my girls (all whopping six of them) are all very different. How on earth do you buy 1 gift (because, of course, I wanted to do matching gifts), for 6 different people?

BM/FSIL T, & Junior BM/FSIL L, not pictured here... but the rest of us are!

I know, it's a hard question to answer. Here it is hive, the gifts I almost got, but didn't quite get for the Giraffe girls.

The Adidas Peachtree Watch! I own this watch in yellow, and it has a neon blue and purple face. It's both completely obnoxious and awesome. For black Friday (when I purchased mine), the Adidas website had the normally $50 watch on sale for $26. Serendipitous, I know. It was such a good deal, and I wear it everyday so I got my moneys worth for sure.

Why it didn't make the BM Gift cut? Well, I'm completely enamored with it's 80s style and super giant face, but it's definitely not everybody's style... Actually, I think all my girls would hate it ;-). Oh well, at least I bought one for myself!

The Etsy Clutch. You guys, I literally spent hours trolling etsy under searches for things like "wedding clutch" or "matching bridesmaid bags." Seriously, I wasted a ton of my life and I will never get those hours back. I could've been doing my normal etsy search of "cute animal cake toppers", but no, I was looking for matching bags. Lo and behold, I narrowed my search down to 22 and added them all to my etsy favorites.

Why didn't this one make the cut? Well, I'll be honest, I was obsessed with the idea of buying bridesmaid etsy clutches for a good year, but it got to a point where I was completely overwhelmed and stressed about it. I looked at etsy over and over and the same thing, and it got to a point where it was way too stressful (and etsy window shopping should never be stressful) so I had to let it go.

Long story short? I totally psyked myself out on this one, so I moved on.
Crocs for the Big Day. Some people hate Crocs, but I love them. I love them more than words can say. I own 1 pair of gym shoes, 2 pairs of rubber rain boots, 4 pairs of work shoes, and about 10 pairs of Crocs. BM Marie bought the same pair I had when we were in college so she could be just like me. I think my friends think I'm crazy, because outside of work, these are pretty much all I wear. I kept telling everyone I was going to buy white ones for my wedding day, and for some reason everyone is against it. I thought it would be amazing for myself and all my BMs to spend the day together in our matching (and awesome) rubbery shoes.

Why not, Miss Giraffe? Well, everyone besides me hates Crocs, I think. . . and I want to get my girls some they'll actually like.
Matching BM Robes. I realllllllly reallllly want to get my girls matching bridesmaid robes. It would give everyone something totally comfortable to spend the day in while we all get ready, and it completely practical because the robes can be used again and again. I would love to go the extra mile and find monogrammed ones or "i heart miss giraffe" ones.

Oh! And not to mention they're so stinkin' cute in photos!

So, what happened? Ughhhh. I didn't have this idea until after I bought everyone's gifts all ready, so I had no money left. If only I had seen it sooner! Oh well, a girl can dream!

Let's here it, hive! What gifts didn't make the cut?

Belly Bands... Like a Hug for Your Invitations

2011-03-08T08:00:00.000-06:00

Oh man, Hive, ever since I talked about Packing the Invitations, I've had belly bands on my mind. I've gone through weird belly band phases, where I thought they were just okay, and then loved them, then just okay, and then loved them again.

Well, right now, I currently love them. Love. Them. It amazes me how creative people can get with the bands, and how fantastic they can all look, even if they are different.

I've decided that showing you just 2 photos in my last won't do. I hereby dedicate this enire post to belly bands. That's right! In honor of the hug for our invitations, here are all kinds of belly band eye candy.

Enjoy.

Monogram belly bands! (source 1, source 2, source 3)

Patterned belly bands! (source 1, source 2, source 3)

Fat Belly Bands!
Skinny belly bands!
Belly bands with a seal! (source 1). I found the second image on Google, and the source takes to me a spammy pop-up site, so let me know if you guys have seen it before. Thanks!

Hippo Wedding bands!
Random uncategorized awesome belly bands! (source 1, source 2, source 3, source 4, source 5).

Ahhhhh! So much goodness!

All right, Hive. Let's see 'em. Hands up! Who loves belly bands?!

InDesign Info: Money Saving Wallets

2011-03-06T09:26:00.009-06:00

It's been too long of a wait for another tech tutorial! We’ve already learned about dotted lines, glyphs, zig zag lines, black & white effects, and thank you masks. Today, we're taking our first stab at InDesign. I personally prefer ID, but if you don't, have no worries. This will be easy!

Have you ever seen invitations that include a photo? Of course you have! Mama Giraffe and Daddy G once received one that included a wallet size photo of the couple and I mentally filed the idea away. I love it. Mr. G and I will be doing this for sure - many of my family members haven't met him yet so I would love for them to get to know "us" a little bit better for the big day.

Here's the thing, Hive, which I find totally strange. Wallet sized photos cost more than your average 4"x6" photo. I'll break it down for you. (Although, keep in mind, wallets come 4 per sheet).

Winkflash: 4x6 = ¢.08, Wallets = ¢.39 (I order from here all the time, they're great!)
Snapfish: 4x6 = ¢.09, Wallets = ¢.99
Walgreens: 4x6 = ¢.1o, Wallets = ¢.99
Shutterfly: 4x6 = ¢.15, Wallets = $1.79

Okay, you guys get the point. Here's the thing, though, you can make your own wallets on one 4x6" page, and the pay the 4x6 price. That's what I'll be doing! You'll be amazed at how easy it is!

Before we begin: All screenshots come from InDesign CS5 on a Mac. Once again, things are comparable to a PC.

Step 1) Make a new document. Type in 6in for the width and 4in for the height. Set your margins to 0. Then click "OK."
Step 2. Once you have your new document open, make a new rectangle
Press the key "M" for the rectangle tool. Then click once and the rectangle dialog box will come up.
Type in "3in" for the width and "2in" for the height. Click "OK".
Then a new rectangle will appear on your screen. Yay!

Step 4.
Use your cursor to move your rectangle to the top left corner of your document. Just click down and drag.
Step 5. Click on your rectangle to select it. The go to File > Place.
A dialog box will pop up. Find the photo you're looking for. Choose it, and click open.
Step 6. InDesign will place the photo into the rectangle you made. My photo is larger than the box I made, so only part of it shows up.
To fix this, go to Object > Fitting > Fit Content Proportionally. You can also use my favorite ID key command which is command+shift+option+E (I use this one all the time!).
Then you're photo will fit like so:
Step 7. Simply Copy & Paste (you can go to edit>copy and edit>paste) so you have for photos. Simply click and drag each photo to each corner of the page.
Step 8. Now, all we have left is to make a JPG. Chose File>Export (key command: command +E).
When the dialog box pops up, name your photo and choose JPG at the bottom.
Another dialog box pops up, and this one is important. Choose "Maximum" for quality, set your resolution as 300, and your color space as CMYK.
Click "Export" !

And that's it! It is that easy! Now all you have to do is upload it to your photo program and order your wallets. Depending how many you order, you could save whole dollars! Hey, every little bit helps!

Anybody tucking wallet photos into their invites?

Packing the Invitations!?

2011-03-03T13:17:00.004-06:00

Hive, I'm still alive, I promise you. Lately, I've been so busy. There was a crazy awesome shower I can't wait to tell you about and tons of other stuff going on. I clearly need to quit my job so I can wedding plan & blog full time.

Anyway, I have to talk a little about invitations today. Sure, I should be assembling my invitations this week, but I'm a FAIL bride seeing as I just sent them to print on Monday. I'm going to want to get them out ASAP because it took me forever to send them to print, which means I have to make decisions!

Oh wait, what? I'm horrible at making decisions.

You'd think designing the invitations was the hard part, you's think when that part was over, that you're on easy street. Well you're wrong, or at least I was.

See, before you send out your invitations, you have to decided how to package them, per se. Making this decision is literally making me uncomfortable because I simply cannot decided. If I haven't been able to make my mind up in the last 2 years, I don't know how I expected myself to do it in a week, but I've gotta!

Here are our options, guys.

1. The ever popular belly band. Always classy, avoids the need for inner envelopes therefore saving you some money on postage. Source

2. You can also rock the belly band with ribbon. I love this. Source
3. The pocketfold. These also look nice and even expensive, but I personally don't want to use one because I feel everyone around my area uses them. I wanted something a little different.

4. The always traditional, but also reliable, inner envelope.
5. The invitation folder. I love how these look, and you still get the "BAM" factor of a pocketfold, without the actual pocketfold.
6. The notched ribbon. Both genius and sexy.
7. The clear envelope. Easily the most hip option here.
8. Baker's twine. All brides have to love baker's twine; it's like a wedding law.
9. The Vellum Envelope (a la Mrs. Gloss). I love everything about this look, and that's all I can say about that.
I know, I know, it's almost too many options.

I'd love to know what you guys are doing! So, hive, how are you packaging your invitations?

Outta Site!

2011-03-01T13:13:00.004-06:00

Here's the thing, hive, I was totally anti-wedding website. I thought they were nice, but I didn't think people really needed them (unless you're having a destination wedding). . . I was seriously against them. I felt they were really just time (and maybe a little cash) that I didn't want to spend.

There. End of story.

Except. . . Except the Ostrich has one. And when she told us about hers, then I had to have one.

Gerbera commented on Miss O's post that she used Yola to create her wedding site. Gerbera was even nice enough to share her site with me (thanks!). It was like a light bulb going off above my head. See, I all read have a paid Yola account and 1 site through them. Funny story, if you have a (paid) account with them, you can make up to 25 sites. I also never used the credit they give you for a domain name, so I got that for free too!

Whoo! The only Yola downside is that you have to use one of their templates. Honestly though, once you begin with the template, you can then customize most backgrounds and headers (each template lets you know what's customizable before you choose it).

Here's my advice to you guys, because I kind of felt the same way. Don't be turned off by places where you have to use their templates or options. Yola's site builder is super easy to use and navigate so I was able to turn a blah template into something I loved. Part of me does feel a little silly creating a site so close to the wedding, but whatever. I'm more excited than anything else.

Here's where I started:

Yola Screenshot

And here's where I finished:

With the customizable background, I was able to make a heart-argyle (heartgyle!) pattern in Illustrator and use it on our website.

Anybody else have a wedding change of heart about something?

Gift Expectations

2011-02-24T12:33:00.003-06:00

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. . . Just kidding! But wedding planning does make you think like that sometimes, doesn’t it? For realsies.

Anyway Hive, here’s a weird story for you. This was all back in Mid-December, by the way. Sure, it was a little while ago, but just go with it. (source)

I live with the Giraffe parents, and we get a local newspaper a few days a week, and the Chicago Trib on Sunday mornings. Shortly before the holidays, we received our paper and rubber-banded to the outside of it, was a half sheet of orange construction paper.

When we opened the paper, that was clearly cut (possibly with kid's scissors) in half. It said in marker “Merry X-Mas”. On the side, also in sloppy marker handwriting was a name, address, and “NO checks.” There were also two snowflakes drawn with blue marker, I guess that made it festive.

Okay, wait, what? Clearly our paper person was expecting something from us for the holidays. I think this is weird. It would be one thing if we had made our own decision before they left us the note, but we didn’t. I also think it’s weird because, my family has never once even seen our paper delivery person. They drop they paper off super early. What it seemed like to us, was that this person whom we’ve never seen, talked to, or received any other notes from before, was expecting a gift from us.

I’m sure you guys know where I’m going; this is a wedding site, after all ;-).

What about wedding gifts? Do we/should we expect them?

Until I got into wedding planning, I had no idea how expensive weddings can be. I now try to follow the rule of covering your plate, but I realize this doesn’t always happen. The last wedding Mr. Giraffe and I attended together, we gave a gift of $50 for the both of us. I doubt it covered both our plates, but Mr. G was still in school and I was making $80 a week at the grocery store. We really couldn’t afford much else.

Here’s where I stand I guess, to be honest, a little bit of me does expect gifts. This could be because people have been asking where we’re registered. I mean, hey, if you get us something I’m not going to complain! (source)

On the other hand, my friends are all in their early 20s We have no money, I get it, I’m there too. (Although I would have money if it wasn’t for this wedding hehehe, but I wouldn’t have it any other way!). A lot of my friends are making minimum wage and have rent and food to worry about. I’d much rather them show up to the wedding sans gift, rather than spend money they seriously need on us. My wedding isn’t a business; I mean, I like gifts as much as the next person, but I don’t expect my friends to buy me all that Le Creuset cookware. Yeah, it’s on my registry, but that’s because I’m saving up for it myself. I’ll hopefully be using my ‘registry completion’ discount in the future.

I also realize that some people (actually, a lot of people) will be traveling from out of state to sweet home Chicago. Traveling is a lot of money, yo! (I know that is expensive for serious seeing as I just bought a plane ticket to fly Mr. G out for his bachelor party camping, hiking, skiing week about 15 minutes ago). It's hard to expect people to buy you gifts when they're using their money to come out for you in the first place.

Bottom line? I want friends and family to be part of our day. Them being present (ha!) for our wedding means a lot more than any gift the could get us.

. . . unless, of course, it's the matching Snuggies we registered for, because I'm sure those would mean a lot.

What about you, hive? What are your gift expectations?

Like the Fourth of July

2011-02-23T13:09:00.006-06:00

Yes, I'm continuing with my Katy Perry references. Don't judge me ;-).

Hive, hive, hive, I've got some news for you all. You see, ever since I shared my big news that Daddy G (who works for Melrose Pyrotechnics) surprised me with the fact that we'll be having fireworks at our reception, it's all I can think about.

Picture fireworks right now. Did you do it yet? Amazing. Now picture them at a wedding reception. Double Amazing, you say?

Well, that's what I said too, and then I realized that my imagination couldn't do it justice. I could let you enjoy all of those pretty images in your head, but instead I just have to show you what I'm looking forward to. No, the fireworks in these photos weren't done by my dad, but they are amazing and I can only hope for something this epic on my big day.

Enough talking; on to the goods!source

source

What are you guys looking forward to on your big day?

My Space

2011-02-16T12:25:00.003-06:00

Mr. Giraffe and I are currently in the middle of a fight. Just thought I'd let you all know.

What is the fight about, you ask? Who knows. I'm pretty sure it was not a big deal and then got completely blown out of proportion and then, due to us being at least a little immature, we're now in deep freeze mode and being frosty to each other.

She's clearly thinking, "He forgot to order the centerpieces!"

Does this bother me? I mean, does it bother me that we fight? No, not at all. Everybody fights. I think anyone in a stable, long term relationship knows that relationships are, indeed, work and to make them strong and lasting, communication has to happen. Of course, there are those time where communication isn't quite clean and lines get crossed and then misunderstandings happen. Totally normal, I get it; no sweat of my back.

Not to mention that Mr. Giraffe and I both have strong personalities. You put someone as stubborn as Mr. G, next to someone who is as "my way or the high way" like me and we're bound to butt heads. It happens, no big deal.

Fights happen, arguments happen, and I'm sure there are plenty of relationships where maybe it doesn't seem worth the work to make it past the bumps in the road (or giant hills, if the case may be).

In my world, an argument with Mr. Giraffe is essentially meaningless. This doesn't mean I don't like to work things out and (of course, maybe more than anything else) make my opinion heard, but, honestly, arguing is a lot of work. It's tiring. In the grand scheme of things, never once has a disagreement with my main squeeze changed my view of our future together. Even when I'm rolling my eyes at the kid and getting annoyed, I still want to get married, have a million babies, and grow old and wrinkly together.

So why am I telling you guys this now? Well, here's the thing: Mr. Giraffe and I deal with arguments and the anger that comes with them differently. I get angry, pout (usually a lot), and then subsequently get over it.

Mr. Giraffe, on the other hand, needs space. Whenever he gets angry, directly afterwards, he wants to be left alone. He wants his space, he doesn't want to be talked to, and he doesn't want to be bothered.

I get it. Of course, 5 years ago, I didn't get it and him walking away from me after an argument made me more upset and just made a whole mess of everything. Now, he tells me he needs space, and I give it to him. Then we move on and have happily ever after.

This is where I'm thinking trouble might happen. My freshman and sophomore years of college, Mr. G and I lived on floor 11 and 12 of the same dorm. In the same way a new relationship infatuates you with one another, we spent probably every waking minute not in class together. We still had our separate spaces, our separate dorm rooms, though. Junior year, I was in an apartment and he was in a dorm. My senior year we lived in a four bedroom apartment with two other room mates. We spent nearly all our time with each other (and sharing a place is seriously awesome), but we still had our own rooms.

Now, I live with the Giraffe parents to save money, and Mr. G lives in a 2 bedroom apartment with one of his brothers. Once again, we each have our own space.

In three months from now, we're not going to have our own space. We're going to live together. We're also going to have to share a bedroom (which, secretly, I kind of want my own). We're going to have the same bathroom, same kitchen, same everything. . . .

More importantly, where will I put all my stuff?

How do people do this?

Like I said, we argue sometimes, which is fine, but how to people work thorough their issues if they can't even get away from one another?

More importantly, why does everyone assume once I get married, I'm going to spend all this time with Mr. G? I mean, I love the guy of course, but I do have my own life.

So married/co-habiting bees, please let me know all your secrets. How do you manage without your own space?

See you somewhere else, Little Ones!

2011-02-15T13:12:00.002-06:00

Before I say anything else, I have to tell you all that I love babies. Love. Them. (source)

Oh man. I die. The cuteness overload? I can barely handle it!
Whatever - I had too. It's just that cute.

To most accurately describe my feelings on babies, I could just say that I want to rake them up like fall leaves and just dive into the middle of that baby pile. Word.

Anyway, Mr. G loves babies as well and I can't wait until a few years from now when we can have a whole mess of our own.

Keep in mind, I consider a baby anything from like a newborn to two or three years old. It's children from the ages of like 5 - 15 that I have a problem with. I have no family members younger than 21 so I get all akward around that pre-teen age (like Mr. G's little sister) because I don't know how to act around them.

I'm rambling, I realize that, I'm too distracted by those adorable photos at the top of the post. What is my point, exactly? My point is that while babies are the cutest thing ever, they can also be a pain in the butt - specially when you think of them at a wedding.
No body wants a crying baby at their wedding.

I know many bees have blogged about this, and it is a tough decision. I mean, how to you make the choice whether or not to include little ones in your big day?

I mean, it's got be be hard to purposely leave family members out of your wedding just because they're young, and you also run the risk of offending your parent-friends by telling them to leave the tots behind.

Where do Mr. Giraffe and I on this issue? Well, I'm not sure, but luckily, we don't really even have to make the decision.

I know, you're all ready jealous.

Here's the thing. Mr. G and I are in our early 20s and our equally as young friends really haven't started having kids yet.

Out of all of our guests, there is one girl with a three year old, two families with a 12/13 year old (one being my Junior Bridesmaid/FSIL), two families with a 16 year old, and one 6 year old.

Easy peasy, right? The three year old is out as is the 6 year old. The 13 year olds can come because there's only two of them and they're both close to the families (or actually in Mr. G's immediate family for that matter), and I love that 16 year old like a little brother so he's totally in.

All other guests are 18 or older. I love it! This works out so nice for us. With the exception of two families, Mr. G and I don't have to go through the daunting task of telling every one to leave their little ones at home. How awesomely lucky is that?

Anybody else not invite kids by default? (And be honest, how lucky did you feel that i happened that way?)

Boom Boom Boom, Even Brighter than the Moon

2011-02-11T18:33:00.000-06:00

Yes, that title is Katy Perry reference, but I had to find something to accurately describe my excitement. Actually, I can't even find words for my excitement.

You see, I got some big news today hive, big.

To understand this though, I have to give some back story.

See, Daddy G, who is awesome on all accounts, has a very unique job for a living. How unique you ask? Well, it's a little something like this:

source

That is correct! Daddy G does fireworks for his living. That's what he does, that's his job; he's kind of a rock star. He works for a super rad company called Melrose Pyrotechnics. I know, a lot of folks don't know there are such things as fireworks companies, but there really are.

For all you other Chicago locals out there, I'm sure you've seen Daddy G's stuff around. Navy Pier, Taste of Chicago, the White Sox, the Chicago Bears, Millennium Park? Yup, that is Daddy G. For serious. I know, it's super cool and I've spent my whole life watching cool and hip fireworks. It's pretty awesome. Here, take a look yourself:

source

I'm pretty sure you might know where I'm going with this...

My dad gave me the surprise of a life time when he just told me that I'd be having fireworks at our wedding reception.

. . .Wait. What?!

I stopped, confused and excited. After freaking out with excitement, I asked Daddy G "What?!" about a million times. He then went on to tell me that he contracted our reception venue two days ago to get the okay. I then called Mr. G with the big news and he is just as excited as I am... and then I called bridesmaid Marie too because I'm pretty sure I have to tell everyone I know.

I guess Daddy G planned on waiting until the last minute to tell me, but Mama Giraffe told him that he should tell me now so I could get excited and tell all my friends so that they could get excited too.

Word, Mama Giraffe, word.

Anybody else have a super awesome wedding-related surprise?

Invitation Inspiration: Stripes

2011-02-09T21:48:00.003-06:00

So we've talked, and you guys might have thought that I gave you all the inspiration I had, but you all are wrong! There is even more invitation inspiration to share! I already mentioned traditional, floral, and ampersand themed invitations, and today we're on to something always cool and fun, the striped invites.

These suckers are surprisingly fresh, with a little touch of prep, wrapped up in a whole lot of awesome.

Now, I know you're not all here to listen to me talk about how nice these look; you're here to see the photos! So here you go, enjoy!

I feel like this wedding should rent an ice cream truck for the big day. (Love those summer colors!)

I know this is a Birthday Party Invitation, but I can picture it being used for another Big Day.

This may be one of my fave invitations of all time. The soft and summery colors, the retro feel, the 45° angle of the stripes, and the buttery background color all work together so well to make something awesome.

I love a clean design.

I don't know if its the preview or not, but how funny would it be to see an invitation that literally says "wedding invitation" ?

I love how stripes can look super contemporary.

See? So modern and so awesome!

Stripes on an angle are some of the best stripes!

It's so exciting to see a whole striped suite together!

I love the bold use of color here.

There you have it, hive, more stripes than you know what to do with! But seriously, I love them!

What about you guys? Anyone choosing a stripey invite?

Invitation Inspiration: Ampersands

2011-02-05T12:19:00.004-06:00

Okay, okay, I know that typically when you think of wedding invitations, you think "modern", "formal", "floral", "beachy", "monogram", or "vintage".

I mean, I all ready mentioned traditional and floral invitations, but today I want to share some invitations that don't really fit into a typical theme.
I've told you guys, there are few things I love more than the ampersand. I love them, I collect them, and every time I see them, they just make me smile. A good looking ampersand is all kinds of hip and cool and pop and fresh.

Little did you know, the beautiful little & sign can make wedding invitations even more beautiful. Here, see for yourself! (Hey, stop dooling!)

Perfect.

A giant ampersand is a good ampersand.

Seeing all those ampersands work together just warms my heart.

A suite based around an ampersand in Helvetica?! Ohhhh perfection.

Can you see all those yellow ampersands? Loooove!

I know, I know, you can barely get over all the ampersand-goodness. Oh, what's that you say? You want more? Oh, okay, then! Here we go!

This one might be my favorite.

Okay, I lied. This sucker is my favorite.

No, no. This one for sure. A blind embossed ampersand? What a good idea!

So fresh!

Are art deco ampersands the best ampersands?

Amazing for sure. I can barely stand it, they're so awesome. I think I may have finally figured out a good direction for our invites to go. Whoooo!

Okay, admit it, who loves a good ampersand themed wedding invitation? Has anyone else used them?

Invitation Inspiration: Floral

2011-02-05T11:01:00.002-06:00

I let you all know how much I love invitation inspiration, and I started off with sharing traditional invitations (that were way more well received than expected, thanks guys).

I don't think that Mr. Giraffe and I really want floral themed invitations, just because we're not really having a floral-y wedding. Who knows though, I love floral invitations and everything about them. They can be super classy, or super modern, or really both. Originally, I was kind of against floral invites because I thought they were kind of cheesy and predictable, but I was soooo wrong!

See, I can admit when I'm wrong (sometimes), so get ready for some amazing inspiration. First, here are some more traditional (but surprisingly hip) floral invitations.source

source

Still traditional, but I loooove the modern image

Screams classy!

Definitely traditional

I always thought I was more modern person, but that third invite really appeals to me. I love the mix of modern and traditional.

Anyways, here are some modern floral invitations for you all to drool over.

Talk about a pop of color!

Every single thing here is perfect. Just perfect. I love it.

Once again, just lovely. Believe it or not, the backs here are fabric covered and those big flowers are fabric too. Amazing.

Kate Spade: more than just purses and fancy China!

A big ampersand?! Love it! You know I love those!

Love the gray and yellow.

So, hive, are you in love? Yeah, me too. I can see why so many people lean towards floral wedding invitations. Classy, hip, and all around awesome.

What do you say team: floral traditional or floral modern?

The Two Digit Freakout

2011-02-04T08:00:00.000-06:00

Hive, today is a big day. A big ohmygoshI'mgoingtofreakout day. It is officially 99 days until our wedding.

Oh, I'm sorry, did you miss that? I said 99 days!

source

We've been engaged since October 2008, so you all can image that I never thought this day would be here. Mr. Giraffe and I have plenty of time to do things. . . or not! Ahhh! We've been counting down in three digits for a long time now, and I never thought that would change.

Also, coupled with this two-digit-crazziness, is the fact that something completely unexpected happened to me. I swear, I never thought I'd be this person, never in a million years. You see. . . I'm kind of over wedding planning. I hate to say it, but now that we're so close and the day is getting closer, my priorities have kind of shifted. I still want to do a whole bunch of DIY madness before the big day, but now I'm starting to look more and more towards my future life with Mr. Giraffe. The idea of actually being a wife is kind of exciting and scary.

Right, where was I? Oh yes, wife=awesome, but there still is a ton to do! For realises! (And I still have a toooooon of things I want to share with you all). Blogging about this makes me feel like I can be held accountable for getting things done, so I'm going to lay it out there for you all. (source)

Hive, I have to admit I'm a little embarrassed there's so much to do. Don't think any less of this ol' Giraffe, okay?

Start designing Invitation Suite (firstly - decided on a design/style/inspiration/something).
Book transportation.
Order Mr. Giraffes & guys tuxes/suit/something for them to wear
Pay Feb amount due for honeymoon (Second/Last payment due in March).
DIY Tissue packs for ceremony.
Decided on music.
Hire Musician.
Meet with pastor.
Fill out info sheet for church
Design/Print/Assemble programs.
Buy paper for said programs.
Parent gifts?
Groom gift?
Wrap wedding party gifts (photograph for blog first).
Seating Chart?
Escort Cards
Cocktail hour entertainment
Signs for Photobooth
Meet with Country Club over table/linens/Set up
Food tasting/Decide on a Menu
Find/Buy scandalous honeymoon attire
Make a doctor's appt to get on birth control or muster up the courage to buy some over the counter at the store
Photos of use - order and print e photos to display
Spray paint frames for photos
Send florist $$ and photos of centerpiece mock up
DIY tip envelopes for vendors
Decide on/Buy/Create wedding favors
Table numbers? Start/figure out what to do with them
Final $$ to photog, videographers, reception, church, and other people I can't think of
Shoes - find super glittery danceable gym shoes for reception
Finalize menu/$$$$/take care of rehearsal dinner
Find/buy/steal new dresses for shower & rehearsal dinner
blog about all above topics
Quit job to wedding plan full time for the next 99 days (who really needs health insurance?)

Oh man, if making the list makes me tired, then I am in for a few long days, I think.

So, hive, what do you think? Is it possible to get even some of these things done?

Invitation Inspiration: Traditional

2011-02-03T06:45:00.002-06:00

Do you guys know what my favorite posts are to read? Maybe food or recaps? Possibly how to include your dog in your wedding? Nope, nope, and nope. See, those are all great kinds of posts, and I do enjoy reading them, but my absolutely favorite posts are invitation inspiration ones.

I know, I know, there have been a ton of theses by very smarty and awesome bees, but I cannot wait to share ever more with you. I am so excited that I definitely have more than one post, but you'll just have to wait for the rest.

Today, I'm sharing traditional invitation ideas with you. This is definitely more of Mr. G's style and I think he wants us to lean this way. I mean, I suppose it makes sense; by all accounts we're having a traditional wedding. I don't know, though, but I feel like traditionally styled invitations have kind of a bad rep (at least they did in my mind). I mean, if they don't have all the fancy glitter, embossing, and laser cuts, aren't they just boring? Seriously? Or if nt boring, aren't they just like some super cheesy old-school type of thing your mom and dad used in the 60s?

Well yes... for some, I suppose, but I'm here to share some traditional invites with you that are just as lovely and beautifully as there hip and cool and/or pop and fresh counterparts.

source

Okay, so are they pop and fresh? Not necessarily, but I still think they're pretty and I can appreciate the beauty of their simplicity. The fourth one down is one Mr. G would really be in to, and I don't think it's all that bad. I mean, it might not have a metallic belly band, but it really is quite lovely and elegant.

Here's a few more to sway you to the traditional side. (source for the next 4 images)

So what do you think, Hive? Did you send traditional invitations (and do you pllllllease have photos to share with me)? If you were a Giraffe guest, would you be disappointed if you received a traditional styled invite?

Making your a cake a little fancy!

2011-01-27T09:00:00.000-06:00

Y'know how there's a few (dozen) completely unnecessary wedding-related things that you just have to have. Like someone to make balloon animals at the reception or 13 pairs of wedding shoes? For me, (this time), it was cake flags.

I'm not sure where I first got the idea, but I'm thinking it may have been from the fabulous Mrs. Cupcake.

Of course, Mrs. Lemonade later followed suit with some flags, too.

I'll be the first to tell you that our wedding doesn't need these. Chances are they'd be time, effort, and money that I don't want to spend. . . Right, but who could deny something so cute? These all mostly cupcakes, but they're just so gosh darn cute. See them for yourself! (source 1, 2, 3, 4, 5)

Something about them just adds fun and whimsy to their cake counter parts. I never seen them at a birthday/holiday/wedding, but it looks like people use them for all kinds of occasions.

Cake flags of a flag? How cliche!
I love the bright colors on this one!

What do you need for your wedding (that you don't really need at all)?

Finally, a card box!

2011-01-25T09:05:00.001-06:00

Hive, do you remember the card box I had started, but hadn't finished? Probably not, because I had started it even before you had seen it, way back during the summer. It then sat in my basement for ummmm a few months until I started to freak out about our deadline - oops, I mean timeline. While Daddy G, Mama Giraffe, and Sis Gee yelled at the Bears/Packers game behind me, I decided to get things done!

So, are you finally ready for the finished product? I'm sure you've all been dying for the final result ;-).

So, it's done. That means something, right?

I'll be honest, I don't love it. I don't hate it either, but it's kind of 'eh' in my mind. It looks a little sloppy, the colors aren't perfect, the blue sticker letters are the wrong shade of blue, but I all ready had them and didn't feel like going out and buying new ones.

It's not awful, I guess, and I don't dislike it enough to start over, so I think I'm just going to go with it. Even if it doesn't look perfect, it actually feels good to cross something off of my giant/enormous/bigger-than-a-house to do list. I'm just going to go with it.

Any wedding projects not come out perfect for you guys? Did you use them anyway?

Colored Gems are Special Too

2011-01-24T08:53:00.000-06:00

My daily commute into Chi-City is about an hour and fifteen minutes. I pass a Illinois Lottery billboard every day, so I day dream about what I'll do with my millions when I win them, but I also listen to the radio to help pass the time.

Eric & Kathy on 101.9 is my go-to every morning, but during commercials or when it gets slow, I tend to flip to other morning shows.

I got really offended recently, because I heard that other morning show bring up what they thought was an interesting story. The radio hosts mentioned that there's strange new trend going around, as a direct result of the royal engagement and Prince passing on Princess's Di's sapphire E-ring. Apparently, more and more people are now receiving gemstone rings for their engagement ring.

The three hosts then went on to talk about how awful and weird that trend is. One host said that, "No way. Even if my girl said that's what she wanted, I wouldn't get that for her. It's got to be a diamond ring." The female host said, "Maybe... if the girl didn't like diamonds, but probably not." And the main host chimed in that that there was no way he would buy someone an engagement ring that showcase a gemstone.

The three hosts went on for a while like this, and then they accepted one phone call. The caller said she had received a ruby necklace as her E-ring. That's what she wanted, and that's what she had asked her (future) fiance to get for her.

The radio hosts almost didn't believe the caller, and they made it clear that they thought it was strange.

Lame.

Now, I'm a gemstone E wearer myself. My E-ring is exactly what I wanted and I would not have picked anything different, if I had been able to choose it myself. I love my e-ring and Mr. Giraffe did an amazing job.You've seen my ring before, but I can't help sneaking it in there again.

Anyway, I find it hard to believe that people can't accept gemstone rings as just as special and important as a standard diamond rings. I've gotten some comments about my ring in the past that definitely indicated that those people may have not thought about my ring the way I do. At the time, I was clearly flustered and didn't know what to say.

With everything an engagement ring means and is supposed to represent, I find it a little offensive that people can just write them off as not quite e-ring worthy.

So, hive, I'm going to show you all, because you might not know, just how awesome a gemstone (E)ring can be. Enjoy :)... but don't get too jealous, there's enough to go around.

source

Has anyone else had a nonfavorable reaction to their ring? What did you do about it?

Garlic: Does More than just Get Rid of Vampires

2011-01-23T08:26:00.000-06:00

There's one thing I don't want to look like on my wedding day. Okay, really, there's probably more than one thing (others in the list include: crazy person, sleep deprived crazy person, etc), but one thing is like this:

If you want to buy them for yourself, go here.

Today I'm going to talk to you about a kid of embarrassing health problem. Warts. See, as far as I know, they don't really hurt you, but they are obnoxious, annoying, and -again- embarrassing. Nobody wants some lumpy bumpy thing sticking out of their skin. I've had my fair share of experiences with them, too.

When I was younger, I had about 3 planters warts on the bottom of my foot. They were on the pads of my foot so I couldn't get them burned off or anything so I remember going once a week, after soccer practice, and the doctor would use a knife and cut out more of the wart until it was gone. In high school, I got a wart on my elbow that I got frozen off with liquid nitrogen. As a freshman in college, that wart came back and I also had another on my elbow. I got those both frozen off. As a junior in college, I had about five on my hands, but 3 were small. I got two frozen off and the other three burned off with acid. Ugh, what a pain, right?

After I graduated, and as I was (still am) getting closer to the wedding, I noticed I was starting to get about a dozen warts on my arm. They were super small - no bigger than a pin head - but I could finally recognize them so I knew they were there.

Getting warts burned/frozen doesn't cost more than just my co-pay, but it is ridiculously painful. Getting them frozen is by far the worst pain I've ever felt, and it usually take three times for them to go away. Needlessly to say, I was looking for a less painful solution for the future.

So what did I do? Well, I tried the band-aids, at home freezing treatments (also painful), and at home gel stuff, but nothing worked. I guess I just got a nice strong strain of warts. My doctor says they're just a virus in your body, and they effect some people more than others.

Well, I bet you can guess what I did next. I did what any smarty pants would do, I went to visit my good ol' friend, Google. I read a bunch of things people claim work, but, frankly, I'm lazy and cutting off a small piece of banana peel and putting it on my arm with duct tape seemed like too much work. I kept looking until I found the simplest, easiest, and least time consuming solution. (source)

Garlic. Yeah, werid, right? I read online that taking garlic tablets help get rid of warts. I didn't believe it, but I seemed easy so I gave it a try. I bough the odorless ones (which I highly recommend so you don't smell like garlic bread), and they taste kind of gross, but I took them daily, and guess what? No more warts. That's it, they were gone. I could barely believe it. I had warts forever and in about two months, they were no longer!

I would recommend Garlic Tablets to anyone that has a similar problem, but, fyi, from what I've noticed, they don't really work for planter warts (the ones on your feet). I take the Nature Made brand, and I just pick them up at the grocery store. They cost between $9-$16 a box, it seems, which seems like a lot, but it's less than my co-pay and feels totally worth it to me. It feels really nice to finely clear up something that's bothered me since middle school.

Anybody else trying to take care of weird health things before the big day?

A new Bathing Suit. . . or Two

2011-01-20T12:44:00.005-06:00

Ever since I read Brooch's post about potential Honeymoon Attire, I've been totally distracted. Seriously, I don't know why it hadn't occured to me before, but after reading that she was looking for a new bathing suit (and more), I had a crazy moment of "I NEED a new one, too!" Since then, I've put all this wedding planning out of my mind to focus on the big h-moon coming up (Darn you, B, for distracting me!).

I totally need to clue you in on our honeymoon, but since I haven't written that post yet, I'll just let you know I will be spending a week on a beach.

Anyway, I had no idea where to look for a suit at this time of the year. It's only, you know, a cool 20 degrees in Chi-Town today. I knew I'd have to shop online, because no where in the area is carrying swimwear right now. I went to the boards for help, ad got some great suggestions, but ended up going to Kohl's.com. I didn't want to spend a whole lot of money, seeing as I'm saving my cash from some -ahem- different pieces of honeymoon attire.

I don't know if you've ever been to Kohl's, but it's kind of like a JC Penny's. There's a store right by my house, and I pretty much get all my clothes there.Out of what I'm wearing today, my jeans, shoes, and bra all came from there. Yes, I just mentioned my bra. You didn't know I'd get all personal.

I was only going to buy one bathing suit . . . but I couldn't make up my mind, and then partner in crime, Mama Giraffe, somehow convinced me to get them both.

Honeymoon, here I come! So here's are the goods (yes, I still shop in the juniors department. Don't judge me.) All screenshots come from Kohls.com.

Doesn't that one remind you of Lisa Frank stationary?!

I was going to use my 20% coup, but found a 30% off one online, the pieces were all ready on sale before that, and then I was able to use a free shipping coup too, so needless to say, I got a pretty good deal.

Any other Chicagoans dreaming of sunny beaches? Oops - I mean, anyone else shopping for their honeymoon?

Big Trouble in the Tux Deparment

2011-01-18T12:50:00.006-06:00

Hive, I'm going to freak out, but before I do that I feel like I have to clue you in on the back story here.

Where to begin? Well, Mr. Giraffe is totally a stud muffin, if you weren't aware. He always looks good, in whatever he wears, but it's mostly jeans and T-shirt. One school he subs at, lets him wear that exact thing, or else it's dress pants I got him from Gap (on sale!) and a button down shirt. Suffice to say, Mr. G is a pretty casual guy. (And by casual, I mean awesome.)

Mr. Giraffe in his casual clothes, doing his favorite thing ever.

From the start, we decided our wedding would be pretty formal - not super formal, but way fancier than normal for these Giraffes. I (or we? not sure) decided that the groom and company will be dressed to the nines in tuxedos. Mr. G doesn't dress up much (or ever), so I naturally got pretty excited about seeing Mr. Giraffe turn into a Mr. Fancy Pants.

Way back, early on in our engagement, I went to bridal show with a fashion show at the end. And that's when it happened, folks! Yes, you are correct. I fell for a tux. See, Men's Warehouse was showing off their brown tuxedo. In the past, I always thought brown tuxes were cheesy and lame, which is unfortunate because our whole wedding is based around brown and blue.

But I was so wrong. They're suave and dashing and debonair and, most importantly, fancy pants. (source)

See? It's perfect! My girls will be in brown and blue (more on that later), and can you images a black tux next to them? No way! Out of all the tuxes Men's Warehouse carries, there is only one brown one, but, like I said, it's just perfect.

So what's the problem you ask? Well, Mr. G wasn't sold on the brown tux, and at 4 moths out we need to get this figured out, so we stopped in at Men's Warehouse this weekend. He liked the tux too, and I was all ready to jump for joy . . .

But Mr. G looks up from the book of tuxes and says, "These are all made of wool. My mom is super allergic to wool."

You mean the mom you have to dance with? The mom that will hug you? The mom that will line up for pictures with you 3 brothers all in wool tuxes as well?!?

Commence freak out!

So what are my options? I have no idea. Men's Warehouse has 2 polyester tuxes, but they are all white, and Mr. G will not wear a white tux. All of the suits at Men's Warehouse are made of wool as well. I called Black Tie Formal Wear, and after some looking, they called me back and said that all the rentals are wool, but Mr. G can buy/order a polyester tux for ~$125

I know Mr. Giraffe won't use a tux again, most likely, so buying it is out. I also don't feel right about asking the groomsmen (some of which have to fly in for W day) to purchase a tux the won't wear again (they're casual dudes, too). What about having them wear a suit that they all ready own? Well #1 it might be made of wool and #2 none of the guys, including Mr. G own a suit, and that would be way too big of a purchase to ask for.

I'm freaking out hive, and I really don't know what to do. Mr. G is going to have to go all Emperor on them and show up in his birthday suit, and just tell everyone he's in fancy duds.

Hive, help! Does anyone have any suggestions? Pretty please?

Feeling Like a Short Haired Bride

2011-01-11T19:34:00.005-06:00

I have a confession to make with you hive. See, I'm finally starting to think about my whole wedding day look, and, well, I feel like a short haired bride.

That's not to say that short haired brides aren't fantastic. They are. I mean, look at this lovely lady.It's just that I never thought I'd feel like a short haired bride. When I was younger, I always had short soccer mom style hair because I hated brushing and dealing with it. Then in high school, I grew it out until senior year when I cut off 8 inches of it.

Then in college, I got lazy again and let it grow and grow. I mean, cutting your hair took time and about $14. I wasn't going to have any part of that ;-). This means that my hair kept getting longer, without me really realizing it.

But then I started zipping my hair into my purse and shutting it in my car door. It was getting too much to handle soooo . . .
Well, 13 inches later (and yes I donated!), I feel like a short haired bride. I'm worried that I won't be able to have the pretty and fancy hair I've been looking at. There are some unbelievably gorgeous hairstyles out there. (source 1, source 2)
Now, I don't know what too do. I'm not sure what my hair will be long enough for or what exactly want I want it to look like.