Wedding

” Lucky As Me”

Well I’ve seen the world, the world I’ve seen, / Far and wide and in between. / Lord, if only my love were lonely no more.

Whenever I’m lost, I pray I’m found. / Wherever you are’s wherever I’m bound. / I shall sing my song ‘til the day I long no more.

For I am lucky you see, and lucky to be / ‘Cause lucky for you is lucky for me. / Oh, what a world this world would be, / If everyone could be as lucky as me.

Well I’ll follow the moon and chase the stars, / No matter how long, no matter how far. / Wherever I’m going I go there knowing you’re near.

Well I close my eyes and see your face, / You save my soul with your saving grace. / Like a promise made I’m no longer afraid when you’re near.

For I am lucky you see, and lucky to be / ‘Cause lucky for you is lucky for me. / Oh, what a world this world could be, / If everyone could be as lucky as me.

When all is lost and broken dreams, / Unanswered prayers, and tragic themes, / Like a perfect line in a perfect poem, / You bring me, bring me, bring me home.

With a hand o’er my heart I hope and pray / Tomorrow’s dream comes true today. / All I ever want now’n forever is you.

Well I think of you and I’m safe from harm, / I think of you and I’m in your arms. / Lord above I have found true love with you.

For I am lucky you see, and lucky to be / ‘Cause lucky for you is lucky for me. / Oh, what a world this world would be, / If everyone could be as lucky as me.

Oh if everyone could be…

Today is our 6 month anniversary! The song “Lucky As Me” from playwright Jeff Daniels album “Together Again” was featured in the play Escanaba in Love. It was also our First Dance song at our wedding. The fantastic Cirque Du Soleil show Wednesday night was our unofficial celebration of a great first six months together as husband and wife….looking forward to so many more happy years together!

Dear Husband,

“I like you because I don’t know why but
Everything that happens is nicer with you”

– from the book “I Like You” by Sandol Stoddard

I guess I still like you after all this time. ;-)

Love,

Wifey

In the spirit of keeping my spirits up after a ridiculously exhausting day at work and the disappointment of a weekend without Ted, as he is working even more ridiculous hours than I am – 9 a.m. to midnight Saturday and Sunday – which makes me feel terrible for even bothering to complain about how tired I am when he, clearly, takes the cake on this one, I’m going to dwell on things that do make me happy…starting with my tendency for a good obnoxious run-on sentence.

This is what Cincinnati looks like right now. Lush green grass, blobs of daffodils everywhere, and trees bathed in white, yellow and pink blossoms. I’m bummed to be missing the Texas bluebonnets and vivid wildflowers littering the side of I-10, but this is a satisfactory replacement, I suppose. Furthermore, please ignore my excellent photography skills. A thumb and blurry? I don’t know how you got so lucky. It isn’t easy to snap a picture whilst en route, after all. Your welcome.

Tonight I am sharing this bottle of deliciously smooth and sweet Red Raspberry wine from our wedding, with myself. Okay, relax – not the whole bottle. But I am making a dent in it while I watch 500 Days of Summer and Once that we scored super cheap at the Blockbuster that was closing last week. The house is clean, I’ve caught up on all my obligations, and honestly, what else am I supposed to do when my husband’s occupied for the evening and, apparently, “browsing” Nordstrom Rack and Anthropologie when we’re still paying off December’s electric bill (not really, but for real, let’s not forget how truly scarring a $400 electric bill can be) is frowned upon. So, yes. Wine and movies it is.

And finally, there was a wedding today at museum. Though I never ever ever want to plan another totally-DIY wedding again for as long as I live, I’m still kind of obsessed with pretty wedding things because, well, they’re pretty. I also got some sort of sick satisfaction out of the fact that my flowers were way more awesome than hers. Forgive my honesty. Succulents are kind of hard to compete with though, to be fair. I kind of wish I could just relive our wedding day once every six months or so. Seeing how happy that bride and groom looked today was quite endearing. Besides, like any love-struck female, I’d sacrifice my eyelashes to wear my wedding dress again. And who doesn’t love a great party and bonfire with their nearest and dearest beneath a full Wisconsin moon? Dear Wedding: Please re-create yourself (um, without any of our slaving help this time) and we’ll see you in two weeks! Thanks :-)

*If you haven’t read yesterday’s post, go back and check that one out first! This is Part II.

When we left off yesterday I promised I’d give you a glimpse of the wedding dresses that didn’t make the final cut. True to my word, I’m back with some picture proof, starting with the one I knew would never make it and working my way up to the final two. First, let’s review what I was looking for and what I was hoping to avoid in a wedding dress.

What I wanted: Straps, luxurious material, comfortable and non-restrictive structure, pockets, a button or zip closure (something I could get into and out of by myself), an interesting eye-catching back, one or two unique standout details, under $750

What I didn’t want: Strapless, ruching, lots of lace, beading, sequins, or butt bows, expensive, princess ballgown poofy, a corset back, boning, to look like every bride I’d seen from 2007-2009

Now that you’ve got a pretty specific image in mind of the style I was going for, you can plainly see how difficult this journey was for me in the height of the beaded, strapless, ruched dresses that all look alike era. To be fair, the dresses I had in mind did exist 16 months ago and I knew it. I swooned over them on the pages of high fashion bridal magazine advertisements. However, they were relatively “new” to the 2000’s bridal market so they were crafted by top designers and luxury brands (read: $1,500-$4,000 per dress, and that’s not even factoring in alterations or accessories for something I’d wear for a maximum of 12 hours). Cheap replicas of these styles certainly hadn’t trickled their way down to the likes of David’s Bridal or Alfred Angelo yet. I couldn’t fathom shelling out about at least 2,000 bucks (conservatively) for a Waters & Waters, Vera Wang, Amsale, Rosa Clara, San Patrick, Priscilla of Boston, Melissa Sweet, Jim Hjelm, La Sposa, Jenny Yoo or Modern Trousseau gown. I wasn’t too wild about the David’s Bridal or Alfred Angelo finds (with the exception of a select few) so I focused my efforts on brands like Eden Bridals, Jasmine Collections, Essence of Australia, Venus and Allure – all of which carried quality designs with more of a variety of style options for a moderately thrifty price tag. Enough jabbering. Let’s get started with the pictures of a modest sampling of the nearly 75 dresses I tried on.

The “You’ll never know what you like until you give it a chance” dress

If you’ve ever gone shopping for a formal gown, you know this drill. The saleslady will undoubtedly ask you what style and price range you have in mind, then proceed to blatantly ignore your requests and insist you try on something completely opposite of what you like on the basis of “you’ll never know until you try it on!” Well, that was this unfortunate dress at Alfred Angelo. It boasts every single quality I specifically said I didn’t want. I reluctantly agreed to humor her and schlep this 45 lb. dress into the fitting room and give it a go. I guess it’s not really that bad. I wasn’t utterly horrified. But it was heavy, uncomfortable, could stand on it’s own (I’m not kidding), required at least two people to corset me into it along with a hoop skirt, and was not nearly unique enough for my tastes. Trying this sucker on was my good deed for the day. I gave everyone their entertainment, crawled out of ASAP, and promptly handed it right back to the saleslady who just so, embarrassingly, happened to be a girl I went to high school with.

What I liked: I kind of felt like Belle in Beauty & The Beast

What I didn’t like: Where do I begin!? Pickups. Oh, God. Pickups. UGH. Beading, strapless, ruched, boning, and stiffening corset back. Then there’s the gigantic itchy 12-layered petticoat, the weight of it, and the crispy fabric. No, thank you. NEXT.

The “For the love of pockets” dress

Allow me to clarify my obsession with pockets. It was there and the feeling was strong and undeniable. I think it all started with prom. I hated keeping track of an evening clutch and worrying about its whereabouts all night. Yet, I needed something discreet to hold my car keys, phone, lipstick, ID and credit card. I yearned for pockets in my dress so I could fly solo like the dudes did. I even considered asking my mom to sew pockets into the underside of my junior year prom dress. Fast forward to late 2008 when the first wedding dresses with pockets debuted on the runways. I was in heaven! Finally, my prayers had been answered. I knew that must seek out a wedding dress with pockets of my own. They were incredibly helpful, had a casual flair, and were funky and different. Nevermind that as a bride I most likely wouldn’t need quick access to my car keys, cell phone, ID or cash on the big day. That’s not the point. The point was I needed pockets. And pockets were pretty much the only thing this David’s Bridal frock had going for it. But apparently, that was enough to keep it in my consideration. The dress itself wasn’t that bad, it was simple with extremely minimal beading, loose and comfortable, had straps and, most importantly, came equipped with my beloved pockets. I even liked the criss-cross of the straps in the back. Alas, it showed more cleavage than I was comfortable with and just wasn’t special enough to make the top 5. I bid a sad adieu to my pockets and prayed that I’d find another one with them (no such luck).

What I liked: Obviously, the pockets. I also liked the criss-cross straps in the back and that it was comfortable. I liked that I could get into and out of it by myself and it wasn’t oozing with beads and other obnoxious distractions.

What I didn’t like: It was an ill-fit. The empire waist packed on the pounds and it showed too much cleavage.

The “Safe backup plan” dress

This taffeta Alfred Angelo dress was a classic. It was figure flattering, timeless, and played it safe – maybe a little too safe. It had alluring off-the-shoulder straps, showed off my figure, and had absolutely no beading – which was great. But it also had a boring back and no fun little details whatsoever. And for something so basic, it was awfully expensive! I didn’t like the crinkle of the taffeta fabric, the boning inside it made bending or dancing highly undesirable, and I don’t like being laced into corset backs. I couldn’t have gotten into or out of it without an army of help. It was pretty, but not nearly unique enough to make the cut.

What I liked: The elegant simplicity, and the classic figure-enhancing cut and drape of the style.

What I didn’t like: There was nothing special about it, no little details to get excited over. It had an uncomfortable corset back and boning, and was unreasonably expensive for something so basic.

The Top Five

The “My first infatuation” dress

From November-January I was outright convinced that I wasn’t going to be able to find what I was looking for at an affordable price. Everything was so covered in lace and beads that it made me sick. I came across this prize at David’s Bridal and fell into a month long on-again off-again infatuation with it because it fit well and had no beading. I wasn’t in love with it, but I did like it and if nothing else came along I would have settled with it. The draping gave it a nice little hint of detailing and shape. It was marked down to $350 because it was a “test dress” that they only produced a few of and decided not to add it to their season’s collection. Therefore, only a handful of them were made for each store, and it was the last one available in my size anywhere in the U.S. and I couldn’t give it up, afraid I’d never find anything without beads ever again (I was crazy, y’all). It was strapless, but these days straps of any style can easily be added to a dress.

What I liked: It was soft and comfortable. The draping was interesting and flattering, and the price was more than right. Straps could be added, and I loved the simplicity of it.

What I didn’t like: It just seemed too plain. There weren’t any funky details and the back looked like the back of any other wedding dress out there. I liked it, and it was a pretty dress, but it just didn’t feel right for me.

The “Dress that led me to my dress” dress

I was obsessed with finding this dress. I came across it in a dinky little Wisconsin town just when I had lost all patience and all hope that I’d ever find the right dress for me. I was about ready to completely throw in the towel and just wear khakis and a white sweater on October 22. This was my saving grace. I’d never heard of the Jasmine Collection brand before. The store had a few of their dresses in stock and I really like the detailing and originality of all of them. I was beside myself with excitement that this one had beautiful straps, a fun back design, awesome fabric, and just enough beading to make it fresh but not be overwhelming. They one I tried on in the store was two sizes too small, but it gave me a good enough of an idea that I was caught – hook, line and sinker. I called stores all over Wisconsin, Illinois and Texas obsessively until I finally found a store in Austin that had just gotten it in (it was a Fall 2009 style) in my size. I immediately made an appointment for a weekend the middle of February. My hopes had been resurrected and I was sure that this was it! I spent the next month dreaming about all the good times this dress and I would have together. I was nervous when we finally did make the trip to Austin to try it on. I was afraid it wouldn’t fit me right…and it didn’t. I was so bummed, but the store had a wide selection of other Jasmine Collection dresses for me to investigate. It wasn’t meant to be, but it did lead me to the Jasmine Collection dress I did choose. I wouldn’t have found it without this dress.

What I liked: Nearly everything – the straps, the fun back, the silky fabric, the light touch of beading around the neckline to keep it interesting, and most importantly, that it restored my faith in dress shopping and gave me the hope to keep looking.

What I didn’t like: It had just been released so it was practically impossible to find it anywhere in my size. And when I finally did, it just didn’t fit my body shape right. Even with alterations, it just wouldn’t have fit me well enough. It’s style F316 if you want to Google it to see what the front looked like.

The “Serious contender – except that nobody else liked it” dress

Source

I was drawn to the glamour of this David’s Bridal dress. It reminded me of the formal fashion of the 1930s with its fit and flare trumpet skirt, hip hugging satin, and a playful row of buttons all the way down the back of the dress and train. It was classy, a little sassy, had just the right amount of detailing, accentuated my figure nicely, and I simply loved the buttons down the back. I think it’s a clear winner of a dress and I’d still be happy to wear it if another occasion that calls for a floor-length ivory dress with a train arises (doubtful). I didn’t even mind that it was strapless because the neckline was modest and there was zero chance of any “oops” moments. And, as with any other dress, straps could have been added. The only problem was that nobody else seemed to like it. I know I shouldn’t have let that get to me, but whenever I took anyone with me to see it in person, I got only lukewarm responses like “it’s okay” or “I like the other one better.” It was discouraging, but after hearing less than enthusiastic praises from people, I couldn’t buy it because what if everyone else thought it was fine, but nothing special too? Nobody wants to look “just okay” on their wedding day. It is a little plain I suppose, and I do like the dress I ended up with better than this one (and a lot of brides recently have chosen this dress, so it wouldn’t have been very unique), so I guess it wasn’t meant to be, but it was a great dress nonetheless.

What I liked: The satin fabric, the fit and flare trumpet skirt, how it flattered curves, the buttons down the back, and the overall glamour of it.

What I didn’t like: That nobody else thought it was a winner. Also, it’s a popular dress so I would have been one of thousands upon thousands of brides who wore it in 2010.

The “One I didn’t expect to love” dress

This dress is one I never, ever expected to love. It’s just so girly – it even looks ridiculous on the hanger. I mean, look at it! Cascading ruffles, and a big blingy sequins brooch front and center? Absolutely not my typical style, but I loved it. It felt so fine with swish and twirl in it – it gave me little butterflies. It reminded me of Scarlett O’Hara meets cupcake. There were a few downsides. It was strapless (though I would have added a plain, thin halter strap to it), it had structured boning in the bodice and a seat belt strap across the waist that made it awfully uncomfortable, and I didn’t like the weird sequins thing on the chest so I probably would have had it removed. It was also about $200 more than I wanted to pay for it. I adored the way the back looked, I loved how it flowed when I walked in it, and I liked the shape it gave my waist. I really, really liked this dress and I wanted it to be the one, but it just wasn’t. It looked like a cupcake. I wanted a dress that looked like me, that looked like a Lara dress. I also had a gut instinct that Ted wouldn’t like it very much, and I wanted him to be impressed with my dress, not horrified by the overwhelming frillyness of it. But mostly, I needed it to represent me, and it didn’t. Plus it was too uncomfortable and cost more than I was willing to spend.

What I liked: The shape, the cascading ruffles, how it moved when I walked, and the back-view.

What I didn’t like: The sequins brooch, that it was strapless, how structured and movement-restrictive it was, and the price.

The “Runner Up” dress

Here she is, my second choice in all her glory. If I had chosen this knock-out Maggie Sottero dress, I would have done three major alterations to it to really glam it up and make it mine, though she was beautiful as is. It’s funny when you think about it, because this dress has many of the qualities that I blatantly did not want. It was a strapless, sweetheart neckline with ruching and a dropped waist, and had a corset back. In fact, it was exactly the opposite of what I wanted. But the material – oh, the material! The softest, smoothest, grandest, most luxurious fabric I’ve ever worn! The fabric alone instantly sold me on this dress, so much so that I was willing to overlook that it was everything I didn’t want! It was light, slippery and heavenly. It draped so beautifully and moved so effortlessly. And do you know why this dress is so popular? Because it looks good on everyone, regardless of their body type. It slims down all the right trouble spots and accentuates all the right curves. It is universally flattering, and only about $100 more than the limit I’d naively set for myself. It was a close call and the only reason I didn’t choose it is because I swear that I’ve seen a million girls wearing dresses identical to this style in the past two years. If I had chosen this beauty, I would have added a little something (a flower, sash, or brooch perhaps) to the gathering seem near the right hip bone, had them replace the corset back with a zippered back, and added some type of sleeves (maybe sheer off the shoulders sleeves, or a halter strap) just to keep it fresh, spice it up a bit, and make it my own.

What I liked: The stunning material, the softness, the way it moved, and how it reflected light. It was glamorous without being too girly. It gave me a great figure and it was so customizable and versatile.

What I didn’t like: The corset back was my biggest concern, because that would have been a major alteration to convert it to a zipper back. Other than that I loved it!

The Dress that Was

The winner was Jasmine Collection style F319 in ivory. It met all my strict criteria – except for the pockets. She was lightweight, extremely comfortable, easy to get into and out of by myself, had a very similar silky soft and light-reflective fabric to the Maggie Sottero I admired, minimal lace and beading, wasn’t strapless, had an interesting, fun back design, enough details to make it special, it came in about $200 under the $750 limit, was very good quality, and I’d never seen a dress on anyone before or since that looks quite like this dress. She looks 1940s in the front and Grecian in the back. For all the hassle, heartache and hopelessness – she was worth it!

Well, we’ve made it through the first four months of marriage! Crazy, right? It really does feel like much longer, but in a comfortable, peaceful way. Every day I appreciate my husband more and more. He’s working late on Rent again tonight so I just finished making myself a fancy Indian dinner for one: Chicken tiki masala over white jasmine rice cooked in lemongrass ginger tea and sprinkled with green onions and cilantro, and finished off with a cool glass of white wine.

I think I enjoy Indian food as much as I do because the first time I had it was when I was studying abroad in Stratford-Upon-Avon, England during the summer before my junior year of college. A select group of us were over there for a three-week Shakespeare scholarship and performance intensive at the Shakespeare Institute Birthplace Trust and with the Royal Shakespeare Company. We loved England and adored the work we were doing, but by day two we were pretty sick of English food, which is notoriously less than delicious. You can only have so many lamb pastries, egg salad sandwiches, and fish n’ chips platters before you’re just craving something, anything new. That evening we came across a nice Indian restaurant nestled snugly on a cobblestone street in downtown Stratford. Everyone else seemed to love Indian food; I had never tried it. It was phenomenal! England may not be much good at cooking up their own cuisine, but they sure do excel at making other county’s delicacies. I don’t eat Indian food often, but whenever it do it rouses such fond and wonderful memories of that trip with its distinctive flavor.

Anyhow, in honor of the 4-month mark, I’d like to take this post and the next to focus on an iconic part of a woman’s wedding day (other than the swell gentleman she’s pledging her life to, obviously): her wedding dress.

My dress shopping experience lasted four grueling months and spanned five cities in two states with a minimum of at least 16 different bridal salons. I went alone, I went with Ted, I went with my mom, with my mom and my dad, and with my mother-in-law and sister-in-law. I shopped in San Antonio, Austin, Milwaukee, Green Bay and a few other diddly-squat towns I don’t remember the names of. Shopping in San Antonio was a nightmare, an utter disaster because nearly every bridal gown closely resembled either a negligee or a Quinceanera dress – a mix between a sweet 15 and debutant ball for girls in the Latin American culture.

Source

My dress shopping experience was less of a twirling, squealing, champagne-and-strawberries fairytale and more of a tiresome, frustrating pain in the ass. I tried on my fair share of truly heinous frocks, all of which looked heavenly on the hanger and horrific on my body, I assure you. I also tried on my fair share of glamorous gowns – some of which I liked, and some of which I almost loved.

Before I go any further, let me tell you a story. A few brief months before we got engaged, Ted asked me what kinds of rings I liked. Since I’d never been engaged before, I really had no idea what I liked. I couldn’t even properly identify a diamond’s shape or cut, or any basic ring settings. So off to the jewelry store I went to gather some rudimentary thoughts of what I might like. I tried on everything from solitaries to multi-stones and round to princess to teardrop cuts. My ring size at the time was 5.5 (now a 4.5), but the standard issue engagement ring carried in stores for brides-to-be to try on is a size 7. Now matter how beautiful the ring, when it’s a size and a half too large, the fit makes it seem all wrong. I left the jewelry store more confused than ever and discouraged because not a single ring looked good on me. They were all gorgeous in their own right, but because they were all so ill-fitting, I thought every one of them looked terrible on my finger, though I didn’t realize that this was the problem – I simply thought I just looked stupid in rings. The only one I was convinced I loved was an odd conglomeration of three or four differently shaped diamonds in uniquely-fashioned paisley setting. Looking back I recall that the ring was a return and therefore had been previously re-sized to was a size 6 – much closer to my natural ring size, hence why it looked better on my finger than any of the other rings. Had all those rings been in my size, I’m willing to bet it would have been significantly easier for me to determine which styles I did and did not like. As it turns out, the emerald cut multi-stone staircase setting with channeling that Ted chose for me is perfect. I can’t imagine wearing anything else.

As with ring shopping, I found the biggest issue with dress shopping was that none of the dresses fit. And it’s hard to sell yourself on such a meaningful, expensive purchase when, no matter how much you swoon over a particular dress, it just doesn’t fit you well. Sure, you know it can be hemmed, taken in, let out, and otherwise altered to fit you precisely. But I just couldn’t visualize how awesome any one dress would look once it was altered correctly. It was discouraging and made the decision-making process simply excruciating. I kept thinking after every dress “Do I like it enough?,” “Will I have dress regret?,” “What else is out there?,” “If I buy this one now, what else will I be missing out on that might be on the market in three months?,” and “I’m running out of time. Can I afford to wait that long?”

I think there’s a common misconception that wedding dress shopping is fun. Everyone finds something they love. Everyone has the “Ah ha! This is it! This is the one!” moment. But that just isn’t true. I left stores feeling disheartened and frustrated, not only because nothing fit me right, but because none of the stores carried the style of dress I had envisioned for myself. I had my heart set on some pretty specific criteria and for the most part, I wasn’t willing to compromise and conform to the popular 2010 wedding dress standards. I knew for a fact that I did not want a strapless dress and that I did not want any beading, embroidery, or sequins either. I wanted something timeless, simple, elegant, and comfortable with an interesting back design and one or two standout details. Requiring a gown with straps automatically reduced my selection by 85% and requesting minimal-to-no beading hacked out another 13%. What remained for me to inspect was a mere 2% of the store’s selection. I was lucky to find even one or two dresses in each store that I was interested in. I joked with Ted that if I couldn’t find a dress soon I’d be wearing khakis and a white sweater down the aisle, and I was actually semi-serious because it was a better solution than making myself miserable searching obsessively and unsuccessfully for the perfect dress, which by that time, I believed, was indeed still somewhere out there, being closely guarded by aliens.

When I did finally give up on being stubbornly indecisive and picked a damn dress already, it wasn’t because tears gushed forth from the eyeballs of myself and my mother as we instantly locked eyes and knew it was “the one.” Rather, it was just simply choosing the dress that matched my stringent criteria to a tee, flattered my body the best, came with a price tag that didn’t make me want to scream into a pillow, and was original enough with its cut and details that I knew I wouldn’t have to fear looking like every other 2010 bride out there. I was, and still am, happy with my choice, but arriving at it wasn’t instantaneous or a piece of perfectly coiffed fondant wedding cake. It took some pretty major sweat and tears.

Ironically, now that I’m married, I love nearly every dress out there. All of the sudden the bridal market has exploded with a vast, dazzling array of lovely non-strapless options (one shoulder, sleeveless v-neck, and sheer flutter cap sleeves), fabulously attention-grabbing details (ruffles, pockets, pleating, and rosettes), luxurious fabrics, and plenty of dresses without beading. I’m convinced that, based on my standards, tastes and expectations, were I looking for a wedding dress this season, I’d have a much easier time of it now that all the pretty things I lusted over and desperately searched for 16 months ago are now a hot commodity in the bridal fashion industry. Naturally this would be the case. I have stereotypically poor timing when it comes to coinciding and meshing my style with what the rest of the world has to offer.

How about another story? I remember prom dress shopping like it was yesterday. Seriously. I remember pouring over prom magazines at my friend’s houses and during lunch for months beforehand then excitedly packing into a vehicle early one Saturday morning with a gaggle of girls and racing to bridal & prom shops and department stores to load up on armfuls of brightly colored dresses. We bravely modeled them all, the ugly and the awesome, for one another and boldly gave our honest opinions. It was fun, but it didn’t work. Why? Because there were too many damn cooks in the kitchen and the one opinion that really mattered, your own, got lost among the well-intended advice and suggestions of everyone and their mother (literally).

I knew right from the start that I didn’t want to bring along a zoo of cheerleaders or a parade of loud and opinionated friends and family for that very reason. I wanted to go with only one or two people at most. I wanted the opinions only of those who mattered most to me and whose styles closely mirrored mine. I have never, for even a second, regretted this decision. I was confused enough with just my own jumbled thoughts tossing about inside my aching brain. I certainly would not have benefited from numerous other opinions. In fact, I sometimes felt that even the one or two opinions of my beloved family who were with me were just too much. I couldn’t see straight or think clearly when I happily cooed over a dress I liked and someone else told me they didn’t think it was very flattering, or when they gushed over a dress I couldn’t wait to scramble out of. I liked going alone and forming my own judgments that weren’t subject to anybody else’s review. Both my mom and my dad were nothing but encouraging and gave excellent advice – they nudged me along gently, giving me just the little push I needed to make a final decision without crowding me. I’d suggest this method to any future-bride out there. Please, please bring just that one special person (or two at most) with you instead of your bridal party of 15. If I’d had it my way (and if it weren’t such an apparent taboo), I’d have had Ted go dress shopping with me. His opinion was the one I wanted the most!

Now that I’ve gotten my long-winded philosophy on the art and reality of dress hunting out of the way, in tomorrow’s post I’ll show you “the dresses that weren’t.” You’ll see my top contenders, the runner-up, and why they didn’t make the cut.

In no particular order…

1. Our rehearsal dinner

Our rehearsal dinner was amazing! We wanted something very different and distinctly Door County. After the rehearsal our most immediate family and friends drove about 20 minutes (being treated to the start of a phenomenal sunset over miles and miles of open farmlands along the way) to the Square Rigger Galley in Jacksonport for a traditional Dutch fish boil on the beach! We sipped cocktails while frolicking and squishing our shoes into the sandy beach of Lake Michigan, watched as gorgeous oranges, pinks, purples and reds streaked across the sky over the water as the sun set, warmed ourselves around the kettle of fire as our food cooked in it, enjoyed the “boil over” explosion to signal that our food was ready, ate a delicious fish boil meal (whole salty steamed white fish with butter and fresh lemon, whole fingerling potatoes, whole mini onions, carrots, and cherry pie), doled out gifts to our sweet wedding party, toasted our engagement and impending marriage, and watched the moon rise over the lake as the fire glowed on. It was so relaxing and exciting and fun. A perfect night with our dearest family and friends.

2. Getting ready

Getting ready for your wedding is so surreal! I opted only to have my mom, my sister and my sister-in-law with me to help. You’d honestly think I had no idea how to dress myself. I literally didn’t lift a single finger – someone put my petticoat, my dress, my bracelet, my necklace, each earring, my shoes, my cape and my veil on me. They zipped me in and fluffed me up. It was quick, quiet, peaceful, and uncomplicated. Kate told us about the first time Ted mentioned me, and my mom and sister shared their stories of when I first told them about Ted. We noshed on fruit and veggie trays to fill our bellies. I wasn’t giddy or nervous. It was just really nice to be totally catered to and to have those moments alone with these women to reflect on how far Ted and I had come.

3. Walking down the aisle

This moment is just as nifty as everyone says it will be. I walked down the aisle to our pianist playing the song “On the Lake” composed by Aaron Zigman for the movie The Notebook (you can listen to it here). I may be the biggest sap on this planet but I adore this movie and the music is truly, beautifully, passionate. I stepped into view and started my walk just as the music swelled right around the 33 second mark. I wasn’t nervous or anxious, just incredibly overjoyed. I had a huge grin plastered on my face and I literally could not stop smiling. I stared directly at Ted the entire way down the aisle. It was like no one else was in the room. Ted’s look was the most wonderful thing I’ve ever seen. He smiled a big toothy smile when he first saw me, then his eyes welled up with tears, and then he just simply smiled. There is nothing in the world quite like this moment and it is one I’ll always remember, even without pictures.

4. The ring bearer pumpkin

This moment was funny and unexpected, but such a great release in the middle of our wedding ceremony! When it was time to exchange our rings, Fr. Bob asked our best man for them. Barnie sheepishly stepped forward holding a pumpkin with our rings tied to it. Ted and I began to snicker, then Barnie started grinning from ear to ear, followed by our parents and the bridal party, and it just escalated from there. It was contagious. Soon everyone was chuckling because of the story behind the pumpkin and the looks on everyone’s faces. When we thought of the pumpkin ring bearer, we had no idea that anyone would find it funny. But looking back, I guess it was. What a happy memory!

5. A mid-day gelato break

After the ceremony we started in on the obligatory photo shoots. We took the family portraits and the wedding party pictures, then we headed out alone with our photographer and best man to get some newlywed shots. We started out in the tiny quaint Egg Harbor downtown. We walked by a delicious little homemade gelato & gourmet popcorn shop called Double Delites where we enjoyed a mouthwatering cherry gelato the previous summer. Ted stopped in and the owner congratulated him and gave us two free cups of gelato. We sat on a park bench in the middle of town surrounded by colorful, leafy trees and ate our gelato. To be so happy to begin with and then to have the savory flavor of the gelato on your tongue just when you’re getting hungry and want nothing more than to relax with your new spouse was so perfect. We got some adorable photos and we have the fond memory of us relaxing, sharing gelato in our wedding gear. I recommend that everyone eat ice cream on their wedding day!

6. Photo shoot fun

Our picture-taking time was so much more fun than I expected it to be! In addition to the giddy newlywed high, our photographer was excellent and fun, and our best man totally went above and beyond to get us phenomenal pictures. We wanted lakefront sunset photos and we had the perfect location in mind. However, balancing on sharp, jagged, uneven rocks in heels isn’t exactly easy. And I was covered in tiny black tick-like bugs. At one point Ted glanced at the back of my dress and my veil and said “holy shit, you don’t want to see the back of your dress right now.” When I asked why, he said “Because it’s totally black. With bugs.” Since the sun was setting, Barnie was given the assignment of balancing awkwardly on a rock and holding the photographer’s flash umbrella. He honestly looked like he was fishing. We had a light breeze and the idea to throw my veil into the wind for an airborne veil shot was born. Barnie held my veil in one hand and the flash in the other. On the count of three he threw my veil into the air and on the word “go” I snapped my head closer to Ted. It took many tries to achieve an awesome bunch of shots but between the bugs and the rocks and our high spirits we were all laughing and joking and having a great time, as evidenced by this playful picture above. Who knew photo shoots could be so fun?

7. My dad’s toast

My sister’s toast was creative and sweet. Our best man’s toast was funny. Ted’s dad’s toast was very nice too. But my dad’s toast just turned me into an absolute sobbing mess. He had thought about all the advice and quotes he had been given or found to be true about love and marriage over the years and wrote it all down and passed it onto us. Love is so universal that I think everyone at our reception was mesmerized and gripped by his words. He had almost completed his toast when I burst into tears and he wasn’t able to finish. He and I hugged tightly, then Ted hugged me as I tried to wipe away the snot and pull myself together. There was no awww’s or applause from our guests, just beautiful, stunned silence. Our photographer was so touched that even he asked if we would forward a copy of dad’s speech onto him. It was incredibly beautiful, wonderful, and memorable. A true gift that I treasure every day.

8. Our first dance

Our first dance song was called “Lucky As Me,” a sweet, very rare and practically unknown song from the play Escanaba in Love, a show Ted did a lighting design for. The first dance, I think, is always a little awkward. You’re aware that all eyes are locked on you, watching your every step. We’ve both had previous dance training and we took a two-hour swing dance brush-up course before the wedding, but when it came to our first dance, we just held each other and swayed, barely moving. We whispered and kissed and laughed and just held onto each other tightly. It wasn’t like we were in our own little world, since we were very aware of our guests gazes and presence, but it was romantic and loving, definitely a moment we’ll always remember, especially because the song’s lyrics were so perfect for us. 

9. Dancing with my friends

The crazy singing, the carefree dancing….it was just fun. We danced to swing music and big band classics, and 80s, 90s and early 2000s hits. We twirled and skipped and leaped and flailed and ran around the room after most people had cleared out to the bonfire area – just like the high school hooligans we once were. It was a blast and there’s just something magical about acting like a kid again with your best friends on the day you get married.

10. The bonfire

We finished off the reception with a toasty bonfire. We roasted marshmallows, made s’mores, drank hot chocolate and hot apple cider, and played with glow sticks. It was a fun, and warm, and happy. Everyone gathered around and enjoyed the heat, the goodies, the conversation and each other as we burned glow sticks and pine cones, sipped steaming cider, and got sticky from the s’mores beneath the glow of a full moon on a chilly October night. I love weddings that provide entertainment and weddings that are just a little bit different and I’m so happy we were able to do this. It was one of my most favorite moments of the weekend.

Honorable Mentions:

1. Driving in the convertible

We drove a classic convertible 68′ Oldsmobile Cutlass that Ted’s family owns as our “getaway car” from the church to all our photo locations. Our photographer, Matt, climbed in the backseat and off we went – flying up and down the winding hills of Egg Harbor through the tree-lined paths. Matt literally hung out of the side of vehicle at all manner of wild angles – he was a superhero – to snap us some brilliant shots. It felt amazing to just be together, all dolled up in our wedding day finery, cruising in a snazzy car with the cool wind whipping against our faces and the smell of the fresh, clean country air. It was marvelous! I remember getting to the top of a hill and with a fantastic view of the lake and feeling absolutely on top of the world. Ted honked the car’s horn several times and we threw our hands in the air and shouted a hearty “wwooooo!” It was a rush!

2. Flaunting the Newlywed Status

The night after our wedding mostly everyone was still in town on vacation. We’d spent the cold, rainy day at the park, the pizza joint, and the theatre with our family and friends. That night Ted and I were going to meet his sister Kate and brother-in-law Tim at a nice restaurant to celebrate our joint anniversary (them – 6 years, us – 24 hours…their anniversary is the day after ours!) before heading back to the resort to finish off the wine and wedding cake at our friends and family night. We parked the car and started to dash across the street in the drizzle. I don’t remember exactly how it happened, but a sweet lady next to us commented on something – the rain, how nice Door County is in October, how happy we looked, I don’t know – something, and then she mentioned that she’d been happily married for X number of years. This was our first real opportunity to gloat, so we did :-) We proudly proclaimed that we’d been married for 24 hours as we held hands, laughed and darted across the street toward the bright lights of a restaurant, hoods covering our heads, pants rolled up, and rain splattered. She was happy for us, and we were happy. You only get to say you’ve been married for just 24 hours once in your life and it sure felt nice!

And that concludes my 10.22.10 wedding photo recap! Thanks for checking it out :-) Hope you have a lovely weekend!

Honorable Mention:

In no particular order…

1. Our toasting flutes & Door County wines

The flutes we chose were Waterford Crystal Wishing Achievements. They’re pretty tall and unusually heavy for toasting flutes, which gave them a grand and regal feeling. They sparkled beautifully in the light and the etched markings on them were so unique that they were clear winners as soon as we saw them. To go in them, we provided around 60 bottles of locally grown Door County fruit wines. The flavors were Swedish lingonberry, peach, black cherry, red raspberry, honeycrisp apple, cranberry, and cherry chardonnay. As cherry growing and wine-making is such a rich part of Door County’s tradition and economy, we’re glad we were able to treat our guests to a true Door County experience by opting to use delicious local wines made at the winery right down the street. We’re not sad that we have leftovers either :-)

2. My personal effects

Okay, so I know I’m totally cheating by lumping five details into one slot on my top 10 list, but there were just too many favorites so I had to do it! As a little girl, I’d always imagined my wedding would be in the Texas hill county, where I was born and raised. The cowboy boots were my little piece of Texas. The eyelet garter was made for me by my mother since I love eyelet and I distinctly wanted something simple and non-froofy – which, by the way, is nearly impossible to locate in the wedding world. The hair piece was an Etsy find and the essence of earthy autumn chic. It’s colorful and playful nature appealed to my sense of the anti-traditional. The little envelope clutches were custom made from another Etsy seller for myself and my bridal attendants to hold our day-of necessities. Clutches are classically functional and are much more original as a “down the aisle” hand prop than a bouquet of flowers. Most of my jewelry was a gift from Ted – he has amazing taste! I adore the simple, understated elegance of the square cut diamonds. The best part is that I can, and I do, wear them often!

3. Mason jar candle centerpieces & wood slices

Yes, another two-for-one. Might as well take advantage of the opportunity to squeeze in as many favorite details as possible, right? While I certainly like flowers, I’m not a huge lover of flower centerpieces. They’re expensive, expected, and will die in three days. Instead we picked up a case of mason jars and some pillar candles and made our own ambient-lighting centerpieces. To spruce them up I added a copper satin ribbon and baby pine cone from my mom’s pine cone collection to each jar. They were theme-appropriate, easy to make, unexpected, budget-friendly, and we have plenty left over to enjoy for years to come. On the tables they were surrounded by orange and white mini pumpkins and larger pine cones. Ted’s friends, a husband-and-wife team, engraved two large oval tree bark slices with our married names and wedding date for us. They sat on the entrance table at the reception and they now decorate our house as well.

4. Our ring bearer

You know the story. Ted proposed in a pumpkin patch at Uncle John’s Cider Mill in Lansing, MI with my ring atop “the perfect pumpkin.” The year before that he searched freezing Michigan in November for a pumpkin for me to carve after a raccoon ate mine. Pumpkins have always been special to us. Since we opted not to have a flower girl or a ring bearer, it seemed fitting to give the honors to the one who got us into this mess in the first place. Not only was this detail very personal to us, but it produced a pretty hearty laugh from our guests during the ceremony when our best man presented it. Humorous, festive, and personal is always a winning combination.

5. The flowers

Ever the one to shy away from the norm, I didn’t want traditional flowers either. Instead, we opted for mostly plants – specifically succulents (in the cactus family) and pine cones. We ordered a small bunch of cream and sunset colored mini calla lilies and 50 different waxy succulent plants from a farm in California. I used a glue gun to stick some baby pine cones to plant wire to include in the bouquet as well. My mom designed and assembled the three bouquets, two mothers’ corsages, and all the men’s boutonnieres the night before the wedding. She’s a fantastic flower arranger! We tied the bouquets together with mustard yellow crushed velvet ribbon and attached a T&L bouquet charm that I had custom made onto mine. I was always drawn to a more colorful wildflower looking bunch over a perfectly full, manicured bouquet and I’m very happy that I was able to include the succulents I’ve always liked and exclude super-girly flowers in the process. 

6. I Spy cards

I saw the idea for this online somewhere and fell in love with it! A fun, clever way to keep your guests entertained and a sneaky way get some killer photos in the process? Count me excited! Ted had already mentioned putting a disposable camera on each table for guests to capture candid shots with, and this just fit in too perfectly to ignore. On the entrance table we placed a bushel basket of disposable cameras, a sign identifying the purpose of cards, and the cards themselves – printed on heavyweight card stock with our leaves motif. Add a kitchsy little explanatory poem and list a few jazzy things for your guests to spy on and you’ve got instant wedding fun! As a guest I know I’d be stoked to see something entertaining like this at a wedding, and as the bride I can say I definitely appreciate some of the awesome pictures that resulted!

7. I Like You banner

Have you ever read the short children’s book I Like You by Sandol Stoddard? If you haven’t – get on it! It’s unspeakably adorable (as would be anything that features black and white sketches of bonnet-wearing crocodiles dancing). The text’s choppy, rambling structure captures the giddy feeling of loving someone – friend, sibling, parent, or spouse; the message is universal. The words and thoughts are simplistic, yet strikingly honest and truly heartfelt. The illustrations are sweet and eclectic. It really is just one of those lovely whimsical books that makes you smile really big and immediately plunk the book into your shopping cart at Anthropologie, not caring about the 75% markup because you need this book immediately. I gifted it to Ted once and the literature so accurately described our relationship together that we decided to incorporate into our wedding decor by photocopying each page onto beige card stock and stringing them together with clothespins onto a line of twine to create a sweet, meaningful book banner. You can read the full text here.

8. Kids’ activity booklet & welcome booklet

I think some the most fun I had during the wedding planning process was creating these two babies! I really got into designing these booklets and loved the result! I had all the creative license in the world to do what I love – write creative, informative, and fun booklets to welcome, guide, and entertain our guests – both big and small. The welcome booklet was attached to the Out-of-Town guest gift boxes with twine. This booklet contained a welcome & thank you letter, a weekend schedule of activities & events (including a winery tasting & tour, a welcome party, sightseeing at Peninsula State Park, a pizza and gelato picnic, seeing Guys & Does at American Folklore Theatre, a family & friends night, and Sunday brunch), directions, contact information, a who’s who guide of guests, a list of places to go, things to do, area restaurants, a little Door County information, a Sudoku puzzle, a personalized “about the couple” wedding crossword puzzle, an answer key, and a few funny wedding comics. The kids’ wedding weekend activity booklet featured autumn & wedding related coloring pages, a word unscramble with a secret code, a scavenger hunt, a word search puzzle, a maze, a tic-tac-toe sheet, and a family tree. The hours upon hours of work these took to produce was so worth the outcome!

9. Save the Dates

The credit for these little beauties belongs entirely to Ted. I envisioned the initial concept and mentioned to Ted that I wanted leaf shaped save the date magnets. He immediately informed me that I was crazy because cutting 75 leaves out of thick magnet paper would be unbearably excruciating at best. I persisted and whined long enough that the poor guy probably got tired of listening to me and eventually gave in. Using all kinds of software programs, Ted created the leaf, the internal pattern and marbling shading effect, and together we agreed on the wording. Once it was fully designed, Ted set to work purchasing glossy magnet paper, going through a lengthy trial and error process with his printer until he achieved color and quality perfection, printed them, and using a pair of scissors he cut out 75 leaves with their microscopic stems, twists, and curves by hand. I think it took him three days and his hand was permanently cramped. He did all this work for us and our wedding. He is a truly awesome, talented guy!

10. Our cake topper

I adored the concept of our cake topper, and in the end, I did love it and I thought it was a neat personal touch. However, the actual receiving of the cake topper was less than ideal. I ordered this custom-made cake topper back in early July from an Etsy seller and it was supposed to be finished at the beginning of October. In a nutshell, this completely wonderful seller with fantastic talent and excellent reviews fell pretty far short of our expectations. I’m sure this was just an isolated incident because all her other reviews were stellar, but we received only half of what we ordered (missing were two additional mini cake toppers in the shape of our logo helmets, and a replica of our wedding rings on the mossy grass in front of the pumpkins on the main topper that she “ran out of time” to make – she had 4 months) and I received it via overnight mail the day before our wedding. I honestly didn’t believe it was going to come at all. But in the end, it was still a beautiful, unique topper and I’m so glad we went with something more original than the standard-issue bride & groom topper.

Honorable Mentions: First off, if you’re still reading – congratulations! You’re either a real trooper or really bored; I know I’m long winded. There are so many more favorite details that I could go on for days. But that’s not the point of a quick photo recap. Instead of boring you with more details I’ll just quickly list the honorable mentions because they were all lovingly designed and handmade by us, so they deserve some credit! Doing everything yourself is no small task and we’re really proud of our work. In no particular order honorable mentions go to our postcard invitations, the envelopes & wrap-around labels, the ceremony program, mass song sheet, day-of schedules for the wedding party, signage, “just married” car banner, “Mr. & Mrs.” sweetheart table banner, the cherry sours in galvanized buckets for favors (another tribute to Door County) and the Out-of-Town welcome gift boxes for all our guests when they checked into the resort that included apple cider packets, gingersnaps, water bottles, and caramel popcorn balls – all autumn goodies! Our customized guestbook platter, the Door County coffee table guestbook, and totally awesome cutout and pop-up thank you cards for our family and wedding party were not made by us, but they were all were custom orders and truly great details. Another big hit was the glow sticks. I’m not quite sure why I was so hell-bent on having them, but I was. In my mind they were necessary. I’ve always loved glow sticks and had so much fun playing with them and apparently our guests did too! They were a hit!

Tune in tomorrow for my Top 22 Favorite Wedding Photos!

I promise it will be 95% pictures and only 5% words! :-)

It’s my day off and I have plenty to do. There’s the library books to return and the search for new ones to borrow, things to print, forms to fill out, coupons to cut, and information to be looked up, to keep it simple. There’s also a house to dust and vacuum, laundry to be washed, and meals to be decided upon, but those can wait until the weekend. When all that’s done there’s a basement and garage to reorganize, vacations (possibly a honeymoon!) and little weekend getaways to be planned, and wedding albums to be designed and ordered. I always feel like I’m so much busier on my days off! Luckily, it’s belligerently cold outside again so I don’t have to fight the temptation to throw on shorts and a tank top and lounge on the porch with a lemonade and a good book, or take off rollerblading down the block, or shoot a few hoops like I will during the spring and summer months instead of plowing through my “this should get done eventually” list.

Before I get around to all of this though, and in lieu of the ever trendy “wedding recap” posts – which consist of D.I.Y tutorials of cutesy handmade wedding details, unending photo storyboards, and lengthy minute-by-minute descriptions of every tiny little moment that happened on w-day – that hog many all newlywed blogs for like seven weeks straight, I’d like to attempt to narrow down our nearly 1,500 wedding photos that we received from our pro photographer, family’s cameras, and disposable table cameras into my top favorites.

My blog project over the next three days will be to create a photo list with accompanying short descriptions of my Top 10 Favorite Wedding Details, my Top 22 Favorite Wedding Photos, and my Top 10 Favorite Moments from that entire weekend (10.22.10)!

This is an incredibly daunting task. A good chunk of the 900 pictures we received from our pro photographer were truly excellent, and there are some pretty amazing treasures gleamed from the disposable cameras as well. Conservatively, I probably have close to at least 350 favorite photos in about 15 different categories ranging from Details, to Getting Ready, to Ceremony, to Reception, to Portrait Shots, to Newlywed Pictures, to Rehearsal Dinner, and more! I adored so many details from our wedding since we handpicked, designed, and handmade nearly everything ourselves. I love so many of the pictures for so many reasons – some because they are outright hilarious, some because the lighting is magical or the angle is artistic, some because the emotion, whether sappy or happy, is so clearly, beautifully and prominently center stage that you just can’t help but be drawn in by it, and some because the whole image tells a great story. This is going to be a huge challenge – and I’m warning you now, if I absolutely cannot contain myself, there may be a short list of runner-ups. But I’ll try my darnedest to stick within my 10.22.10 boundaries, because I’ll eventually have to narrow them down for the wedding albums anyway.

So be sure to tune in for the next three days (Thursday, Friday and Saturday) for my anti-wedding-recap wedding-photo-recap & awards! HA!

Before I scurry off to be a productive, responsible citizen, I’ll leave you with these few gems to start us off. They don’t count for any of my top favorites as they’re not technically wedding photos, but they deserve major credit for getting the ball rolling.

Enjoy your Wednesday and check back sometime tomorrow for my Top 10 Favorite Wedding Details!

Romance was a’brewing at the Cincinnati Art Museum when I paid an impromptu leisurely visit yesterday afternoon. Ted is working a show load-in all weekend at CCM, and left to my own devices for the day, I took off for a stroll around the museum after hearing it was the last day of the Wedded Perfection special exhibit. Let this be a lesson:  The very last day of a particularly popular exhibit, especially if it happens to fall on a Saturday afternoon, is not a recommended time to attend said exhibit. If it looks good (check!), you’ve been hearing about it for months (check!), and you know you want to see it (check!), get on the ball and go sometime, anytime, before the last day. The place was packed. We’re talking cars parked haphazardly everywhere. Complete insanity.  Since the art museum is always free and the only fee you pay is a mere $4 for parking, it was definitely nothing to complain about. The facility is gorgeous too, located right in Edan Park and across from Mirror Lake with a brilliant view of all of Cincinnati. If you’re ever in Cincy, I’d say stop in just to walk the building and check out the fabulous interior and exterior architecture and décor, though I’d probably recommend actually checking out the art as well, since everything was very nifty and interesting.

The Wedded Perfection exhibit showcased American wedding gowns throughout history.  Many were donated or on loan.  There was a fair share of Christian Dior and Vera Wang gowns – many from the 2000’s-2010. There were older frocks from the late 1800’s-1950’s with luxurious silky fabrics, fantastic lace detailing, stunning cathedral veils, and gowns of all colors and necklines. On the wall’s surrounding the exhibit there were framed black and white photographs of modern brides getting ready for their weddings. I spotted a particularly snazzy strapless silk Vera Wang with a fit and flare cut and a feather skirt. One of the most unusual dresses was a gown constructed entirely of hundreds of Latex gloves. It wouldn’t exactly jump straight to “it was pretty” but it definitely didn’t look bad and it just goes to show that you really could make a wedding dress out of just about anything.

Source

I also saw a veil cape very similar to one I fell in love with when I was looking at dresses and veils for our wedding. I never ended up seeing out the idea, but I still love the look, mostly for its elegance and originality.

Source

As if drooling over gorgeous gowns weren’t enough excitement for one day, as soon as I stepped into the Wedded Perfection exhibit gallery I arrived just in time to witness a proposal and hear all the high-pitched squeals accompanying it. From what I heard and saw, the girl was there with a small group of her friends (who were obviously in on it) and her boyfriend was supposed to be at work. He surprised her by showing up out of the blue and proposing to her right in front of her favorite dress in the exhibit. Ted said it was lame and the pumpkin patch was a much better idea. The engagement was, of course, accompanied by hearty applause afterward. There was also a wedding reception going on that afternoon at the art museum. See what I mean – lots of romance a‘brewing. I’m not positive, but I think the exhibit might be a traveling one. If it’s coming to a city near you, I’d definitely sip a mimosa at brunch, gather up your girlfriends and give it a peek. Even after you’re married, it’s still hard to resist oogling pretty dresses.