We’ve all seen the show “Bridezillas,” and if you haven’t, frankly, that’s probably a good thing. Bridezilla can be defined as (a combination of bride and Godzilla) a difficult, unpleasant, perfectionist bride. From the show though, you’d know that the words “difficult” and “unpleasant” are nice words. To help with the common stresses of wedding planning, I have included some tips on how to help stay yourself and not turn into a bridezilla:

1. Instead of saying you want your wedding to be “perfect,” try to use words like “happy,” “memorable” and “fun.”

2. Wedding planning can consume your every waking thought, and it is easy to forget that not everyone else is as consumed with it as you are. Plan one evening a week with your fiance that has the strict rule of NO WEDDING TALK. Go to a movie or museum, try a new restaurant, or stay in. Also, plan a night out once a month with your friends and enforce this rule, as well. Your friends will appreciate you taking the time to catch up on their lives, too.

3. When speaking to vendors, be KIND. I know sometimes it may be hard, but remember that communication between others can be difficult. Try not to sweat the small stuff, and if you get aggravated, walk away to cool off and then come back with a different approach to the situation.

4. Think back to other weddings you have been to, and try to recall what made them memorable in your mind. Was it the wedding favors? Was it the color of the bridesmaids’ dresses? Was it the size of the dance floor? Do you even remember what you ate, how the cake tasted, or when the DJ screwed up and mispronounced the father-of-the-bride’s name? Contact your grandparents and ask them what they remember about their wedding. Chances are, they will only remember being surrounded by friends and family, and how beautiful/handsome their fiance looked on that day.

By Proud father

Hi lovely friends! This weekend my honey and I are headed East for a friend’s wedding, where we get to catch up with some of our Teach for America friends and wear sparkly shoes (well, I’m wearing sparkly shoes; I think Ryan’s probably wearing the gorgeous man shoes he wore at our wedding). This is the first wedding we’ll attend since our own wedding, and I’m a little curious to see if it will be different – like, will I notice different things? Will I get more emotional at the ceremony? Thoughts? Anyway, I can’t wait to see my friends and celebrate with them. In sparkly shoes.

Okay, so before I sign off, here are some fun links for you from around the web!

{from Martha Stewart Weddings}

Do I want the blue pointy shoes, or the gold pointy shoes? Both?

Or how about these in hot pink?

Calligraphy and clay – better together.

Watercolor and ceramics – better together, too!

A modern day love note.

Okay, it’s not exactly cheap, but it’s a more affordable version of the bag I love, via Sacramento Street.

$12 sunglasses look good.

This loose bunch of flowers makes my day.

Rainbow happy Brooklyn Bridge, via Oh Hello Friend.

How about these invites for a destination wedding?

Mad Men art portraits – dig these.

Congrats to Elizabeth Anne Designs on the new look!

Really, Jordan? Your paper just keeps getting better and better!

Have a happy weekend folks!

Wedding Paper Divas is a sponsor of Snippet & Ink.

By Proud father

We’ve all seen the show “Bridezillas,” and if you haven’t, frankly, that’s probably a good thing. Bridezilla can be defined as (a combination of bride and Godzilla) a difficult, unpleasant, perfectionist bride. From the show though, you’d know that the words “difficult” and “unpleasant” are nice words. To help with the common stresses of wedding planning, I have included some tips on how to help stay yourself and not turn into a bridezilla:

1. Instead of saying you want your wedding to be “perfect,” try to use words like “happy,” “memorable” and “fun.”

2. Wedding planning can consume your every waking thought, and it is easy to forget that not everyone else is as consumed with it as you are. Plan one evening a week with your fiance that has the strict rule of NO WEDDING TALK. Go to a movie or museum, try a new restaurant, or stay in. Also, plan a night out once a month with your friends and enforce this rule, as well. Your friends will appreciate you taking the time to catch up on their lives, too.

3. When speaking to vendors, be KIND. I know sometimes it may be hard, but remember that communication between others can be difficult. Try not to sweat the small stuff, and if you get aggravated, walk away to cool off and then come back with a different approach to the situation.

4. Think back to other weddings you have been to, and try to recall what made them memorable in your mind. Was it the wedding favors? Was it the color of the bridesmaids’ dresses? Was it the size of the dance floor? Do you even remember what you ate, how the cake tasted, or when the DJ screwed up and mispronounced the father-of-the-bride’s name? Contact your grandparents and ask them what they remember about their wedding. Chances are, they will only remember being surrounded by friends and family, and how beautiful/handsome their fiance looked on that day.

By Proud father

Guys, don’t think we’re not scheming or scamming 24/7 to hook you up with the coolest stuff we encounter in our pursuit of bridal bliss. Perfect example: Last week, we were chatting up the folks at the new Hotel Breakwater in South Beach and couldn’t quit gushing about how beyond cool their space was and what a great venue spot for a destination wedding OR a honeymoon close to home.

Located in the heart of Ocean Drive, this hot-spot includes a courtyard, rooftop, penthouse and the Event & Meeting Center. The modern and chic rooms were also designed by Stephen B. Jacobs (who’s famous for being the guy behind the oh-so-sexy Gansevoort in New York and Miami). Bonus: They also offer beach weddings!

We love it and we think you will too — that’s why we begged and pleaded with them to hook you up with a cool discount…and (tada!) we got one!

For all Get Married Blogger Brides and Friends: Get 20% off your wedding package when you mention GetMarried.com. Just go to www.breakwatersouthbeach.com or call (305) 532-2362 for more information on their bridal and honeymoon offerings.

Enjoy! (More goodies to come;)

Summer

By Proud father

Can I tell you how fun it is to see one of my inspiration boards transformed into a photo shoot? So you can imagine my delight when Caroline from Tinywater Photography told me that she and several other vendors had created a faux wedding from a Snippet & Ink inspiration board. Designed by Amber Novey from Platinum Planning, this styled shoot puts a Northern California twist on my Love and Surf post. Enjoy!

Surfboards as wedding “arch” – I love it!

Mini pineapples, sea glass, seashells… and three tiers of cookies!

My family has outdoor movie nights every summer, so I love that they’ve added one here. This entire shoot would make for such a fun and intimate wedding celebration! Appropriately, there’s also a “wedding” film of the shoot from Love Spun Handmade Films:

Thanks so much to all of these awesome vendors for sharing such a fun photo shoot with us. What a treat!

Photography: Tinywater Photography

Videography: Lovespun Handmade Films

Design: Amber Novey for Platinum Planning

Stationery: Alice Koswara

Flowers: Botanica Floral Design

Cookies: The Cookie Drop

Vintage car: TNT Automotive

Hair / makeup: Rona Basa for Luxe Image

Necklace: Idea Farm Designs

By Proud father

I know, I know, I haven’t posted in months, and you’re asking yourself “why would you start back up with bad stuff?”. Well…let me tell you, the bad is so bad that I still get angry every time I even think of our wedding day, so in order for me to move on, I must start with the bad, so here it goes…

Me and my husband knew we wanted an outside ceremony from the get go.  We were on a tight budget (saying that, who the hell isn’t these days, lol) and it seemed like every outside spot we looked at was just too expensive, and we’d rather spend big bucks on other things.  My sister had went out to a ranch a few weeks before and mentioned that it would totally be perfect for what we were looking for, and when she said it was only $125 per day, I almost said yes without even checking it out! Me and my now husband drove out there, it was about 30 minutes out of town.  Driving up, I was thinking “what the hell is this piece of crap,run down, hilbilly thing they call a ranch? and why would my sister think we would like this?” Well…that was just the entrance, and as soon as we got past the horse stables and ancient lobby office, I saw what she saw.  It was beautiful! A large open field, a grove with trees covering a huge space with picnic tables, and a really, really, really cute little old white house toward the end of the property.  It was just simple and very Colorado-ish, and just exactly where I had visioned our day to be. I was thinking that we could have the ceremony outside in the field, and then possibly have the reception in the little house, which we later found out that the house is closed for everyone, so out with that idea! So I told my sister there was no more looking, we were taking that spot! Her and her husband’s gift to us was paying to get the place for the day. 

From then on, my sister was really frustrated with the lack of communication she had (or the lack there of) with the employees that worked at the ranch.  The guy running the office was always rude to her, and even after several times she went down to talk to him, he never made it welcoming to go over the contract.  She would be waiting patiently in the office while he finished listening to voice mails, while she was the only person on the whole ranch (which now I know why she was the only person waiting, everyone else probably said to hell with the jerk!). My father, who was also our officiant, even went out there to talk with him, thinking he might be able to get more clarification on the rules and so on so the big day could run smoothly.  (Oh, I forgot to mention that this is on a military base, my dad is a retired veteran, as well as my sister’s husband, which you would think we would get more respect than this!

Anyways, back to the juicy details on what almost ruined our day, lol. We got married on June 13th, which should’ve been a beautiful sunny day here in Colorado. That morning, it was POURING!! Luckily my parents convinced me to let them rent a tent for the reception area for everyone to eat under. It was put to good use! I told my dad that since the rain had stopped, i would like the ceremony to be in the field, under a patch of trees we would be under, and the chairs to be set up right in front of the trees.  Which he totally didn’t listen to me and moved the whole ceremony under the tent 30 minutes prior to me walking down the aisle! Which I truly am thankful for that now, seeing that it literally started raining as soon as I stepped outside for my father to take my hand. 

Okay, seriously, I keep getting side tracked, back to the bad stuff, I promise!!! There was a small manager’s cabin where we were told we could change and get ready and all that stuff, with a bathroom attached. Since it was just a cabin, no rooms or anything, the girls would be in the cabin, and the guys would change in the bathroom (of course, the guys didn’t care).  On our way there my mom called my sisters and told them to bring cleaning supplies (I found this out later, they kept it a secret from me) to clean the bathrooms. SAY WHAT? Nope, they didn’t even clean the public restrooms for a wedding!  I was walking into the door of the cabin, my nerves were already shot by this time, and my mom says “honey, don’t freak out, but the cabin’s kinda dirty”, and I didn’t care,  after all, the wedding wasn’t INSIDE the cabin! The bridesmaids went to the public bathroom, located about 100 feet from the cabin since the guys were changing in the one attached to the cabin, and the employee was about to clean and told them they couldn’t use it because he was cleaning it.  Really? Uh, not my problem that you suck at life and your job obviously because you’re waiting an hour before a wedding to clean a bathroom that 125 people are about to use, yea, it’s YOUR problem dude!

Needless to say, they didn’t listen to him and used it anyways (that’s my girls!).  Even while my husband was quickly putting on his suit, the dude walked into the bathroom (my husband in his boxers at this point) and just grabbed some things! OH MY GOD! Isn’t that just the rudest thing ever? So we are all getting ready in this crap of a cabin, which was filthier than a barn, smelled like cat poop and dog poop, and just a mess. But really, I wasn’t thinking too much about it, it wouldn’t be long before we were enjoying ourselves, right? WRONG! While I’m taking a minute to breath and collect my thought, my sweet cousin grabbed me a beer to drink before I put the dress on. I downed it, and then it was time to put it on! The floor was so filthy, we had to put the dress bag under my feet so the bottom of the dress wouldn’t get dirty while putting it on. (Yes, it was that gross.)

While I’m being dipped into my dress, a lady I’ve never seen before barges in the door and immediately starts looking for things, paperwork, or a life, I’m guessing.  She then starts barking at me and my mother about how we aren’t suppose to be in the cabin without a manager, and we’ve been in there too long, and just COMPLETELY and utterly rude.  I couldn’t believe it.  She tried to kick us out of the cabin, and my mom begged and pleaded with her to let us use it for just another hour (so I could finish dressing, and still have time right after the ceremony to clean up our stuff). She was a total witch and made it clear that we weren’t welcome, and made us feel like we were ruining the life she thinks she has.  My sisters, my mother, and the other three bridesmaids have very strong, blunt personalities, and all of them kept quiet the whole time and did what she wanted, seeing we were all so nervous that if we remotely expressed any kind of frustration, this lady would seriously kick us off the property!

These last few moments before the most important day of your life are precious, as you all know this. You are nervous, excited, and about to vomit at any given second.  Your family and friends are in the room with you, smiling and on the verge of tears because they are so excited for you.  My mother helping with the last details, and this wench is seriously standing in the back with a scowl on her face, arms crossed, and just watching us during these last moments.  I wanted to go off on her so much.  Does she not comprehend how nervous I already am, and you come barging in here yelling at us and telling us how much time we have? It was crazy. Then she starts telling us to go out and tell people they can’t part there! WHAT? Aren’t YOU the employee!

Thankfully, it was time, and I never wanted to get out of place so much.  I walked out of the cabin, put it all behind me, and enjoyed my day.  I unfortunely did see her lurking behind trees every now and then during the day, but I didn’t have to deal with her again. 

After it was all said and done, my sister told me a few days later about more shocking things happened with this evil wench throughout the day, dealing with trashcans and other things that no one cares about.  My sister wrote a 4, yes 4 page letter, in detail to the manager.  I wish I could post it, but like I said, it’s really long.  I wanted an apology from someone, it was sooo
uncalled for the way they treated us.  Especially to a bride who is already a ball of nerves.  The letter was wonderful, very tactful and polite, which I would’ve had so many f-bombs and name calling it would be really unprofessional, so I’m glad she wrote it and not me! lol. We never heard back from anyone about it Until 5 months later!!! The manager called my sister and said she didn’t know why it took so long, but now she has the letter and she was apalled! She talked to my sister and got every single dirty details, and assured my sister that she was going to deal with this.  Turns out, they turned it over to JAG! I’m pretty sure all the employees that were part of trying to ruin our day were fired, with good reason. 

Point being: be sure to know every single rule, even if the contract doesn’t say a particular thing, ask anyways.  Be clear about the little things, because they can turn into big and BAD things.  If the employees are rude from the get-go they won’t change just because it’s your important day.  They don’t care who or what you are doing. Go with your gut.  This ranch we chose only does 7 weddings a year, that should’ve been my first clue, they aren’t set up for weddings, obviously!

Even through all these terrible things, we had a fantastic wedding. It was perfect. The sun came out as soon as we said our “I do’s.” 

I promise to tell the good stuff soon! Whew, my fingers are tired now, lol!

By Proud father

Sponsored Post

You’ve picked out the perfect clutch for your maid of honor, and the sweetest necklace for your junior bridesmaid. But what about the guys? If you’re not sure what to get the best man or father of the bride, chances are you’ll find the perfect gift at Groomstars. From tie clips to poker sets, they offer a variety of luxury groomsmen gifts in a range of prices. Here, a couple of my favorite items available at Groomstars…

1. Cognac Sahara Leather Flask
2. Post Miniature Wine Notes
3. Peanut Lizard Key Fob
4. Rules of Golf Book
5. Rosewood Poker Set

Also, lots of the gifts at Groomstars can be personalized with a name or monogram for that extra touch. So what will you gift your best man or your dad? Or your groom!

This post sponsored by Groomstars.

By Proud father

So, remember the post about the hubby being concerned about the gentleman’s getting ready photos? Well, as I promised, there were no men in boxers jumping up and down on the bed photos that he thought he may have to take… the photos themselves make the boys seem relatively well behaved and tame… perhaps that was b/c I was in the suite above them?

My favorite though was this shot:

 He was being held captive… LOL.

A few other good ones…

Inside the Executive Suite…

Enjoying the beautiful view and balcony at the St. Regis.

The best man and groomsmen.

With our BIL

The Boys were hungry… sadly, my ladies didn’t really get fed.

Allie from Flower Allie was so prepared (b/c anemones fade quickly) she had a replacement for the ceremony

The ring bearer’s pillow.

My MIL putting on his Bout…

Had to end with the fave pic in black and white… LOL

By Proud father

Though they live in Washington D.C., Courtney and Blair both grew up in California, so a San Francisco wedding made perfect sense. Says Courtney (a Snippet & Ink bride!), “We were enamored with the idea of inviting our friends to San Francisco for Labor Day weekend so they could get a chance to experience the city. With that in mind, we felt the Presidio was the perfect way to reflect San Francisco and California history.”

200 guests joined the couple to celebrate their nuptials, and Matt from Our Labor of Love captured the day beautifully…

Says Courtney: One of the more difficult aspects of planning a San Francisco wedding is just how unpredictable the weather is. We chose Labor Day weekend because it tends to be one of the driest times of year. We were even more excited when the entire week was sunny and warm! But, like it does in San Francisco, the fog and wind rolled in on our wedding day. And I have to say, once we got our pictures back, I was so happy it did, because the pictures of the fog covered Golden Gate Bridge and of my bridesmaids and me being blown about in Pacific Heights are some of my favorites.

I think one of the great things about weddings is that sometimes the unplanned aspects can be the most special or memorable. We had arranged for a mariachi band to play for our entrance, but there was a miscommunication and they left too early. Our amazing DJ was quick on his feet and picked out the Arcade Fire’s “Wake Up” for our entrance. Then, at the end of the night he played it as our last song and all the guests formed a circle around us and slowly closed in on us until we were all in a huge group hug. It definitely wasn’t planned but it was one of the most memorable moments!

I love that Courtney and Blair let their venues direct style choices, without being too theme-y. Courtney says, “We loved the mission-style architecture of the chapel and the surrounding buildings and tried to reflect its style in our invitations, music (mariachis), cuisine (our midnight snack was churros and jamon sliders), and decor. Also, I chose a dress with a lot of lace to sort of echo the Spanish feel.”

Photography: Matt Miller for Our Labor of Love

Ceremony venue: Main Post Chapel in the Presidio, San Francisco

Reception venue: Golden Gate Club in San Francisco

Bride’s dress: Monique Lhuillier

Bridesmaid dresses: J.Crew and Bella Bridesmaid

Groom’s suit: Brooklyn Tailors

Stationery: Kathleen Designs (From the bride: “I first saw Kathleen’s own invitations on A Cup of Jo and thought they were some of the coolest invites I’d ever seen. I am so happy I contacted her because she created custom letterpress invites for us that perfectly captured the mood of the whole event and were so affordable that we ended up asking her to create menus, programs, and even thank you cards.”)

Flowers: Grace Street Florals

Catering: Grace Street Catering

DJ: Ron Grandia

Congratulations Courtney and Blair! Thanks so much for sharing all of the wonderful details of your wedding, and thank you to Our Labor of Love for sending over these beautiful photos.

Bella Bridesmaid is a sponsor of Snippet & Ink.

By Proud father

Sponsored Post

It’s always so exciting to come across a new wedding vendor or service doing beautiful things, and who I know will be doing even more amazing things with each new event. Esla Events is one such company. Not only do they plan weddings, but they’re also designers who create stylish, fun events that are unique to each couple. Esla is all about creativity, imagination, and personalization. Here’s a little taste of their work…

Whether you’ve already figured out every last detail yourself and you just need help pulling it all together the week of your wedding, or if you’re looking for someone to take your initial idea and run with it, Esla Events offers a variety of design and planning packages to choose from to make your planning experience that much easier.

Check out Esla Events’ gallery for even more fun examples of their design work and details. And when you hire them to create a totally fun and stylish wedding for you, will you send me the pictures?

This post sponsored by Esla Events.

By Proud father