KatyKo

My trick is to: Breath in deeply, swallow, breath in deeply again (no exhaling in between), swallow, breath in deeply one last time, swallow...then exhale. Works every time. Good luck!

Quote: Originally Posted by drbrainfreeze Congrats Katy!! I know you are gone, but I hope you have a great time and I can't wait to hear all about your big day Did you and Will meet at Boardwalk Billy's? We did meet at Boardwalk Billy's Love that place! Thanks everyone for your kind words. I will try to post my templates when I get my review up...I was in such a rush to get my planning thread up before we left, I didn't have a chance.

There are so many more that I just love. I can't stop looking at them...but these are my favorites for today (that seems to change everyday ). Hope you like them!!

more...

we got this one on a canvas painted still more

this is a fave because almost every time Will holds my hand while walking...he spins me...whether we are at home or at the grocery store more to come...

Hi Ladies! Wow. I opened this forum for the first time today since the wedding and have almost 15,000 unread posts...whew!! My wedding was absolutely perfect and I'm going to get my review done ASAP. Probably not until after my AHR on July 11th. But I promise...it will be done. But for now...I'm sure these pictures will tide you over. Severine at PhotoSouvenir was nothing short of amazing. She was great to work with and exceeded all expectations (which were pretty high). I would recommend her and her team to ANYONE! So here are my favorites from the wedding day and the TTD session. Enjoy! talking to me stay tuned for more...

Food/Beverages We will have BBQ catered (cooked on-site) with Mac N Cheese, Baked Potatoes, Baked Beans, Bread, Lemonade & Sweet Tea. We will have Sweet Tea Vodka and Fresh Lemons, along with Wine (with personalized labels) and a couple of beer kegs. Will's Mom and I are making the cake. Photographs We cannot afford to hire a photographer so I made PhotoShare cards with business cards from VistaPrint. These will be placed on the tables for people to pick-up (and we may include them in thank you cards as well). DJ We hired Alan Norwood of Icon Entertainment as our DJ. He has been great so far, if anyone needs to hire a DJ in NC. Favors Will and I met at a restaurant that has great peanuts (the kind of place where you throw the shells on the floor) - it is still a place we love to go...so I got little burlap bags made by Etsy Seller: penspics on Etsy - PENS PICS and stamped "R" on them with a stamp made by Etsy Seller: Corrabelle on Etsy - The Mayberry Sparrow-Curiosities& Blatant Tomfoolery and filled them with in-the-shell roasted peanuts. Not a lot of pics for the AHR stuff...but I will share when I have them. Well...I think that is all We managed to fit all of our wedding stuff and clothes and everything we need for 10 nights into two suitcases and two carry-ons. I can't wait to see everything come together. Thank you ladies (and gents) again...I couldn't have done any of this without you. See you again as Mrs. Rust :)

AHR Will and I are having a reception in Charlotte for all the family/friends who couldn't attend the DW. The reception will be set-up like we just walked out of our ceremony. Hopefully we will have our wedding video and pro photos by then to display for everyone to enjoy. Location We are having our AHR at the Rockin' K Ranch in Charlotte (a rustic building where rodeos used to be held). DIY Invitation and RSVP Cards I just bought some creased cards from Office Depot and bought a blue mason jar and daisy stamp (designed for me) from Etsy Seller: sugarskull7 on Etsy - hand carved rubber stamps, original and custom work. I printed the details on the inside and designed the RSVP card and printed it through VistaPrint (standard postcards). (Sorry no pic on hand of these...will share later!) Reception Sign I used one of VistaPrint's templates and made this sign to put out by the road of the reception location. It is very nice quality and we might have it framed after the reception as a keepsake. Decorations Explanation of photos: We are having a rustic theme, so I will use some old mason/ball jars and fill them with wildflowers surrounded by clear candle holders. Our table cloths are lacey-looking from OT Clearance and we will have different colors underneath. We will have pictures of the two of us in sepia-tone hanging along the porch of the building. ...more to come...

Cake Inspiration Angel's Accents made me a beautiful cake topper, and I will choose my style of cake once we get there, but these are my inspirations. Photographer We Chose to use the resort photographer as well as Photo Souvenir. I love their work and I'm giving them complete artistic freedom with our photos and videos. I can't wait to see how they turn out! Photosouvenir Punta Cana, Wedding Photographer Dominican Republic Will's Gift - BD Book In Nov. '08 I met up with Amy Wood (who is now a part of The Click Chicks | South Carolina Wedding, Child, and Boudoir Photographers - bam). If you click through the site, you will probably find me and I was actually in a news story that ran about her in SC (I told her she could only use certain photos ). ...more to come...

Travel Mugs From ebay seller eBay Store - Factory 21 Promotional Items: Shot Glasses, Steins, Trays. Kaylan was great to work with - and worked with Julie (drbrainfreeze) and I to split an order and shipping. Underwater Cameras and Goggles Found on Wholesale Disposable Digital & Custom Wedding Cameras, Kid Tough Polaroid Camera & Film, Cheap MP3 Players for a great price. We ordered one of each to test out and the goggles are great, the camera works great too. They have a lot of bad reviews, but I had no trouble with them. DIY Key Card and Cash Holder Used template from a BDW bride - inserted my own logo (designed by Sarah) and used re-sealable badge holders with key ring expando bracelet whistles. Extras and DIY Survival Kits We included these flip-flop shaped playing cards (from OTC), pens (clearance @ OTC), and Sticky Pads (clearance @ Michaels) Survival Kits include headache meds, tummy meds, motion sickness meds (all from First Aid Tablets & First Aid Medications...Wholesale to the Public Online!, hand sanitizer (clearance section of CVS) and band aids (Dollar Tree). Spanish Language Guide Printed at home from Print a Free Pocket-Sized Phrase Booklet | Spanish - Espaol ...more to come...

Pre-Travel Mailing DIY Brochure Designed by me, with info pulled from the net - printed by VistaPrint DIY Luggage Tags Printed business cards with VistaPrint and glued on either side of some decorative paper, placed into plastic badge holders and tied with ribbon Welcome Bags We decided to put together a welcome bag to be placed in our guests' rooms before they arrive. We included sunblock, temporary tattoos, wedding day timeline and the following... DIY Welcome Book These DIY booklets titled: "Your Guide to the Dominican" include a welcome letter from the bride & groom, info. on the guests' room #s/arrival & departure times, restaurant offerings/hours, photo share instructions, and a couple of fun puzzles (supplies from Hobby Lobby) ...more to come...

Ceremony Setup Our ceremony will be setup on the beach and will look similar to this: I would like a few splashes of color, but want it to stay very simple - the beach is such a beautiful backdrop...I don't want to take away from it. Chairs Angel's Accents gave me some extra cake flowers, so I hope to use them as chair decorations. This pic is my inspiration. I hope the organza is a green color (will choose that at the resort). Flowers From ANGEL'S ACCENTS - Divine Custom Wedding Flower Creations!...those girls did such an amazing job and went above and beyond to make sure my wedding will be beautiful. I couldn't have asked for anything better! Ceremony Stuff Fans, Bubbles and Tears of Joy Packs Fans were purchased from OT and tied the ribbons on myself (from Michaels); the bubbles were given to me and designed to say "My Bubbles" from Finding Nemo; Tears of Joy were packs of kleenex from Michaels' clearance split and wrapped with paper. ...more to come...

The Groom Will's attire(He wouldn't let me take a pic of him!) Linen vest & pants are Perry Ellis from Dillards; shirt from; tie from; belt from; shoes from; Groom's Bout: From Angel's Accents - GMs are just green, Fathers/Grandfathers are just white. The Groomsmen GM's attire: Linen shirt and pants from Old Navy. GM's gifts: Will purchased his GM's clothes, but he also bought his guys zippo lighters engraved and flasks with their initials...sorry, no pics! ...more to come...

The Bridesmaids BM Dresses I found these dresses for my girls for $16.50 each at http://www.forever21.com/Default.asp?cookie%5Ftest=1 BM Earrings Also from Forever 21 for $3.50 each DIY BM Hair Flowers Thank you to Kev'sGirl for the inspiration & directions BM Gifts I purchased the the girls' dresses, accessories, and I also put together these bags for them: Passport holders from starlitnest on Etsy - Get a FREE Fat Quarter with your $50 Order!; Bags, Body Butter, & cards from $1 Section @ Target, Tissues from $1 Section @ Michaels; Tank Tops (not shown) from BridalPartyTees- Bridal, Wedding, Shower, Party: T-shirts (with a coupon, of course) ...more to come...