acireta

Passport I used a bunch of passport templates from BDW brides to compile my info passport. I made one passport for the cruising guests and one for the island guests. The cruising passport had info about the ports of call and cruise tips. The island passport had info about St. Thomas and travel information instead. I printed the passports on 110# cardstock, used my Fiskars paper cutter to do the straight lines, Fiskars corner punch to round the corners, and Martha Stewart scoring board to get a nice fold. I tied the passports through two holes with twine from Ace Hardware. to be continued... Passport template cruise.ppt Passport template St T.ppt

We have 13 people (3 singles, 5 couples) sailing with us on the Carnival Liberty and 8 guests (4 couples) meeting us on St. Thomas for our wedding. We sail on March 31st, so I’ll be dropping off and sending these pre-trip packets mid-February. I’m going to hand-deliver as many of these as possible to save money on postage. For each packet, we’ll be sending a passport of information, luggage tag for each guest, a packing list, and a thank you for booking business card, all packaged in a black folder. We’re also going to include the wedding day timeline for island guests (since we won’t see them before the wedding day) and a list of the cruise events for the sailing guests. Luggage Tags I got shimmer business cards from Zazzle and was very disappointed in the quality, especially for the price. If I could go back, I would have sent these back for a refund and printed on my own on shimmer paper. I mounted the cards on teal cardstock leftover from my invitations and added address labels on the back. I got the luggage tags from a BDW bride. Packing List I found a packing checklist online that I loved, but it was ridiculously expensive, so I made my own and adjusted it to fit for a cruise, adding some travel/cruising tips on the back. to be continued... luggage tag back.doc packing list.pptx

I used zippered/resealable badge holders for keycard/tip holders. holders: http://www.ebay.com/itm/130489995128?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1439.l2649 lanyards: http://www.ebay.com/itm/130489884303?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1439.l2649 they got to me pretty quickly (especially considering it was Chinese New Year when I ordered!)

FI is out of town all week visiting his brother in California, so I am looking forward to getting a million things done this week! I'm tackling house cleaning and wedding to-do lists, if it kills me! Annie - When I took a cruise a few years ago, we found a roundtrip airport transfer to and from the cruise terminal for like $30pp. As long as their flight gets in before noon on embarkation day, they shouldn't have to deal with "unexpected costs" too much! Sorry they're stressing you out. Your FI, mom and FMIL sound like good supportive people to be telling you that stuff - stuff we brides need to hear sometimes as we over-worry about everyone else's travel plans!!

Hey, those are my dinner/AHR shoes!! Aren't they comfy? Cute dress! I love one-shoulder dresses.

We don't really have any guests over 60ish years old, surprisingly... we don't have any grandparents left and our older aunts and uncles are pretty tech savvy. Even my 90 year old great-aunt is on Facebook! (even though she always types in all caps LOL) I can definitely see how some of the older, more traditional guests might want something to mail back Are you from Canada?

what's a DL envelope? If you're doing a perforated tear-off or scored for folding RSVP card, a 4Bar or A2 envelope would probably work. To be safe, I would measure the finished size and check this page: http://www.envelopperinc.com/mm5/merchant.mvc?Screen=CTGY&Store_Code=ENVLPR&Category_Code=ENV We didn't do RSVPs to return, we had people use our site to RSVP. Mostly we heard yes's by word of mouth and just assumed if we didn't hear, they weren't going. I mean, why would someone plan a vacation to our wedding and not tell us? The amount of raffia depends on how many times you'll be wrapping it around each boarding pass. Buy more than you need and keep the receipt. Hopefully you can return extra... or keep the extra for a future wedding DIY project. I used double-sided tape to attach our monogram square tags to the front of our belly bands. Here's the one I like and use constantly for everything: http://compare.ebay.com/like/160723594753?var=lv&ltyp=AllFixedPriceItemTypes&var=sbar&_lwgsi=y&cbt=y Good luck!!

I love "God Only Knows" for the processional and 'Landslide" for the father-daughter dance, Denielle! What sweet ideas! I need to start watching some youtube videos of steel pan drummers for some more ideas! So far, I like "Can't Help Falling in Love" for the processional and "I'm Yours" for the recessional Can’t Help Falling in Love: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4GiLSwN6scI I’m Yours: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0lWBQgUEfE4

We're using Paradise Pictures for our photog, prices are pretty good. We're not doing video. I know Elisha Oren (sp?) is very popular also. We just kinda preferred Paradise's style. Are you working with a WC on the island? They might have a vendor list for you.

You are correct - Discount mugs! And I'm leaving 7 weeks from today!! The ones on that listing are cute! Do you have a pic of yours? My goal for the weekend is to finish the pre-trip packets. I finished the little passports last night, now I just have to put everything together. Has anyone started thinking about ceremony music? We have a steel drum player, and I guess I should start thinking about processional and recessional songs?

You and me both, lady! I've tried to be really respectful to them, and they have definitely reciprocated with the customer service. I'd like to think that you always catch more flies with honey than vinegar, and I think it will pay off. Maybe I'm an optimist. I'll know for sure by Monday! Eek! I can't wait to try it on again!!!

I guess they'll use the dress they originally ordered for me as a sample. And discount? OH YEAH. She has nothing to do with the delay and wiped my remaining balance first thing. She is definitely doing her best to take care of me, and I feel really good about the situation right now. It was stressful yesterday, but as long as I hear from her tomorrow that it's been cleaned and shipped, I'll be a happy girl :-)

You are smart girls. I'm leaving 7 weeks from tomorrow, and my dress hadn't shipped yet. Luckily I went with the best salon in the world - Curvaceous Couture - who is FedEx'ing me an unused sample of my dress today! They've been holding it in the back for me for a month in case my dress didn't make it in time. Thank God for small shops and customer service!!!!

I'm sorry, Cooperp, these just sold last night!

what a beautiful dress!!! you look fantastic!! you're giving me dress jealousy!! :-) Hi Lindsay, no worries. You can find out all the information about becoming a supporter here: http://www.bestdestinationwedding.com/a/become-a-best-destination-wedding-supporter It's so worth it! You can open all attachments and photos right away, best $30 I spent on the wedding. Good luck!

what if you did something fun and silly just the two of you? like bowling, indoor mini golf, laser tag, something random you wouldn't usually do? Is there a White Castle by you? You could do the fancy dinner they offer every Valentine's Day, which is hilarious and awesome! my FI is going to be in Vegas with his brother ("visiting their parents" ) on Valentine's Day, so I'm looking forward to a nice quiet evening to myself, actually!! (that may come off sarcastic, but I'm actually looking forward to some me-time, even if it falls on V-day LOL)

This. I think this constantly, Kelly. This site is an amazing resource and community, and deserves the financial support or quality posts!!

Check this thread, it has a TON of ideas: http://www.bestdestinationwedding.com/t/58857/show-us-your-wedding-logo

They are both stunning! I think that's a hard decision to make. Wedding dresses are such a personal choice! A lot of girls on this other site, Offbeat Bride wear colored dresses and some of them are so pretty. I could never see myself in anything but a white dress, but that's just me wanting to be conformist :-) Here's the offbeat bride pinterest board which has a ton of examples and inspirations: http://pinterest.com/offbeatbride/ Good luck with your choice, you will look beautiful either way!

They seem dyeable. I didn't ask because I wanted white, but I wonder if they could... I don't know what makes a dyeable shoe! :-)

Hey elissae, just found these clips on Etsy.... http://www.etsy.com/listing/89112225/grey-rhinestone-crystal-butterfly-shoe?ref=sr_gallery_18&sref=&ga_search_query=rhinestone+butterfly+shoe&ga_order=undefined&ga_view_type=gallery&ga_ship_to=&ga_min=0&ga_max=0&ga_removeLocation=1&ga_search_type=handmade&ga_facet=handmade Good luck with your search!!! I'm wearing these for the ceremony - bought from a BDW bride - even though my mom isn't happy with them LOL she wants more of a wedge, but I love these. These are for dinner and the AHR, from David's Bridal, SO comfortable.

I love the weeks out and months out counts!!! I love the third of every month for that reason We just got our shotglasses from discount mugs and they're friggin awesome! Somehow, it was cheaper to order 36 than 24. My FI collects shotglasses and probably has over 100 in his collection, so we knew we HAD to get these: Quote: Originally Posted by deniden Hi Ladies! We leave for Mexico 11 weeks from today! Here's my To Do List:

Shouldn't you guys be paying for all that stuff together? If your mom is giving you all the money for the wedding, why should he have to throw in money of his own instead of pulling from the wedding fund? I guess I'm confused as to why it's a comparison of who is paying for which events and guests. Isn't photography usually part of the overall budget, especially if you have a $20-30k wedding budget, even if you're paying for some guests' expenses? I guess I'm confused.

Haha nope, haven't done any of it, it's just the stuff to do this coming month. You're busy too!!! I got awesome cymbidium orchids, in small bouquets that i pulled apart to use, from www.afloral.com. They had the best prices I found and the quality was pretty good. pic from website: Close-up of base of flowers:

Wow, we're really starting to get close aren't we?! We leave for Miami two months from yesterday!!! Here's what I'm working on this month: -Print and send pre-trip packets -Send bridesmaids' sandals, hair flowers, letter with important reminders -Buy groomsmen's gifts -Choose songs for ceremony -Create/print ceremony programs -Attach ceremony programs to fans -Buy chair sashes/table runners/centerpieces for AHR -Meet with venue to plan AHR & pay second deposit