ChocoTaco7568

Allie, You planning thread is bitter sweet. I’m so happy for you and can’t believe that your wedding is just around the corner. You’re one of the first BDW brides that I have gotten to know who’s planning threads actually means something on a more personal level. It’s been great to watch your plans evolve and see your name pop up on various threads….Okay, enough with the sappiness. I love seeing everything collectively, your wedding is going to turn out beautifully. I might have to borrow a few DIY ideas (oh how my list continually grows). And your topper turned out perfectly - the hair, flowers, dress, your puppies (all good/cute dogs are puppies even when old). I’ve had these toppers in my Etsy favorites folder for a while now. I guess it’s okay to have two toppers if I use it like you and have them stand on the side of the cake and use my crystal monogram on top. Maybe I’m trying to hard here.

Speckles - Go for it. Definitely cheaper than $50.

If they seemed low, than I'm sure you got a fare price. Don't torture yourself with things that are out of your control. I wish we could complete our airfare, it would be one less thing to think about. We're pretty nervous for Justin's family, they have abnormally espensive airfare rates at $700 per person round trip...Yikes!

Quote: Originally Posted by uhura526 Thanks for the welcome ladies. I do have another perspective with regard to guests booking early. I think one thing is that people tend to want to book both hotel and flights at the same time and right now, this far out, flights are expensive or you actually might get a better deal later. In fact, optimally, it's good to get flights 3 to 4 months out. I haven't even booked our flights yet. When we travel internationally, we almost never book more than 3 months out. I do think people should be able to just go ahead and book their accommodations though if they know they are going. In my case, the deposit is refundable! So they have nothing to lose by committing early but again, they may be scared of the flight prices right now (they will drop!) and are not willing to commit this far out or at least separate the two and wait to book flights. Also in my case, they have not received invitations yet. I have been back and forth about when to send them but decided that mid-November will work with a deadline of mid-January. My headcount isn't due to my venue until mid-February. Flight prices are definitely scary at the moment and I agree that gas prices will drop, especially with labor day passing and the elections coming up. The 3 to 4 month rule seems to be accurate for domestic travel, but I thought the window for internationsl is about 5-7 months out which seems to be accuraute with my previous international trip experiences. But I'm, sure there are a lot of factors to consider as well. I've been tracking prices like crazy for 5 different departing cities. Oddly engough some prices have already dropped, while others departing cities have gone up... weird.

+1... When we first started planning our wedding, our guest list only consisted of our parents and our siblings (less my dad b/c he's not deserving of an invite). The only person that we truly care about that might not be able to make it is my brother. He's in the military, and even though our specific locations doesn't have any travel advisory, he still has to ask for permission to travel to Mexico. Initially he wasn't going to ask and was just going to come, but he's in the midst of completing his Masters and is up for a promo in the spring. My wedding just isn't worth jeopardizing that especially since it's highly unlikely that he would be denied his request. My fingers are crossed, because I have also asked him to be or officiant. At some point we decided to open it up to friends but with no expectation that any of them would come. Time will tell. One couple has already declined since they’re expecting in February (understandable). And another couple that was seemingly excited about coming just got engaged two nights ago. I think that’s why we didn't bother with STDs and we don't plan on sending any kind of reminder. We're not going to babysit people in this process; if it's not their priority, then it won't be ours. We figure if it's important for them to be there, then they'll do what they need to do in order to make it happen.

UPDATE... I receieved my letters and decided that I liked the English Vivace font best. I'm off to a good start and anticipate this taking me 3 to 3.5 hours to complete due to my 7ss, 9ss and 12ss crystal sizes. And I'm happy I went the swarovskis because they sparkle like crazy. I'm in no rush to complete this, so I will probaby do 30 to 45 minute sessions a day until it's complete. And the tool that I would be lost without is my new wax tip pencil, it makes application a breeze, followed by an angled pair of tweezers.

Quote: Originally Posted by Emily11386 Ladies I have a question for you, So we are considering doing a catamaran tour for our guests. The only problem is we don't want to do it the day before or after the wedding which is a Friday. So we were thinking of doing Wednesday, however my family, his parents, and his groomsmen will all be there but none of my 6 bridesmaids would be. It definitely wouldn't be as fun for me without them there and I don't want anyone to feel left out, so we are debating if it's worth doing it. I'm so confused. I don't know if we should go ahead with the catamaran or if we should do a private dinner the night before so everyone is included. I agree with Miss Bubbles and would schedule an event that was inclusive. If I were a bridesmaid, I would feel a bit slighted especially if they've been helpful and available to you througout your wedding planning process.

Quote: Originally Posted by Matt Adcock Hello Ladies, We LOOOVE signature cocktails and sorry if I don't have the names or ingredients but I really liked these ideas and wanted to share them with you all: Enjoy your tastings and have fun experimenting!!!! Now I'm thirsty... I'll take one of each!

Quote: Originally Posted by MissBubbles205 OkayI have to vent.. FB is a terrible thing. lol.. My fiance's best friend and wife said they could not attend our wedding due to not wanting to travel with their children and didn't want to leave them home.. I just got on FB and see that one of them posted that they are all set for their trip to Punta Cana in October. This is totally random as they never mentioned to us they were planning a trip to the same place as our wedding location. I didn't want to tell my fiance bc he really wanted this person to be his best man, but understood the travel fee's and children. I'm just totally blown away at the moment. Wow, there's a slap to the face. I'm sorry that you and Alex have to deal with this disappointment. It sucks that they couldn’t be upfront and honest with the two of you. Destination weddings will show the best and, unfortunately the worse in people and really tests the strength of your relationships. In the end, those that truly love and support you will be there and that’s all that matters. Your day will be amazing and it’s their loss if they choose to not be a part of it.

Quote: Originally Posted by JayKay I didn't wear a garter. We weren't doing the bouquet/garter toss so I didn't have one. Might have been nice to have one to catch all the sweat running down my legs! ha LOL... oh no, this is totally a concern of mine. Every bridal appointment that I had, I could feel my legs starting to over heat.

Hmmm...in no particular order, I like 1, 4 and 5. 5 seems the most bridal to me, it's whimsical and light hearted and I really like the detail at the empire waist. Options 4 and 5 seem better suited for a party reception dress and make more of a statement. With exception to the dress being white, options 1 doesn't feel very bridal. But if it reflects your personality and evokes the fun/party spirit of your reception, than I don't know if it matters. In a perfect world (at least in my head) I would love the top of 4 with the bottom of 1.

Hmmm, I hope I don't torture myself too much. I got 2.2mm, 2.6mm and 3.1mm swarovski crystals, I convinced myself that that the smaller the better.

Kudos Allie! Don't diminish your efforts, loosing 13lbs is impressive no matter what your starting point was. I can't believe your wedding is on 6 weeks away, how exciting.

Tulumbride - keep up with it and you'll definitely get the results your looking for and have your bikini bod back in no time!

There's no shuch thing as "off topic" in the May 2013 Thread, that's what make us so great! I will actaully have two signature cocktails to represent both of my colors, chartreuse and sangria. The first will be a pomegranate mojito and I want to think of a name for this, The second one I found online and purchased all the ingredients to test it out...love it! It's called "Lucky in Love" and uses honeydew melon, mint, lime juice, cointreau, vanilla vodka and champagne. I want to experiment a bit with the ingredients because I don't really want two mint drinks.

Dont get too obsessed with the scale, it can be your worse nightmare. Granted it's a good general gauge, it doesn't account for muscle mass which is very important to factor in. Pay more attention to your loss in inches and how your clothing fits. She's probably gaining lean muscle mass as she's burning fat which is awesome!

Do it, I have a love hate relationship with this series of DVDs. It make all the other workout DVDs I've tried seem like a total joke in comparison. Justin and I completed the series a couple of weeks ago and now we incorporate alot of the moves into our weight/strength training regimen. We're thinking about doing the whole series again at the start of the new year as a morning workout oncve we build up our strength and endurance a bit more.

Nope not yet, but I did get the shipment confirmation on Friday morning and I had them paint it silver (once less step for me). I know you listed all of your crystal sizes but, what size did you end up using for this? It turned out great! how long did it take you to complete the front?

This looks fantastic on you!

cinnaqgirl - I love your ring. You could totally be a hand model, your hands are perfect.

Better be careful with the sizing of the BM dresses then

Aahhh you just ruined me... Bikinis are my obsession (I don't know why). I've already purchased 4 in the past two months and have another 3 on the to get list.

Where are you getting married?