mrsnova

Wedding website: http://kaelaandjoel.ourwedding.com/ Pinterest (I am obsessed!): http://pinterest.com/kaelahop/wedding-inspiration/ Engagement We got engaged on April 13, 2013, it was Friday the 13th and I teased my FI that is he was pretty brave;). We had been dating for 5 1/2 years and we were making a move from Portland, Oregon to Ft Collins, Colorado but I had to stay back for work for a few months. So I was out in Colorado visiting my FI.. Okay lets back up.. We met in 2005 in Mexico when I had just graduated high school and my FI was there with his friends. We became friends and stayed in touch, starting a relationship about a year later. He is from Colorado and I am from Oregon. We did the long distance thing and I lived in CO, then he moved to OR for several years for me to finish nursing school. K now that you know the background.. I was visiting Joel (my FI) in Colorado and we decided to go into the Rocky Mountains and have a picnic. As we walked down to lake he got down on one knee and popped the question! He had a very sweet speech but I can hardly remember because I was in shock lol. We had talked about getting married before but had no I idea it would happen then. My FI picked out the ring himself and I absolutely love it! It made it even more special that he chose it:). I couldn't even eat the food we packed for the picnic cause I was too excited/in shock! Deciding on a destination wedding Because my friends and family are in Oregon and his are in Colorado, people would have to travel no matter what, and we thought why not make a vacation out of it! We chose Mexico for two reasons..one it is where we met and two we have been there several times and have always loved it and it is definitely affordable. Us in Mexico when we first met (2005). Choosing a location & resort We knew we wanted to go to the Caribbean side of Mexico because we had been to Cabo and Puerto Vallarta before and didn't like it as much as Cancun (beaches are nicer, overall prettier). We wanted to steer clear of the party scene so we decided on Riviera Maya. Neither of us have been there but heard it was really nice. Choosing a resort was VERY overwhelming. Not only did we have to find a resort we liked, we had to think of what our guests would want and find a place that had a wedding package/location that we liked. Luckily we have a family friend that is a travel agent and she helped us out a lot! Overall we decided on Barcelo because of the reviews and the large resort including different price options for our guests (and all child friendly). Dress I was going for the 'flowy, beachy' type of dress and I am a pretty simple person. I liked that this dress was somewhat fitted to show off your figure , but was chiffon and still felt like it would be light and fitting for the beach. I went with ivory and removed about half of the train. Mori Lee style #4862. Shoes I will be barefoot for the ceremony and wearing these Steve Madden Shiekk sandals for the reception. I am not a heels kind of girl so I was excited to have an excuse to be barefoot and wear sandals! Bridesmaid dresses I originally wanted mix-matched dresses and to have them all pick their own for a simple and cost effective option...but I picked a color that was kind of difficult to find. I was inspired by JCrews 'dusty shale' but I though their dresses are too expensive..the color is a bluish-green. I wanted a 'sea color'. After look EVERYWHERE we finally decided on Nordstrom's Donna Morgan chiffon in hint of mint. I thought I wanted more of teal color but now I am glad I chose the mint green, it goes great with the guys outfits (tan)!. I love Nordstrom because they have free shipping and returns so BM could get two sizes and try and return. Groom & Groomsmen outfits Due to the beach wedding we wanted linen and tan (to go with the ocean and sand theme). We were able to get awesome deals because we went right at the end of summer when everything was on sale. Groom's suit is Perry Ellis in a light tan. He will be wearing a white button up and barefoot for the ceremony, brown sandals for reception. Purchased from Macys. (without the vest) Groomsmen are a little more casual with drawstring linen pants and light weight white button up. Shirt purchased from Macys and pants from Banana Republic. Flowers I want everything to be neutral/white and pretty simple. Going with resorts flowers. Here is my inspiration. I love peonies but know they are unavailable at the resort/Mexico Because my mother and father were married in the 80's her poofy, lace dress is not quite my style haha..so to include it in my wedding we came up with the idea of putting some of the lace from her dress around my bouquet. Centerpieces I decided to do my own centerpieces to save money and I like a little DIY! I found out I could rent vases from the resort, instead of bringing them with me which is great! I haven't worked out all the details yet, but this is my inspiration (incorporating the beach, yet simple): Hair and makeup I am doing my own hair and makeup (with a lot of help from my bridesmaids). I really want to wear my hair curly and down but kind of leaving that up in the air depending on wind and humidity when we get there. I have several ideas..half up, side pony, all back etc. I definitely want to wear a white flower in my hair either way. My makeup will be pretty natural, but I love me some fake eyelashes! Save the dates We went more of a generic route for the save the dates, magnets with our pictures. Our pictures turned out good so we wanted to show them off and we were planning to do a destination theme for the invitations and didn't want to overdo it. Save the dates went out the beginning of July (would have sent sooner but that's went the pictures were done and date set). Oh that reminds me...our wedding date is March 1st, 2013. We wanted it after the holidays but before spring break and liked the idea of 3.1.13 (my sport/lucky # has always been 11 and FI 3). (sorry bad pic :/) Invitations I used Alyee Designs boarding pass template for my invitations. I have to admit it took FOREVER to get it exactly how I wanted it and many nights of frustration lol. But I think they will turn out great! Will post once they are finished..