Whoa!

ONE MONTH from today we're FINALLY getting married!

And I only have to: write our vows, wrap gifts, finish getting gifts (clearly this list is not in order), decorate vases, paint bottles, finish beer and seal it, make flowers, finish the banner, order some more labels, try on my dress, do the seating chart, finish bothering folks for RSVPs, write thank you notes, create schedules for us and friends, pick up bridesmaid dresses, finish decorations, count candles and holders, make signs, frame photos, create the escort card display, get a marriage license, and finish paying people! Totes doable.

On a totally unrelated note, if anybody comes over for dinner in the next month, bring some scissors and nice handwriting!

Name decision!

Though I've mused on the topic in the blog before, I have made very few decisions about my name up until now. However, it occurred to me that it's getting late in the game to not have a plan as I'll be applying for a marriage license soon. (Really, it hit when I didn't know how to fill in the box on the DJ's form that says "How do you want to be introduced?")

As previously stated, my name rocks. It's full of unique names that may die with me if I change them, and my initials are SNL. The least unique part is my first name, but that's what I'm known as at work, so changing that is out. Vader's name also rocks. And, I want our family to have a collective name where I don't feel like I'm losing part of me. So....

After we're married, I'll be Sarah Nevers Ladner Apollo. Both Ladner and Apollo will be last names*, no hyphen, and if I sign up for a conference or something I'll be "Sarah Ladner Apollo." When people refer to Vader and I, we'll be "The Apollos". Together, we're a united front. Alone, I'm still the me I've always been with a new addition. What do you think?

*When I first mentioned this possibility to Vader, his response was "How will you pronounce that?" He thought I meant literally combine the two names and become Sarah Ladnerapollo. This still makes me laugh.

Checking things off

935 days into our engagement (I cheated and used an online date calculator...shh) there are more than a few projects for the wedding that have been on our radar for a LONG time, but it has never seemed crucial that they happen soon. Now only 42 days from the wedding, it's high time to get things done! So, here are the things we'll finally check off this weekend:

1.) Clear out the Amazon wish list [this has been a year in coming, and (to quote a master) "Boyzo," it feels good to have this done!]

2.) Use up my third Vistaprint Groupon of the wedding planning process. Jury is still out on whether we'll need another.

3.) Finalize the reception space layout with the Black Tie Co. people.

4.) Harrass family and friends as the RSVP deadline encroaches (hint, hint...)

5.) Move closer to having the beer favors ready - nothing like brewing in 90 degree heat!

6.) Possess everything necessary for the candy buffet!

7.) Buy gifts for the little people in the wedding party.

8.) Write vows!

In addition, I've spent this afternoon doing all sorts of silly tasks like designing beer labels, wrapping ribbon around vases, and getting so engrossed in wedding details that I forgot about the laundry. Thankfully, nobody in their right mind wants to hang out in a humid laundry room when it's 95 degrees out.

A special thank you to Mom, who has been putting together rehearsal dinner options and booked a location this afternoon! It sounds like great food, a convenient space, will be a wonderfully relaxing evening before the wedding, AND allows me to check off multiple to dos on the checklist I've been using as we count down!

All in all a productive wedding-planning day, with a lot more to get done tomorrow. Stay cool, New England. And others, I suppose :)

Invited!

Since I've gotten an online RSVP from the other side of the country, I'm going to assume all the invitations are out by now. In the end, I'm quite happy with them. I'm happy I didn't decide to make them myself, which definitely would have been more expensive and probably messier. I'm happy they came in kits so the pieces were already cut to line up. I'm happy we were able to make them unique, with only a bit of pain (see the last post). And, most of all, I'm happy they're done!

Here's how we started: On a whim, Mom and I checked out the invitations kit selection at Wal-Mart last summer. We found these, and I came around to liking them, both for their design and their $20 for 25 invitations price. The store had 3, we needed 6, so we made a quick trip to a store further away to round out the supply. Straight out of the box, they were black and white damask invitations, with plain black and white insert cards that fit into a black pocketfold with black and white belly band.

After then ignoring the invitations for about eight months, I started thinking about how to personalize the invitations and add some pink. Several samples of pink paper later and a Michael's trip to match ribbon color, we had pink matting paper for the main part of the invitation and ribbon to wrap around the belly band. Vader happened to buy me a stamp pad in the perfect shade of pink last year for my birthday, so I also picked up some little heart stamps to add pink to the information cards enclosed.

A bit more ignoring, and then it was time to start thinking about actually putting invitations together. By this point we were thinking harder about each wedding cost, and we realized that everybody would not need an extra stamp for an RSVP card. We decided to split the reply cards into either online RSVP directions or a physical card to mail in, and created all the pieces with templates that came with the kit. We had Grassroots Graphics in Norway, ME print up all the insert pieces, and they looked great! Meanwhile, my grandmother offered up her beautiful handwriting skills for addressing the envelopes, and we were happy to outsource that task.

All the pieces were ready in the days following my shower, and between MOH Moxie, Mom, me, and the chocolate doughnut that kept Ringbearer Melmo entertained during the process, we were able to mat the main invitations, attach the matting to the pocketfolds, stamp the insert cards, and postage stamp the reply cards. At this point, they looked like this:

After gathering some more adhesive, we finished up the inside. Here's a shot of each invitation set showing off the pink stamps inside: 

Invitations for folks who we think would like a traditional, mail-in RSVP card

Invitations for folks who we think can and will  reply via Internet on our wedding website

Once back in Boston, we got to adding the belly bands, ribbon, and wax seals which I described in detail in my last post. This past weekend while in Maine for Mother's Day, my parents, Vader and I assembly-lined the stuffing, stamping, and sealing process and hit the post office an hour before they closed to get everything mailed. By this point, I had read enough online that square envelopes are more expensive. What I didn't realize was that we also had picked large enough square invitations that we had to attach "large envelope" postage, making them more expensive to mail. The invitations came out to be a whopping $1.12 per invitation to mail (future brides: squares are certainly cool, but pricey!), so it was slightly less of the economical option I thought they were, but I was happy to stamp them and hand them over to the USPS. And, since people are commenting on the wax seals upon receiving them, they must have stayed intact!

Wax seals: cool looking, but a giant pain

When we were trying to figure out how to personalize our invitations (more than the organization suggested in the boxed set), Vader suggested we wax seal them closed. It sounded fun and classy, so after a long deliberation we ended up ordering a stamp with our "monogram" off Etsy and some wax. When we finally had both we enjoyed practicing by sealing random junk mail until we had it down. We then moved onto sealing our invitations, where we learned why wax sealing has become a thing of the past. It's messy, it hurts, it's temperamental, and no seal looks the same. We're choosing to see that as lending a unique, handmade touch to each invitation. Here's a visual of the process:

The process: light wick, dribble wax in approximation of a circle, stamp. It turns out targeted dribbling is hard to do well.

Vader's battle wound (the white blob is a blister) - while your thumb is burning there is nothing you can do about it, because it's covered in hot wax.

Sometimes while burning the wick catches fire, dropping bits of char into the wax.  Perhaps a wax  color other than white would be advisable for the future.

Sometimes when the wax is flaming or your finger is burning you flail wax all over the place. It is then hard to peel off.

Sometimes you're not paying perfect attention to the stamp you are working on, and  stick your fingers in the not-yet-cooled wax. Even more unique: invitations with our fingerprints!

It turns out the glue squares I was using to hold the ribbon closed melted from the heat of the wax. Oops.

After stamping a hundred invitations, I would only recommend this project to somebody with patience,  callused fingers, and plenty of extra wax paper. Or anybody who wants a fun challenge that looks so cool when done right. Like this: 

Yeah, it looks great. It's one of three in the entire bunch that look this good.

Candy, candy

In the very beginning of wedding planning, when finding pretty pictures was enough and I didn't have to worry about details or payments, I found myself bookmarking several photos of colorful candy buffets. Clearly, this was in the pre-Pinterest days. Since, I've added plenty of pins.

Candy buffets are a trifecta of wedding awesome: edible favors, fun sugary snacks for the after party, and bright, cheery colors that double as decorations. And, since it's our wedding, we get to pick the candy! No black licorice to be found!

As we developed the candy list from things we find delicious, things our friends and family find delicious, and general Maine-themed crowd pleasers, I started hunting on wedding forums for places to get different kinds of candies cheapest. At one point I had identified five different sites to order different varieties of candy from because they were pennies cheaper per pound - until you looked into shipping costs. Because candy may melt, break, get stuck together, etc. during shipping, companies charge an arm and a leg to pack candy specially with cooler packs and those stupid air pack pillows my cat likes to pop loudly in the middle of the night. No, thanks!

Instead, I turned to good ol' two-day shipping and Amazon prime. Amazon had most of the candy varieties we were interested in, and for less than most bulk candy sites. I assembled a wish list of approximately 20 varieties of candy last winter, planning to order as we got closer to the wedding.

Fast forward to two weeks ago when I was in Maine for some wedding errands. Mom suggested we take a look at BJ's prices for candy, and I readily agreed. Given our Amazon list, I was planning to spend $250 - $350 on candy, possibly more for specialty items. I intended to check BJ's prices against Amazon's in store using my phone and purchase the candy that was cheaper at BJ's. As it turns out - all of it was cheaper, by quite a bit. We ended up finding all but 5 of our chosen candy varieties, for about half of what I had planned on spending! We ordered the specialty candy online (candy buttons and Necco wafers are hardly the most sought-after items during April in Maine), and plan to finish the list up soon. This will put our total candy spending at  ~$180, which is terrifically under budget given how much candy we will have on the buffet!

Fear not, wedding cake haters, there'll be plenty of after-dinner sweets at the wedding! And my Dad will happily accept your unwanted cake.

Shower!

Boston is on its way back to normal AND Mom sent me the pictures from the shower, so without further ado...

Me and my carload of friends arrived at Maurice's for my bridal shower twenty minutes early, only to be told by my eight-year-old niece to "skedaddle" very emphatically. After dropping off our stuff we returned twenty five minutes later, and this time were welcomed inside. Mom made sure to get a picture of MOH Moxie dressing me in "shower gear..."

...before she took this shot, likely the most attractive shot my sister and I have taken together in years. Please excuse the glasses :) 

Not long after that, we were seated and munching on delicious platters of veggies, cheese and crackers, mini quiches, and assorted crustini. We laughed, ate, and caught up with everyone for a few minutes.

Then it was time for gift opening, during which Mom and Moxie had created a game for people to remain interested play along while they cheered on the breaking of ribbons, which apparently signifies impending children. The crowd got rowdy at the end as they closed in on some fabulous scratch tickets, hoping I would find rolling pins or dishcloths in my gift bags or pretending cake pans were coasters. Meanwhile, I was roasting to death in a leather chair while everybody watched me open presents. To liven things up (and cool down) I tried out the swag. I call this montage "I put on all of the things."

 

While I was ruining my family's hopes of fielding a football team with my future children by meticulously undoing each ribbon, a combination of Mom, Bridesmaid Comicon, and a longtime friend helped put together my "rehearsal bouquet." There was a long loop extending from one side, which in my silliness I determined made my options "ribbon necklace" or "ribbon Kentucky Derby hat." See below.

 

I got a lot of wonderful gifts, spurring a string of treats made and meals with friends since to enjoy our new things. After everything was opened it was time for cake. On the cake were flamingos WEARING FLIP-FLOPS. So cool. See? 

I cut the cake awkwardly, ate a piece with half a flamingo on it, and settled in for a lovely and rowdy evening with my whole family and college friends for a game of Cards Against Humanity. And I still haven't stopped making silly faces in pictures:

Next up: Mom helps save us $$$$ on candy!