Uphill Battles - Pinterest

From ceremony florals to goodnight send offs, Pinterest has become one of the number one resources for brides to imagine their big day. One thing I am always impressed by are the visions that brides put together to inspire their wedding day. One thing I'm always, in turn, saddened by is the disillusion it creates for most brides. Don't close the page just yet...I am going somewhere with this. 

To me, its like inviting someone to shop at an insanely expensive department store like Harrods. Letting them fill up a cart with designer shoes, luxury purses, clothes, etc. Once they are content with how wonderfully the diamond necklace matches their stunning red, bottom Louis Vuittons, it hits them. The dreaded cashier lane. With a Old Navy type budget, how are they supposed to afford all the nice things they've gathered?

Here are some options:

Put it on the credit card. We'll pay it off. People, I still know friends who are paying off their wedding from 4 years ago because of this mentality. Don't do it.

Take out a loan. We'll pay it back once we get our gifts from the wedding. The money guests are giving you are to help you on this brand new journey you are embarking on with your spouse. I am the first one to admit to the many ups and downs that come to being married. Let alone un-foreseen financial stresses that can tear a couple completely apart. This money can help you go on your honeymoon, begin saving for a place of your own...the list goes on.

WE'RE ELOPING!! THIS IS ALL TOO MUCH STRESS!! (Not touching this one lol...although you will find yourself stating this at some point of your planning process...multiple times)

Do you mind if I step in and give some lovingly free advice? Sit down with your fiancé a few days, maybe even weeks after you've become engaged (Enjoy this moment. Its a really special time.) and discuss how you want to celebrate this once in a life time moment together. Once you even have a basic vision, start setting up a budget. Setup your top 4 dream details and see how the others fall. I will not be blind to know that stationery is not in that top 4 category, but its something that you can work with. 

I am more than happy to sit with a couple and toss around some great ideas for stationery, but do you want to know what the most rewarding thing I do is? I can take a small glimmer of an unattainable design for most and make them into an attainable reality. Warning: I'm not a Miracle Worker, Magic Genie, or a Mary Poppins that can pull so much great stuff out of that handy bag of endlessness she has and make unimaginable things happens. (Although, I have always wanted to jump into a chalk painting and ride off into the country side on a carousel horse.)

I will be talking about ways more about this as it details to stationery with you, but that will be a topic for another blog post. For now, I want to leave you with this: 

The one thing I would want most of all for any engaged couple is that they truly are happy with all the choices they made for the wedding and are in no way financially hurting afterwards. This would mean that you found the right vendor that made each detail worth while within your budget, not someone else's.  

Hargrave Ever After

We first met Brittany and Glenn at the first bridal show we had ever participated in. :) We clicked immediately. Similar to our story, Brittany was having a tough time finding nautical themed invitations that had a little bit of Disney magic to them (without cuing in our favorite mermaid or missing clown fish). ;) 

Incorporating the colors mint, navy blue, gold and a little inspiration from the Disney Cruise line, we came up with a design that was perfect for this November Bride. We even added a little bit of Star Wars inspiration upon Glenn's request. ;) 

If you carefully notice, a little bit of pixie dust adorned each table number. :D

And I would be remiss not to include at least one photo of the lovely couple. ;) 

Venue - Lighthouse Point Yacht Club

Stationery - Only One Mark, Inc.

Photographer - Amber Sycz Photography

Bridal Gown - David's Bridal

Hair - Hair I Am, Again By Rori

Makeup -  Melanie Jane

Our Magical Evening on Broadway

We recently took an amazing last minute trip to New York City for Valentine's Day Weekend. Besides the fact that we almost froze (more about that here), one of the biggest highlights of our trip was a major check off my bucket list. We got to go see Aladdin the Musical on Broadway.

For any of you that might not know, I am a huge Disney Fan. Aladdin is my absolute favorite movie. So much so, it was our wedding theme. ;)

New Amsterdam Theater

Photo Credit: Disney Insider

Photo Credit: http://newyorktheater.me/

Photo Credit: http://newyorktheater.me/

To quote one of the lyrics from the show, "It's the plot that you knew, with a small twist of two, but the changes we made were slight". In this stage version of the 1993 film, our favorite characters have been given a lot more depth. Aladdin recently lost his mother (insert song Proud of Your Boy by the late Howard Ashman) and is trying to become the great man she always dreamed he'd be. Jasmine has a lot more spunk and is a woman who knows her worth. Genie is just WOW, Jafar is as sinister as ever, and, in place of Abu, we get the funny and witty bunch of Babkak, Omar, and Kassim. To put it plainly, it is a show that can't be missed. ;)

I literally sat in awe as the story unfolded and the familiar sounds of Arabian Nights were sung. Each scene so well thought out. ;) Every detail polished to perfection. It was like Agrabah was real. Best Part: The reimagined A Whole New World scene. It was everything I could have ever dreamed (naturally wiping tears of joy while mouthing each syllable to the familiar melody). And of course, we went to the backstage door to nab some photos and autographs from the actors who have literally been with the show since its beginning in Seattle. Although we missed Jonathan Freeman (the one and only Jafar), everyone was there. :)

It was truly a magical night and was a Valentines Day I will never forget. I leave you with some photos from that night. 

We were so excited to be sitting so close to the stage in a pretty much packed house. ;) 

Needless to say, I think both Gus and I couldn't believe how close we were sitting. ;)

The details of the theater was amazing. You could just feel the history from the entry way to the very seats we were sitting in.

Curtain Call

Courtney Reed (Jasmine)

Adam Jacobs (Aladdin)

James Monroe Inglehart (Genie)

Until Next Time!

Our New York Adventure

We had planned to make a short getaway during the Valentine's Day weekend to St. Augustine, Florida for some rest and relaxation. That was until 3 weeks before we were to leave. That's when Gus made a change in plans. Instead, he thought it would be better to go to New York!! This way we could hopefully see snow and mark some memories off of our bucket list. 

Needless to say, planning with 3 weeks until the trip was not easy. We were really lucky to find a great hotel, decent flights and, third row seats to Aladdin the Musical (more about that in a later post). Take a look below at some of the amazing memories we made in New York.  :D

Time Square is more overwhelming than I ever thought it could be.

What would be a trip to Times Square and not go to the Giant Disney Store?!?!

Let's not forget to mention checking out the NBC Building in Rockefeller Center and sitting at the Today Show Desk

This was ice that had frozen INSIDE our hotel room. Our Valentine's Day weather broke the record apparently. 

Seriously the best chicken and waffles we have EVER HAD!

We also took time to see one the most popular icons in the Museum of Natural History....aka the Night of the Museum museum. Meet DumbDumb (and no...he didn't ask for gumgum).

BEST. VALENTINE'S. DAY. GIFT. EVER.

We had a great 360 degree view of New York from the One World Observatory. 

9/11 Memorial

We got to see the original Batmobile and some of the props, costumes, and drawings from the beginning of the Comic (Illustrated Novel) Days at the New-York Historical Society.

Across the street was Central Park. Three Words: WE. SAW. SNOW!! We got to see it cover everything!!

Had to make a pit stop and visit Alice in Central Park. 

Full on Snow Selfie!

This trip was definitely one for the books. We had so much fun. I have no idea if we will ever be able to top this trip to New York. Seeing snow fall for the first time, all the bright lights, and the all of the amazing food! Yup. Its going to be a tough one to beat, but I'm definitely glad Gus vetoed our location for the trip. :D

Until Next time!