Be My Maid? How I Asked My Ladies

If y'all know me (I'm currently writing this from Georgia, so I felt like the 'y'all' was appropriate), I love finding clever and cute ways to take something mundane, and make it magical.  That's why I knew that asking my ladies to stand by my side on the big day could not fall anywhere short of oh-so-cute. 

Plus, each of my girls lives on completely opposite sides of the country...oh, and world. My ladies live in places ranging from Denver, Minneapolis, Milwaukee, and Australia, so finding a cohesive way to ask them (instead of a Facebook message filled with a lot of emojis) was important to me. I decided to make these cute lil' thangs:

I went to JoAnn Fabrics and found these cute jewelry boxes.  They even included a little foam cushion (you know, to protect the jewelry?).  In my case, I used it to add some height and volume to the box. I wrapped the cushion in pretty fabric and lace.

The outside of the box got this cute and glittery heart, that I simply cut out of gold glitter paper.  Voila! Super simple, and made the presentation of the box way cuter.  Plus, Brent and I are getting married on Valentine's Day, so the 'heart thing' was inevitable. Which is why I also had to include these heart shaped sunnies! I mean really... be still my heart.

Next, I hand-lettered a little 'Be My Maid' action to the inside cover, and attached it with (of course) some cute blush pink and gold washi tape. 

Since each of my ladies gets to pick out their own long chiffon dress, depending on their style and what makes them feel prettiest, I included this image and color samples (free from Menards! Win!) to serve as inspiration.  I had some ribbon and these cute little clothes pins to match too, and since I love details, I couldn't resist adding those in there to tie it all together.

Since all of my ladies are spread all over the world, I knew that including some information about our day would be a great way to explain everything at one time...win-win for all. Click on the image if you would like to see the details a bit closer!

Overall, I love how I was able to get crafty and ask my girls in a way that also made them feel loved.  After all, Brent and I are so excited to get married, and we want to reflect our love for one another to others...and to think this is only the beginning!

Click here to see our pre-engagement pictures ;)

Engagement pics pre-engagement...yes, this happened

My sweet blogettes :)

A couple weeks before the East Coast Main Squeeze and I jetted off to Italy (and got engaged!), we had a super fun shoot with my dear friends over at Booth Photographics.  Stephanie and Stephen are the cutest married couple like...ever...and their love for one another is reflected in their art.  With this shoot, they captured Brent and I perfectly.  They know how to bring out the giggles, the sweet smiles, and the overall lovey-dovey-ness in all of us.  Brent and I felt so natural around them, and they guided our shoot with natural poses, not those artificial "put your hands here...look this way..." type of direction.

You can probably see for yourself, Brent and I are head-over-heels for this wedding photography duo! To Stephanie and Stephen, thank you.  Thank you for sharing your gifts with the world.  You are an amazing blessing...not only with friendship, but also as fellow wedding industry peeps (yes, peeps).

And yes, this shoot was absolutely my excuse to wear a pretty floral headpiece, tulle, and red lipstick. What more can a girl ask for? (plus that sweet hunk of eye candy next to me? Not too shabby of a day...)

Also, for the record: These were not intended to be pre-engagement pictures, but as you can imagine, they led to a lot of questions and suspicions... ;)

Less Technology, More Time

Less is More Series | Week 6

Need I say more? Can I get an amen? 

I was out to lunch the other day with a friend, and I saw a family of 5 all out to eat together.  It was super nice until I noticed this:

-Dad: on his cell phone

-Mom: on her cell phone

-Kid #1: playing with the Ipad

-Kid #2: playing his leap-frog game

-Kid #3: crying because he wanted to play with the Ipad

You guys, my heart hurt. It made me stop and think.  Have we lost the ability to realize what matters most? Are we going to look back and wonder what we could have learned about our family over that precious lunch time together? Time is such a treasure that we take for granted, and sometimes, technology is the bag of chocolate chips that we need ‘just one more handful’ of (confession: I just wanted to mention chocolate, because I’m craving it).  Anyways, you get the idea.  We think, “just 5 more minutes of facebook...” and then all of the sudden, your entire night is gone, and you haven’t said a word to your family, friends, roommate, or dog (for those of you that this applies to).

Don’t get me wrong, technology isn’t all bad (I mean, hello! Long distance relationship here! Preach! Thank GOD for Skype!), but there is a time and place where technology does more harm than good. Yea?

Let’s make a commitment to spend time with one another...like, real, time. Face-to-face time.  Laugh until you cry time.  Genuine, loving, and tech-free time.  

Like what you see? Read my last post here. 

Less Fear, More Focus

Less is More Series | Week 5

What are you fearful of?

Whatever it is, it can be paralyzing...can’t it? 

It’s amazing how much time I spend in my day thinking about what could go wrong, instead of just focusing on the task at hand, and kicking it in the butt! Having less fear, and focusing more? It’s a win win for more productivity, more accomplishment, and overall, more happiness.  

When you focus on what is truly important in this life, (like making a positive difference and your overall happiness), oppose to what’s not super important in this life (like making a ton of money or how many Instagram followers you have), it’s amazing how your fears slowing shrink. 

Focus > Fear. Done. 

#TBT : Green Wedding Shoes feature

For anyone that knows me, they know that small world connections are....well...kind of 'my thing.' Seriously though, if I've just met you, I will find a small world connection with you, somehow, some way.  So when I was hanging with my East Coast Main Squeeze last summer, he mentioned that there was a photographer friend of his from New Jersey that I would really connect with...turns out this friend of his is Miss Jessica from Jessica Oh Photography.

After a few, "say what?! 's" from me, I told him that I had been following her business (like the true creeper McCreeperson I am) for awhile on Facebook! I knew I would have to connect with her at some point, and shoot her an email.

Well, just a few short weeks later, Jessica posted that she was looking for a stationer to work with on an upcoming shoot.  BOOM. I shot her an email, and it was instant biz (and friendship) love. And don't worry, I explained my creeper status (and small world connection) to her. 

She told me about this upcoming elopement that she was shooting...in a forest.  I was sold! 

The couple, Shawn and Marine, eloped in a forest fairytale, complete with woodland creatures, cozy blankets, SNOW, and the cutest details you will ever see.  I was honored to be apart of it.

To top it all off: we were featured on Green Wedding Shoes! Visit it here to see more details from this snowy winter forest elopement! :)

photography: Jessica Oh Photography // makeup: Makeup by Dana Marie // bouquet: Bohemian Bouquets // announcement: Andra Delores Design // marine’s dress: Modcloth // marine’s sweater + boots: Anthropologie //  // location: The Poconos, Pennsylvania

8 Tips on How to De-Stress During Wedding Planning

1. Accept the fact that you are stressed. First, understand that it is unavoidable to be stressed while planning a wedding. Next, force yourself to relax. Do things that you enjoy and let yourself think of other things that do not involve planning your wedding.
2. Make a list of your top priorities. Organize everything that you are stressed about and focus on what is important! Don’t get caught up in the little details, instead make a list with your fiancé of what is really important to the two of you and focus on that.
3. Ask for help. Never forget that your family and friends are always there to help you out! So, reach out and ask for their help. Whether you need a coffee date to distress or your best friend’s opinion on flowers. No matter what they will be happy to make things a little easier for you.
4. Schedule a no wedding night: Don’t let planning the wedding stop the two of you from doing what you love. Either once a week, or once every two weeks have a night where neither of you plan nor talk about the wedding. Go out and do something special together that does not involve the wedding.
5. Remember why you fell in love. Don’t forget the reason why you are planning this wedding; you are in love. Think back to the first date that you two shared and focus on what is good in your relationship.
6. Dream about the future. Remember the reason why the two of you are planning this wedding; to spend the rest of your life together! So, dream about the future the two of you will share.
7. Remember to laugh. Understand that everything is not going to go perfectly, so you might as well enjoy planning your wedding. Try to enjoy every day and the surprises it offers.
8. Find something you are passionate about. Whether it is running, yoga, or even reading a book, find something that you will look forward to doing every day and no one can stop you from doing it. 

Less Expectations, More Experiences

Less is More Series | Week 4

False expectations of yourself? Yep. We all do it.

We put ourselves in a category of comparison, and we start to expect things of ourselves that, quite frankly, don’t make sense.  Don’t get me wrong, I’m not confusing this with unrealistic expectations...which, to you, might sound like the same thing.  But to me, that means that something is impossible, and I’m a firm believer that anything is possible.  However, false expectations are the ones that just don’t.make.sense. They don’t fit who you are, but instead, they fit who someone you idolize to be.

Stop beating yourself up over not living up to your false expectations of yourself...start experiencing life as it hands it to you.  Live it. Breathe it. Don’t get upset when things don’t necessarily go the way you wanted...the way you expected.  My bet? God has something way cooler for you down the road, and you are missing an amazing opportunity to experience just want that is, by getting caught up in the jumble of false expectations.

^ps-I’m mostly writing this to myself to remember...but will you join me in it?

Check out week three, two, and one of this series here!