Our (Pre)Ceremony Soundtrack

I haven't been around much lately, and rather than continually apologizing I'm just gonna lay it out on the line:  I'm probably not going to be around much until the wedding is over.  At 12 days out, I still have a million things to do and I'm stretched tooo thin.  But!  That doesn't mean I can't sneak a post in every now and again on my lunch hour!

One of our (many) pressing issues right now is our wedding music.  We've booked our DJ and we're finally meeting with him tonight to finalize everything... that means we had to make some serious decisions.  Choosing our playlists was a pretty daunting task; we both have pretty strong opinions about music and those opinions are complete opposites.  I like folksy indie music, while Mr. Doxie tends to like more traditional wedding music.  Read: boring.  In my opinion, anyway.

It was really bringing me down trying to incorporate all the songs he wanted, because I felt that they didn't go with the feel of the event that I had spent so many months trying to establish.  Finally, after a few arguments, he relinquished all music control to me and things went much smoother.  I realize that makes me sound like an insensitive and controlling jerk, but for the record I did incorporate all the songs he really wanted.

Anyway, I love the songs that we've chosen.  (Even the ones he picked!)  There are so many amazing songs, though, it was hard to narrow down the ones that we would actually use.  And then came the task of choosing which would be played when.

I decided that my absolute favorites would be played while our guests are seating before the ceremony, and of course during, with our most favorites being the closest to the beginning of the ceremony.  Does that make sense?

So without further ado, our ceremony playlist:

Lou Reed with Gael García Bernal- If You Rescue Me  (From The Science of Sleep soundtrack)

I loved this soundtrack more than I loved the movie (although it was pretty decent, too.)  This song is so charming.  And!  On the soundtrack there is also an acoustic version of this song sung by the adorable Linda Serbu from whom we adopted our kitty a few years ago.

Plain White T's- 1, 2, 3, 4

This song has no meaning to either of us, I heard it in a restaurant a while back and thought it was sweet.

Damien Rice- Cannonball

One of my favorites.  It's one of those songs that I can listen to on repeat and be content.

The White Stripes- We're Going to be Friends

This song seriously makes me perma-smile.  I wish I wasn't at work so I could listen to it now.  Strangely enough, I'm not a huge fan of The White Stripes... maybe I like this song because Meg is asleep instead of banging on the drums?

Jason Mraz- I'm Yours (Acoustic version from the EP)

I know Jason Mraz isn't exactly indie, but this song is one of my favorites.  'Specially the acoustic version.

The Moldy Peaches- Anyone Else But You

I've loved Kimya Dawson since highschool and from that love grew a love for the Moldy Peaches.  It's totally awesome that Juno gave them so much exposure, but I still like to be on the "I liked them before they were cool" train  : )

The Beatles- In My Life

One of both of our favorites.

And the last of the waiting-for-the-wedding-party-to-get-their-act-together songs:

Barry Louis Polisar- All I Want is You

Back when Mr. Doxie and I were long distance, I came home from a long day of work to find an email embedded with him singing this song to me.  Mr. Doxie is not the world's best singer, (<3) but it was probably the sweetest thing ever.  It comforted me when I was missing him.  We had to include it in our day.

I'm hoping a few people arrive early enough to enjoy all of the music we've selected.  Maybe we'll run a little late on purpose to make it through the playlist, which runs just under 30 minutes.  : )

Up next, our VIPS walk out to the songs that REALLY matter... the real ceremony soundtrack.

Was choosing your various playlist as daunting a task as it was for me?  How did you and your SO settle any disputes?

Something Blue

I am seriously crushing on this necklace:

From Etsy seller favorJewelry

Isn't it beautiful?  I'm torn between wearing my grandmother's pearls, wearing red in my necklace, and wearing this.  It's so pretty and delicate.  *Sigh.*  Do you think it would be too much to layer this with pearls?  I'm thinking it probably would.  Hrm. 

What do you think would go best with my dress?  This necklace alone, something with red stones/beads, Grandma's pearls, or something else entirely?

The Best Projects are Simple Projects

Guys, I have a confession to make.  I am sick of DIY projects.  I still have a ton, but I am embracing the K.I.S.S. philosophy, for lack of time if not for my own sanity.  The other day I had to order some paper and envelopes from Paper Source, and I figured that I'd go ahead and order a few extra things since I was already paying for shipping.  

Ever since I saw this card box, I've had my eyes on those cardboard suitcases from Paper Source.  I loved the card box idea, and finally decided to order them.  One more thing to check off the list, right?  Right!

This card box was super easy.  I ordered two suitcases, the large and the medium, cut the bottom out of the smaller one with a box cutter, and then traced that hole on the larger one.  Cut that out too.  The holes definitely aren't perfect, but no one's going to see the inside!  I taped the two suitcases together with a bunch of shipping tape until it was secure.

After it was all taped, I cut a slit in the top.  I drew the rectangle on with sharpie, and tried my hardest to make straight cuts. 

But alas, I'm terrible with a box cutter.  The slot was all jagged, but nothing a little ribbon couldn't fix!  I threw a bow around it for a little added something.  Adds security, too, I think!

I'm still debating whether or not this is big enough, though.  As it is, it's about 7 inches tall.  I think it will be okay, but do you think I should add another tier?

What did you use for your card box?

It's Here!

When I got home from work yesterday afternoon this box just happened to be waiting for me:

I was super anxious, a little nervous, but mostly excited to get into that box and try on my dress for the first time!  Was it going to fit?  Was I going to like it?  What if I didn't!?!  I don't have much time left for alterations, so I was really crossing my fingers that all would go well.

So exciting!  Pretty pink packing paper.  It made a mess, but it's was cute!

Omg dress!  I've been waiting for the dress for so long that even the garment bag was exciting!  (Erm, excuse my walls, we're in the middle of trying to figure out what color we want in the bedroom.)

Unzip...

Annnd....

It fits!  Like a glove.  Hive, you know I love you.  I wouldn't share these pictures with just anyone, you know.  I asked my mom to get off the couch to take a picture, as pointing the camera up is rarely flattering. She wouldn't budge.  Oh well  : )

Here I am showcasing my ridiculously tall albeit ridiculously cute shoes.  The dress is much prettier in person!  My cheap camera flash makes the silk taffeta look awfully shiny while in reality it has a perfectly acceptable amount of shine  : )

This is my mom's dirty mirror, not mine!

I can't wait to see what it looks like all wrinkle free with my accessories and my hair and makeup done.  I've gotta say, I didn't think I was going to have the feeling.  I didn't cry, but I did feel giddy, and I did feel like a bride.  I was so nervous, and really it was all unwarranted.  I found my perfect dress, and it fit like a dream.  I was so worried that the measurements would turn out to be wrong, or the length was going to be off, but it was surprisingly perfect!  Only one more month until I'll be wearing it for real!

I really couldn't recommend Dolly Couture more.  They have been nothing but helpful.  I got my dress in eight weeks, and I love, love, love it.  I've received quite a few comments and messages from brides who are my size and are considering the Beverlywood from Dolly Couture.  My conclusion:  Go for it!  It's very flattering and comfortable.  I feel pretty in it, and I know you will, too!

Want to catch up on the rest of my dress shopping experience? Here are my previous posts:

I am a Plus-Sized Bride 

Biting the Bullet

THE ONE.

And a quick question for you guys:  Where should I take it to be pressed?  Will any dry-cleaners do this for me?

He Gave Up His Video Games for Me!

Well, not completely.  I don't think Mr. Doxie could ever give up video games, and that's okay.  I enjoy them too.  However, he did trade in a substantial amount of his games to Amazon.com for credit there.  We had planned on doing this a few months ago.  He was going to trade in everything that he no longer played, and buy the new games that he wanted.  Well, we finally sent them in and he got the credit today.  34 games landed us just under $300.00.  It's a loss, yes, but not too bad if you consider they were just sitting on the shelf!

After a bit of light persuasion on my part, Mr. D agreed that it would be okay to see if Amazon sold anything we might need for the wedding.  We still need a lot, and luckily Amazon sells everything!  Our video game shelf is a little barer, but we definitely scored:

We finally got our rings!

This is mine                                       This is Mr. Doxie's.

The groomsmen got their ties:

I think these mint ties will go well with the bridesmaid dresses.

Mr Doxie got his tie:

Finding a red and aqua tie was hard!  Hopefully we like this one when it arrives.

And we got a buttload of candles!  144 votives and a dozen pillar candles.  We'll need many more pillars, but I wanted to see the quality first.

Not too shabby!  I am so appreciative that Mr. Doxie was willing to give up his beloved games to help pull our wedding together.  Also, we get to cross a bunch of things off our list with no out of pocket costs.  Score!

Did you and your FI do any "spring cleaning," so to speak, in order to purchase things for your wedding?

P.S.  My dress was delivered today!  It's currently sitting in my living room waiting for me to get home and open it.  I'm so excited!  Pictures will come soon  : )

The Doxie Invites: The Big Reveal

I was planning on splitting the invitation reveal up into multiple posts, hence my previous two, but with just over a month left to the wedding I just don't have time.  I'm a huge ball of stress because I have so many things left to do.  Blogging gets pushed to my lunch hours at work, and most of the time I forget to upload my photos.  Anyway, here goes nothing.  I'll keep the commentary to a minimum  : )

Presenting our invitations, which were truly a labor of love frustration.

I didn't feel like editing the pictures for privacy.  Oh wells, don't stalk me guys, k?  The tags were somewhat of an afterthought.  I cut them out with my Cricut and gocco'd the design on the front.

On the back, they served as an inner-envelope so-to-speak.  I wrote the names of everyone invited.  I'm really not sure if anyone even noticed this.

Yummy baker's twine and our fabric-backed invite peeking through the heart.

Cutting, folding, gluing and gocco'ing these sleeves was a major pain in the butt.  But I guuesss it was worth it.

Our invitation, out of its home in its sleeve.  The original plan was to use Lettra paper and gocco everything on them.  That got nixed after the sleeves.  Waaay too much work.  I went with Gmund Digital in white linen purchased here.  It's 110lb and really nice.  And!  They printed perfectly on my home printer.  Sorry Lettra, you're beautiful buy convenience wins.

We went with a postcard for our response cards to save postage and trees.  Same deal with these, used Gmund paper and sent them through the printer.

USPS really needs to update their current stamp collection.  Polar bear?  Really?  Well, at least it matches!

On a side note, it's surprising (and a little sad) how few people are leaving us notes.

And because we're already receiving gifts, I started to make our thank you cards.  They're super easy to make and look pretty awesome.

The back of our thank yous.  These are gonna go in pool (the same color as our sleeves) envelopes and be hand addressed in red ink.

So there they are!  I love them, and I've had a ton of compliments, but they were a pain to make.  

Folding 120 sleeves hurt my fingers.

Sewing 120 invitations and labels took foreeeever.

Don't forget about the tags and gocco'ing.  It was seriously a chore.  On top of that, my dad kept calling to add invitees.  To be honest, my favorite part of making my own invitations was putting them in the mail slot.

If there's one thing I learned from making our invitations, it's that they can't be perfect.  

I kept making small mistakes (like the over-stitch above) and getting frustrated.  I'd throw it in a separate pile and think to myself, "Well, I guess I can give that one to my Grandma."  (She's blind.)  Or, "Urghhh.  I don't think Mr. Doxie's brother will notice this..."

But in the end, I don't know who ended up with my faulty invites.  And I really don't care.  They're done, they're cute, they're somewhat original.  That's the best I could do!

Hope you like them, Hive!

Are you making/did you make your own invitations?  If you could do it over, would you go the same route?

The Doxie Invites: From the Outside In

From day one, making the invitations was the part I was most excited about in all of wedding planning.  I must have designed 15 different invitation suites before I decided on a design, and even still I questioned myself.  When there's an endless amount of amazing wedding invitations on the internet, it was hard to believe that anything I could make would live up to my inspiration.  

Anyway, after about eight months of designing, second guessing and redesigning, I came up with a design that I think conveys the feeling of our wedding and our personalities pretty well.  They're not perfect, and if I had more time I would have added a few more details, but they are what they are, and I think the turned out well enough!

So let's begin with the outside and work our way in.  That's how our guests will experience them, after all!

I knew that I wanted our invitations and STDs to "go" together without being too matchy-matchy.  One of the ways I did this was by using the same color red envelopes from Paper Source.  I know Paper Source isn't the most budget friendly option, but the paper they use on their envelopes is so thick, and the red is so perfect.  

As far as postage goes, I wish custom stamps from Zazzle.com were in our budget, but they simply weren't.  I had already spent more than I wanted on the paper and envelopes!  We lucked out, though, because the King and Queen of Hearts love stamps are pretty perfect.  They almost match, and the overall feeling is very similar to our invites.  We had to use two per invite because USPS told us they were non-machinable.  

Unfortunately, the Canadians didn't get cute stamps.  Postage was a dollar to Canada, and the only dollar stamps available were these Wisdom stamps.  Yeah, they're ugly.  But at that point I didn't care.  I also had to add those airmail stickers to muck up the envelopes even more.

Do you remember Miss Poodle's amazing sewn-on address labels?  Well, I loved the look and I knew they'd be perfect, but I was far too lazy to disassemble our envelopes and actually sew them on.  The solution?  I printed each label, cut them out, sewed a border around each one, and used spray adhesive to glue them to the envelope.  Half the work, and I think they turned out pretty nicely!

Of course I had to make the labels wrap around!  Our return address folds around the back of the envelope.

Up next: We open them up and look inside!

p.s. do you notice I didn't make envelope liners?  I really, really wanted to.  I had them all planned out, but I ran out of time and energy.  My dad kept adding more invitees, and by the end of it all I was just relieved to have them finished.  So far I've only heard positive comments about them.  I'm sure no one will be expecting liners.  Oh well!

Invitation DIYers:  Was there an element you had to leave out of your invite suite?  Did anyone even notice it was missing?