Goodbye blog

Okay girls, here's the situation:

As of late, Bret and I have been fighting a lot, and most of it has been stemming from me spending so much time on the computer. So, from now on I am going to make a sincere effort to stay away from the computer as much as possible. I have really enjoyed sharing wedding details with everyone, and hopefully I can eventually pick this up again once things settle down a bit. For now, I'm going to try and spend some more quality time with my future husband!

Love,
Christine

Wedding shoes

Shoe shopping has never been easy for me, and looking for wedding shoes is no exception. I prefer that my shoes fit correctly, are comfortable, and in my price range. However, since I have the world's tiniest feet, I often have to sacrifice either comfort or size (I can't even tell you how many of my heels are 1/2-a full size too large). I'm also very picky about heel height, and I really can't tolerate heels for very long at all. I'm usually the girl you see at the end of the night walking down the street in my bare feet (disgusting, I know). 


In the beginning, I went around to a couple wedding accessories stores and tried to find shoes, but of course nobody carries a large stock of size 5's or smaller. The other thing I began to worry about was comfort, as I will be wearing these shoes for at least 5 hours (pictures start at 2, ceremony will end around 7). I debated wearing flats for quite some time, but eventually decided against this idea. At one point, I went to the Cole Haan down on Michigan Ave to try on some shoes from their bridal line and lo and behold, all of the size 5's were far to large.


Then began the great zappos experiment. I decided I wanted to splurge and get nice shoes, plus I was excited by the fact that Stuart Weitzmans come as small as a size 4. The 4's came and were too small. The 4 1/2's came and were too small. The 5's actually fit, but the ivory was too ivory. Finally, after about 7 exchanges (literally), I have narrowed it down to two options. 


Stuart Weitzman: Maribow

Stuart Weitzman: Crissy

I also have a pair of very simple ivory pumps from Calvin Klein (about a third of a price of the Stuart Weitzmans), which I was considering dressing up with a shoe clip. 

I'm leaning towards the first pair, because they're a bit more comfortable and I'm pretty sure the second pair make my feet look unusually fat and wide. I also have to say that the first pair is definitely the most comfortable.


Thoughts?


Oh, and I bought this pair of flip flops for the point in the night when I get too cranky to keep my heels on.

And even though it's not at all wedding related, I thought i'd throw in a picture of Tobie just for fun. How adorable is he in this picture???

Best. Decision. Ever.

So lately, Bret and I have been trying to schedule our tasting with the caterer figuring out what kind of food we want to serve. The only thing I had really considered thus far was the desserts, so I was worried it was going to be a rough decision. However, Bret and I ended up agreeing for pretty much the first time since we started planning (a true miracle). And we have settled on...are you ready for this? BREAKFAST FOR DINNER! Love it. Breakfast/brunch is something we both love and I think it's such a fun, interesting idea to make the wedding unique. We're thinking the whole nine yards...crepes, made to order omelettes, french toast, eggs benedict, pancakes...I could go on. Plus, think of the mimosas! I'm excited just thinking about it. Obviously, my mom nearly had a heart attack when I told her over the phone. Her reaction was something close to "I hate it and I don't understand it...but it's your wedding, so do whatever makes you happy. Did I mention I how much I hate it?." Awesome. I think her main concern is that we're already planning a brunch in the hotel for the morning after, but I think we all know you can never really have too much brunch, right?

On a side note, can we please discuss the shoes my mother tried on (back home) and then sent me the link to suggesting I buy them?

Truly, there are no words to describe them. It was hard to phrase "they're hideous" in a delicate way so as not to completely crush her, but I did my best.

The "what if" game.

So, as previously mentioned, I have already found my wedding dress. Even though it is nothing like what I thought I wanted, I absolutely adore it. However, even though the order has been placed, I continue to spend hours each day scouring the internet for wedding dresses. Not because I'm unhappy with my choice. Just because it's oh so much fun. And it never really gets old, because there are literally thousands of dresses out there. I like to play a little "what if" game to make it interesting. For example, if I had an unlimited amount to spend on the dress, which one would I choose? What if I was having a garden wedding instead? What if I was a foot taller? That way, even when I found a dress I really love, I don't regret my decision because I know it wouldn't have worked for my budget, wedding style or body type.


Let play, shall we?


If money was no object, I'd purchase this lovely little number from Christos (I still swoon every time I look at this dress, honestly. I just love the swiss dots):

If I wanted to feel really romantic, I'd pick this Claire Pettibone number:

If I was about a foot taller, I'd definitely go for this one by Monique Lhuillier (I love the scalloped lace):

If I needed a dress for a casual beach wedding, I'd stick with Jcrew:

For a garden wedding, I think this short dress from Watters would be perfect:

And lastly, if I was having a super fancy wedding and wanted to feel like a princess, I'd pick between these three from Oscar de la Renta, Carolina Herrera, and Kenneth Pool. All extremely swoon worthy. 

So many options.  Which one would you choose?

First entry!

Yay, something new to distract me from doing work! Since I already spend about 10 hours a day looking at wedding blogs, this will be a nice addition. So I thought I would start out by making a nice shiny list of all the things I've accomplished in the past 5 months.


1. Set the date. This was a big debate. I've always wanted an garden wedding in the spring. Somehow that turned into an urban, loft-type wedding in the fall. But honestly, it is the most beautiful time of year in Chicago so I couldn't be happier.


2. Set budget, determined guest list, and asked bridal party


3. Booked venue/caterer. First big accomplishment. We chose the lovely Ravenswood Event center:

4. Booked photographer, florist, dj and trio. Here is a picture I used for flower inspiration:

5. Found my dress!!! Another huge accomplishment. Even though this was the 3rd dress I tried on in Chicago, I had to go to a couple more places just to be sure. But when I went back and tried it on, I knew it was the one.

6. Had my hair and make up trial. Chose a simple bun for the big day.

7. Bought my hair piece and clutch. The clutch was custom made for me by an etsy vendor.

8. Picked out colors and bridesmaid dresses. Originally we (I) picked out a beautiful jewel toned purple and mossy green, but bret ultimately decided he couldn't stomach the purple because it was too "girly". If only he knew that when I originally imagined my wedding, I envisioned a sea of pastels, like baby pink and mint green. Sigh. We ended up settling on blue and yellow. Here are the three styles the girls are choosing from:

9. Set up the hotel block/brunch. We chose the Millenium Knickerbocker, which is downtown, right off Michigan Ave. The place is beautiful...and I love that it's not a chain.

10. Registered at Crate and Barrel. Super fun. Mimosas + a scan gun + the store to ourselves = heaven.

11. Found the trolley to transport the wedding party on the big day.

12. Booked engagement photos.




 I love checking things off lists, don't you?