Fellow wedding planners-there is a new Michael's coupon available on their website. It is for 25% off your entire purchase, SALE ITEMS INCLUDED! Their normal coupons are good only on regular priced items, so pair this one with a sale and you could score some great deals!
The coupon is good through tomorrow (Saturday 9/29). Check out the details here. It does exclude clearance, and a few brands, but I LOVE the fact that you can use it on sale items. And they let you use the coupon from your smart phone as well!
Happy shopping!
Miss Spaghetti
Friday, September 28, 2012
Thursday, September 27, 2012
A Toast to DIY Etching
Mom Spaghetti seemed disappointed (and confused) when I told her I didn't plan on having Champagne at our reception. WHAT?!?!? How in the third world will you do a toast?
Seriously, I hate champagne. Really hate it. I don't see the point of buying it just for people to toast with at our reception. An obvious solution: we're having beer and wine. How's about I get Mr. Spaghetti and I some etched glasses for our beverages? He's a beer snob. I'm a moscato girl. So he'll get a personalized beer mug with our names and the wedding date. I'll get a personalized wine glass with the same info. I love the fact that it will be very "us". Oh, and Mr. S wouldn't drink wine if someone paid him, and that's the same relationship I have with beer :)
I'm finding etched beer/wine glasses online for around $15-20 each. BUT...what if I did it myself? I found a nifty little tutorial here about how to do it. Since I've already got umpteen wine glasses at home, I can use one of them. I will have to see if Mr. S has any plain glass beer mugs already (I know he has tons of U of M ones, but I wouldn't dare mess with those!).
Here is what you need to do it:
I am going to give this a try in the near future, so stay tuned for the details on how my first major wedding DIY project goes!
What was your first major DIY wedding project? Did it go as planned?
Happy planning!
Miss Spaghetti
Seriously, I hate champagne. Really hate it. I don't see the point of buying it just for people to toast with at our reception. An obvious solution: we're having beer and wine. How's about I get Mr. Spaghetti and I some etched glasses for our beverages? He's a beer snob. I'm a moscato girl. So he'll get a personalized beer mug with our names and the wedding date. I'll get a personalized wine glass with the same info. I love the fact that it will be very "us". Oh, and Mr. S wouldn't drink wine if someone paid him, and that's the same relationship I have with beer :)
I'm finding etched beer/wine glasses online for around $15-20 each. BUT...what if I did it myself? I found a nifty little tutorial here about how to do it. Since I've already got umpteen wine glasses at home, I can use one of them. I will have to see if Mr. S has any plain glass beer mugs already (I know he has tons of U of M ones, but I wouldn't dare mess with those!).
Here is what you need to do it:
- Roll of Contact Paper
- Glassware
- Junk Brush
- Credit card
- X-Acto Knife
- Pencil
- Armour Etch Acid
I am going to give this a try in the near future, so stay tuned for the details on how my first major wedding DIY project goes!
What was your first major DIY wedding project? Did it go as planned?
Happy planning!
Miss Spaghetti
Tuesday, September 25, 2012
Ladies to Maidy's
So far in the blog you have heard me talk a little 'bout my maids. I thought I'd take a few minutes to talk about who they are, and show you how I asked them to be in my wedding.
I have known forever who I wanted in my bridal party, so that part was easy:
-MOH K, my sister, best friend and personal stylist
-BM M, my youngest sister
-BM S, my cousin who is a month younger than me, and my oldest friend
-BM H, my friendster (mix between friend and sister) because she is like a sister to me
Now the interesting thing about my bridesmaids, is that they are all either married or engaged and will be married before I am. BM S is getting married in just ONE MONTH! Holy cow! And MOH K will be getting married in February. BM H is getting married in March, and BM M was married last July. And the kicker is, I am in all of my girls' weddings. Needless to say, I am going to be a very busy girl until after my wedding is done.
Like most brides-to-be, I wanted to find a unique way to ask my ladies to be my maids. But I didn't want to spend a ton. The most important thing I wanted to get across was that each lady is important to me, and to tell them why I chose them. Weddings are very meaningful to me, and I wanted them to understand why it was important for them to be standing up there with me on such a special day.
What I decided to do was use one of my fave websites Paperless Post. I chose a cute little invite, wrote a personal note to each lady, and sent it off.
I also used this site for Little Noodle's 6th birthday party last month. I picked an invite, put in my text, picked an envelope liner, and voila! The site emails your entire guest list, and asks them to respond. It also provides them with a map to to site, and gives them an option of leaving a comment or question for the party planner. It worked like a charm, and I got a ton of compliments on it! There are a lot of invitations on the site that are free to email to recipients. Some of them cost money, or "coins" as they call it. When I signed up, I got some "coins" for free, so sending out Little Noodles invites with the extras (envelope liner, stamp, etc.) didn't cost me a thing. But normally, you would buy those features with your coins. Make sense? Good!
How did you ask your ladies to be your maidy's?
Happy planning!
Miss Spaghetti
I have known forever who I wanted in my bridal party, so that part was easy:
-MOH K, my sister, best friend and personal stylist
-BM M, my youngest sister
-BM S, my cousin who is a month younger than me, and my oldest friend
-BM H, my friendster (mix between friend and sister) because she is like a sister to me
Now the interesting thing about my bridesmaids, is that they are all either married or engaged and will be married before I am. BM S is getting married in just ONE MONTH! Holy cow! And MOH K will be getting married in February. BM H is getting married in March, and BM M was married last July. And the kicker is, I am in all of my girls' weddings. Needless to say, I am going to be a very busy girl until after my wedding is done.
Like most brides-to-be, I wanted to find a unique way to ask my ladies to be my maids. But I didn't want to spend a ton. The most important thing I wanted to get across was that each lady is important to me, and to tell them why I chose them. Weddings are very meaningful to me, and I wanted them to understand why it was important for them to be standing up there with me on such a special day.
What I decided to do was use one of my fave websites Paperless Post. I chose a cute little invite, wrote a personal note to each lady, and sent it off.
I also used this site for Little Noodle's 6th birthday party last month. I picked an invite, put in my text, picked an envelope liner, and voila! The site emails your entire guest list, and asks them to respond. It also provides them with a map to to site, and gives them an option of leaving a comment or question for the party planner. It worked like a charm, and I got a ton of compliments on it! There are a lot of invitations on the site that are free to email to recipients. Some of them cost money, or "coins" as they call it. When I signed up, I got some "coins" for free, so sending out Little Noodles invites with the extras (envelope liner, stamp, etc.) didn't cost me a thing. But normally, you would buy those features with your coins. Make sense? Good!
How did you ask your ladies to be your maidy's?
Happy planning!
Miss Spaghetti
Monday, September 24, 2012
I Guess I'm Not Very Bachelorette-y
Happy Monday fellow planners! This past week was a blur, leading up to BM S's Bachelorette party on Saturday. We had a blast, and my feet still hurt...but my black boots looked great! I will have 2 more coming up before my own, MOH Sister K's is in January, and although currently unplanned, BM Friendster's will most likely be sometime in February or early March. All these parties have got me thinking...
Do you HAVE to go out drinking and dancing for your Bachelorette party? Personally, I'm not an out-all-night kinda girl. I don't mind going out once in a while, but I would much rather be in bed by 11 (yes, I'm old). I just can't picture myself out at a bar or restaurant with a necklace of male genitalia hanging around my neck. I'm not a big drinker either. So how do you throw a Bachelorette party for someone who is not very...Bachelorette-y?
As I begin to plan MOH Sister K's party in January, I realize just how different we are. She would love a big party with her bridal party, co-workers and friends all there having dinner, buying her drinks, and lots of sexy apparel. What kinds of Bachelorette parties have you been to? And if you are already married, what did you like or dislike about your own?
Happy planning!
Miss Spaghetti
Do you HAVE to go out drinking and dancing for your Bachelorette party? Personally, I'm not an out-all-night kinda girl. I don't mind going out once in a while, but I would much rather be in bed by 11 (yes, I'm old). I just can't picture myself out at a bar or restaurant with a necklace of male genitalia hanging around my neck. I'm not a big drinker either. So how do you throw a Bachelorette party for someone who is not very...Bachelorette-y?
As I begin to plan MOH Sister K's party in January, I realize just how different we are. She would love a big party with her bridal party, co-workers and friends all there having dinner, buying her drinks, and lots of sexy apparel. What kinds of Bachelorette parties have you been to? And if you are already married, what did you like or dislike about your own?
Happy planning!
Miss Spaghetti
Wednesday, September 19, 2012
Calling All Pasty Brides
Yeah, I'm pretty white. I don't tan, I red. Then I white again. Last summer I burnt my legs, and I looked like a zebra, only with red streaks. Sunless tanners have been my only option for my entire life. There's a few that I've found that work enough to keep me from being ghostly, or blinding everyone at the beach. But I've never really found that perfect sunless tanner (if such a thing exists).
So the one thing I've never done is the elusive spray tan mist at the tanning salon. I'm a bit nervous, but I think I want to give it a shot. I keep picturing the Friends episode where Ross got a spray tan. Although he was an idiot and didn't think to just step out of the booth (it wouldn't have been as funny, would it?), I still worry that I would have a mishap of some sort.
Worry #1: Because my skin is SO weird, it will absorb the color unevenly. So even though the spray is consistent, and it covers correctly, I would still come out blotchy.
Worry #2: Because my skin is SO weird, the color won't absorb AT ALL and I won't look a hair tanner.
Worry #3: The people at the tanning place will not understand my SO weird skin and dial up my color so I come out looking like Ross. Or like an orange.
I know that I can do a test run way before the wedding, and see how it turns out. If I like it, I'll go back. If not, I'll pasty it up on my wedding day. Who cares, I'm the bride!
Anyone else try spray tanning before their wedding, or planning to try it before the big day?
Happy planning!
Miss Spaghetti
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| Wikia |
So the one thing I've never done is the elusive spray tan mist at the tanning salon. I'm a bit nervous, but I think I want to give it a shot. I keep picturing the Friends episode where Ross got a spray tan. Although he was an idiot and didn't think to just step out of the booth (it wouldn't have been as funny, would it?), I still worry that I would have a mishap of some sort.
Worry #1: Because my skin is SO weird, it will absorb the color unevenly. So even though the spray is consistent, and it covers correctly, I would still come out blotchy.
Worry #2: Because my skin is SO weird, the color won't absorb AT ALL and I won't look a hair tanner.
Worry #3: The people at the tanning place will not understand my SO weird skin and dial up my color so I come out looking like Ross. Or like an orange.
I know that I can do a test run way before the wedding, and see how it turns out. If I like it, I'll go back. If not, I'll pasty it up on my wedding day. Who cares, I'm the bride!
Anyone else try spray tanning before their wedding, or planning to try it before the big day?
Happy planning!
Miss Spaghetti
Friday, September 14, 2012
Dressing the Spaghetti Men
One wonderful and unique part of our wedding is going to be Mr. Spaghetti's 6 year old son. The little noodle is a very big part of our lives. He is getting really excited about his dad and I getting married, and it makes me so happy! He has been asking questions about the event and his part in it. His main concerns are "do I get to stand up there with Daddy?" and "what do I get to wear?". I LOVE that he is asking questions, and we try to answer and explain things to him so that he feels like a part of it.
As I start to think about apparel for the men, I picture Little Noodle in a miniature version of what is dad is wearing. Mr. Spaghetti and I have briefly talked about what he would like to wear, and the first option is tan linen suits. While I'm not completely sold on the tan color (my accent color is charcoal gray), I am totally open to what he wants. I found some for both Mr. and little noodle:
Men's suit: Macy's
Boy's suit: Nordstrom
I kind of like the vest-only look, and I've been seeing it in a lot of weddings lately. Do you like the vest-only look? Anyone else out there planning a wedding with kids?
Happy planning!
Miss Spaghetti
As I start to think about apparel for the men, I picture Little Noodle in a miniature version of what is dad is wearing. Mr. Spaghetti and I have briefly talked about what he would like to wear, and the first option is tan linen suits. While I'm not completely sold on the tan color (my accent color is charcoal gray), I am totally open to what he wants. I found some for both Mr. and little noodle:
Men's suit: Macy's
Boy's suit: Nordstrom
I kind of like the vest-only look, and I've been seeing it in a lot of weddings lately. Do you like the vest-only look? Anyone else out there planning a wedding with kids?
Happy planning!
Miss Spaghetti
Thursday, September 13, 2012
It's Just Food...Right?
Food is EXPENSIVE! There, I got that off my chest. Catering is going to be the highest-costing part of our wedding. I've accepted that. But that doesn't mean I won't keep trying to find ways to make it cheaper ;)
My Dad wants us to go with a caterer so that we don't have to worry about preparing, serving, and cleaning everything up. Since we are having the wedding at a local park, we are responsible for all clean-up. A caterer will do all that for you, for a price. I like the simplicity of it. But is the convenience really worth it? The prices I've found for caterers range from $9.50-$11.50 per person, which is the basic buffet. So we would be looking at around $1700 for the lower end.
The other option I've been tossing around is either preparing our own food (with help from various family members), or buying trays of food from Gordon's or somewhere similar. I haven't actually gone out to price this option, but I'm thinking I will investigate to at least see how much it could possibly save us. The problem with this option is that I don't want to inconvenience anyone by asking them to prepare food, or help serve it or clean it up at the reception. I want everyone to be able to enjoy themselves.
How much are you willing to pay for convenience? And if you are already married, how important was the food at your reception?
Happy planning!
Miss Spaghetti
My Dad wants us to go with a caterer so that we don't have to worry about preparing, serving, and cleaning everything up. Since we are having the wedding at a local park, we are responsible for all clean-up. A caterer will do all that for you, for a price. I like the simplicity of it. But is the convenience really worth it? The prices I've found for caterers range from $9.50-$11.50 per person, which is the basic buffet. So we would be looking at around $1700 for the lower end.
The other option I've been tossing around is either preparing our own food (with help from various family members), or buying trays of food from Gordon's or somewhere similar. I haven't actually gone out to price this option, but I'm thinking I will investigate to at least see how much it could possibly save us. The problem with this option is that I don't want to inconvenience anyone by asking them to prepare food, or help serve it or clean it up at the reception. I want everyone to be able to enjoy themselves.
How much are you willing to pay for convenience? And if you are already married, how important was the food at your reception?
Happy planning!
Miss Spaghetti
Monday, September 10, 2012
Dress Success
Good news followers-I have a dress!
What?!? You were looking for your dress? You didn't tell us! (what you might be thinking).
I know...here's what happened...
My very best Friendster and I wanted to look at dresses together. She is getting married in March of next year, 3 months before me. Her family lives in Texas, so her going out with her mom and sister just wasn't an option. Since she is like a sister to me, we felt it was only fitting for her to come with us.
Since friendster's wedding is in March, we just realized that she really needed to get going on the whole dress thing. So last week my Mom, Sister K, Friendster and I quickly planned a trip to our local David's Bridal. I really didn't expect to walk out of that store with a dress in my hands, but that is exactly what happened!
We both started trying on dresses. I already had a good idea of where I wanted to start. I love love love the look of the pickup style gowns. And I knew I wanted sweetheart neckline, with a small train. I also wanted to incorporate my purple into a sash, I love gowns with a little color! I tried on 5 or 6 dresses total, and we all kept going back to the second one I had tried on. It was perfect. Now, don't be disappointed, but I didn't have one of those moments of joy and tears and smiles when I decided on my dress. In fact, as everyone was cheering and I rang the bell, I was trying to think of sad things to come up with some sort of tears to appease everyone. It didn't work, and I just laughed instead. Sister K said I acted like I had just picked out a pair of work boots or something. Of course I was excited, but I have never been an emotional person, so I really didn't expect to cry a river like Sister K did when she found her dress months ago.
Friendster has almost decided on a gorgeous ruffled ivory dress that also happened to be the second one she tried on. But it is in competition with a frilly tulle-skirted gown that is shorter in the front. I love both, but the ruffle one just looked so perfect on her. I hope she picks it!
How quickly did you find your dress? Did you have a tears of joy moment?
Happy planning!
Miss Spaghetti
What?!? You were looking for your dress? You didn't tell us! (what you might be thinking).
I know...here's what happened...
My very best Friendster and I wanted to look at dresses together. She is getting married in March of next year, 3 months before me. Her family lives in Texas, so her going out with her mom and sister just wasn't an option. Since she is like a sister to me, we felt it was only fitting for her to come with us.
Since friendster's wedding is in March, we just realized that she really needed to get going on the whole dress thing. So last week my Mom, Sister K, Friendster and I quickly planned a trip to our local David's Bridal. I really didn't expect to walk out of that store with a dress in my hands, but that is exactly what happened!
We both started trying on dresses. I already had a good idea of where I wanted to start. I love love love the look of the pickup style gowns. And I knew I wanted sweetheart neckline, with a small train. I also wanted to incorporate my purple into a sash, I love gowns with a little color! I tried on 5 or 6 dresses total, and we all kept going back to the second one I had tried on. It was perfect. Now, don't be disappointed, but I didn't have one of those moments of joy and tears and smiles when I decided on my dress. In fact, as everyone was cheering and I rang the bell, I was trying to think of sad things to come up with some sort of tears to appease everyone. It didn't work, and I just laughed instead. Sister K said I acted like I had just picked out a pair of work boots or something. Of course I was excited, but I have never been an emotional person, so I really didn't expect to cry a river like Sister K did when she found her dress months ago.
Friendster has almost decided on a gorgeous ruffled ivory dress that also happened to be the second one she tried on. But it is in competition with a frilly tulle-skirted gown that is shorter in the front. I love both, but the ruffle one just looked so perfect on her. I hope she picks it!
How quickly did you find your dress? Did you have a tears of joy moment?
Happy planning!
Miss Spaghetti
Picture Perfect
Mr. Spaghetti and I had an amazing time last Tuesday on the beautiful beaches of Grand Haven shooting our engagement photos. Our photographer Katy Batdorff captured some gorgeous images of us and the sunset on the beach and the pier.
For a sneak peek at some of the photos, visit her website here. She took over 300 total, I couldn't believe it!
Were you happy with your engagement photos? Did it give you a chance to get comfortable with your photographer?
Happy planning!
Miss Spaghetti
For a sneak peek at some of the photos, visit her website here. She took over 300 total, I couldn't believe it!
Were you happy with your engagement photos? Did it give you a chance to get comfortable with your photographer?
Happy planning!
Miss Spaghetti
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