Manzanita pics!

Some inspiration...

(image here: http://www.cupidsarrowweddings.net/image_uploads/DSC01333.JPG)



The real thing coming soon!

I heart Manzanita

So I posted a while back about how to cozy up the reception space, and my caterer had suggested renting trees. It just didn't do it for me (plus it was darn pricey). I racked my little brain, and I found some inspiration:

Manzanita branches! And not just some wimpy small ones, no sir. With the help of my dear internet friend Amanda, I have 6 huge "branches" that are over 60 inches tall!

Pics to come...blogger is having some trouble loading photos at the moment. These are like sculpture, I'm so impressed. I'm still debating exactly what to do with them, but I am for sure hanging some LED votives off of them. I might include some flowers.. but B is not sold on that. He thinks they will look great with just the candles, and I worry that they will look like something from the Haunted Mansion without some added "softness". Anyway, potato potahto. I'm just happy to have them.

Invites.. better late than never, right?

Life has kinda crashed lately. Lots of work travel. Stomach flu/food poisoning. Cat personality disorders. Whew. Calgon take me away.

Anyway, here are some shots of our lovely invitation suite. Which I love dearly. And plan on framing and gazing adoringly upon daily.

So where did you draw the line?

Something that has been weighing heavy in my mind lately (and creating a big pit in my stomach): when it came to invitations, where do you draw the line?

Early in the planning, B and I drew some very arbitrary lines, and firmly agreed to stick to them (however flimsy they may have been). One rule: no children of cousins are invited. I have A LOT of cousins, and most of them have kids. The exponential growth was astounding. So that was one line.

Second: no one we don't know, or haven't spoken to in years. Seems to be a no-brainer, right?

Insert parents and kid-clinging cousins.

First, B's mom gave us her list. I didn't question it, because I didn't think it was my place to do that. Turns out she included her cousins, and their children. She also included neighbors from 10 years ago. She also included her personal friends. All ok and fine with me, as her numbers weren't huge. But, there are some people on the list who B has never met. There's just something wrong about, "Nice to meet you! Welcome to my wedding!" Anyway. It is OK.

But, my parents are not inviting their cousins, nor any of their friends. Gulp.

So the lines have been significantly blurred, but I still had to go back to one of my relatives (my dad's aunt) and tell her that no, her adult son's are not invited. That was tough.

I think the real lines are lines of relationships. If you are close to someone, you actually talk to them or have seen them in the past year. You feel some sort of bond with them. But the problem with these emotional lines is that you get into the sticky area of "oh so you just don't like me as much as Susie". Double gulp.

I sincerely wish that I could include everyone under the sun. I really really do. But at what point do you give up your vision and your level of comfort (our desire for a small intimate gathering) to please everyone else?

Bad Blogger

So, I have been very busy with the aforementioned invitations, but that's really no excuse. I'll be back soon with updates and new projects and other fun stuff. In the mean time, I just have to say that I never ever ever thought that I would be worrying and debating the guest list this close to the wedding, but we are. For the record, I have caved and we are letting kids come to the reception. I'm kind of pissed at myself for giving in to the drama that certain people in my life created, but I'm not gonna dwell. That's all for now. More soon, I promise!

Invitation sneak peek!

(photo credit: Tara, Ephemera Custom Letterpress)

They're fabulous. They're vintage-y. They have birds.

That's all I'm gonna say for now ;)

I heart makeup

Click here to go to Benefit's website. Click image for a bigger view.

I just love Benefit's new spring line.. Prettier than the Bride. I happen to have gotten a freebie of the silky finish lipstick in "Bouquet Dive", and it is an awesome wear with anything shade. Just adds a tint of "put together", but not, "I'm trying to hard." That's a hard line in lipstick, you know.