… (without losing your mind)

Ed Note: I kept a little surprise from you when I announced the unveiling of the new design… What is it, you ask?  It’s the fabulous Jessica Claire!  She’s stopping by EAD this week to recap her gorgeous wedding for us.  Please give her a huge welcome!  I’m so excited to read her wedding planning adventures…

“I’m not going to be that crazy girl,” I said indignantly to anyone who would listen.

Famous last words.

Having seen literally hundreds of weddings first hand over the course of my ten-year photography career, I felt sure that planning my wedding would be a piece of cake (pun intended). I knew the style I wanted, the colors, and most importantly the guy, so what could be so hard about it?

Someone should have washed my mouth out with soap from the start.

I’ll tell you right now, lovely brides-to-be–you have a long road ahead of you. It’s a treacherous journey, filled with obstacles such as family drama, changing bridal parties, and yes, even dress conflict. Oh yes, it’s all for a good reason–standing there in front of God, my friends and my family pledging to love Jeff was the best moment of my life. But

(isn’t there always a but?)

It did not come easy to me. I’d guess that had I known what I was in for, we maybe would have found ourselves in Vegas six months earlier.

I’m here this week to take you on a journey of trials and tribulation, but also great triumphs and victories–a war story.

The story of planning my wedding.

More coming soon…

{Jose Villa}

Meg Perotti always seems to photograph the most creative couples, and CJ & Dustin are no exception. We will be showcasing their gorgeous DIY wedding tomorrow but first I had to show you their amazing handmade S’mores favors.

CJ was kind enough to share with us a tutorial for creating her lovely project, which is cost-effective and was a huge hit for their guests!

{Read the rest of this entry…}

Lance’s mother comes from Norwegian descent.  I remember the first time I went home with Lance for Christmas and was introduced to the wonder that is lutefisk.  Although I personally would not use the words ‘wonderful’ and ‘lutefisk’ in the same sentence, this seems to be a hot item amongst the men in the family (not Lance thankfully – I would have to sit at a table on the other side of the room… trust me this stuff is potent!).

So when Lance’s mom mentioned the idea of having a traditional Norwegian wedding cake as part of our cake table (we’re going with the ‘multiple-small-cakes-and-random-deserts’ idea) I was a bit scared as to what this might be.  Turns out it looks like a giant stack of doughnuts.  Yum!

Google-ing my way around the internet…this is what I found out.  The ‘Kransekake’, or wreath cake, is made from almonds, powdered sugar, and egg whites.   A little crisp on the outside and a bit chewy on the inside…apparently this thing taste pretty darn good!  It is traditionally decorated with Norwegian flags….however we will probably just do small flags of our wedding colors…similar to these.

{Morning by Foley via The Sweetest Occasion}

We may even put a cute topper on it.

{Elizabeth Messina via Soigne Productions}

It may not be the most beautiful cake ever, but I like the idea of including a bit of Lance’s ancestry in our wedding.  Lance’s aunt has already made these for some of his cousin’s weddings and has graciously offered to make ours as well…so we can pretty much check this item off the ‘To Do’ list!  Can’t argue with family help right?

What family traditions or customs do you plan on including in your wedding?

Hi and welcome!  I’m so excited to unveil the new Elizabeth Anne Designs.  If you’re reading via RSS, here’s a little peek…

As you navigate around the site you’ll notice many changes, the most notable of which is the new and improved Vendor Guide (previously known as the EAD Library).  I’m beyond thankful to Elizabeth Messina for contributing the gorgeous images you see on the Vendor Guide page.

Also updated are the photography and stationery archives, which now showcase not only the freshest content in those categories, but also some of our favorite articles.

I’m so grateful to Carolynn from Two Brunettes for her design inspiration, Elizabeth Messina for her amazing photos, and Laura Hooper for the fabulous flourishes you see around the site.

I hope you enjoy the new Elizabeth Anne Designs and thank you all so much for being my daily inspiration!

I have a mad crush on crafters that use common objects to create gorgeous treasures – which is exactly what Pam Garrison did when she paired tissue paper, coffee filters, and string to create this fabulous garland.

{Tutorial found on Pam Garrison’s blog, as seen on Poppytalk and Creature Comforts}

Can’t you see these strung from the ceiling, or across a mantle, or as a “curtain” backdrop for your ceremony or photobooth? What other ideas do you have for incorporating them into weddings?

belt from j.crew, $55; nikon d90 for newbie photo enthusiasts with wealthy santas, amazon, $794.95; snuggie, $14.95, image source; faux fur muffler (I have always wanted a muffler! I think one of our american girl dolls must’ve had one), from urban outfitters, $28; mustache necklace from etsy seller little angels jewelry, $11.99 (I want one); dj hero from gamestop, $119 (for PS3); julian scarf with hidden pockets, from wintercheck factory, $30; ambigram flask from red letter gifts, $20.99; scarf necklace from etsy seller Mlabel, $40.

I can’t believe it’s so close to Christmas. I feel like I’ve been in some time warp since our blessing and now it’s almost December! I usually do every kind of shopping (except grocery, and that’s rare because we eat out too much!) online and I’ve become exceedingly aware of how long it takes to ship things. So I have even less time. I feel at a complete loss of what to get the people in my life (and as you get older it’s hard to know who you’re buying for!).

So, newlyweds especially, what are you getting your husband?
Your new in-laws?
Your parents?
Your friends?

I’d thought about giving both our parents wedding albums for Christmas but I’ve run out of time, orders for those have to be in early November and I was swamped back then. I should probably be running to etsy, because it’s the greatest thing ever, but even there I get pretty overwhelmed. I feel like I’m at an age where we don’t really need anything, so why would we inflict additional goods on the people we love? I’ve come to appreciate food as an expression of love way more these days.

Oh, and a fun gift idea for newlyweds (that we actually received but haven’t had a chance to test out yet, we’ll have to ask our only other set of married friends to play):

source

So I got a question the other day from someone doing research on Boston wedding venues, wondering if  we found any other venues in Boston (as in, other than The Wang Theatre where we got married) during our research that were really cool too. And the answer is yes. While the Wang provided the look we were going for in the location and price range that we wanted, there were several other great venues we strongly considered.

First of all, if you have the budget for it (and by “the budget for it” I mean $25,000 to spend on the venue alone [jaws up people, these things to do happen]), check out the Boston Public Library. This was actually my original “dream venue” before we found out the cost. After that, it became my inspiration when looking for new venues. Can’t you just picture it? The marble courtyard, the great reading room, the grand staircase. It’s all so wonderfully romantic and charming. So Boston. Check out these photos from a wedding that was held there last year to see what I’m talking about.

We looked at some of the museums in the area as well but ruled them out for various reasons. I would have DIED AND GONE TO HEAVEN immediately if we could have had our wedding at my favorite of all favorite museums in Boston, the Isabella Stewart Gardner museum, but tragically, they don’t allow weddings there! (They do allow other events to be held there so keep that in mind.) Neither does the Museum of Fine Arts allow weddings.

{Read the rest of this entry…}

It is taking all my energy right now to not run around school and just giggle and dance (I’m currently subbing for high school in-school suspension…don’t really think that’d be appropriate?) Tell me that these photos do not make you want to do the same!!!

{ photos by Punam Bean }

You MUST click on these photos to enlarge them. As long as you have a drool cloth ready, that is.

After we chose our venue and date, hiring our photographer was the first thing we did. I’m so glad to have gotten that out of the way, and I’m SO excited that Punam will be a part of our day!!

If only we had somewhere exotic like the secret gardens of a french chateau to celebrate our wedding… Anyone have one of those that we can borrow? :)

[The inside of the tent with yellow and white lanterns, lanterns are 24 inches]

We have decided to have about 30-50 paper lanterns in the tent to fill the space and add lighting. This was a slightly tough decision, because our venue won’t let us put the lanterns up ourselves. Someone who is licensed and insured needs to do the dirty work for $350. Ouch.  So although paper lanterns sound like a cheap option for decorating, they are in fact not going to be cheap for us at all. I feel as though we had few choices, because we can’t hang any lighting up there ourselves, so it was either pay the fee, or go without any pretty lighting in the tent.

Since we have now committed ourselves to this extra invoice fee, I need your help. These are the colors I am thinking about for the tent:

[Paper lanterns from Luna Bazaar]

Those are the colors that match our color scheme, but I was thinking maybe even more colors would be fun, like in this amazing inspiration board (look in row 3). (Keep in mind, this is our inspiration, and this is our website.)

Here’s where you can help! Which option do you like?

A. To h%^& with a color scheme! Go with more color, it will look perdy.
B. Keep to the three colors, it will make the decor look more unified.
C. There are too many colors, I would only do one of those colors or two.

Every now and then an engagement shoot will pop up that is just delicious. And Aly and Rich’s session, with amazing images from Heather at Eclectic Images, is just that. Their vintage-inspired engagement photos were taken at Star Hill Ranch in Austin, TX and featured a picnic, a classic car, and the most perfect “She Said Yes” sign.

Aly collected several items to use as props during the shoot and her vintage clothing choices were fabulous!

{Read the rest of this entry…}