Tag: bride

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Just say yes

I’m a bit of a romantic and always get completely sucked in by the proposal story. Whenever anyone around me gets engaged, I just can’t wait to hear all about it.

So it’s no surprise that whenever an incredible proposal story pops up on my Facebook news feed or in the daily news that I tend to click on it and I’ll admit, there are always tears!

For me, a proposal should always always always be about the couple. No point in going extravagant if it doesn’t speak to you as a couple. That’s why mine was the perfect proposal – at home, with my family upstairs (unaware of what was happening downstairs) and just my husband and I. No bells and whistles… just us.

I’d just flown in that morning. Poor guy picked me up from the airport and then when we eventually arrived home, I made him wait another hour and a half before I went downstairs. I was too busy hanging out with my family and playing with my nephew.

When we did get downstairs, he convinced me to help him with a Four Pics, One Word conundrum he’d been facing.

Will you marry me

And then he got down on one knee.

Four Pics, One Word is something we always played together. So my hubby convinced someone to make him his own Four Pics, One Word puzzle.

I didn’t even read the words before I started bawling.

It wasn’t extravagant, it wasn’t over the top, it was just us.

And it was perfect.

 

 

Here are some of my other favourites from around the web (and yes, they’re pretty OTT).

Say yes, Janice

In a crossword puzzle

Using Bruno Mars

Scavenger hunt anyone?

 

 

 

 

 

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Popping your own question

So I’ve been a bit MIA as of late. But that’s mainly because the wedding is in six weeks (read: eeeeek). That means my hens night is in three and that’s officially when the celebrations kick off.

While I popped the question to my bridesmaids a while ago, I’ve been trawling through Pintrest as of late to finalise my ideas for the decor of the wedding and there seems to be a myriad of ways to ask your bridal party to be part of your special day.

So here are the top five that I’ve stumbled across.

1. Drop down on one knee

When my bestie got engaged, she half asked me to be a bridesmaid while we were on a dinner date, pretty much by blurting it out when we thought there would be a wedding-date clash with another friend. I didn’t accept.

A couple of weeks later, while over food (again), she pulled out a beautifully wrapped red box with a very large sparkler inside and a beautifully written note about why she wanted me up there with her. I’ll admit, it brought tears to my eyes.

2. Say it in words

To ask my own bridesmaids, I wrote them a card and hand-delivered it to each of them. There is nothing more heartwarming than seeing your favourite girls with tears in their eyes, jumping for joy about being part of your special day.

In my exact words:

I promise I won’t put you in an ugly dress! Be my train pinner, make-up fixer, teeth checking wing woman!
Will you be my bridesmaid?

3. Puzzler

One way that I came across in my research was getting a puzzle made. There are plenty of websites around that allow you put your own designs on a puzzle. May as well make those girls work for their title.

You have the freedom to do anything here – ‘be my bridesmaid’, ‘I have the man but I still need my girls’ or even, ‘I couldn’t say I do without you’ – go crazy!

4. Gift boxes

Give your girls a head start of what’s going to happen on the day. Pop in a tshirt that says ‘bridesmaid’, include a couple of the beauty products that you think they’ll need throughout the day – spare bobby pins, safety pins, a mini deodorant and some hairspray.

Remember to include a little note with a couple of personalised memories, and you can even include a picture of the two of you to make it even more special.

5. Gem stones

A lot of brides will give their bridesmaids a small gift on the day of the wedding. Why wait until then? If you want to ask with a little sparkle, then go ahead. There’s no need to wait until the big day.

Give your friend the gift with a little note saying she’ll be wearing it on your wedding day as she stands by your side.

How did you pop the question to your girls?

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Shoot scouting

I’ve had a bit of writer’s block lately. That’s not to say I haven’t thought of things. I just haven’t had any time to breathe, meaning I haven’t had time to sit down and actually put my thoughts into words.

With everything going on, I’ve found that I need to write things down straight away or I’ll forget. In fact, it’s one of my fiancee’s pet hates because it means I call him 10 times a day as thoughts come to my mind.

Lately we’ve been talking wedding photos.

There are a lot of things that come into play when it comes to choosing the location of wedding photos if you’re not having them at the ceremony or reception venue.

most important of all is to choose a location that screams YOU

So let’s break it down.

1. Location: ‘well obviously!’ I hear you sigh. But here’s what I really mean… It needs to be close to your venue. Or if you’re having the ceremony and the reception at different places, it shouldn’t be too far out of the way. Your aim is to take photos, not travel between locations.

2. Don’t pick too many: so often a bride will have an idea in her head to have many different photos in many different settings. Here’s what you really need to consider. If you’ve chosen a good photographer, he or she will make a tin shed look beautiful. That’s their job! Best to pick one location and stick to it. And if it has three or four different kinds of settings, well that’s a bonus.

3. Sinkage: sometimes your dream setting involves grass. And ladies, we all know that spells disaster for high heels. If you’re planning on wearing heels, perhaps consider a wider heel if you have your heart set on a park or grassy area. If you want stilettos, invest in high heel protectors for you and your bridesmaids.

4.  Parking: yes, it’s not your job to consider parking, but if you have your bridal party and your parents or family with you, that amount of people come with transportation. So you better make sure it’s easy for your attendants to get to your photo location. Make sure the parking isn’t too far away from the spot you’ve chosen so people don’t have to walk so far.

5. Cost: some spots will come with a price tag, especially if you’re looking at a park or council venue. If you’re planning on having two locations for photos (one including your bridal party and another just for you and your fiancee), it can get expensive. Consider looking for friends or family homes where you may be able to use the backyard. Then splurge for the second location. Win/win really!

6. Choose you: perhaps most important of all is to choose a location that screams YOU! If you’re into the sand and the sea, head to the local beach. If you’re into history, perhaps look for heritage-style buildings. If you’re an outdoorsy kind of girl, head to the hills and choose a park or grassy knoll. No matter where it is, make sure it suits your personality.

I’m scouting locations on Saturday. Wish me luck!

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Guess who’s back

Ok, so I’ve been on a bit of a hiatus for the past three weeks. With all the public holidays and four weddings, I’ve barely had time to breathe.

But let’s talk about it.

With my own wedding less than three months away, a question I was frequently asked was whether I was making notes as I attended the four other beautiful celebrations.

Truth is, most of my wedding is already organised. While I am exceptionally anal when it comes to organisation, I don’t think it’s necessarily a bad thing to stay ahead of the game.

That’s not to say I didn’t learn a thing or two.

At wedding number one, I learnt how to deal with change. Bride number one’s ceremony was supposed to be outdoors, but due to the 40 degree heat, it was moved indoors. Side note: best decision she made! I sat with her while she mourned (yes mourned) the loss of what was, in her eyes, the perfect ceremony. She needed the moment in the bathroom sobbing her eyes out to come to terms with the change. It’s ok to cry. But then remember to move on.

At wedding number two, bride number three was fretting about the differences between the current function and her own. Should she also have the buffet entree? Should she have chosen a different dress? Should she change the music? To top it all off, she didn’t even enjoy the night because she was too busy stressing. Me? I took notes … of how not to act the week before my wedding. Honestly, what’s the point? You can’t change much by that time anyway.

Wedding number four was a beautiful ceremony in the gardens of a function centre … in the rain.  Yep. You read that right. All the guests were huddled under umbrellas while the bride and groom were wed. Thank goodness it wasn’t bucketing down. While it does add a bit of atmosphere, I can guarantee that many of the guests (read: ladies) were worried about their hair and dresses, rather than focusing on the beautiful moment in front of us. Nevertheless, the bride looked beautiful and the couple were ecstatic. And really, that’s the main thing, right?

I guess the number one thing I learnt throughout the two weeks is that no wedding will ever be perfect. Mine definitely won’t be. I’m absolutely positive that things will go wrong. But at the end of the day, who cares? What’s important is how you deal with the challenges you’re faced with on the day.

And really, what else matters except the fact that I’m marrying the love of my life?

The other thing I realised… I absolutely LOVE weddings!

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Wedding bells

I often wonder whether I should find a niche blogging subject, rather than just spilling my thoughts as they come to mind.

I’ve been reading a lot of other blogs lately, and most of them are based around one single topic. But then I think, well isn’t this supposed to help people get to know me? What better way to do it than to simply spill my mind as I see fit.

On my mind at the moment … weddings.

With four weddings coming up over new year and my own impending nuptials in just over three months, it’s hard not to think weddings all day.

So of course, the majority of blogs I’ve been reading revolve around weddings. Hair prep, make-up trials, dresses, table decorations. There’s so much to think about that it’s very easy to get swept up and become that dreaded B word. Yep, I’m talking bridezilla.

I’ve prided myself in not being a bridezilla and surprisingly, the wedding planning process has been relatively easy (did I just jinx it?). I don’t quite understand how people get to that stage of being so demanding that no one actually wants to work with you, or indeed, be part of your bridal party. But as I was talking to some of my girlfriends who have their own weddings coming up, I began to see how women can get there. Not that they’re there. They’re just facing some extra stress that I don’t seem to be experiencing.

I’ve been exceptionally lucky to have a wonderful fiancee who backs our decisions to anyone who questions them. And we’re both so fortunate to have four parents who so lovingly say ‘it’s your wedding and they’re your decisions’ while still quietly steering us in the right direction, yet supporting us even when they don’t necessarily agree with our decisions (here’s looking at you mum).

I guess my view is, and always will be, that there’s more to a marriage than the bride and the groom.

Those people who raised you, those siblings who have been by your side forever and those friends who will surround you and support you on your wedding day, they’re what a marriage is about – unconditional love, everlasting friendship and most important of all, family.