The Ladies

Standing on Amy's side in the wedding we have...

Adrienne Johnston
I met Adrienne when we were in college. We came in together as freshman but didn't become friends until our first trip to Australia in 2004. She's quirky and loves reading, knitting and watching horror movies. Her dream job is to be a puppeteer on Sesame Street.

Sarah Parker
I also became friends with Sparker on our first trip to Australia. Actually, it all started on a Starbucks run and a Grand National. Good times. Sparker is down-to-earth and grounded and loves people watching and always observes the little things in life with new intensity and humor. Her shoulders shake when she laughs and it's the darn cutest thing you've ever seen.

Aryn Henry
We go way back ... all the way to high school English class. That year we had a few classes together and became friends and solidified that friendship on the softball field. Aryn is married to Roy and they're perfect for each other in this crazy libertarian/republican Fox News sort of way. They have two kids, Isaac and Reagan. Aryn is the only person I know who can apply make-up and call a basketball game at the same time. It's impressive, really.

Aimee Tetreault
Second grade birthday party. That's where it all began. Aimee and I were attached at the hip for most of elementary school and middle school/junior high. We discovered the Beatles together. To this day she still "gets" me. She's a free spirit (just like me) who has mad rock climbing skills. Give her some chalk, rope and a sheer rock face and she's a happy camper.

Leah Faust
I met Leah at church back in the day after her family moved to Battle Creek from the Detroit area. I think we officially bonded sometime during my junior or senior year of college, and really solidified our friendship once I was in college ... lots and lots of heartfelt conversations over instant messenger. Leah loves art, musicals and dancing and is very good at all three. She is a fantastic graphic design artist - just wait until you get our wedding invitations! She made them. I told her things I loved and she ran with it. She's dating David, a quirky and hilarious carrot top. I think they should get married and have babies with asian features and red hair :-)

Standing on Jake's side ...

Sarah "Weez" Boley

Sarah is Jake's younger sister. She's 14 and in the 8th grade and totally rocks. She's into music (particularly the Beatles) and 80s movies like "Lost Boys" "The Outsiders" and the fantastic TV show "Freaks and Geeks." She loves John Francis Daley. She's really talented ... plays piano, french horn, sews, crochets, quilts, and is very intelligent. We like to make fun of commercials with funny voices. She'll be a ridiculously famous writer one day traveling the world and breaking hearts.

Samantha Murphy

Sam is one of Jake's closest friends. She's not normally this moody and dark ... but isn't that a hot picture?! Sam is currently pregnant and is just the cutest preggers lady you've ever seen :-) We actually went to high school together, but I didn't really meet her until I met Jake. Small world ... Sam loves movies and good music and good food, and has an impeccable sense of humor. That's why she's fantastic :-)

Next up ... the men of the wedding party

DIY cupcake stand

I suck at blogging.

That being said, welcome to May/almost June and two months until our wedding! Huzzah!

This wedding has definitely brought out more of my creative side and inspired me to DIY goddess status. Here's one of the projects I've completed so far...

Flower Pot Cupcake Stand


Such a simple project with a very lovely result. It's the perfect cupcake serving device to accent our random, hippie, garden, natural, peaceful, crazy outside-the-box wedding.

We're approaching the home stretch and things are getting really busy. We'll be printing and mailing invitations within the next two weeks. We still need to order Jake's shirt and tie and his custom Chuck Taylors. I'm in the process of making my bridesmaids' gifts. Decorations are purchased (for the most part) and everything is coming together quite nicely. Someone please remind me of my current relaxed state-of-mind in about two months.

Trash into Treasure

Happy Earth Day everyone! Okay, so I'm a day late but it still counts.

April turned out to be quit a busy month and I haven't updated the way I should have and many of you have been asking me for more info and photos of my wedding planning. Really, I'm touched :-)

A few weeks back I ran across this photo from a girl on www.offbeatbride.com:



















The ocean of mugs was just one part of their thrift store reception. The couple purchased all the dinnerware from thriftstores to cut down on waste and cost. The tree-hugging hippie in me squealed for joy when I saw this! I knew I just had to figure out how to implement thriftstore dishes into our wedding.

Jake and I had a hard time getting the ball rolling. We had lots of questions like "Is it cost effective?" "Who will wash them?" "What will we do with them afterward?" and "How do we get all the sizes we'll need?"

After we got past the brick wall of questions it all worked out. Our caterer will wash the dishes at his restaurant which is about 500 feet from the reception venue. Plus, we said forget trying to get both dinner AND dessert plates. We're just going to get whatever we can find and call it good.

Two weekends ago Adrienne and I went to Goodwill which was the best idea ever! They were having a sale featuring 50 percent off all yellow tagged items. So, we went through all the dishes and grabbed every yellow tagged plate. At the end of our shopping trip we had accumulated about 70 plates for $20! That's a lot better than spending more than $100 on bio-degradable paper stuff.

In addition to my thriftstore treasure, Jake's cousin and Adrienne both donated a few sets of plates to the cause. In all we have our filthy little mitts on about 140 plates. We figure if we can at least get enough plates (which we're darn close to having) then we can compromise and by bio-degradable cups and eating utensils. Plus, I'm going to buy recycled napkins from Seventh Generation.

After the wedding, we're going to donate the dishes to the thriftstore here in Union City.

Moral of the story? Always think outside the box. Don't let people tell you that you MUST have certain things because it's a wedding. Do whatever you want however you want. If you love it and have fun then your guests will follow suit.

For all you friends and family who are joining us from out of town, here's a list of bed & breakfasts, hotels and campgrounds in the area for your consideration. By no means is this a complete list, but it'll give you an idea about what's out there. I have the list split up into cities, starting with Union City and and getting further away from UC as the list goes on.

Union City

Victorian Villa 517-741-7383

Between Union City and Coldwater

The Hideout Bed & Breakfast 517-278-4210
Potawatomie Recreational Area Coldwater 517-278-4289
Waffle Farm Campgrounds Coldwater 517-278-7274

Coldwater

Holiday Inn Express Coldwater 517-279-0900
Red Roof Inn Coldwater 517-279-1199
Super 8 Coldwater 517-278-8833
Comfort Inn & Suites 517-278-2017
Hampton Inn Coldwater 517-279-9800
Chicago Pike Inn & Spa 517-279-8744‎

Battle Creek

Ramada Battle Creek 269-979-1100‎
Hampton Inn Battle Creek 269-979-5577
Holiday Inn Battle Creek 269-979-0500‎
McCamly Plaza Hotel Battle Creek 269-963-7050

Marshall

National House Inn Marshall 269-781-7374‎
Rose Hill Inn Bed & Breakfast 269-789-1992

Victorian Villa Inn, Union City

Chicago Pike Inn Bed & Breakfast, Coldwater

STDs (hehe ... that's just funny)

That's right everyone ... Save The Date cards are going in the mail before April 1! That means this thing is actually happening ... turning back.

Here's a preview of what you'll be receiving in your mailboxes soon:
When I began planning this whole shindig I quickly realized how expensive anything wedding related can be. I just couldn't bring myself to spend heaps of money on Save The Dates and invitations, especially when I or any of my talented friends could make something far more awesome than some product pushed by the WIC (wedding industrrial complex).

I got the idea for this postcard one day as I was drinking a cup of coffee. I took the photo at Northwoods Coffee Company in Coldwater, Michigan where Jake is head barista. He poured that lovely latte art heart in the cup. Then, I wrote "save" and "the" on the dishes with black dry-erase marker, and "date" on the newspaper with a Sharpie. This is the un-edited photo.

Once I had the image in Photoshop I went to town. I first selected the latte art and made that into a separate layer. Then, I grayscaled the rest of the photo. Then, I boosted the color of the latte art to be vibrant but still have a vintage feel. Then, I blew out the contrast of the entire photo to give it a grainy and vintage look. I came up with a few other versions of this photos, but in the end Jake and I chose the black and white version. Here's a color version I did as well. I was going for a kitschy/indie/vintage look on this one as well.

I had such a good time making my STD cards, I'm thinking of opening up a shop on Etsy (www.etsy.com) for photography-focused STDs and invitations.

Okay, okay ... I know I told you guys I would write a post highlighting hotels, bed & breakfasts and campsites in the area ... and I will! :-) It's quite a research-driven post and I just haven't had time to put it together. And remember, if there's something you'd like to know about regarding the wedding or the area around Union City, let me know. I'd be happy to post about it.

Finding joy in the simple things

I had a light bulb moment a few weeks ago.

Browsing on Facebook, I came across a wedding that stopped me dead in my tracks. Gemma, who I met when I visited Tasmania in 2007, got married on the beach in January and the photos began popping up. It was beautiful. They had it on a small beach with no decorations, no chairs ... just love and blue waters.
Gemma's simple approach to her wedding celebration helped me realize that while planning all the details of a wedding is heaps of fun, in the end it doesn't matter what it looks. The only things that matter are the fact that you're surrounded by friends and family and that you're now married to your best friend.

I kept browsing through the photos of Gemma's wedding, falling more and more in love with the simplicity and beauty of it all. Finally I realized that this is how I want my wedding to be - simple, joyful and full of love and nature. Jake and I were already basically planning on these aspects being a part of our day, but now I see that I don't really care about centerpieces and table linens and whatnot as much as I care about everyone having a good time and sharing in our love and joy.

However ... I do totally dig Gemma's earrings. When I told her that she said she had an extra pair and promptly mailed them to me. Hooray!

So anyway ... that's what our wedding will be ... Love, joy, simplicity and fun.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION

In the next few posts I'm going to be offering some logistical information for all of you who are trekking in from out of town to join us for the wedding. I'll do a post about hotel/campgrounds if you need a place to stay, local restaurants and cafés that are worth checking out while you're here, and a list of churches if you're staying for the weekend and would like a place to worship Sunday morning. If there's any specific topics you'd like me to cover, just let me know. I want to help you enjoy this weekend the best I can :-)

Progress, Progress, Progress

It's been far too long.

I apologize for my lack of blogging goodness. Things got busy at the beginning of this year and I moved it to the back burner unintentionally. But, all excuses aside, here I am and I'm back in the saddle.

Wedding plans have been smooth sailing for Jake and I. In the last post I reported that I had purchased my dress (which I'm uber excited about!). Since then, a few things have been decided:

• Florist is secured and we're meeting at the end of the month
• I added a bridesmaid (more about that later)
• Decorations have been purchased
• Honeymoon has been booked
• Officiant has been booked
• Invitations and Save The Dates have been designed

I'm sure there are more things on that list, but it's early and my brain isn't at full functioning capacity yet.

In the next blog post I'll introduce our wedding party. For now I'll share some inspiration and give you an idea of how our wedding will look.

Jake and I, being the pseudo dirty hippies we are, want everything to be laid back and fun and as eco-friendly and natural as possible. Here are a few inspiration collages I made depicting the "feel" of our wedding:





As you can see, lots of plants, lots of color, lots of garden gnomes. That's right ... the jolly little guys with pointy hats are making an appearance at our wedding. They were just calling out to me from the Hobby Lobby shelf ... "Buy us! We're 50% off!" I couldn't resist.


Another small piece of the wedding that came together during my mini-hiatus is the flowergirl outfit.

I ordered a custom-made crown from a seller on Etsy name Whichgoose. She is amazing. Based on a short description on the wedding, here's what she came up with:


::Edited:: I was going to post a photo of Lydia's dress, but for some reason it isn't working. Apologies.

*Side Note* If anyone can come up with a better title than "flowergirl" please let me know.

Well, I think that's enough wedding goodness for now. I promise from now on there will be more frequent updates. Cheers!