I Think We've Found Our Cake Design!!!

Holy wow, this cake is amazing. I've been searching, searching for the right design, and then POW(!), there it is--and the beautiful sugar flowers even match those on my wedding dress. What more could a girl want?! I absolutely adore the illusion of fabric trim around the base of each tier, the fact that it's all white, and that the whole cake is whimsical and festive. I ADORE it.

Our next step is to send this image over to Carolyn Taylor, our cake maker and pastry extraordinaire, to see if she might be able to replicate it. We'll ask her, too, about whether we could do this in ivory or white--what would look better. Either way, because it's neutral in color, we'll be able to use buttercream for the frosting instead of fondant, which is a wonderful thing.

We'll send it her way this morning and keep you posted!

Coco Wedding Invitations--Not Quite What We Expected

So, a few days ago we ordered this "Coco" wedding stationary--which we fell in love with for the dark brown texture, the dried flower on the front, the recycled paper inlet, and the do-it-yourself component of assembling the invitations. However, much to our dismay, the sample doesn't live up its online presence. Sigh.

Part of the problem is that the brown color is almost too "rust" colored, whereas we were hoping for a more dark, rich brown. The dried flower is "eh" and the inside is sloppy, misaligned and the paper a bit too "see-though." It's got about 70% of what we're looking for, though. Close, but no cigar. We're back on the hunt!

Here are a few others that we've ordered samples for! On some of these we can order different colors that would match our event, but the samples only come in a stock palette.

The other option is to make our own, using a cool image or paper and accessories. I'll explore a bit more on this. Another trip to Michael's is in order. We welcome other suggestions! So send 'em along.

Reception Basic Decor: Only A Trial Run

A few pics we took, though not a great representation. Much prettier in real life! Also, note that the white candles are merely stand-ins for glass votives wrapped in eyelet sleeves, that we're not positive about the dried green hydrangea yet, and that this white vase was merely what we had for the sake of "brainstorming."

We've Got Plateware, Linen, and More

Just for the record, Ramona at We Party headquarters in McLean is an absolute sweetheart. Two weeks ago, mom and I met with her to select our linen, chairs, glass,-, plate-, and flatware for the reception. In two hours of playing tea party--laying out dozens of tablecloths and toppers and their accessories--we found our winning pieces.

Originally, I had been thinking we'd go with ivory tablecloths and toppers--to lighten the dark wood and teal carpet areas of the Carriage House. However, when we set all of this out and studied it in the context of the Carriage House, we found that all the ivory was too stark in contrast.

For that reason, we broadened our horizons and came upon a sheer caramel topper and a white tablecloth: the result? Whimsy, rustic, warm.

To complement the linens, we decided to go with white rounded dinner/salad/cake plates, white coffee and tea cups/saucers, silver flatware with copper windy decor, ivory napkins (to bring extra depth to the white plate ware), and sets of three crystal glassware (water glass, wine glass, and champagne glass). For chairs, we selected the dark brown, finding it the perfect color to set off the whole shebang.

As for tables, we plan to have 9 five-foot rounded tables (each seating 8), one small round cake table, and four taller bistro tables for the terraced garden cocktail hour.

While selecting these pieces, several other design elements began to fall into place: dead tree branches with white lights, wheat, dried hydrangea, rusty lanterns, and glass candle votives in cotton eyelet sleeves.

I've posted a few pictures here, but keep in mind they are work-in-progress design concepts! More to follow.

A Whole Line-Up of Gown Appointments

Check it out: http://allywedding.blogspot.com/2008/10/alices-appointments.html

Dresses in the running:

(1) Melissa Sweet, "Felice"
(2) Atelier Aimee, "Nuccia"
(3) Pronovias, "Radiante"

Dresses I plan to try on this Friday and Sunday:

(1) Pronovias. "Ronda," "Rosa," "Nacar," and "Rama."
(2) Oscar de la Renta gowns. All of them.

Designers I plan to explore at Hitched this Sunday:

(1) Lela Rose
(2) Jenny Lee

Dresses I am in love with but don't know where to find them!

(1) Melissa Sweet, "Natalie" (but can't find it ANYWHERE)
(2) Atelier Aimee, "Dana" (absolutely in love but may need to travel to New York to find it). Anyone up for a road trip?!

Rustic Inspiration

I love the signs. The Mason jars. The gerbera. The colors. Bring it.

Preview of Our Engagement Photos!! More to Follow

A smattering of our engagement photos are up on Jen Chase's blog and they are so adorable. We couldn't be happier: full of such whimsy and magic and playfulness. My favorites are the one with Chris reading to me (he's looking down, I'm looking up), the one where he's kissing my forehead, the one where I'm kissing his cheek, the one where he's dipping me, the one.... heck, I like 'em all.

Thought we'd share a preview. Check them out: http://www.jenblogs.blogs.com. A DVD of complete photos to follow!!! We'll post them as we get them.

Pretty Confections

How will we ever pick a cake design? There are so many to choose from! A few things I've learned though: (1) Fondant is used for "structural" cakes but does not taste as delicious as buttercream frosting. (2) I am not a fan of real flowers on the top tier of the cake. This is too closely akin to a kind of floral toupe, and this simply won't do. (3) I prefer candied floral designs to real flowers on the cake. (4) There is something to be said about an all white cake with exquisite details, don't you think?

A few more cake pics that I find simply breathtaking.

Rustic Elegance

Fun with Nicholas, Our Officiant

We met with Nicholas last night to review the ceremony and our vows, and believe it or not, we got it all down to 25 minutes--probably less. This is a relief, as the ceremony begins at 5:30 (half an hour after the tourists leave Oatlands) and sunset isn't far behind, with twilight approaching around 6:45 on October 3rd. This window is a tight one, making things close for pictures unless Nicholas keeps things short and tidy! So, it looks like, at the very latest, the ceremony will wrap up completely by 6, and while guests are having cocktail hour, Chris and I and the wedding party/family will have a photo shoot: 10 minutes for family and wedding party, 20 minutes for Chris and me.

This will all work out!

Here's the structure of the ceremony:

• Groom and officiant walk down the aisle first, followed by Best Man and one groomsman. Bert English and Matt McClinch will stand by Chris.
• Music will change, denoting the bride and bridal party. Matron of Honor (Jen) will walk down the aisle, escorted by Man of Honor (Patrick). They will stand by Ally.
  
• Father gives bride in marriage; this is accompanied by a brief spiel.
• Biblical reading, which we'd like Bill English (one of our groomsman) to give.
• Brief sermon, related to marriage, love
  
• Marriage vows and exchange of rings
  
• The Lord's Prayer
• The Marriage Prayer, read by Bill English.
• The Peace, during which bride and groom kiss and walk down the aisle.

Seems simple enough! And we like the pacing of it all! With no hymns or other readings, this ceremony above is around 20 minutes, giving Nicholas room to pad as he wishes, as he can be long-winded.

Nicholas also recommended that we print up programs, with the structure of the ceremony, or at least the Lord's Prayer and Marriage Prayers, so we can all follow along.

More to come soon... but Alice is off for a brief vacation, and away from wedding wonderland.

These Photographers, I Adore

Searched the web, wide and far and with the help of Somer's keen internet skills (!), and these are my two favorite photographers, for both wedding and engagement purposes: Stone Blue Productions and Kellie Kano. Both are just lovely, smooth, full of energy and a romance all their own, authentic and creative. The black and white treatment is gorgeous, dramatic. I love it, particularly the shots (in color) with unusual backdrops: broken windows, exaggerated foregrounds, old brick buildings. I also adore the quirky snapshots: couples kissing, wide-eyed, playful, chasing, wearing hats, dancing along long pathways and corridors. Both photographers handle faces, shadow, and portraiture amazingly.

I think either of these would do a fabulous job with Chris and I at Oatlands, particularly by the reflecting pool, the wine vines, the old barns and wooden fences and wrap around porches and wide white columns, the lush rolling hills, the Blue Ridge in the distance.

Alice is contemplating... Perhaps I will, out of curiosity, write to each and inquire about their price ranges. Both travel, so that is encouraging.

Our Officiant!

Reverend Nicholas Lubelfeld of The Falls Church has expressed his willingness to perform our wedding ceremony! Chris and I are thrilled, and hope to meet with Nicholas soon to review the vows and service, both taken from the Book of Common Prayer. The vows are rich and lovely, though we want to be sure, since the ceremony is outdoors (and indoors at the Carriage House with everyone standing up and around us if it rains) that the ceremony is kept to a 25-30 minute minimum. We may need to do some editing, possibly on the readings, but we'll have to see. Chris read through the BOP and it took him about 25 minutes, so that is encouraging.

Nicholas is a lovely man, and one of the few people I know who can utter a single sentence containing the topics of The Chronicles of Narnia, healthy relationships, Peter the disciple, and medieval architecture without blinking an eye. He has a delightful sense of humor and a wonderful, compassionate way about him. We couldn't think of a more fitting person to officiate our marriage. Hope to make an appointment with Nicholas soon.

A Splendid Venue, Indeed

It was a ten hour journey, through Appalachia by car and foot and pure caffeinated determination. There were small venues and large ones--all historic and rustic and hidden, some more than others. But behold: the wedding venue has been selected, a beacon of Virginia beauty.

I give you Oatlands Plantation of Leeesburg, Virginia--250 years of manor splendor and Italian gardens that terrace and wind up rolling hills and down to a quaint Carriage House. Beyond there are the Blue Ridge mountains, the hills of grassy Virginia falling like blankets all around.

When I first laid eyes on Oatlands, I fell instantly in love--it was as though I had seen it all before, been here before: the feeling of an embrace when coming home, a familiar notion of knowing you're where you belong.

Chris and I wanted to have a historic Virginia wedding--where we met, fell in love, where our past and present and future intersect. We couldn't think of a more fitting venue than that of a historic manor, a shining example of Virginia historic preservation: holding onto the past, progressing forward with a lasting foundation.

Our plan, for now, is to hold the wedding in the lower Italian garden, the cocktail hour on the porch of the manor and up through the terraced gardens, and dinner in the quaint Carriage House--all amongst the changing autumn foliage in October sunset.

More to come, more to follow. Alice is navigating her way through wedding wonderland, afterall. Who knew.