Wedding Night

We finally made our wedding eve and night accommodations. After debating long and hard, we went with the one place we have been dying to stay since we landed on this rock.... the iconic Royal Hawaiian Hotel. Also known as the "Pink Palace of the Pacific". It's an amazing resort that has some serious history. And the fact that my poppy has stayed in the hotel after WWII, it makes it even more special to me...




(source: Starwood Hotels-Royal Hawaiian)

NEW Bridesmaid Gowns

Amy, Kim, and Courtney joined me at David's Bridal while we were home in PA. Unexpectedly, all three of them chose the same dress. I had originally planned for them all to wear something different, but this dress looked amazing on all of their body types. The pictures below are the actual dress (but theirs will be in Watermelon)...

It's flattering, its lightweight, has optional straps, and the best part... my girls get POCKETS!

My makeup artist asked that I send her ideas for my hair/makup. I know I've posted some hair photos, but now I'll post some makeup pics. I want to keep it mostly natural and sunkissed, with most of the attention on my eyes. I really like the way that Hayden Panettiere has done her makeup. Here's a few of her looks:





Thoughts?

Scratch That.

So instead of doing the super tropical look, I've decided that I really want to illuminate the tables. Yesterday, while browsing theknot.com, I ran across a bride's website, with pictures from her recent wedding. In the center of the table, she had a beautiful white lantern , surrounded by more candles and flowers. It looked beautiful, especially at night. See for yourself:



(Source: www.ashandbrandon.com)

So I went ahead and ordered the lanterns today. Ed, my mom, and I immediately fell in love with them. I'll figure out what to do next once we get them...

Beautiful Ladies

Over the past week or so, I've been in touch with a potential makeup artist for the wedding. Jessica Hoffman is a friend of my friend/coworker/model/socialite, Brigitte Patton. She normally doesn't book weddings, but instead, she works with models/actors for magazines, fashion shows, etc. She's worked with models from the top model firms, Daniel Dae Kim & Naveen Andrews (Lost) and recently, Dr. Dre & Eminem (source: Ms. Patton). Jessica herself has also been featured in Modern Luxury Hawaii magazine.

I'm really excited and am very lucky to get a chance to work with her. She is someone I know is good at what she does! If you're interested in checking out her work, please visit: http://makeupmemoirs.blogspot.com/.

Source: http://www.jessicahoffman.net/

Kane (Men)

Again, to keep the Hawaiian/casual theme... we'd like to put the men in some aloha wear. Hawaiian Moon has reasonably-priced shirts that both the groomsmen, and the ringbearer could wear for the ceremony. We'd finish off the outfit with khakis and slipahs (aka... flipflops). Below is the shirt that I like best. The color isn't bold, yet, it still screams "ALOHA!" haha.

(source: http://www.hawaiianmoon.com/)

The Groom

Don't worry, I didn't forget Edwin! Since we're going to keep everyone slightly casual, we were thinking that'd we'd dress him in traditional Wedding Alohawear. Below are some ideas for his attire- keep in mind that he will have the final say!

Lei'd

Of course, no Hawaiian wedding would be complete without the traditional "Lei Exchange". Below are the leis that we want to get for me and Ed...



The groomsmen in the party will also be getting leis, which will be more simple. And our parents will also get leis during the ceremony... yet to be determined.

Wedding cupCAKE

Since we're having a smaller wedding, we decided to skip the cake. We plan to order a cupcake tier from the Hokulani Bake Shop in Honolulu. Ed and I stopped by one day for a taste, and OMG- they are delicious! Below is an example of a cupcake tier from the shop (keep in mind, we won't be getting these color cupcakes):



And what wedding cake would be complete without the cake topper? Again, thanks to Etsy.com, I found these amazing toppers that we can customize based on our features and our wedding day attire!






(Courtesy of dandelionland on Etsy.com)

Flowers

For something that dies in a matter of days, flowers can be so expensive! I've started looking into fake bouquets online. Etsy.com has become my new best friend. Below are some bouquets I thought might look nice against our pink dresses, and personally, I don't think they look fake.

The first is an example of a bouquet for me (minus the blue flowers, sub small white ones) and the second, for my ladies. Thoughts?



(courtesy of jdleggans on etsy.com)

Flower Girl

While at David's, we also looked at flower girl dresses for Miss Aubry. Here's the two we liked best. The first is my favorite, because its got faint Hawaiian-ish flowers on the skirt. Click the picture to see the detail in each of the dresses on http://www.davidsbridal.com/:




OR... what about something more modern like this:

Wahine (Women)

So, I just got back from visiting my fiance's family and friends in Tucson. It was a much needed trip. He, his sister, and I headed to David's Bridal (because they don't have one in Hawaii) to check out dresses and colors. As much as I'm not 100% stoked on David's Bridal for my girls- they're the only bridal salon in NEPA, Tucson, and New Haven- so it seems like the most convenient.

Anyway, I decided on the color "watermelon" for the girl's dresses. It's a brighter pink color. I'm going to let the girls pick out the sytle that best suites them. I'm kind of wondering if it would be best to pick out a few and them them decide from there or just let them do what they want. Thoughts?

Here's some of the dresses I liked (the last is an example of what my sis, the MOH would wear):

Centerpieces

Here's an idea I got from a girl on projectwedding.com for our centerpieces. They're fairly inexpensive and quite tropical, which I was looking for. They also provide for more lighting since we're having an evening wedding outside. However, I don't like the square tealights, and I think I'm going to use more vibrant flowers. I've also thought about using bright runners on the table.




(source: CoRaLbRiDe on projectwedding.com)

More Hair Ideas!!

I like the first two much better than the last. I'm kinda into the side "bun" look.

Honeymoon

So I got to thinking about our honeymoon today. We're seriously considering this 12-Day Eastern Mediterranean cruise: Royal Caribbean Brilliance of the Sea

It departs from Barcelona, Spain and stops in Sicily, Greece, Egypt, and Malta. It's going to cost a lot, BUT totally worth every penny to get to experience the world with my love. We're also going to try to take a trip down to Cianciana when we get to Sicily. Its the town where my poppy's family is from. It's a once in a lifetime thing, so I must do it!!!

NEW Venue

Today we signed the agreement for the Aloha Tower as our wedding location!!! Everyone is going to love it. It's historical, it's beautiful, it's convenient, it's fun... its amazing! Here are some photos from the venue. If you didn't know, "Aloha" in Hawaiian also means "Love"... romantic, eh? To learn more about the venue... HawaiiWeb.com: Aloha Tower




(photos courtesy of: A Photo Chick's Journal in Paradise)

Hairstyles

I've started looking at hairstyles. Again, sticking with that vintage look. Here are some ideas:



Thoughts? Ideas?

Hair Accessories

My dress reminds me of dress that a 50's hollywood actress would wear. It hugs my curves in all of the right places to give me that lovely hourglass shape. It has really inspired me to go less traditional in my accessories and styling. Instead of a traditional veil, I'm looking into a birdcage. And I'd love something- flower, feathers- bright in my hair. Here's some of my ideas:

(source: Portobello on Etsy)

THE dress.

We may not have a venue, but at least I got my dress.

My Hawaii ladies and I went to two different shops on two separate occasions. The first time was completely overwhelming, but I was able to figure out what style looked best on me. The second trip landed us at Casablanca in Honolulu. I didn't talk money with them, rather, I explained what I was looking for... which resulted in me buying a dress that was double my budget. But I found it. I love it.

If you want a peak, leave me a comment and I'll show you. I'm scared that Ed's curiousity might land him here. And I sure do not want that....

Welcome!

Wedding Planning Blog days: 1
Days until fiance and I tie the knot: 272

I've been wedding planning for quite a while, well, since our engagement began on March 12, 2009. It's been a rough journey so far. We booked a venue, we lost a venue, and we're in the process of booking a new venue. I'm hoping this journal will help me organize my thoughts throughout the planning process. It's like pulling teeth to get fiance to help me out, especially with him being on the road, so I need some form of release.

I'm going to post a few entries today, all dealing with different aspects of the wedding planning, thus far. If you have any comments, I'm all ears. Don't be shy!