April 2008 Archives
green and earth friendly weddings are big these days. in planning our wedding, we didn't set out to make any kind of social statement-- we just want to create a day that reflects our values and our love (aw!).
a nice result of this approach is that we've done a pretty good job of creating a wedding that is both 'local' and 'green'. i can't say that it is totally and completely either of these things, but for the most part, our choices have reflected these values.
green how?
*by purchasing antique jewels rather than new
*by finding reusable and reused centerpieces
*by using recycled paper in our invitation design.
*by choosing bridesmaids' dresses that are made of natural materials, made in the u.s.a., and are made without sweatshop labor (i guess that's not so much a green point as a social one, but still an important point). more on aria here, on thryn's blog about her truly green wedding-- their efforts to be earth friendly are admirable.
*by incorporating as much 'old' as possible-- family pieces, borrowed items, thrifted items. the more history, the better!
local how?
nearly all of our vendors are small businesspeople based in albany or northampton. most work out of their homes and/or run their own business. this is true of our florist, our photographers, our dj, our invitation designer (disclosure: she's also family! and she's great), our cake baker, the store where i bought my dress, and the store where we are renting the boys' tuxes.
to be honest, most wedding-related businesses are on the small side, and probably most are local-- but not all. when given a choice between a larger company and a smaller one, we almost always felt that the service and connection was better with the small business. we can email any one of our vendors at any time and get an immediate response, directly from them.
in addition to the green and local themes that have emerged, we've also been pulling a lot of handmade aspects into the wedding (and i don't mean handmade by me, not yet anyway!). i've bought a number of wedding items on etsy and from local artists. the items i've found on etsy have been one-of-a-kind beauties, and again- the connection with the artist far outweighs any connection i've ever felt with a big box store! (side note: etsy is among the best places to find gifts for anyone. you will find everything you can dream up and lots of things you can't imagine anyone dreaming up.)
unfortunately, it's not possible for us to have a through and through green, local, and handmade wedding, but we can make each decision with those values that are important to us in mind. so far, these guidelines have steered us in the right direction. now we just have to get everyone to carpool from the church to the reception... or maybe we can get a monorail installed along central avenue for the day.
a nice result of this approach is that we've done a pretty good job of creating a wedding that is both 'local' and 'green'. i can't say that it is totally and completely either of these things, but for the most part, our choices have reflected these values.
green how? *by purchasing antique jewels rather than new
*by finding reusable and reused centerpieces
*by using recycled paper in our invitation design.
*by choosing bridesmaids' dresses that are made of natural materials, made in the u.s.a., and are made without sweatshop labor (i guess that's not so much a green point as a social one, but still an important point). more on aria here, on thryn's blog about her truly green wedding-- their efforts to be earth friendly are admirable.
*by incorporating as much 'old' as possible-- family pieces, borrowed items, thrifted items. the more history, the better!
local how?
nearly all of our vendors are small businesspeople based in albany or northampton. most work out of their homes and/or run their own business. this is true of our florist, our photographers, our dj, our invitation designer (disclosure: she's also family! and she's great), our cake baker, the store where i bought my dress, and the store where we are renting the boys' tuxes.
to be honest, most wedding-related businesses are on the small side, and probably most are local-- but not all. when given a choice between a larger company and a smaller one, we almost always felt that the service and connection was better with the small business. we can email any one of our vendors at any time and get an immediate response, directly from them.
in addition to the green and local themes that have emerged, we've also been pulling a lot of handmade aspects into the wedding (and i don't mean handmade by me, not yet anyway!). i've bought a number of wedding items on etsy and from local artists. the items i've found on etsy have been one-of-a-kind beauties, and again- the connection with the artist far outweighs any connection i've ever felt with a big box store! (side note: etsy is among the best places to find gifts for anyone. you will find everything you can dream up and lots of things you can't imagine anyone dreaming up.)
unfortunately, it's not possible for us to have a through and through green, local, and handmade wedding, but we can make each decision with those values that are important to us in mind. so far, these guidelines have steered us in the right direction. now we just have to get everyone to carpool from the church to the reception... or maybe we can get a monorail installed along central avenue for the day.
check, check, check!
the to do list is getting shorter.
over the past two days we:
-finally started our registry! daunting, overwhelming, fun.
-bought centerpieces! thrifty, pretty, relief.
-picked out tuxes (well, pat did- i can't take credit here.)
-found pat's wedding ring (we think).
-got a third quote for flowers-- that much closer to hiring our final vendor.
earlier this month i created an updated inspiration board. things are continuing to come together and the vision for our day is getting clearer. it feels good to have things done early-- like we are giving our august/september selves a break. and every wedding-related task we cross off the list brings us one step closer to being married. i like that part the best.
my wedding ring is inside this box:
it's
strange (and hard!) to have it here, in my possession, but unable to
wear it for another five months. i took some photos of the ring itself,
but they didn't come out very well-- i'll try again soon using pat's
camera, it tends to do a better job than my highly-portable yet
limited-functionality camera.
it took a couple trips to see serena before i was ready to pick out my ring. a lot goes into a decision about a ring you'll be wearing for the rest of your life, a ring that's full of more symbolism than any other piece of jewelry. like my engagement ring, the band is also an antique and it's also from the 1930s. i went in thinking i wanted a plain band, but it turns out they just didn't look right with my engagement ring. there were so many beautiful antique wedding bands to choose from, but the one i chose was the only one that looked right when paired with my engagement ring.
i love how when we make appointments with serena she calls it an appointment to "look at jewels", and after my ring had been resized she called to say my "jewel" was ready. so much prettier than the word "bling"!
we're headed to albany this weekend to look at tuxes for pat and to continue the search for his wedding band. we thought we'd found it, but the first plan didn't work out, so the hunt continues. we also may have found our centerpieces... we'll see.
it took a couple trips to see serena before i was ready to pick out my ring. a lot goes into a decision about a ring you'll be wearing for the rest of your life, a ring that's full of more symbolism than any other piece of jewelry. like my engagement ring, the band is also an antique and it's also from the 1930s. i went in thinking i wanted a plain band, but it turns out they just didn't look right with my engagement ring. there were so many beautiful antique wedding bands to choose from, but the one i chose was the only one that looked right when paired with my engagement ring.
i love how when we make appointments with serena she calls it an appointment to "look at jewels", and after my ring had been resized she called to say my "jewel" was ready. so much prettier than the word "bling"!
we're headed to albany this weekend to look at tuxes for pat and to continue the search for his wedding band. we thought we'd found it, but the first plan didn't work out, so the hunt continues. we also may have found our centerpieces... we'll see.
i just realized that today is our kindasorta 10 year anniversary.
a decade ago we decided to 'make it official' and officially started 'going out'. in 1998 that meant late night phone conversations and IM chats (which resulted in a curfew for me), lunches together in the choir room, holding hands in the hallway, afternoons at thacher park, weekends at the movies and on lark street, driving around in his honda listening to dave matthews and ben folds five, getting scolded by the principal for smooching goodbye outside the auditorium, and of course the proms and graduation parties.
(it's a good thing we're getting a new anniversary this year, neither of us are very good at remembering this one!)
update: pat remembered (and earlier than i did):
a decade ago we decided to 'make it official' and officially started 'going out'. in 1998 that meant late night phone conversations and IM chats (which resulted in a curfew for me), lunches together in the choir room, holding hands in the hallway, afternoons at thacher park, weekends at the movies and on lark street, driving around in his honda listening to dave matthews and ben folds five, getting scolded by the principal for smooching goodbye outside the auditorium, and of course the proms and graduation parties.
(it's a good thing we're getting a new anniversary this year, neither of us are very good at remembering this one!)
update: pat remembered (and earlier than i did):
(he's a good egg.)
i've said it over and over: i love the wedding we're planning. the
traditional ceremony that includes our own touches, our loving friends
and family, the classy but not stuffy reception, the little bits of us
we're bringing into it-- it's all just right. but i do have some
alternate wedding fantasies floating around.
without rules, with endless resources, with no limitations, and with guarantees of perfect weather conditions, our wedding could be....
-on
the dock at lake george.
reception is on the grassy area behind the beach (which is not one bit
soggy) surrounded by those strung bare bulb lights, guests are seated
at long picnic tables, food is grilled, there is corn on the cob and
lots of summery salads. there are bunches of wild flowers and lanterns everywhere. our favorite bands play their happiest songs. there are very clean and classy bathrooms nearby. the rehearsal dinner is a square dance on the beach. we've rented out the
entire association for the weekend, and no drama ensues. sunny weather
is guaranteed and it turns into a warm evening with no bugs. wish boats
on the lake at the end of the night. a midnight swim. a sail the next
day.
-looking out over the capital region from thacher park lon a late september afternoon, on that point of land where we saw a wedding take place once. i have a long veil that blows in the wind, out over the edge of the cliff. we take a ride on your dad's motorcycle (i wear the helmet over my veil, which blows behind us). the reception is in a pavilion that is decked out with paper lanterns and draped white fabric. there is bocce and croquet on the lawn. cuisine is mediterranean with perfect tomatoes and fresh mozzarella cheese. everyone wears sun dresses and summer suits with bright ties. we are allowed to stay after dark, there are fireflies and sparklers and strawberry shortcake for dessert.
-wedding ceremony is at st. mary's church in northampton. afterwards we lead our guests through town, to the reception at the hotel northampton. photos of us and the wedding party are taken throughout town (including, of course, crossing diagonally, beneath the calvin marquis, eating herell's ice cream, and listening to a street musician). reception music is provided by erin mckeown.
-another pioneer valley dream wedding: on the deck overlooking the river at the montague book mill. they actually do host weddings here, at the restaurant beneath the mill. the photos by the river and among the books would be amazing, as would everything about the setting.
-in geneva. ceremony in the hws chapel, reception in houghton house (cocktail hour in the sunken gardens). there is a silhouette artist on site- everyone receives a custom silhouette to take home. the gallery space features photos by us, our friends, and our families. all of our guests stay in the campus houses along the lake. we end the evening on one of the benches overlooking the water.
-black tie affair with the reception in the new york state museum, specifically
in the area surrounding the carousel
(in real life only
available to non-profits- or so they said 6 months ago). catered by
the gingerman, a jazz band plays, and there are gigantic preston
bailey-style flower arrangements everywhere. also, that old school photobooth and a cotton candy machine.
without rules, with endless resources, with no limitations, and with guarantees of perfect weather conditions, our wedding could be....
-on
the dock at lake george.
reception is on the grassy area behind the beach (which is not one bit
soggy) surrounded by those strung bare bulb lights, guests are seated
at long picnic tables, food is grilled, there is corn on the cob and
lots of summery salads. there are bunches of wild flowers and lanterns everywhere. our favorite bands play their happiest songs. there are very clean and classy bathrooms nearby. the rehearsal dinner is a square dance on the beach. we've rented out the
entire association for the weekend, and no drama ensues. sunny weather
is guaranteed and it turns into a warm evening with no bugs. wish boats
on the lake at the end of the night. a midnight swim. a sail the next
day. -looking out over the capital region from thacher park lon a late september afternoon, on that point of land where we saw a wedding take place once. i have a long veil that blows in the wind, out over the edge of the cliff. we take a ride on your dad's motorcycle (i wear the helmet over my veil, which blows behind us). the reception is in a pavilion that is decked out with paper lanterns and draped white fabric. there is bocce and croquet on the lawn. cuisine is mediterranean with perfect tomatoes and fresh mozzarella cheese. everyone wears sun dresses and summer suits with bright ties. we are allowed to stay after dark, there are fireflies and sparklers and strawberry shortcake for dessert.
-wedding ceremony is at st. mary's church in northampton. afterwards we lead our guests through town, to the reception at the hotel northampton. photos of us and the wedding party are taken throughout town (including, of course, crossing diagonally, beneath the calvin marquis, eating herell's ice cream, and listening to a street musician). reception music is provided by erin mckeown.
-another pioneer valley dream wedding: on the deck overlooking the river at the montague book mill. they actually do host weddings here, at the restaurant beneath the mill. the photos by the river and among the books would be amazing, as would everything about the setting.
-in geneva. ceremony in the hws chapel, reception in houghton house (cocktail hour in the sunken gardens). there is a silhouette artist on site- everyone receives a custom silhouette to take home. the gallery space features photos by us, our friends, and our families. all of our guests stay in the campus houses along the lake. we end the evening on one of the benches overlooking the water.
-black tie affair with the reception in the new york state museum, specifically
in the area surrounding the carousel
(in real life only
available to non-profits- or so they said 6 months ago). catered by
the gingerman, a jazz band plays, and there are gigantic preston
bailey-style flower arrangements everywhere. also, that old school photobooth and a cotton candy machine. and in every scenario our guests are invited via custom letterpress invitations, anne ruthmann is our photographer, and our wedding movie is filmed by wes jones (super 8mm film...swoon).
