WE TIED THE KNOT!

That's right- I'm totally a Mrs. now!

After nine months of planning, the day came and went and, in the blink of an eye, we were ending the night drunk and married.

There are so many stories and photos and details I'd like to share here, but I know the blogging world is finicky and has a limited attention span. (More than two consecutive posts on the same topic? Blech, even I know that's boring.) With that said, I've limited myself to 35 photos and plan to keep the ooey-gooeyness to a minimum. 

VENUE

The wedding took place at The Glen Tavern Inn, a historic hotel built in 1911, located in the quaint town of Santa Paula. The hotel is rumored to be haunted- it was featured on the series Ghost Adventures- and was a hotspot for Hollywood stars John Wayne, Steve McQueen, and Harry Houdini.

If you're shopping around for a wedding venue and The Glen Tavern Inn is on your list, I would suggest you book ASAP. We had nothing but positive experiences with this venue. Monica, the Special Events Coordinator was super easy to get a hold of at all times, whether by email, phone, or text. She's very easygoing and accommodated us in every way that we asked for. I'm not exaggerating when I say that of everything I asked, not once did she say no to us. She's really a genuinely nice person and I hope to hang out with her in the future. 

WORTH NOTING: Although The Glen Tavern is already very competitively priced, they offer discounted packages for non-Saturday weddings. This venue is a one-stop shop: they have both inside and outside locations for both the ceremony and reception. They also do all of their own catering, which means one less vendor to keep track of. The hotel is on the smaller side with 36 rooms, which is great because it's kind of like renting out a whole hotel for your private event.

Ceremony location

From the front lawn of the hotel 

Main entrance

They will work with any cocktail specifics you have in mind. Our signature drinks were Pimm's Cup and John Daly, and we also had a hosted keg of Sierra Nevada, which Monica arranged for us.

Hotel lobby 

DECOR 
I kept the flowers simple with Baby's Breath for the table settings (and bridesmaids bouquets too). We had random leftover flowers from my bouquet, so they were included in a few of the table settings as well. All flowers were purchased from a local wholesaler and came to a total of about $150. Instead of vases, we went with mason jars- all from the $.99 store. I purchased burlap fabric, with coupons from Joann's, and used them as table runners. My mom and I scoured local fabric stores and bought yards of scrap lace, which added another layer and delicateness to the burlap. We also used tea light candles on each table (not pictured). My guess on the total cost for each table setting would be around $20.00.

Hotel lobby

Now for all the photos that make me smile goofy tears of joy and give me the ugliest happy-face you'll ever not see...

My husband

Already starting to cry like a boss

Pearl wore our rings on her necklace 

Hair and make-up for most of the bridal party were courtesy of Joey and Aaron, a beauty duo who were recommended by a friend. Joey works at M.A.C. and Aaron does full drag hair, which totally perked my interests right from the start. I figured, if he can make men look like beautiful women, he can hopefully make me look like a beautiful woman.

Full disclosure: I may have had a major minor major minor freakout about my hair 20 minutes before walking down the aisle, which resulted in bobby pins being launched across the hotel room. However, this was not because of anything the beauty team did, I just decided that I wanted to do my own hair. It all ended up working out in the end.

Also, the beauty package for both hair and make-up was only $85, which is UNHEARD of. You know how much a like a deal. (Feel free to message me if you'd like their contact info.)

I'd like to point out that my mom made my veil, which I totally loved for two reasons: 1) it's a meaningful, one-of-a-kind piece, and 2) it was way cheaper than buying one. (She also made all of the bouquets.)

WE DID IT!

Bridesmaids processional: Zebra by Beach House

Bride processional: Quelqu'un Ma Dit by Carla Bruni

Bride and groom recessional: Home by Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros

The bridesmaids wore different dresses, all purchased at the mall

Pearl was so happy for her dad  :)

To add a personalized touch to the gazebo, my mom made a pretty floral arrangement, using artificial flowers, that was attached to the top. The ribbons along the backside gave it a dreamy and delicate look and were very cost-effective.

Jewelry: Vintage necklace and earring set purchased on Etsy for $16.

Sisters

Music from cocktail hour:
La Femme d'Argent by Air
Que Sera by Wax Tailor
Here Comes Your Man by the Pixies
Feels Like We Only Go Backwards by Tame Impala
Yakety Yak by The Coasters

DJ

Paul Carganilla did a super job of making the necessary announcements and narrations, without sounding like a cheeseball wedding DJ. We only met with him once and both Eric and I felt like we'd made the right decision right off the bat. He wasn't put-off when I insisted on providing an exact list of songs that could be played throughout the day's events (I'm very picky about music) and he was even cool about jumping from song to song, as I requested them. Paul did a fantastic job and I wish I had more events for him to DJ. 

Pearl rocked the hell out of her grand entrance to Macho Man

Bridal party grand entrance songs:

Round and Round by Ratt

Sabotage by Beastie Boys

Bandages by Hot Hot Heat

Young Folks by Peter Bjorn and John

Gay Bar by Electric Six

Macho Man by The Village People

 Our grand entrance to Van Halen's Panama

Our official "First Dance" song: Midnight, the Stars, and You by Al Bowlly

(Bonus points if you recognize this song without Googling it)

Songs from reception:
Barbara Streisand by Duck Sauce
Sexy and I Know it by LMFAO
Dancing with Myself by Billy Idol
Danger! High Voltage by Electric Six
Me, Myself, and I by De La Soul
Sexy Chick by David Guetta
Scream and Shout by Will.i.am and Britney Spears
Mirror in the Bathroom by English Beat
Jump in the Line by Harry Belafonte

WEDDING CAKE 
I opted for five different cakes, instead of the traditional, tired wedding cake. I really love the eclectic style of having several smaller cakes and it seems much more homemade, which was a theme I wanted to keep throughout the wedding. 

Cake flavors: Strawberry shortcake, carrot cake, lemon bavarian, symphony cake, and fruit charlotte.

WORTH NOTING: Our cakes were from Viktor Benes Bakery. Because we went with single-tiered cakes, as opposed to a traditional wedding cake, the overall cost was cut significantly. I worked directly with the head baker, who was very accommodating and decorated the cakes with a simple texturized frosting, just how I asked.

Vintage cake topper: $15 on eBay

Bouquet toss song: She's a Lady by Tom Jones

Garter toss song: I Only Want You by Eagles of Death Metal

VIDEOGRAPHY
Eric happens to be friends with a film and video director, Jeremy Poindexter. Even though we haven't seen the final video production yet, we've gotten to sneak a peek at the raw footage and everything looks uber hip. I love it. I'll be sure to post it sometime in the future (right when you've forgotten about all this nuptial business).

PHOTOGRAPHY
We lucked out not only in being friends with a videographer, but also being friends with a photographer. Melissa Bergen and I used to work together and I had been lucky enough to see her work on several projects, from start to finish. I knew that she paid great attention to detail and had the same eye for editing that we had. So when it came time to pick our wedding photographer, it was a no-brainer. We had already seen her work with our engagement photos and were confident she would give us great shots. As you can see, she did not disappoint. Not only are her photos great, but she was such a pleasure to work with. (While watching some of the raw video footage, we could hear Melissa in the background telling us what a beautiful couple we are and how the photos were all coming out perfectly- really, she is SO sweet.) At one point, I remember asking if she wanted me to squat down a little for a particular shot. She quickly pointed out that I was the bride and that I should just relax while she works around me. Which you KNOW I was all over. A girl can get used to that kind of treatment...

Did I mention this whole wedding was under budget...?

A budget of $10,000, to be exact.

I KNOW, ISN'T THAT CRAZY?!?!

We are so proud of ourselves for making our wedding exactly the way we wanted it AND managing to keep it totally affordable. Sure, it took a lot of research and elbow grease, but that's pretty much par for the course with weddings, isn't it? In the end, it was perfectly us and the whole process was spent with great people.

I couldn't be happier.

(All photos on this post are courtesy of Melissa Bergen Photography)

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I Fell Off the Planet for a Bit, But I'm Back.

This post will be short and sweet (unlike my next post, which will be rife with photos and details of wedded bliss), but I wanted to share with you some exciting news...

This happened!

I KNOW! I STILL CAN'T CONTAIN MYSELF!!!

I will be sure to blog endlessly about it once I get around to narrowing down my photo selections. For now, just know that married life is good.  :)

(For those of you who already knew about this via my Facebook page, apologies: it's not exactly news anymore. But as you can tell, I'M STILL EXCITED!!!)

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Say Yes to the Stress of a Dress.

Since I'm sure all of you are losing sleep over my wedding dress frenzy, I'll let you know that I bought a dress.

The LAST dress.

And let me tell you, I'm very relieved that I can actually move on to other parts of my wedding. 

Like, oh, I don't know, PLANNING IT.

I spent the day yesterday with my mom and an old friend I've known since junior high. It was at the first store that I found my dress. When I first saw myself in the dress, it wasn't like those loco bitches on Say Yes to the Dress who start sobbing all over the place. I'm not that crazy. Instead, I looked at my reflection and thought "Ahhhh, this is it- It totally looks like ME!" Finding a dress that matched my style helped me to see that the other dresses I had tried on looked like a "romantic" version or a "sexy" version of me. I didn't realize it, but the dress I was looking for not a version of me at all. It was just me.

I sound like a nutball.

Anyway, I'm super relieved to have that behind me. 

Unfortunately, the stress doesn't stop there when it comes to wedding dresses.

The size I ordered just happens to be my exact measurements RIGHT NOW. And I'm praying I don't put on even an ounce because there's really no wiggle room. 

Also, the dress will only be arriving one month before the wedding. Which means I'm going to have to JAM if it needs any alterations.



Since I won't be divulging any hints about what my dress looks like because Eric reads my posts every now and then, I will give you a quick rundown of wedding dress features that I am not a fan of.

Disclaimer: This is totally just my opinion and I'm sure there are many beautiful dresses out there with these features. (But I just don't like them for my dress.)

CORSET BACK: Looks like a horse butt

PICK-UPS: Save it for Beauty and the Beast

JEWELS: They look kind of like cockroaches

SATIN: It's dated.

HALTER: Also dated.

BRIGHT COLOR ACCENTS: Just no.

GIANT BALL GOWNS: I don't mind smaller, lighter versions, but this is just silly.

THESE THINGS: I don't even know what they are (mutant pick-ups?), but I don't like them.

Are there any features you'd like to add to the list? Do you disagree with my critique and think that satin is to die for?

Feel free to chime in!

But if you say anything that directly insults my dress, I reserve the right to delete.

Just kidding.

Sort of.

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You Will NEVER Guess What Happened This Weekend...

Friday night, Eric and I had plans to see The Shining at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. We had both been looking forward to it as we both LOVE The Shining and an actual showing in a theatre is not something that happens everyday. We left home early and spent time walking around The Grove. For anyone not familiar with the LA area, The Grove is an outdoor shopping mall where celebs are always spotted. In fact, we were walking next to a couple who (apparently) was famous and a TMZ photographer was trying to strike up a conversation with them.


We admired the sights...

And enjoyed the sounds...

We ended up in The Farmer's Market, which is a labyrinth of covered, outdoor food vendors. There were LOTS of places to choose from and it was kind of overwhelming.

We decided to take a break and have a drink at one of the vendor's stalls, 326 Bar. Eric ordered Golden  Monkey, a Belgian ale. I ordered a chardonnay because I felt like being fancy. We struck up a conversation with the female bartender, who had a booming voice and looked like she would be a contestant on Chopped. We were having a great time, hanging out, talking about anything and everything.

And then something amazing and unbelievable happened...

ERIC ASKED ME TO MARRY HIM!!!!!

! ! !

And, of course, I said YES.

We hugged and kissed and I asked him a million questions about the whole thing. I was SO surprised and had no idea it was coming, so naturally I wanted to know all of the details. It turns out, he had consulted with two very important people the night before: My mom and Pearl. He got the thumbs up from both and decided to pop the big question while we were out seeing one of our favorite films. He was originally thinking he would ask me in front of a light exhibit at the museum, but we were having such a good time at The Farmer's Market, that the mood struck him and he went for it then and there.

With tears of joy in our eyes (and a swollen red nose from crying), we told our new friend, the bartender, about our new relationship status. It didn't take long before everyone at the bar knew and were clapping for us.

Time flew by and the next thing we knew, we had to book it if we wanted to make it to the film on time. We snapped a couple of photos on our way out to commemorate the moment and made our way to the museum.

We made it with a few minutes to spare. And then we watched The Shining.

And took pictures of the light exhibit on our way home.

And celebrated with Pumpkin Spice and Chocolate Sprinkle cupcakes at 12am.

And that was my weekend.

I am SO happy. My life has been so much fun and so little stress since Eric and I met. If we had decided to stay boyfriend/ girlfriend forever, I would have been totally fine with it because I felt like I had already won: I didn't need to get married to have the best partner. So the fact that he went out of his way to surprise me with this special moment means even more. Plus, he gets mega points for proposing in the middle of a food haven.


Did I mention we're totally engaged???

:)

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