The Final Fitting

In just 3 hours I will be putting on my gown for (hopefully) the last fitting before the big day. Please, oh please, tell me that...

... the last year of working my butt off at the gym has paid off
... my mom will give me even the slightest positive "Ooh" when I come out of the dressing room
... That my BMs keep their cool - 'cause if they lose it, I'll lose it LOL
... I didn't accidentaly spend the balance for the dress on something else. I'll soon find out when I go to the bank to pull out the money.
...I still love my dress as much as the first time I laid eyes on it

Amen.

Trash The Dress?

I love how this trend is becoming more and more popular! Pretty pictures of a bride the Big Day is lovely. But wicked cool pictures of a bride in lush forest is awesome! I haven't decided yet whether I'm going to do a TTD shoot after the wedding, mostly because I have to somehow convince the Office Groom...and my mom that this would be a good idea! I wonder if I could convince them if I showed them a few samples of other risk taking Brides like this...


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...or this...


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...ok, maybe not this...


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The trend is is becoming so popular that CBS did a segment about it earlier this week.

So tempting!

Bustin' my a$$ to find a Busta Box

Busta Boxes, aka Wedding Card/Money Boxes, are not easy to find in Toronto. At least, not one that isn't over priced or shaped like a Cinderalla pumpkin carriage complete with plastic horse...not that there's anything wrong with that.

Office Groom's mom offered to rent one for us but when she told us that it would cost $50, I figured I could find something more affordable to buy. So I began my search at Etsy, where I found one beautiful box after the other. My favourite was from NY Etsy artist Ellen of BWITHU. She can customize boxes with a variety of sizes, shapes, colours, and fabrics. FAB! It didn't take me long to fall in love with this one:


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The colours worked perfectly, I loved the silver detailing, and the price was affordable. So where does this perfect match made in Craft Heaven end? When I discovered that to ship it to the Great White North would cost an additional $25 US. Le boo (That's "Crap" in French).

My co-worker who sits beside must have noticed my search and eventual fail because she told me about her own Card Box - a Martha Stewart design from Wal-Mart.

Whaaaaat?!

Searching for it on-line wasn't the easiest, so my co-worker stepped it up a notch and brought hers in today for me to borrow! Ok, so I'll admit that for a split second I had a Prissy Bride moment and thought to myself "But I want my OWN box!! Waaaaah!" But then I snapped back to reality and realized that I was stressing over a BOX (how many times have I written "box" in this post, geez?) and I was happy again :)

Clothes Shopping After Work = Big Mistake

Especially when you're lugging around a laptop bag and the entire population of the Toronto seems to have chosen to shop at the same store as you and preceisly the same time. I know I live in the most populated city in Canada...but GEEZ. Where did all these people come from?!

You might recall my excitement about getting an H&M card as a bridal shower gift from OG's office. Well, in usual Office Bride fashion, I wanted to use it right away and somehow convinced my better half that going to the mall afer work was a good idea.

Nope.

The extra luggage and the crowd didn't help. But the worse thing was I didn't find any of the pieces I found online. BOOOOOOOOO! Apparently not all of the Fall/Winter clothes have come in yet. What a disappointment. I refused to leave empty handed though, so I did pick up a cardigan and a leopard print top (it's all about animal print this season!).

I hate bad shopping experiences, lol. Hopefully next week will prove to be a better one.

Office Bridal Shower - H&M Gift Card

AND...inside the card was a gift certificate for H&M! Wooohooo! OG and I were told we could pick from any store, so we figured why not get something that wasn't in the wedding budget? And now we can get a few new outfits for our honeymoon!

Oh, and why didn't anyone tell me about Fashion Studio on the H&M website?! OG and I perused the site last night to start thinking of some outfits when we discovered this way cool program. You can pick from a range of different models and then piece together outfits from head to toe. SO. MUCH. FUN.

I often have a problem with buying a piece but not having anything to wear it with, so this solves the problem! Here are a few outfits I put together, using a few repeat pieces.







Looking forward to some free shopping next week!!

Office Bridal Shower - Crafty Card

The awesomeness didn't end there. One of OG's co-workers asked a crafty friend to make a card for us that was signed by the whole office. How cute is this?



She used one of our engagement shots that we posted on Facebook. And how's this for a weird coincidence? The mastermind behind the card, The Scrappy Stamper, is a classmate of mine from university! Weeeeird! I'll definitely have to blog more about her in the future!

Office Bridal Shower - Blue Cake

Just got back from The Office Groom's work, where his co-workers organized a shower for us! There was so much awesomeness invovled in this shower, I think I'll write several posts.

Although it wasn't a suprise, I was genuinely in awe of how thoughful a gesture it was. The entire...and I mean ENTIRE office gathered in the common room and OG and I stood at center stage while his very cool boss embarrassed us LOL. We did a quick game of Marriage Prepatation (we had our backs to each other and had to answer questions about who is more likely to--fill in blank). Then everyone enjoyed some yummy blue icing cake and within seconds everyone was sporting blue teeth grins. Love it!

Engagement Photos Can Actually be Fun

That's what the Office Groom and I learned when we did ours a week ago. We hadn't planned on doing any but when our good friend Wendy who is currently taking photography lessons asked us to be her guinea pigs in exchange for free photos, we figured, why not?

And we are so happy we did them! Not only did she take some amazing photos...

... It gave us the chance to get the photo shyness out of the way before the big day.
... We were able to be more "ourselves" and take less traditional shots.
... We now have really nice photos of us in everyday clothes and locations.
... We learned what our "best sides" are and what we should do more of / less of (eg. I will avoid tucking my chin in).

So, without further ado, here is just a sample of what took place. We walked around The Annex and took photos of us doing everything from kissing, joking around in a playground, dancing, reading, and more kissing :) If you're wondering about all the back shots, it's just to keep up the secret identity for a bit longer! And if you're interested in more of Wendy's photography, you can check out her blog!

Stealing a kiss in our secret garden path


Book Smooch (For our Book Theme!)


Peek-A-Book


Taking a stroll in our neighbourhood


We love to dance

Busy Bride!

So busy that I missed my very first entry yesterday :(

Hmmmm, let's recap this week. In the midst of assignments and meetings at work (and man, was it ever a busy week at work!), I...

...Got in contact with a friend about limo rentals. Man, limos ain't cheap!
...E-mailed our pianist for the ceremony about our requested music
...Designed and printed custom menus for our Rehearsal Dinner
...Purchased my mom's gift from Etsy. She's gonna love it!!
...Purchased the last of our ring bearer's gift, also from Etsy. 4 words: "Lord Of The Rings" HA!
...Starting researching where to rent or buy a money box (any suggestions are greatly appreciated!!)
...Sent out Thank You cards to all of the lovely ladies who attended my bridal shower
...Hunted down my passport in our currently messy home office, to apply for our marriage license today! WooOOOoooOOOO!

Phwef! So, needless to say I haven't had much time to be bored this week.

I am soooo looking forward to some down time with Office Groom tonight!!

The Countdown Begins...

I've been plugging away all day here at work, trying to get a few projects under way so that there's nothing outstanding next month. And then it suddenly hit me. NEXT MONTH! Holy Crickey, our wedding is exactly one month away from today!

WooOOOooOOoooOO!

Obviously I'm excited for the big day itself. But I gotta be honest. I'm also excited with the idea of not having to plan for this day anymore, and have some sense of normalcy back in my life. Is it bad to admit that?

Don't get me wrong. The planning has been loads of fun! And all of the special attention that the Office Groom and I have had (for the most part) in the last few months was really nice. However we've been planning this wedding for more than a year and half, and we got a lot of stuff done in the first few months. Now it just feels like we're tying up the loose ends, and man will I be happy once it's all done!

One month to go...YAY!

Hair & Make-Up Trial

Le sigh... having a four day weekend was lovely, but man is it ever hard to get back into work mode!

I had a VERY eventful weekend...I had my hair and make-up trial on Friday afternoon, my bachelorette on Friday night, and then 2 days of recovery following that LOL.

While I'm oh-so-tempted to go straight to the party stories (oh man, they're GOOD), today's post is about my hair!!

while I go to a salon regularly to get my hair cut, it had been a while since I got it professionally done up. Seven years in fact, for my brother's wedding! I also wear little to no make-up on a regular basis (years of acne prone skin back in high school has given me a HUGE appreciation for my now-clear skin so I like to keep it natural). So I was pretty stoked to get all doll'd up for my trial.

The magic happened at Busy Beauty, a salon opened and run by an old high school friend named Julia. Even as a teen Julia had an eye for fashion and make-up, and it was no surprise when she decided to pursue it as a career after school. The great thing about her salon is that it's built from her home and it's only her, so it was really intimate and I got her undivided attention. I also got the most awesome makeover ever! For the overall look, I asked her for something "soft and romantic." Check out the beautiful hair style she came up with!!!



I wanted to do my hair trial on the same day as my Bachelorette so that I'd be all doll'd up (I got so many compliments, I felt fabulous!) and I could also test it out. It was a success :) I can't wait to do it all over again on the big day!!

Why Am I Sweating The Small Stuff?

I spent almost 30 minutes at Essence du Papier today during my lunch, staring at a wall of guest book options. I kid you not. STARING. I picked up one book and looked it over on all sides. And then I put it down and picked up another book.

I debated everything from size, colour, traditional write-in, or photo. The sales people probably thought I was some crazy homeless lady dressed up decent just looking for a place to stay cool from the outdoor heat. Sigh.

And then... when I FINALLY made my choice (a photo guest book with white paper), and headed back to the office... it was only about an hour afterwards when I started to doubt my choice.

WTF? In my head I could hear my sensible side telling me to "Take it easy - it's just a guest book!" However it was having to compete with my more emotional side who wanted me to "Put real thought into this, because after all, this is your WEDDING GUEST BOOK!!"

So, like a madwoman with a split personality, I picked up the shopping bag and made my way back to the store. And it was only after I had exited the elevator that I realized I forgot one of the items on my desk.

ARRRGH.

I took that as a sign from the world that I should go back to my desk, live with my choice, and actually get some work done.

A friggin' guest book. Who woulda guessed? lol

Bridal Shower - Games

It's the age old tradition of getting your favourite ladies together and then watching them embarrass themselves while they try to wrap toilet paper around themselves in an effort to design a wedding gown.

Bridal Shower Games... Some love it...some hate it. The latter is mostly because you are forcing women who don't know each other to play games together like it's a big girl birthday party. But done right, everyone can have a good time!

I haven't been to too many showers in my lifetime so far, but I learned a few things about bridal shower games after my special day. My ladies did a really good job of comming up with games that (a) were not wasteful (b) were not too difficult or embarrassing (c) did not have to involve everyone at once (d) had a nice reward at the end of each one.

The first game was "Dress The Bridesmaid." Only four (un)willing participants were needed and each were given a Barbie doll, some tissue paper, tape, and glitter. It was a lot of fun to see what the ladies came up with. Some were, um, "creative" while others came up with dresses I would actually wear!



The second game was called "Dress The Bride" and the same rules applied. I was in charge of choosing the winner for both games, and for this one I made my decision based on the fact that the doll itself looked like me lol.

The last game was my favourite. It was a custom made BINGO game designed by one of my bridesmaids, and each block contained a wedding related word or something from our registry. While I opened presents, the women played a round. I thought this was a great way to pass the time while lucky ol' me opened up the gifts, instead of everyone just sitting there and watching me.



I think my ladies did a fantastic job of keeping everyone entertained and ease the tension of not knowing one another!

What kind of bridal shower games did you have?

Bridal Shower - Yummy Eats!

Last Sunday my lovely ladies organized my Bridal Shower! Although it wasn't a surprise that they were putting this together, what they had in store for me was kept a secret. The festivities took place at my brother and sister-in-law's house, which was the perfect size and look for a party like this. There was so much to take in, and I'll definitely have to write more than one post about the day, but the first thing I wanted to write about was the yummy FOOD!!!



It was the first thing that caught my eye when I entered the house. The dining room table was covered with amazing sweet and savoury treats, all prepared by my bridesmaids, my mom, and aunts. Tea sandwiches, strawberry cheesecake, Rice & Mango "sushi", fruit bouquets, shortbread cookies - there were SO many choices! I also loved that there were several cultural influences present at the food table, which was a good representation of what I grew up with. And um, yeah, of course I tried at least one of everything :)



My friends spent the entire previous evening preparing the sandwiches and treats, and my mom was up until about 4 IN THE MORNING putting things together! I was so overwhelemed by the labour of love that was put into the food. And by the end of the day I was stuffed and happy :)

Sweet Berry Wine!

Tonight the Office Groom and I are having some friends over to do a wedding wine test! Woooooo!

Luckily for us, our venue will permit us to bring our own alcohol (with the purchase of a liquor license) which means that not only are we not paying bar prices, we can also return any unopened bottles after the wedding. Although the latter is kind of unlikely if I consider all the "Oh man, I'm getting LOADED at your wedding" comments we've been getting lately lol.

Hard liquor is a no brainer, but the wine is a bit of a challenge since it's being served during dinner, and we've got a few wine snob friends (love you guys!). So tonight, we're picking up a few different brands, all recommended to us by friends, and we're going to have ourselves a little par-tay!



Sweet berry wine here we come!

Cough....Sneeze...Ugh!

A combination of the summer heat and running around like a chicken with its head cut off has now resulted in a cold. Ugh! Being sick in this heat is NO fun, especially when I have dinner plans tomorrow and bridal events this weekend!


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Ah well, hopefully this will mean I'll get it all out of my system before September!

Excuse me while I go grab a tissue.

The Dreaded RSVP Check-In

Ugh. I know it has to be done. How else are we to know how many to expect and what each guest wants for his/her meal?

But I still hate having to call people to get an answer from them! Why oh why could the RSVP date on our invite not be enough?! I know that delayed responses can be for a number of reasons - figuring out work schedules, pending events, etc - but let's be honest. For the most part, it's usually because people forget or think to themselves "I'll get to that later." And of course, "later" turns out to be 2 months later.

Sigh...so far, the RSVP check-in has been going well. People don't seem at all phased that I'm calling them up to confirm their attendance - sigh of relief.

But I still hate doing it, LOL.

Made With Love

This past weekend my mom and I went to Montreal, my birthplace and childhood home, to visit my grandmother. I really wanted to see my grandmother before the wedding, since she will not be able to attend due to her physical condition. It was so nice to spend time with her, and at 90 years old, she is as quick as she ever was :)

Another reason for the visit was so that she could help make our ring pillow. My grandmother was an amazing seamstress in her younger years, and I have her to thank for all the many beautiful dresses and awesome Halloween costumes I had when I was a kid. Thankfully her hands and eyes are still very strong, so she was able to be a part of the wedding in a small but meaningful way.





There were moments of nostalgia, sitting with my mom and grandmother while they sewed and spoke in filipino, their native language. It reminded me when I was a kid sitting by them, anxiously waiting for my new custom made outfit to be ready to wear :)

I'm admittedly sad that she can't be there on the big day. She has been a HUGE part of my life, practically a second mother who raised me. But I can also understand that travelling such a far distance would not be easy for her, and I wouldn't want to put her through that. I'm just so happy that I could spend that time with her, and on the big day when our little ring bearer walks down the aisle, he will be holding a token of my grandma's love in his hands :)