Beth & Mark
October 27, 2007, Carrboro, NC






Menu
How We Met
The Proposal
The Ring
Planning Photos
Venue
The Major Players
The Dress
Wedding Party Attire
The Ladies
The Gents
Hair Ideas
Flowers
Decor Ideas
Pre-Wedding Parties
Vendors

How We Met, May 2003:

Mark and I went to rival colleges; I went to UNC-Chapel Hill and he went to NC State.  We met at my UNC theatre group's end of the year party.  Poor Mark fell in love with a Carolina girl and never recovered :)
We started dating about a year before he graduated and he soon moved to NY to go to grad school at NYU.  We were long distance for two years and were finally reunited after I graduated from UNC and moved up.  Being in the same state is much much easier!!


The Proposal, June 7, 2006:

This is a story in two parts:

I. At Beth's graduation, she asked Mark to sit on the Davie Poplar bench at UNC and kiss her; he refused and she was a little upset. (For those who are unfamiliar with the bench, it is said that the person you kiss on this bench will be the one you eventually marry)

II. Beth had just moved to NY seven days before. Mark took Beth to their favorite restaurant for their three year anniversary. By this restaurant there is a statue that spells out LOVE. It was rainy and cold and Beth just wanted to get home. Mark stopped in the rain by the statue and asked the cold and irritated Beth for a kiss before they went home. She gave him one and expected him to start walking... but he didn't. He began to tell a story. He said "you know, this statue is kind of like the bench at UNC... if two people kiss by it, they will get married." Beth told him that he was making it up, but then he asked her to marry him. She said yes, but didn't think it was the real thing. Then he pulled out a beautiful ring and she was so happy she couldn't do anything but kiss him. Then they went home, watched hockey, and called some very excited family members.

The Ring:



This is my lovely titanium e-ring... it's super super light!

Planning Photos:

Venue, Century Hall in The Carrboro Century Center:



The outside of The Carrboro Century Center from the parking lot (please disregard random car!)



The inside of Century Hall.  This is where we will have both the ceremony and the reception.  We will be married on the stage and everyone will be seated at round tables throughout the entire thing (my FMIL and me in the pic).



The columns are cool but they're going to require some working around with the tables (Again wonderful FMIL and me).

The Major Players

The Girls



Me (squeezee) and my Maid of Honor Meredith (squeezer)



Erin, my Matron of Honor and FSIL and Me at a friend's bachelorette party



Me (in the middle) with Bridesmaids Ashley (left) and Kamla (right)



Me and Little Meredith, my sister and a Bridesmaid

The Boys



Paul (the Best Man), Me, and FI



The cutest picture ever!  FI (far right) with Brothers/Groomsmen James (left) and Matt (center).



FI and Rich, a Groomsman



Funny: this is the only non-group picture I have of Marc, a Groomsman!

Little Helpers



FI's cousins are the cutest kids ever!
From Left to Right: Weston (Ring Bearer), Hope (Flower Girl), Delaney (Guestbook Attendant), and Reagan (Flower Girl)

The Dress:

So my grandmother is actually making my dress because a) I've dreamed of her making it my entire life, b) I couldn't find a whole dress that I loved in any store, and c) she's a super awesome seamstress! (I lucked out there).  So the below pictures are of the inspiration dress...



Instead of strapless, my dress will be a sleeveless V-neck...



My dress will not have the bows and buttons... that's just not my thing.  Instead, we'll carry the beaded appliques around to the edges of the train.  Also my dress will have a deep-V back.  The dress shown is Demetrios Illissa 902.

Wedding Party Attire:

The Ladies:



They will be wearing this halter dress in Maple.  It is After Six A6279.  We ordered them from Burlington Bridal Mart for way cheaper than I saw them here in NY.

The Shoes:
Abaete Flavin at Payless

The Jewelry:

Tiger Eye & Pearl Leverback Earrings from Overstock.com.

The Gents:



Mark, his groomsmen, and our Fathers will be wearing this tux from Menswearhouse.



The same shirt for all the gents.

       

Groomsmen and Fathers will be wearing this vest and these accessories... they will be wearing the tie on the far right that FI and I bought them... the shirt shown with the tie is not the shirt they will be wearing... I stole it out of FI's closet to get a better picture :)



This is Mark's vest... I'm not sure if we're actually going to use the white tie or not... TBD.



Here are the accessories we booked for Mark... however, I think I may be purchasing him some nice cufflinks to wear instead of these for his wedding day present.

Hair Ideas:



My hair really isn't that long so it may look like a poodle when we try it!  I suppose we'll just have to evaluate it at the hair trial.



Another similar hairstyle from a friend's wedding.

Flowers:

   

This is what I'm going for with both my bouquet and my bridesmaids bouquets.  The first picture is from Charlotte's first wedding in Sex and the City... the second is Fi's brother at a friends wedding trying to eat the BM's bouquet :)

We're going to do all white roses for this... and we're getting them at Harris Teeter in Cary for really really cheap!  We're not big flower people so simple is good :)

Decor Ideas:



This will be the centerpiece... with a brown pillar candle in it.  This is on FMIL's table with her runner and tablecloth... that's not part of the wedding decor :)  FMIL has been collecting these for us for a while now!

Pre-Wedding Parties

Engagement Party:



The entrance to the engagement party FI's parents threw for us.  It was "Broadway" themed.



The cake FI's mom baked for our party.  His parents did an awesome job with everything but I'm surprised they didn't take more pictures.  This is pretty much all they took!

The Bachelorette Party:

The girls came up to me in NY for the Bachelorette Party.  We played games that Friday night, went shopping on Saturday, and went clubbing on Saturday night.  It was a blast.



Me, Hallie, Meredith, Erin and Kamla before getting ready to go out Saturday night.



At the club with our flashing rings :)

Bridal Shower:

My family threw me a bridal shower in NC so I flew down for the weekend.  We had a great time and everything was gorgeous.



Opening a gift... I think it was one of the crockpots :)



Here I am opening super soft towels... my cousin Sandy recorded all of the gifts and I had a great time picking on her spelling... which is even funnier because she's a teacher :)

Couples Shower:

Mark's Aunt and Uncle threw us a fantabulous boy/girl shower on their deck in Apex.



Mark and I opening gifts.



Mark and I with our silly bride and groom glasses :)

Vendor Info and Reviews:

Location: Century Hall in The Carrboro Century Center  B+
The space was perfect for what we envisioned for our wedding.  However, the event manager was never to be found when we needed him the day of.  The tables were positioned very oddly when we arrived even though I gave a very clear diagram of where I wanted the tables..  They adjusted it some, but it was still a little off.  THe lights in the space did not dim which caused a few glitches with the DJ.  Overall it was worth the money, but I wish that the event manager had been a little more attentive.

Caterer: Visions Catering  A-
I was a little skeptical when I began working with Visions.  I had heard mixed reviews about them from former clients but we decided to go with them because they were the most able to accommodate our wishes in our price range.  There were only a few issues that I had with them.  THey were kind of hard to get in touch with (I had to email them a few times before I'd get a response).  Also, when they showed up, they didn't have ice or ice containers (which were suppoesed to be included in the setup fee).  They quickly remedied this, but it was a snag nonetheless.  Overall, they were extremely attentive during the reception.  They fixed my and Mark's plates for us and brought it to our table, and the bartender periodically would come over and ask if we needed any drinks.  The exceptional service more than made up for the communication issues.

Rings: Titanium Workshop  B
We had no issues with our wedding bands.  They were very inexpensive and arrived quickly.  With my engagement ring, however, we had issues from day one.  A few weeks after Mark proposed, my diamond came loose in the setting.  We sent it back to Titanium Workshop and they remade the ring (which took 6 weeks).  When they returned the ring to us, they sent it to the wrong address even though I included it in my request.  When I finally got it, the diamond came loose again within two weeks.  I sent it back again, and again they got the address wrong.  When I finally got it back it was good.  It has been fine for over a year now.  They were just really bad with getting the address right and with taking forever to get it back to me.

Cake: Assali Desserts, Apex, NC  A+
Our Cake was absolutely beautiful and exactly what we wanted.  Hanadi was very easy to work with and the cake was absolutely delicious.  We had a white cake with vanilla buttercream frosting and raspberry and chocolate ganache filling.  I highly recommend Asali Desserts!

Flowers: Harris Teeter  A
I ordered very simple flowers.  The bouquets were only white roses and the stems were wrapped in ribbon.  They gave me exactly what I wanted and they were very inexpensive.  I didn't really care about the flowers so this was an awesome option for me.

Photographer: Jen Lee Photography  (pending)
Overall, I think Jen did an amazing job.  The pictures that I have seen of the wedding are awesome and I can't wait to get the proof CD!  However, there are a few things that I wish had gone differently.  In all of the pictures, there is not a good one of the train on my dress.  I don't blame her; I really should have requested it.  Also, she was not one for "wrangling" people which is part of her style.  I like that she is a photojournalist, but there are always a few portraits that should be taken at a wedding.  She has been very fast to get things to me and her work looks great.  Overall, I would highly recommend her.  I just wish I had been more specific in my requests.

DJ:  A+ DJ  A-
Phil is the owner and he was very accommodating to our needs; however, he was a little hard to get up with at times.  Communication was definitely a little spotty.  That being said, the DJ that did our wedding, Derek, was awesome.  We got compliments all night about how great the music was and several people asked for a "soundtrack".  I would definitely recommend him.

Tuxedos: Mens Wearhouse  A
They were an obvious choice for us as we had groomsmen spread out across the country.  They were very easy to deal with and it's always nice when the Groom's tux is free!

Invitations:  American Wedding  A
I adored our invitations!  They were exactly what we wanted.  American Wedding was pretty affordable.  The only issue I had with them is that they used the first initial of my first name on the RSVP cards instead of my middle initial (as I go by my middle name).  That was easily remedied though.  They immediately reprinted them and had them out to us.

My Dress: Grandmother :)  A++++++
It was everything I could have hoped for :)

Bridesmaids Dresses:  Burlington Bridal Mart  A
I never actually stepped foot in the store.  My MOH tried on the dress at another store and BBM was cheaper.  I ordered over the phone and the dresses came in super quick.  My only complaint is the dress sizing.  One of the BM dresses was wayyyy too big even though we ordered by the correct measurements.

Hair and Makeup:  Margo Williams  A-
Margo did an excellent job on my hair and makeup as well as on my BMs.  The only complaint I have is that she did not show up with bobby pins so one of my BMs had to run out and get them for her.  She also ran a little late on our hair so I was a few min late getting to the site for pictures.

Honeymoon:  Aventura Spa Palace  A++++
It was seriously AWESOME!!  Everything (drinks and food) was included and the resort was absolutely beautiful.  The staff was extremely friendly and honeymooners got special bracelets which gave us 10% on everything in the shops.  I want to go back! :)