Reception Program/Menu

As I was researching wording and styles and such, I also found that people do programs for the reception as well!...  I'm still not completely sold on designing yet another thing...though I did like the idea of having something with an outline of the reception and something with the menu...but I'm almost wondering if I could do something on a folded sheet of paper for each table, maybe attached at the bottom with ribbon to prevent it from falling over...  I'm envisioning a tented card with the menu and schedule of events...maybe two per table?...  At the same time, I don't want to overload the table with STUFF.

 

Here's the information for the menu side:

 

Cocktail Hour

Assorted (fruit/cheese/crackers) - (we actually still have to work this out with the reception venue)

Eggrolls

 

Dinner

Thai Beef Salad

Green Curry Chicken

Thai BBQ Chicken

Drunken Noodles

 

Dessert

Wedding Cake

Strawberry Victorian

Triple Creme

Carrot Cake

 

With each item I'll probably include a brief description (mostly for those people who haven't had the Thai food and want to know what's in what)

 

 

As far as the reception program side:

 

Introduction of the wedding party

First dance

Father - Daughter dance

Mother - Son dance

Grace

Dinner

Tea Ceremony

Photomontage

Toasts (Groomsman, Maid of Honor, Yam Seng?)

Cake Cutting

Dancing, Dancing, Dancing

 

We still need to talk with the DJ about our song selections, but that will be another post I'm sure...

 

Revised Ceremony Programs

So I've rearranged the program to be more book style rather than the elongated sheet from yesterday.

I'm trying to decide between three names centered or aligned to the initials.

I'm also trying to decide whether or not to keep the inner pages together or to cut them apart.

If they're stuck together I have to tie them on with ribbon or something.

If they're apart, I'll punch the corners.

Ceremony Program

So, in an attempt to put together something that others can help me with before final crunch time, I've started designing the program for the church ceremony.  There are thousands and thousands of designs out there: multi-paged, multi-folded, funny shaped, be-ribboned creations.

Upside down creation

I want to keep our design fairly simple - one page (if double sided).  I'm debating the use of ribbon (because that means someone is going to have to tie these ribbons!) vs. a square with our initials gluing the two layers down. Another ribbon option sans the tying of a thousand little bows would be like the second picture, where it's pulled through to have two loose, but not necessarily tied into a bow. In such an instance the loose ends would be much shorter, probably where my finger is pinching the ribbon.

Bow option

Loose ends option

I'm partial to two layers as I've always liked the vellum paper (as anyone who has seen past invitations I've made can tell you) - hence the need for the ribbon or paper anchor.  One design I've come up with has the wording printed on the vellum, over a white cardstock with our initials printed in the center.  I've also bought a corner punch with various designs to cut out of the corners of the white page. 

Initials under the vellum

Corner that I like the most

Corner option 2

Corner option #3, although not done correctly...wasn't centered when I punched it...

I'm also playing around with a no vellum option.  It would have our initials at the top, then the wording underneath with the corners cutoff to avoid being too plain.  The colors of the no vellum option would be mostly purple, as the cardstock would be on a purple base.  The hint of teal would be in the initials at the top of the page. 

Before I can complete the programs, I would also have to figure out the songs and such for the ceremony, and I would have to know the schedule of events ... unity candle, bouquet for Mary, etc...

Feathered Frenzies

So I wanted to finish the bracelet and the headband today.

Unfortunately, the feathers are proving a little more fractious than I anticipated... I can't seem to get them to stay flat, or rather they're too flat -to the point if dicing straight out when I need then to curve around the bracelet into a nice, tame cuff of eyes.

I also need to scrounge up the black it dark brown head band that would camouflage into my girls' hair better than the reddish tortoise shell one that I currently an using for my prototype. 

I also have decided feathers never again as all the little hairs and now all over, despite a good sweeping.

To add more to my plate...

So I've been playing around with the idea of these tissue paper pom poms to hang from either the trees or the strings used for lights above the grassy area (where the tables would be).  I'm not sure if they would still look okay even without the lanterns with them...

The poms are pretty easy to make; I watched a video with Eddie's cousin the other evening.  All I need is different colored tissue paper (anywhere from 8-14 sheets depending on how puffy I want them) and a pipecleaner to bind it together. 

I thought that the poms would be a nice addition of color and flowery shapes to the garden (which I fear pales in comparison to the gardens at the Huntington Library that we saw on Saturday).  I think I'd go with purple, teal (if we can find it) and white pom poms - each pom one color, not multicolored poms.  I'm pretty sure I can go to Kohls and get a few packs of the colorful tissue paper to try it out.  I just need some pipe cleaners from Michael's or Joann's.

They have arrived...

This little package has 400 feathers?

Tada!

One down three to go

This and that...

So I played around with the Adobe Premiere Elements, the movie making software program... I'm def. not feeling this photomontage...  I think I'm going to say we need to go with Alex on this.  If I had more time...or maybe I'm just feeling all my creative juices SAPPED from these clutches and the jewelry that I'm thinking of for the girls' accessories. 

Some of the invites have been sent out.  We're waiting on those "We're registered..." cards.  I've sent the invites out to the relatives who will probably be giving us ang-pows anyway.  We're still waiting on a few addresses from Eddie's side of the family too...we had them at one point, but can't find the paper that had all the addresses written down...

I brought my dress down for Pris ee ee to take  a look at what beadwork we could do to disguise the um... suggestive flowers.  :)  We're going to add more beading to the neckline so as to detract from the high concentration of beading in two particular places.  But to do so, I need to find the correct beads...which I went to Joanns and did not find what I was looking for. :(  I might have to make a trip out to the Garment District again.  Which would be fine with me, as I now have some particular beads that I'm looking for to make a bracelet with peacock feathers.

Mum, Pris ee ee, Joy ee ee and I also went to a baking shop on Beach and La Habra to look for bags for the favors...  The concern was that the bags that I had already bought were too small to fit the sugar cookie AND the pineapple tart.  Also, I think Pris ee ee just wants to make it look prettier too.  :)  We decided on 1 lb Cello bags...though they still might not be quite the right size for the favors...I guess we just have to keep looking and trying it out. 

Graphic Genius

I'm super excited about the invitations!!  Uncle Mike has been working on some designs and sent the rough drafts for us to look over yesterday.  They look FABULOUS!!  I just hope the rest of the invitation lives up to his designs!!  Tossing around the idea of a real peacock feather on the invitation...not sure how it would look with the decorative lettering in the front, but getting ideas from Uncle Mike and Pris ee ee.  I almost don't even want to post the drafts because I want everyone to be blown away when they see it all put together :) 

Wow! My family is so super awesome!

The progression of our invitation

Shinoda Floral Design

After dropping off Marianne and Candice at John Wayne, Margie ee ee brought us to Shinoda Flora Design , a wholesale floral design warehouse with rows and rows and aisles and aisles of all things floral.  I was mostly interested in pricing more vases, but under the direction of Margie ee ee, quickly found myself steered towards picking flowers that worked and getting something together that we could put together and work with beyond thoughts in my head.  I wish I'd taken more pictures of all the different things we saw here! 

Here is the final product from our travels today:

I think the height is good enough not to block people's views and hopefully there isn't too much stuff to catch the wind to be knocked over.  Or Pris ee ee said we could always use earthquake putty.

Centerpieces to fill my time, and yours...

Because I can't sleep... and I'm trying to fill my time... (what in the world am I going to do when I don't have a wedding to plan???)

DIY Invites

I made an invitation modeled after the one we had liked from before.

I'm thinking of asking Uncle Mike with help on the lettering. And will use the same style for the programs etc. If not Uncle Mike, maybe Pris ee ee or Luke?...

I have another idea for an invitation kinda taking shape in my mind. When we were at the Wedding Expo over the weekend, Eddie saw a custom invitation that had a piece of tulle sticking out of it, as the veil on a bride (it was the back of a bride and groom's heads; they were sitting in a car and the wording on the invitation had something to do with a journey together or on the road to something or other). He liked the dimension it added to the invitation...so I have some tulle and now need some ideas how to incorporate it into an invitation...

DIY 4 Lyfe... hahaha

Comparison for size

I'm so proud! It doesn't look too bad! And it was only $3. If you look closely you can see the joinings and such...but hey it'll be low light and who's gonna be checking out the centerpieces? Except for the people that I'm going to brag to, "Look what we did!"