Summer Blog Awards

The summer award season has officially kicked off in wedding blog world!

If you’re not familiar with Wedding Channel’s annual blog awards, they’re a great opportunity to give kudos to some of your favorites in a ton of fun categories. I definitely have at least one or two I’ll be entering!

 

Also, Aisledash.com is accepting nominations in 12 creative areas. Head over to the website to nominate up to three standouts!

When you read a wedding blog, what always keeps you coming back for more?

(Graphic Credits: Wedding Channel & Aisledash.com)

A Bicoastal Wedding Gown Takes Flight

Planning the wedding was fun. The stressful part? Lugging my Alfred Angelo gown, altered just in time for us to leave town, across the country through three airports. Today, my husband shares his recap story about the infamous bicoastal wedding dress.

Looking back, I’m thankful Heather chose a light wedding gown, or at least a dress lighter than some of the crazy 80-pounders she’s pointed out on Say Yes to the Dress. After carrying the dress all around the Chicago O’Hare terminal, if it had been any heavier, I don’t think I would have survived.

Not only did the weight of the gown pose a problem, but the shear size of the garment bag made it incredibly difficult to carry, first through security at Reagan National in D.C., then all around the Chicago airport, and finally upon arrival in Los Angeles. Escalators, doorways, and even trying to find a place to sit down in a crowded airport became so much more tedious with a wedding dress in the picture.

Leaving D.C., I hadn’t yet seen the dress, and I wanted to try my best to avoid seeing it before the wedding day. But even though its bag was opaque, I could ultimately see some details when it was backlit. The most noticeable part was that there was a dark sash, although I couldn’t tell what color it was. However, at that point, even Heather was resigned to the fact that there simply wasn’t any alternative.

Though we were flying first class and had been relaxed at the beginning of the day, a cancellation, a couple gate changes, and another delay had us frazzled sooner rather than later. Once on each plane, there was thankfully a first class closet available in which to store the dress. But unfortunately, even this space was not large enough to hold the gown without folding it.

In the end, we made it through the trip without any damage to the dress, and I also got a great workout. But it sure wasn’t easy, and it got our wedding week off to a pretty stressful start!

Will you or did you travel with your wedding gown? Is yours a heavy dress, whether carrying it or wearing it?

(Photo Credit: Personal Library)

Post-Wedding Adventure: More Weddings?

With our own big day now behind us, it’s time for me to…keep focusing on weddings! Surprised? Not me!

You see, weddings are one of my biggest passions, and I’m not ready to say goodbye to this exciting world now, or maybe ever. I’ve already got a few wedding-related projects up my sleeve, including the one I’m about to reveal.

The thing is, although I’ve thought before about wedding planning, offering advice here and there, I haven't yet taken the plunge by getting any type of actual certification or professional training. But that’s about to change, because starting tonight, I’ll be on my way to receiving a planning certificate through the community college system in our area.

Where will this take me? I don’t exactly know yet. For all I know, the program could be a major bust, reiterating everything I already know. But I’ve told myself that this is just a starting point, the very beginning of a dream, and that I’ll follow my heart and my gut in deciding how to take the next step.

Because I believe that when we fail to try, it’s impossible to succeed. And when we’re afraid to fail, we hold ourselves back from what we could potentially achieve. So, instead of being afraid, I’ll choose to try.

Have you ever taken a step toward following a passion, not knowing where it would lead?

(Photo Credit: Google Images)

Gorgeous Gifts Galore!

Our honeymoon cruise was without a doubt one of the absolute best weeks of my life! Between the beautiful islands, amazing excursions, and (of course) sharing it all with my groom, I was on cloud nine the entire time. But in the end, it was also the generosity and thoughtfulness of our friends and relatives that helped make the trip so special.

You see, just when I thought our Honeyfund registry would be a total bust, gift certificates started arriving a couple weeks before the wedding. Not only am I touched by the incredible gestures from everyone who traveled to the celebration, but I’m especially blown away by the kindheartedness of those who couldn’t make it, but still put the thought into sending caring wishes our way.

And it wasn’t just Honeyfund that left us pleasantly surprised. We got lots of things off our traditional registries that were “wishful” items we thought might be too extravagant for anyone to buy.

But we got one of these…

And this little beauty…

And even enough in gift cards to check out these…

Have you been just as blown away by the love and generosity of your guests?

(Photo Credits: Target & Google Images)

Wish Upon a Wedding DC Launch Party

Of all the post-wedding projects I’ve got in the works, I can honestly say that volunteering with Wish Upon a Wedding DC is the most emotionally moving.

One of the key things that inspires my passion for weddings is simply the pure joy that they bring to the lives of all they touch. Weddings are at their heart a celebration of love and life, and Wish Upon a Wedding truly embodies that spirit, by helping those most in need feel that even in the face of the worst difficulties this world brings – including life-threatening illness – love powers on as something to cherish and celebrate always.

Next weekend on June 27, our chapter will join with others who share this vision at our launch party, a fun evening filled with food, enthusiasm and hope. If you’re in the D.C. area, don’t miss out on your chance to join us and help start the journey toward helping those in need. RSVP today!

Not local? You can still support Wish Upon a Wedding by making a donation or getting involved with a chapter in your area. Everyone deserves to share a lifetime of love, so let’s all do what we can, however small, to help make it happen.

(Graphic Credit: Wish Upon a Wedding)