elephantine

our wedding {part five: dessert + goodnight}

As I mentioned before, after dinner, Stefan and I snuck away briefly for a few more portraits. And where did we go? The roof of the restaurant. Talk about a cool place to escape to.

For those of you who asked, yes, we did meet in elementary school. Kindergarten, actually. In second grade we played footsie during a root beer float party at our school. In fifth grade I gave him a note with an embroidery floss bracelet and instructions to wear it if he agreed to be my "secret boyfriend". He did, but then accidentally lost the bracelet. The summer before our senior year of high school, we went on our first official date (mini-golfing and a Woody Allen movie). Our wedding day was our nine year anniversary.

You might recognize these cake toppers that I spent forever making. They were absolutely perfect for the mini cake that Canlis made us.

We cut the smallest slice of cake ever seen, and fed a bite to each other.

Besides our itty-bitty wedding cake, we also had a dessert bar with crème brûlées, berry tarts, and chocolate covered ice cream pops. There was another table set up nearby with coffee & tea.

Even though we didn't have dancing, there was music playing the whole night. Our playlist was a mix of old and new songs, like i'll try anything once, i can't help myself, heart skipped a beat, blue moon, cherry blossom girl, blackbird, and fade into you.

Right before our photographers left for the night, a group of us took over the bathroom so I could get a few shots reclining on the chaise. That's right – there's a chaise in the bathroom! I tried to look poised while the rest of the ladies looked on.

Then the night was over, and we left happy and exhausted.

Thanks so much for letting me share all these photos! Before I go, I want to thank our amazing vendors and share a few sources. (Also, a big thank you to 100 Layer Cake for featuring us.)

photography: JL Photografia
venues: Ballard Locks for our portraits and Canlis for the wedding & reception
food + cake: Canlis
my outfit: J.Crew dress (the Gracie gown), Nine West pumps, earrings from my aunt
my hair & maid of honor's hair: styled by Erin Hunt
stefan's outfit: Hugo Boss suit, Calvin Klein shoes
officiant: my uncle
flowers: bought in bulk from Marigold & Mint and arranged ourselves
decor: manzanita branches from Blooms & Branches, floating candles from Quick Candles
paper goods: designed + printed by me
photo guest book: fujifilm INSTAX 210 camera, handmade guest book by Linda
engagement ring: Erie Basin

our wedding {part four: the dinner reception}

After the ceremony was over, everyone was seated for dinner. We had six tables and assigned seating, so I made simple escort cards and laid them on square trays filled with more black river rocks.

Each table had a trivia card with questions like, "What did Rachel give Stefan in fifth grade, which meant that they would be secretly dating?" (Answer: a woven bracelet.) Some people read it to themselves, and other tables turned it into a group activity.

Our flowers were bought in bulk from Marigold & Mint and arranged the evening before the wedding with the help of a few friends & relatives. It was simultaneously fun and stressful. (Rufus, who destroys my house plants, was banned from the kitchen that day.)

Remember a long time ago when I blogged about our favors? They doubled as place cards, and were put in the middle of each place setting. A menu was also tucked into each napkin. On the back of the menu was an illustrated timeline of our relationship.

Ahh. The food. Below: spring greens salad, forest mushroom risotto, watermelon gazpacho, and filet mignon.

When dinner was over, there were toasts, and then Stefan and I snuck away for a few minutes...

...for a mini photo shoot, which I'll share in the final wedding post. (Also coming up tomorrow: dessert!)

our wedding {part three: the ceremony}

Having a cocktail hour was fun, but soon it was time for the big moment. Our ceremony space was decorated with two vases filled with black river rocks & large manzanita branches, and behind that, three dozen floating candles on the window sill. A program was placed on each chair, embellished with ribbon.

We spread the word that it was time for the ceremony, and our friends & family started to take their seats.

My uncle was our officiant – he became ordained just for us! If you have the opportunity to have a friend or family member officiate your wedding, do it.

We walked down the aisle to the instrumental version of Please, Please, Please Let Me Get What I Want by The Smiths. First Stefan escorted his mom, and then he was followed by his brother...

...followed by my best friend, and then me, with my parents.

And there we were. Getting married. Our ceremony was short, sweet, and simple. I pieced together our script from other ceremonies that I found online. I also worked in a little Shel Silverstein – "Marriage is playing hug o' war instead of tug o' war."

We had two readings during the ceremony: from A Natural History of Love ("...love has altered the flow of history, calmed monsters, kindled works of art, cheered the forlorn, turned tough guys to mush....") and The Little Prince ("...if you come at four o’clock in the afternoon, then at three o’clock I shall begin to be happy...")

At the end of the ceremony, we exchanged rings, I do's, and a kiss...

...and then we were married!

Again, all the photos were taken by the ladies of JL Photografia. Coming up tomorrow: the dinner reception!

our wedding {part two: the cocktail hour}

After our portraits, we headed over to Canlis. From the start of planning our wedding, we knew we wanted two things: a small guest list (around 40 people) and great food. Having our wedding and reception at a restaurant was the perfect answer. And, bonus, Canlis has an amazing view of Lake Union.

Reasons why we had a cocktail hour before the ceremony: it allowed our friends and family to mingle, it was an excuse for hors d'oeuvres, it created a buffer for anyone running late, and it gave us enough time to take family portraits outside without making anyone wait around.

Mmm. Aren't these the cutest mini quiches? I could eat a hundred of them.

Here's a little peek at the bar sign that I designed, and stir sticks that I ordered from here.

And here's one of the family portraits taken outside, with my grandmother.

During cocktail hour, besides eating and mingling, our friends and family also signed our photo guestbook. We had a table set up with childhood photos of Stefan and myself, a Fujifilm INSTAX 210, extra film, an instruction card, and a beautifully handmade album by Linda of One Fine Dae. Guests signed the book with silver Sharpie pens and slipped their instant photos into the photo corners that I had pre-placed on the pages.

If you're wondering if that's a photo of me crying hysterically and my family laughing at me, well, it is.

All these photos, of course, were taken by the ladies of JL Photografia. Coming up tomorrow: the ceremony!

our wedding {part one: portraits}

Hi, friends. This week I'm sharing photos from our wedding, starting with our portraits. We shot these during an hour at the Ballard Locks. Stefan and I chose the Locks because it has lots of variety: a botanical garden, huge trees, a few sculptures, the water, and old buildings. Our photographers were awesome at giving us direction and making it a fun experience. (All photos by JL Photografia.)

My dress is from J.Crew (the Gracie gown) and Stefan's suit is Hugo Boss. I loved my dress – it was light, comfy, and didn't even need to be altered.

Yay for black wedding shoes! (And I only semi-tripped once. That's almost a miracle, considering I never wear heels anymore ever since I started working from home.)

Above is a section of the actual locks, which are used to move boats from one water level to another. When a boat is coming through, you can get stuck on one side. And yes, that happened to us.

When you're all dressed up like this, it's inevitable to get stares from other people. But, I mean, don't you stare at brides & grooms walking around in public? I do.

I was surprisingly relaxed on the big day. I think it's because I worried about everything so much in the months leading up to it that when the actual day came, I had used up all my worrying. (Okay, joking. The secret to being relaxed on your wedding day is to focus on enjoying the day. Things can go wrong and it won't ruin your wedding. I promise.)

Alrighty. Enough portraits; let's get over to our wedding venue. Coming up tomorrow: the cocktail hour!

+

Guess what? Next week I'll be posting about our wedding. (Ready for lots and lots of photos?) I've been wanting to share our big day for almost five months, and am thrilled to finally get to.

See you back here on Monday!

a wedding teaser

Our amazing photographers just posted a couple teaser photos on their blog. Hooray!

sealed with a kiss

Hi guys. Thanks so much for all your sweet comments. Our wedding was everything I could have asked for. I'll wait to recap everything until our photographers send over photos. I'm also thinking about writing a "things I learned" type of post sometime soon. Reading other people's advice while I planned our wedding was tremendously helpful, and I want to share some thoughts of my own.

In the meantime, let's get back to regular posts, food posts, and mixtapes. Woo!

(Above is a photo of our centerpieces I quickly snapped after we arranged the flowers on Sunday – a mix of white and pink roses, sweet peas, mint, and a few other greens.)

tomorrow...

...we're getting married. Married!

Today I'm arranging flowers (with help, of course!), wrapping up a few last minute things, and then we're heading off to a BBQ that my future brother-and-sister-in-law graciously offered to host. I have the hardest time sleeping the night before big events, so wish me luck getting some zzz's tonight.

Have a super wonderful Monday.

our DIY favors

I have one more DIY wedding project to share with you guys: favors. Originally, I wanted to give out egglings, but it would've cost too much, and as Stefan pointed out, the guys probably wouldn't care for it. So we opted for food favors. More specifically, mini jars of wildflower honey and mini jars of greek olive oil.

Supplies:
- 2 oz hex glass jars and matching lids
- sticker paper (for the labels)
- cardstock (for the name tags)
- hole punch (I used a heart-shaped one from Martha Stewart)
- 1/8" black ribbon
- honey and olive oil

How to:
1. design your labels and name tags, and do a test print before printing all of them
2. clean the jars and let air dry
3. fill the jars (not TOO high!) and twist lids on tightly
4. apply the sticker labels, peeling the backing off gradually so it's easy to readjust the sticker if needed
5. tie black ribbon around the top and thread through the hole in the name tags. knot twice and snip ends.

(Looking for more wedding posts? Here's our ring pillow, honeymoon plans, cake toppers, and invitations.)

10 days...

...until the wedding day.

Planning a wedding, big or small, doesn't come stress-free. I am a worrywort, and I can't stop myself from having thoughts like: what if people forget to come? What if they're bored? What if it's raining and we can't take photos in the park? But I know that even if everything goes wrong, it doesn't matter in the end, because it's all about the getting married part. And there will be no Runaway Bride moment.

After the wedding, I'll start working on food videos again. Yesterday I made a yummy margherita pizza from scratch. I also recently made fresh ravioli with spinach and ricotta. If there's something you really, really want to see in a video, leave a comment. I would love to hear your suggestions.

(The photo above is sort of what the table centerpieces will look like, except there will actually be a number in that table number stand, and the flowers will look totally different.)

Have a happy 4th of July weekend!

our DIY ring pillow

Okay, I lied when I said that wedding posts were done for the week. For those of you who cringe at the sight of these, don't worry, your regularly scheduled programming will return soon....

So. The ring pillow. Why are good ones so hard to find? Almost all of them are frilly and expensive. This is my DIY version. I bought the felt from Felt On The Fly (pure wool felt cuts cleanly and is thicker than regular felt), cut out two 6" squares and sewed some felt leaves on, then added a few tiny translucent seed beads for "sparkle" (these are the same beads I use on the me and you necklaces). The pillow is stuffed with fiberfill, which looks like a hovering cloud in the photo below. Weird, right? It reminds me of one of my favorite movies.

Hope you're having a nice weekend.

le voyage de noces

Just one more wedding-related post for this week, okay?

As you may have guessed from the title and the gorgeous photos above – which are from here and here – oui, we're going to Paris for our honeymoon!

We'll be there in early October for five days, staying in a rental apartment in Le Marais. We don't have an itinerary yet, and I'm sure it will be hard narrowing the choices down because there are so many things to do. Some things that I have my heart set on: the Louvre. The Eiffel Tower. A Seine River cruise. Notre Dame. Jardin des Tuileries. Sacré Coeur. And, of course, lots and lots of macarons and baguettes and café au lait.

Have you ever been to Paris? Do you have any favorite pâtisseries or hidden gardens?

our DIY cake toppers

Last night I finished painting these mini versions of us for the top of our wedding cake. We aren't having a traditional cake – it's going to be small, because there will be a selection of other desserts, too – and originally I was just going to put a fresh flower on top and leave it at that. But then I saw these and these and was suddenly dying to make my own.

It took forever, but it was fun. I haven't painted anything in a really long time. If you want to make some for yourself (or as an awesome gift for someone), here's what you need:

Supplies:
- blank wooden couple from wunderkind
- 1/2" mushroom button from s is for supplies (for the bun, but you have to saw off the bottom)
- super glue (for attaching the bun)
- acrylic paint
- various small generic art bushes

Tips & Tricks:
- sketch all the lines on first with pencil, paint over them, then erase any leftover lines after the paint dries
- paint in layers – for instance, I painted stefan's white shirt first, then the tie over it later
- you don't need every paint color in existence – learn how to mix shades to make new colors
- use the tip of an x-acto knife to scratch away any small mistakes

our wedding invitations...

I've always had my heart set on a wedding invitation with multiple parts to it. (I've also always had this fascination with things that contain several smaller things, like matryoshka dolls.) Our invitation is made up of three flat cards, printed on both sides: one is the actual invitation, another has important details and a detachable RSVP, and a third has a map & directions. Then there's the RSVP envelope and the mini calendar reminder for guests to put in their day planner or on their fridge.

Whew. Can I just say that I'm glad we have a small guest list?

I wanted the invitations to feel personal to the recipients. The whole "suite" is held together by a band that I reverse-printed each invitee's name on. When the band comes off, it reveals the "Love, R&S" on the first card.

On the back of the first card is the actual invitation. The fonts are Whitney and Cyclone.

The directions card is a smaller, purse-friendly size. Maps are not my favorite thing to design, but I'm happy with how it turned out. On the back are detailed directions.

The last card has the nitty-gritty details and the RSVP, which can be detached. It's hard to see here, but I lightly perforated the "detach here" line with a tracing wheel.

On the back, there's a quote from A.A. Milne, aka Winnie-the-Pooh's author ("Some people care too much. I think it's called love.") and then there's a few lines for guests to write a note to us, if they'd like to. As we're getting these cards back in the mail, it's definitely making them more special to receive.

And here's the miniature calender that I gave you guys a sneak peek of a couple weeks ago. It's meant as a reminder, but a similar design could easily be used for save-the-dates.

Ok, so we're not actually inviting David Bowie. (I wish!) I printed the mailing & return addresses directly onto the envelopes, added a little bit of gold washi tape, and used my favorite stamps. Et voilà!

a sneak peek...

Mini calendar? Check. The smallest part of our wedding invitations is done. (And I found another excuse to use my favorite gold stripe washi tape.)

if you've been wondering...

I guess I haven't shared many wedding updates, have I?

Okay, my bad. But I did buy a dress that I love. (I should probably stop trying it on so much.)

To be honest, there isn't much else to show. Everything is still in progress, or in bits and pieces. Our invitations aren't quite ready yet. (I'll share them after they've been mailed.) This week I'm meeting with a florist to order bulk flowers. Next weekend we're hoping to buy wedding bands.

If I had any advice to give? Don't feel like you have to do something just because it's what you're "supposed" to do. Our guest list is barely over 35 people. We're having the ceremony and dinner at a nice restaurant. We don't have a traditional wedding party; we just have a maid of honor and a best man. We asked a relative to officiate the ceremony. We're not tossing a bouquet/garter, ordering a big wedding cake, or making a grand entrance. (Not that any of those things are bad, but it's just not us.)

There's only about two months left until the wedding. Not only will it be our wedding day, but it will also be our 9th anniversary of dating. Crazy, right? I was too impatient to wait until our 10th year ;)

wedding flower practice...

Did I ever mention that we're going the DIY route for our wedding flowers?

Scary, I know.

I don't know very much about flower arranging, but I do know that there are a lot of things to consider: what flowers are in season, their color and texture and smell, the shape and size of vases, floral foam and flower frogs and tape grids...

I figure the best way to learn is to practice. Take my Valentine's day flowers: gorgeous as is, but the inside of the vase looks kind of boring and yucky. So I pulled everything out, plucked and tossed anything brown, and cleaned up the stems:

...then I took a new, smaller vase, filled it with glass pebbles and water, and started arranging. I started with greenery first, then added in the flowers from largest to smallest. It's kind of like getting an entirely new bouquet.

I think the stems look nicer all straightened out, don't you? (Okay, good, one practice session down, many more to go...)

our save-the-dates

I recently checked one thing off the long and daunting wedding to-do list: save-the-dates. I knew I wanted to do something typographic, but then ended up creating little illustrated versions of us to use, too. We don't really have "wedding colors", but I like the palette of soft pink, charcoal, and green. The envelopes were addressed with silver pen. (Return address and some text have been changed.)

JL Photografia + Our wedding photographers

I'm sure some of you have been wondering, "Hey, aren't you getting married? Where's all the updates?" Well, planning has been going slowly. Which is okay. Slow is fine. But today I do have something to share: we booked our wedding photographers! When I found Janet & Lisa of JL Photografia, I was completely smitten with their photos, and I can't wait to work with them. Here's a little taste of their work.

Anyway, I hope you have a lovely weekend...

love + marriage

So...

after seven and a half years together...

we're engaged!

(My ring is from Erie Basin & I love it.)