Thankfully, I schedule most of my posts months in advance so I have still been going regularly over here.  And I can honestly say that the wedding recaps will finally be ending this month!  Five months after the wedding, I will be wrapping it up with a few more pics and videos to share with all of you as I finalize my memories of our big day.  Thanks for hangin’ in there with me.

Today, I wanted to share this cool little recap video that our videographer included in our wedding video (note that the song is not the song used in our wedding video, I had to change it due to YouTube copyrights).  It is a recap of the cocktail hour but I love it because it shows a few of the little details of our event, specifically the reception tables.  So after the video, I’ll share a bunch of photos as well:

Click here for link to video

One of the two door hangers that my sister made for our day:

Our Flip Flop basket covered in red silk fabric holding 72 pairs of multi-colored flip flops:

Reserved seat signs designed by Serendipity Design

Red chinese take out Favor Boxes containing little red or turquoise key chains with a 5 ‘ tape measure inside:

Place cards were tucked into the napkins with each guest’s name sticking out at the top.  The card was not a menu card but rather a list of activities and favors that we had available for the guests:

Cake table:  Our cake was made by a family friend and if you remember, Mr Fix It tried to recreate the stand from a professional picture we found.  It didn’t turn out the way we envisioned it but it was amazingly good!

Our Gift Card box was the one thing I did NOT want to sell but Mr Fix It said we didn’t have room for it in the house   So I took it to a wedding swap meet where other girls fought over it

A photo of my friend’s guitar which he played during his solo at our ceremony

I loved this simple poster board of our room layout which made it easy for guests to locate their tables when they picked up their escort cards.

Cocktail tables (without the pen holder and votives that were also on them):

I absolutely adored the way that my coordinators tied the linen around the high standing cocktail tables!  I had shown them a picture of what I wanted and they recreated it perfectly!!!

These Parasols were part of my gift to my BM’s…loved them in a few photos.

5 page Fan Programs designed by Serendipity Design

Gobo light

Kleenex tissue packs:  A last minute ceremony favor idea that I quickly threw together on the cheap:

Personalized water bottle labels that I designed and placed over bottles for our wedding party (unfortunately the photographer did not get a better shot of just how adorable these were…they had a custom ingredient chart on the back, too):

Our Unity Cross:

Each younger child (and some younger teens) place settings had a personalized menu under their napkin which had a word search, maze and even a scavenger hunt for the reception:

They also had a circus favor box full of goodies with a little thank you message label on it:

The label reads:  A basket full of treats and fun, especially for the younger one.  Color, draw or play a game…just have some fun, so glad you came!

I won a free print via blog giveaway months before the wedding and had this engagement photo printed on a canvas which we displayed on an easel next to our gift table:

Some of the many little signs that we place around the event for the guests’ convenience:

Photobooth table signs and baskets:

Our super cool and unique toasting flutes which I can’t wait to use on future anniversaries!

Share Time:  What was your most favorite detail, DIY item or decor item from your big day?

Unless otherwise noted, all photos by Robert Mullins Photography

What really impressed us the most about Malta was how set up they are for weddings. Weddings are big business in Malta, with the Maltese weddings averaging 400+ guests. Of course, most destinations weddings won’t necessarily be as big as that, but there are so many different options, no matter if it’s just the two of you, or everyone you know.

Malta is wedding island, and the best way to get value for money is to go for a wedding package, which will include your venue, accommodation and your choice of wedding suppliers like luxury cars, professional photographers, florists and more. It’s only a few hours away, everyone speaks English, there is a lot to do on the island and it’s great value for money. Everything you need for the best destination wedding, in fact – I can’t believe we didn’t think of it for our own wedding.

We toured some of the best 5 star hotels, villas and unusual wedding venues on our trip, so check out our video review and be inspired!

Wedding options

Of course, it’s Malta so you can take advantage of the sun and have a Mediterranean style beach wedding, but don’t stop there, there’s so much more you can do too.

The Grand Hotel Excelsior is a stunning 5-star hotel situated adjacent to the magnificent sixteenth-century bastions of Valletta. The outdoor terrace in particular is extremely popular for spectacular weddings and receptions, and the pool complex is gorgeous.

Hotel Phoenicia is a classically beautiful hotel founded in 1947. Frequented by stars, socialites and the crowned heads of Europe and boasting a large and romantic garden, this hotel is a beautiful place for a wedding.

The Hilton overlooks the fashionable Portomaso waterfront, and offers a unique underground entrance for a dramatic arrival by boat. It’s a beautifully versatile hotel with stunning restaurants, 4 outdoor pools, a grand ballroom and the Quarterdeck bar terrace.

Another unique option is to rent one of Malta’s many private villas for an intimate and exclusive gathering. Villa Arrigo is a stunning private property with beautiful dining rooms, outdoor gardens with olive trees and hanging lights.

We also recommend the gorgeous Corinthia and Radisson Blu hotels in St Julian’s Bay, and we visited some Catholic church options too, so check out our recent reviews.

Make your wedding dreams come true in Malta, and if you’re still not convinced you can, we’ve got some bonus footage of our magical week in Malta! See video on the original post.

For me, finding the right dress was not just about the dress that I cried in when I saw myself, it wasn’t the dress I always pictured myself in. I had other things to factor into my decision that although unimportant for some brides was very important for me.

Start from the beginning:

Back in Feb when I started trying on dresses I thought i was looking for a halter dress. I didn’t think strapless would be for me, but I was told by someone at Davids Bridal that with my chest size i shouldn’t pick out halter dresses, so I took her advice and I didn’t. Well I didn’t find any dresses there but I fell in love with a dress from the next shop we went to. And for the next 6 months I stayed in love with it, picturing myself walking down the aisle in it, it was perfect. Well the only problem was that i wish the beading stood out more

Factor #1: I wanted a dress that the beading stood out more

Another time I went with just my mom and let her pick out dresses she wanted me to try on. It is quite an experience dress shopping with my mom because we have opposite taste in.. everything. The best one she picked soon became her favorite but I still didn’t really like it. I hated the material it was so heavy and I had a lot of cleavage with this dress. But she would not give up

Factor #2: I really liked the tafetta material because it was lighter and I felt like I could move in it

Finally to the present time: I went dress shopping this past Saturday with my mother, FH’s mother, and my sister/MOH. The first appointment I made was at the shop where these two dresses were located and they were the first ones I tried on. I started in the first dress that I liked and I walked out still knowing it was the dress for me but the whole time everyone was ooo-ing and ahhh-ing at me in the dress my mom goes “Wait til you see you the dress i picked” “The dress I picked is better” “I still like the dress I picked” at that point I wanted her to leave, except she was the one paying for the dress so I put up with it. I put on her dress and I still hated it, I knew that was not the one but she would not stop going on about her dress, and it’s not even just me who liked mine over hers because so did the manager from the shop, my sister, and soon to be mother in law. I tried on 2 more that they picked out and I hated. Then my sister found a dress that was a little different than what I tried on but had what I liked and what my mom liked about a dress. I tried it on and loved it. It was a halter dress! The one dress that I tried on as a halter turned out to be my dress.

But I still couldn’t get the first dress out of my mind, and still today I can’t. But I learned there are more important things than just loving the dress to factor in.

Factor #3 : Price- The final dress was almost half the cost of the other dress, and that was important to me

The last dress I tried on, had a few things I didn’t like about it. It was a zipper dress and I was really looking forward to a corset to suck in my fat! I also wanted a little more crystal beading because it had mostly flower designs and sequins, I wanted something to shine more than it did.

Factor # 4: The dress was able to be customized to make a corset and add the beading just for me

How many times do you hear people say “But it is your wedding day pick the dress that you want not what everyone else wants”? Well that wasn’t going to work for me because my mother is stubborn and would never let it go, I could just imagine me walking down the aisle and her telling everyone around her “She would have looked much more beautiful in the dress I picked out”

Factor #5: It was the first dress both me and my mother mutually liked

It was such a relief to finally get my dress and I am so happy with my choice, I just cant wait to see it with the corset!
And here it is !!

Now the question is what kind of necklace would look nice with the halter ?

What were some of your favorite looks?

The more I read about these sassy shoots, the more I’m impressed by the number of women who say that although the session was first intended as a gift to the groom, in the end, it was a gift to the bride, instilling a greater sense of confidence and empowerment. Still, as a fairly modest girl, I’m not sure how comfortable I’d feel going before the camera for a shoot like this, or whether I’d be able to loosen up enough to allow the photographer to really capture the best shots.

What do you say, girls? Have you done a boudoir session, or is it something you’d consider? If so, what advice do you have for brides and newlyweds thinking about giving it a go?

So far, for me, I guess this is about as daring as it gets…

Invitations are an important step to set the tone for the type of wedding you intend to have, whether it is fancy, casual or something in between.

Nowadays, we have so much to choose from; printing techniques, paper style, colors, sizes, new trends….

The other day I was reading about a bride who is currently living in London and her wedding will be held in Costa Rica. To avoid any misunderstanding, she had invitations written in English and in Spanish. (Maybe a little too much??).

image credit: OhSoBeautifulPaper

As you know, Alfred Angelo came to the rescue at the last minute when I was on the fence about my original dress, and I quickly fell head over heels for a romantic mermaid silhouette with cascading tiers of lace, a gorgeous semi-cathedral train, and an elegant grape sash beneath the bust.

And earlier, while on the hunt for bridesmaid dresses that would flatter a variety of body types, my sister and I found the perfect formal and flattering grape gown, which featured white embroidery and crystal detailing on its sash.

(Photo Credits: Damien Smith Photography & Alex Neumann Photography)

When I took my six bridesmaids with me to a shop to try it on, I was so excited to see them all fall in love with it.  Perfect for our spring April wedding and to match our turquoise/aqua color.  Unfortunately, they all HATED it!  I mean, not just, “Uh, we’re not thrilled about it.”  But rather, it is totally unflattering…the bust is horrible…I hate the color…please don’t make us wear this, hated it!

I was so bummed.  But I wasn’t going to let the attire issue come between me and my girlfriends and relatives.  Then they started going on about how they didn’t like the blue colored dress and wanted to go with red instead (the other color of our wedding).  They said they would more likely wear red again and it would be flattering on all skin tones.  I was really bummed out about this because the blue was what I wanted to go with my color scheme!  The red was only the accent color.  So I asked them to show me some options of what they liked.  They came up with two choices:

Then my cousin realized that her very large endowed chest was not going to fit into this dress.  Again, the sales lady rescued us showing us another dress by the same designer in the same fabric and very similar style that held my cousin’s bossom in perfectly!    And much more flattering on her as well.

I later found out that one of my Bridesmaids actually wanted the dress in the blue color as well.  I had offered for all the girls to wear whatever color they wanted to when we placed the order but they all just went with red.  When I asked her why she didn’t go for the blue, she said she didn’t want to cause ruffles and be the only one different besides my daughter.  I told her I would have loved for her to be in the blue and I wish she would have spoken up!

And here is my little one in her dress from our post wedding shoot

I had great BM’s…they weren’t divas and didn’t have to do too much but were important ladies in my life.  I thought they all looked beautiful on the wedding day – some even better than me!   My stylist did great with their hair and makeup too though 2 of them did their own hair/makeup.  Can you guess which ones?

TODAY’S WEDDING TIP: If you are one of those brides who wants to let your bridal party be a part of the attire decision making process, then be sure to talk to each of your bridesmaids AWAY from the rest of the bridal party and ask for their desires and feedback regarding their choices and preferences.  They may be intimidated by other girls to truly be honest about decisions you want their input on.  And don’t we all want our friends and family feeling beautiful, confident and comfortable while they are celebrating our special day with us?

I have to admit, I was sceptical about this tour with the world famous tour group, Paddy Wagon. After almost seven weeks of touring luxury hotels around the world, how would I cope with the real world and…youth hostels!?

In fact, on our way to the airport a week ago for our Malta trip, we actually stopped at a red light in front of the Paddy’s Palace youth hostel and I said to Mark, “Remember, when we used to stay at hostels? Those were the days…!”.

When our boss told us that we’d be joining a 3-day coach and hostel trip with 50 others on a Paddy Wagon tour, I was a little daunted. However, the idea of getting to see more of Ireland and meeting some other people was pretty cool so we were well up for the challenge!

Well, I have to say that I’m completely won over. We had a fantastic time and in these recession times, it would be a very cost-effective and really fun holiday for the cash-strapped bride and groom. Definitely a honeymoon with a difference, but if you’ve ever wanted to see more of Ireland, then I can highly recommend it!

We joined the Ring of Kerry tour, a very popular tour visiting Blarney Castle (yes, we kissed the Blarney stone!), Limerick city, Slead Head/Dingle Peninsula, the Cliffs of Moher, Killarney National Park (with an amazing horse drawn tour of the park) and many cute little towns along the way for real Irish hospitality.

The very last tour is the Guinness factory tour, complete with a free pint of Guinness. It’s one of the best designed museums I’ve ever seen, really fascinating seeing the story behind this Irish success story.

The scenery along the way was simply stunning – the best of the “Emerald Isle”, incredibly beautiful mountains, cliffs, farms, parks, ruins, churches and quaint fishing villages. There were plenty of stops for photo ops too.

There are many other tours to choose from, from 1-day Dublin tours, to 3, 6 and 10 tours all over Ireland. There’s even a Christmas tour!

There’s some great extras as well – breakfast is included every morning, all entrances to the parks and other attractions, free wifi at the hostels and a free shuttle bus to and from the airport (14 daily departures).

The buses are immaculate, brand new Mercedes coaches painted a bright green with leprechauns all over them (very hard to miss!). The tour itself is fantastic – complete with a knowledgeable and charming Irish tour guide to really bring the tour to life.

The great thing about being thrown on to a bus with a group of new people looking to have fun is that everyone is up for the “craic”. Jokes, banter and songs keep the bus drives entertaining and anything can happen on the Guinness fuelled nights. Karaoke at the Randy Leprechaun Hostel near Dingle was a lot of fun, surprisingly there were some pretty good voices on show from the travellers and even a couple of locals. If you are up for it you can of course socialise into the small hours, the Irish are wonderfully charming, funny and welcoming, but unlike some tours the partying is not compulsory but definitely builds great camaraderie.

The hostels are what you’d expect, youth hostels are pretty much the same the world over. You can opt for a shared room to really get to know others, but if you’re feeling flush, spring for a private room and bath, or better yet upgrade to the luxury B&B option. We had the middle option – a private hostel room. The tour is exactly the same for each level of accommodation, and you still join the group for all of the entertainment. The only difference is that you sleep in a different venue, which will be really close to the hostel but might not be as noisy at night.

We even renewed our vows three times during the trip: at the Cliffs of Moher, at the Lough Inn in Killarney and at the Paddy’s Palace in Dingle. We also christened the new building next door with a bottle of champagne! Our great guide “Fitzy” and everyone on the bus really participated in our vows making them a lot of fun and very memorable.

If you are on a budget, then it would be a fabulous and fun way to celebrate with a lot of relaxed and travel-minded people. We met a huge variety, from Sam – the second year nuclear physics student from Arkansas, a gang of late twenty-somethings from Canada, a whole bunch of Aussies on their way to live in London and plenty of other interesting people of all ages from all around the world, even families and 50 somethings.

Thanks to the team at Paddy Wagon for taking such good care of us, giving us such a good time and always giving us the “honeymoon suite” along the way!

Wanna see me dancing like a leprechaun? Watch this video till the end…

Photo credits: Jessica Telo

Or at least, that’s the impression I got from this BBC article.  Specifically, the opinion of Rev Giles Fraser (Canon Chancellor of St. Paul’s Cathedral), who believes that modern weddings are nothing but a narcissistic show in which “the shoes, the dress, the flowers…” take priority over the actual ceremony.  He claims that committing yourself to your partner for life is lost amid the idea of being “princess for a day”.  He believes that extravagant weddings are “a threat to the marriage itself” and that naturally it’s all the media’s fault.

This is complete and utter bollocks.  Just once I would like to read an opinion piece that doesn’t scream BLAME THE MEDIA!  Can we please just assume that we are not feeble-minded sheep that want things just because [insert celebrity here] has them; can we instead assume that we want things because we like them?  And I can’t help but notice that statements like “princess for a day” means he considers this shocking affront to marriage as totally the bride’s fault.  Dammit ladies, how dare you buy pretty dresses!  As for the wedding being a threat to the marriage, I completely disagree.  I’d even go so far as to say the wedding has no bearing on the marriage- just like a great NYE party doesn’t automatically mean you’ll have a wonderful year.  Case in point: my aunt got married in a small civil ceremony at a local college, followed by dinner and drinks at my grandparents’ house.  It had a big emphasis on “look how much we love each other” and no emphasis at all on “look how much money we have”.  Four years later, and it’s not looking good, to put it mildly.  A small and understated wedding doesn’t guarantee a happy marriage any more than an extravagant celebration dooms the union forever.

Author and clinical psycologist Dr Oliver James agreed with Rev Fraser, saying “Women now place a higher premium on love… They are more prone to wanting to signify their importance to others through grand material displays.  Classic keeping up with the Joneses.”  He cited a study by the Institute for American Values (which states that in 1960, 40% of women said they’d willingly marry without love- a number that fell to just 15% in the late 1980s) as being “a tragedy”, because it was during this period that divorce rates started to rise. It’s not the media’s fault though, just our “shallow, materialistic culture”.

OUCH is all I have to say to the first statement.  I’ll give him props though, he didn’t imply the sexism like the good reverend, nuh-uh, he went and laid it all out there.  Kudos.  Dr James, just because you had that one girlfriend who turned out to be a golddigger doesn’t mean we’re all selfish money-grabbers, OK?  (Disclaimer: He may not have had the golddigging girlfriend, I’m just making an assuption based on his barely-concealed bitterness.  Bet I’m right though.)  Also, “shallow, materialistic culture”?  I’m not sure what planet he’s living on, but the one I inhabit still has a little bit of a recession going on- I’d be willing to bet that there are more DIY/CIY guides for brides now than there were 10 years ago.  We like nice things, especially at our weddings, but we make and pay for these things ourselves thank-you-very-much.  Then again, his views on the IAV study would seem to imply that marrying for love = bad because women spend far too much money on love even though it will inevitably end in divorce.  Or something.  Frankly, I’m beginning to doubt his credibility, not to mention his sanity.

Maybe I’m reading a bit too much into this, but it seems like the dress (and, by extension, the bride) has been held up as the symbol that we brides want it all our way, when actually it’s the polar opposite.  After compromising with our partners on the venue, the invitations, the guest list, etc. etc., the dress is the one thing that is completely ours to decide.  We pick the dress knowing that its sole purpose is to make us look and feel great, and we love it for that!  Although why the groom’s suit isn’t similarly regarded as a symbol of wedding decadence is beyond me.

Catherine Westwood (editor of Wedding magazine and no relation to Vivienne) provided a much-needed voice of reason, saying that “Actually, most people see it as a celebration.  If the celebration is throwing a big party and having that public declaration of love, then I think it should be treated that way.  [Rev Fraser] needs to modernise a bit and be delighted that people still want to marry.”  This woman is my new favourite person!

I’m thrilled to share these with you, first because of the wonderful job my fellow Wish Upon a Wedding DC board members and our wish granters did in making this a magical day, but even more so because it was a fabulous celebration of love and hope for the most deserving couple.

I hope you enjoy the video by Human Story Films, along with a few gorgeous images from Ed and Erwin’s “Wedding in White” celebration at D.C.’s historic Meridian on August 14, 2010.

There is so much to share about my trip, and also hopefully as a resource for future honeymooners, that I’ll break my recap up into a series of posts. This first one will focus on what we focused on most during the honeymoon… the food!

When planning the honeymoon, one of the questions we had a hard time answering was whether or not it was worth it to go to an all-inclusive resort. We priced out options both ways, and finally came to the conclusion that we would rather “rough it” in Aruba so we could go explore places all around the island, and not just what our hotel had to offer, without racking up huge charges. To anyone considering a trip to Aruba in the future: I highly recommend you do what we did. There are so many AMAZING places to eat around the island; you would really be missing out by sticking to the dining at your own resort.

The dining was one of the only elements of our trip that we really planned out when we first arrived at the hotel. We made reservations with the concierge for each of the places that had been recommended to us or that we had read about and wanted to try. Ranging from “authentic island cuisine” at Papiamento to grilled specialties at Pinchos, we had so many great meals I can’t even begin to describe all of them.

This post is going to focus on our favorite dinner, which is also a staple of any island honeymoon, the right-on-the-beach dining experience. There were several to choose from in Aruba, but based on a recommendation from our friends who also honeymooned in Aruba, we chose Passions at the Amsterdam hotel.

The first thing that was striking about Passions was the atmosphere. Between the striking effect of the sun setting over the water, and the beautiful straw umbrellas lined with sparkling white lights, it was one of the most gorgeous and romantic places I’ve ever seen. It just felt magical right as we stepped out of the cab.

Of course, I would never judge a restaurant solely on its atmosphere… and luckily, Passions held up to my first impression and did not disappoint in any other way. The food and the service were both amazing. And an added perk: to maintain the amazing romantic atmosphere and not ruin it with too much lighting, the menus lit up when you opened them so you could still read them! That was a big perk for my husband, who really likes shiny things. But I have to admit, I really enjoyed it too.

To top off an amazing meal, when we got the dessert menu we noticed that there was something called a “sparkling surprise” romantic dessert for two. It sounded way too fun to pass up, so we gave it a shot…

Not only was the presentation of the dessert spectacular, to top off a super romantic and amazing dinner, but the cake selection was AMAZING. There was a cheesecake, a key lime pie, and a passion fruit cake, served with strawberry and chocolate dipping sauces on the side. I couldn’t have imagined a better end to a better evening… I think this might have been the best dinner my husband I have ever shared together!!

Fellow brides- did you have a hard time deciding whether or not to choose an all-inclusive resort? If you’ve already been on your honeymoon, how did you feel about your decision either way?

If you haven’t been on your honeymoon yet but you have already decided not to choose an all-inclusive, I highly recommend that you take as many dining recommendations from former honeymooners as you can get… that’s how we found Passions

(Photo Credits: Alex Neumann Photography)

1. You will not get to sit back and relax after the proposal, even though you probably deserve to. A few days after we got engaged, J and I had our first discussion about setting a date. J thought a year and a half would be a nice time frame. My friend E reported a similar situation with her fiancee who suggested they wait well over a year to walk down the aisle. Another friend’s fiance admitted he thought they’d wait at least two years before even starting to plan their nuptials!

Guess what, guys? Slipping the ring on her finger is like pulling the trigger on the starting gun: on your marks, get set, get married! I understand that you just went through a lot of stress choosing the ring, planning the surprise and pulling off the proposal. We truly are grateful but quite frankly, you’ve given us an excuse to do a ton of shopping, crafting and planning and there’s no way we can wait. Honestly, we can’t. It’s in our DNA. Think of the little box that ring comes in as Pandora’s Box because once you open it, there ain’t no stopping the wedding planning.

2. You will discuss something about the wedding every day until the wedding. This will eventually make you grateful that you are not, in fact, waiting more than a year to get married.

3. You will be judged by the ring. “Let me see it!” Is what most ladies will say the first time they run into your gal after getting engaged. They’ll exclaim, “Oh, it’s beautiful!”or, “How do you hold up your finger? It’s so big!” or “Oh! It’s so bright. I need sunglasses!”

I know when you’re picking out the ring you’re only worried about her reaction, but you should also worry about the reactions of her mother, her best friend, her co-workers, her hairdresser, her bagger at the grocery store who asks if she prefers paper or plastic, and just about every other woman in her life.

4. You will be forced to watch a lot of wedding television: Poor J was not invited to attend my wedding dress shopping. However he has seen hundreds of brides try on and find their future wedding gowns thanks to the Say Yes to the Dress marathons that occur every Friday on TLC. (And now Say Yes To The Dress Atlanta! Southern women are crraaaazzy!) He’s also been forced to watch David Tutera, Battle of the Wedding Designers, Whose Wedding is it Anyway, and Bridezillas. Can somebody say estrogen overload???

5. No matter how crazy your future bride gets during the wedding planning, just remember: it could be worse. This is why I make sure J watches a lot of episodes of Bridezillas! Those hoes make me look calm, sane and rational. Bring it on!

Our first couple of days in Malta have been absolutely amazing and the hottest weather on our “honeymoon” so far.

We’re staying at the stunning Corinthia Hotel in St George’s Bay, coincidentally right opposite to where I stayed in 2000 on my first trip to Malta. The hotel is lovely, right on the bay and you can jump into the ocean from the rocks. The view from our room is spectacular, we’re actually blinded in the morning from the sun coming up over the crystal blue sea.

I can see why people want to come to Malta for their wedding and honeymoon, it’s really cost effective, the food is great, everyone speaks English and the weather is incredible!

Aaaaaand, breathe.

So, I’ve had very many ideas, now I’m just in the stages of working out which favours will be relatively cheap and liked by most guests (I’m not so delusional that I think everyone will like them!).  Cue favour parade!

First up are these adorably nerdy sour candies.  They come in many many designs (Hello Kitty, Resident Evil, Gears Of War, Family Guy, Emily Strange… the list goes on…).  The picture below -courtesy of Google Images- shows the Pacman and Super Mario designs.
Pros: Everyone loves candy, so even if they don’t quite get what the design on the tin is meant to be they’ll still enjoy the goodness inside!
Cons: Unless I manage to get hold of them from a wholesale supplier, they’re going to be expensive.

My latest obsession is with the show True Blood, so part of me wants to give each guest a bottle of carbonated blood-orange-flavoured Tru Blood, which they sell at www.trubeverage.com, among other places.
Pros:  My inner squealing fangirl totally loves this idea.
Cons:  “It’s not real blood, it’s just a fizzy drink packaged to look like the synthetic blood that vampires drink in a TV show I’m obsessed with.  No, granny, I don’t need therapy.  No, this doesn’t mean we’re satanists now.”  I don’t wish to have this conversation.

I also toyed (no pun intended) with the idea of making Lego versions of guests for them to take home.  The picture below -from www.jeffisageek.net- is of the Lego Justice League, who will unfortunately not be able to make it to my wedding (I think they’re all weddinged out after Batman married Wonder Woman…)
Pros: Individual, unique and heartfelt.
Cons: Apparently you can’t get a sack of Lego people anywhere for love nor money.  Also the generic-looking features of Lego people mean I’d probably have to attach notes to them saying “This is you.”

The most feasible idea so far is homemade Companion Cubes with sweets in- similar to the nerd candy idea, but with little paper/card boxes instead of tins.  Picture below is an example from Google Images.
Pros: To the geeks, it’s a Companion Cube from the hit videogame Portal; to the non-geeks, it’s a little box with hearts on.  Either way is good.  Also it’ll be much cheaper than the nerd candy idea as I can buy the sweets in bulk and print and glue the boxes myself.
Cons: If I print the boxes on a home printer they might come out looking a bit shabby-looking, plus being made of cardboard they will almost definitely get thrown in the bin after the wedding.

Probably the most normal idea I’ve had: buy a load of white paper fans from a specialist favour supplier (such as www.aweddinglessordinary.co.uk) and put a pot of colouring pencils in the middle of each table so guests can decorate their fans.
Pros: Gives people something to do, entertains children.
Cons: Apart from children and a couple of the more creative adults, I don’t think anyone would actually decorate theirs.  Plus, giving out fans in the most notorious time of year for unpredictable weather, seems like just tempting fate.

I found a website (www.chessex.com) that sells customised dice, from 3-sided to 100-sided.  Everyone secretly thinks 20-sided dice are cool, right?
Pros: Very cool, very geeky, also useful because dice from board games are always getting lost.
Cons: Quite expensive, and most people would probably be slightly confused as to why we’re giving out dice.

I also found a few places that make cupcakes with the picture of your choice on them.  I was thinking of having cupcakes with different comic/videogame couples on them, with a little card saying a bit about their relationship.  For example:  Dick Grayson and Barbara Gordon grew up together as Batman’s sidekicks, Robin and Batgirl. After Barbara was shot by the Joker (causing her to be paralysed from the waist down) she began working as an intelligence agent under the codename Oracle. Dick, meanwhile, left Gotham City and started a new career fighting crime in Blüdhaven as Nightwing. The two were reunited after a massive earthquake led to Gotham City being overrun by criminals, and started a relationship. Shortly after, Dick proposed, but the engagement was put on hold so he could help Batman on a personal mission. Barbara gave her blessing, admitting that they weren’t really ready for marriage anyway, and Dick sent her a photo of them as Robin and Batgirl, and her engagement ring, promising to return when the time is right. She wears the ring on a chain round her neck.

(Picture from ‘Prelude to Infinite Crisis’)
Pros:  Custom cupcakes are surprisingly cheap, and the little picture cards can be made at home.  The adults will probably leave their cards unwanted, so the kids can collect them for funzies.
Cons: Aside from, y’know, me, I don’t think anyone really cares about where Spiderman met MJ, or why Black Canary stabbed Green Arrow on their wedding night.  It’s also possible that the guests may have my tolerance level for cake, and the mere sight of more cake is enough to make them vomit discreetly into a hat.

One of the comments on the Miss Manners post I mentioned above, was from a woman who said that the best favour she ever got was a mix CD of the couple’s favourite romantic songs.  This is a great idea, and if we did it our track listing would go something like this:
‘Skullcrusher Mountain’ by Jonathon Coulton
‘My Eyes’ from Dr Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog
‘Live’ by Paul & Storm
‘All The Small Things’ by Blink 182
‘Kryptonite’ by 3 Doors Down
‘If Only’ from Batman: Mayhem of the Music Meister!
‘Mr Blue Sky’ by Electric Light Orchestra
Pros: People will probably listen to it at least once, and blank CDs are very cheap to buy.
Cons: The abundance of songs about evil geniuses kidnapping women (‘Skullcrusher Mountain’), reanimating women with the help of Igor (‘Live’), mind-controlling women and attempting to kill them when their affections aren’t returned (‘If Only’), trying to take over the world when the woman they love starts dating a superhero (‘My Eyes’), etc etc, may cause people to wonder about the state of our relationship.  They may even go so far as to call it ”Laura’s cry-for-help CD”.  Also, Electric Light Orchestra are something of an acquired taste.

AND my final idea- mini comics each telling a romantic story about two characters, such as the Batman-Catwoman wedding (spoiler: it was all a dream) or this tale of sweet teenage infatuation between Robin and Batgirl:

Pros: Interesting, nerdy, fun for all the family, etc.
Cons: Might prove expensive, as I’ll probably need to get these printed professionally, and they might be just a little too nerdy.

So, that’s all my ideas so far.  I’m edging towards the mini-comics, what do you ladies think?

The next day Rob set off for the thirty minute drive to Manhattan Beach and I stayed at home and had the morning to myself.  I decided against coffee to fight the nerves and instead did a morning mediation / yoga session where I envisioned the day playing out just as it should.  My hair stylist arrived at noon, my make-up artist at 1:30pm and at 3pm I had one of my besties, Stef, come by the house to jump in the town car and ride down with me.  I kept things simple and calm and I’m so glad I gave myself those personal moments, because the rest of the day was filled with amazing people and lots of lots of energy!

Here we are on the way to the wedding … my wedding!: