Wedding on a budget part 2.... Venue

There are many great places to have a wedding. If you are trying to save money, like we were then you need to decide what it is that you want from your venue. For us, we wanted a place where we could have outside food catered, not be charged for an alcohol fee and for it to be unique but casual at the same time. We ended up choosing Metro Galleries, which is a contemporary art gallery. The venue worked well for us, it was casual yet elegant at the same time. Another wonderful part of using an art gallery is with all the great art you don't have to decorate too much. The greatest part was we got it for a great deal, since my mother in law knows the owner. For those of you whom don't have a family member whom knows someone that owns an art gallery, here are a few tips to still get a great deal. First, art galleries are very reasonably priced anyway, so check out a few you may be surprised at just how affordable it really is. Second, host a wedding on an off day like a week day or a Sunday where you will get discounted prices. Third, be flexible on a date, if you are willing to have your wedding on a date that hasn't been booked, then you may be able to negotiate a smaller rate, because having an event booked even at a discounted rate is better than not having a booking at all. If you would like to learn more about Metro Galleries, here is the sight here.

Wedding on a budget part 1..... Flowers

With a small budget, I came to the realization early on that I was going to have to get pretty creative with the flowers for the wedding. The flowers I wanted, were way out of our budget, and the types of flowers I could afford were not at all what I wanted. One thing I knew for sure is that I wanted a nice full bouquet, I mean I was the bride and felt I deserved to have a nice lush bouquet in my favorite flowers. After months of researching different possibilities, and I mean I really searched I stumbled across a phenomenal idea. There is something out there called real touch flowers. Now these are artificial flowers, but not the silk craft store fake looking kind. These are flowers made out of latex, that look so real, they even feel quite real. I was quite curious about the true quality, I mean they looked phenomenal in the pictures, but how would they look in person? So I ordered a few samples and was so surprised and impressed at the quality. The best part is I could now have all the flowers I needed and wanted, that was way within my budget. I found a couple of discount sights that carried the flowers, and set to work making everything myself. Now there are people who make real touch wedding sets for a living, but if you are willing to take the time, as I did, then you can do them all on your own. I used white and green calla lilies, and green cymbidium orchids for my bouquet, the bridesmaids bouquets, and some of the centerpieces in which I will get to later. The boutonnieres were made from green dedrobium orchids. All in all the flowers for the whole wedding cost me less than $400. The best part? No one knew they weren't real until I told them. They stayed looking gorgeous, no worrying about staining my dress and they all came home with me after the wedding. I have my bouquet in my curio cabinet and the rest of the flowers I used in decorating my home. A few great sights to use if you are interested in using real touch flowers are www.afloral.com and www.save-on-crafts.com.

Tips For A Wedding On a Budget....

So I thought I would take the next few days to post a little about my experience with having a wedding on an extremely small budget. I did a lot of D.I.Y, as well as scavenging, but everything turned out great. Most importantly it was meaningful and really represented who me and my hubby really are. My husband and I got married in September of 2003, but we eloped. Yep, I got married in pants, just the two of us, in a little chapel on the Vegas strip. So last year we finally decided to have a wedding with all our family and close friends. I hope this helps to inspire and give some ideas to some of you out there whom are struggling with a small budget, but have big dreams and ideas... So here we go!

Lemon Leaf Garland....

Found this awesome post on project wedding, it is by the talented Jordan Ferney. It is so easy to make and looks so gorgeous. Not to mention how much money you will save doing it yourself. This is the kind of things that make me wish I could go back to my wedding and do it all over again!!! Check out the instructions here.

Thumb Sucking...

So my three year old still sucks her thumb. I don't really know if she is too big to do this or not. My six year old was a pacifier baby, which was much easier to deal with. Just after her first birthday I threw out all of the pacifiers and that was that. But, there is no way to throw my little ones thumb away! Truth be told I sucked my thumb as a child, so did my brother. I remember stopping on my own at age five when I started kindergarten. My brother not so much. She doesn't do it all the time, only when she is upset or tired, but I fear the longer she does it, the harder it will be to stop. She does look pretty darn cute doing it though! It makes me wonder, what is this little bird gonna be like? Will he like a pacifier, or passey as they are referred to in my home, or will he be a thumb sucker? Maybe he will like neither. So my lovlies, any opinions on what age is to old to be sucking their thumb?

Framing Small Pictures in a Nursery...

I have been trying to figure out how to frame a set of three small pictures in my little pups nursery. This made me feel so much better, I love how the yellow in the images was also used as the color of the frames. Also this is a great conformation to me that you can matte a white matte with an image that has a white background. Check out the adorable nursery featured on the always inspiring odeedoh here.

Organizing the closet....

So this last weekend my husband and I were talking about a way to fit all the toys in the playroom closet, in an organized matter. We need to clear the room of everything to turn it into the baby's nursery. Alas, here is a great picture of a very organized closet courtesy of ohdeedoh. I would love to have something very close to this set up. I am loving the all clear bins which keeps it easy for my little birds to see what is inside each bin. I have 12 weeks or less to get this all done, I know I'm nuts, but at least this can be a starting point for me.... anyone else have any ideas for organizing toys in a small closet?

Could it be?

Once in a while I come across other people and things that help to re insure me that I am not so much of the freak that I have come to feel as over the years. In an age today full of trends and fads it's nice to find others whom I feel a kind of connection with. I have gotten cross looks about my love of vintage clothing and furniture, my collection of eclectic t shirts, my box full of vintage vinyl albums and for my tiny obsession of making things that I don't necessarily have to make, example: dresses for my girls, customized baby onesies for this baby in utero, and making my own strawberry jam. Since I have been pregnant I can't help but feel that my interests and likes have made me seem even more of an outsider. I guess I am not trendy because I am not part of some preggo mommy yoga class, sipping a starbucks and dropping my kids off at some daycare so I can go and indulge myself in a spa. So today I have accidentally stumbled across my salvation.... when I saw this picture of the gorgeous 21 week preggo mommy, in her vintage candy strip sundress, picking up vinyls at the record store I was speechless. Better yet, she has the most wonderful blog full of all things music and vintage. Lastly as if it couldn't get any better, she also has the most awesome online vintage store full of clothes, home furnishings, etc. So go check out her blog here.

Planet Rug...

I did a little shopping over the weekend for baby items. I picked up a new boppy slip cover, a bright red metal trash can for the nursary, an awesome rocket ship night light, a new bumper pad and some red canvas curtain panels. Last night while I was surfin' the web for a rug, I found this.... and needless to say I fell in love. This is the rug I want, it is soooo cute. I found it on overstock.com and the price is really not all that bad for how large it is. Check it out here.

Offbeat lifestyle...

I thought I would leave this with you before I sign out for the weekend. There is a great write up on a man who was lovingly refurred to as "Dug out Dick." He just passed away this week at the ripe old age of 94. He chose to live most of his life in a cave, and live entirely off the land. He never owned a television or a telephone. Read more about his life here. I will sign off now, I am having a stay in date night with my hubby tonight, we are going to pick up some yummy food from stonefire grill, and watch avitar. What are you doing this weekend?

Happy Earth Day!

Here is something fun to do with your kids for earthday, make earth day crayons. Its super simple, and look how awesome they turn out, just like little globes! All you need is green and blue crayons, paper baking cups, and an oven. Here is the full instructions here.

Strawberry Jam....

So as usual I was blog stalking, and stopped in to read up on say yes to hoboken. I was inspired by her post about making homemade strawberry jam. She gave a very easy recipe from another blog petit elephant. Here is the recipe here. I plan on making some homemade strawberry jam myself in the next few weekends.

Etsy Find, Baby MOMO....

My newest Etsy find, Baby MOMO. They make the cutest bibs, burp rags, and clothes. I just picked up this cute octopus burp rag which is on sale for $5.00! Check out all the cute little baby gear here. I also especially love the duck pants, so cute!

Space Rockets...

So every so often I come across something that I swear was created just for me or my kids. This is no exception... I found these space rockets from an etsy seller. They are soft baby blocks that rattle, and have tags sewn on them. Now a little background info, my 3 year old has a taggie blanket, she loved tags as a baby. So when I saw these I thought how cute for this little guy in utero at the moment! Plus bonus, the print on these are space and robots, which is my little guys nursary theme! Check them out here.

Cute Bib Tutorial....

Found this on offbeat mama, It's pretty easy, and so much cuter than the ones you buy in the stores. Check it out here....

Dinosaur Party...

So the closer it gets to my due date the more frantic I am in figuring out and planning my 3 year olds 4th birthday party. I usually start planning a month before my children's parties, but with this little pup due the month before her birthday, I don't trust myself in being clear headed enough not to mention sane enough to plan. So my three year old loves two things right now, the first is Spiderman, the second dinosaurs. I have been trying to come up with ideas for both until she makes up her mind(I am secretly rooting for dinosaurs). I was so inspired by this cute DIY birthday party on one of the best blogs ever, party perfect. So cute! Check out this party here.

Cute table number centerpieces...

Love this idea, using small brown paper bags you can make the cutest centerpieces or table number pieces. The bags are available at any craft store, just make personalized labels and fill with strawberries or even cherries. This adorable idea came from style me pretty.

Silk Yo Yo Tutorial...

These are so cute, they make me want to make a stack of them and have them on the table at a dinner party. Love them too? Check out the how to tutorial on one of my favorite blogs style me pretty.

I am loving Magpie Lovely...

I am loving Magpie Lovely, they feature unique, hand made clothes, bags and accessories for woman and children. While I love the woman's designs, I am gaga over the children' s fashions. I would take any of these please. Check out all of the eye candy here...

Thread up!!!!

Have you heard of this? Swapping starts up live on Monday for thread up. Thread up is such an awesome idea, you pay a flat rate fee for a membership and swap clothes all over the U.S with other people. They have everything including men's, woman's, and children's clothes. I so wish I would have started this idea! Check out more info here.

Easter 2010....

A quick shot of my two little lovelies on Easter. Sumarah is three pictured first, and Haylei is 6.

I'm Dreaming of....

This top, skinny jeans, flats and a stroll with my husband in Manhattan beach....

Cute Childrens Aprons from Anthropologie...

Check out how cute these little aprons are from anthropologie are. My daughters, especially my 6 year old would love these. I am particularly fond of the sewing basket apron, but the bakers delight and strawberry spots aprons are so cute too. They are only $24 each, check them out along with all the other adorable finds for kids here.

Hailey Antique Flower Chandelier...

Check out this cute antique flower chandelier on pottery barn kids web sight. I think this is so cute, I also love how it is pictured in the room with the two sisters(my daugthers share a room just the same way). The best part is this is on clearance right now. It was $159.00, now it is $89.99. This would also look so cute in a guest room. Check it out here.

Loving this....

I love this gorgeous dress from modcloth, one of my favorite web sights to look for dresses on. This dress looks so happy for spring, and is appropriately named May Day Dress. I would love to wear something like this in july once this baby is out of my body! I wonder if i could squeeze into this as my leaving the hospital dress???