We are coming along with the planning! I went to The Knot and used their master checklist to make sure I was remembering everything. I was able to cross off things that you might need for a bigger wedding (like hotel room blocks and buses for guests) and that was nice! Also, since our timeline is short, I combined “research DJs” and “book DJ” into one simplified category. Then I took The Knot’s list and put it into my Apple Lists app so I have one small, personalized list of things we still have left to do.
On the one hand, it’s pretty short now.
Other the other hand, so is time!
(Source)
We knew we wanted “simplify” to be the theme of our wedding planning. We want to focus on making the day about celebrating the two of us joining lives and less about details that make a Pinterest-perfect wedding. For example, we are foregoing ceremony decorations (like flowers on the end of the aisles) and programs because that stuff only gets 15 minutes of fame anyways. But don’t you worry — it will still be a beautiful event! I am SO excited about my florist, Verde Natural Florals. We recently had a meeting to discuss table decor for dinner, and I can’t wait to see how it comes to fruition.
^^ Inspiration photo (source)
We’ll be using vintage cheese boxes, lanterns and burlap runners from my friend Erin, and these beautiful vases that belonged to my grandmother.
Picking a venue that had a lot of perks all in one was key. Ours will be both the ceremony and reception, which makes logistics so much easier, and includes rentals like tables, chairs, and a tent.
Things we have completed:
- Venue (ceremony + reception)
- Officiant
- Caterer
- Cake
- Photographer (Cannot wait to work with Cramer Photo!)
- DJ (Thomas was in charge of this one!)
- Dress
- Florist
- Accommodations
- Table decor
- Invites
- Wedding rings
Still have a few more things to figure out.
Let’s talk about shoes, which have been anything but easy to choose! How can I find a dress more easily than I can find shoes?!
Here is the selection of shoes that I considered:
One / Two / Three / Four / Five / Six / Seven / Eight / Nine / Ten / Eleven / Twelve
I loved all of the Badgley Mischka brand shoes. My favorites were Nine / Ten / Eleven in the collage above. But shoes are so hard to gauge without trying on, so I knew I would need to order a bunch to compare. Since this brand is quite expensive (averaging $200 a pair) I didn’t really want to spend $1,000+ on my credit card and then return all but the winning pair. Returns can be such a hassle. So I had the idea to drive down to Nordstrom in Richmond and try them on.
Lauren and I took a road trip down, and I was shocked to discover that Nordstrom didn’t have a single pair of wedding shoes in the whole store. (I should have called first!) We ended up looking at Dillard’s, and found the store brand Alex Marie had tons of cute sparkly formal shoes.
They were all comfortable and much more reasonably priced — $65-70.
I ended up buying these, which were the comfort winners. I thought I was done with shoe shopping!
But once I was home with them, I started to second-guess the pointed heel. A portion of our wedding will be on grass, and I felt a little wobbly on this heel too. Plus when I wore them on our hardwoods instead of the stable carpet of the store, I felt like I might slip. The last thing I want to think about when walking down the aisle is wobbling or slipping! So I decided to order my two favorite Badgley Mischka shoes — both with wedge heels — and just see how they felt. I ordered Nine and Eleven from the collage.
Turns out I loved both of them in style and comfort. The Belvederes are the winners because they are so sparkly in person and extremely comfortable — I don’t even think about my feet when I walk in them. And I can see myself wearing them over and over.
As a bonus, I was able to find them $100 off on Amazon! (Actually, that is a long story that involved the price going up and down by $100 multiple times, but I finally snagged them for $125!)
The. End.
Love following your wedding preparations. We don’t get married here as much anymore (Canada – Quebec especially, where I’m from). We’ve been together 13 years, not married. Which is pretty common here. But it’s always fun to follow wedding preparations. As I don’t get to see it often here since nobody is really married around us or getting married anytime soon. I love the last pair of shoes, really pretty.
Hi, reader from Quebec too! 🙂
I like the ones you ended up with!
I don’t think they are the most beautiful of the bunch, but they are the overall winners in all the categories : )
the ones you chose at the end are perfect and I could see you getting a lot of wear out of them after the ceremony!!
I almost wore them to the white party this weekend but decided I need to keep them clean! Lol.
I really like the shoes you ended up with! I could definitely see them being worn many times!
I like the shoes too! I think it’s go really well with this black belt I have for a summer dress. 😉
How would you describe your fashion style?
So smart to prioritize comfortable shoes! If I could change one thing about my wedding, I think it would be my shoes. I loved them, but they were SO uncomfortable, it was really distracting. The ones you found are beautiful too!
Nice choice!
My favourite in the collage is #1 – soooo nice!
The shoes you ended up with were my initial favorites in your grid of shoes, so cute! I want a pair but I don’t have anywhere fancy to wear them!
I’ve never thought about what shoes to wear with a wedding dress – the dress always overshadows it! Great picks!
Charmaine Ng | Architecture & Lifestyle Blog
http://charmainenyw.com
HOW FUN!!!! I freaking love shoes so that was my favorite part, probably maybe more so than the dress? I know I am super weird!
Love them and love the wedding posts!
I had the same shoe problem when I got married this past May! I found my dress in one shopping trip, but it took months to find shoes, especially because I wear a smaller size than most stores stock, and because I don’t usually wear heels, so I had a hard time finding shoes that were comfortable for me. I ended up getting a pair of low heels for the ceremony, and sparkly flip flops for our reception. Love the shoes that you chose!
Love the shoes you picked! Do you follow Teri at AFoodieStaysFit ? She’s having wedding shoe issues too! http://www.afoodiestaysfit.com/2017/07/bridal-shower/
I think comfort is absolutely #1 priority. Most people won’t even notice your shoes!
Checking out her post now!
Did height of the shoes factor into your decision? I really like the pair you chose but for me I might want a few extra inches 🙂
That was my only reason for wanting heels because I am short, but I went for comfort first because of my foot issues.
Love your wedding inspo! I wore shoe #9 and loved them, they were so comfy too. But they got stained in the grass so that was so sad 🙁 Love the ones you chose and so affordable!
Ahhhh I’m SO glad you commented on my blog!!! I had no idea you were engaged! CONGRATS!!! And seriously, the wedding shoe hunt is brutal. I’ve ordered 10+ pairs… it’s insanity. It’s been the most stressful part of wedding planning! 😉
We are both on the October timeline 😉 Congrats to you too!
It’s a little nuts/fast moving, but it helps keep it simple! 🙂
Agreed!
Be sure to try the bagleys in with your dress – I wanted the same and the sales associate said they had the most problems with them because the gems get caught on the dress
I heard that too, but I didn’t have a problem, thankfully. I think if you have tulle underneath they could get caught, but mine is lined in satin so it slipped right off.
All the shoes are gorgeous! Of course, shoes are one of my weaknesses, so there’s that. I love the ones you chose then changed your mind about, but the final selection was great, too!
Love the ones you chose. Great price!
I love following your wedding planning! I recently got engaged and this will be wedding #2 for me. Still trying to decide what kind of wedding to have, what is and isn’t tacky when it’s your second rodeo, etc. I tried on dresses for the first time yesterday 🙂 Anyway, I think it’s better to pick whatever is comfortable. People will not be paying attention to what your shoes look like anyway and you don’t want comfort to affect the big day! Congrats on your engagement!
I hear you on what feels right! I have wrestled with the same emotions, but I think each marriage deserves a pretty wedding, and circumstances of your past should not influence your future. I wouldn’t have a huge society gala and invite the whole town, but I also don’t think one needs to elope or wear a short colored dress (unless you want to!) It’s 2017 : ) And congratulations!!
Kath, I cried when I heard you were separating and cried when I saw you happy again once more. I am currently going through a separation/divorce and your posts are so inspiring. Thank you for being so open to us. We all love you and are so happy to see you thriving. <3
Aww thank you Christy! Best of luck and hugs to you. There is happiness in your future!
Hi Kath, long time reader but first time commenter! Congratulations on your upcoming marriage! I just got married in May and also bought Badgley Mischka shoes from Amazon (much better deal!). However, when I went to try them on with my long, lace wedding dress, I found that the dress got caught in the rhinestones. Just wanted to throw out a warning in case your dress is long and made of a fabric that could get caught. I had to go on a crazy shoe hunt a week before the wedding when I realized I could have the potential to trip down the aisle. 🙂 They ARE gorgeous and relatively comfortable shoes, though. I ended up wearing them for the rehearsal dinner. Best wishes with all of the planning!
Thank you for the heads up!! I’m going to do a test when the dress is hemmed soon and will hope for the best.
Super cute. I wore Badgley Mischka”s for my wedding last October and they were perfect; I am jealous though, they didn’t seem to have any wedges when I looked. I ended up getting ones that look like #9 but had were just kitten heels and no straps. They were perfect and comfortable (plus my hubby is only an inch taller then me, I didn’t want to tower over him!) — they are pricey and ended up covered in grass stains (from photos) and other elements of the evening which was a bummer. I am checking into see if they can be dyed to black which would be awesome and allow me more wear out of them over time. Anyways, congrats on the engagement and wedding! Very exciting and very cute shoes.
I have shoe envy 🙂 I have foot issues and can only wear ugly clunky old lady shoes, so I am going to do the same for my wedding day. I don’t want to be limping in pain for my own wedding! Most of our events are on grass and I’m 5’9″ so I think I can get away with flats.
I continue to be impressed at how efficient you and Thomas have been at planning this!
🙂 I am the same about feet. I wish I could wear high heels all the time, but it’s just not worth the pain.