Congratulations Christina!

photo from flickr

Using the random number picker, Christina, commenter number 7 is the custom monogram drawing winner!!! Christina, email me at bluskydesigns at gmail dot com to get all the details.


Thank you to all the participants! You will be happy to know that due to the popularity of this contest, I will be making this a monthly contest so be on the lookout for the next custom monogram giveaway!

I'm twittering!

I finally jumped on the bandwagon. You can follow me here.

Reminder: today is the last day to sign up for a free custom monogram!

I will be randomly selecting the lucky winner tonight at 6:00pm EST. If you haven't left a comment yet, do so at this post.

Free Monogram Giveaway!

I am super excited to announce my first giveaway! You don't have to do anything special to enter, just leave a comment with your name and where in your wedding you are planning to incorporate your monogram.
I will randomly choose the winner on Friday evening for a custom designed monogram.
Good luck!

Leah and Buck's Wedding

Leah and Buck got married in Bloomington on Saturday the 17th. Everything went perfectly!!! Rain was forcasted, but it stayed away. It was very windy most of the day, but once pictures started, it faded to a light breeze. Leah was absolutely stunning and their friends and family were some of the nicest people I have ever met.

My day:
9:00 - arrived at The Clubhouse at the Fields (more about the venue below) to set up the ceremony site down at the pond. (Thank you groomsmen, ushers, and dads for helping!)

10:30 - left to pick up lunch for the ladies and delivered it to the salon (ironically named Sky Blue Salon) :)

11:00 - returned to the venue to put together centerpieces and set tables with silverware, napkins, favors and candles.

2:25- start to get worried because the guys aren't there to get ready.

2:30 - guys arrive just on time! :)

3:15 - Jenny arrives (more on her later) and pictures begin

3:30 - girls arrive and get dressed

4:00- girls pictures are taken

4:30 - bridal party and Jenny leave to IU to take more pictures. I stay to finish setting up final details at ceremony site.

5:45- bridal party returns and we get ready for the ceremony

6:30 - Ceremony, I run upstairs to get all 100 candles lit

7:00 - just as I am lighting the last candle, the bridal party returns

7:15 - I deliver champagne to Buck and Leah (and bustle Leahs dress - tip for brides - have your seemstress number the bustle ribbons by what ribbon matches what, i.e. 1 and 1, 2 and 2 - this made my job so easy!) who are waiting for cocktail hour to end so they can be announced

7:45- bridal party announced

Whew!!!

11:30 - everyone is gone (except for a few family members and bridal party members....THANK YOU SO MUCH ASHLEY!) and we tear down and clean up.

12:15 - I am on my way home.

Vendors:

Ceremony and Reception Venue: The Clubhouse at the Fields
Please take time to check out pictures! It really is an amazing venue!

Pros:

• Who would have thought an apartment clubhouse could be so gorgeous?
• You get free reign of the entire place
• You can bring in whatever vendors you choose - huge money saver.
• Kim is easy to work with and very accommodating

Cons:

• All set up and tear down is the responsibilities of the renter. A lot of hard work after a long day.
• Kegs have to be outside
• The pond is down hill and there is no great way to bring chairs down and up except by hand.
• There is only one restroom for men and one restroom for women.

Caterers: Town and Country Catering

Pros:

• Great food!
• Cleaned up after themselves

Cons:

• none

Cake Baker: Deanna at Sugar Daddy's Cake and Catering

Pros:

• Gorgeous cakes - Buck loved his groom's cake
• 3 flavors = happy guests
• Buck and Leah get a fresh anniversary cake when they return from their honeymoon

Cons:

• The cakes were HUGE and could have served 200 easily (only 110 guests) so there was a lot left over that Leah had to give away. (Maybe not the worst thing in the world) :)

Florist: Cathy Teeters of Beautiful Weddings

Pros:

• Gorgeous bouquets
• To save money, Cathy allowed Leah to have the centerpiece flowers delivered in large bins and I put them together.

Cons:

• The bridesmaid bouquets were mainly hydrangea and the stems were completely wrapped with ribbon. Since the flowers didn't have access to enough water, the wilted very quickly once they got outside. Tips for brides to be - if you are using a lot of hydrangea in your bouquets, be sure to ask your florist to leave an inch or so of stems sticking out the bottom so you can put them in water when not in use.

Photographer: Jenny Grise of Grise Photography

Pros:

• What can I say? Jenny is super talented! She quietly and quickly captured every moment and I cant wait to see the pictures.

Cons:

• Yeah right! Absolutely none.

DJ: Steve at Good Times Entertainment

Pros:

• Kept the guests dancing all night
• Set up at the ceremony site also to play music

Cons:

• None

Things used out of my emergency kit:

• scissors
• push pins for boutonnieres that fell off or apart (tip for brides: do not use a single Calla Lilly for little boys or active "big boys" - they are fragile and the blooms break off of the stems easily)
• hair spray
• safety pins
• bobby pins
• duct tape
• bandaids

I will post pictures as soon as they are up on Jenny's Blog!

I'm off...

photo from flicker

...to my first wedding of the season! It is out of town, so I will be away from my office from now until Sunday afternoon. I will share all the details as soon as possible!

New invite design

Monogram Monday

Ok, so I don't really have a "Monogram Monday" ... at least not yet :), but I wanted to share the most recent monogram I made for a future bride, Britney.

Hope's Invitations

Hope asked me to design her invitation based on her monogram.(I did not design the monogram)

I had a lot of fun designing Hope's invitation. I love the fact that she wanted to incorporate a picture of her and her fiance.

The rest of Rahael's Invitation Suite

I had so much fun designing Rahael's invitations and monogram. I can't get enough of the bright summery colors!

What have I been up to?

Lots and lots of invitations! Here are just a few:

and a "thank you" sign for photos



I am going to try my best to blog on a daily basis again. I think I am finally getting caught up! :)
If anyone has anything specific they would like me to blog about (i.e. inspiration boards, etiquette questions, DIY help, etc.) please feel free to leave a comment!

I'm a blog slacker

I apologize to all my readers for the lack of posts. I have my last two finals on Friday and then I will be able to resume my usually blogging.

Until then, here is some eye candy: A monogram I made for Rahael and Louis.

She describes their planned wedding as a "A Sexy Summer Soiree". I love it!