We did our engagement photos today! We had so much fun. It's always fun when you ignore no trespassing signs, climb up on things that look like they are about to collapse, and cause other forms of mischief. We'll get a digital copy of the photos unedited tomorrow.
It was great to be working with friends because we were much more comfortable with them than I would have been with anyone else. I can't wait to post some of the pics!

Some of you who know me may be wondering how I came to choose a bird theme for our wedding. After all I am a cat person. So here is your answer:

I first saw this birds nest for the ring bearer by Muscari soon after we were engaged and I was smitten. It was like I could see the entire essence of what I wanted my wedding to be in this tiny little birds nest. And this is where the plan began. Be sure to check out all of Muscari's delightful creations at their Etsy Shop.

We are having our engagement pictures taken next Sunday! I was so excited that I had to go shopping for cute outfits to wear for the pictures. I even found a handsome new shirt for Kenton. The above is a collection of engagement pictures that I have found and really like. If these are your pictures let me know so I can give you credit. Like most people I started saving things before I knew to note credits.

Here are some of the monograms/designs I have been working on lately for us.
I also fell in love with another invitation company that creates really gorgeous pieces of art.
Check out some of these gorgeous invites from Wiley Valentine:

Return from MIA status

I've been MIA for awhile... grad school is so much more hectic that undergrad, it is taking me a while to adjust.
Now for the good news:
We have a date and venue! We mailed the deposit this weekend!
We are getting married at T & S farm on May 22, 2010!

In other wedding news:
I bought some of the paper for our DIY invitations. I know it seems a little early, but I have been hunting and hunting for a pretty light purple textured paper. I finally found one, but of course it is being discontinued. So this means I had to go ahead and order it, but I also got a better price. This is the paper that I found at cardsandpockets.com, in the canvas texture, color is Thistle.

I have spent so many hours drooling over the invitations at East Six
These really are just some of the most detailed and beautiful invitations I have ever seen. Take a look at some of these gorgeous invitations and be sure to check out their website for some serious creative inspiration.

a venue and an inspiration board

I think we have found our place! After going to visit T&S Farms in Batesburg we are even more convinced that this is where we want to get married. We loved it! The inside was so cool! I wasn't sure that I was going to like the decor, but it is so fun and shabby chic. In celebration of this huge step down I've created an inspiration board... here goes

Venue search...

We finally have an appointment to visit T&S Farms on Monday Oct. 6th. I am so excited to finally go and visit. I am working on my list of questions to ask. I hope this location lives up to my expectations.

Mr. Jim LeBlanc

One thing we knew before we ever got engaged, was that if we did get married we definitely wanted Jim LeBlanc to play at the wedding. My fiance has been going to see Jim play on a regular basis for years and I have been going with him since we met. We love Jim! He is a very talented musician and we love the music that he plays. We always have such a good time singing along and that's exactly the vibe we want to carry over to our wedding. We are so excited that Jim has agreed to play!
Here is a picture of Jim playing one night at Delaney's in Five Points.

grading papers, bleh...

So one of the many joys of now being in graduate school is the hundreds of papers I get to grade each week now. School has pretty much entirely consumed the last week or so, with little time for wedding planning stuff. I have worked on our Christmas cards a little more. And I've bought most of the stuff for my cake decorating class now. We don't meet this week though. My mom is all excited about making this wedding cake now. The problem is, my mom's idea of a wedding cake, and what I want are two very different things. I absolutely HATE columns on wedding cakes. If I am going to have a tiered cake, it will not have columns. I am still not convinced that I don't want cupcakes, but if I do end up with a cake this is the one I want with slight modifications:

I am also considering having several small cakes displayed on pedestals.

diy projects... the beginning

My mom and I did a bunch of wedding crafts shopping today while my dad and FI worked on fixing my computer. I found the envelopes for our Christmas cards/engagement announcements. We also bought several purple flowers that were on sale. We also bought several more large birdhouses.

On Saturday FI and painted the smaller birdhouses that we had bought at the dollar store. Here is one of those birdhouse perched on top of the flowers that I have arranged. We are planning on having these on the tables.

And here is a mock up of our Christmas card/engagement announcements: