Wednesday, September 19, 2012

White after Labor Day...fasion faux pas or not?

So one of the things that has been keeping my spare time (loose interpretations of "spare") occupied is online shopping and not just any online shopping but "white dress" shopping. So the question I pose is whether or not the age-old fashion standard of not wearing white after Labor Day applies to brides to be?!

You would think the answer would be a simple yes, however I've come to find that really these days anything goes! If you know me well enough you know that I am definitely an analyzer, a rule follower at heart and mostly a people-pleaser, there I said it! :) As of lately though I'm starting to think that as a bride to be, I can go against the grain and do what's going to make me happy. Isn't this the one time in a woman's life she is allowed to do, say, feel, and (insert any verb here) because she is the bride to be?

Well after consulting some of my fashionista friends, finding numerous white dresses among "new arrivals" at most every boutique and store, and even purchasing a few, my conclusion is....YES!! You can absolutely wear white as a bride to be after Labor Day! So until I stop seeing white dresses as new arrivals or until I have been surprised by Stacy or Clinton from What Not to Wear because my friends think I am insane, ORRR until January 26th, 2013 I will happily be pinning, liking and purchasing every white dress I can get my hands on for showers and various other "bridal duties" if you will! Here's some of my inspiration....

Ah yes the classic white lace dress everyone tries to get their hands on!

Pinterest pinners, I'm sure this one looks familiar! :)
Sparkles!
Classy
Different!
Favorite color blue :)
And all just in time for my first shower this weekend with friends and family, which I could not be more excited about! Let the bridal festivities begin!

Pampering at its Prime!

A weekend of makeup and hair appointments you say....I think yes! A few weekends ago I spent most of the time doing the more girly items so as you can imagine Kyle opted out of this weekend. Not to mention it was the first home game of the season, but don't worry the Fight Song was downloaded and played after every touchdown just for the occasion! Because the weekend was full of makeup and hair trials and another dress fitting there aren't many pictures to share, so I apologize for heavier text!

First we headed downtown for a hair and makeup consultation. Braving the public without any makeup at 8 in the morning was a little challenging, but definitely well worth it for the end results! After getting all done up we headed to try on my dress after alterations had been made. With nerves brewing we slipped the dress on and to my relief....it fit! I think every girl's stress level is elevated two fold when it comes to trying on the dress. (Especially if you're like me and bulge the second food hits your mouth!). After finding relief in the fact that (for that day) the dress fit and with both my grandma and mom in tow, we sat down for a marvelous lunch before bridal accessory shopping!

Ok so lesson #1 from a whole day of shopping:

The wedding dress = easy to find
Bridal accessories = near impossible!!

We spent the whole day looking for shoes, earrings, and everything bridal but with no luck at the end of the day.

Solution = online shopping, my new best friend!

Since that weekend we have gotten a lot accomplished including...
  • All bridal portrait details taken care of (week and a half to go!)
  • Makeup and hair booked
  • Florist finalized
  • Bridesmaid dresses ordered
  • Guest book created, ordered and received
  • Wedding album ordered
  • Invitations selected 
  • Mini-moon decided on!
  • Fun details taken care of
  • And bridal beauty regiment in full swing!
We're almost 4 months out which is so hard to believe but extremely exciting! Till next time :).

Sunday, August 12, 2012

6 Month (out) Check Up!

I know it's been a while since my last post and I'm about to take a two week hiatus for sorority recruitment so please forgive the lengthy post :). In July I was able to make a quick trip home before our 6 month out mark! Although I would have loved Kyle to tag along it was nice spending probably one of the last weekends with my parents as Ms. Robare :).

The first order of business was to visit the reception venue and then the church. Even though I had been in both before, this time was even more special as my grandma Robare was able to tag along! First stop was The Pearl Stable...

The Culinary Institute of America just happens to be right by our reception venue :)
We arrive a little early and stopped by this gem of a bakery and coffee shop!
Yum!
View of the Pearl Brewery and the Culinary Institute of America!
Another little glimpse of the brewery outside the bakery
Dad led the way!

After getting our caffeine for the day we played a game of 20 questions for reception details but a very fun game of 20 questions! Being able to visualize everything was such a relief and made everything come together. I think the best part was visualizing all our family and friends filling the space with laughter, cheers, maybe some tears, but a whole lot of fun! Next it was off to our church which really made things more real and definitely gave us a few goosies. 

Can't get enough of this church!
Sneak peek of the chancel and organ.
The rest of the weekend was jam packed with another florist consultation, several hair and makeup appointments, stationary and my first fitting!! It was such a productive and fun weekend with Rocky and Bullwinkle (aka mom and dad, gotta love the Crowl nicknames for everyone!) which led into a celebratory week with Kyle at 6 months out!

Thursday, July 26th marked 6 months out and we definitely wanted to enjoy the moment and relax a bit (ok maybe me more than Kyle)! I will give him credit though for at least knowing that it was about to be 6 months out. Since work has continued to get more hectic, Kyle was sweet enough to pick up some champagne to toast to 6 months out and we did what we enjoy the most...cooked a delicious meal together.

On the menu...cajun pasta with shrimp and french bread!
Champs!
"7-26-2012 6 months out!" 
"CHEERS to the future Mr. and Mrs. Crowl" :)
That weekend we decided to extend the celebration and explored around Lubbock a bit. First we visited our favorite winery and then stopped by a really beautiful memorial I had never seen before! 

Memorial for Commander McCool from the Colombia space disaster..
The boy represents Commander McCool as a boy and the large statue is his adult life
It's crazy what new things Kyle and I stumble on just roaming around the town we've lived in for 6+ years. The spontaneity of the day was appreciated and very refreshing. After our adventures around town we decided to really indulge at the best kept secret in Lubbock and our absolutely favorite restaurant.

Such an amazing meal!! 
Best nightcap!
The weekend was absolutely perfect and much needed. It's crazy to think that we are less than 6 months out and we could not be more excited.

The last thing on my personal "I need to get this done before Recruitment" list was sending out save the dates. So I recruited some help and with the entertainment of Kyle while we did all the work, we began stuffing, sealing and stamping!

Love how they turned out!!
Perfect fit! 
Ready for sealing!
Stuffed, sealed and stamped!
We're now coming up on 5 months out and although we have a lot accomplished there's still so much to do and much more fun to be had! I feel like now the real fun starts and I cannot wait to get back to wedding planning!