Everything's Old, Nothing's New...

...so some will be borrowed but none will be blue. 

Douglas and I had our "aren't we original" bubble popped quite early on in our planning.  Thanks to awesome sites like OffBeat Bride and WeddingBee, we can gain peeks at other people's not-so-traditional weddings.  Let me tell you, some of these other brides and grooms blow my mind with their creativity.  Sadly, it also shows you how many other people had that great idea before it ever popped into your head.  Lucky for us, accepting that no matter what we did, it wouldn't be original, was quite easy.  We quickly moved on and have now gone from planning a rock concert theme to toying with a Joker/Harley (Tango With Evil) theme.

 Alex Ross "Tango With Evil"

Side story:  Since you may have noticed Tango With Evil was mentioned in my last post, too, I feel I should explain a little about it.  Tango with Evil is one of my favorite pieces of comic book art.  Alex Ross, who is my favorite comic book artist, created this piece of Joker and Harley that captured everything about their relationship and speaks volumes to the characters.  Joker only stands out from the background thanks to his white skin - otherwise, he's fading into it.  He only allows you to see what he wants you to see.  (tidbit: this version of the Joker is based on Mr. Ross' own likeness)  He holds Harley Quinn with a firm grip and yet gracefully places his hand on her torso.  She, meanwhile, is totally caught up with being so close to her man.  Harley's love for Joker typically blinds her, but she revels in the happiness that her love for him brings her.  These two opportunists end up having a very strong love/hate relationship as they battle Batman - best described as a tango. 

Douglas, loves the Joker (who doesn't).  So he's been very vocal lately about using Tango With Evil for the wedding theme.  While I think that's a great idea, I don't want to use it too literally.  I want to take from it, see if I can incorporate pieces of what we like instead of physically having Joker and Harley on the invites.  Doug's favorite colors being red and black and one of mine being purple, lend themselves to the Joker and Harley theme (Joker's infamous purple suit and red smile, Harley's red and black outfit) with green and white falling into place as accents.  The trick is finding shades that work together without everything being too drab and dark. 

One of my latest projects is taking the Joker/Harley idea and seeing what I can create using Tango with Evil as an inspiration.

One of my other projects is TOP SECRET and you'll have to stay tuned to find out what it is and how it turns out.  *evil grin*

Wedding Website = WedSite

What's in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet. - Romeo & Juliet


What's in a name, indeed.  I have been attempting to start work on our wedding website for quite some time now.  However, I keep getting stuck in the same place - the name.  Naming a website is always tricky, but when it's a website for a sacred event such as a wedding, it takes on extra meaning, and extra difficulty.  While there are plenty of inside jokes and cultural references that would work well for Douglas and I, the name must also be recognizable to those outside of ourselves.  There's also the trick of keeping it short and easy A) so it's easy for folks to remember and B) so it's simple to fit on mail outs like Save the Dates (STDs) and invites. 

/MonopolyvsTrivialPursuit
/MarvelvsDC
/tangowithevil
/HanShotFirst
/SpoilerMan
/Lobsters
/9Toes3Balls
/Buble
/Finally
/PrettyPrettyPrincess
/ItsAboutTime
/ShopS-Mart
/PokerFace

If Douglas was in charge, we may end up with one of these (and these were the safe to post ones).  Luckily, I have control of the website (*evil laughter*) - So be forewarned, it may be worse.

Will I See My Shadow?

Who knows?  So I'm finally starting to be able to poke my head out from my crazy work schedule.  The past six months have gone by so quickly, I really have no concept of time on how long ago things were.  I'm looking forward to that changing.  The weather is gorgeous, it's getting easier to meet up with folks, and one thing Spring is really good at doing is lighting a fire under your butt.  For example, this weekend, Douglas and I are attacking the mattress search head on!  We've only been looking at getting a new bed for at least the past year now.  We had started looking back in January but were sidelined when I had pleurisy.  You can't really lay down to test out a bed when you can't lay down at all.  We've been slow to get back on the horse but we're planning to giddy-up tomorrow!

So what is all of this rambling about non-wedding related stuff?  Well, it's all relative.  Folks at work keep asking when the wedding is.  The good thing is that they understand when I verbally shrug.  We haven't had much down time.  Luckily, we're finally heading into the summer season and things should (emphasis word, here) slow down back to a normal pace.  Normal for summer is pretty nice, so we're happy about it.  Ok, getting slightly off track again.  Between the mattress searching and Doug's job hunting, we will have more time for wedding planning!  I know a lot of you out there are going to either give me the gas pedal response, "The time will fly!  Start now!", or slam on the brakes, "You've got plenty of time. No rush."  Personally, when there's a project in front of me, I like to get right on it.  I've been trying to pace myself but I've been feeling restless having not looked at color palettes.

The funny thing I'm learning about weddings is that everything is connected.  Depending on who you ask, you shouldn't decide on anything until you...
...finalize your date so you can coordinate everything with that time of year
...choose a location so everything gives the feel of the wedding you're going after
...find THE dress so everything can be built around the style of the gown

Well, then, where to start?  Personally, I'm starting everywhere!  What better way to find the path of least resistance?  I probably won't start looking at dresses for a while since I A) have to start at Estelle's in New York and B) want to start the process with my Mom.  Sadly, we haven't been able to get up to see my folks since the engagement, so it's still very surreal.  The earliest I could see me getting up to NY would be July at the earliest, so that's definitely not at the top of my list at the moment.

Given that I really have no place to start from in any category of wedding planning, I've been dabbling.  I spent a few minutes last week deciding to start playing with color palettes involving burgundy and a lilac purple.  Burgundy, being a shade of red, was a starting point to incorporate one of Douglas' favorite colors into the scheme.  Lilac pulled in purple for me (NO it's NOT blue...you know who you are).  I only did 2 palette mock-ups and haven't messed with or thought about colors since.

There won't be a lot of money spent on flowers.  I always knew that.  I never understood spending all of that money to deck out a venue in plants.  It looks pretty but the $ just doesn't seem worth it.  So I will probably stick to the bouquets and maybe some center pieces or small decorative pieces.  So where to start?  I'm not a big flower person.  I don't know the difference between a hyacinth and a mum without Google.  I at least have a favorite flower, so I started there.  Daisies.  They come in many different types and colors and are readily available.  I spent an hour or so perusing TheKnot.com and Google for daisy bouquets.  I found some very interesting color combination, but I don't think I'll end up with a daisy bouquet.  I might have to succumb and look at "higher end" flowers.  Anyone up for a quick teaching session in botany?

Shoes.  Yes, I've been browsing shoes.  I came across this really cool site called ShopStyle a while back from either Twitter or one of the wedding blogs.  What do I know about my shoes already?  They will be flats, but not slippers or flipflops.  Why?  I don't want to be taller than Douglas on our wedding day.  We are about the same height, so any heel I take on will put me in a position where I'll be looking down on him during the ceremony.  I really don't like that idea.  It definitely doesn't jive with the whole equal parts deal we've got going on.  I definitely want some shoes with style, though.  It is really difficult to find stylish and fun flats.  It's hard enough looking for my size 11 feet, but flats AND size?  Nothing really that fun.  The search is going to be fun, though.  I'm excited about the challenge of finding the right pair of shoes (believe it or not).  So if you see me on my wedding day, make sure to ask to see my feet!

So, yes, I have been dipping my toe in quite a few pools lately.  With the, what do they call it, "free time", coming up, I plan on being able to look at some wedding things more seriously...or as seriously as I will attempt to look at them.  (see beginning of post)

'Tis the 1st of April

So you may have figured out already, or at least have doubts about, our last post.  April Fools, everyone!  While we, like every other engaged couple, speak often of the ease of elopement, we simply couldn't take the plunge without your love and support (and presence).

The joke came about very suddenly - as you may be able to tell - because there are a few things we might have thought out a bit more if we were evil and planned this whole thing for days and days.  Wouldn't it have been great to see this post say:

"April Fools - But seriously, leave the ##nd of SomeMonth, 20## open and watch the real deal"!

So we'll chalk this one up to impulse and try to use it as a creative stepping stone in coming up with a creative way to unveil our save the date...when we have a date...

Until next time, Happy April!

E is for Elopement

Ok, readers, here's the deal.  As much fun as it's been hunting for locations, picking out rings, and looking around for THE dress, we decided to go another route entirely.  A few days ago we heard from a friend about his recent engagement and the little ceremony they are doing since he's going overseas for a tour and, like Douglas' grandfather, would just assume get it done with early.  While neither Douglas nor I are in the military, I've always favored a BIG party over any kind of wedding.  So, with our friends as inspiration, we filled out the paperwork and VIOLA! - WE'RE MARRIED!!!!

More details on the party to come later on (like where/when), but at least now we can move all of the budge (which we haven't really figured out yet) into a mighty fine shindig.

Here's a photo of the rings we wore, sticking with the Green Lantern theme Douglas started with our engagement.