Job Hunting

As funny as this cartoon may be, job hunting in this economy is no joke! I'm trying to utilize every resource available, so why not do a little self-promo on the blog. Here's the quick and dirty...I promise I'll never beg for a job on my blog again!

I have: BS in Business Admin- Management Concentration; Internship and work experience in Human Resources

I want: A job in Nashville

Aside from HR, I love all things related to event planning (really? no!) and would love a job working with any aspect of corporate or private events

If you, or someone you know, have any information relevant to this request please contact me at garrison.se@gmail.com

Pretty Please

Can somebody loan me $5,000 for this lovely lady?
Just spotted on the opening pages of my MS Weddings Spring 2009. This Judd Waddell ball gown is beautifully fantastic.

Perhaps you're confused, dear reader, because I've always posted about fit-and-flare gowns in the past. This one just came and took me by surprise. To be quite honest, it started last week on Say Yes To The Dress, when they showcased lots of Kenneth Pool gowns.This isn't the exact dress, but it was something like this. All the hubbub over mermaid and trumpet style gowns has got me thinking: will they be the puffed-sleeve varieties from the 80s that we laugh about now? I'd hate to look back at my wedding pictures and be able to tell what decade I was married in....maybe a more classic look is in the cards.

Did you go more trendy, or do you think its better to choose a classic shape?

Oh, Steve...

There's no date and there's no dress.... but I just might buy these shoes. Honestly, these are the bridal shoes I picture when I envision my perfect shoes. Have you ever?!?Somebody better stop me before I buy these lovelies!
Luckeyy, Steve Madden

Lovely Peonies

Image from Flickr
We're having a beautiful, sunny day here in North Carolina. It's got me thinking about spring and the lovely blooms that are on their way. Peonies are one of my favorite spring flowers and are extremely popular for weddings. I've gathered some pictures of this beautiful botanical and ways that it can be used in your wedding...Charleston Invitations from The White AisleInvite from Crescent Moon Paper on Etsy

I don't remember where I got these, please tell me if you know where they're fromBouquet from The Knot

Drumroll Please...

Hot off the press: I just read on the Historic Cedarwood Plantation blog that their barn will soon be open as a wedding venue. What's that I hear? I think it's angels singing. I wanted to do a rustic/black tie barn wedding after seeing these pictures on Style Me Pretty (by Leigh Miller) There aren't any pictures of the barn as of yet, but I can't hardly wait until they're online. I've never visited Cedarwood in person, but the pictures are beautiful. I can only hope it lives up to the ideas in my head! Here's some additional photos for barn inspiration....
Image from Style Me Pretty, Samuel Lippke

Image from Snippet and Ink, Union Photography

Is anybody else excited, like me, about this new location?

Favors: Good and Bad

Amsale is marketing their new bridesmaids collection to the tune of "do your friends a favor". Yes, the dresses are beautiful. No, they don't look like run of the mill bridesmaid frocks. But are you really doing your ladies a favor by having them pay $300+ for a BM dress?

Speaking of favors, I've been trying to think of something that's A) inexpensive B) has something to do with Mr. SE and myself. Edibles are always good, and the candy buffet is riding a huge wave of publicity right now. I don't really think anybody wants a picture frame saying Mr. and Mrs. SE May 2010. blah.

So then I had this fantastical idea.....

I'll do tiny bottles of Texas Pete and tie a cute little bow around each top. At $0.55 a piece, we can get them all for less than $70. Mr. SE and I were both pleased with this idea, but Mom SE was less than enthused. She thought it was tacky. Did any of you try and do "different" favors?

Finding The Church: II

I wasn't able to do my normal blog rounds, as I've been traveling for most of the day. Just saw this picture on Ashley's Bride Guide. If price, time, logistics weren't an issue- I could make my decision based on this picture alone.

Finding The Church

Mr. SE and I agree that the ceremony is the most important part of our wedding. There's no wedding without a marriage, right? He's baptized Catholic, and myself Christian. My church in Virginia has a super huge body (try a couple thousand), so that wasn't an option to get married in anyways. If you brought 600 of your closest friends the sanctuary wouldn't look partially full.

After many long conversations, Mr. SE shared that having a Catholic wedding was the one thing that he really cared about. Besides leaving in a Lamborghini (more on that later). Once I realized it was possible to have a Catholic wedding outside of a full mass, I agreed. I went to the Nashville Diocese website and looked up the parishes in Nashville. The list wasn't too long, seeing as the south is more Baptist and Methodist. I always love the steeples on Methodist churches *sigh*.

We're still trying to find a parish that will let us marry without being members. Since we're 1/2 in town, it's hard to become genuine members for long enough that it wouldn't be obvious it was just for a wedding. We don't want to "pretend" that we're members for a couple weeks and ask. A couple of the churches I've called have been super friendly and offered their location based on our situation.

Did you have trouble finding a ceremony site?
Top image: Nashville Cathedral
2nd: Assumption Catholic Church, Flickr
3rd: Assumption Catholic Church, Gray Photography

Spring Cleaning of the Closet

Happy 7th day of spring everybody! I've been a little MIA lately due to the ankle surgery. Which, by the way, went very well and only required one stitch. This is super exciting, considering I had over 20 in my last surgery. Although my ankle still looks like it's been through a slasher film. Battle scars I suppose.

I like to start every season with a good, healthy clean of the closet. An organization blog I read (www.mrsorganized.com) suggests turning around the hanger of a clothing item once you wear it. If the item is still facing forward at the season's end, it's time to get release it. My mom and I have done an annual clothing yard sale for the past four years. Last year I had a bunch of laundry baskets filled, along with a ping pong table covered in neat little piles (not for long). Think yard sales are a little tacky for your taste? Try this on for size. I made $1,000! Yeah, you read that right.

This spring's clothing is filled with floral prints and bright, tropical shades. My mom took me to the mall today, avec wheelchair of course. I loved seeing all the springy window displays, but considering my one-legged state, I wasn't in the mood to try things on. Here's some of the lovelies that I saw.Top dress is from Old Navy, the others are from NY and Company

First Dance Song

As if he couldn't write any more amazing love songs! Brad Paisley is back at it again. His new single is called "then" and I'm pretty sure it will turn out to be a huge first-dance hit. The lyrics are so beautiful and they will strike a cord with almost any couple. Enjoy!

My Expensive Taste....

Why do I love such expensive wedding dresses? Honestly, I really want to touch the fabric on these two gowns. They look so luxurious and I bet they fit fantastically! One problem- I'm sure if I try them on I'll get suckered into buying one...and I CANNOT spend that much money. Our budget for my dress is $2000 or less. Hopefully much less. But I still can't help drooling over these lovelies....

Elisabeth Hasselbeck for Dialogue

It's no lie that I heart Elizabeth Hasselbeck. After appearing on Survivor, she worked as a fashion designer, pefore going on The View (one of my favorite shows). She'll be launching her clothing line tonight on QVC (9 est). The prices are comparable to Ann Taylor Loft, and just as fashionable!

Here's a couple of pieces from her collection...

Banana-rama

It's no secret that I love Banana Republic. Every season (sometimes multiple times) I head out to Banana because a) their pieces will be exactly what I want/need b) they'll be super stylish and right on trend.

As you know, I'm a student. So clearly I don't have the budget to shop at regular BR. Enter Banana Republic outlet!!! I just love a bargain and BR Outlets provide champagne clothes on a miller lite budget. There's a huge BR outlet near my house in Virginia, and one at Opry Mills. I'm thrilled that MR. SE and I will be living three miles from a BR Outlet!Here's some of my favorite things from their spring 2009 collection.

You Gotta Put On That Party Dress

This white dress would be perfect for a bride at her rehearsal dinner! (Maggy London from Nordstrom.com)

Mr. SE and I are going to a couple weddings this summer, and I've already started thinking about what I'll wear. Mr. SE is a groomsman in one, and I'm a bridesmaid in the other. The first wedding is June 13th in Atlanta. We'll be able to save money by staying at FMIL's house.

It's difficult to pick out a dress to attend a wedding. For instance, I don't want to show up wearing the same color as the bridesmaids. So here's the plan: I need a dress for two rehearsal dinners and one wedding. Since I'm a bridesmaid in the second wedding, my attire is already taken care of. Both of the weddings are outside, so I'd like to have dresses that are dressy but will also keep me cool.

Maggy London is my go-to designer for dresses like this. Her styles are so flattering and often come in a variety of colors. I really wish she had her own boutique or online shop, though. These would make great attendant dresses, or maybe even bridesmaid if you could find enough in one color. What do you think?



All photos are from Nordstrom.com

Piperlime Is Taunting Me

Lovely PeopleMeadow $144.00

As I'm on the eve of ankle surgery- I'm finding myself getting very nostalgic towards my high heeled friends. It'll be a while before I can wear them again (read: late May). To top it off, Piperlime keeps sending me emails, teasing me with sales on the hottest shoes of spring. Here are some of my favorites! All images are from Piperlime.com
BCBG MAXAZRIA: Daja $210
Calvin Klein: Solanje $70

BCBGirls: Polands $110

Worky Work. Busy Bee

There used to be a commercial for some shipping company (maybe FedEx Kinkos, UPS, or DHL) where the guy didn't know he could expedite projects. He was working frantically and would yell out "worky work- busy bee!". It always made me laugh hysterically. Most people don't think it's that funny though...

Things are super busy around here today. I have a midterm this afternoon, lots of meetings, and I'm trying to get everything rounded up before driving home tomorrow. I'll try and post a little later today.Photo from Weddingbee
In the meantime, how amazing is this ceremony setup? If we weren't getting married in a church, I would love to have the chairs like this. It would be so amazing to have our family and friends all around us, not just behind. Do you prefer something modern like this or more traditional?

Texts From Last Night

Seems like everybody is getting Facebook these days. Here's a funny blog that I found through Mr. SE's cousin. The blog is called Texts From Last Night- it's messages that were sent/received the night before. The texts are void of real names/numbers, but list the area code. Here's one from Sunday night:

(617): when I'm not with you everything just looks like crayon scribble

Posted by TFLN at 3/16/2009 07:19:00 AM 0 comments

Color Palette

This picture was taken by amazing photographer Leo Patrone, via Snippet and Ink. I loved the contrast of a warm and cool color. There's a fantastic website that I use sometimes to make a palette. You upload a picture of your choice, and the program creates a palette automatically. Try it for yourself!

Katie's New Haircut

Not really a hair-cut per se, but Katie Holmes is rocking a fantastic new hair-do! She's traded in her signature bob for silky extensions- I love it! Which one do you prefer?

Cake Porn

Both of these cakes are to. die. for. They're made from local baker Maples Cakes, which opposite of what it sounds is owned by a male, Jay Qualls. This man has a gift. His cakes range from classic and simple to modern and ornate. All the while maintaining this whimsical allure.
This first cake would look gorgeous if the bride used large blooms: magnolias, gardenias, or peonies. I picture her having a coordinating satin ribbon and bloom on the waistline of her gown. This Jim Hjelm dress would be perfect! I haven't been to try on dresses yet, but I'm pretty sure Jim Hjelm (Arzelle's and Faccio) is straight where I'm headed!