Link Love: Retail Me Not

I love coupons! And I love http://www.retailmenot.com/!

This website is dedicated providing online coupon codes for over 20,000 stores. Simply type in the website name and viola! You have coupon codes!

Here is the direct link to some wedding related coupons:

http://www.retailmenot.com/view/mygatsby.com

http://www.retailmenot.com/view/save-on-crafts.com

http://www.retailmenot.com/view/beau-coup.com

http://www.retailmenot.com/view/theknot.com

Candle Craziness

We are planning to use lots of candlelight throughout our reception, on all the tables, and maybe even one like this:

The next step was deciding on the candles themselves. I, of course, spent way too much time thinking about this and wound up with a list of requirements for the candles:

• be available in a variety of sizes
• not drip excessively
• last for at least 5 hours
• not stink
• not smell too strong
• not be vanilla scented
• be white, not ivory
• be cheap

After receiving several recommendations from family, friends and some florists, I went to Michael's and purchased their white clean linen scented pillar candles to test. And....they meet all the requirements, they are quality candles with a very very light, clean scent and are super affordable (especially if you use a coupon!).

If you're in the market for candles, this bride-to-be recommends Michaels!

Do you over analyze small details too?

Stamp of Approval

I just received my two custom stamps from http://impressrubberstamps.com/ and I am one satisfied customer! I ordered a custom 2 x 3 wood block stamp with my address in the lovely Feel script and a 5 x 5 wood block stamp for our logo. It was super easy to order, all I had to do was email a pdf (Thank you cute pdf) with the designs on it and 2 weeks later I had my two stamps. The quality seems to be good (but I don't know anything about stamps); I was worried about the complexity of our logo, but it stamps clearly. Plus, I thought the prices seemed reasonable!

Additionally, I feel very Martha right now. This was originally a Good Thing that I fell in love with awhile ago.

Are you planning on using stamps for any of your wedding projects? Or do you simply have a vendor to recommend? If so, leave a comment!

P.S. Don't you love the super cheesy pic at the top?

The Bloomin' invitations!

Another fast shipper!

My order from http://www.mygatsby.com/ just arrived! I ordered these 5x7 Bloom Envelopes in Black Linen less than a week ago, and FedEx delivered them a few minutes ago! I'm super psyched--they are gorgeous and perfect. My Gatsby gets a big thumbs up from me!

Has anyone else used My Gatsby or bloom invitations?

Bags for the Candy Bar

I ordered these white paper bags from http://www.papermart.com/. They were priced really well at $11.76 for 500 bags, which is more than I need, but I'll use them for something--right? Plus, this price was way better than Michael's, who wanted a ridiculous $3 for 12 bags!!!!


They arrived in less than a week. Yay for fast shipping!!


My only problem is the number 2 displayed on the top of the bags. I think I am going to trim the top of the bags to get rid of it (future DIY!). They also have the recycled symbol on the bottom, but that doesn't really bother me--Green is in!



Anyways, I definitely recommend this vendor because of their great prices, fast shipping and excellent communication!

I'm always looking for great vendors, so leave a comment if you know of any!

The 'Maids dresses

After lots and lots of searching, procrastination and indecision, I finally selected the bridesmaids dresses. They will be wearing this strapless empire A-line dress in black Poly Satin with black Poly Chiffon. It has satin gathered on the bodice with mix color gathered waistband and back sash. The dress is from Jasmine Bridal's B2 line and at $130, it was a steal!

I selected this dress because:

1. It looked good on me (pear-shaped) and my sister (broader shoulders)
2. It was cheap
3. It is not TOO bridesmaid-sy
4. The fabric is gorgeous and not your typical matte satin.
5. I was tired of looking and basically let my MOH/sister make the decision.

What do you think yay or nay for the dress? How did/will/would you decide on a BM dress?

Something Blue.....Shoes?

I really must stop shoe shopping, because I am seriously considering buying these Manolo Blahnik Something Blue heels from Bergdorf Goodman. They are the "special" shoes from the Sex and the City Movie!!! Plus, I love the idea of my shoes, being my "something blue."

I also like these more affordable shoes from AMI.

Or these, cough..."Christian Louboutin"....cough...cough blue satin pumps, that are very similar to what I blogged about earlier.

Does anyone have any other, more affordable than the manolo's I'm obsessed with suggestions? Please, I'm begging you...stop me before I buy those shoes!!

I want...no...need...these shoes

These Christian Louboutin Very Noeud Slingbacks are on July/August cover of Brides Magazine. You can buy them here for a hefty $795.

I really love the idea of wearing a colored shoe, but these are out of my price range! Here's a more reasonable shoe, you could probably even add a bow or broach to dress them up.

Has anyone else done a colored shoe?

Chartreuse Ribbon

I finally received this Silk Shantique wired edge ribbon I ordered from http://www.jkmribbon.com/. I plan to use the ribbon for my invitations (more on that to come).

Here's my review:

Product: The color is perfect and the picture accurately represents it. After lots of searching, both online and in stores, this is the only chartreuse silk dupioni ribbon I could find. I am picky about fabric quality and appearance and this ribbon definitely meets my standards. It will add some richness to our invitations.

Service: SLOW, SLOW, SLOW. It took six weeks to arrive. Which would have been fine if they had let me know, without me having to email them TWICE! The first time I emailed them, they refused to answer my question about the timing of shipping because it had been less than 14 business days since I ordered. With all that being said, I will be ordering again, because I can't find it anywhere else and luckily I have lots of time.

If you have a vendor review, I'd love to hear it!

Sizzix Big Kick Die-Cutter

Yesterday I bought the Sizzix Big Kick Die Cutter at Michael's. It is normally $99, but the entire collection was on sale for 40% off! So I splurged! I have several DIY projects planned and after a cost/time/laziness analysis, I decided it was worth it. Here's what I bought: I bought the envelope die cut and square die cut, which I will use to make this (just a little preview of things to come:)).

I also got this tag die cut. I haven't tried it yet.

So far, I LOVE it! It's super simple to learn and use. The hardest part is getting it out of the box.

Also, there are plenty of die-cut options available online!

What craft/wedding related products have you splurged on?