Holy Crap.

Ok Ok Ok. So I've been a little busy and haven't given this blog any love in, oh about 3 months. My bad! But a lot of stuff has been going on, do you even know how busy I am?! Did I mention I'm busy? So let me catch you up. You being my 5 readers.

We are approximately at T-minus 6 weeks. That's where the holy crap part comes in (also see Pre Cana section) but I'm trying to lasso my chakra and be zen . Currently my chakra has been leading me to a glass of wine every night before bed which totally helps in the zen department. Anyway all in all I'm feeling like things are going pretty much according to plan ( I just jinxed my whole wedding) and we are rapidly checking things off the to-do list.

Here is what has been going on most recently.

The dress is in and for the most part fits perfectly all appropriate accessories have been matched and purchased. Mark bought his suit last weekend and I hear it's a stunner, although I haven't laid eyes on it yet. So we will definitely have clothes for the wedding which is a good thing, naked weddings are awkward.

I finally wrestled, hog tied, and forced Mark down to a jewelers. After about 30 minutes of debating 3 rings that looked exactly the same we had a weddingband purchased. It's not that he doesn't think it's important, I have to go through the same process with him when we have to shop for anything even his underwear, which if you attended the bridal shower you know is Fruit of the Loom. My rings have come in and are lovely.

Invites are out. That was a painstaking process. Remind me never to use the tiniest string in the universe to hold a design together. I now have arthritis but it was worth it. Everyone seems to like them (if you don't don't tell me). I'll be posting more blogs with specific info for the events leading up to Saturday as mentioned in the invite so stay tuned for that. Big shout out to CARLY for helping with the design and ALL the printing. Lifesaver.

We completed the required Pre Cana classes. The book we received (as pictured above) was entitled Together For Life. Now is it just me or does that sound more like a sentencing then a celebration? Either way Pre Cana turned out not to be the "holy crap" I thought it would be. We didn't really even talk about Jesus until the end. It was actually nice to be around other couples who are going through the same things, and our host couple Katherine and John were badass. If you have to do Pre Cana in Brooklyn anytime soon make sure you go on a weekend when they're hosting. We passed with flying colors and even got our little certified Pre Cana Diploma. We are now completely legit and ready to stroll down the aisle of Saint Charles.

My wonderful bridal shower was last weekend hosted by the best B-maids ever. Together with my family they put a TON of work into it and it came off smashing. I made off with a bountiful booty, all to be put to good use in (hopefully) a new apartment this fall. The most interesting part of my shower is how my wonderful finacee made an appearance without making an appearance. His answers to the "How well do you know Mark game" kept me on my toes and kept everyone else rolling. Was I really supposed to know the answer to "What does Mark wish you would do more of" was "Make homemade potato chips with parmesean shavings" or that he thinks my bra size is DD. Oy. Everyone who hasn't met him really can't wait now!

So thats about it for now. Next up is a quick trip to The Haxton's in RI to pick out the liquor, the official walk through of the venue with all my designers, The tasting with the caterer, deciding on the location for our rehearsal dinner and planning the honeymoon. Piece of cake.

When I grow up I want to work at Hatch Creative Studio.

Flowers keep me up at night. So do votives, linens, mood lighting and occasionally assorted styles of vases. To me this is some important ish. As most of you know I highly enjoy things that have to do with design and decorating and since we got engaged my mind has been racing with the possibilities.

To date I've made approximately 12 mood boards that define the "look and feel" of the wedding. There are color stories, and floral motifs as well as boards of the items I've purchased and boards of things I wish to purchase. I wouldn't call it obsessive (Mark would) It's just really important to me that everything comes together the way (I) we want.

As it came time to start looking for a florist and event designer I realized I have a trust issue. I wouldn't have this problem if mind reading existed and my florist/event designer could look into my head and see my "complete vision" but since we haven't cracked telepathy yet I'm slightly freaked about handing this job over to someone, anyone besides myself. I've even tried to come up with elaborate plans of how I could visit the flower district in the morning and execute all the wedding decor myself the day of, only to be bitch slapped back to reality by any former bride. Apparently I'll have more important tasks to accomplish that day like making myself presentable (see former post) and getting myself to the church on time .

So even as the anxiety built in my chest and the night terrors of gerber daisies and sunflowers gone wrong continued, I knew hiring an event designer was a necessary piece to the wedding day puzzle.

Luckily my first stop was Hatch Creative Studio. I found Hatch on a wedding blog and was intrigued by their use of buttons as boutonneires instead of traditional flowers, something I had thought about doing myself. I checked their site out and set up a meeting. Then I fell in love.

Barb Salzman is the designer and Managing Member of Hatch and she's who I would like to be when I grow up (even though I think we are the same age). I fully trust Barb and I'm very excited she will be executing the decor for the wedding. She wasn't even phased by my 12 mood boards or my color stories! In fact she asked if she could keep them. I'm quite envious of her business model, creativity and experience and only hope I can someday have a very similar set up. Oh, and she's from Westfield.

Learn about Hatch in the Details.

Kit'n Caboodle.

So apparently (every bridal magazine says)  it's important you look your very best on your wedding day. This includes many treatments and procedures starting weeks in advance of the big day. 

Facials, mani-pedi's, massage, wraps, exfoliation, extensions, trims, waxes, masks, things applied with airbrushes, aromatherapy, chanting,  you get the picture.

Although I do like my $10 manicure every once in a while, when it comes to the beauty department I have never felt the need to indulge. I've used the exact same Wet'n Wild concealer for roughly 15 years (god forbid if it ever gets discontinued), I usually get a freebee mascara from my Mom's forays into L'Oreal focus groups, and I buy whatever shampoo is on sale. I also usually go about 6,8,12 months without trimming my hair GASP! Although I do appreciate nice quality beauty products I never really seem to buy them for myself.

So when someone wants to charge me $700 to get my makeup done on my wedding day I take some issue with it. Not to mention what an "updo" goes for these days. Oh and that doesn't include the "trial" which (every bridal magazine says) you have to do. That can run you another $100-$350.

So I have to pay someone $700 to bring over their Caboodle (see above pic) and lacquer up my face so me and my bridal party can look like the cast of a Toddlers in Tiaras episode. As if. 

Luckily I love creative bargain hunting. Like my kick-ass photographers (check them out in the details, make sure to look at their photojournalism work, they will be famous one day) who I found on craigslist, I have also been lucky enough to find some very qualified makeup artists who have some very reasonable prices. Living in a city with a wealth of talent which breeds competitiveness + the recession has also helped in driving down prices.

So hopefully my face will be fabulous, if not please keep it to yourself.

A Room With A (different) View.

So, I know it's been a while since there was a CoAnderson wedding update, and I have a good reason.

We lost our reception venue.

It's complicated. It has something to do with AIG and foreclosures and bailouts and stimulissisisss and if I had the big CNN touch screen interactive map I could really explain it well.

Long story short we received a letter from Pochron Studios 2 weeks ago claiming that due to the economic climate they would be closing their rental space as of July 31st. As in the Friday before our wedding on Saturday August 1st and regrettably they could not hold our event. As you can imagine after reading this letter there were a few tears, a few glasses of wine, a re-group, some research, many phone calls, talks of eloping, but after all that I'm happy to report we have secured Wedding Venue Part Deux. The Midtown Loft and Terrace.

Wedding Venue Part Deux is located in fancy Manhattan. It's larger and prettier and nicer than wedding venue I. So lets just say everything happens for a reason and move on!

Here are some FAQ's that have come up since moving the venue. 

Q. Is the ceremony still in Brooklyn?

A. Yes.

Q. Can we now stay at a hotel in manhattan?

A. Sure, but in our opinion the Brooklyn hotels are just as convenient and for the most part cheaper than hotels in Manhattan. We may also possibly be having activities on Thursday and Friday that will be held in Brooklyn.

Q. How do we get from the ceremony to the reception?

A. Good question. We are still figuring this out. That said it's super easy to drive, take a cab, or take public transport between both locations. There are multiple parking garages by both the ceremony and the reception sites. 

Q. Where's the after party?

A. TBD

Q. What does the new venue offer me?

A. Up-close and personal views of the beautifully lit empire state building from a 3,400 square foot roof terrace, a 5,000 square foot loft space for dancing, and a partay you will never forget.

Check out WVPD in THE DETAILS

Hotel Update.

Some wedding attendees have reported problems booking with the sales reps at the Marriott. If you encounter any problems or have any questions please directly contact our Marriott liaison.

Irene Babcock

718-222-6532

irene.babcock@marriott.com

If Irene informs you that there are no more rooms available during any of the days you would like to reserve contact me right away and I will release more rooms.

Also, if you are booking at the Nu Hotel, they request you call to make your reservation during regular daytime office hours.

Hopefully this cuts down on the confusion.

My Maids.

So we knocked another "to do' off the long list this weekend by scooping up some bridesmaid dresses.

Kim and Jessie, (Erin was there in spirit) headed out to try our luck at what would seem an impossible task. Find a cool dress that everyone would like and hopefully be able to wear again.

We started out at a bridal salon on the west side that I knew carried some of the more acceptable designers in this category. The girls both tried on about 10 dresses and in the end there was one we kind of liked, that was OK, and maybe could work, but still WAS a bridesmaid dress. Actually the funnier part of this was that the one dress we did like was from the "Disney Princesses Collection" yes Disney even does dresses now. If you knew Kim you would understand the humor in this.

We then headed to Bloomingdales because I was still sure that we could just walk into a store and buy off the rack. Ambitious, but how cool would that be?

Well it worked. The first dress we saw was the dress. They love it, I love it. 

Done and done.

Female guests, please do not wear a BCBG dress to the wedding from this year unless you want to be made an honorary bridesmaid. Thanks! 

Dresses pictured above for placement only not representative of actual dresses purchased.

Going to the Chapel.

I'm in!

Father Ed has agreed to marry us in the beautiful 200 + year old church that sits right outside our living room window, St. Charles Borromeo. This outcome was very exciting considering a.) I'm not Catholic and b.) I thought I would be looked upon as a heathen, and possibly given a lie detector test. I definitely got brownie points for being both baptized AND confirmed.

I have to admit the catholic church has always scared me a bit. My mother would always talk about her CCD classes from childhood, and how the Nuns would tell her to "listen for the calling" I also think my aunt got beat up by Nuns a lot, and the intense incense smell from my grandparents funerals still haunts me. 

My Mom eventually (sorta) converted to my Dad's religion, Congregationalist which is what I am. Although everytime we get in the car for a road trip or on a plane she still crosses herself. Spectacles, testicals, wallet, watch. Old habits die hard.

Apparently not many boomers "heard the calling" because Father Ed is the only priest at our church right now. There's a serious priest shortage in Brooklyn and all over the 5 boroughs. This forces Father Ed to do all masses himself everyday. But that doesn't get him down! He is a super nice man who came to the priesthood later in life and was actually a working psychologist for many years.

Another perk is they've condensed down Pre-Cana (Catholic marriage classes) to 2 hours on a Friday and about 5 hours on a Saturday one weekend in the spring.

I have to admit I may have been giving the Catholics a bad wrap. It seems they're really making an effort to try and modernize their look and process while still keeping it real with age old traditions. St. Charles is even re-designing their website in hopes of recruiting younger members, which Mark has volunteered to help with. I'm very impressed with how open and understanding Father Ed has been and I really look forward to him marrying us in his beautiful church.

Amen.

Check out St. Charles Borromeo in The Details