Our Vegas Wedding

Faithful readers, once again, I apologize for my lack of posts, but as many of you brides (and grooms) know, the few months leading up to the wedding can be stressful and time consuming! As much time as I spent making sure that our family and friends had a fabulous time, the Chef and I could not have pulled it off without the fabulous time and dedication from our vendors.


Our wedding party at the Bellagio chapel.

Of course, most of the wedding was organized by the Bellagio, but there were a few outside vendors that made my vision of my old school vintage vegas wedding possible...

We were fortunate that our good friend Chris is a trained classical musician, based in San Fransisco. He provided the wedding music for the ceremony. Not only were we thrilled that he could attend our wedding, but that he gave us such a wonderful gift... Check out his blog post featuring our wedding! (Yes, is available to do destination weddings!)

I have alot of photos throughout the years of my dad and I laughing. But I never remember what we're laughing about!

Now, I didn't want to wear a veil. Ever since I chopped my hair off back in May, my vision of wearing a veil with long flowing hair went out the window. But my mother won that battle, so I searched high and low for the perfect veil and found Emily of Rohm on Etsy. Her creations are breathtaking and the lace used for the mantilla veil matched the lace on my dress perfectly. Because I procrastinated, I had to have my veil rushed (Emily creates veils to order)...Emily was an angel and didn't hesitate when I told her how fast I needed it!

I wish I had a better picture of my hair up close, but I had two gorgeous vintage rhinestone hair clips in my hair. They used to be earrings, but Helen of Pinsnsins (Etsy) made them into clips. So after I took my veil off for the reception, I still had some pretty fancy hair jewelry (I didn't even bother changing my everyday diamond studs).

The programs and unity candle were one of the cheapest wedding items. I made the programs with cheap card stock from Staples and a $1 spool of ribbon! The candles I bought at Michael's and printed the monogram on vellum paper and glued and pinned it to the unity candle with ribbon. (The candles sticks from the dollar store)

Chuck E. Bumps and the Crocodiles

We had an awesome band play at our wedding, Chuck E. Bumps and the Crocodiles, courtesy of Las Vegas Wedding Music.

Even our Bellagio wedding coordinator was impressed with the band (they had their doubts at first, since they were not on their preferred vendor list...but she quickly assured me they would be added).

Our first dance as a married couple, to Dean Martin's "Ain't That a Kick in the Head."

Elvis did actually die...but was resurrected by the talented pastry staff at Bellagio.

Ah, my cake topper. I had an awesome cake topper made for me, but then it got lost in the mail (see my earlier post for pictures of the original one). For the second one, the Chef wanted the groom to look like Elvis. Once again, the wonderful folks as USPS failed me and no matter how much I bubble wrapped the topper, when I got to the hotel, his legs had completely broken from the waist down. When we got to the reception, the pastry chefs had worked their magic and you couldn't even tell!!

I may have had cake on my face, but my hair looked fabulous!!

I do my research. Nevermind that I was at a 5 star hotel, I just don't trust hotel salons. It is no offense to the great stylists, but I wanted someone that worked independently. So I went in search for the perfect stylist and found Amelia Cline. With little direction, she gave me (and my friends) the hairstyles we wanted. To coordinate with my wedding style I wanted fingerwaves with vintage flare. Amelia was truly one of the few stylists that left me with an updo I didn't have to (or want to) fix!

I do not regret for one second our decision to have our wedding in Las Vegas. Washington, DC is too pricey (not to mention I'd be stuck playing tour guide for out of towners), and Texas would have been a lodging nightmare (nearest hotel to my folks place - where I would have wanted the wedding - was a good 20 minutes away).

Instead we shared a decadent dinner at Le Cirque our first night, I had a fabulous bachelorette party at one of the Bellagio clubs, won $100 in blackjack (initial investment $10), an awesome rehearsal dinner at Hard Rock Cafe (thanks Diana...another post on that) complete with Elvis, a beautiful suite, a beautiful wedding, and a super chic penthouse suite post-wedding brunch.

We won't mention the other stuff, because A) this is a family website, and B) whatever happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas!!

Calling All Atlanta Brides...

For all of you Georgia brides that don't know where to host your wedding...The Chef and I just got back from a beautiful wedding last week at the Chateau Elan resort, just north of Atlanta. Aside from it being a resort, it is also a vineyard (i.e. no shortage of wine for guests).


Photo: Chateau Elan Inn



The rehearsal dinner took place in the vineyard's Cask Room.


With my future sister-in-law (right), after the rehearsal dinner.

The Chef and I, enjoying drinks at Paddy's Irish Pub, located on the resort premises.

Future sister-in-law and me again.

The decorations for the wedding were simply amazing. This was definitely a four star wedding!

The bride and groom.

I wish we had taken more photos to show you, but The Chef and I were having too much fun!!

Tip #5 - Lessons Learned

There are some brides that can recited the Emily Post wedding etiquette by heart and there are others, that don't.

Here are few lessons learned and some that are just plain common sense:

1. You are not going to make everyone happy.
2. Don't put your registry on your invitations. A registry is only acceptable on shower invitations and wedding websites (hint: you can add your website address on the invitation).
3. Don't invite someone you don't really want attending, even if you think they won't come (they might surprise you!)
4. It's OK not to include children. Some guests might be offended, but it's at your expense, not theirs. Just remember to keep it fair; you can't pick and choose which children are invited. It's all or nothing.
5. It is impossible to make everyone happy (see #1).
6. If you are planning a brunch the day after the wedding, make sure it does not conflict with NFL Football.
7. Order/purchase items early!!! Items break, get lost in the mail, are on back order, end up being ugly, etc. You want time as your ally, not an enemy.
8. Listen to peoples opinions. You don't have to follow their advice, but you never know when you'll hear a good idea!
9. Check and recheck your guest list. Confirm addresses, name spellings, etc.
10. Do what makes you happy. You are the only one (and hopefully the groom) that will remember your wedding day forever. Not your Aunt Betty who couldn't bring her 10 kids.

Have Fun!

So many to choose from, so little time...

For months I have been looking for the perfect favors, at a perfect price. I've fallen in love with some, gawked at prices, recalculated costs by guest estimate...you name it!

My prayers were finally answered by FavorWarehouse.com! When Shannon from FavorWarehouse emailed me, I had to take a look at their favors and let me tell you, it took me all of about 10 minutes before I ordered some samples!

The Chef and I have been looking at playing cards (we are getting married in Vegas after all) and most favor sites sold them for about $2-$4, with limited designs. I was able to find what seemed like unlimited design choices for $1.09 - $1.59 (depending on how many you order).

Here are two of my favorite designs:


Playing card favors by FavorWarehouse.com
Countless of playing card designs that suit any wedding style, from fancy to kitsch.

Photo by FavorWarehouse.com
I really think this design captures my Vintage Vegas theme (comes in a variety of color schemes too!!) I think I counted over 200 designs in various colors.... Just find a design and personalize with your name/event/date!

This is a site you definitely need to check out for favors. With an expected 125+ guests, I can purchase favors for under $140!!

But enough about that...they also offer a wide selection of personalized favors, with similar prices, from candles, soaps, lip balms, tins, teas, coffees, etc. And those are just their personalized favors...they have much more! And check our their blog!

Did I mention that I received my samples in 2 days?

H&B Loves...

Dimitra Designs! If you're like me and do everything online, you find that it's hard to find a one-stop shop for all you wedding needs!


Dimitra Designs, based out of Greensville, South Carolina, brings their southern charm and experience right to your own home, specializing in weddings, proms, and pageants!

They even offer wedding officiants and wedding packages! You just know you are in the right hands with Dimitra...



Not only do they offer everything you might need for your big day, in both their storefront and online stores, but they have a blog with some great articles.

My fav?? 5 Ways To Punch Up Your White Wedding Dress

Sneak Peek

I KNOW, I've been a terrible wedding blog host. It's been almost 2 months since my last post. As my way of apologizing, I decided to show ya'll a brief sneak peek of what's to come!!

I can't believe we are 84 days away, until the big day!!! At first I thought it would be easy to plan, since most of my vendors are in house at the Bellagio. But there is still much to do! Programs, favors, making sure the band is going to show up... My projects this coming month is to order my stamps and mail out my invites!!

Here is a brief glimpse of my invitation suite. Pictured is the boarding pass jacket. I went with a softer aqua blue and yellow for the invites (my colors are teal and gold). Ana de Roux did a fabulous job in capturing my wedding theme, "Vintage Vegas"... That was pretty much all I told her and she came up with a great design on the first try!

Here is the reply card that will accompany the invitations. When I saw Ana's website and other invitations she had done, I knew she would be the one to capture my vision. She did not disappoint! If you are doing a destination wedding out of the country, check out her passport invitations.

Because I knew I would need some nifty monograms at some point (programs, seating chart, thank you notes, etc.) I found a graphic designer (where else? On Etsy!) who did five monograms for $10 (a steal).

I love being different, so instead of the traditional initial monogram (ok, I had her do ONE in that style), I opted for a more contemporary feel for my paper goods...

Jenn did 5 graphics for me (that's right readers, at $2 a piece) and the turnaround time was a few days. So if you are doing any last minute planning, check out Jenn Johnston Designs on Etsy.

I hope I have fallen back into your good graces by sharing some of my wedding. I promise to post more, as I hustle and bustle till November!! Planning is underway for my bachelorette party (we're thinking Virginia wine country) and my bridal shower!

Hint #4...Be Unconventional

We took our first trip with the pop-up to the beach in Rodanthe, NC (The Outerbanks)..Yes, like the movie. We were a few blocks away from the house featured in the film. Our site was just a few steps from the beach.

I know...it's been a month since I have posted, but I have had a month's long unlucky streak (I don't know if it's over yet, but I'll get back to you on that)...

Getting back to wedding business. We've all seen the fabulous wedding gifts bride and grooms present to each other; from fabulous jewelry for women, watches for men, etc. The Chef and I decided to go unconventional for our wedding present. We bought ourselves a pop-up camper.

While it's not diamonds or gold, it certainly ranks up there in price :) Trust me, we'll be paying it off for a few years. The Chef and I love to camp, we do it often, and now we are able to camp in comfort. Not to mention going to better locations, like the beach! I can't think of a better present than a beach/lake/river house!

Point is: be unique, be creative, be different!!

(If you are of the camping persuasion...check out our camping blog at On The Roam Again).