Be a Bridezilla

From the time I got engaged last Christmas I got tons of advice from friends, family, even strangers, and read lots of wedding planning advice on websites and books. Since doing the deed myself a few weeks ago I now feel equipped to share my own wedding planning advice for those of you who may be newly engaged.

1. Be a Bridezilla. My favorite piece of advice I got was from my matron of honor who told me to be a bridezilla. That’s right BE a bridezilla. She said no matter how polite and accommodating you are, at some point during the process someone will probably call you a bridezilla anyway so you might as well go ahead and embrace it. Obviously you don’t want to be so bossy and overbearing you alienate friends, family or your new spouse-to-be, but the bottom line is, it’s your wedding and you should do it your way!

2. Do it your way. There are many traditions and lots of etiquette associated with a wedding. You may feel pressured to do a certain thing because “it’s tradition.” The most important thing though is that at the end of the day you are married to the love of your life. I spent a lot of time worrying (cause it’s one of the things I do best) about what people were going to think about our wedding. Would they be offended that we didn’t hand address the invitations or send formal invitations with the fancy little onion skin paper thingy. Again, the bottom line is, that’s not what is important about your wedding. If formal invitations are important to you, go for it. If not, find a unique, creative and less expensive way to let friends and family know. We chose to do a single sheet simple invitation style without all the frou frou extra envelopes and such. We also opted to do a dessert-style reception instead of a full meal. The most important thing is to include special things that make the ceremony and reception feel unique and personal to you and represents your relationship.

3. Ask for help. Wedding planning, even if you are opting for a smaller event, is still a lot to do. If you have an extensive budget you may decide to hire a wedding planner to help. If you, like me, are on a tighter budget, don’t be afraid to ask friends and family for help. They are undoubtedly thrilled for you and will be happy to assist in any way they can. You never know what secret creative talents your friends may have. We got married in a wooden band shelter at a winery that was pretty plain, but my godmother turned it into a lovely wedding wonderland with white paper lanterns, beautiful ferns, some candles and flowers from the farmers market. It was unbelievably beautiful.
On a side note, one of the things I was told over and over when starting to plan for my wedding was that everyone would likely not send back their RSVP cards. We opted to include a stamp on our RSVP cards, but still did not receive them all back. Again, don’t be afraid to ask. If it’s getting close to your deadline and you haven’t heard back from folks, go ahead and give them a call and ask if they plan to attend.

4. Shop around. Again, if like me, you are on a tight budget, be sure to shop around for your wedding and decor items. The veil I had my heart set on at the bridal shop was $250, way out of my price range. I ended up finding an identical veil online for only $26. If you are crafty there are lots of neat do-it-yourself ideas for wedding decor. I also found a lot of beautiful things well within my budget on the site Etsy.com, which features individual sellers of handmade items. Another piece of advice I got early on was not to stress too much over centerpieces, people likely won’t remember them anyway. As our wedding was at a winery and our theme was peacock feathers, we had the simplest centerpieces of wine bottles with peacock feathers in them. Find something unique and simple that celebrates you as a couple or ties in with your venue for a neat, no-stress centerpiece.

5. As time goes by. Another thing I was told many times is that time at your wedding will fly by. You spend months and months planning and it all seems like a blur the day of the wedding. This was probably the most true thing I was told about a wedding. I was worried about feeling like we were having to wait forever once we got the venue, but that was not the case at all. Once I arrived, got into my dress, walked down the aisle, said “I do,” danced with my husband and my dad, ate a bite of cake and tossed my bouquet in the air — it felt like the blink of an eye.

You will undoubtedly have a wedding photographer and possibly a videographer and you will be so happy about those images and videos because it will give more time to relive the event in slow motion. Another great thing about getting married this day and age are smart phones. Most likely you will have friends taking pictures and videos on their phones and this is a great way to get a quick look back at the day before your official photographs are ready. Looking back at the pictures has been my favorite pastime since returning from my honeymoon.

To sum up my wedding advice, it is this: read all the articles you want, pin all the things on Pinterest, listen to what everyone has to say about weddings and at the end of the day, do what feels right for you and your future spouse and you will surely have a special day to remember for years to come.

Mimosas are a girl's best friend.

I’m not really a morning person so I’m a huge fan of the meal known as brunch. You don’t have to be up early to eat it, in fact anytime between 10:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. is a good time to serve brunch.

A few weekends ago I enjoyed the most spectacular brunch. My wonderful Godmother Connie prepared an absolutely fantastic brunch which served as my bridal shower.

My very favorite part of my bridal brunch, aside from being showered with love by friends and family, of course, was the mimosa bar. Yes, you read that right, a mimosa bar. Mimosas are pretty much the best part of any brunch. Drinking alcohol in the morning is typically frowned upon, but not when it’s brunch and it’s a mimosa.

In case you are not familiar with this delightful beverage, it is so very simple to make. A basic mimosa is comprised of orange juice and champagne. My Godmother really went all out for my special celebration and these were not your typical mimosas.

Set up in a most delightful tablescape were crystal champagne flutes with colorful swizzle sticks, three different kinds of sparkling adult beverages including Champagne, Prosecco and Moscato, seven different juices, plus multiple kinds of fruit for garnish.

When I’m rich and famous, I want to have brunch with a mimosa bar every single day! My Godmother had all sorts of beautiful flowers and tropical decorations in honor of my upcoming honeymoon in Key West, but she really outdid herself with the mimosa bar. If you plan to host a special brunch event anytime in the near future, I highly recommend making it extra special with fresh fruit, juices and champagne!

The dishes served for this brunch were also superb. Connie made delicious mini-frittatas as well as some out-of-this-world french toast casseroles. To top off the brunch menu we had mini crab and shrimp quiches as well as tropical desserts like key lime tarts and piña colada cupcakes.
Aside from the mimosas, of course, my favorite was the frittata. A frittata is basically a crustless quiche. Connie used a muffin pan to make the mini frittatas so they were a perfect serving size for each guest. This is another great tip if you are serving brunch for a crowd.

You could really take your favorite frittata recipe and make it in the muffin pan to create individual serving sizes. Connie used Food Network chef Ina Garten’s recipe which included proscuitto.

Below is a recipe I found for frittata that also sounds delicious from The Girl Who Ate Everything.Com.

Muffin Pan Brunch Frittata (Recipe from TheGirlWhoAteEverything.com)
Ingredients
• Nonstick vegetable oil cooking spray
• 8 large eggs
• 1/3 cup whole milk
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 4 ounces bacon, cooked and crumbled (you could use diced ham or cooked sausage here too)
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan
• 1/4 cup chopped spinach leaves (you could use 2 Tablespoons of chopped basil or parsley here instead too)
• 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Spray 2 mini muffin tins (each with 12 cups) with nonstick spray. Whisk the eggs, milk, pepper, and salt in a large bowl to blend well. Stir in the bacon, cheese, and spinach. Fill prepared muffin cups almost to the top with the egg mixture. Sprinkle tops with cheddar cheese. Bake until the egg mixture puffs and is just set in the center, about 8 to 10 minutes. The frittatas will be really puffy right out of the oven and will settle once removed from the oven.
Using a knife, run the edge of the knife around the edge and loosen the frittatas from the muffin cups and slide the frittatas onto a platter. Serve immediately.

A Wedding Road Trip

This weekend my lovely sorority sister got married in Asheville, NC. Her ceremony was at Lake Junaluska (which is actually in Waynesville, NC) and it was so beautiful. The lake is absolutely gorgeous, as was the adorable stone chapel where the ceremony was held. Of course, I cried.

Lake Junaluska

The wedding reception was held at a trendy venue, aptly called The Venue. Highlights of the reception included a dance off between the Groomsmen and Bride and Bridesmaids and a mashed potato bar. I have been hearing that mashed potato bars, were the new "thing" when it comes to wedding reception food. This is definitely a trend I support. I am a fan of anything that allows me to add my desired amount of bacon and cheese. Another sorority sister's husband joked with us that we should have a bacon bar where you can add small amounts of potato, chives or cheese to your bowl full of bacon. Again, another amazing idea! I'm pretty sure all good ideas start with bacon.

As a North Carolina native I am sad to say this was the first time I had ever been to Asheville. We didn't get to spend a lot of time touring the city, but we did make the time to eat somewhere cute and shop. The main reason I like going ANYWHERE is to eat and shop! Come to think of it, I live to eat and shop!

The Bride and Groom had thoughtfully created little goody bags for guests staying overnight in Asheville and included a list of their favorite places to visit. Tupelo Honey Cafe and The Early Girl Eatery were on the list and the concierge at our hotel also recommended having brunch at one of these places. Unfortunately (or fortunately as it turned out) both of these places had long wait times and so we bravely ventured out to try something else. By chance we parked near a place called Chorizo. I did a double take when I saw the name. I love chorizo about as much as I love bacon! We were seated right away and it was toasty warm inside, since it was very chilly outside this was a huge perk. 

Morgan ordered the homemade chorizo and a "cheesy pancake" served with apples and eggs. I had the tortilla plate with bacon, cheesy grits and the freshest pico de gallo, black beans and guacamole I've ever had! I was very thoughtless, my dear readers, and starting hogging in all this good food without even thinking to take a picture for you. With just a few bites left, I remembered so here you go:

The best part was really the pico. I don't know how in the world they had still had such fresh tasting tomatoes this late in the season. I'm just crazy about tomatoes and let's face it, the kind from the grocery store never taste as good as the home grown kind. The guac and beans don't look that appetizing, I know, but I promise they were yummy! I ate all of my food and what was left of Morgan's. 

Being the material girl that I am, I just couldn't leave town without purchasing some sort of memento from my first visit to Asheville. I got two adorable pairs of earrings (made in the USA, can you believe?) and some books from a super cute bookstore. Jewelry, food and books, yep my day was complete!

I will leave you with this last photo of the awesome wall decor at Chorizo.