Making My Guest Book xx, Lou

I used shutterfly.com to create my custom guest book for the wedding.  I love that you have the option to import your own backgrounds or use their great designs.  I paid extra to have pages that would lay flat.  I am planning to have gold & black permanent markers for guests to sign the book.

Choosing my invitation xx, Lea

I was surprised when my fiancé expressed an opinion about the invitations we are going to send for our wedding.  He wanted something “classic and simple”.  Classic is fine with me, but Lou and I both tend to shy away from simple. I have attached a couple of invitations that have a classic feel, yet by adding gold letterpress and beveled edges could never be considered simple -- perhaps simply perfect!  After the save the date, the invitation is the next item a guest receives that will set the tone for your wedding. What is the tone you want to set for your big day?

xx, Lea

How to Make a Seating Chart, xx, Lou

Many of my married friends say creating a seating chart for your reception can be the most stressful part of planning, so I was really excited when I found a blog description of the best way to begin!  I wanted to share this link because it has proven to be simple, yet genius!  I began with creating five categories of guests: Head table, Lou's Friends, B's Friends, Lou’s Family Friends and B’s Family Friends.  This system helps you design a layout to place individuals from the same category at the same table, or at least area of the room.  Below is how Something Turquoise created her seating chart.
How to create a seating chart for your wedding

Photo credit: Something Turquoise 

Save the Date! xx, Lou

SAVE THE DATE

I had to share our incredible save the date! This photo was taken at The Little Theatre in Rochester, NY where the staff was so gracious to customize the sign for us! I created my custom postcard save the date on zazzle.com.  I love the heavy card stock and glossy finish.  Tammy Swales Photography delivered the glam and romantic feel we want for our wedding day. 

Photo credit: Tammy Swales Photography

Delivering Glam! xx, Lou

I love creating subtle (and not so subtle) details throughout the venue that make the entire wedding cohesive and let the guests know how thoughtful the host has been in even the smallest elements of the night.  Above are some of my inspirations for my wedding. I aim to deliver a glam theme, think sparkle, sequins, black tie, lucite, modern furniture, up-lighting, neutrals, all with a touch of draping and kraft paper!

xx, Lou

A Playful Color Palette xx, Lea

A PLAYFUL COLOR PALETTE

Just like Lou, I also fell in love with the ombré look for bridesmaids’ dresses–each girl rockin’ a different hue of the same color family.  However, my favorite color has always been green and I knew it was going to be the base for my color palette. One of the big advantages I have found to having multiple shades of the same color incorporated into my wedding, is I do not have to worry about perfectly matching the linens, with the bridesmaids’ dresses, with the groomsmen’s ties…you get the idea.  Although, I must admit, I am a bit of a neat freak and I love everything to match, so I know my colors will not get TOO off the wall, but I love the flexibility!

Above is a collage of some of the items I am already eyeing to make my day complete.  I adore the idea of incorporating patterns to make the wedding more whimsical.  After all, the details are what make the guests feel connected and engaged at your wedding. I want my guests to look at the décor and KNOW they are at my wedding. The green is a start, but the devil is in the details, so back to work on those details I go! 

xx, Lea

How I Found My Color Palette xx, Lou

HOW I FOUND MY COLOR PALETTE

Everyone has colors they gravitate towards.  When thinking about my wedding color palette, I knew I wanted a classic look that I will not get sick of when glancing at my wedding album 50 years down the road.  I love blushes and neutrals and am slightly obsessed with Molly Sims’s mismatched bridesmaids’ gowns.  Sims had a designer-friend, Elizabeth Kennedy, custom make the bridesmaid dresses for her girls.  Although I do not have these personal connections, I LOVE the concept.

After much time on Pinterest, blogging and scouring dress websites, I decided my 9 bridesmaids would be adorned in colors from champagne and nude to light pink.  Like Sims, I gave my bridesmaids the freedom to choose their own dresses. It should be said, that this can be a difficult task and will not work for everyone. If you choose to go this path, you should trust your bridesmaids' style, time management and should set ground rules. WARNING: Be firm with your ground rules—the first being, the bride has final say over everything!

Do you love Molly Sims’s bridesmaids’ looks too?

xx, Lou

Dress images found on [Pinterest]
Feathered shoes found on BHLDN, Something Bleu

How To Get Started xx, Lea

HOW TO GET STARTED

No good wedding can start without a plan….that is why the first thing I did when Lou got engaged was make her a wedding binder! Zazzle allows you to customize your wedding binder with a cute photo (personalization is always a plus) and then you can pick your binder size from there! I went with the 1.5” binder, which seems to be perfect.  The most useful item I included in the binder, from Lou’s opinion, was the wedding checklist, which lists the tasks that should be completed each month leading up to your wedding.  Since I was not engaged at the time Lou was, I used online advice to choose what to include in the binder... I was informed later that a lot of the recommended documents ended up being useless.  However, some of the more popular items were a business card organizer for all of your wedding contacts, a divider section for each vendor (or you can add the section as you book them) and a zipper pouch for fabric samples, pictures you have torn out of magazines, etc. All of this is so important because it helps you STAY ORGANIZED! Organization is essential when wedding planning.  If you decide to use a wedding planner (which is a perfect option for many brides) you should certainly use them to keep you organized, heck, that is their job! But when it’s just you and the impending wedding sneaking up on you organization is mandatory for the sake of sanity!

Lou's wedding binder & sparkly notebook to keep all details in one spot!

The most fun part about being engaged is gathering inspiration for your wedding and getting the wheels in motion to make your vision a reality.  This was made so much easier with Pinterest! If you are not on Pinterest yet, dig yourself out of the cave you have been hibernating in and join!

Some inspiration from Lea's Pinterest page

Here are just a couple of reasons why Pinterest is so major:

1. Instead of buying $10.00 bridal magazines, to tear up and flag corners, you can virtually post every image you love to a "board"
2. You can search for pretty much anything on Pinterest and SOMETHING will be there.  It is essentially a more precious and crafty version of Google for searching! Vampire wedding? You got it. Redneck wedding? You got it! Sports themed weddings? You got it…you get the idea, it’s fabulous for whatever your taste may be.
3. Pinterest now has secret boards. You can make the boards completely private or include a couple of besties you want to view with you.  Lou and I have private and public boards for our weddings. There may be certain decorations you "pin" and decide you want to recreate for your own ceremony but do not want your guests, who follow you on Pinterest, to have “seen it before”. This is the perfect use for a private board.
4. The best feature is how easy the app makes Pinterest to use.  When I was wedding dress shopping, I pulled out my phone to show my consultant my wedding dress “board” for things I was interested in trying on.  When chatting with my florist, she asked me to send her a link to my Pinterest board for ideas of what I am looking for!

I will stop my preaching because I am sure you either agree or will soon when you join! Needless to say, Pinterest is a great help to stay organized!  If you start feeling overwhelmed, look back at your Pinterest boards and realize that in a few short months those could be pictures from your wedding that get pinned on other people’s Pinterest walls! When all else fails, go to the “Humor” section on Pinterest and laugh!

xx, Lea

Wedding Binder [www.zazzle.com]
Rose Gold Sparkle Notebook [www.jcrew.com]
All Other Pictures [www.pinterest.com]

My Proposal Story xx, Lea

HOW WE MET

Chris and I were ALSO set up on a blind date! I had never been on a blind date before so was open to the idea but very nervous about how awkward it might be! On the other hand, Chris had been on multiple blind dates in the past, all train wrecks, so he took a little more convincing.  Our mutual friend finally convinced him when she told him "I am going to introduce you to someone and change your life forever". She did. After a surprisingly not awkward double date at the bowling alley, Chris asked me on our first official date (unsupervised) to a southern bistro named Mozelles. After that dinner we both knew we had found something special in each other. 

THE PROPOSAL

Chris asked me to meet him at his house on Friday, February 15^th, 2013 for our usual after work dinner.( You might notice that this date is the day AFTER Valentine’s day)  Our proposal story really begins on Valentine’s Day, because Chris was going over-the-top at being completely wonderful that day... I was convinced he was going to propose! However, months before, when Chris and I were discussing our future I had specifically said, “Please don’t propose on Valentine’s day”.  At the time, I thought it seemed a bit cheesy to double up on the Hallmark holiday. I digress...For dinner on Valentine’s Day Chris would not tell me where we were going.  As he parked the car he said “Back to where it all began...”, we had pulled up in front of Mozelles, where our first date had been. I had a swoon-worthy moment, we had not been back since our first date, all of my memories from that day came rushing in.  The dinner was perfect, we were seated next to an adorable couple, 50 years our senior, who were so chatty (which we both loved) and told us of all of their travel and adventures through marriage.  Chris kept saying romantic things to me like “I can’t wait to spend the rest of my life with you” and I thought for sure, about ten times, that he was about to drop down on his knee.  Needless to say, he did not.  At the end of the night I rationalized, “I cannot be upset, I TOLD him not to propose on Valentine’s Day”.  However, he was certainly leading me on, which looking back is a bit comical.  
The following night I showed up at Chris’s house promptly at 7pm.  As I entered his living room, I noticed Chris had my favorite scene in one of my favorite comedy movies playing (Bridesmaids, the airplane scene) and asked if I wanted to sit down to watch the movie.  Of course I obliged, after all it was the airplane scene!  After about two minutes of sitting, Chris stood up and stated in an unsteady voice "I forgot!  I built a bonfire out back.  Do you want to grab a drink and go outside?"  (**not super smooth**) I replied with, "You forgot that you built a bonfire???" Chris responded by offering his hand to escort me off of the couch. Chris bolted straight past the drinks to the back door and when he opened it, he revealed a gorgeous scene! He had made wicker light balls, which were hanging from the various trees and a bonfire blazing in the middle of the yard. He walked me further down to where the bonfire was and almost immediately dropped down to one knee to ask, "Will you marry me?"  (preceded by a bunch of other words that now are all a blur because I think I blacked out).  After I said, “YES!” that would be the end of a typical engagement story, but not with this amazing man.  Chris talked me out of calling any of my family, arguing that we still had dinner reservations and if I started calling people, I would not be able to stop. I pushed back, but he had a point, so I begrudgingly obliged and headed to dinner at The Spring House Restaurant in downtown Winston-Salem. We were escorted to a private room upstairs. As we were walking up the stairs I was thinking, “Geez, Chris really went all out with an intimate private room for the two of us”, but as I rounded the corner I found twenty of our closest friends and family members there to yell "Congratulations!” I still have no idea how he pulled this off.  To put this in perspective, Chris’s family all traveled from Florida and Georgia, while my whole family flew from New York! It was so emotional, I cried as I hugged all of my family, friends and future family! I was in total shock. TWO huge surprises in one night! 
After my emotions settled, I pulled Chris aside to tell him how amazing it was for him to get everyone to North Carolina for that special night.  He told me he knew after watching my emotional roller coaster when Lou got engaged that he HAD to get everyone there.  To fill you in, when Lou called me to tell me she was engaged, I was OVER THE MOON! I have always loved her fiancé Blair and knew they were the perfect match, however Lou was in New York celebrating her engagement, while I was in North Carolina celebrating solo. All of my family’s neighbors gathered at my parent’s home to toast to the couple, but I was not there.  I broke down to cry.  I always laugh at my co-worker when she uses the phrase “F.O.M.O.” (fear of missing out), but that was what happened.  I knew I was missing out on all of the excitement of Lou’s engagement and starting to plan.  So then and there my amazing fiancé decided that when we got engaged, my family would be there and no one would have a FOMO!

xx, Lea

Our First Wedding Twins Blog Post!

Welcome to Wedding Twins by Lou&Lea!

Two weddings in ten months sounds crazy, right? Well, our mother had identical twin girls within 17 minutes of each other and if she can do that, we can do this! We are twins, best friends and engaged at the same time!  We have both dreamed of our wedding day since we were little. Planning two weddings at the same time can be overwhelming, but event planning is our passion, so we are in heaven!  We are each other's Maid of Honor, which means we are supporting, planning and organizing whatever our twinny needs while simultaneously planning our own wedding.  We thought our blog could be an entertaining look into our journey in preparation, while expressing our similar, yet different styles.  Lou leans more to the glam, while Lea is more country chic! We will be telling you our stories, while posting pictures of what inspires us and the events leading up to our big days! We hope you enjoy our posts and look forward to your feedback!  

xx, Lou&Lea

Picture by Tammy Swales Studio [www.tammyswales.com]