Royal Affair

It was released this weekend that Prince William and Kate Middleton invited 1,900 people to their April wedding at Westminster Abbey.

To put things in perspective, our guest list is barely 7% of that of Kate and Will's.

My favorite factoids from this royal affair:

• Envelopes were "pale brown"
• William's aunt wasn't invited
• Kate is really a Catherine

On this side of the Atlantic, brides-to-be can invite American "royalty" to their wedding. By sending a wedding invitation to the President and First lady, formal etiquette requires a letter of congratulations be sent in return. How fancy!

Consider adding two more to your guest list under:

The Honorable Barack and Mrs. Obama
The White House
Greetings Office, Room 39
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue
Washington, D.C. 20500

Cheers!
BTB

Faves

As promised, below are more photos taken for our save the dates. We will take formal engagement pictures with Texture Photographics in the Spring- but for now, these will do!

I had originally hoped to take engagement pictures in the fall with a camping-inspired theme, but the timing of the proposal left no leaves on the trees. We're thankful for these fall-ish photos - any chance to wear plaid flannel and mustard-colored corduroys is OK in our book.

Happy MLK day,

BTB

Proofs

I think it's safe to say that I can reveal our save the dates.

Besides the fact that it appears as though I'm missing a thumb, I adore them.

I was flattered when my mom called to tell me her girlfriend mistook it as a magazine promotional, setting it aside for hours.

A fun sartorial fact: Colin Meloy of The Decemberists and Adam own the same shirt! Scroll to the bottom of this page to check it out.

Our original plan was to be budget-conscious and save on postage by sending postcard save the dates. Those 16-cents really add up, ya know...

I must admit that I was so excited to buy postage and get this train rolling, that it wasn't until I was in the post office parking lot that I realized I had bought 44-cent stamps.

Hmph.

The post office does not offer cash back. Therefore, while I was able to exchange most of the booklets for smiley-faced polar bear postcard stamps, I still came home having spent the same amount of money.

Fail.

Oh well,
BTB

P.S. - Again, kudos to Wedding Paper Divas. I highly recommend them.

Outtakes

I've decided to share a few outtakes from our impromptu save the date session with my bestie Sara-- only because it's Monday AND a snow day AND the best day ever.

This all came about while visiting Virginia over Thanksgiving. After running around D.C. eating giant pizza and ogling over Anthropologie jewelry (sorry, Adam), we decided to take a few photos in Sara's neighborhood.

I stepped in dog poop 5 minutes later. Of course.

Here's my initial reaction. Sara was laughing so hard she couldn't focus the camera.

I tried to brush it off (literally & figuratively) and still look charming. However, Adam had a harder time masking his disgust.

Adam got me back for dragging him around Anthropologie and swinging my poo-covered feet in his face.

Whether it be the smell or my bashfulness, I couldn't keep a straight face during the serious photos. Luckily, Adam had his Blue Steel down!

Once the save the dates hit doorsteps, I'll post some more of our favorite photos!

-BTB

You've Got Mail

Hi. It's been a while, I know.

I'm disappointed in how little I blogged over the holidays. It was a restful time with more than enough space to jot down a few happenings/feelings, however, I felt as though it would still interrupt my (last single) Christmas.

Luckily, I have something that will hold me accountable to writing in the new year!

Pictured above are our sweet little save the dates. Pictured behind the save the dates is an all important mailbox.

It's true, Adam and I mailed our save the dates yesterday! The implications are huge:

1. We're getting married
2. We finalized the guest list (!!!!)
3. We have faith in the United States Postal Service

With plenty of blood, sweat and tears poured into those little guys, I was about to hand deliver every single one of them. I was sad and jittery to see them disappear into a cold, rusty mailbox. But I must trust that they will arrive safely at your cozy homes in the coming days.

And when they do, they will direct our guests to this very blog.

So, friends, I must keep writing. For you, for me and for the sake of July 16, 2011.

Type, type, type,

BTB

P.S. - In the moment, it was Adam's idea to take a picture as we mailed the save the dates. How cute is that? As a news photographer, Adam's great at spotting the defining moments while I tend to roll right through them. I'm thankful for his perspective!

Vendor: Wedding Invitations

The invitations and save the dates arrived on Friday.

Admittedly, the thought did cross my mind to wait until Adam and I were together to open the box. It was a strange twilight zone moment where I felt an insane sense of urgency to move forward yet was paralyzed by indecision.

Meh. It didn't last long.

I ripped open the box to reveal the most darling dainty & rustic wedding stationary I could've imagined. They are pitch perfect.

Then I was struck with indecision again:

• squeal to my mother over the phone
  
• squeal via text to my roommate
• squeal in person to Adam
  
• squeal to myself

So, in all my 24-year-old glory, I skipped through the hallway squealing and waving a single invitation until my mom picked up the phone-- thankfully, she picks up the phone 97% of the time I call her.

She listened as I described every inch of the invitation, then promptly asked me to mail her a sample.

They arrived on her doorstep yesterday.

She loves them, too. I can just hear her squealing.

For lovely and affordable wedding stationary, check out Wedding Paper Divas.

-BTB