Progress post: 100 days
Previously... (I can't hear or say that word anymore without thinking of the previews on TV shows)... on My Big Fat Gay Wedding... ;-)
OK, so thomwatson and I are about 100 days out (our date is September 26, 2009) - here's my intro for memory refreshment - and let's run down what's done and what's left to do! It seems like a lot left to do, but I'm not stressing out (yet), 'cause we have some pretty clear ideas of what we want to do for most of them.
[Update: Added to the attire section below the cut: costume change!]
Done:
Venue reserved: The Cliff House, Terrace Room, San Francisco
This is a historic restaurant overlooking the Pacific Ocean. The ceremony will be outside on the terrace, and the lunch reception in the adjoining banquet room. Friends of ours got married here a couple years ago (and Thom was their officiant), so we fell in love with the place, and had a great rapport with the events planner - I kept jokingly calling myself the preacher's wife.
(We're not totally copying their wedding - just the venue! - but it did make me think of that one episode of The Office where Phyllis gets married and totally copies Pam's wedding plans. Haha.)
Here's Thom's pic of me inside the Terrace Room on our info-gathering visit back in March; they had only one sample table set up, but obviously there would be several out, all rounds. (More of Thom's pics of the venue are on our wedding blog here.)
To the left are the doors to the terrace. (I loved how at our friends' wedding, once all the guests were seated for the ceremony outside, the events planner drew the curtains inside and closed the door so the bride could make a grand entrance (or exit, since the ceremony was outside). ;-) I tell you, right now I am living for that high-drama moment when those doors swing open and we come marching forth! Pure. drama. LOL!) Here's a pic of the terrace from Here Comes the Guide:
More pics, you say? OK, fine, twist my arm. Here's Thom (left) and me (right) at the Cliff House in 2007, at that friends' wedding where Thom was the officiant:
Save the dates sent: Previous post here.
Music performers chosen: We're going to have one of my friends (whom I've known since high school) and his wife sing and play the ukulele during the ceremony. And our main artist, whom we may have play during the ceremony and a set during the reception, is singer/songwriter Sara Hickman. We first met her a few years ago through a mutual friend. She's such a warm, caring person and performer. And oh, she was recently appointed Texas State Musician for 2010!
Officiant chosen: It will be Thom's best friend, whom I've also gotten to know over the last several years. He's been so supportive of us, so it feels like a natural choice.
Photographer chosen: One of our friends is an event photographer looking to get a few weddings under her belt, so that was a natural choice as well.
Honeymoon planned: Well, not fully "planned," but "dates/places picked." It's funny, our honeymoon actually got planned before our wedding. So last year our friend (who's officiating) and his wife, and Thom and I all went on an Alaskan cruise together, and this year they suggested we all go on a European cruise in November. Sure! It starts in Venice, goes to a number of Greek ports/islands, and ends in Rome.
Then our engagement came along and we set a date (mostly based on the venue availability), which happened to be about six weeks before the cruise. We figured, why not make that our honeymoon? Sure, we'll be with our friends part of the time, but hey, this cruise ship is big, and there will be plenty of opportunities to go off on our own, both on the ship and in the ports.
To do:
Invitations and other stationery: We'll go with the same company, Hello Lucky, that we used for our save the dates, and may go with the matching design for the invitations, in which case there wouldn't be much additional decision-work to do. For any additional "day-of" paper goods, like placecards and possibly programs or menus, we may print those up ourselves.
Attire: Because we're going for a beachy feel, we're planning to go with linen suits. By the way, has anyone out there or their guy had a suit made at weddingtropics.com? So basically this, with complementing (but not totally matching) neckties in pool, chocolate, and/or sage:
We're not having a wedding party or attendants per se, more like just a few individuals to help with parts of the ceremony like readings, etc., so we're not worried about them having matching outfits.
[Edited to add: I almost forgot! We're planning a costume change! After the ceremony, we're thinking of changing into barongs for the reception. The barong is a traditional Philippine formal shirt made of thin material usually with a design, which can range from bold and modern to traditional and intricate, embroidered on the front. I'm Filipino, and Thom suggested we do it. Over the years he's become an honorary Filipino! (LOL, my family love him.) Here's a website that gives you an idea of the infinite patterns. They're sort of similar to Cuban and other Latin American shirts that seem to be getting more and more popular.]
[Here's Thom's pic of barongs that we have. The pic was taken on a trip to the Philippines in 2007. Mine is on the left, and Thom's is on the right. We wore them to a big school reunion that my mom had invited us to.]
Rings: This is where I really need to narrow down some choices. So many great designs out there!
Cake: Something with a tropical fruit filling, for sure! Oh, and dashboard hula guys as cake toppers, or at least on the table next to the cake.
Food: Since our venue is a restaurant, we'll be working with them for food and beverages. We're planning on a sit-down lunch. We need to go have a tasting soon, so we can narrow down entrées and include those choices with the invitations/RSVPs when it comes time for that.
Flowers: Centerpieces will be orchids, birds of paradise, etc. in tiki mugs as vases. What's nice about doing this theme is that since we collect tiki stuff anyway, we already have some things like a few tiki mugs; and whatever additional stuff we buy for the wedding, if we don't give them away afterward, we can just add them to our collection. Also speaking of flowers, during the ceremony we may have a lei exchange between the two of us. Sort of like the rings, but instead we place a lei on each other.
Favors: More tiki! We're thinking individual tiki mugs, possibly with our names and date stamped on them somehow. They could have tropical nuts or candies in them. And little paper umbrellas!
Ceremony and music: Ceremony is still to be planned out; and music-wise, other than the bits of live music, for the reception we'll have an iPod and/or laptop with some of our favorite stuff, especially for during the post-ceremony/pre-lunch hors d'oeuvres time, and lunch itself. We'll have a dance floor, so there will be some dancing, but since it's during the day and not a very long reception (and the outdoor terrace has such a gorgeous view conducive to strolling and picture-taking... weather permitting!), I'm thinking the post-lunch vibe will be more cocktail party mixing and mingling, rather than everyone on the dance floor kind of dance party.
OK, whew, that's all for now!