Possible Wedding Theme and Dress (if Etsy doesn't work out)

The other night instead of working on my final project for my anthropology class, I was re-watching series 4 of Dr. Who. I was watching "The Unicorn and the Wasp" and realized what an awesome theme for our wedding! Not the giant alien wasp but the idea of having a 1920s/1930s mystery novel inspired wedding. Our ceremony/reception is taking place in Balboa Park which has a lot influences from that period especially our reception venue which was reconstructed in 1935. We were going to already incorporate elements from that period into our wedding but I think adding some mystery novel elements would be totally appropriate for us as we love to throw murder mystery parties and I am obsessed with several mystery series (currently I just got hooked on No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency after watching the show). If only I could have one massive large scale murder mystery wedding...hehehe. For the STDs I was thinking we could create a mock mystery novel cover and for the guest book create a novel with images of us as detectives. Not sure how this will all pan out if at all but it would be so cool and fun.

Now onto the dress...

As some of you know, I have been having dress issues. After selecting a dress from an Etsy designer to custom order, I came across the coveted Daphne by J. Crew. I discussed this with my designer and she is going to see if she can work something out. However, tonight I came across this convertible dress by Butter which kinda gives almost the same effect as the Daphne. I guess if all else fails I can go for this dress.

Reception Inspiration Board

I just spent the last hour complying images for this inspiration board. Mr. Nee and I agreed on the wedding colors this past weekend: autumnal colors like deep reds, oranges, purples and greens. We are having our ceremony in a butterfly garden then the reception in a 1930s mission style hall. What do you think?


I am kinda in love with the idea of moss terrarium centerpieces. :-)

And those are Daleks on the wedding cake. We love Dr. Who especially the Daleks, for as menacing as they are, they are so cute!

Sneak Peek: Reception and Ceremony Site Porn!

In one of my previous posts, I mentioned that we had already selected and reserved our reception site. Well, Mr. Nee and I went to Balboa Park yesterday and took some pictures:
This is the entrance to our reception site. The fountain and the mural, I believe were completed by the same artist in the late 1930s. I love how the natural light hits both of them.



As I am a graduate student in Geography, it is only appropriate that our reception site be equipped with an antiquated map!



I love the windows and how the light flows through them!



Here is a close up of one of the ceiling lamps. I love the bronze detail along the top.




Our ceremony site is in a butterfly garden. When the grotto was first built it was a nudist colony but is now known as the Butterfly Garden (aka Zoro Garden) and was dedicated as such two days before we met in 2007! We saw this as a sign to have our ceremony here! We were also impressed how many monarch butterflies we saw so late in the year. This gives us hope that they will be around next year around this time!

Save the Date!

Since we became engaged, Mr. Nee and I had been discussing the possibility of different dates. Initially, we thought we would get married Spring 2011 since I will be in SB this academic year. However, after some discussion, we decided to get married in the fall of 2010. We both love that time of year in SD and if you know me, I have a deep love for all things autumnal especially if it involves pumpkin. So the big day is...


October 10th, 2010 better known as 10/10/10.

Yes, a little cheesy but it will be easy to remember and this sort of day only happens once in a 100 years.

Once we figured the date we began our search for the ceremony/reception site. There is a park near our house that we absolutely love. We have had picnics there, many evening walks and one bad tennis game. We also love this park's history. Over a hundred years ago, this park was a Catholic cemetery filled with Irish, Italian and Mexican immigrants and well, technically it still does. Around the mid-century, the cemetery ceased to operate and was abandoned. In the 1970s, the city decided to turn the space into a park but rather than removing the 4,500 individuals buried there, they decided to remove the headstones and place playground equipment over the graves. The majority of the headstones were discarded but some were placed in a drainage ditch at a nearby cemetery. A few years ago, the city brought back the headstones that were discarded in the drainage ditch and made a plaque to honor those who are still interred at the park. For a complete history check out this awesome website that was created by students at the elementary school next to the park.

Most of our friends loved the idea of having a ceremony based on love, commitment and everlasting friendship on top of those who for so long were abandoned and forgotten. One friend even suggested we do a zombie theme wedding. Now, I really like zombie movies but I don't think I love them enough to base the entire theme of our wedding on that. Another friend suggested serving a fusion of Irish, Italian and Mexican food (for example: blood sausage and micheladas).

We were definitely thinking that this site could also be our reception site but after walking around the park on a crowded weekend afternoon, we figured it might be impossible to reserve that much space and the logistics involved might be a bit too much for us to handle.

I began looking at museums and other non traditional reception venues. I came across a hall in Balboa Park which will accommodate the number of guests and allow us to bring in an outside caterer. Its in one of the older buildings in the park featuring old Mission architecture and a beautiful mural and fountain. Oh and it was cheap, hella cheap. The cost to rent the space for 8 hours is only about a fifth of the cost to hold a reception at one of the museums in the park for 3 hours. So yeah, its a steal. They will set up the tables but we have to decorate and organize the caterer and all that. Anyone want to volunteer to be on our wedding decorating committee? Mr. Nee put in the reservation for it the other and we got it! We are both happy that that weight is off our shoulders.

Since our reception is going to be in Balboa Park, we began to explore other ceremony site options within the park itself. Even though we love Graveyard park, it would cost about $250 for the permit and about $100 for the chair rental, not to mention all the flowers and other decorations. So we are considering the possibility of having a ceremony at one of the gardens like our favorite garden in the park, Zoro Garden. Zoro Garden used to be a nudist colony but now is home to thousands of butterflies in the spring. Unfortunately, we are getting married in the fall when there will be no butterflies and very few flowers in bloom. However, I believe the permit is more affordable than the city park and they will include seating.

We need to make a decision regarding the ceremony site pretty soon as well as the caterer. I am debating on whether or not to go to a bridal expo in Del Mar in two weeks when I am in town for a conference so that I can investigate some catering options as well as taste some cakes. :-) Anyone want to go with me to fully experience the bridal industrial complex?

Wedding Dress Porn

Currently Mr. Nee and I are deciding on a ceremony and reception site (we have it narrowed down to a few locations, we just need to check on quotes and availability). We have also tentatively set the date! However, I will reveal that in a later post. For now, I want to discuss the most talked about item at pretty much any wedding. The dress.

I never imagined myself as the blushing bride nor do I see myself as performing traditional Western notions of femininity but gosh darn I really like looking at and lusting after wedding dresses online. Currently there are three designers that I am totally in love with:

1) Adele Wechsler. Adele is an eco-conscious bridal gown designer. All of her dresses are not only inspired by nature or even socio-political issues (see her HelloAfrica collection) but are also made from organic and natural fabrics like silk and hemp. I saw her designs in the latest issue of The Knot and kinda fell in love with her nature-inspired aesthetic. Unfortunately, Adele's designs are not the most budget bride friendly.

2) The Cotton Bride by Chris Kole. I discovered this designer while cruising Offbeat Bride. All of Chris's designs are made from mostly cotton or silk. I love his attention to detail such as his use of lace and ribbon and other adornments that I usually do not care for. I am currently in love with this dress here. It is so simple and elegant, yet fun and youthful. God, I sound like one of those facebook quizzes. Anyway, like Adele, Chris's designs are completely out of my budget.

3) Wai-Ching. (picture above) Now let's talk porn, wedding dress porn. This designer was another Offbeat discovery, and while Chrissy Wai-Ching's aesthetic is nothing like the two designers listed above, I am in awe of her creative use of dye and embroidery to create truly unique and one of a kind designs. The design pictured here I love and I would love to have done in the autumnal colors of orange, brown and red. I love autumnal colors, however, I hardly ever wear them. My current color palette consists of a lot blues and grays but this may be just due to the lack of availability of autumnal colors at any other time of the year besides autumn. Anyway, unlike the other designers listed, Wai-Ching is slightly more in my price range (still a little bit more than I would like to spend but I think I may have to face reality here) and there is a showroom in LA.

I have been talking wedding stuff with my dear friend Miss Ro and she has kindly offered to altar any dress I may find especially if it is an awesome vintage dress. Since my ring is vintage, I like the idea of having a vintage gown or at least one that has been used. If I can find one, I may have to take her up on that. I might make a trip to LA once or twice this quarter with my mother and maybe a SB friend in tow (anyone interested?) to go dress shopping but I hope to meet up with Miss Ro in San Fran during the winter break to explore the vintage shops there.