My Wedding Band

I found an inexpensive wedding band that's beautiful! We've not purchased it yet. With my car insurance coming up this week we can't afford to but it doesn't cost an arm and a leg. It was just such a nice coincidence because I sorta settled on a ring that I didn't really like all that much and I don't know why I thought I wanted it. It's ugly and not me at all. It was also $400.

I got on Facebook this morning and an old friend of mine had posted about a company her family started called Something Sterling. I liked this person a lot back when we hung out together. She was kind of a flakey friend though, showing up when she felt like it and not at all sometimes. Which is why I think I was a bit skeptical going into a site she said was partly her creation but man, some of this jewelry is really gorgeous and low cost! Of course it's basically CZ stones and sterling silver with rhodium plating (though they do/will make items in gold - white or yellow - and with diamonds) but I don't need anything overly costly to prove something to people. I just want it to be pretty and made well.

In talking to her she told me they'll service my ring for the entirety of owning it. Plus, if you sign up at a member you get member prices. Right now membership is free because of it being a fledgling company/site but the free membership is just a limited time thing. Soon it will be $50, but even if you aren't a member the cost of the items is still relatively low. I'm not trying to be a shill or anything. I'm just really excited about this ring! I'll definitely let you all know if we get it and it's horrible. I just have a good feeling about it.



This is the one. I'm sure you may recall how much I loved the pink coral inlay on the titanium ring that they were unable to make smaller, this reminded me so much of that ring. I was so in love with having a pink wedding band and now it's a reality again - without breaking the bank! Yay!

Groom Pic Spam Post

It seems like I do a lot of bridal type posts. Of course, I am the bride, so it stands to reason I would talk about bridely things. Since Derek and I are having a themed wedding and his half of the wedding is different from my half, it feels only fair that I talk about the ninjas. Derek, Ruben and Rush the dog are the Ninjas of the Day.

Derek chose a cosplay (costume play) from Naruto (popular anime (cartoon)).



The black wrap actually covers the right arm, pinning it down. The character of whom this is a cosplay, Danzo, is a bad guy who pretends to be injured to fool people in his village. Danzo isn't important but what is important is that I'll likely have to modify it so he has both his arms out. Haha!

We talked about it a small bit about dressing Ruben up in a gi to look like Ryu from Street Fighter.



Ruben isn't quite that muscled and we won't make it look so tattered. He definitely won't have his shirt open all the way down to his navel either. Probably not gloves either. I might write something in gold paint pen on his black belt. :)

As for shoes, I think sandals or flip flops will be fine. Shoes on the guys definitely aren't that important to me. Or we could wrap their feet in athletic tape like some MMA guys do.

Someone on a wedding community told me about a ninja dog. If I had time, skill or patience I would definitely make the outfit for Rush the dog. Otherwise, I'll likely do some gauze wrapping around her paws and maybe around her neck - obviously not tightly heh. I plan on getting some neat collars and leashes for both the dogs to wear as they are the ring bearers.


(Boo the Ninja Dog in Kyoto)


(I want to give it a red ring if we incorporate an XBox 360)


(I might just make JUST this one. Or maybe stack them all funky.)


(Dunno if I want to incorporate the Wii.)


(I could do this.)

Thankfully, Mimi is going to be able to help me make the cakes for the wedding and she's really enthusiastic about helping.

That's all I have for you guys! <3

Crisis Averted - One Of Many To Come, I'm Sure

So after freaking out last night and trying to convince Derek to elope for like the second time, we talked about not inviting anyone but our wedding party and close family. It made me feel like an asshole though. I was just so overwhelmed. Today we had dinner with Mimi and Papa and I was talking to her about it. I was like "We just can't afford this" and she pointed out some simple fixes like - we don't have to have a reception dinner. We can just do cake and punch with finger foods. We don't have to go all out and make some extravagant thing happen. I really don't know why I had it in my brain that we HAD to do things a certain way. I've been reading too many wedding websites or something. I feel a lot better about inviting the people I care about seeing there on my day.

Then she asked me (after everyone else had left) if we had decided on a honeymoon yet. I wish my tag line wasn't "We don't know how much money we're going to have" but we're not wealthy. She then said, "I was thinking of giving you a trip to Disney World". I nearly cried. Honestly, I've never had the luxury of going to many theme parks. I went to Busch Gardens once when I was 12 and Opryland when I was like 13 or so. My parents didn't have the money for stuff like that. Derek went to Disney World many times with Mimi and Papa when he was a kid. So that was super cool news.

I sent her an email after we got home of all the ideas I had for the wedding. It was really long. When I got a reply back it was excited and full of helpfulness. I loved seeing her so enthused. :) She made me remember my excitement for this wedding. I'm back on track. So glad I talked to her today.

Sew What?

Hello ladies, I'm back with more updates about my wedding planning. The many ongoing adventures thereof.

This past Sunday was my birthday and my future grandmother-in-law, Mimi, gave me a fabulous gift. It's something I've been wanting a very long time. She gave me a brand new Singer sewing machine. I was thrilled but let me tell you getting it up and running properly was a terribly difficult process to master. I haven't sewed since I took Home Ec and that was 10 years ago!

I'm going to start small but the reason I bring this up is because I know in my previous post I showed you a skirt with many ruffles worn by Amy Lee (of Evanescence). I love that skirt but don't know where I could find it to purchase. Instead of having a seller on Etsy make me one and charging me nearly double the cost of materials for labor (which I don't mind them doing, by the way, etsy sellers have to earn a buck some way) I decided that I'm going to try my hand at making my own skirt.

I found this tutorial to make this skirt:



The tutorial is easy to follow and maybe I won't get it on the first try but it's really a beautiful skirt and I think it would go well with the corset I posted in my previous post.

I have a year and two months til my wedding! I'm going to give myself a good 6 months to make the above skirt. If I'm unable to accomplish the making, I'll just order a skirt from the internet.

Though wouldn't it be grand to say I made part of my wedding dress?

A More Bridal Post

Lately, I've been intensely stressed out, mostly about money and hardly about my upcoming wedding. I thought it would be nice to save the bummer posts for another day and show off some full on Wedding Inspiration Pic Spam.

As you may know, FH and I are having a Pirates vs Ninjas wedding, so our inspiration is going to be a little wackier than most people's.

Bride-spiration

I want this skirt:

with a corset bodice like this:


Likely, these boots:


And accessories:


Pearls <3


I don't have any earring ideas. I'd like really huge hoops but probably won't be very classy. lol. Maybe it would be good if I got something seahorse/turtle/anchor-y.

The bouquet (more flowers to come):


I want to carry this purse:


Having these ideas really help me to see what my wedding will look like. Of course with the corset the person that makes those asks for measurements so I'm not worried things fitting. Well, I am worried but not terribly. Not yet.

Bear in mind, all this is subject to change. I'm waiting til Halloween to see what they have in the way of costuming for pirates before I order anything. I might find something better or cheaper.

Hope all is well, ladies. I will attempt to post more. I'll definitely be posting about my venue and reception site. More about the Best Ninja and Matey of Honor as well.

Won't Be Flying United Either.

I promise a new post all about wedding stuff soon. However, I'm so outraged about something that happened to a disabled woman on a plane that I have to post this to you guys and anyone else who may stumble across. I'm so outraged at airlines and lack of customer service.

If you don't want to read the link I will condense it by saying a disabled woman was told by a flight attendant that DW carry-on was none of FA concern and that DW would need to ask another passenger to help her store it because FA was not obligated to do so. Thankfully a man helped her with it and then again when they were deboarding. At a customer service desk she was told by the rep, "I won't apologize for her [FA] actions and I'm not sorry for what happened to you."

This isn't right. I don't care who you are, it is NOT right to treat a person that way. I don't get what happened to customer service. You're not sorry?! That rep went on to tell the woman that the person who said that would likely not even be reprimanded for her unwillingness to help a woman who could NOT help herself.

I'm so disgusted. Do not all people deserve a measure of respect? I hate a world that employs it's citizens to treat their people this way.

Flying Fat

Hello ladies. There has been a lot in the fat news lately about Kevin Smith getting booted off a Southwest Airlines flight for being "too fat". The amazing Kate Harding has blogged about her outrage and hope that because Smith is famous there will be more light shed on this issue. I certainly hope there is.

Kate's latest column on Salon.com's Broadsheet, Kevin Smith: The face of flying while fat, brought me to tears as she described how her sister opted not to fly due to her fear of being delayed, ejected or asked to pay for another seat and instead drove to their mother's deathbed. All the while hoping their pained mother could hold on until she got there. Thankfully she made it but why should she be made to feel this way?

The experiences of these people and others who've commented on Kate's site break my heart. Are we not all human beings? Do we not all deserve to have the same rights? And lastly, are you telling me that just because there's more to my body that I should be made to feel like an outcast on an airplane? I cannot accept that brushing against me is going to disgust my seat neighbor so much that I should leave the plane. I also refuse to believe that I'm a hazard in case of an emergency. What can people possibly think I'm gonna do? "Oh, the plane is on fire I'm just gonna stand here in your way while it burns us both alive." Seriously? No. I'm not going to allow anything bad to happen to myself. I may be fat but I do have an extremely high level of self preservation. Not like other people wouldn't climb over my fat ass to save their own lives too.

If you as a fat bride plan on having a honeymoon this may be something you have to think about. It may be something you want to look into, write letters about and speak out about. I feel like if this could happen to a celebrity this can happen to any of us, even on our special day. Derek, the future husband, has big plans in his life. He wants us to be able to travel to Japan and Australia among other places. I don't want a trip for two to equal the cost of a trip for four. The seats on the planes don't equal the cost of the plane and upkeep.

According to The Weight Control Information Network statistics, "About two-thirds of adults in the United States are overweight, and almost one-third are obese...". Despite the fact that I don't believe in BMI as a measurement of health, what this statistic tells me is that there are a LOT of fat people in the United States. Are all of these people meant to never fly on a plane?

I want all people to feel as though they are free to do as they please. I thought the US was based on freedoms for its people, not just its thin people. Don't back down, ladies. Fight for your rights to be who you are!