Our Initial Thoughts

Shawn and I have a lot to still discuss and things are sure to change but these are our initial thoughts only a week and a half after the engagement.

We’re not obsessing over any of this yet but we have been asked so many questions that it has forced us to think through most of it already, at least from a high-level perspective.

When it comes to generalities, we want to have a smaller, more intimate wedding with a reception immediately following for wedding guests. We both have a lot of people we want to share in the joy with us though so we are planning on having some kind of wedding celebration where we can invite a lot more people.

So, as far as the actual wedding goes, here it is:

For timing we are thinking of Summer or early Fall of 2012. We aren’t in such a hurry to make it official that we want to just throw something together willy-nilly with the little bit of money we have right now. We want to plan the wedding that we want and have it when the weather is nicer so we need to push it into next year to accommodate the proper planning of our special day.

The location will be somewhere in the Seattle area. We would like to have a more casual outdoor wedding with some traditional elements thrown in.  Preferably, the venue would have a plan B available if it was to rain. Of course, that is what tents are for. The wedding will probably take place in the daytime or early evening. If we could work in beach or mountains that would be cool. We have already been vetoed on the hike to the mountain top 🙂

I am not sure on the color theme of the wedding yet. I am thinking cream and some kind of lavender, purple or aqua. Purple and blue are my favorite colors. Well, green is too but I don’t want to have a green wedding J I will probably have an accent color thrown in like yellow or orange.

Not sure to do about the food. I have heard of a potluck wedding and thought the idea was cool but the more I think about it the more I don’t like that idea. It will probably be more of a brunch or casual instead of a formal dinner.

Not sure on the drinks. We will probably beer and wine but no hard liquor. No one on either side of the family MUST have heavy booze and most venues require a licensed bartender if you are going to serve any….which drives the price of the wedding up. Several people that will be coming don’t drink at all.

The cake might be more traditional or might not. Some thoughts I have are having a tiered stack of cupcakes or petit flours. We might opt for a small, traditional bride and groom cake for the photos and then have a sheet cake to serve after dinner. I hear that is a way cheaper way to go than the fancy, tiered, formal wedding cake which can cost upwards of $700 for 100 guests. Unfortunately, it appears that I am now gluten free so we may have to come up with special cake for me or something.

For flowers, I am not sure. The flower choice will depend on the color scheme I pick and what is in season. Buying out of season flowers is way more expensive. I am not going to pay a huge amount of money for exotic flowers that will die. That said, I like hydrangeas, lilacs, ivory roses, lily of the valley and peonies. Lucky for me, at least some of those are summer flowers. I am thinking of having live floral and/or plant arrangements worked in as part of the flower decorations

Would like to be as eco-friendly as possible. Including the biggest one of all…producing less waste. Unfortunately, as with buying healthier food, the “greener” stuff can be more expensive. We will do what we can and focus on the less waste part.

 Anything else you are curious about?