Vendor Review - Linda's Cakery

Our cake was not something we'd planned on.  During our first meeting with David (coordinator extraordinaire from JDK), he asked us about the cake.  We weren't sold on having a cake-cake.  I always thought the tradition of cutting the cake was so weird - nobody really wants to stand around and watch people cut cake.  We considered cupcakes, but I felt like cupcakes were so trendy (not just in wedding world, but in the real world, in general).  So David suggested doing a display of petits-fours on sticks.  Like Cake Pops (which I've totally made and are absolutely freaking awesome)!  We loved the idea.  So began our search for a bakery who would be willing/able to do this.  I must have contacted about 10 bakeries, and each time I was told they couldn't do it, or it was out of our budget.  Finally, I got in touch with Linda at Linda's Cakery.  She said she could do it for about $1.50 per petit-four.  Banking on about 150 people, 2 pops each, we were looking at $450.  Well within our budget!  We made an appointment to meet with her to see what she could do. 

When we got to her bakery (the basement of her home), we were less-than-pleased with what we saw.  The petits-fours were enormous (about 3x3x3", not 1x1x1" like we'd been picturing, and they were covered in a messy chocolate ganache rather than a nice smooth fondant.  They looked majorly W.T. and we were hugely disappointed.  Luckily, Linda herself admitted they looked terrible and said that she realized she couldn't do what we asked.  Again, hugely disappointed, but really glad for her honesty.  She asked if wanted to look through samples of her previous work.  At this point, I was just anxious to make a decision about the cake, so we said sure.  We ended up really liking with this one design, and after discussing our colors and such with her, we came up with a good plan for a cake. 

Based on our estimated guest list, we ordered a 3-tier cake plus a 1/2 sheet cake.  We tasted several different flavors, and ultimately ended up choosing 3: chocolate with peanut butter filling, french vanilla with raspberry ganache, and pink champagne with strawberry whip filling.  Each would be covered in white chocolate buttercream.  After telling Linda our colors (navy blue, peacock teal, apple green, and brown), she suggested marbling the colors together in order to make it more interesting.  OK, so if you remember, this was our inspiration picture:

(source)

Here is what we ended up with:

(source)

(photo from my mom)

LOVE!  Not only did Linda make a beautiful cake, but it tasted amazing, as well.  And JDK did a great job with adding the flowers/feathers.  We ended up with just the 3 tiers - 2 pink champagne and 1 french vanilla.  We cancelled the 1/2 sheet cake because our guest list ended up being smaller than we'd anticipated.  Initially Linda gave us a hard time about cancelling it - she thought that we would run out of cake.  I spoke to David, though, and he assured me that it would be enough.  

Looking back, I wish I would've taken Linda's advice so that we could have saved the top tier.  We really didn't want to save the top tier, because it sounds just gross, but my sister and her husband also had JDK and she said they wrapped it so well that it still tasted fresh on their year anniversary.  Oh well.  We still plan to go out and have a wonderful dinner with a beautiful dessert.  And I'm actually considering ordering a tiny cake from Linda to surprise Matt for our one-year anniversary.  

In the end, I would definitely recommend Linda's Cakery.  She wasn't overtly friendly; in fact, I found her a bit brash.  But she made a beautiful, delicious cake, and we were really happy with the final product.  And the cost was perfect - well within our budget!

Vendor Review - MixedUp Productions

Book them.  Book them right now.

Ok, seriously.  Initially we booked with Top Hat DJs.  They were the Bride's Choice winner on Wedding Wire for 2009.  They're prices were pretty in line with what we planned to spend.  And the communication I had with the DJ was pleasant.  Unfortunately, a few weeks after booking with them, I got an email stating that they had accidentally double-booked for our date, and wouldn't be able to DJ our wedding.  D'oh!

Blessing in disguise.  I swear.  I mean, I'm sure Top Hat would've done a great job, but we're so glad we found MixedUp Productions.  I don't even remember how I found them; probably Martha Stewart Weddings.  My first communication with Mike Miller was great, and I felt really good about booking them.  When we finally got the chance to meet Mike, it felt like we'd been friends for years.  We bantered back and forth, and he totally got what we wanted.  We met him at the radio station where he's a DJ, and so when we mentioned that we wanted to have him edit down our song ("Chasing Cars," by Snow Patrol), he took us right into the studio and remixed it, right in front of us. 

He was totally on board with us not wanting to do any of the traditions - the bouquet/garter toss, dollar dance, etc.  And he suggested the Kissing Game for during dinner.  We gave him a list of couples that he could call one whenever people clinked glasses, and the couple he called on had to get up and kiss (creatively) and then Matt and I had to copy it.  It was SO much fun and I'm really glad he suggested it.

The day of the wedding, he came out to say hi when we got the reception and make sure things were moving smoothly.  He went over everyone's name again.  During dinner, he came over to me and Matt to make sure we were happy and see if we needed anything; he did that throughout the night, as well.  He played what we asked him to play, avoided what we asked him to not play, and checked with us before playing something that he considered "questionable."  The next day, as I perused facebook, I found that Mike had already put up a slideshow of pictures he'd taken throughout the night set to our song. 

Really, we could not be more impressed with Mike and MixedUp Productions.  We had so much fun at the wedding, and our dance floor was absolutely packed all night long.  Definitely look into them if you're looking for a DJ in the Harrisburg area.  You will not be disappointed!

Ooh la la!

Remember when I told you I did some boudoir pictures for Matt?  I wanted to wait until after Matt saw them before they were released to the general internet-viewing public.  But now that Matt has the book, I'm gonna put up some photos!  Eeek! 

I won this guitar for Matt at the Bloomsburg Fair one year.

A few of them are pictures of the pictures in the book, but a few are directly from Megan's blog.  I am so totally thrilled with the way the book turned out.  

I gave it to Matt the morning after the wedding.  I was not about to give it to him the morning of, in front of all his groomsmen - awkward!!  Especially when 2 of them were his brothers - creepy!!  Anyway, I gave them to him the morning after the wedding, when we were alone in our hotel room.  He. loved. them.  He told me I look like a model.  Then he told me I should be a model.  Silly boy.  

Anyway, I know I said it before, but I cannot say it enough - if you are thinking at all about doing boudoirs, DO IT!!!!  I felt so confident and sexy during the shoot, and even more so watching Matt look at the photos.  His face was absolutely priceless, and I'd do it a hundred times over just for that.  

If you're in the Central PA area, Megan is offering a special on boudoirs right now.  And she's considering doing bachelorette parties, so if you've got a group of girlfriends who might be interested, it would make for a really fun afternoon!  Give Megan a call if you're interested - you won't regret it!

Vendor Review - Weddings by JDK

Since it looks like it'll be a while until we have full rights to all of our professional photos, I thought I'd take some time to review our vendors.  I have no idea how many (if any) Central PA brides are reading this, but in case you are, hopefully this will help you.  So, to kick things off, I'm starting with our biggest vendor - Weddings by JDK.

JDK was our caterer, our florist, our event designer, and our equipment rental company.  Our day-of coordinator, David, is one of their lead designers.  This was the easiest decision we made, and hands-down the best decision we made (after, you know, agreeing to get married and stuff).  To be honest, we didn't even consider another company.  My sister had hired JDK for her wedding 2 years ago, and I was really impressed with everything they did for her.  Even then, I knew there was no question that we would use JDK when our day arrived.

We called and booked our first appointment with David just a week or so after we got engaged.  When we met with him, it instantly confirmed what we already knew - that this was going to be the day of our dreams.  We told David our vision - using peacock feathers, casual yet elegant, fun, reflective of who we are - David took it and ran with it.  He told us he was going to have fun with our wedding, and boy did he! 

Throughout the planning process, David listened to us and reflected our ideas back to us.  I showed him inspiration pictures and he pushed the creative envelope on them.  We told him ideas and he took them one step further.  He made suggestions and offered advice.  He created our entire menu based on our likes, dislikes, and things we're "known" for serving at our own parties.  Every single time we walked out of his office, we could not stop talking abou thow excited we were to see the whole picture come together.  David was so excited about the design he was creating, it made us even more excited. 

The days leading up to the wedding were, of course, stressful.  But knowing that David would be there, handling any crises that came up, made me feel loads better.  David came to our rehearsal and went over the timeline with the entire wedding party.  He handed out itineraries to everyone, and provided a timeline and important phone numbers.  He stressed to everyone: "If there is a problem, call me.  Don't call Erin or Matt.  Call me.  I will handle it."

The day of the wedding, he was right there.  He held my hand and helped me breathe.  He made an extra trip to the museum and back to get some arrangements for the church because he didn't like the way the bouquets on the altar looked.  He helped to organize the family for family photos.  He made sure everyone kept moving and did their job.  He kept me and Matt fed, hydrated, and happy.  He assigned a waitress just for me and Matt.  He corraled the wedding party when we needed them, and sent people on their way when they were crowding us. 

The bouquets that JDK created were absolutely breathtaking.  They were everything I'd wanted and more.  They wired my grandmother's ring right into the flowers, and it looked awesome.

The centerpieces at the reception were just incredible.  The tall ones completely blew my expectations out of the water, and the shorter ones were just as elegant.

And the bars.  Oh, my God, the bars.  I know what you're thinking.  "What could possibly be so great about a bar?"  Um, this.

JDK also did the flowers for our cake.  Hello, lover.

The table layouts looked fantastic.  With the navy pintucks and the white dishes and the wine bottles and...and everything.  They set up everything.  All we had to do was deliver boxes to the museum and they took care of everything - the gift table, the escort card table, the guest book, the group photo sign. 

I seriously cannot sing the praises for JDK enough.  If any bride is planning a wedding in Central PA, call them.  I promise you, you won't regret it.  Oh, and look for my sister's picture in the office.  And on their website.  I'm determined to bump her out, but for now, it's still pretty awesome that she and her husband are featured.

Photo Teaser

So, our wedding day?  Best. Day. Ever. We had so much fun.  It was absolutely perfect.  It's true, you know.  What they say.  That it goes by so fast.  It really does.  In the moment, that day, it didn't seem like it was.  But the next morning, when I woke up, I was like..."Wait.  No.  That can't be it!"  I just wanted to do it all over again.

We literally had the perfect day.  The weather was gorgeous.  There were no major issues (at least none that we knew of).  Our coordinator, David, from Weddings by JDK, handled everything.  Our bridal party stepped in when we needed them.  Our friends and family laughed and smiled and cried with us.  Best of all?  We glowed.  We both just glowed.  All day long.  I've never felt so happy, and Matt's never looked so happy.  I plan to hold onto that forever.

The day after the wedding, we went over to my parents' house.  My stepdad had recorded several things throughout the day, and we watched the videos.  We got to watch our ceremony.  And it was perfect, just as we remembered it.  Jeff (my stepdad) ran out to pick up a flash drive so he could copy them for us to take along.  I'll admit, I've already watched it a few times.  Friends were posting pictures to facebook (everyone waited, just as we'd asked).  On Tuesday, we left for our honeymoon.  Just a few days after we arrived in St. Lucia for our honeymoon, we checked our emails and facebook.  Everlasting Images had put some pictures up on facebook... 

Aren't they gorgeous?!  We also got an email the day before we got home that all of our pictures were up on their website.  I don't have full access to them, yet, so I can't post them.  But as soon as we pick the photos for our album, we'll get a disc with all of the images.  And I'll start some recaps.  But it'll be a while.  There are a lot of pictures, and I have no idea how we'll choose among all of them!

*all photos courtesy of the fab-tastic Everlasting Images

Today.

This is it.  The day I've been waiting for for 10 long months.  It feels like it's been ages.  It also feels like just yesterday we were basking in the glow of a brand-new engagement.  I cannot believe it's actually here.

I cannot believe I'm up at 5:30am.  Unable and/or unwilling to continue to sleep.  My mind is racing, my heart is pounding, and I am just a big ball of jitters. 

It's supposed to be a gorgeous fall day here in Central PA.  Sunny and 70 degrees.  Almost unheard of for this late in October.  A full moon.  The leaves are at their peak of change.  Absolutely beautiful.  My favorite kind of fall day.

I looked around last night at the rehearsal dinner and realized that I am one lucky lady.  I have a fiance (husband in 11 short hours!) who loves me.  I have friends who would do anything and are so happy to see this happening for me.  I have family who are...well, they're just the best people on the planet.  I'm marrying into a family and set of friends who are absolutely wonderful.  Matt and I have been supported and rallied around in ways that I never would have expected. 

I can't wait.  I'm so ready to do this. 

Officially Stressed

Ok.  I'm there now.  The Stress Zone.  Little things are built up in my head to be big things.  Sleep is a distant memory.  And here's a funny one: I usually under-eat when I'm stressed, but it seems that wedding stress is causing me to put anything I can find in my mouth (mind out of the gutter, you!).  So when I got on the scale this morning and had GAINED weight, I lost it.  I cried the whole way to the gym, and then proceeded to run for 25 minutes straight - a personal record.  [Yes, I am completely aware at how pathetic 25 minutes is to many of you, but for me, that's freaking awesome.  Remember?  Exercise is against my religion.]  That was kind of cathartic, though.  I plan to do it again tomorrow, hopefully Thursday I'll be able to squeeze something in (not likely, but hopefully), and I plan to bring some workout clothes home in case I'm really not sleeping and think a run would help ease the tension.


My phone rings and my heart starts to beat furiously.  What went wrong?  Who's not coming?  Which vendor isn't showing up?  Why can't people leave me alone?! 


I am off work starting Thursday.  Here is what Thursday looks like for me:  I have to get up early to drive Matt to work so that I'll have the car (I sold mine 2 years ago to save money).  Then I have to drive back home (Matt works 45 minutes from home), pick up the pretzels and TastyCakes for the OOTs, finish packing, double-and-triple check the packing, set timers for the lights in the house, complete/print the day-of timelines, complete/print the contact lists, go pick Matt up at work, drive to Hershey, drop off stuff at my mom's, go for final fitting, pick up my boudoir album from Megan, go back home, enjoy dinner/socializing with various members of the family, put together the OOTs, wrap the bridesmaids gifts, and wrap Matt's gift.


Friday: Get up at 7:30, eat breakfast, drive out to Camp Hill (45 minutes) to drop my Grandma's ring off at JDK because like a dummy I forgot to give it to David at our last meeting, drive back to Hershey, drop off the OOTs at the hotel, go home, eat, go to the Spa, relax and get pampered for 3 hours (ahhhh....), go home, shower and get ready for rehearsal dinner, rehearse, eat, shmooze with our friends/family who join us for drinks, get to bed at a somewhat-normal hour and try to sleep!


Yup...busy couple of days.  I am running a constant loop in my head of timelines, project deadlines, errands to run, people to see, food to eat (and not eat), and packing lists.  You know how on DVR you can press the "skip" button and jump ahead a few minutes in whatever program you're watching?  I want to do that.  I want to just skip straight to Saturday at 4:30pm. 


Not to mention that work is crazy right now, and I have a feeling that I am going to leave my floor looking like a total nightmare for whoever is going to have to cover for me the next 2 1/2 weeks.  I don't like that feeling.  I usually try to clean up all the loose ends before I go away on vacation, but things have been absolutely nightmarish with a bazillion placements and difficult cases and nasty families, and I hate the idea of dumping all of that on whatever poor soul will have to deal with it for me.