My Wedding!!!!!!

FINALLY!

Things have calmed down enough to write a post about my wedding. A year and a half of planning came together perfectly!

Music was obviously the main and most important theme throughout the wedding. We had real concert tickets made for our invites. Our RSVP's were made using an AC/DC font. Instead of a wedding program, we had a "set list." Everyone in our bridal party had a VIP laminate. Our cake topper was a replica of Waylon Jenning's guitar. Bob Segar's guitarist was one of the groomsmen and our officiant was in McGuffy Lane and is currently touring the country with Jonalee White; both of these guys are two of the most badass guitarists I've ever heard. And of course my groom had a one of a kind, custom made jacket created by the legendary Manuel of Nashville, Tennessee (he's made suits for everyone from Johnny Cash to Kid Rock).



The musical selection for the wedding was the ONLY thing that my new hubby and I argued over. The only song I was not willing to compromise on was what I was going to walk down the aisle to: Love Song by Tesla. My brother played it perfectly (like he did so many times before when we were kids). The mothers and grandparents walked to Love Me Tender by Elvis (my man is a HUGE Elvis fan). The bridal party got to rock down the aisle to Loving Cup by the Rolling Stones, and the recessional was Thank You by Led Zeppelin.

The reception had a few choice musical selections as well. The bridal party was introduced to Electric Rodeo by Shooter Jennings. And of course my new hubby and I walked into Kickstart My Heart by Motley Crue while our good friend, Rick Catuela (the Rock & Roll Reverend from the Alrosa Villa) introduced us. Our first dance was Rose of My Heart by Johnny Cash and the Mother/Son dance was Lynyrd Skynyrd's Simple Man performed by Blackberry Smoke.


Yeah, that's right. I said it. Blackberry Smoke played at my freaking wedding! YES! They rocked so hard that they blew a fuse! After a few songs from Blackberry Smoke, a legendary, local band, Rosie, got up for an impromptu set. A couple of the groomsmen were in the band and the entire band flew in from all over the U.S. to join in the celebration. Then the Blackberry Smoke boys got back up on stage and closed out the night. It was seriously the most kick ass rock & roll wedding ever. Well...at least it rocked harder than any other wedding I've ever been to!

The other theme that was running through our wedding was a retro/rockabilly vibe. We both love that rockabilly stuff. He has a pompadour and has been working on hot rods since before he was born, so it was only fitting for us to incorporate our love for all things retro. We asked all of our friends with hot rods to drive them to the wedding. It made for some great pictures! And we actually bought a 1954 Chevy Bel Air hard top a few months before the wedding, so we had to make sure to get some pictures with our "Ol' Girl."

And how incredible are our pictures? Thank god one of my best friends is an amazing photographer: Sharon Elaine. We've known each other since 6th grade and I couldn't have asked for anyone better or more special to capture all the special moments of my most important day. Sharon also did our kick ass engagement pictures. If you have a friend who is a photographer, make sure you ask her/him to take your wedding pictures. Friends know you and your personality and are able to capture the moments SO perfectly. Sharon did this flawlessly.

Our wedding day went smoother than I could have EVER imagined. With the gracious help of friends and family making sure everything fell into place, my dream wedding day was achieved.
There were certainly a few quirks the day of the wedding but I didn't let any of it bother me. DON'T SWEAT THE SMALL STUFF LADIES! It's not worth getting stressed out and bitchy over. Just let it all go. In the end, the only thing that matters is that you and the man of your dreams get married.

The only two things I really stressed over were the guest list and the budget. We had 250 on our guest list and almost everyone showed up. I was able to cap off the number of people invited by finding a kick ass, cheap venue that only held 250. Don't get me wrong, I was super happy to have my closest friends and family witness my marriage, but each person invited meant more money spent. And since we didn't have a money tree growing in our backyard, I was constantly saving money over the past year and a half and buying at least one or two things a month, so I didn't have to blow a big chunk of money right before the wedding.

Now all the wedding hoopla is over and I'm a little depressed. The one day I've been waiting for all my life is over...and it was spectacular. I married the man of my dreams and I love him madly. Next up...Our Baby Rocks. :)

Please enjoy more wedding pics courtesy of Sharon Elaine Photography.

My Wedding is in the Local Paper!

Heehee! We're total rock stars. Our wedding is SO kick ass that there's an article about it in the Columbus, alternative paper, The Other Paper. Check it out here! Only fact they forgot to mention...Bob Segar's guitarist is a groomsman.

Bridal Shower/Bachelorette Party

My friends will tell you that I'm not a crazy party girl who likes to go out drinking every weekend. So when it came time to plan my bridal shower and bachelorette party, my ladies humored me and planned a wonerful, lovely and fun time. No tiaras, sashes, feather boas, penis necklaces or suck for a buck t-shirts. Just an intimate afternoon and evening with my closest lady friends...and of course lots of amazing food and booz!

The first half of the day was my "spiked tea party" bridal shower. Everyone came in their Sunday best with big, ridiculous hats. We ate finger sandwiches and scones and petifores and cupcakes and drank some spiked "tea."

Next up...time for a wardrobe change for my 80's rock themed bachelorette party! Hence, the totally kick ass invite in my previous post. We all got our spandex on and teased our hair up high and rocked out to all of my favorite 80's rock. Although there are no pictures of me with my hair teased to the ceiling, believe me when I tell you that it was and I had no idea that my hair could still do that. We even tried to record our own silly music video to Girls, Girls, Girls, but it's REALLY hard to get 10 boozed up ladies to cooperate with a video camera. I have video footage that will never ever make it to the internet. And yes, I'm well aware of the fact that I'm wearing a Trixter shirt and they're from the early 90's. As I said on my rock blog, it's the only concert shirt I had that matched my hot pink, 4" heels...and I just love Trixter.

Thanks ladies for a fantastic evening of food, booze and good times. It's exacly what I wanted and I have the greatest friends in the world!

Rhinestone Cowboy

My fiance takes fashion very seriously. So when it came to wedding attire, there was only one designer he was going to wear: Manuel. Ever since he was young, he always swore he would get married in a Manuel jacket, and now he is.

If you are not familiar with Manuel, then let me help you. You know all those fancy rhinestone covered, super embroidered suits all the old school country stars used to wear? Think Porter Wagoner. Yeah, Manuel made a lot of those and now he's made a very custom, one of a kind jacket for my true love.

There are pictures of the wedding jacket...but I don't want to ruin the surprise for you. ;)

My fiance with Manuel in 2006 during our trip to Nashville. He said to Manuel that day, "I'll be back to get a custom jacket of my own."

Porter Wagoner wearing one of his many Manuels.

GREATEST Bachelorette Party Invite EVER

It's not your grandma's invite. It's cooler than any other bachelorette party invite you've ever received. Nothing says "me" more than this. And if you don't get it or can't grasp the concept of how kick ass this party is going to be, then you're probably not invited. F-ing genius Quinn. Genius! I have the greatest friends in the world.

Guest Book

I kept trying to come up with a really cool idea for a guest book. I thought about getting a cheap acoustic guitar and having everyone sign it. Then I found some pretty cool guest books on Etsy. But in the end, the really cool guest book ended up finding me.

One of my favorite bands, Blackberry Smoke, happened to be playing in town one evening, so Jenelle and my mother-in-law and I decided to go see them. Greg was already at the venue, so we were meeting him there. We had some time to spare so we grabbed a cup of coffee and decided to peruse Urban Outfitters. While I was there, I ran across the perfect guest book.

Yes! It fits our rock & roll theme perfectly! And there was one there with a hot pink binding. It was destiny. I'm sure of it.

BUY ETSY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

For those of you who aren't familiar with Etsy, you should be. Go there now and check it out. Take you're time. I'll wait........

Etsy.com is a home for the uber crafty to sell their uber cool crafts. You can find just about anything you've ever imagined on there and some stuff you couldn't have imagined even in your wildest dreams. Sometimes the prices are little higher than what you're used to, but you have to remember that you're paying for handcrafted items. It's totally worth a few extra bucks!

This is a GREAT spot to find everything you need for your wedding. From dresses to bouquets, Etsy has it! I've already purchased items for my wedding from Etsy like my fiance's wedding band, my veil, and my garter.

If you're looking for amazing, one of kind items that you won't find anywhere else, then Etsy is the place for you! Check out some of the amazing wedding items I've found. I want to buy them, but I have to show some restraint.