The Martha Stewart debut

Had a great long weekend up in New York, and got to spend some quality time with a bunch of my close friends -- including my MOH and a couple of the bridesmaids.

I rendezvous-ed with Marisa at Penn Station an hour before the show and limped to the studio on my gimp foot (I forgot to mention in previous posts that I fell off a pair of 5 inch heels 45 minutes into the New Year, and seriously mangled my right ankle). After what seemed to be ages waiting in line in the blustery cold, we were ushered in to the studio to be prepped, to primp, and to submit our questions and release forms prior to taping.

The aforementioned gimp food proved fortuitous in the end, as it ushered me and Marisa to the front of the line and the front row of the studio audience.

The taping took almost two hours and it was a fun experience, but although we came back with some nice things (like an espresso machine, a swank pair of Hanky Panky's, and some Oscar de la Renta perfume) there weren't as many bridal takeaways as I had hoped. I think the most useful thing I went home with was the winter issue of Martha Stewart Weddings magazine.

Check out the preview for our TV audience debut here, where Marisa's bright orange shirt makes an appearance: http://www.marthastewart.com/show/the-martha-stewart-show/winter-weddings-show

The show airs today (Thursday) at 10am on the Hallmark Channel.

Washingtonian: Unveiled

Washingtonian Magazine is hosting its annual wedding showcase on January 23rd.

Aside from working the check-in desk at a bridal expo for extra cash in college, I've never attended one of these things and am yet to be sold on their merits. I tend to suffer from information overload (a la those annoying Bing commercials all over TV), and I feel like I would be over-inundated with different ideas and suggestions for vendors for every service I need to book all at once. I much prefer to do one thing at a time -- nail down a venue, find a priest, then get a photographer, a caterer, a florist, and so on and so forth down the line. Everything at once would just overwhelm me. Not to mention, $55 is a steep price to have advertisements thrown at you all day.

So I've entered to win tickets for free, and if I happen to get picked then I'll probably go. Otherwise, I'll just keep to my system and get any vendor info I need online from peer reviews on sites like Wedding Wire, Martha Stewart Weddings and The Knot, and from an occasional purchase of Washingtonian's Bride & Groom magazine. 

Back from radio silence...

Once again, I've failed to update the blog regularly. For shame! Especially since December was such a busy month with a lot of goings-on that were definitely worth posting on here. So I'll try to get through a few updates as succinctly and as interestingly as I can.

Firstly, my friends' good juju with the Martha Stewart Show has rubbed off on me, and yours-truly will be in the all-bride audience next week for a very special weddings episode! At the encouragement of my Martha-in-training friend McLean, I submitted a very hastily-assembled pitch through the show's website as to why I deserved an invitation. Apparently, Martha's screeners bought it. So on Thursday, January 13th, I'll be heading up to New York City for an advance taping that will air at a later date (usually the show is live). And, I'm excited to say, I get to bring a fellow bride as a guest -- so that means my dear college friend Marisa (who ties the knot with fiance Aric this May) will be in tow. We've both been instructed to wear BRIGHT COLORS and be prepared to tell our engagement and wedding planning stories, so I'm hoping that means we'll get some one-on-one opportunities with Martha and possibly have the opportunity to win some prizes! At the very least, I expect to come home with some sweet audience swag. McLean and another friend, Kristina, told me they came back with amazing gifts from their audience experiences.

Secondly, we have booked an amazingly talented photographer, Lisa Boggs! :::The crowd roars!::: This development warrants its own post, so more on that later.







Thirdly, we have reserved a date at St. Mary Catholic Church in Old Town Alexandria for our ceremony, and will be importing our own Ukrainian Catholic priest! Both DC-area Ukrainian churches are far away from where we live, our venue site, and our preferred hotels for guests and are additionally not in areas that are easily accessible by metro or other public transportation, so exchanging vows at either location would've caused a lot of problems for everyone. It took some wheeling and dealing to convince parties on both ends, but it looks like we'll be able to pull this all off... and with only a little extra donation in our church coffer each Sunday.

Lastly, there are a ton of wedding showcases, expos, sales, and so-on ahead on the calendar to kick off the new year, and I will try my best to hit as many of them as I can!

Ali and Chris's wedding featured in Martha Stewart Real Weddings!

My super-sweet friend Ali married her college sweetheart Chris back in April, and I've been going to Ali for wedding ideas and vendor suggestions since then. She's really been an inspiration to me in my own planning, and I have to say that her style and attention to detail resulted in one of (if not the) cutest, most creatively designed weddings I've ever seen.

Apparently, Martha Stewart thinks so as well!

Ali and Chris's wedding has been highlighted in the Martha Stewart Weddings website's "Real Weddings" feature. Congrats to both of you for being so Martha Stewart-fabulous! :)

Check out the inspired color schemes, decorations, and photography -- courtesy of exceptional photographer Kate Headley -- right here!