Offers: Round 4

It has been an incredibly busy week. I think it's the holiday season, coupled with an actual wedding date being set, that is making everything feel really, really busy. We've had some amazing offers this week, though, and there's been a couple offers that took us a while to confirm, firm up, or otherwise be ready to post. Here you go:

VENUE: As you probably have read, we've decided on Stanley's Olde Maple Lane Farm for our venue. Just a quick note, though, saying another thank you to Annette at the Green Terrace B&B; Annette wishes to provide an affordable venue for weddings, with the belief that couples shouldn't have to sacrifice a chance at, say, a down payment on a home, in order to afford their wedding. Thank you, Annette, for your generous offer and also for understanding the financial pressures that can come with a wedding! Check out her B&B at

http://www.bbcanada.com/10402.html

PHOTOGRAPHY: We have had a couple more offers of photography from local shutterbugs. We're still exploring how to incorporate these different photographers in a way that gives them all a chance to get some great shots, without tripping over each other. It's truly an embarrassment of riches!

Lydia Peltz has offered to snap our pictures for an engagement shoot; we may be convincing her to utilize her skills in a more advantageous spot. Lydia's website is

http://www.lydiapeltz.com/

Caitlin Hennessy also offered her photographic skills to our big day. Caitlin, thanks again for your offer and we're happy to share your link:

http://hennesseyladyart.blogspot.com/

Sarah Naegels has also offered her shutterbug stylings. Check out her work at

http://www.flickr.com/photos/bagels/collections/72157624548635976/

FASHION: We have had some really cool fashion offers this week:
First, Figgie Shoes is offering to create a pair of shoes for the big day, for me. I'm soooo stoked. The artist, Deb Thomson, who paints the shoes, is kind of a big deal: she was an artist who contributed to the Vancouver Olympics opening ceremonies. She hand-paints beautiful shoes for brides, and has offered to paint me a pair. I'm soooo excited; what girl doesn't love shoes? This allows me to have a minor wardrobe change: from boots down the aisle, to shoes on the dancefloor. Deb, thank you so very much for this offer. It's a special touch that is certain to make me feel like a rockstar on the big day! Figgie's site is

http://www.figgieshoes.com/

  Here's an example of her work:

I also had an offer of a dress from a local bride named Shannon S. Shannon noted that I have been wishing and hoping for a 1950s-styled dress. Sure enough, her very own dress is something pretty spectacular, along the vintage lines. It's less 'costumey' than some of the dresses I've looked at so far, and Shannon has given me free reign to pimp this dress 'til it's just right for me. I'm picking it up this weekend; if it fits/suits me, we may have a winner! If it doesn't, Shannon has given me the green light to send it on to one of the local dress charities (more on this later). Shannon, big thank yous to you for being so awesome and offering your dress with such complete generosity and abandon. I cannot wait to see it!!!

Also on dresses, I was offered the most exquisite, unusual dress from a bridal shop in LaSalle, near Windsor, Ontario, called It's Your Day. They have a show piece dress: an olive green taffeta Allure dress--one of a kind, never put into production--with beadwork that'd make you gasp. It's far and away the nicest green formal gown I have ever seen, bridal or otherwise. It's Your Dress, thank you so much for this offer that I have now been agonizing over for weeks! Do I want the green dress, done in a traditional ballgown-style look? Or have I lost my mind slightly, and now want a short white 1950s look with green embellishments? Two entirely different looks. I'm having the hardest time! Sarah from It's Your Dress has been incredibly sweet and understanding of my internal debate, and has even offered to ship the dress here so I can try it on before making a final decision. I'm seriously considering, and I'm sorry I can't show all of you the dress, for fear that Brian will look at it; I'm considering adding a 'no Brian' page at the top of the site to show you all things that he can't see. Thank you again, Sarah and IYD. You're way too amazing! It's Your Dress:

http://www.itsyourday.ca/index.html

Next, a funky little offering that I'm super excited about: Bree from bridalgarters.ca has offered to make me a set of custom-designed bridal garters. I think garters are the cutest thing ever, and while the origin of the tradition may be a little counter-feminist, some things are just pretty and fun. Bree's garters are adorable, she makes two identical in a set (one to toss and one to keep), and she plans to personalize the garter to suit my crazy style. Bree, thank you!!! I absolutely love this!!! Here's the link:

http://bridalgarters.ca/

and here's an example:

Along the fashion vein is another incredibly thoughtful offer that really makes a lot of sense, and none of us would have thought of of it: a dress cleaning and suit pressing! Nicola wrote to us on behalf of her fiance Joe Peloso, of Peloso Cleaners here in town. They're known for their bridal gown work. Peloso's offering to clean my dress (either before if it's pre-owned, or after) and to make sure Brian's outfit is looking at its best, as well. Peloso Cleaners, thank you sooooo much! This is such a wonderful, practical gift and something that we would likely have had to do without, if it had not been offered. Their site:

http://www.pelosocleaners.com/

MUSIC:
What well-run wedding doesn't have a good DJ? Well, ours wouldn't have, if we hadn't received an offer! I had planned to set up speakers off my laptop, honestly. Steve from Two J's Music Machine has offered to save us from my laptop DJ'ing, by providing us with a DJ package: music and microphones for the ceremony, music and lights for the dancing at the reception, and numerous other little perks. The offer also states that Steve will dress 'in appropriate attire for the event', so of course now is the perfect time to reveal our pirate theme! Steve, we'll provide the peg leg, but you need to find your own parrot. I tease. Sincerely, Steve, we are so happy about this. My parents are even happier, if that's possible: they had a very modest wedding, back in the day, but they insist that having a good DJ is the key to a really great reception. We believe them. Thank you, Steve of Two J's! Here's their link:

http://twojsmusic.com/

 
FOOD: 
We have had the coolest offer for a snack from a Canadian company: CheeCha Puffs. CheeCha makes a puffy snack that at first glance looks a bit like the standard corn puff-type snack foods, but they're actually made from potato; they're low-fat, and gluten free. Low-fat makes me happy for two reasons: I have dietary restrictions, and fatty snack foods make me feel ill; and Brian is like a bottomless pit with snack food...so for both these reasons, I'm excited to find a new snack food that I can leave around the house with a clearer conscience. (And they come in the most awesome flavours!) Also, I'm really happy they have gluten-free puffs, as I have an aunt who has gluten issues, and I have been thinking about her eating at the wedding. We'll make sure she has some other goodies to eat, too, but the puffs will be totally safe! We're taking CheeCha's advice and serving these up as a late-night snack. CheeCha is providing enough puffs for our 200 guests. Thank you, CheeCha! And a quick hello to Tracey from CheeCha, who is in love with our blog. Here's their link, I suggest you check 'em out!

http://www.cheecha.ca/

OTHER WONDERS:

Martin Gouda is a facebook friend of mine, and he has offered to help us out with any graphic design work we need done. Martin, thank you so much for this!  I'll share more as we find ways to utilize your talents.

Sheila M offered us the loan of her bridal champagne flutes, and the loan/donation of the flutes for the bridal party. Sheila, this is such an intimate, heartfelt offer. Thank you so much. We'll be getting back to Sheila on this one, as we do have family-given stemware that we may be using, at least for the two of us. It's these personal touches from other people's weddings, that always make me warm and fuzzy. Thank you, Sheila!

Body Poets Massage has offered us something truly wonderful: a massage for each of us, the month of our wedding. Ellen from Body Poets, we love you. No joke. I am looking forward to this massage possibly more than any other aspect of the wedding. THANK YOU. Their website:

http://www.bodypoets.com/

That's it for now. I think we'll be doing another offers entry in a few days, though. It's been busy, I told ya! 

We are having the most fun with this planning, and we are completely overwhelmed with the generosity of the community, both from individuals and businesses/artisans. Thank you so much, big wide world, for supporting our special day! More to come...including, I want to write about the experience of bringing in our amazing wedding planner, Veronica; so check back soon! Note: see December 30 2010 entry for update on wedding planner.