The Five Minute Post: Cool People

I have five minutes left on my break. I am writing very, very fast.

So I had a rough weekend (well, only as far as wedding planning and P:P goes) because I've misplaced my notebook full of contacts and to-do lists. The last blog entry reflects my sense of panic and doom on that score. But I gotta say, we've been having some great fun with cool people.

We met with Adam Pap, our lead 'people' photographer for the big day, and he's a total sweetheart, not to mention a super talented photographer. He took a photo of us at our meeting and I'll post it soon (I have to shrink it down so the blog will accept it.) Adam seemed nervous, and maybe that's fair in the case of meeting most brides and grooms, but given our project and how generally laid-back we are as a wedding-planning-couple, it was totally unnecessary. I'm feeling really good about Adam, and we're going to do some fun engagement shots with him, too!

We are also meeting tonight with Amy from Splendid Events (links to follow, don't worry). Amy will chat with us tonight about being our new wedding planner; even though we haven't met yet, we've been chatting over twitter and I gotta say, there's a sense of peace that comes when you have a professional on your side that is absolutely priceless. Amy's excited to work with us because we're looking for a FUN wedding, and we're excited to work with Amy because she understands the importance of a green crinoline.

Through Twitter, we also met GeekSweets, and I don't want to give it all away right now, but all I'll say is, as dreamed of, there will be macarons at my wedding. :)

Oh, and Kate...Kate of Flights of Fancy has been a sweetheart. She was first in line after my last entry to offer me a refuge, and she has been tons of fun to tweet with over the last while, about things like murderous desires and Mr Square from the Mr books.

Oh, and Brian...I got a lot of Bri time this weekend, and he just fills me up with goodness like it's sunshine and vanilla icing. I have gotten through my morning smiling to myself, because I keep picturing him spraying his cologne in the air and running through it with his arms flailed backwards, like a ballerina.

Good people. I love it. There are so many special gifts that this wedding project has brought to us, and to me...the people are an unexpected bonus.

<3

Black Friday--not the good kind

I am having one of those days where the wedding and Project: Priceless feels totally overwhelming and I question my ability to pull this off. This, despite the fact that I can remind myself of my awards for community development and event/group organization...despite my philosophy that a wedding is just one big party, not a debutante ball somehow organized by one sole woman...despite my knowledge that even if I walk down the aisle in jeans and a tee shirt, and Brian wears his jeans with the hole in the crotch, we're still married so long as the officiant shows up.

As the work week wraps up, life changes focus again to the wedding; I suddenly recall that, aside from the dusting and mopping that needs to be done around the apartment, we have failed to gather the addresses to send out the save-the-dates--which, if we don't get our butts in gear, will function more effectively as remember-the-day's. And somehow, I have left my notebook, full of all our offers, contacts, and to-do lists, at my office...which is closed for the next four days. (At least, that's where I hope it is, or I'm in serious trouble here.) I have twenty emails waiting for replies, some so tardy that I'm now getting follow-up emails asking what's going on. I have scrawled so many reminders on the back of my left hand (lovingly referred to as my 'palm pilot') that it's stained despite scrubbing and the various layers of blue, black, and purple ghost images make it appear as if my hand is severely bruised.

And nevermind the regular, everyday things going on in my life: the interpersonal issues, bullying by a former comrade, resignation from a recreational activity I was devoted to, and myriad other incidentals that will mean nothing in a couple weeks, but right now are nagging and weighing on me like some sort of mutant breed of 20-pound mosquitoes, latched on and draining me.

I find myself yearning just a tiny bit for the $10,000 that a recent blog entry, from a budget bride site, said was a reasonable 'thrifty' wedding budget. (Since WHEN is $10,000 'thrifty'?! My car cost me a fifth of that!) And my envious grumblings fill the air as I walk around the house, muttering about the ludicrously expensive tickets to this weekend's wedding show that I just cannot bring myself to allocate funds towards. Instead, I will go to the gym, run on the elliptical while listening to Glee (my secret, guilty pleasure), and then come home to get some items off my (left at the office) checklist.

Tomorrow, I will sit down to write a new entry, hopefully having found my list of recent offers, and I will write a lovely, enthusiastic blog entry. And it will be genuine. But just for tonight, I am mopey and overwhelmed and anxious and forlorn. Strangely, I am finding solace in the kitchen, as I'm teaching myself to cook; so for tonight, my sweet boy will take me to Chapters where I will peruse recipe books and drink a tea until it's time for him to take me home and tuck me into bed with an episode of Battle Star Gallactica.

'Til tomorrow...adieu.

Project: : Pricless in the media again

This is a huge welcome to all of you who have seen our blog mentioned on the 6:00 news on CTV (
http://ottawa.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local/CTVNews/20110212/OTT_online_wedding_planning_110212/20110212/?hub=OttawaHome  ) and all the various print medias. We really appreciate all of your support and please pass us on to your friends, family and loved ones. We really want this project, and our wedding, to be so much more than a typical wedding; we want to have as many people from everywhere be a part of this project celebrating love, and we really encourage people to each other out, too.

To see a list of Items we are still missing please read the 'bulletin board' or previous posts labeled 'wishlists'; also, remember you can check out our 'special projects' for easy (and cost-free) ways to help the big day be special.

Again, from our little family to you, thanks you for your interest and enthusiasm!

Brian

A week of wonderful Offers!

We’ve had a busy week (what else is new), and some really great offers. Most of them came through meeting great indy artisans at Ottawa’s WedByHand wedding show (site: http://www.wedbyhand.com/ ); the show was a one-day event, held at the Glebe community centre (one of the most beautiful spaces of its kind), and it was loaded with awesome local people offering awesome local services and items. Krista, one of the organizers of the show, connected with us at a previous craft show, and said that they’d like to help us out; they gave us four tickets to the show, and gave the artisans a heads-up that we’d be coming. Consequently, it was a breeze chatting with people, because we didn’t have to give quite the same amount of backstory as we usually do.

The show was full of everything from mini cupcakes, to truffles, to the most delicious lavender iced tea I’ve ever had—and actually, if someone reading this knows who makes that iced tea, or has the recipe, please email or comment on the blog. The only bad thing about the two glasses I’d downed: I don’t usually drink caffeine, so I was buzzing. The upside to that: lots of energy to talk with all the vendors. And boy, did we talk! It’s so much fun to talk about something you’re doing when you love it, and even better when it’s a project all about love in the first place. Getting to walk around with my wonderful fiancé and tell people about our plans was so much fun.

But enough; I’m sure you want to hear about the offers. Towards the end of this entry, I’m going to give a call-out for commercial artisans to send me comments, so if you’re one of those talented people, read on…

In no particular order:

ACCESSORIES

The ladies of Victoire spoke with us early on in the day; they peddle antique dresses and accessories, with a mix of some new-made designer items; they describe their boutique as ‘rock n’ roll tea party’, which obviously sounds pretty perfect for our wedding. We chatted for a while, and they offered us the loan of some items, perhaps hairpieces. We’re looking forward to connecting with them soon to get more details. Thank you, Victoire! You can connect with them at http://www.victoireboutique.com/ .

Kate of Flights of Fancy, an amazing artisan extraordinaire whose line of burlesque-worthy hairpieces and accessories, chatted with us for some time. Ottawa is a small world, and Brian and I had actually met her once before, very briefly, yet we all recalled one another. Kate makes the most beautiful items…hair clips, combs, boutonnieres, and other googies, rich in feathers and sparkles. When I’d looked through the WedByHand site and scoped out all the vendors’ sites (yes, I’m a ‘plan ahead’ type of gal), Kate’s goodies were something I was most excited to see. Before I even got a chance to find her table myself, Mo (my Maid Of Honor, ‘Mo’ for short) found it, loved it, and dragged me over. We chatted for some time, and Kate offered us four feathered hair combs/clips for my bridesmaids. We accepted the offer immediately, and then I focused on keeping Mo from fainting in her excitement. Kate, thank you so much for the generous offer; the girls are so excited and I can’t wait to take them to see you and see them jump around excited like preteens at a Justin Bieber concert. See what Kate’s up to at http://www.bombshellscloset.com/ .

DECORATIONS

Karie of Rehash made us a lovely offer; she makes beautiful handcrafts and had these adorable flag lines on display. Karie has offered us an adorable bunting or flag line (string of triangular flags with letters spelling a word) for our wedding. We have sent her a few ideas on words, and I am soooo looking forward to holding onto this keepsake for the rest of forever. Before we left, Karie grabbed me a second time and said she had some peacock feathers that I could have to craft with, if they’d be useful for the wedding! Well, of course they would be! Thank you, Karie; you’re awesome and I love your bunting! Fall in love with Karie’s work at http://workermade.blogspot.com/

ALSO: Karie’s table partner Annie Bananie ended up emailing us after the show; she said that Karie had given her the 4-1-1 on what we were doing, and  she’d like to offer us a felting workshop for our wedding party, to either learn to make felted centrepieces, or felted people (to put on the cake). Annie, this is going to be sooo much fun; thank you for the offer and we look forward to connecting with you soon to get this set up! http://www.anniebananietheclown.blogspot.com/

Now, from our UsedOttawa.com ad came another offer this week: Judy R has offered us a seamstress’s dressform to borrow so that my immense green ceremony dress can be put on display at the reception. Judy, thank you so much for this offer. It’s going to be so special for me to have that beautiful dress where everyone can admire it…while I wear something far more appropriate to Ottawa’s August weather.

Another amazing, incredible, mind-blowing offer came in from the prairies this week. Angela Klassen of Imagine Wedding & Event Planning has offered to make and send us aisle markers: cones full of peacock and other feathers! I am seriously excited about this, but I gotta say, my Mo almost hyperventilated. It was amusing and awesome to watch. Angela followed up her offer to also offer us table numbers done on our ‘leather and feathers’ theme. Angela, thank you sooooo much for contributing to our (thus far) meagre decorations. We will make the most of these and will display them both at the ceremony and the reception. Check out Imagine’s site at http://www.imagine-weddings.com/index_003.htm .

Oh, and just a little note about Christina, our florist, proprietor of Flower & Flower of Renfrew, Ontario (

http://www.flowerandflour.ca/ )

: we met with her this past week, and for the first time ever, I am excited about the flowers. Not that I wasn’t excited about Christina! But I’m not a ‘roses and posies’ type of gal, and usually I like things far more botanical, woodsy, twiggy, berry-y, and foresty. Well, Christina helped me remember that that was my original vision and I have utter faith that what she creates will be beautiful and entirely Bri&J appropriate. Ohhh, and the ‘head table piece’ she’s offered is going to stand about 8 feet high…I can’t wait to see it. (It will, naturally, not sit on the table. Maybe that was obvious to you; I had to ask.)

GIFTS & GOODIES

Oooooh, this one…this one makes me happy in a very special way. There is a bath & body products company called Purple Urchin here in Ottawa. Two Christmases ago, I met owner Sarah S at a craft show and fell in love with her goodies. Due to my insanely delicate skin, I can’t use bath bombs or soaps with certain products in them (even healthy ingredients…don’t get me started), but she had a cocoa coffee body scrub that I could not walk away from.  I bought it, tried it, LOVED it, and then rationed it out for months. I kept hoping I’d see her at another craft show to get more, but fate was not on our side, as even the annual show where she was scheduled to be had been cancelled! When I saw that she would be at the WedByHand show, I wrote her an email and begged her to reserve me a jar of the body scrub. Sure enough, Sarah had a jar waiting for me, and I bought it, and a maple walnut lipbalm. We chatted about P:P, and Sarah made me insanely happy by offering four pots of the body scrub to give to my bridesmaids as gifts (plus one extra for the bride, yay!), as well as some of her delicious and aptly-named ‘man soap’ for the groomsmen. I gotta tell you, if all guys smelled like this spicey, woodsy soap, they’d all have dates. Sarah of Purple Urchin, thank you so much for the wonderful offer! I have been scrubbing myself with my scrub for three mornings now, and I literally hop out of bed in anticipation. You can see and buy Purple Urchin products at http://www.purpleurchinsoap.com/ .

Oh, and while he doesn’t exactly belong in the ‘gifts & goodies’ category, we want to say how nice it was to meet our officiant, now confirmed: Alan Viau will be performing our handfasting. In exchange for his services, Brian and I will be donating time to a theatre company he supports…we’ll post the name soon. It’s going to be fun, actually: Brian is going to help out with sets and whatnot, and I’ll help with makeup, hair, etc. Alan was very helpful, walking us through what a ceremony entails, and patiently answering my stupid questions. No, seriously: stupid questions. For instance, Alan was explaining the portions of the ceremony that would have to be included by law. As he walked us through the ceremony, he came to the all-important ‘you may kiss’ portion, and he stated, ‘You will kiss for ten seconds.’ He paused here briefly, and so I blame him entirely for my asking, ‘Wait: is that, like, to make it legal?!’ Both he and Brian laughed at me, and fair enough; while it is not, apparently, required legally that you kiss for ten seconds, it is greatly appreciated by your photographer. Well, now I know. Here’s Alan’s blog again: http://weddingchaplain.ca/about/

A CALL-OUT TO COMMERCIAL ARTISANS/BUSINESS OWNERS: Asking for your comments

At the WedByHand show, we were speaking with Sarah from Flights of Fancy about the need for a more grassroots approach to the wedding industry—particularly in Ottawa, but I would argue this is true everywhere. Sarah showed us a picture from a recent newspaper spread on weddings, with a photo of a bride wearing a stylized birdcagey veil atop her head; Sarah informed us that the veil alone was listed at $1200.00. Why must a veil cost $1200? Sarah stated that she rarely charges more than the equivalent of the sales tax for that veil, and shared her distaste for the overcharging of the wedding industry. It’s no surprise that Brian and I agree with her sentiments; so often, there seems to be a fabricated surcharge on items and services designed for weddings. Even the zoning permits for a gathering in a public park is a different rate for a wedding versus an anniversary party.

We shake our heads at this, and want to ask the artisans, commercial businesses, and commercial services out there; what do you do to keep costs reasonable for couples getting married? Email us at projectpriceless@gmail.com and tell us what you do…and if you don’t yet do anything, but would be interested in, perhaps, some ideas, email us, too! Bri and I are getting more and more contacts from other brides who are struggling to put together their weddings, and we do try to help them out by passing along duplicate offers, suggestions on venues, etc; let’s open the forum up as we ask: how can you help make a special day a reality for couples with a limited budget?

The long-awaited wishlist and missing items

This is an older wishlist post. See the latest wishlist update here:  http://projectpriceless.blogspot.com/2011/04/wishlist-update-4.html

Okay, I'll keep the chatter brief, cuz the list is long! While we've received amazing offers (well over 60, I'd estimate), we still have a long list of items that *could* be included in the wedding. If we don't get 'em all? No biggie, we're still walking down the aisle and making our vows and kissin' and then sharing a meal with friends and family. But hey, it's called a wishlist for a reason. ;)

THEME: 'Leather and Feathers'--'cuz Brian is a motorcycle-riding cowboy, and I'm his motorcycle-ridin' angel. Star shapes recurring throughout, for lots of special reasons.

THE FEEL: Rockabilly meets Harley Davidson with a twist of Donna Reid and a splash of skateboard/surf fanaticism, the focus being FUN and ATYPICAL! Examples: cowboy boots, a motorcycle wheel for a cookie display, sugar skulls, nautical stars, sheriff stars, argyle, stripes, cherries, guitars, Kawaii animals, cute folkart deer and owls, etc etc etc...use your imagination!

COLOURS:
Okay, so to see the wedding colours, go to
http://tinyurl.com/4wdlyvu 
(You should be on the 'explore colour' page of the Behr website. Next, click to use the 'ColorSmart' program.)
And then put in the following codes:
Crisp green: 410B-6
Exotic Purple 660B-7
Vanilla Delight V-B-220
Orange Peel S_G-290

Here are some swatches, though you should remember that everyone's computer screens show colour differently, and if you want to see the true shades, we suggest stopping by the Home Depot to pick up some paint chips!

NOTE: We would really, really appreciate the offer of an event coordinator for the big day. If you're an event planner or wedding planner who can help us out, please let us know; we may be able to sweeten the deal with promo space on usedeverywhere.com, so tell your friends!The good news: We got one! Read our most recent Wishlist post to see what's still outstanding.

-RSVP cards: postcard recipe cards printed up...basically, need 150 printed.

-stage/raised platform if not provided (not yet confirmed if there is a stage at the venue)
-paper cups for tea
-disposable wine cups, plates (lg and sm), cutlery
-napkins
-serving utensils
-big roll of brown paper--to cover tables, so BIG and lots of it!
-crayons: at least 20 boxes--for people to draw on the brown paper on the tables!
-warming plates? For the buffet?
-stamps: a lot of stamps. For STD's and Invites and RSVP's...oh my
-In Spirit Table: a table to use, PLUS more contributions from the world (see the 'In Spirit' tab at the top of the page)
-tablecloths? If we can't get big brown paper.
-favours for the guests
-scribble placemats--if we use tablecloths instead of brown paper, we'll need someone to print up 200 paper placemats for scribbling and drawing.

-soup cans: empty, cleaned ones to make into a slew of candle holders.
-candles DONE--SALE AT IKEA! Total spent: $4.60
-centrepieces: to be made by bride and crew, but may need some materials.
-feathers for lots of diff things! Especially cool: peacock, ostrich, or other long, natural feathers.
-fairy lights: lots and lots, to hang around the room.
-a videographer: seriously, how could we NOT tape this?!
-guestbook thingy (not a normal guestbook though): undetermined...

-cake knife--something cool and funky; hopefully not too girly/pretty/bridal looking. :)
-dress form to display dress: after the ceremony, the green one is going on display!
-ring pillow or bowl: again, not to wedding-typical
-bridesmaids outfits: to match the deep purple of the wedding, with white accents
-groomsmen outfits: to match the white and orange of the wedding
-Brian's entire outfit, esp shoes, motorcycle jacket: his colours are ideally white, purple, and brown leather.

-a seamstress for Jordan's dress(es)!
-bridal lingerie
-Hair piece for bride: peacock feathers on a headband arrangement--we'll talk. ;)
-Jewelry (for me, and/or the other gals, moms perhaps too?): one item offer thus far...encouraging more.
-Wedding party gifts: could tie into the jewelry, or be something completely different and unusual!
-Decorations of all kinds: our biggest need, aside from wardrobe.
-Blindfolds: for the bride & groom visit before the ceremony.
-Arch: for backdrop at ceremony. Something woodsy would be cool. I'll make little hanging stars out of pie plates, perhaps.
-Handfasting rope or scarf: bride will make this. Suggestions and patterns welcome.
-Aisle markers: something feathery, funky, and on colour theme. (NOTE: offer just came in...stay tuned)
-Herbs: for throwing instead of petals; also for decorating receptoin?
-Place to hide bride? (I can't figure out how to get TO the aisle without being seen walking TO the start of it.)
-Programs and menu-style table cards: printing needed...graphic design work may be donated (Martin Gouda, I'm looking at you!)
-Promo boards for donors
-Little chiming bells for ceremony: tiny bells for people to toll; as many as possible!
-Ceremony fixin's (not sure what we need, aside from handfasting rope...Kim S, I'm looking at you!)
-Outfit for herb boy? (Must confirm herb boy, who is, btw, our version of the 'flower girl')
-umbrellas/parasols (a few)
-table numbers
-escort cards or other things to make and present a seating plan: materials
-anything cool and punkrocky and crazy and fun and weird.

-tattoos for bride & groom: to commemorate the occasion.

-table to display the unannounced cool offer

-vessels, bags, and scoops for the unannounced cool offer

-piggy bank: big one, either already funky or that we can funk up, to collect money for the bride and groom kissing (money to be donated to the Bikers' Church)
-ring for groom (see Special Projects tab)

WANNA OFFER? Email us at projectpriceless@gmail.com.

Offers, snowday, and a bonus for you, the reader

Today is a snowday here in Ottawa; and what a snow day. This morning when my alarm went off, I opened one eye and saw Brian standing by the window, peering outside like a kid, with all the excitement of one waiting to hear that school’s been cancelled. “You have got to look outside,” he whispered, and so I did: all the dark, dirty snow had been carpeted in a thick, fresh blanket of virgin white loveliness. I smiled, glad that today was only a partial workday for me, and that we live so close to Brian’s work, I wouldn’t have to worry about him driving.

I had forgotten, of course, about my doctor appointment—an appointment for which I have been waiting weeks and weeks, and an appointment that will possibly cost me 50 dollars to cancel. So here I am, sitting in the cafeteria at the medical building, where I am calming my racing heart after driving through the worst winter conditions I have personally yet driven through. It seemed like a good time to do a blog entry…that way, regardless of whether or not I make it home again, you will all have something to read.

I kid.

Well, we haven’t updated you all on offers in a while. We’ve seen a decrease in offers over the last few weeks as most of the ‘broad strokes’ of the wedding came together: the venue, the cake, the dresses, etc. We are, however, getting down now to a lot of the nitty-gritty, the hidden expenses, and the spots where a lot of wedding waste is created…things like escort cards, cutlery and flatware, and decorations. The offers that have come in lately, however, are really awesome and exciting ones! Here they are:

PHOTOGRAPHY

Caitlin Hennessey has offered her shutterbug talents to our wedding—a while ago, actually, but somehow we missed her in our blogging! We are meeting with her this month, along with the other photographers, and are looking forward to putting her on the task of assisting Sam Jazzy on the big day with capturing all the nuances of the wedding. Caitlin’s site is http://hennesseyladyart.blogspot.com/ and we are super grateful to have her along.

Aiden Wolf Photography has offered us a unique photography session: a couple’s ‘wedding night’ shoot, which is a boudoir shoot for the two of us. I love this idea and Brian is intrigued. And Aiden Wolf’s work is really quite cool, with an ephemeral yet moody style. Thank you, we love the offer, and we may even post one or two photos after our shoot…something not too cheeky. No pun intended! The link: http://aidenwolf.webs.com/

And this, by the way, is the last of the photography requests we'll be accepting. Truly, we just had way too many to be able to give everyone a really good opportunity to add to their portfolio without tripping on each other. We have, however, started to get some other brides writing to us, asking for help with some areas of their wedding; if you're interested in helping one of our bride connections, we'll blog about it...so let us know.

STATIONARY

Vistaprint is a pretty famous online printing company, and if you haven’t heard of them yet, well, we’re surprised. They offer a lot of cool products for free (business cards, pens, etc) on a regular basis, and they have helped us out by printing up our Save the Date postcards at no charge (double-sided, full colour, and 100 of them)! We’re so excited about these. Brian and I worked on them—I provided the concept, and Brian made the computer wizardry happen—and have created cards that are a spoof of the Obama HOPE poster. Really, really cool and unique. Vistaprint actually noticed us first, having read our tweets and then viewed our blog entry where we’d done up some mock Save the Dates on Vistaprint; we’re shouting big thanks to Vistaprint for the awesome offer! Annnnd, even more fun: Vistaprint has given us a code for you ALL to use to get 25% off your next purchase: go to http://www.vistaprint.com/postcardoffer when you go to order any Vistaprint product, and get 25% off your purchase plus some other sweet deals. There are always some products to find on Vistaprint for free, but if you're looking for something a little upgraded (full colour both sides, stuff like that), this discount is going to help out your pocketbook! Thanks, Vistaprint! Link to them here: http://www.vistaprint.com Or directly to their (more traditional, haha) wedding items here:  http://www.vistaprint.com/event/wedding.aspx,

EDIBLES

A former work colleague and long-time friend of my mom’s, Marta, has offered to bake us cookies. Marta’s cookies are famous, though I hadn’t yet tried them, myself. Well, we went by reputation alone and said, yes! Bake us cookies if you like! Marta then dropped off a heaping plate of two flavours to try: a white chocolate vanilla type cookie, and a chocolate orange cognac cookie. (I may have these names a little wrong, but basically, there was a ‘vanilla oh-my-gaaaahhhh’ cookie, and a ‘choco-orange droooool’ cookie.) And she has more flavours for us to try! I sent Marta an email, explaining that to avoid stressing out Isabelle, our cake lady, by needing enough cake to feed 200 people—plus, just because cookies are FUN—we were hoping she’d be able to make enough to get a goodly number of guests fed. Marta replied with effusive praise for my mother’s awesomeness and said she’d happily make enough for everyone. Marta, we are overwhelmed by your generosity and by your delicious cookies. Thank you soooo much! We will now have wedding cookies to serve, and that makes us both incredibly happy.

PRE-WEDDING EVENTS

A woman named Rita Dean offered to have me host a Tomboy Tools party for my bridal shower. As we’ve recently decided to hold a co-ed shower, we declined her offer, but it was a cool idea for those who would enjoy the opportunity to buy a pink hammer and learn some basics in household repair. Thanks for the offer, Rita! Here’s the link: www.tomboytools.ca and her email is cooltoolparties (at) gmail.com

A HUGE, CRAZY OFFER OF ASSISTANCE

We got an email a few weeks back from a woman named Charlotte from UsedEverywhere.com, which is the hub of the many local Used___ sites, like UsedOttawa.com. The ‘Used’ sites are places where people can post used items to trade, sell, or give away, and others also post when they’re in need of something. We have posted ads on usedottawa.com since we started this wedding project, and will no doubt be posting many more before our work is done. UsedEverywhere had noticed Project: Priceless, and wrote us to ask if there was anything UsedEverywhere could do to further assist us in our goals with the wedding. We spoke on the phone this week and brainstormed some ideas, including helping us get our remaining wishlist out to the world, and assisting us with spreading the word about the ‘In Spirit’ project. Also—and this is a big deal--UsedEverywhere.com is offering us banner ad space on their site to barter with: if there’s an event coordinator, for example, who would offer their services on our big day (something we are desperately hoping for), UsedEverywhere.com will give them banner ad space as a ‘trade’ for that P:P offer. Cool, huh! There are more cool ideas brewing, and as we get on them, I’ll update you all. For now, let us just say a huge and happy THANK YOU from Bri and I, to UsedEverywhere.com. We have used the UsedOttawa.com site for years, and it’s really the best way to find or sell used items in the city. What a cool offer and cool connection with a cool site! Check out UsedEverywhere here: http://www.usedeverywhere.com/ , and check out UsedOttawa here: http://www.usedottawa.com/

* * *

All in all, some really cool offers there. We’re just finishing up our list of needed items, and will be posting that soon. We hope this hideous winter isn’t getting anyone down too much. We’ve rounded the corner and are now well on our way back to the seasons of warmth, green growing things, and ice cream. Oh my…which means we’re that much closer to the wedding…okay, deep breathe!

Project : Priceless and Used Everywhere

We have just had the opportunity to partner with Used Everywhere to talk to CTV News about how we have used Used Ottawa in a creative way, to promote our wedding project.

Check out the news story on tonight's CTV 6:00 news and we will post a link once its available.

Brian from Project: priceless