You’re still checking this ole thing?

In case you missed the memo, I have moved to my own domain.

lifelovelipstickblog.com

You’ll definitely want to update your reader or your bookmarks, because lots of great things are coming!

new blog, new post.

Well, I have officially moved my blogginess to my OWN DOMAIN! woohoo!  And now, it has a post!  Unfortunately, I still haven’t had time to prettify it, so it still looks awful and generic.

Check me out and update your reader!

Life. Love. Lipstick. blog!

Big things to come…

The wonderful, wonderful love-of-my-life, pampering man I share everything with has bought a domain for me!  The blog will be moving Tuesday, and i will share the link once everything is set up!  I am so excited, and have lots of exciting things planned.

Stay tuned!

Amanda and Christopher’s Garden Wedding

The second wedding of a loved one that I’m featuring is that of my cousin Christopher and his lovely wife Amanda.  Amanda has been considered family for awhile now, and I’m so happy that it’s official!

 

Wedding City and State: Mobile, AL
Venue: Mobile Botanical Gardens
Photographer: Photos in this set by friends and family; professional images from Delenah Rule not yet available
Dress: David’s Bridal
Cake: Shelley Culodrovitch
Catering: Family

 

 

Tell us how you met.

We met through a mutual friend that was trying to get us together for over a year because she just knew we were perfect for each other.

Describe the proposal.

He proposed to me the night I graduated from college in front of both of our families in a great hole-in-the-wall Italian place that I love.

How long was your engagement? Was it too long, too short, just right?

Our engagement lasted four months.  Knowing I had a short timeline to plan really got me on the ball, but sometimes, looking back, it feels like a whirlwind.  I would have wanted a month or two more to plan.

Did you enjoy the wedding planning process?

I loved it.  You really learn how to be more decisive.

What was your favorite wedding detail?

My favorite wedding detail was putting together our vows.  Christopher and I chose carefully because we knew how important the words were.  He really liked doing that, which made me happy.

What were the biggest challenges you faced in planning the wedding?

One of my bridesmaids didn’t order her dress in time and couldn’t be in the wedding.  I was freaking out for a little while because I had already ordered flowers and we were going to be uneven, but then it turned out one of Christopher’s groomsman couldn’t be in the wedding either, so it worked out.

What went wrong on the wedding day, and how did you deal?

Right in the middle of my father/daughter dance, the music went out and we couldn’t get it back up again.  I was really upset because the music was really important to me, but the rest of the day had been so great, I worked past it.

Favorite moment of the day?

My favorite moment was during the first prayer of the ceremony.  We both closed our eyes, and Christopher put his head against mine to where our foreheads were touching.  It was incredibly sweet.

Was there a theme, mood, or certain colors you tried to incorporate?

My color was a dark purple called Lapis and a light lavender.  We had it in a public garden, and everything was very earthy and green.  There were big pillars in a circle where we had the ceremony, so we leaned toward a slight Grecian theme, but we didn’t overdo it.

Describe the reception food.

We had a buffet style dinner.  The food was homemade by the wonderful women in my family.  The food was put together so beautifully no one wanted to eat it!

Any special touches that made your wedding unique?

Christopher’s groom cake was a one of kind Nintendo cake (which we both love), and my music (if it had worked) was not your normal reception music.  It was very us.

Describe the wedding music.

The ceremony consisted of Ava Maria, Canon in D, the Lord’s Prayer done acapella, and a beautiful song from Pride and Prejudice named “Dawn”.

The reception would have been a lot of rock and roll, Dave Matthews Band, oldies, Indie, and all of my friend’s favorite songs.

Any advice for brides?

Make sure your wedding is completely your own.  Don’t let anyone try to decide things for you.  Ask for advice, but do what you and the groom want to do.  Also, try to involve the groom in it as much as possible.  It makes it more special.

Happy Holidays: Peace on Earth

I hope you all have a wonderful holiday and enjoy your loved ones.

Enjoy my very favorite holiday commercial of all time.

Leigh Ann and Rhett’s Formal Southern Affair

I decided to ask a few of my friends for pictures and details from their weddings.  The first of these is from Leigh Ann, a gorgeous Southern Belle who had a traditional wedding in Mississippi.  

Wedding Location: Hattiesburg, Mississippi

Venue: Ceremony – Sacred Heart Catholic Church; Reception –  Ash-Leah Manor

Photographer: Artie Rawls

Dress: Michaelangelo

Tiara: Victoria Lee

Cake: Tara Graham 

Catering: Ash-Leah Manor

Band: Toast and Jam

Flowers: Southland Florist

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tell us how you met.

I met Rhett at the University of Southern Mississippi.  He taught one of my television production courses.  We started dating immediately after that semester and have been together since.

Describe the proposal.

Rhett proposed to me at a Mardi Gras parade in Mobile, Alabama.  He is in an organization and when the parade started and once his float approached, some cops on motorcycles stopped the parade and were swarming around me.  Then all the guys on Rhett’s float held up signs saying, “Leigh Ann, will you marry me?”  Rhett was holding the “Me” sign and his mom was standing beside me at the parade and she handed me the “YES” sign.  When I met Rhett at the ball after the parade he got down on one knee in front of everyone and asked me to marry him and then he put the ring on my finger.

How long was your engagement?

9 months (February-October)

Did you enjoy the wedding planning process?

Yes, up until the week of the wedding… I had a virus that lasted all week and I was scared I wouldn’t be able to walk down the aisle.

What were the biggest challenges you faced in planning the wedding?

budgets, hoping my father would be there, my wedding coordinator was difficult to work with 

What went wrong on the wedding day, and how did you deal?

My wedding coordinator tried to change all of my music and she made my mom stay after the wedding to clean up, so my mom missed a lot of the reception.  My flowers were a big disappointment, because I order casablanca lilies and when I saw them in the church they were still buds!! 

What was your favorite wedding detail?

picking out the dress, veil, tiara, and shoes

Favorite moment of the day?

The anticipation the last few minutes right before walking down the aisle.  I was in a small room with the bridesmaids and at that moment my heart started to pitter patter. 

Was there a theme, mood, or certain colors you tried to incorporate?

I wanted a traditional, formal, and romantic mood.  I went with black and pale pink for the colors because of the classic elegance.

Tell us about the reception food. 

We had a buffet style reception, and the food served was:  blackened chicken alfredo, mashed potato bar, ham with croissants and creole mustard, spinach and artichoke dip, spicy shrimp dip, Sangria punch, Pinot Grigio, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Miller Lite.

Describe the music of the day.

I had a classical guitarist (Michale Boyd) and opera singer (Glen Padgett) at the wedding.  Songs were “Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring”, “Panis Angelicus”, and “Ave Maria”. At the reception there was a DJ outside playing under the gazebo as guests danced.  While inside guests enjoyed songs from the Phantom of The Opera played on the beautiful baby grand piano. Rhett and I danced to Dean Martin’s “That’s Amore” for our first dance. 

Any special touches that made your wedding unique?

A special touch was the rosary passed down from my grandmother that I carried in a tussy mussy that I plan to pass down to my child. 

 

WeddingBee/eHarmony Controversy

I don’t want to delve too far into this, because everything that CAN be said is being said in the wedding blogging community.  I just want to state that I love WeddingBee, and have been waiting for the stage that I can apply to be a Bee.  However, in light of eHarmony buying WeddingBee, I definitely no longer want to blog for them.  It remains to be seen whether I will keep WeddingBee on my reader.  I get so many great ideas and inspiration there, but don’t really want to support eHarmony in any way.  

Before this all went down, I didn’t even realize that eHarmony was anti-LGBTQ, with ties to Focus on the Family and with refusal to match LGBTQ couples.  Now that I know that, while I’m very happy for Mrs. Bee, and everything this means for her financially and personally, I just wish she’d sold to another company.

Sexyredframe

You really must start reading Sexyredframe, if you don’t already.  It’s a beautiful blog, a well-written, real-life love story.

Included on Alltop!!

Thanks to photographer Christine Tremoulet, I’m included on the new wedding channel at alltop.com! I have to admit, I’d never even heard of this site, but now I’m hooked!

go check it out!

It’s my turn!

Well, it has happened… I’m engaged! I’m sure that once we start making some decisions this blog will become primarily my wedding planning blog. Who knows though? I may just do a spin-off.

Anyway, to the part you want to know… My boyfriend of almost a year and a half, Dustin, asked me to marry him Friday. I knew it would happen sometime by the end of the summer. I had no clue it would be this soon! He came in from out of town Friday evening, and I finished getting ready to go to my high school alma mater’s graduation. Dustin buckled my son into his car, while I ran to the back of the house to grab my cell phone. As I came back through the kitchen to head out the door, Dustin got down on bended knee and asked me to be his wife. I was stunned! He held the most beautiful ring I’ve ever seen. obviously, I said yes!

Behold, the bling…