time to write

I want to write about Belize and all the rad stuff we did.  But I can see over there in the corner a box of thank you notes.  I literally just started pouting out loud.  You know the wheezy, huffy, stamp your foot, "Idon'twanna" thing?  I just did that.  Out loud, all alone in the apartment.  Oy vey.  Maybe I will wait until we finally open our gifts on Sunday and then I can tackle the whole giant list, bit by bit? 

Bomb-diggity Detroit Wedding Vendors

I'm going to crank out a list, if you want more info just email me (sara.heuvelman@gmail.com) and I will get you the specific contacts we worked with.  Please note I won't think you're a weird stalker because this is the best way to find a good vendor!  If you reach out to anyone PLEASE let them know I sent you--thx!

Dress:  Birmingham Bridal
Everyone here was beyond helpful and the selection was great.  Pricing was in my range and the alterations were decent (though mine weren't major).

Hair/Makeup: Todd's Room
Jan did my hair, it stayed all night and I thought it was the perfect mix of modern and elegant.  Loved how it turned out, we only did a minor tweak from the test run.  Marisa does my eyebrows and did my wedding makeup, again we just switched to black eyeliner and added lipstick under the gloss.  My face stayed on the whole day and I was amazed at how gorgeous I could look with the right makeup!!  Hand's down go see either or both of them.

Accessories: Nordstrom, Todd's Room, One in a Million & Simple Beauty
My cute Cole-Haan metallic gray shoes were from my old standby Nordy.  The flashy, dangly earrings were from Todd's Room:  stunning clear crystals and some smaller gray crystals--beautiful and less than $40.  Brooch was from One in a Million, the owners are absolutely lovely and BEYOND helpful.  My piece was actually a hair comb that they took to a jeweler and converted for me.  I had about 10 people ask me if my veil was passed down from a family member, I loved the simple lace detail at the bottom and it had a wonderful vintage look.  But nope, I got it for less than $60 from Simple Beauty on Etsy.

Flower Girl Dresses:  My Angelic Kids
There is such a creepy pagaent world out there!  But if you dig enough you can find very reasonably priced gowns for your little ladies.  This site had lots of options and we jazzed them up with poufy slips and yellow fabric rosettes.  Plus, Mark's mom made the pomanders they all carried by using these directions.

Bridesmaid Dresses: Miss Kate's Maids
Kate has an amazing collection of dresses.  Specifically the collections of Melissa Sweet, Vineyard & Priscilla of Boston--which is what I chose.  She has unusual hours and I would wager she works another job but she was super helpful and had great selections.  We had a mix up and she fixed it immediately and humbly.

Tuxedo:  Men's Warehouse, various locations
Everyone's worked out just fine. Enough said.

Stationary:  Various
Invites were ordered through Lasting Impressions, huge selection and they are very helpful.  We did our programs ourselves on Vistaprint.  Word to the wise: have your entire bridal party proof and then take it to 12 other people because it's not easy to proof online.  Place cards were from Papeterie, which is pricey but I found a great online deal.

Flowers: Westborn Market, Berkley
Nicole is a delight to work with and I thought my flowers were stunning.  Plus they were exactly what I wanted!  Westborn put together my amazing bouquet and all the girls.  The men's bouts came from there as well.  We ordered the stems and Mark's mom put the arrangements together for the reception.  There was a nasty snafu with that and Westborn graciously stepped in to assist.

Chiavari Chairs:  A Moment Forever
OK, I randomly found this vendor after search FOREVER to find a good price on these designer chairs.  Stacy is a sweetheart and you can tell she loves working with brides.  Plus they have beautiful chairs and a price you cannot beat in Michigan.

DJ: Mike Staff Productions
A wedding staple in Metro Detroit, we worked with Matt Candela and the dance floor was bumping even before Mark and I did the first dance.  It stayed jam packed the entire night.

Cake: Sugar's
Raquel recently left corporate life to run her own cake shop.  Thank goodness she did!  Hands down the most delicious cake ever. And I don't even like cake!  We had a lemon-lime cake with raspberry filling and chocolate raspberry cake with raspberry filling.  Both were topped with cream cheese frosting.  Mmmm. 

Limo: Grosse Pointe Coach
They have one stretch limo that worked perfectly for our small bridal party and Mark and I used a car to transport ourselves from reception to the Book Cadillac. Both drivers were prompt, knew where they were going and were SO NICE!  Plus it was the best deal we found in the area.  We were so pleased we added them to our day.



Reception Venue:  Grosse Pointe War Memorial
Gorgeous ballroom of a historic mansion.  Lots of rules and a few small extra costs but overall a reasonable price for an exquisite setting.  Cheryl is super helpful and the day of captain helps keep everything running smoothly.  It is a bit tricky to get a date if you're not from the GP but it's not impossible!

Church:  Fort Street Presbyterian
Another stunning historic place.  You do not have to become a member to have your ceremony there.  In all honesty the church is so beautiful but the only hiccups of the day were around the ceremony...which is sad because before we began the wedding process there we really enjoyed attending the services...

Rehearsal Dinner:  Vince's Italian Restaurant
Eat here.  It's the best food of all time.  The end.

And now MY TWO FAVORITE VENDORS!!!  Well in fairness to all my other helpful vendors I did spend the most time with these two :)

Coordinator:  Details by Laura
Laura, Laura, Laura...she seamlessly made the entire day perfect!  She was so organized, is an undercover comedienne and made herself available to me prior to the wedding to ensure we had all the i's dotted and t's crossed.  The day had scissors, bobby pins, straws for the drinks, appetizers waiting, stain remover for the dress and anything else you could possibly think of (those are examples of things I never thought of and definitely used!).  Her two assistants were hardworking and the reception venue looked beautiful.  I am so glad that I took the advice to hire a day of coordinator.  And like many brides, I truly wish I had worked with her from day one!

Photographer:  The Shooting Gallery
Yin and Yang. Cole and Haan.  Dionne and Joe.  Peanut Butter and Honey.  Some things just go together so perfectly.  Seriously, these two phenoms gave us minimal direction (well, we are practically models) and just went with the mood of the day.  They had scoped a couple of great locations and put together some very unique backdrops around Detroit.  Plus, it was fun.  Super fun.  I hate having my picture taken but I actually started to forget that was the purpose of the afternoon--I was too busy laughing and cracking jokes and nuzzling my beau while they worked around everyone.  From a few days before I met with Dionne to this day I stalk the blog and Dionne's Facebook on a regular basis.  Her work is breathtaking and so emotive. Actually, I'm a little in awe of her so maybe that's why I feel like a nerdy freshman and she's the cool senior with a bitchin' Sunfire convertible.  

Wedded bliss

I honestly cannot even begin to say how wonderful our wedding day was.  From the little details to the big ones, to all the family and friends who came in, to the dancing, to the laughing, to the tears.  It was perfection.  I grabbed some photos my friends/family had taken and am posting here for your viewing pleasure:

(credit: S.Hartman)

(credit: ??)

(credit: A. Bowles)

(credit: A.Bowles)

(credit: G.Patterson)

(credit: G. Patterson)

so much stuff!

Wedding day and everything that went with it was amazing!  I only look back with a huge grin...and I'm so thankful for all the friends and family who came or even just acknowledged with a Facebook note :)  I will add a photo or two soon along with some thoughts on the day and a list of my amazing vendors!

Belize was phenomenal.  We are beyond excited to go back...soon!  Again, photos and stories soon.

Today I found this site, MRS FOREVER, that outlines the enitre process surrounding the big name change.  I struggled with this more than I could have anticipated.  Mostly because I was a concerned that in the professional arena it would be confusing and a little bit because I've been Sara H. for 30 years.  But I'm pledging my life and my future with Mark and I think having a united family name, no matter how awkwardly it's spelled, will honor that.  Or honour.

feeling nervy

Not about the wedding.  About accidentally publicly following the blogs of strangers.  I read an interesting article in the Freep today about blogging.  So, while reading a friend's blog, I hit the "next blog button" at the top and one that popped up next was really well-written, very relatable (if that's even a word if not, shotgun! I invented it).  The next one made me laugh out loud twice.  Not a bellowing laugh but a brief and quality HA.  I think it's because she posts photos that she takes of people who aren't looking. When camera phones first came out my friend Ellen and I got them so we could dissect the outfits of strangers.   But now I'm nervous they will read my blog and think I'm lame.  I mean WE all know I'm not lame because WE all know me.  They don't.  I'm just a picture and some words.  Hmmm.  I wonder what those things say about me....

Single Monday

So far my last Monday as a single tax filer (egads, I have to send that in tomorrow before I forget) was spent snuggling and kissing Markers on the couch. We talked a little about our excitement and the fact that we really wrapped up the wedding planning this week. There are only a few minor items to finish: place cards and coding them with dinner selections, delivering items to our coordinator, handing over the cake topper and then it’s really just getting ready for Saturday. I have to say it was a good way to start a Monday! And then I had to go to work. Oh well, can’t win them all!



We spent Easter at church with Mark’s mom and Mike, then we busted out our seating arrangements for the reception and headed to relax in Grosse Pointe with my family. It was actually a pretty nice Sunday though picking seats isn’t easy. At all. Well, not at all but in some regards. We have one table mixed with Mark’s friends and mine but have also put our groups of friends in rows together…and we have one weird table. I imagine everyone will think their table is weird but only we know who that weird table really is :)

Tonight I’m running a quick wedding errand to the craft store and then delivering place cards to the calligrapher. Well actually just to Liz, who has graciously agreed to pen them all in. After that my goal is to run and start writing some thank you notes. I also have to pack up a box of some things to bring to our coordinator...one list down, another one developed...