the big post of engagement and such-like things

[deird1]

So... you might have noticed, from my previous post, that I'm engaged. :)

Yay. :)

Because of the levels of secrecy that have been in place for the last couple of months, I haven't been able to make many posts about my life and all its engagementiness. So... here is one big bumper post in which I shall talk about many things.


The Juicy Details

We got engaged on the 16th of January – right before the fiance left for Detroit. Because he was going to be away, we decided not to tell the world until he got back. Hence, I have been strangely silent – and when not being silent, have made some weirdly obscure posts.

But, for the record: I am engaged. I have a shiny ring. And I have an awful lot of stuff to get done.



The Big Day

We will be getting married on the 10th of August.
Yes, August this year.
(No, I am not pregnant.)
Yes, I really do mean the August that is four months away.

If any of you happen to be in Glen Waverley around then, feel free to come and stickybeak.



The Vendor Rant

Wedding vendors are weird, y'all!

My experiences have ranged from the lady who heard that I don't like "marshmallow" dresses, promptly formed an image of the kind of dress I clearly liked, and refused to let my bridesmaids show me any dresses that didn't fit her ideas... to the florist who looked at my sample (fake flower) bouquet, informed me that I had no taste, told me she'd copy my fake-flower bouquet in real flowers by mostly still using fake flowers, and then shoved my flowers back at me and ignored me until I left her shop.

There were the venues who refused to say if they had any dates free until I'd filled out a three-page form detailing my food and music preferences. The dress shop who refused to let me wander around their COMPLETELY EMPTY shop without an appointment. The other dress shop who, when I rang up to book an appointment, told me they were busy and that I should book an appointment, and didn't register that I was actually trying to book one. The people who tried to convince me to buy lots of blue satin so that they could make all the groomsmen's ties to order. And EVERY VENDOR EVER who reacted to my August wedding date with gasps of horror and the stern advice that I should not leave their shop that day without planning the entire wedding and giving them all my money, because there was no time, dearie!

...and I still haven't actually planned all that much. There must be many crazy vendors still to come.



The Dress Begins

There is a weird cognitive dissonance involved in trying on the most perfectly fitting, suited-to-your-figure dress that you've ever seen... when said dress is made from, basically, sacking material.

It's fairly sensible, as a dress-making strategy: make a cheap version of the final dress, so that you can figure out all the mistakes you're going to make without ruining expensive satin. In practice, it involves a dress that, really, fits me beautifully. And looks weirdly wrong in all its cheap-and-nasty-ness.



The House Hunt

There are far too many people in this world who think that the best way to sell their house is to paint every wall pastel green.

And at least one very strange person who got a pretty, classic sort of house, and put NEON BLUE carpet all over the floors.

I do not understand them.



....that's all for now. :)

Comments

[velvetwhip]

Ah, so the wedding industry there is as psychotic as it is here.

CONGRATULATIONS!!!! May you be happy and joyful together all your days!


Gabrielle

[deird1]

Fairly psychotic, yes.

THANKS!!! *hugs*

[petzipellepingo]

You do have a lot to get done but you seems to be tackling it well. And yes, people do strange things to their houses in the name of "decorating".
Fortunately, new carpet and paint are relatively inexpensive.

[deird1]

That's what I'm hoping. :)

[eleanorjane]

A tip I got from friends in the wedding industry: wherever possible, don't say that your event is a wedding, say it's a party. They will charge you less. :)

I saw that borne out on an episode of Money where they sent secret shoppers to get prices from all sorts of typical wedding vendors; half of them said they were planning a party, the other half a wedding. In almost every case, from DJs to florists to venues, they will charge you up to twice as much if they know it's a wedding, for exactly the same products/services, because they know people will pay it.

(Also, I hear you on neon blue carpet. We had that when I was a kid - who knows what the previous owner was thinking. And it was so resilient you just couldn't get the stuff to wear out. Mum actually tried tipping neat bleach on it one day just to have an excuse to get rid of it, and the bleach didn't even leave a mark.)

[(Anonymous)]

Is it wrong to say that I am delighted these are the problems you have to deal with?

[pocochina]

congratulations!

[red_satin_doll]

Congratulations, hon!

As to the vendors - I have no words. Or I do, actually. Has it always been this way, or is this just in keeping with the current spirit of "who gives a shit about customer service" that we see everywhere nowadays? My stepfather used to say "the customer isn't always right, but the customer is always the customer", but today it's more like "the customer is never right and what the hell do you want?"

[shehasathree]

omfg you live (?) in GW! That's where I lived for the first 26 years of my life. :D

[octavia_b]

Congratulations. And just so you know, my husband and I got engaged in November and married in March (admittedly it was 14 years ago - gulp) so it can be done. Are you house hunting to buy as well?

[padparadscha.livejournal.com]

Hey, congratulations! I do not envy you the wedding planning. That sounds CRAZY.

[rebcake]

How delightful. (The marrying.) And annoying. (The wedding maddness.)

I love weddings, or, more accurately, the good feeling of wedding parties. BUT! I do not understand the "required trappings" aspect. I had about a month to pull together my wedding, and we all had fun. It is good to have an outfit you feel great in, music you like, and some yummy food and beverage on hand, but the most important thing is to make your guests feel as happy as can be about the two people joining their lives together. It does not matter if your mints match the flowers. Or whatever. Whatever happens, it will be special and it WON'T be perfect. (No such thing.)

Though, the outfit/dress you feel great in is a good thing to get nailed down. There will be more photos taken of you than on any other day of your life. Make it something you can be happy with long-term.

[xlivvielockex.livejournal.com]

Congrats! My husband and I picked our date in May and were married in September so I know you can totally pull it together. I agree with elanorjane, don't say wedding, say party. I saved a ton that way.

But again, huge congrats!

[lliira]

It could be worse. The house my parents bought when I was 11 had pee-colored shag carpeting in the living room.

As for the wedding... got your honeymoon planned? Are you going to stay home or go somewhere?

[deird1]

Going somewhere - but we haven't figured out where yet. We should probably get on with that...

[immer_am_lesen]

Isn't it fun, having so much to suddenly do? ;-)

I ended up hiring a dress from a formalwear store...It was in with the deb-ball gowns, cost around $100 to hire for a few days, and looked perfectly lovely. And then I could return it and not have to worry about storing it. :-)

I hope it all gets less crazy for you...
We also saved more money by making the cakes ourselves, supplying some of the flowers from our garden, designing and printing the invitations and order of service ourselves, and not having a formal photographer- with every second person with a camera, we had stacks of lovely pics to choose from afterwards. :-)

[kisekileia]

Congrats!

[deird1]

Thanks!

[eilowyn1]

I am shocked that I haven't squeed with you over this post!

[deird1]

*squees*

!!!!!

*\o/*

:)

[dreamincolor]

Yaaaaay! This is going to be fantastic. :) And you're getting a house too, I take it (although that neon blue carpet must go...). How very couple-y of you!

YAAAAAAAAAY YOU'RE GETTING MARRIED.

(Yes, I'm still on that.)