Smithie Seamstresses and Other Tales from the Bridal Path

I had my first appointment with the seamstress. Her name is Cassandra Holden, and she came recommended by Megan, my coworker and fellow sewing enthusiast. She's got a nice studio on Cottage Street in Easthampton. It was a great meeting. We discussed possibilities and I showed her several photos of dress designs that I like (from this very blog, in fact). By the end of the appointment we had not only agreed on a preliminary design, but discovered that we both attended Smith and had worked with the same non-profit in Holyoke. I left the dress with her, and for our next appointment she'll have a muslin mockup of the dress for us to make further design decisions. I'm looking forward to it.

My Best Friend's Wedding!

Heather and Steven got married!!! I can't believe it, it's all gone by so quickly. We had the rehearsal on Friday, followed by pizza and bowling at Canal Lanes in Southampton. Maili and I were both reading, so we got to stand up at the very high podium and feel all important. Heather's sister Andrea and her two boys were in the bridal party, and the run-through went very well.

Then it was the day of! The weather was beautiful for mid-April, brisk but sunny. The church was gorgeous, Heather was incredibly beautiful, and the ceremony was perfect and touching. Unfortunately, there were not one but two hitches: the caterer didn't show up, having put the date down wrong. After some initial panic, we were rescued by the pastor, who ordered delicious sandwiches from a local store, saving the day. The cupcakes DID arrive, and were gorgeous and delicious. When I was talking with a friend of mine about wedding planning several months ago, she told me about her wedding, saying, "My husband and I told each other that if, by the end of the day, we ended up married, we would consider the day a success." I would say this wedding was phenomenally successful.

After the reception we went to Look Park to take photos. Maili took some incredible shots at the Pines Theater and gazebo. We grabbed dinner at Friendly's and then let the exhausted but happy couple head home. They'll be leaving for their honeymoon in a few days. I'm so thrilled that my BFF has found her partner in life, and wish them the very best.

Ring Redux

My ring is ready. I went to pick it up, and Rebekah, the jeweler, happened to be there. We had a wonderful chat about shopping locally. One of our goals for this wedding is to do as much of our shopping from local or small vendors, to support our community and local economy. The other is to generate as little trash from the event as possible.

Rebekah showed me the engraving on the inside. The ring originally had the letters E,M,H engraved on the inside. I asked her to turn the H into an R so that it would be our last name in the middle with Eric's and my first initials on either side. She did a beautiful job, and the ring fit perfectly.

We also ordered Eric's ring, a simple black tungsten ring. MUCH cheaper than mine, but he won't be able to wear it so much, as it's a safety hazard for his job as an electrician.

Rings? Check.