Swooping in: MRS. Hawk!

This weekend was easily the most memorable weekend of my life. I was surrounded by more love from family and dear friends than I could possibly imagine. The day was simply perfection. I could go on and on gushing about all of the details, but for now I will just leave you with a teaser.



The KISS! Photo by Valerie Demo

 Mr. Hawk and I will be spending the next week enjoying some much needed relaxation on our honeymoon, but I promise I'll be back soon to share all of the details!

xxoo,
MRS. Hawk

Gifting the Men

I've already share all the fun gifts that I'm giving my lovely ladies, but I don't think I've even touched on the groomsmen gifts! (I should be a good fiance and say that it was because I simply forgot or was too focused on my ladies, but let's be honest. ;-) Mr. Hawk just finally decided on part of the gifts last week. Cat's out of the bag. Sorry, Mr. H.)

The no-brainer portion of the gift was the groomsmen accessories. Since we're already asking the men to purchase suits, we wanted to gift them the rest of their attire. They will be sporting adorable bow ties that I featured previously and some preppy argyle socks.

Image via Express

I'm already looking forward to some fun shots of their accessories.

Photo by: Lisa Hessel Photography on Every Last Detail via Lover.ly

The rest of the gift is where Mr. H had more difficulty. Since I made glassware for my ladies, I suggested something along the same lines. We also considered cigar-related gifts since we will be having a mini cigar bar at the reception. In the end, Mr. Hawk selected these monogrammed rocks glasses from Jackglass on etsy.



Image via Jackglass

 I love that they're so classic and manly-looking. Hopefully the men will be able to use them for years to come.

Lastly not to be outdone by our champagne toasts and mimosas, Mr. H also purchased two mini bottles of each groomsman's preferred liquor for their own toast.

Did you find that picking out groomsmen gifts was more difficult than picking out bridesmaids gifts?



Trials and Tribulations with Makeup

I'm sure not a single bride goes through planning without a little vendor drama of some sort. Finding a makeup artist just happened to be mine. Originally, a friend of a friend offered to do my makeup. She was trying to gain new clients and was super-enthusiastic. I had no doubt in my mind there would be any issue because she is just sweet as pie. But then (because there is always a "but then" for the drama to start) she had to back out around six weeks before the wedding. Cue panic.

I was incredibly disappointed, but took it in stride when she informed me that she had already found a replacement who was a professional. This replacement had all of the high-end airbrushing tools and was just FAB.U.LOUS. Needless to say I was excited to meet the new MUA and have my trial, which I scheduled for a week or so later.

I should have known from the start of the appointment that the experience would not be exactly what I had been led to believe. I was a little put-off when I sat and waited over fifteen minutes before she finally greeted me with no mention of making me wait. (Not a total deal-breaker, but an annoyance.) What really started to concern me was that she looked to be about eighteen. Maybe. And more importantly than young, she seemed incredibly nervous. At this point, worry was setting in. By the time she began matching my skin to the liquid foundation, it was glaringly obvious I was misled. I asked, "do you airbrush?" Her reply was "oh no, I've never done that before. It'd be cool, though!" Yea. It would be cool. Sigh. So I disappointedly sat through the trial and kept my mouth shut. I'm not going to say she did a horrible job because she really didn't; however, she didn't airbrush, which I really wanted, and the makeup she did use was of lower quality than I personally own. It just didn't seem worth it to hire her.


I hate the way my skin looks here. So red! And the foundation clearly doesn't match properly

I do like the eye makeup

Surprisingly, in the nasty yellow light of my bathroom, the makeup looks much better. (Obviously I'd like to look better in natural light considering the majority of photos will be taken outside!)

After a disappointing trial, I went into full panic-mode. At that point, I was only four weeks out from my wedding day. I scoured the internet for review after review and sent out about fifteen inquiries. Unsurprisingly, almost everyone was booked. For those who did have slots, many couldn't accomodate our time frame. Luckily for me, I found someone great who could work with us.

So on Sunday, less than a week before our wedding, I met with Theresa Little and finally all my makeup worries were eased. She airbrushed half my face and applied liquid foundation on the other half so I could see the difference and make an informed decision about which application I preferred. She also applied a few individual lashes to really make my eyes stand out. I loved the way it turned out.


The airbrushed side

 I love the way my skin looks and the fact that you can actually see it beneath the makeup.

A little squinty-eyed in the sun

  

Six hours later. Still going strong.

 It may have been a little bit of a bumpy ride to get here, but I think I am getting to work with the best possible person for the job. I am not the slightest bit concerned about looking lovely on my wedding day thanks to Theresa!

What drama have you dealt with while wedding planning?

Celebrating My Last Moments of Singledom

Last weekend, some of my favorite ladies treated me to three fun-filled days in D.C. I've got to admit that it was probably the best girls' weekend I could have possibly imagined filled with plenty of laughs and just enough debauchery to make it a true bachelorette party.

After we got settled in our room Friday afternoon, we freshened up and decided to hit the town for happy hour. The Front Page had a decent happy hour crowd, and we enjoyed a few appetizers and drinks. It started out innocently enough...

After a few more of these...

and a couple more stops around Dupont Circle, we ended up being silly and having a photo shoot as a mariachi band. It was Cinco de Mayo weekend after all.

Since we were really saving up our energy for Saturday, we ate some dinner and called it a night. (By calling it a night I mean we had a dance party in the hotel room, snacked on an obsene amount of Doritos, and then went to bed.)

Saturday morning, we took it really easy and lounged around. We walked to a salon for a mani/pedi and ate lunch on a patio. It was a really beautiful afternoon and very restful.

To get the party started and jump-start our evening, MOH A arranged a "dance class" for us at Pole Pressure. It was a two-hour class that began with a thirty minute happy (half)hour to get us ready and loosened up. We drank some wine and came up with our "pole names." (Mine was Cinnamon, but I won't embarass the other ladies by revealing their very entertaining names.)


Googling for name inspiration. Yahoo Answers really gave us some great ones

First we learned some moves standing and with our chairs. We even participated in some friendly competition by choreographing our own routines.

Working it out (and cracking up at ourselves)

Lastly, we learned spins on the pole. This was easily the most fun part of the class. Our instructor was awesome and truly made the class. She was fun and incouraging. Had we been with someone else, I don't know if it would have gone as well. (I'm gushing, but I cannot say enough good things about Pole Pressure!) My only recommendation to those considering taking a class would be to wear shorts rather than pants and either take the class in heels or barefoot. It was kind of hard to feel sexy in tennis shoes!


Pink-cheeked and glowing. It was hard work!

 The class was a great start to our evening and we were ready to go out on the town. After some showers and primping, we went out to dinner at Level One. The food was DELISH.


We clean up so nicely!

The rest of the evening consisted of this

and a whole LOT of booty shakin'.

To top off the entire weekend, we finished up with some yummy Sunday brunch before heading home. It was the perfect end to the perfect weekend.

I can honestly say that I have never felt more loved. I feel so blessed to have so many amazing girlfriends! I can't wait for our next girls' trip (or next pole dancing class)!

What was your favorite part of your bachelorette party? Would you ever consider taking a class of some sort as a part of your celebration?

Fulfilling My Old, New, Borrowed, and Blue

The timeless tradition of the bride wearing something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue (and a sixpence in her shoe), dates back to Victorian times. Like many brides before me, I wanted to take part in the tradition. When I actually sat down to think about it, I realized that I had many items that fulfilled the categories except for one: my something old. But I'll get back to that in a minute.

My something new could be one of many items like my dress, veil, or earrings, but I've decided to pick my shoes. Ever since I purchased them, they've been untouched and tucked away in a closet. They'll be brand-spankin' new when I slide them on my feet.


Just looking at them makes me have a Carrie Bradshaw "Hello, lover" moment.

My something borrowed was pretty much a no-brainer as well. My mother is lending me her gorgeous blue topaz necklace.

SO beautiful. Pictured here with my wedding day earrings (a new item!)

Obviously the necklace could also be my something blue, and I planned on it doing double-duty, but recently, I also purchased an embroidered hankerchief that could also be my something blue.

So here we are back to the dilemma: my something old. I suppose my mother's necklace could be my something old, but it's not really that old. My dad gifted it to her around twenty years ago. Is that old enough? I also considered wearing my signature perfume, Chanel's Coco Mademoiselle. I know that goes against the whole new wedding-day fragrance craze, but it would be a somewhat unique something old (that's also not that old). I could also request to borrow my grandmother's old engagement ring. My mom currently has it, but I know that it wouldn't fit my finger. I'd have to include it as a charm on my bouquet or pin it somehow.

When it comes to my something old, I'm completely at a loss. Of my options which would you pick? Are any of y'all carrying or wearing a unique something old?

Lovely Locks: Hair Trial

As the wedding rapidly approaches, I have been focusing on wrapping up the final details of my wedding day look. Last week, I met up with my friend and hair stylist, C, for a run-through of my wedding day 'do. If you remember, a while back I shared my inspiration.

After C and I reviewed the photos I brought in, we got down to business, selecting exactly which details I wanted to incorporate. The tighter curls and volume featured here were exactly on point.


Gardenia hair flower by dkdesignshawaii


I just asked for a few more pieces pulled up for less hair in my face, like this.


Image via Wedding Channel, Photo by Jeremy Hess Photographers

 C, like always, did not disappoint, and gave me exactly the look that I was hoping for.


The perfect amount of volume



Nice tight curls, out of my face

Tell me about your hair trial. Did you pick and choose elements from different photos?

Gifting the Bridesmaids: Monogrammed Handkerchiefs

Since I've been on a roll with monogram-themed gifts for my ladies, I couldn't resist the urge to throw in one more: a monogrammed handkerchief! There is just something about them that feels so sweetly southern to me.

Image via Southern Weddings, Photo by Divine Light Photography

So I went to my favorite website, Etsy, looking for floral handkerchiefs that could be embroidered. Like the photo above from Southern Weddings, I was really hoping that each of my 'maids would be able to have a unique pattern. Katie Moore of the MutantAngel shop, had so many options, and they're all hand-embroidered. With her shop you can choose the individual patterns you like or she can surprise you with one of her abundant designs. Being a little (or maybe a lot) type-A, y'all know I hand-picked every last one.

I loved the bright, cheerful patterns and I think the floral designs will be the perfect addition to our spring wedding as a bouquet wrap or simply to be held and catch tears of happiness.

Once I had placed an order for the ladies, I really couldn't resist getting in on the action myself. In the South, hankies are often passed down from generation to generation, and I really wanted a timeless, hierloom quality handkerchief should I one day have little girl to pass it on to. Once I saw the designs by SheriAngellCreations, my search was complete. Sheri, specializing in bridal hankies, also hand-embroiders.

The floral design appears on all four corners of the handkerchief, but my initials only appear on one side. This way, should I pass it on, it can be embroidered again with another monogram.

Are there any heirlooms making a special appearance on your wedding day? Did the ability to pass an item on to future generations influence any of your purchases?

Hawk Invitation Reveal

Hive, I feel badly. I teased you with our invites over a month ago and then... just kind of forgot about them. Well our RSVP date has come and gone, so I figured I better get a move on with the reveal!
If you remember our "teaser" pick was something like this:

The monogram portion was the only piece of the invitation I DIY'd. And I must admit, I am so glad that I didn't take on more. Assembling them as they were was quite a task all on its own!

To design my invitation suite, I contacted Medley Designs on Etsy to hand draw an image of the Wren Building where I will be getting married! They did such a fantastic job. I cannot speak highly enough of their work. Here is a closeup of the artwork!

It turned out so beautifully and so true to the building!
 

Image Via W&M

 Here is the suite in its entirety.

We chose to go with a Kraft pocketfold to tie to the feel of our save the dates, and as I already mentioned, I added the monogram to tie them to some of our other wedding elements. I apologize for all of the ugly blurring, but if you're interested in our invitation wording, I featured it here previously.

I love them so, so much, and I'm happy that our guests will get their own sneak peak of our wedding venue!

Is anyone else choosing to feature their venue in their invitation suite?