Photo Booth

I really thought the photo booth was a success! We got tons of great photos and almost everyone popped in for a picture! The company we used was Red Eye Photo Booths and they were super dependable and sent a very nice, professional attendant. They are seriously the cheapest in Ohio, so if you are getting married I highly recommend them.

You can view all of the photo on MY FLICKR (CLICK HERE).

Here are some photo highlights!

Wedding Videos

Click here to see the wedding videos from my Uncle Jimmy! Many more photos and information to come when we get all settled in.

FAQ

This is a FAQ for our upcoming wedding. Any new posts will appear BELOW this entry, so scroll down for new updates. Thanks!

Q. When and Where is the Wedding?
A. October 31st, 2009 at Fernbank Lodge in Cincinnati, OH

Q. Can I bring a date?
A. This is a REALLY small wedding with a cap on how many people can fit/eat/sit. If your date is accounted for, it will say so in your invitation. If your invitation doesn’t say anything, feel free to contact us a week before the wedding to see if we have any space left. EDIT: It looks like we are going to have a full house, so I doubt any additional people will be able to be included. We are very sorry!

Q. It’s Halloween! Can I dress up?
A. Costumes are welcome after the ceremony. You can change there OR we will have easy costumes available for everyone’s use (aka masks, props, ears, etc)

Q. Where are you registered?
A. We are currently registered at Target.com, Amazon.com and Jonathanadler.com. We are also house hunting, so money donations are much appreciated.

Q. I’m looking for your registry…you guys have funny last names! How do I spell them?
A. Tracy Joecken and Joe Broxterman


Q. Your Registry says to ship to CA. What if we want to bring a gift to the wedding?
A. We ask that you do not bring any gifts larger than an envelope to the wedding. We will already have stuffed baggage with all of our wedding garb and will NOT be able to add any additional items to our luggage. We also will not have time to ship anything to ourselves, so we please ask that any items are shipped directly to our CA address.

Q. I live in CA…are you guys having anything for the West Coast?
A. Yes…we will have a party of some sort, but the actual ceremony will be in Cincinnati. Date TBD for the CA event.

Q. I'm not in the wedding party and I don't want to dress up for Halloween! What's the general attire?
A. Dressy Casual. We want everyone to be comfortable, but look their best! This is a fancy shin-dig, folks!

Q. What the food going to be like?
A. A variety of pastas and appetizers from Maggiano's. There will be vegetarian options.

Q. What is the visiting schedule for Tracy and Joe?
A. We will arrive Tuesday October 27th and depart a week later on Tuesday November 3rd. Thursday night is reserved for a bachelor/bachelorette party and Friday night is reserved for the rehearsal dinner (wedding party and immediate family only).

Q. What Hotel are you staying at?
A. We are staying at the Extended Stay in Springdale. It's details can be seen here. It is not very close to the event, but closer to our families.

Q. What hotels are close to the event?
A. Here is a site that lists the hotels by their closeness to the park: CLICK HERE

Q. Do you have group rates set up at any of the hotels?
A. No, we do not, but if that changes, we will let you know.

Q. Are you going to have a list of "call" times for the wedding party?
A. Not yet, but I'm working on a time line sheet for all of you, so you have an idea of when you need to be where.

Q. Will you have a cash or open bar?
A. Since this is literally just a big space for us to be in, we are simply having a buffet of beverages, provided by us. We will be having water, soda, wine, beer, and some sort of alcoholic punch.

That's what I've got so far, if anybody has a question that you think should be included in the FAQ, leave it in the comments OR email me at deceptacon24 AT hotmail dot com (no spaces, symbols where appropriate).

Invitations!

Earlier this week, our wedding invites went out! I'm getting reports that most of them were delivered today, except a few that went out late. Anyways, I used many Tokidoki graphics to create these, along with my minimal photoshop skills. I got the envelopes from Paper Presentation and the cost was pretty low for how much I <3 them!!

Less than 2 months away...*eek*!! Still so much to do, but overall I think we are doing pretty well.

Bridal Shower Pictures

Here is a selection of pictures from the Bridal Shower in Ohio. Thanks for the pictures Mama B!

Male Wedding Party Members

I've done the examples for the girls, now the guys! We're trying to make it as SIMPLE as possible. A black suit (plain, pinstripe, whatever...just as long as it's BLACK) with either a white, pink, or black dress shirt is the look! Ties will be provided by us from Cyberoptix and will be custom printed with one of their fabulous designs! The guys ties will be either the "hot pink" or "silver" as seen here (yes, I see that the hot pink isn't there anymore...grrrr! but it's still available).

We just haven't decided on a design. I would love to get each guy their own design to complement them, but I'm not sure if that's what we are going to do. Most likely we will pick one of these:


Joe's Pick for the guys:


My Pick for the guys:


We both like each others, but we just can't decide...thoughts?

Cute Animation

Click here to watch a cute animation of our wedding mascots, Adios and Ciao Ciao!

I'm super busy with my store, but I wanted to share with you guys. If anyone has any pictures from the bridal shower, I'd love to share them on here, so please email them my way!

Ohio Schedule

I'm returning home on June 11th, which is QUICKLY approaching. Here's what we got goin' on as far as wedding appointments!

FRIDAY
8:30 FERNBANK (might be able to get in...if we're lucky)
10:30 BONBONERIE (oh yes, I was the only one that thought cake at 10:30 was ridiculous...)
2:00 ROBBEN FLORIST

SATURDAY
MORNING SCHWARTZ JEWELERS (going to get my wedding band picked out/made up)

SUNDAY
1:30 SHOWER

MONDAY
11:00--MASLOV PHOTOGRAPHY
2:00--MAGGIANO'S

*WHOOSH* add in taking my sister to concerts and seeing friends...um...when do I sleep?

Joebot's Garb

So, the most difficult thing about planning the wedding thus far is actually Joe's ensemble. Men's fashion is such a sad state, particularly if you want to show any kind of stylish flair. Alternative mens fashion is littered with puffy blouses, pirate gear, vampire coats and other VERY goofy costume garb. The other end, the typical menswear, is boring pronounced with an oring. Joe is not interested in a plain suit, nor does he have oodles of time to dig through websites or stores.

Flash forward to yesterday. I was watching the new Bravo show "The Fashion Show". Inspiration struck in the worst sounding place: the first eliminated designer. His line is called Elmer Ave. He is actually and amazing menswear designer who unfortunately did not do so well at the first challenge. He has a store in downtown LA and a website full of great blazers! Joe seemed to like them better than anything else we've found so far, so a trip to the shop is in our future! Paired with a cyberoptix tie and some lip-service pants and we might finally have a winner!

Wedding Party Ladies...Visual Aids

So, while we have a HUGE wedding party and we are mixing the girls and boys between "sides" (we both hate having to choose who gets to be on who's side...), we aren't really have the whole grand procession. Hence, matching dresses aren't really necessary. However, I do want a theme adhered to so that everyone knows who the wedding party is.

This post is about the ladies. Gentlemen will come later =) Oh, and by the way, we haven't contacted all of wedding party just yet as to who will be in it, so if you are reading this, saddened without a request, don't fret.

All the girls are to wear black dresses. I'd like short to "just past knee" length, but that's the only really restriction. I love the retro/cocktail/party dress feeling, but it's essentially up to the individual. I don't mind textures, embellishments, or anything like that, but they must be ALL black. However, I find that it's MUCH easier for people if there's something to go off of...and here are some great examples!

Wedding Party Dresses 1 by pinkbot featuring Emilio De La Morena dresses

Wedding Party Dresses 2 by pinkbot featuring Alexander Wang dresses

I'd like black shoes, as well. Flat, pumps, whatever! Again...here come the visual aids:

Wedding Shoe Examples by pinkbot featuring Marc Jacobs shoes

Now, to tie them all together and to pay homage to my favorite jewelry designer, I have been collecting pink elements by Tarina Tarantino for the ladies to wear. Jewelry will be provided for you, so no worries about getting anything! These pieces aren't the exact ones I have, but these are VERY close to the pieces I've got so far.

Tarina Jewelry Wedding Example by pinkbot featuring Tarina Tarantino earrings

Candle Questions

We are having lots of candles at the wedding...and I'm down to picking color options. I could do clear votive holders with colored candles like these:





Or do black candles with pink glass holders like these:



Clear holders are of course cheaper, but you know I like big color! What do you think?

Traveling to Ohio...

I'm going to make a trip to Ohio to go over and meet with some people about the wedding. I'll be there from June 11th (in the early evening) to June 16th (leaving early afternoon). During that time, I'll be visiting the Bonbonerie for cake tasting, Robin Wood Flowers (I think...my mom settled this one), Maslov Photography, and the Venue itself (most likely). It's also my sister's birthday, so it's a trip 2fer! Hope to see all my Ohio people very soon! <3

On a sadder note, unfortunately, it looks like we won't be able to bring Popple to Ohio in October. The minimum cost to bring her would be around $600...much much more than it would cost to have her looked after here. I'm saddened, but I'm not sure what else we can do. She'll just have to get the play by play when we return.

Decisions...I FINALLY MADE SOME!

Wedding Decor by pinkbot on Polyvore.com

I made a lil' Polyvore set of my favorite elements so I could see how they work together. I came up with something I'm pleased with and it's time to start buyin' up the goods. So far, I've gotten the plates, the long candle holders, the flatware, and the cups. I also go these adorable napkins that for some reason wouldn't show up on my Polyvore. Today I will finish getting the diamonds, buckets, and perhaps candles.

Yesterday, my friend Frankie, who's also engaged, and I went into downtown to get some Wedding related goodness. I found a wonderful fabric for my shrug and reception accents...an embroidered silk. However, it's colors scheme means that my reception dress will be the same material as my formal dress...which I love, so it's all good. We also found a supplier of the gorgeous, vintage style veiling so that we can create our own veils for a fraction of the price that over-priced bridal companies charge. The veiling is hard to find, but I got people on the INSIDE. It's most likely the reason that people can charge so much for pieces made out of it....that and ANYTHING bridal related is automatically inflated.

Anyways...off to purchase goodies!

Tokidoki themes

Tokidoki's art is a jam-packed landscape of cartoon-y fun...filled with hundreds of different elements to create a whimsical, joyful feeling. That's the type of vibe I'd like to incorporate. His art has several different themes that are very prominent throughout years of work. Some, I've figured out how to incorporate and some, I'm not sure I should. I want to throw them out there to see if any of your creative brains can come up with something magical. I have faith =)

Here are just a few:
- Diamonds (often with cartoon faces, but hey)

These will be easy...there already on some of the vases and, the always fun, huge table decor diamonds

- Lollipops in the candy bar and maybe even the table decor! You can get them in so many colors, swirl patterns, and sizes!

- Cherry Blossoms - most likely these will be in the cake AND I'd love to find trees for the ceremony spot...but I'm not sure how likely this will be for Ohio in October. I found LED trees, but I can't decide if that's ridiculously fun or ridiculously yikes.

- Wraped Candy (well, vampire wrapped candy) - in the candy bar and maybe table decorations?
- Sparrows
- Stars
- Hearts (Balloons!)
- Clouds - Rainbows - Lightning

- Skulls
- Music (Records, notes, MP3 players, boomboxes)
- Cows
- Daisies
- Milk Cartons
- Pink Haired Ladies (CHECK!)

Now, obviously, I do not want a cow decorations. But, if anything inspires you guys, I'd love to hear it!

I'm not gonna use the "b" word...

I'm tacky. It's not a secret. I like big sparkle...big absurdity...big glam. Boring is not something I'm really interested in. In edition to the already glimmering table cloths, I wanna up the sparkle factor with diamond table confetti! I'd like a mixture of small and medium, so that there is some more dimension to the table.
Issues thus far: I've only found 1 HUGE size of fuchsia as well as clear and light pink in a larger size. Though, I can't decide what would be best as far as the color.

The table cloth will be the fuchsia sparkle. So here are the small ones I found:


Clear Diamonds


Fuchsia Diamonds


Light Pink Diamonds


White AB Diamonds


Black Diamonds

I originally thought black or fuchsia, but now I'm not sure. Clear might look the most fun, since everything is really colorful already...

What's YOUR favorite?

4 Legged Bridal Party Member

We are very much hoping that we can bring Popple to Ohio for our wedding. It's an un-necessarily high amount to bring her on the plane, but the hotel will happily let her stay. She will most def. be a cute addition to our bridal party! Since all of the girls will be wearing black dress with jewelry/accessories that I'm bringing (candy pink), Popple should too! I've pulled some looks for her...there are many fancy dog dresses!

Quick update

I've been in full-tilt business mode, as my first vending adventure with Pink Addict is less than a month away! Wedding stuff has been kinda pushed out of my brain...however, I hopefully have more wedding posts this weekend.

Nails

I'm a nail biter. A condition that will only get worse the closer the wedding gets, no doubt. When I'm thinking or stressed or busy, it's inevitable...most of the time without me realizing it until it's too late. For the wedding, acrylics may be the only answer...it takes me great effort to bite them off (but yes, I can and have done it). I've always loved Japanese nail art and since my shoes will most likely have crystals on them, I thought it might be fun to incorporate those on my nails. Here are some of the fun designs I've gathered so far:

I think this one might be my favorite and most appropriate for the occasion (and ensemble).

It may be hard to pick up in the image, but there's one single crystal in the moon of her finger nail. But what colors...what colors? Silver, hot pink, candy pink, black, clear...
Also, if anybody knows a good nail place in Cincinnati, lemme know!

This past week...wedding updates

Here are some of the things I've done in the past week (while my Mom and sister visited):
1. Ordered samples of potential fabrics for Dress/Shrug #2, Table Cloths, and Wedding Party Ties. We are getting ties from Cyberoptix for the boys. The print has yet to be decided. That company has made garments for Gene Generation, the Skinny Puppy comeback tour, and made yours truly my infamous Pink light up hoop skirt. She's now in the tie business and makes GORGEOUS things. Prints are yet to be decided...what are your favorite prints?
2. We hit the jackpot on Melrose at the soon-to-be-out of business store, Ciabattino. They had $99 New Rock boots and $50 Swear shoes. Joe was at work, so I select 3 fun styles...hopefully he can find a wedding shoe among the styles. I'm sure it will mostly depend on what he decides to wear.
3. We stopped by the Tarina Tarantino boutique and I selected my necklace and hair accessory for Dress #2. I had a 20% off coupon and they were SO MUCH prettier in person! Final decisions will be a surprise...hey, I've gotta leave something to imagination, right??
4. I am 70% sure that the two sets of shoes that I've purchased so far will be the winners. Both were great deals...it'll depend on how they fit. I found a gorgeous pair of silver glitter flats with silver lace up ribbons and a cute pair of black satin pumps...total for the 2 pairs? $55. Oh yes. I have big plans for the satin pumps. They aren't finished just yet! Both were ordered on-line, so as long as the are true to size, I'm on my way to a total outfit <3
5. My mom brought along a slice of Opera Cream cake from the BonBonerie...so delish! We're making a tasting appointment that won't disappoint. Joe liked it too, even though he's not a huge cake fan.
6. My mom also took us out to dinner for our engagement...to Maggiano's. They were the front runner for the catering, as long as Joe found some things he would like to eat. After receiving the world's LARGEST bowl of pasta...we have a winner. Seriously...4 adults could have stuffed themselves on that one "portion". Anybody that's interested in having catering should check out their menu...the prices are kinda amazing and the food is really good (the pasta is made fresh).

And just so this isn't a completely text-filled post, here's some shrug-spiration!

Hot Mama!

I love these tall, cylindrical centerpieces. I'm thinking pink/black crystals filling a clear one with hydrangeas...inspired by the picture above, with a fun twist.
My mom and sister are coming in to town tomorrow. They're favorite thing to do is shop, so they'll be lots of it. I'll be lookin' for wedding shoes, jewelry, wedding party gifts, and fabric for Dress #2. Oooh la la!

Bubbles!

Bubbles make everything more fun! Rather than confetti or throwing anything that we'll have to pick up later (ah, the joys of a self-service venue), I'm going to get bubbles to make the day more festive. Here are some of the cute bottles I've found so far...

Floral Bouquet Inspiration