The Broke-Ass Bride

After a very smooth and organized rehearsal (thanks to our killer DOC Sharlene Griffith), we had all worked up quite an appetite.  So we shuttled off to unwind and kick off the festivities!

Our rehearsal dinner was at one of our favorite local fiestarants (I just invented that rad new word, thankyouverymuch), Casita Del Campo.  I’d show you just how charming it is, but I’m somehow lacking any detail shots from this evening. So, just use your imaginations and stick with me!

The room was bright and cozy, filled with long tables, and a ceiling adorned with adorable lights.  Earlier in the day my mom and sister dropped off a dozen or so of the vases I co-oped with my Bride$hare buddy with some grocery store flowers that were placed around the tables.  It was a lively, vibrant atmosphere – very fitting for our celebration!

To keep food costs down (and the bar open), we opted for a burrito-only menu, and served guac and quesadilla appetizers family style.  If you tilt your head and squint, you can see the menus we made up to let people know what their options were. The menus had the same baraat (indian wedding procession) border as our wedding invitations.  We just created these in Word and printed them at kinkos, easy peasy!

We ate and gabbed and laughed and hugged. We invited the wedding party and all of our out of town guests, so this was the first time we were seeing many of them for the whole weekend. It was so powerful to see so many people there for us. The room felt positively filled with love.

Next it was time for the speeches and gifts.  Hunter’s father gave a very funny toast, and gifted my dad with a father of the bride hat to match his father of the groom hat.  Then we said a few warm words of welcome before getting to the giving.  I gave the gals matching necklaces to wear in the ceremony, from RachelleD on etsy (and totally regret not getting myself one), and gold pashminas that I haggled down to $5 each on the streets of New York.  Hunter designed Converse sneakers for himself and the boys to wear the next day, and personalized them all.  Stay tuned for the ceremony recaps, to see these gifts in action!

After a bit more drinking, carousing and merry making, the party started to wind down, and we handed out Diddy Riese cookies (an LA favorite, and only $0.35 each!) as a sweet parting treat to our guests.

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*We now interrupt this rehearsal dinner post for some outfit detail porn!* (c’mon, you know you want it!)

Almost a year before the wedding, my mom was in town for a girlie bonding wedding weekend, and we stopped at the outlet mall to have a peek around.  Within an hour we scored both my wedding shoes for $14.99 and this dress from BCBG on sale for $80 from $380! It was one of the finest shopping hours of my life.  Then when I put it on a week before the wedding, it fell straight off me!  But Deborah Lindquist, in her infinite goodness, came to the rescue and altered this bad boy to fit like a glove just in time.  My headband was a gift from mom from Nordstrom, and you can learn about my shoes here.  My necklace was a gift from a dear family friend who makes jewelry. She took the illustration from our Save the Dates, and molded it into a pendant!  It’s one of the most special gifts I’ve ever received, I love to wear it.

Hunter’s suit was also a may-jor score. We found this sexy bastard for $40 at a thrift store on Melrose, for the trash the dress bash we did last year.  But he looks just so damn fine in it that we decided to have it tailored for use in the rehearsal dinner, and paired it with a shirt and tie we found on sale. Tailoring a suit can make a world of difference. Done and done.

Aight. Porn over.  Where were we?

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Ah yes.  We said goodbyes, and piled into the van o’ family to drop Hunter at home before shuttling me away to the family rental house where I’d spend my last night as a Miss.  I walked him down to our apartment, where we spent a few brief moments decompressing, and then turned on our first dance song for one last spin around the living room.  It was so good to have that time alone with him then.  My whirlwind monkey mind stopped churning for a precious breath, my heartbeat calmed, my breathing slowed.  I nestled into the arms of my love and felt his warmth soothe my spirit.  We had a moment to give tender closure to our life before, so that we could go boldly into our ever after.

I bid him goodbye, tried to hold onto the taste of his sweet bachelor kiss, and got back in the van o’ family to leave.  Everyone looked at me, it was eerily quiet among my normally loud group.  I felt chills rush through me and I was hit with it. “I’m getting f*cking married tomorrow!” I said, and my mom echoed “woohoo! you’re getting f*cking married! I’ll swear for that!” and everyone cheered  It. was. so. exciting.