Shortly after our engagement I fell hard for all things “wedding”. I would stay up late on my ipad reading the blogs, and every Monday I would break up my household chores with episodes of Say Yes to the Dress and Four Weddings (This habit has been the hardest to break post wedding). One term that I became familiar with while reading the WeddingBee forums was the “first look” -One of the more controversial trends, where the Bride & Groom see each other in a private setting before the ceremony. I instantly loved the concept for a number of reasons…

I had always heard, by those before me that the day of the wedding goes by in an instance. With this in mind, Danny and I decided it was more important for us to enjoy our day and not worry about being the perfect hosts. With over 250 attendants it would be nearly impossible to spend time with everyone! I knew our family and close friends would help us with this part, and at the end of the day I just wanted to have fun at our party! A key element to making this happen was our wedding timeline!

Being a guest, and a bridesmaid last summer I became familiar with how wedding timelines work. And one thing that I noticed was that most Brides and Grooms miss the majority of their cocktail hour taking photos.  All the socializing and appies was not something I was willing to give up.  By having a “first look” Danny and I were able to take all of our photos with our family, bridesmaids, and groomsmen before the ceremony. It was so much fun to goof around and not feel rushed to get back to the cocktail hour.  And the best part! After the ceremony it was all about Danny and I. Our family and bridal party headed straight to the cocktail hour while we enjoyed a private photo session and recapped on how amazing it was to recite our own vows.

One of the main reasons I wanted to do a first look was because I wanted that moment to be all about Danny and I. I knew that I would be nervous and I knew that it would be such a comfort to see and speak to Danny before walking down the aisle. And it was! We ended up doing the first look on top of a hill, which placed the photographers and videographers below us; I don’t remember even seeing them. It was just Danny and I. The day was here, and we had a moment to pause and express our excitements. I had heard that the first look takes away from that special moment when a Groom sees a Bride for the first time as she walks down the aisle. I can assure you that that moment is just as accelerating despite doing a first look. After all, I started to hyperventilate (in a good way (haha-not too sure if there’s a good way to hyperventilate, but lets just say I had the bride emotions flowing through my veins)) when my Dad and I took the walk. And sure enough Danny was ecstatic to see me walk down in my beautiful gown! Seriously? There’s no way to make that less special!

And Oh My Gosh-The photos!!! Some of my favorite photos from our wedding are from our firstlook. There was no posing, just pure happiness. I’ll let the photos do the talking on this one:

The perfect start to our New Years! Just received our Wedding video from 1321 Studios .

Couldn’t be more pleased. Some advice to the engaged- don’t overlook hiring a videographer for your wedding! And if you live in CO- seriously… go with these guys!

So now I share with you the highlight video …

Colorado Wedding Cinematography – Brittany & Danny from 1321 Studios Wedding Films on Vimeo.

The second thing that came to my mind when I first got engaged (the first being- yay!, I’m so excited to marry Danny) was… I wonder what color scheme my wedding will be? I have always been a creative. I come from a long line of creatives. My grandmother was an insanely talented seamstress and artist, and my mother is no exception. So the second word was out that the Hanley women would be throwing a wedding, the neighborhood starting calling our wedding the “wedding of the decade” before the first invitation even went out. We had a lot to live up to! But we were excited for the challenge.

My inspiration came from: Martha Stewart’s Wedding Magazine, Style Me Pretty the blog, and Pinterest. These three kept my mind racing with ideas to the point where I actually had to cut myself off from Pinterest a month before the wedding in worry that I might tack on a last minute DIY project that was completely unnecessary.

To house my inspiration I started a wedding journal where I kept magazine cutouts, sketches, and ideas for the big day. This is where my color scheme was born- deep teal, yellow, and grey. With a base I was able to shop for bridesmaid dresses, and an invitation suite, and from there the rest just fell into place.

These elements are what made this wedding me. The planning to me was just as much fun as the day itself. I loved meeting with our wedding planner at Colorado Wedding Company to tackle the next thing off our list, and spending that quality time with my Mom is something I will always remember.

The one piece of advice I have to the engaged is: there are no rules! Do what you want! And don’t get caught up on everything being perfect. This is so much easier to say now that the wedding is over, but I remember being so concerned about how everything would come together, and if all my elements would match. And sure enough they did, because my theme just ended up being: Brittany (and Mother H) with a splash of Danny.

Hand made tags for the bridesmaid’s gifts (not pictured) that doubled as name tags for the dresses the day off.

Chalk board sign that greeted the guests as they arrived. I purchased the frame from Shabby McFabby on etsy , and using a chalk board pen and transfer paper matched my fonts to my invitation suite.

I love when you can pick up a custom match box at your favorite restaurant, and since Danny and I are such foodies we thought this would be a fun thing to have at the wedding. The boxes read: Match Made In Colorado.

Since we had so many out of town guests, My Mom thought it would be fun to have guests pin their location on a giant map. The best part about this detail is now we have this map hanging in our den.

Custom coasters for the bar ordered from Spark Letterpress. The same company that made our invites. This was my favorite splurge!

Instead of a traditional guestbook we had guests circle a meaningful word in my Dad’s old dictionary. We are still finding words to this day.

Using my left over paper from my printmaking days I printed my favorite photos of Danny and I and stitched into the paper similar to the bridesmaid tags.

Our love story printed on metal for guests to read as they enter the venue. This was designed by Anthologie Press on etsy.

When it came to flowers I didn’t know where to start. Amy at The Flower House really helped me narrow down my ideas to a elegant and tasteful theme. My biggest vision was the ombre flower curtain for the ceremony- I was so excited with how this turned out!

To continue my stitching theme- I made custom signs for our 5 mini bundt flavors.

_Bee & Mal 11/10/12_

One of Rob’s good friends from college got married over the weekend and I was lucky enough to be a plus one at this fairytale wedding. Dallas was in it’s truest and finest, elaborate, over the top form on Saturday night – wedding complete with the sweetest and most hospitable bride and groom, 2 custom dresses, an artist doing an oil painting of their first dance at the reception, hand rolled cigar bar, lemon drop martini bar, incredible band, DJ and MC… and the list goes on.

_Aspen Cocktail Bars_

(Bee and Mal met in Aspen, so they flew in tree trunks to create the ambiance during their cocktail hour, pre-reception.  Truly magical)

_Opulent Table Decorations_

_The Bride and Groom: First Dance_

I had the joy of selecting a floor length gown for the event and chose a classic, chic black dress with a ruffled collar (best part being I could wear a real bra!!).  This dress is the perfect staple to any black tie event as it can be paired with different jewelry and shoes to create a variety of looks and is appropriate for all venues and all crowds (my girlfriends and my grandmother would approve).

Nordstrom

All of the glitz and glam aside it was so fun to see Rob reconnect with old friends and for me to get to know this fantastic group of people.  We danced the night away (thanks to my up-do from Dry Bar, even after 4 hours of groovin’ I still looked put together ) and took advantage of the time to enjoy each other’s company.  Great friends can make nearly any situation a good time, but it definitely helps to have an amazing wedding to create the ideal environment!

_All Dressed Up and a Fancy Party To Go To_

When it came to posting about my wedding I had a hard time deciding where to start. And then it became a very obvious choice: the moment I became a bride. Afterall, being a bride to your groom is what the day is all about! Throughout the wedding planning the term was often thrown about, but it wasn’t until my Mom fixed the last button on my dress and my bridesmaids saw me for the very first time that I truly felt like a real-life bride. The glow just happens because your body is pumping with so much adrenaline and there’s no possible way to hide your feelings. And this is coming from a girl who doesn’t overly show emotions in public. But being surrounded by my family, best friends, and boy I let myself be vulnerable.

My signature sent was Coco Mademoiselle Chanel Paris. I found the name fitting being that Danny and I were going to Paris for our honeymoon. This photo was shot in my bedroom at my parent’s house. I wanted to get ready at my parents house because it feels like home, and has always been a place I associate happy memories with.

I remember this moment very vividly. I knew the second we left the house the day would officially start.

Arriving at the venue I catch a glimpse of my first wedding decor.

Catching one last laugh with Bridesmaid L before revealing my dress to the rest of the girls.

All the planning was over and my Mom and I could finally enjoy the day we planned for over a year. Everything was perfect.

None of the girls had seen me in my wedding dress yet. I wanted them to be surprised the day of. I believe that was accomplished.

It’s these behind the scene moments that I cherish most now that my wedding day is over.

The lack of having something to plan after the wedding can sometimes cause depression in some Brides. To keep ourselves busy Mother H and I decided it would be great fun to throw my dear friend Deirdre and her fiance Jeff an Engagement Party. I was excited for the reveal of my newly decorated condo, and to get my hands dirty with a couple of DIY projects.

The formal invitation we sent from Papyrus.

Gold heart garland. I used a diacut machine to cut paper hearts and strung them from black bakers twine. An easy and affordable way to add a little romance to our lofty space. All supplies were purchased at a local scrap-booking store.

An accent chalk board wall works great for parties! I wanted it to look like I had carved Deirdre and Jeff’s initials into a tree: old-school-love-style.

White roses always remind me of weddings. Instead of one big vase of flowers we made smaller groups to disperse them around the house. And now that the party is over I can still enjoy them =)

Disposable plates and silverware that match our invitation suite and make for an easy clean-up.

Using the left over paper from the heart garland I punched out small glitter hearts to garnish the desserts.

Yesterday after work I rushed down to my mail box to see if my wedding photos had arrived. Sitting on my mailbox was a giant envelope to: Mrs. & Mr. Brennan. It’s hard to express how I felt at that very moment in writing, but it went something like this: YAY YAY YAY YAY OMG! Addi still needed to go out, so I was literally opening the package as she went potty. Eeeeeee.. I can’t wait to show you! I just need to decide how I am going to break this down into blog posts. Let’s just say… I hope you like weddings!!

Let the wedding posts begin!

Before the recaps, lets start with how I found “that” dress!

After countless hours of “say yes to the dress” it’s safe to say I dubbed myself the wedding dress expert. Despite never stepping foot in a bridal salon I was confident that I could instantly select my dream dress. And I was pretty good at accomplishing this task.. if I do say so myself.

When it comes to my every day taste, I generally feel best when I dress in clothing that flatters my body, so I thought: why don’t I approach shopping for a wedding dress in a similar fashion. This sounds like a pretty obvious step, but it’s easy to get caught up in the hundreds of different styles that are available.  Outside of the wedding realm every girl knows what dress she feels sexiest in. Some are halter girls, others strapless girls.  I’ve always been drawn to dresses that clinch at the natural waistline and flare out. Hips don’t lie- and I’m not exactly built like Kimmy K, so I enjoy the fullness this style gives my body. I can’t do strapless-long dresses because despite the fit, I always feel like I’m going to have a nip slip. And even though Danny and I weren’t planning on getting married in the church this wasn’t an asset I wanted to flaunt on my wedding day. And finally- I love classic pieces with bling. So there ya go! I had my wedding dress checklist.

With a clear vision of what I wanted, I visited the Priscilla of Boston website and quickly eliminated all but three dresses. Taking advantage of online shopping before my appointment was a must! I didn’t want to have the mental debate inside the store.. This way I could analyze the death out of my choices without feeling the pressure. And who doesn’t enjoy a good analyze-sess in the comfort of their own home.

Once in the store my consultant made me try on several different styles, and sure enough the three I found online were the only ones that sparked my interest. When I tried on my dress, I knew it was the one because I felt like a princess. In the others I felt like I was ready to walk the red carpet, and although I would love to be a movie star for the day, I really just wanted to be Princess Britt on our day.

You think the process is over once you put down the deposit on your dress, but over the next 10 months you will experience a little thing called dress regret. You will have it, even if just for a moment, because lets face it- you have created a picture perfect idea in your head of what you will look like on your wedding day, and with such high expectations you will start to second guess your first impressions. Trust your womanly instincts- you loved your pick for a reason. And regardless of how you looked in the awful fluorescent store lighting with a dress that was 5 sizes too big, or five sizes too small..you will be radiant on your wedding day. I promise!

If there’s one thing I learned from watching “say yes to the dress” it’s: don’t bring your possi!! I shared this moment with ONLY my Mom, and it will be something I cherish forever. God love your favorite Aunt, or group of besties- but you will not love their abusive opinions.

I just can’t wait to reveal my final wedding day look!