Shoe Zombie

I am not a shoe girl. Clothes? You better believe it. Purses? Yes, please. Makeup? Sephora and I are like this.

But shoes? Meh. It's not that I don't like them - I have several pairs of shoes that I adore. (Including a $1500 pair of Sergio Rossi boots that I scored at a Goodwill for $8 thank you very much.) For the most part though, I'd rather spend my money on other parts of my outfit (see above).

So imagine my surprise when it occurred to me that I had spent hours of my life devoted to finding wedding shoes with no luck. You'd think I could just grab a pair of comfy sandals and call it quits, but nope. Apparently my wedding planning alter ego has other plans. While far from a bridezilla, she appears to be taking on some zombie like qualities with glazed over eyes, foaming at the mouth, while searching online and grumbling "Must. Find. Shoez."

Shoe Zombie had several requirements to complete her bridal look:

1. Slight heel < 3 inches. Since I'm rather tall at 5'9", I'm not entirely comfortable in super high shoes. I'd also rather not tower over Mr. America. 
2. Preferably a wedge. Getting married on the beach means no stilletos.  
3. Fits in the wedding color scheme: aqua, pink, or gold. 
4. Modern looking- Nothing that looks like a prom shoe.
5. Must allow for my cute  pedicure to be visible.
6. Must be able to protect my feet from icky sand (due to sandphobia) and/or the ability to quickly get the sand of off my feet post ceremony.

I did manage to find my DREAM shoes via Pinterest, but alas at $545 they are way out of my price range.

Miu Miu Glitter Wedges via Fashion Fuss

Sighhh.

These shoes would be great if they weren't so darn tall:

Via New Look

Then of course, there are the shoes that I purchased back when we were still planning to get married at the vineyard. I had dragged Mr. Rucksack to DSW to look for fall boots and ended up being inexplicably drawn to the sparkly shoe section. I put these on just for fun, but then fell in love. I loved the sparkle, the heel height, and the fact that they were super comfy:

Fergalicious Grace via 6pm

Oh, and the fact that they from the Fergalicious line by Fergie pretty much sold me. I'm not a fan of the pop star herself and actually loathe the Black Eyes Peas nearly as much as April from Parks & Rec does.

April Beheads the Black Eyed Peas via Fast Company

However, Fergalicious happens to be one song that is frequently stuck in my head. And I'm not quiet about it. Poor Mr. Rucksack often has to listen to me bust out singing "I blow kisses that puts them boys on rock rock, and they be linin' down the block just to watch what I got." Of course as soon as I saw the name of the shoes, I had to take a dance through the aisles of DSW singing to Mr. Rucksack. He was mortified, but hey - I got to test the shoes out and I now for a fact I can not only jump in them, but I can also power kick and get down low with them!

The problem was, they just weren't ideal for a beach wedding. I had a feeling I'd be tripping and sinking into the sand, and I would definitely get that yucky sand stuff stuck in there. It was back to the drawing board... sorry Fergie!

After a few months of searching high and low for the perfect glitter shoes, I gave up. Clearly my dream shoes did not exist in my budget. So I followed in the footsteps of girls much craftier than I and made my own!

Via Lulu's

I found these shoes on Lulu's for the amazingly low price of $23 and figured that if I messed them up, then at least I wouldn't be out much money. The weekend they arrived I armed myself with a big bottle of gold glitter and mod-podged away! 20 minutes plus a couple of hours of drying time later and I had my dream wedding shoes!

Sparkle Sparkle! They look so cute when they peak out from my dress! 

Were you surprised at how much time you spent on things you assumed you wouldn't care about?

It's not a diet. It's a lifestyle!

I’ve been trying to keep from talking too much about our diet and exercise routine on this blog. I don’t want to be that girl. The one that is always “Paleo this” and “Crossfit that.” You know, the Paleo Wedding Blogger. It’s a big part of our life, but it’s not like it’s completely informing our wedding related decisions.

Sure, we wanted to have a menu that we could actually eat and we didn’t want to give out sugary favors that we wouldn’t eat. And yeah, our changes in diet and activity have helped us become more in shape than ever. But it’s not like we’re forcing our guests to eat beef jerky and bacon grease. And even though it would be amazing, I won’t be tossing my bouquet in kettlebell form. 

That said, it’s driving me crazy when people say “Wow you’ve lost a lot of weight for the wedding!” or try to explain “Miss Rucksack doesn’t eat sugar because she’s getting married soon.” Ugh, no!

Image by Bye Calories

Depending on the offender, I’ll either smile and nod or I’ll get up on my pedestal and explain that actually we are making a lifestyle change based on what we’ve learned about our bodies and all this cool sciencey stuff. I don’t eat sugar because it’s bad for me. I don’t eat soy because it makes me break out in hives. I don’t eat gluten because the cramping it gives me is so not worth it. I lost weight because I was getting kind of chubby from sitting on my butt and eating cookies all day. Giving up cookies and starting to work out naturally meant extra weight lost. I’ve stuck with this “diet” for 8 months because it makes me feel really damn good.

Image via Quick Meme

Of course, the aesthetic benefits are there too. I lost twelve pounds within the first couple of months through Paleo and then started changing my body through Crossfit. I sort of had to stop looking at the scale because muscle weighs more than fat and all that stuff, but I know my weight yo-yoed a little in the beginning. But all sorts of other amazing things happened that the scale didn’t show. My butt got higher and tighter. I developed abs! It started with 2 and I’m now up to 5. Sometimes I just stand half naked in front of a mirror and flex my abs because it still just blows my mind. The circumference of my legs is so much smaller. I use so much less lotion now! I have biceps and really awesome triceps. I still like to rub them just to make sure they’re actually there and not a figment of my imagination. And you guys, I actually completed a 5 mile race over father’s day weekend.

Considering I was the girl that faked menstrual cramps every day of high school gym class, this is such an amazing accomplishment. My family still can’t believe I ran the whole thing. And I was shocked that I didn’t come in last!

Winning! / Photo by Capstone Photography

I plan on sticking with Paleo for the rest of my life. Now that we’ve been doing this for awhile and we know how different foods affect our bodies, we have a much better sense of the sorts of treats we can allow ourselves. (He’s fine with soy, I’m not. Occasional dairy hasn’t hurt me, but gluten is painful for both of us.) So I’d say we eat pure Paleo 99% of the time with the occasional treat of goat cheese on a salad or chocolate that’s not quite as dark as it should be. Oh - and alcohol. I do like to treat myself with a glass of wine or hard cider after a particularly long day. So really, I don’t think I’ve given up too much. And the fact that I get to walk down the aisle being the best version of me is such a reward.

Have you made any lifestyle changes recently?

Silk and Organza and Tulle, Oh My! (Part 2 - or the one where I actually do find a dress!)

Day two of shopping felt much more relaxed from the beginning. I had learned a couple of things from my first day of dress shopping. Namely, that I wasn't going to spend $4,500 on a dress. Also, that it didn't really matter what I wore to my appointment because I was going to get naked anyway. This time I nixed the leggings, but opted for full bottom underwear. I also wore a full bra with hopes that the bridal store would provide a long line bra for me. (They did.) Lastly, I did my hair better than the previous day. While I had blown my hair straight the day before, I opted to curl my hair and style it similar to how I'd want to wear it for the wedding - half up with loose curls along the lines of this:

Dianna Agron via Fine Art America

It totally helped me visualize the whole look together, especially once we added accessories and the veil.

We went to The White Dress by the Shore to see one dress in particular: Ivy and Aster's Sweet Pea.

Sweetpea via Ivy and Aster

Sweet, isn't she? Similar to the day prior, I naively assumed I would be done when I tried her one. Nope. Turns out, the style just doesn't work on my figure. I ended up looking less Beach Princess and more Beached Whale. Not exactly what I was going for. We put her aside and tried on a slew of other dresses. Seriously, there were so many perfect dresses that within two minutes we had picked out 10! We were politely told by our Consultant, Ennike, that maybe it was time to start whittling down our choices by trying some on.

After trying all 10 dresses on, we narrowed it down to 3 very unique dresses.

1. Jenny Yoo Riley. This really reminded me of the dress I loved in Westport at a fraction of the cost. It was the first I tried on at The White Dress by the Shore and immediately went into the "yes" pile.

Via Flair Bridesmaid

2. Anne Barge LF161. I loved the preppiness of this dress and the pockets! I also liked that the fullness of the skirt was more what I had envisioned in my gown.

Via Wedding Inspirasi

3. Anne Barge LF214. This dress fit like a glove and had the coolest details. I just loved the ruffles!

Via Fashionable Bride

After trying them on again with accessories, I got even closer to a decision and narrowed it down to two. My mom and aunt were no help at all as they sat there with a smirk saying "We know which one - but you need to decide for yourself."

I asked to be put back into the first dress and came back out with a huge smile. "This is it!" I exclaimed and then quickly turned back to them for approval. "This is the one, right?"

They said they knew right away because every time I put it on I started dancing. Everybody hugged and teared up a little and Ennike went and got us champagne to celebrate. She even let me stay in mt dress while she filled out paperwork so that I could be smiley and happy and champagney in my dress a little longer.

Do you all know which one I picked?

It's..........................Dress Number 1!

Via Flair Bridesmaid

As soon as I put her on the first time I said "I could go home with this dress right now and be happy." Of course, that didn't stop me from making Ennike put me in all 9 other dresses multiple times, something I apologized for as soon as I officially said yes to the dress!

Looking back at pictures from the day, I'm even more sure about my decision. While the other two dresses looked amazing in person, they photographed kind of weird.

All of the lines and ruffles came out strange in pictures and if the lines weren't perfect I ended up looking lopsided. I love the simplicity of my dress and the fact that I can dress it up with accessories! It's modern and timeless at the same time - exactly the look I was going for! It even looks like one of my inspiration pics that Mr. Rucksack and I (sort of) agreed on!

Dakota Trumpet Gown via Nicole Miller

I promised my mom I wouldn't put up a picture of me in the dress, but I never said anything about showing off my excited face!

Oh and I guess a little sneak peek of the top won't hurt either....

The dress is not at all what I originally thought I wanted, so I'm really glad Auntie Rucksack pushed me toward those curve hugging dresses. I'm thrilled with my choice and even happier that I stayed under budget! (Seriously, you guys. The dress ended up being a SAMPLE so when I say under budget, I mean way under budget!)

Did you end up with a dress that was completely different than your original inspiration too?

Silk and Organza and Tulle, Oh my! (Part 1)

To be honest, my first experience with trying on wedding gowns was a total nightmare. I had seen an ad for a sample sale, dragged my mom along to check it out, and had a big fail whale of a moment. In addition to the lack of staff help and the tremendous amounts of tulle and fluff, my mom and I got into a whopper of a fight. The details aren't so important, but my mom was stressed about her upcoming move into her boyfriend's house and I was being a bride, and I'm learning that those sorts of mother-daughter conditions nearly always lead to tears.I ended up trying on itchy scratchy tulle dresses while blotchy and hivey from crying. Not so fun.

Needless to say, I was not looking forward to getting back on that horse. I did plenty of online research and put off dress shopping until the last possible minute. (Apparently that last possible minute is 7 months from your wedding day. It takes a long ass time to order a wedding gown!) Finally, the moment of doom arrived. I really was convinced that dress shopping take two would be horrific and would result in me a) crying b) yelling and/or c) getting drunk.

Armed with Mr. Rucksacks's dos & don'ts list and an iPad full of ideas, I set up two appointments for one weekend and asked Momma Rucksack and Auntie Rucksack to join me. I was almost certain that I would choose one of these beauties:

Theia Style 890022 via Misses Dressy

Sweetpea via Ivy and Aster

Stop one was The Plumed Serpent in Westport, Connecticut. Our appointment was at 9:30am (Alison was a sweetheart and opened early for us!) and since I had read up on dress shopping etiquette, I arrived with no make-up, simple hair, a strapless bra and leggings. I quickly learned that it didn't matter since I was naked within seconds and in a borrowed long-line bra.

In addition to the Theia dress that I "knew" was the one, I allowed my mom and aunt to each pick one dress. Momma Rucksack leaned toward huge princess ballgowns while Auntie Rucksack chose curve hugging dresses.

Well, it turned out that I was very wrong about Theia. It hit my curves in all the wrong places. Insert sad face here. Luckily, I was in a store full of beautiful dresses and with some urging from my aunt I finally tried on her choice:

Romona Keveza A-Line Gown via Kleinfeld

And I fell in love. Unfortunately, that feeling quickly dissipated when we learned that the price was way over my budget!

I left the store feeling extremely conflicted, especially after Momma Rucksack and Auntie Rucksack assured me we could make it work. I just couldn't fathom spending so much money on a dress!

Luckily, we still had one more day of shopping ahead of us.

Did you fall in love with a dress that was way over your budget?

Mr. Opinionated Chooses a Gown

Perhaps this is odd, but I actually showed Mr. Rucksack pictures of the gowns I was interested in. He's my best friend and he has impeccable taste, so I didn't think much of it. Plus, he's the one I want to impress on our wedding day so he had better like the dress I choose!

As it turns out, he surprisingly had a lot of opinions about dresses. It helped narrow down my choices a lot because my ideas were all over the place. So let's take a look at some of the choices that were quickly nixed by my opinionated guy.

Grace Gown ia Watters

Part of me wanted a dress with straps or sleeves. I'm rather busty and I live in constant fear of looking like I'm trying to show them off - or worse, having the top come down and actually showing them off! However, Mr. Rucksack did not agree. He thought the sleeves and halters were kind of weird. That knocked off about 1/4 of the dresses on my list.

Blush Style 1104 via JLM Couture

This gorgeous dress has two qualities that Mr. Rucksack disapproves of: lace and a keyhole back. I know. He is insane. I kept showing him this dress in between others hoping maybe he'd changed his mind, but he's too smart for that kind of tomfoolery. In the end, I actually agree that it doesn't fit the mood we're going for, but that didn't stop me from trying on a couple of lacy numbers just to be sure!

Dakota Trumpet Gown via Nicole Miller

This was one we were split on. He prefers a more flowy style (which I informed him is called A-line) but he didn't dislike this, he just hadn't pictured something like this. He also doesn't understand the whole sash thing - something I explained he better get used to because I knew I would want some bling in the form of a bridal belt.

Sweetpea via Ivy and Aster

Theia Style 890022 via Misses Dressy

Then there were these two beauties. I loved loved loved these in the photos, and bonus: so did Mr. Rucksack! To me, they just screamed "Beachy Princess Bride" and I loved that they were traditional, but still had their own funk. (Noticing a trend here?)

While I kept my mind open when dress shopping, it certainly was helpful keeping Mr. Rucksack's wishlist in the back of my mind while trying on dresses.

Did you involve your fiance in picking out the dress?