Planning a Wedding on a BUDGET

A few weeks ago I got engaged to the man of my dreams. Literally 30 minutes later multiple people asked us when we were officially tying the knot.  That's right, we barely had time to be happy and in love and then the planning began.  I am a college student, graduating in December, my fiance graduated this past May (thank goodness he has a job!), he proposed mid-September, and our wedding will be in early April.  Have you done the math now? That's right, 6 1/2 month engagement and practically no money to put on the show that is a wedding!!  In my short time as a bride I have picked up a few hints and tricks how to stay on a budget.  Some of these you won't be able to do and, like me, you'll be aggravated more than ever, BUT some of these you will be able to do and it will save you greatly.

These tips will help you save money, think creatively, and bring out what is most important to you for your big day :)

-First & foremost: remember to focus on YOU, not what everyone else will think.
-Maintain your sanity. (Easier said than done...) When I realize I'm overwhelmed with information and 
  schedules, I close my eyes and breathe deeply for about three seconds.
-Decorate to your taste and not "this season's wedding fads."
-Use the groom's help. Chances are he'll want less than you & this will help you save money.
-BUDGET/"talk money" before you pick out 1 single thing. And stick to it! A reasonable budget is anywhere   from $15,000-$40,000. Do some research and find out the median price for everything; that'll help you
  learn what budget is possible for all the things you want.

Tips:

• Use a wedding planning website, instead of a wedding planner: So many others have been through what you're going through, so learn from them! I use both The Knot and Wedding Wire currently.  Both websites are great, but contain different advice, articles, some different vendors, and different planning styles.  Here's the breakdown for my method to the madness:

• The Knot: 
• Checklist
• Inspiration Boards
• Articles
• Design by Color or Price Range
• Vendors

• Wedding Wire: 
• Budgeting Tool
• Website
• Checklist
• Seating Chart
• Guest List (ceremony, reception, engagement party, etc.)
• Vendors
• Song Lists
• Spend your money decorating the reception hall, not the church: You'll be at the ceremony location for a fraction of the time of the reception location AND you will be focusing on your significant other the whole time & everyone will be focusing on you! Some churches already have decor you can use. If you MUST decorate the church, try some DIY crafts, Dollar Store/WalMart/Hobby Lobby Finds, or gifts from bridesmaids. Buy some tea lights to hang from ribbon. Tulle is another great option. You can wrap a single flower in some tulle to hang from the pew so
• Hold the ceremony and reception in the same location: Many venues offer discounted prices on the reception if you hold the ceremony there too. This is a major money-saver that I was unable to do because my fiance wanted to get married in the church he grew up in, which doesn't allow alcoholic beverages, and 95% of our family and friends expected drinks to be available.  BUT, if you can, hold these at the same venue.  Your guests will be happy they don't have to drive from venue to venue and your wallet will thank you too.
• Get a second opinion: Just because you fall in love with the decoration, don't buy it on the spot unless you have the chance of losing it. You may be able to find the same decoration for cheaper or something you like even better!! 
  
  
  
• Bring a friend along: Someone who knows you well should go with you for every purchase. This way someone will balance our your sudden love for something with rationality.
• Do DIY some things: Table numbers, placecards, programs, party favors or even a photobooth!

• Partially DIY some things: Use DIY websites such as Shutterfly and Vistaprint to create things with photos, such as Save-the-Dates and Photo Guest Books.

• DON'T DIY some things: Unless you have a friend that's a DJ or a photographer, I do not recommend doing these tasks yourself.  I read somewhere that a DJ can read the floor whereas a kick-ass playlist cannot.  The only things left after your wedding day (other than your undying love) are the photos. Do not skimp here!

                                                     

• Leave out the "new fads" that you don't really care about: Don't use a program, don't make out-of-town baskets, etc.
• Ask Questions: Ask yourself questions to find out if you need or want?? Prioritize. 
• Limited/no open bar: I know, it's rough. You invite all these people to watch you be happy & expect them to survive without alcohol. HOW?! To assuage this you can give each guest a limit on how much liquor they are allowed to buy. Give each guest a "ticket" at their table or put each over-21 guest's name on a list for the bartender. Allocate only as much as you can afford per guest.  They'll be happy they get to drink & you'll be saving your pocketbook!! OR consider a beer/wine only or beer/wine + specialty cocktail. Consider only serving alcohol for half of the reception.

• Watch Say Yes to the Dress: Know what you want beforehand when looking for your wedding gown. Watch shows, research online, & browse magazines to get an idea of what you want. THEN FIND IT CHEAPER!!

Happy wedding :D

Money Saving Tips for ANYONE!

As a college student, I'm constantly low on money & looking for ways to make the most of my 2 cents.  I've started a list of 15 great money-saving tips for everyday life & I'm sure I'll be adding new posts in the future.  Comment if you have any ideas as well!

1. Like going to the movies? Sign up for Cinemark's weekly emails. Each week you'll 1 email with a coupon. Examples: Buy one large drink or frozen drink (ICEE), get a free small popcorn. Now who doesn't love free food?!?
2. When it comes to food we all know about coupons, but rarely have the time to search for them. STORES DO IT FOR YOU. Pick up any grocery store's coupon book at the front of the store. Live near an HEB? SHOP THERE. Not only are there coupons throughout the store, a booklet at the entrance, meal deals, and free food on Sundays, HEB stores also have a wall of coupons near their frozen food section by the registers. 
3. Movie rentals are free when they come from your public library or collegiate library! Never pay for a movie rental again!
4. I love dyeing my hair. Instead of spending $100 at a salon, I choose a $3 box of Revlon Hair Color from Walmart or Target.  If you wash your hair in cold water it'll last a few weeks before fading.
5. Sticking with hairstyling, do you love your current style and just want to trim it up to keep it healthy? Consider getting your routine hair trim at a Great Clips, SuperCuts, or Pro-Cuts. During my college years I've even taken a pair of scissors to my bangs to keep them shaped in-between trims.
6. Want to go out to a nice dinner? Look for places with special deals like Applebees 2 for $20 or Olive Garden's $12 for dinner today & tomorrow! Many mid-cost restaurants have deals like this to reel in college couples, but ANYONE can use them.
7. Have a Pinterest girls' night.  My best friends and I have done this before and it's a ton of fun. We get to be creative and hang out for hours on end! So much cheaper than going to a bar.
8. Speaking of girls' nights... or date nights... try cooking your own meal for the night or creating your own night theme. This is something new and different and so much cheaper than eating a nice dinner out for $30/plate!
9. Love sports? Live in a college town? Go see a collegiate game. Other than football, the tickets are usually <$10/ seat!
10. Bored on a Saturday? Go volunteer somewhere. This is free, annihilates boredom, and is something good for the community :)
11. Keep 2 separate accounts: 1 for savings, 1 for checking.  Put your direct deposit into your savings account & siphon over whatever your budget is for the month, so you won't spend any more than you planned!
12. Ever seen the tv show Minute to Win It? NBC's staple gameshow uses items typically found around the house... and it's a blast! Many of their games are listed here on the NBC website.
13. So at this point I know you've heard of Pinterest... If you ever need something new, consider doing it yourself! The DIY page on Pinterest is really quite amazing. You wouldn't  believe how much money you can save by making a few things on your own.
14. Is shopping your therapy too? That's fine, we all love the feeling a new purchase gives you!  SO sign up for emails from your favorite stores and they will give you coupons like you wouldn't imagine! New York and Company frequently gives its members free money, like $15 off a $30 purchase, which is like getting a blouse HALF OFF! JC Penney, Kohl's, and Bed, Bath, & Beyond are other stores that frequently email out coupons. & that's just the beginning!
15. The simplest one of all: Drink water.  Whether you're at home, out for dinner, or at a sporting event: Drink water.  Not only will it save your wallet, it'll save your waistline! And when you save your waistline, you're really saving your wallet because you don't have to pay for pesky weight loss pills or surgeries 15 years from now ;)

Happy money saving ;)

Homemade Easy Bake Cream Cheese Cinnamon Rolls

For my triumphant return I have made my best dessert ever! Honestly it's not just the best because it tastes like heaven in your mouth, rather because it can double as BREAKFAST!

All you'll need is:

• 2 tbsp cream cheese
• 2 tbsp butter (softened)
• 1 tbsp brown sugar
• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 1 1/2 tbsp cinnamon
• 1 can Pillsbury crescent rolls

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°
2. Roll out crescent rolls
3. Mix cream cheese, butter, brown sugar, white sugar, cinnamon until smooth (there will be some lumps of cream cheese)
4. Spread over crescent rolls
5. Roll up crescents
6. Bake for 12 minutes

These puppies are DELICIOUS!!!! (I coated mine with extra cinnamon-mix)

They don't look pretty, but they taste like HEAVEN ON EARTH

Sorry I didn't take any pictures of the process, so please comment with any questions!

As always, Happy Baking!

A Haiku for You!

But really, y'all, sometimes you need a little poetry to put things into perspective as prettily as possible.
Literature, etc. soothes the soul.

Question everything; 

Accept no indifference; 

Bend, but never break.

Cloudy sky above.

Painted landscape just below.

God's own masterpiece.

Two hearts beat wildly.
The distance pulls them closer.
Twin yearning lovers.


Blood, sweat, tears, and pain.
How can I sustain this life?
Live: "Arbeit Macht Frei."


Four horsemen ride on,
Their wrath claiming the masses.
Chaos among us.


Life is soon ending.
Only one question remains:
What have we become?


Just knowing three words
Everyday passes with ease
In a love like ours.






Happy happiness, all!

Having a Rough Day?

Having a rough day? Visit one of the following 5 sites for a smile!

1. Www.mybodyweight.com-- Women like me and you submit their photographs, height, weight, clothes size, and shape and you can search to see what other women with your dimensions look like & stop feeling so self conscious!!

2. Www.Alisonminor13.tumblr.com-- I'm quite hilarious, you won't be disappointed.

3. Www.cracked.com-- so many random factual articles to edumacate your day and leave you laughing!

4. Www.thisiswhyimbroke.com-- I've seen everything on this site. Literally everything and it's fantastic! So many geeky toys to make your day complete just knowing they're in existence.

5. Www.awesomepeoplehangingouttogether.Tumblr.com-- the crown jewel of them all. This blog is solely filled with photographs of celebrities from the 1950 onward hanging our with other usually random counterparts. My current fave is Rihanna + Jim Parsons just because they're a crazy unlikely duo!


Happy... Getting happy!!

Grad Students Have No Life

So I got out of a class early today (miracle!!) and found this wonderful Blogger app so I can write to you on the go!

My first point of business: graduate-level students have no life. Zero. I don't have time to eat most days unless I pack a lunch or find a vending machine and can cram it in under 5 minutes.

Grad school is a beautiful experience, but don't be alarmed when it's nothing like undergrad and you actually have to read, study, and so some work earlier than the night before it's due. Get ready for group semester-long projects in every class and tests without multiple choice where essay questions can really be incorrect. Get ready for your grades to be based on how well/poorly your classmates did and not the work you put in. Grad school isn't like work either. It isn't the real world. There are deadlines that get moved around, yes, but you're also assigned things you don't know how to do and can't figure out by asking the professor or even searching the web. Grad school makes you a mess.

But it is still a great experience to learn something for once! You get hands-on experience and don't just memorize for the test, rather you soak it aaaaaaaall in.

Ok so there's my educationally aware post of the day! Now I invite everyone to check out my best friend's tumblr on what life is like when you actually work for something:

Www.missivylynn22.tumblr.com


Happy days to all!

ReStyle Yesterday's PonyTail

**Pay no attention to the lax clothes & lack of makeup, this was a lazy/study Sunday for me! And obviously on a normal day I actually try a little harder with the styles, I don't just let my frizzy hair fl & neither should you! This is just a step-by-step tutorial of what it would generally look like.

My typical ponytail consists of:

1.  Throwing my bangs into a mini pouf:

Then I pull this mess into a ponytail

    2.   Letting my curled bangs hang it out


So I decided to try some new things out.  Now I'm telling you right now, I'm awful with doing my hair all by myself, so everything talked about here is SUPER SIMPLE!!


Here are 5 different ways to spice up your ponytail a bit:

First we have the wrapped pony.  This comes first because you can do it to almost any type of ponytail you choose to do.  All you have to do is wrap your hair around the band that is actually holding your in place.  There are two ways to do this:

What the top of either pony looks like

• Put all of your hair into a pony then take some bottom section of the hair coming out of the band and begin to wrap it around the band.  Use a bobby pin to secure the wrapped hair into place (I like to shove the pin into the pony rather than laying it across the hair underneath the pony tail. 

Taking hair from the pony for the wrap

• Pull all of your back as if you are going to put it into a pony, THEN take a small section of the bottom hair out to not be banded.  This section is 1.5-2.5 fingers wide.  Secure the remaining hair in a ponytail holder.  Then wrap the excess hair around the band as done previously & secure with a bobby pin.  Note you can split this bottom section of hair and wrap from both sides for this look on both sides of your ponytail. I like to think it looks a little chic-er!
  

  

  With the hair separated pre-pony

Second is the side pony. It's fairly simple and something I used to do with a Topsy Turvy & now I do it on my own! 

Step 1: Secure all your hair to the side, just in front of your shoulder

Step 1 Glare into the camera with exasperation

Step 2: Part the area just above the band, throw pony hair upward then through the hole.

Step 2--But try a little harder than I did to hide the pony,
 give me some credit though, this band has no
stretch left in it

 Step 3: This is the optional part. You can either choose to braid some of your bangs diagonally backward & pin down as if it's flowing into your ponytail OR make a bun out of the pony flowing at your shoulder.  For the bun, simply tuck the pony into the hole above the band.

Step 3 is optional, but the pout sure helps ;)

Okay moving on to number 3!
This is one of my new favorites & it's super simple to do!

Step 1: Separate bangs/*shorter hair that are as close to bangs as you have* from the rest of your hair. Step 2: Put your main hair back into a typical, mid-level pony tail (note, low ponies also look great with this style)
Step 3: Wrap the pony like in Example 1a
Step 4: Braid each side of your "bangs" diagonally. This may take a few attempts to make it look right because diagonal braiding can feel quite uncomfortable! I used Jennifer Lawrence's hair here as my inspiration
Step 5: Bobby pin the braid into the pony tail so that all your hair meets and it looks as if the braid becomes part of the pony tail.

Front view, super simple, but collected

Back View

My favorite side view 

The other side view, where I'm obviously less-talented

 Pony #4: Is very simple, a braided half-headband as sported by Miss Ashley Tisdale, found here via Cosmopolitan, but I put the remaining hair in a half up pony


&& finally #5: A half pony half pouf do. It's my all-time fave hairstyle when a pouf on its own looks like poo.
Step 1: Create pouf & secure with bobby pins
Step 2: Gather hair just above the ears back & secure with a small pony. **Note this pony can be left as a pull-through bun if you want. It give a little extra bounce!

Front view

Side view w/ the bounce

And remember all of these styles can be played around with and morphed together!

Happy styling!!