all the happy couples.

So I realized that yesterday was exactly eight months until my wedding. ahh! I can't believe it!! I feel like I still have so many decisions to make.

I thought I would make this post about who out of my friends are engaged! I am planning to share with you pictures of their bridal parties, bachelorette parties, ceremonies and receptions as they all happen. 

Holly & Ryan

I worked with Holly over this past summer and now we go to school together. [That is until she graduates next week!!]

They recently got engaged and are planning on getting married Summer 2012.

 Lea & Jeremy

Lea is my 3rd cousin, and we graduated from the same high school so we were always close.

They are getting married July 9, 2011.

 Mike & Liz

Mike is one of Kevan's co-workers from his last job, and now a great friend. 

They are getting married May 14, 2011.

Kassi & Michael

I work with Kassi currently.

They are getting married October 2011.

Cara & Doug

Cara is my cousin and got engaged a month before me!

They are getting married August 20, 2011.

[Didn't have a picture handy, Sorry]

Peacock Wedding Theme.

So... Here are the reasons why I think we would be crazy if we didn't do a peacock themed wedding. =]

1. We already have navy blue as one of our wedding colors.

2. My bridesmaid was a peacock for halloween so you know she's on board.

3. I was considering doing a "love birds" theme for a while now.

4. Kevan's grandma has FIVE pet peacocks, so we would be in no feather shortage. 

5. I got an email from the knot last week featuring peacock themed weddings.

Inspiration

Notice my dream shoes in the bottom right of the above picture!! <3

Refer to my post on shoes to learn about these bad boys. =]

http://ashleyandringa.blogspot.com/2010/11/shoes.html

Table

 

Ring Pillow

Bouquet

Boutonniere

Cake

Placecards

Invitations/Stationary

have the cake of your dreams, and eat it too.

Since I work at a catering company, I get the amazing privilege to taste wedding cakes all the time. After one summer, I knew exactly who had the best cakes, which meant, when I got engaged, I knew exactly where I would get my cake. =]

Ryke's Bakery in Muskegon, Michigan

http://www.rykes.com/rykes_weddingcakes.php

When I called to schedule an appointment, the owner informed me that there was a date last August, that she had to turn away over 25 brides because she already had all the cakes she could make. Boy, was I glad I called 11 months early. Carmen and I went the appointment and were blown away at the amount of photos she had for us to look at. I already had a good idea of what I wanted, something simple. I ordered a 4 tiered ivory round cake covered with ivory dots and a strip of gray ribbon around the bottom of each tier. The bottom tier is white cake with raspberry filling, the next smallest tier is chocolate cake with raspberry filling, the next smallest tier is chocolate cake with chocolate filling and the smallest tier is chocolate cake with white bavarian filling. 

Here is an example of something similar to what I ordered.

Just imagine it with gray ribbon instead of green.

Also, I decided on a monogramed cake topper. I ordered this from www.weddingaccessories.net because I found them there for $8.90 which was much cheaper than anywhere else.

Other Cake Topper Ideas

 Funny Cake Toppers

Love Birds Cake Toppers

Custom Made Look Alike Cake Toppers

Mickey Mouse Cake Toppers

Flower Cake Toppers

Metal Cake Toppers

celebrity engagement rings.

Kate Middleton

Britain's next princess

The ring was formerly Princess Diana's engagement ring 

Sapphire surrounded by 14 diamonds

Beyonce

18 carat flawless diamond

Valued at over $5 Million!

Hilary Duff

14-carat diamond engagement ring  

Costing $1 Million!

Jessica Simpson 

A central ruby flanked by two diamonds

Tabloids are questioning if she bought her own engagement ring

Carrie Underwood

8 carat yellow diamond

Worth a reported $800,000

shoes.

Shoe Ideas.

I am a big fan of going the non-traditional route on wedding shoe wear. Here are just a few ideas.

TOMS

www.toms.com/wedding

If you don't know what TOMS is all about, they're slogan is "One for One." For every pair you purchase, TOMS will give a pair of new shoes to a child in need. Wearing their shoes is a nice way to show your guest that you care, and make your special day about more than just you. The pairs of shoes range from $34 to $54 depending on the style you choose. Another great thing is that the shoes can also be your attendant gifts!

CONVERSE

www.converse.com

I think you have to be a certain kind of person for Converse to work in your wedding. But if you do have a style that matches the style of Converse, I think they are SO cute. They don't have a wedding section on their website, but they have tons of choices on their website. You're sure to find something you like. Converse shoes run anywhere between $40 and $65 and can also double as your attendant gifts.

My bridesmaids and I are more heels type of girls so although we love the TOMS idea, we will be wearing our heels! 

I will be wearing blue heels. Here is the dream pair!

Manolo Blahnick Something Blue Satin Pumps

http://www.neimanmarcus.com/store/catalog/prod.jhtml?itemId=prod64820067&parentId=cat17300738&masterId=cat17200748&index=0&cmCat=cat000000cat000141cat000143cat12110741cat17200748cat17300738

$945 at Neiman Marcus 

Not practical at all, but I have found some pretty good knock offs on Ebay. =] So I might have to go that route. If not, I will find different blue pumps. These babies were featured in Sex & the City the movie, which is my all time biggest obsession. ha.

The bridesmaids will be wearing silver shoes with their navy blue dresses. Each will be wearing different shoes, and they will be choosing themselves. 

First trip dress shopping!

Of course the first place we went was David's Bridal [www.davidsbridal.com]. I brought my best friend and maid of honor, Carmen, and my mom to come help me decide.

Since this was my first trip shopping, I didn't really know what to expect. I had looked at their online inventory a little to get a feel for their prices and they matched up pretty well with my budget [$500-600]. I had also been looking through my wedding magazines and getting ideas on what styles I liked and didn't like. 

When we got there, I had to fill out some paperwork, which seemed to be their way of proving I was actually engaged. ha. I guess they get a lot of girls that come in just to try on dresses and waste their time. Next I was assigned a helper. She then asked me what I was thinking I wanted generally and she got me a bra/corset and a poofy skirt and shoes. This was nice, I thought. I had come prepared with my own bra and shoes but they were in no way the correct ones. So I used theirs. 

She brought me out dresses and I tried them on and was loving it. My helper did a great job picking dresses that I liked but after a while, I pulled out their wedding gown catalog and picked 3 more dresses that I wanted to try.

Just to for-warn you brides to be out there, I am a size 2 in jeans, but DEFINITELY was not a 2 in dresses! I ended up trying on size 6 and 8, depending on the dress, but my helper said that was due to the size of my bust. [36C] So don't get discouraged by the larger sizes! 

I think that it's true what a lot of women say, it doesn't truely hit you that you are really getting married until you put a dress on. I loved it. My mom starting crying the second she saw me in the first dress. =]

Here are just a few pictures of the dresses I tried on.

Dress #1

This dress was the first one I tried on. Not quite my style. I don't like the big poofy skirt. But the top is nice. 

 Dress #2

Mikado Gown with Ruffle Back Style T9938

http://www.davidsbridal.com/Product_Mikado-Silk-Gown-with-Ruffle-Back-T9938_Bridal-Gowns-Shop-By-Silhouette-Mermaid-Trumpet

 This gown below was really nice. I was surprised on how much I actually liked it. I always say, No beads, No bling and No lace. Simple is key. But I tried it on anyways. This dress had lots of beading all around the top, but I felt like it was done in a nice way. Not to mention the back of this dress is gorgeous. Didn't fit quite right, but you get the idea.

Dress #3

This dress also had some beading and was nice. I didn't quite like it as much as dress #2, but it was still a nice dress.

Hip detail.

Dress #4

All Over Draped Taffeta Trumpet with Button Back Style P9345

http://www.davidsbridal.com/Product_Allover-draped-taffeta-trumpet-with-button-back.-P9345_Bridal-Gowns-Features-All-Gowns

The below dress was my favorite gown. It is trumpet shape. I loved everything about it except the top. If you look at the third picture you will see what I mean. It is pointed on each side of the top. I would either get it altered into a strait across top or into a sweatheart top. I especially LOVE the buttons down the back of the dress. [they aren't functional, there is a zipper]

We also picked out a bridesmaid dress while we were there. Here is a photo of Carmen wearing it. This one is purple, but we would order it in navy blue. It even has pockets!

Short Charmeuse Dress with Ruched Waist and Pockets Style 83707

http://www.davidsbridal.com/Product_Short-Charmeuse-Dress-with-Ruched-Waist-and-Pockets-83707_Bridal-Party-Features-Most-Popular-Bridesmaids