Now that we've changed our plans, the "Cast Away" theme unfortunately no longer works for us. I have the following items for sale:

8 Brand new orange beach bags. Originally purchased for $7 each from another bride. NOW ONLY $2 each! I just need to clear up some space. Buyer pays shipping.

I have this great treasure box. Its great for a guest book! NOW ONLY $5!

These barefoot sandals were made by me for our beach wedding. Unfortunately i have no use for them now. NOW ONLY $5!

Have approximately 10 Green Paper lanterns (4 smaller ones, and 6 large ones)

NOW ONLY $1 EACH!

Have a pineapple wax seal (brand new, never used!) NOW ONLY $5!

Never used LED lights (on batteries). NOW ONLY $1 EACH! I have 3 packages of 4.

Cute orange and pink buckets (mini). Would be great for holding signing pens, or anything else that is pretty small. NOW ONLY $2 EACH!

Our story may not be the most romantic and not that unusual, but special to me nonetheless. We met in high school and became the very best of friends.

We stayed friends through University, and during second year Mike told me that he wanted to be with me. I, being the typical girl, decided that I didn't want to ruin our friendship. Six months later I still not convinced. Before we were due to leave for Quebec City (a fun roadtrip), Mike wrote a heartfelt letter that expressed how much he loved me. I was so touched that I wrote him a letter back saying that I was willing to try, but he had to promise that if it didn't work we could go back to being friends. Well, I don't have to say that we never had to face that problem!

The Proposal

We were on our 3 week Peru trip - it was amazing. I had no thoughts of a proposal, even though we've been together for the past 5 years. One day I was packing our daytime bags and had to empty everything out. I found a glasses container, and being the curious creature that I am, I opened it. I found the ring pictured on the left.

Instead of coming up with some story (i.e our anniversary present) Mike told me he wanted to propose to me at the top of Machu Picchu (an ancient city on top of a mountain) but now that I ruined it he couldn't do it anymore. I was mortified! I ruined my own proposal and it was going to happen in some crappy hotel room with this ring (that was costume jewellery). Until the end of the trip, I pretended nothing happened, and kept emphasizing that we were not engaged. Little did I know that Mike had plan A all along.

The Bling

My beautiful, custom made ring. Mike designed it all by himself, without any hints, or much help from anyone. He did send one of my best friends to spy on me, and when she came back with "She wants a pearl engagement ring", he decided to take matter into his own hands.

He was certain on the emeralds (which I love), and fell in love with this pear-shaped diamond (which I love even more!). It couldn't be more perfect - I frequently catch myself staring at it in the sunlight!

Here is a close up of the ring - i love it and can't stop taking pictures of it :) 

Plan A

On our way back from the airport, I was tired from a red-eye flight, hungry and in need of a major shower. Also, we were trying to decide whether or not to tell our friends and family about the ruined surprised, since some of them already knew about it.

We finally get into our building, get to the 20th floor, and all I want to do is collapse on the couch. I open the door and flowers and champagne on our dining room table catch my eye. Mike goes over there, retrieves the box and says: "I did have one question one to ask you. Will you marry me?" There could only be one answer after that.

So with everything going on in Haiti, we decided to cancel our Dominican Republic destination wedding. I was pretty upset, since i would have loved to have sand underneath my toes and palm trees in the background. However, we came up with an amazing idea. We will be doing a mini Destination Wedding in the Niagra on the Lake region, at a local winery.

I am super excited about the idea, since wine and I are practically best friends! We had to push our date till September, but that means i have 8 months of planning ahead of me. So exciting! :)

Niagara on the Lake

I can't wait for our mini destination in Niagara on the Lake! or, i should say a small town of Lincoln. We are potentially looking at this venue (i love it!), and hoping to put down a deposit in the next two weeks.

Inn on the Twenty and Cedar Springs Winery (from Vintage design company, and our own photos)

Soure:Kostel Photo

Colour Scheme

Since our venue already has yellow, grey and blue going, i figured there would be no reason to fight it and embrace it instead! Here are some suggestions from lovely PW's:

Google images:

Ceremony

We will be having a Jewish ceremony, and will need a Chuppah. I am loving the clean lines of these chuppas, and was thinking of perhaps adding a splash of yellow fabric on the sides:

Our Centerpieces:

I bought 12 Mason jars and our centerpieces will have low flowers, like garden roses and hydrangeas in soft yellows and whites.

My mom is making grey runners for the tables, and they will look something like this (from Vintage Design company):

Invitations

I came across this amazing invite from printablepress.com and absolutely love the feel of it for our wedding. This is definitely my inspiration - we'll see how it turns out with our wedding colours and all!

I also love the French chic of this look:

Final Invitations!

Our Wedding Day Menus:

I cut all 80 of these menus by hand :) The black outline is the outline i cut out (it's against a white background, so it's hard to tell).

Table Numbers:

They still fit our silhouette theme, but with a funny twist. They are all cartoon couples :)

Ceremony Programs:

Here is my inspiration for the ceremony programs. Since our ceremony will be outside, i wanted to make sure people weren't hot - therefore, the brilliant combination of program ceremony and fan. Just need to make these now:

The completed product!

Mr and Mrs Signs

I would love to do this for our chairs - so cute!

found here

The Dress

Here is my gorgeous Pronovias dress. I absolutely love it!

Some more photos - was trying on a veil:

First fitting!

This is the type of veil i am considering because of PW advice! Can't wait to see if my mom can make it :)

Final Fitting

There are just a few little things that she needs to fix in the hip area, but i am liking how its turning out!

Additional Attire

Here are the dresses my girls will wear! I am looking for a yellow bolero jacket for them to put over during the ceremony. I think it will look great!

Also, here is my mom's dress! She'll look gorgeous :)

I convinced by FI that we HAD to get the marriage license together. It just wouldn't have been the same if only one of us was there. Then, i convinced him i HAD to take a picture for PW :) A funny note: the lady at the counter handed us the license and said: "Well, your life is over". She must really love her job.

My Complete DIY List:

• Thank you Parasol - Done! Pic below
• Barefoot Sandals - Done! Sadly i won't be using these, since our ceremony is no longer on the beach.
• Will you be my bridesmaid cards - Done!
• Invites - Done!
  
• Birdcage box - Almost done as of Aug 6, 2010
  
• Veil - Done by my mom!
• Table numbers - Done! 
• Canvas Guest Book - Done!
  
• Guest book - Almost Done.
  
• Placecards - still need to do
• Bridal Door Hanger - Done!
• Aisle runner with our monogram - Done!
  
• Favour boxes with labels and ribbon - Done
  
• Ceremony programs (fans) - Done!
  
• Table Runners - Done by my mom
  
• Pearl Bracelet - Almost done
  
• Rose petal cones - Almost Done!
  
• Bridal hanger - need to do!
  

Barefoot Sandals  

Veil

Runner with a Monogram:

Favour Boxes:

Rose Petal Cones:

I found a template online for these, and stll need to decorate them, but here they are in the unfinished version:

Instructions here: http://www.craftjr.com/wedding-favors-valentines-day-heart-gift-box-cones/

Canvas Guest Book:

Bridal Door hanger:

Here are a few of my favourites - although it was so hard to pick!

Since we are doing a mini destination wedding in Niagara on the Lake, most vendors will be from there:

Ceremony Location: Cedar Springs Vineyard, Jordan

Reception Location: Inn on the Twenty, Jordan

DJ: Not confirmed yet

Dress: AmandaLina boutique (Toronto, Canada)

Photography: Not confirmed yet

Flowers: JDLeggans for silk flowers (for DOminican Wedding). Now that we are doing something locally, i am considering Vintage Designs.

Decor (chuppah): Simply Beautiful Decor (not yet confirmed)

So exciting!