Today is my Wedding!

Hello Everyone! Today is my Wedding Day!
At 4pm Central Time; I will be walking barefoot in the sand with my Dad at Navarre Beach, Florida to marry my best friend, my rock, the father of my darling daughter, and the one person who has seen me at my best and worst but still loves me.

The island that I'm getting married on is the same island I was proposed to. It's where Bryce and I went on dates. It's where I decided I was moving away from North Carolina to settle at. It's where we announced to my parents Bryce and I were expecting a baby. The white sand on this beach and the emerald waters isn't just a beautiful backdrop for my Wedding, it's the location that so many great memories were made. And many more to come.

I've been asked why did I wait to get married after Hollys birth. I waited because I wanted to feel 100% at my best. I didn't want to feel tired from pregnancy pains or feel uncomfortable about my weight + sore feet. I wanted to be able to celebrate with family and have a true Champagne toast as the sun sets (And eat foods that wouldn't make me feel sick afterwards)! I wanted the photographs taken to reflect Bryce and I in pure confidence. I knew if I was pregnant during my wedding I wouldn't feel confident or truly appreciate all the beautiful images the photographer captures. To some that might be silly but for me it's not. Yes, Holly was born before a marriage license. Yes planning a wedding while raising a infant is a challenge. But that's okay. I rather it be that way than not at all.

I hope everyone has a beautiful Saturday. I hope today everyone finds a reason to smile. I want today to not just be my happiest day but also for whoever is reading this to have a happy day as well.

Thanks again for everyones love and support.
I plan to post a blog of my wedding and as always follow the instagram for photos in the moment.
If you want to help make our wedding magical; donate to wedding registry! Our Honeymoon Fund! Our wedding costs has left us without a beautiful Honeymoon.
 - Pomp and Palms

7 Tips for Wedding Set Up Prep!

I wanted to touch base about some tips for wedding set up prep! This might be an easy topic but I witnessed first hand from my sisters wedding what could happen if you don't have a system planned for wedding set up. Not bashing her wedding, because it turned out beautiful... But she had many opportunities to delegate tasks and many projects was waited until the last minute (which meant MAJOR STRESS!)
If you’re planning a wedding without a wedding planner, please look at these 7 simple tips and try to utilize opportunities to make your wedding hassle free!

Tip One: If you have access to the Venue 24 hours BEFORE the wedding, take advantage of it.
A lot of venues like victorian houses, barns, churches, and some pavilions grant you access 24 hours before the wedding in your contract agreement. Take that day before to decorate! You might not be able to line up the ceremony chairs in the Courtyard but you'll be able to roll out the table cloths and have them steamed or even set up the entry area/gift table beforehand.

Tip Two: Rehearsal dinner is a good time to prep.
If having the rehearsal dinner at the venue take that chance to set up small things. For example: the venue my sister rented we had the rehearsal dinner there. It was the perfect opportunity to get some decorations in place especially with groomsmen around that can move tables. If planned properly she could’ve had the entire indoor area set up the night before!

Tip Three: Box and Label properly.
Items that go on the sign in table, flowers + candles that go on the fireplace mantel, decor for each of the dinning tables, and photographs that are to be placed in the foyer - have the boxes of items stored in labeled and easy to set up.

Tip Four: Map it out.
I literally hand drew my pavilion and the set up I wanted. Then I'm able to hand it to the 'set up team' and know they'll be able to place things with ease!

Tip Five: Do a mock set up and take pictures or draw it out!
Just like having mock hair and makeup pictures for the big day, do this for the table center pieces and how you hope the Sign In area to be. You can set it up in your house and send the pictures to the 'set up team' along with a drawn layout to give ideas.

Tip Six: Delegate Tasks in an appropriate manner.
When assigning who is to set up what make sure it's an area you've went over thoroughly with him/her and a area that person can handle (so don't give your pregnant bridesmaid the job of hanging lanterns in a tree). If you assign the tasks off to members who can handle it, you'll be happy with the outcome. Also assign tasks at appropriate times. Don’t expect your bridal party to be setting up the reception hall when they should be getting dressed.

Tip Seven: Don't do it yourself.
Many brides have the “It'll only look good if I do it” mind set (cough cough, my sister). Though that might be true, it's your wedding day and you need to be relaxing and getting beautiful with your mother and bridal squad! Put trust in other family and friends; if something isn't 100% perfect it's okay! Life isn't perfect.

What am I doing? In the beginning I planned to have a few friends of Bryce’s family set up the wedding reception with my mom and Bryces aunt. I hand drawn the pavilion layout, snapped photos of mock table arrangements, and purchased crates labeled where the items go with the EXACT number of items needed for that location. I found out yesterday (September 13th) that a relative has paid a decorator to do the entire set up and to direct guests where to go and monitor non-guests from tampering the decor. I’m extremely grateful for this generous gift of having someone create my vision for me so my family can enjoy the day. 

What NOT to Buy at Forever 21

Last Saturday I made a post about What to Buy from Forever 21 (Click here to see that post!!!). Today's post will be the opposite; what not to buy from Forever 21. These are the items I regret purchasing or had negative results from.

1. Jewelry
Forever 21 has some adorable Jewelry designs. The issue is the jewels are good for 1-3 wears. I highly recommend NOT getting the jewelry wet! I've had rings turn my fingers green after one night of wearing, and I've had earring + necklaces tarnish after 2 wears.

2. Cosmetics (Mascara, Lipstick, Nail Polish, Etc)
The F21 brand of beauty goods isn't the best. They do sell ELF products but the ELF cosmetics are cheaper at Walmart or Target verses the price at F21. I recommend investing in CoverGirl before F21 Beauty.

3. Swimwear
Swim is a hit/miss. I've had some good swim purchases but I've had some bad. I suggest trying on first (swim is non-refundable).

4. Anything with beads or rhinestones
A sparkly dress is cute but the quality isn't. I've had so many issues with anything from Forever 21 that has stones, jewels, buttons, etc. I try to avoid them at all cost.

5. Undergarments
The Undergarments are not Victoria's Secret or Target quality. I overall avoid and just invest in the higher price items.

6. Cheap Fashion Shoes
Just like the Jewelry, Forever21 comes up with some adorable shoe styles. But I've had MANY fails. A pair of look-a-like Steve Madden sandals turned out dyeing my feet black. And the strappy wedges ended up coming apart after 2 wears.

7. Denim
The Denim is a hit/miss. I've had issues with their black denim from the dye smell being too strong and rubbing dye into my leather seats. But I've had some success in their denim boyfriend fit shorts! I recommend trying on before purchasing.

8. Any Clothing that is a "Fab" trend or Quickie Trend
These are the items that are only popular in the moment and after a month or two it'll be 'old news'. These items the company mass produced as quickly as possible just to make a quick buck but didn't take the time to test quality standards. Anything that you see a A-list celebrity rock one minute but never again, this a quickie trend. Example:

I hope this list of "duds" helps with your next Forever 21 shopping experience!
- Pomp and Palms

Wedding Photos

Wedding photos are super important. The photographs collected will be a key item to reflect on from that beautiful day. These photos you'll show your daughter when she's a little girl and she will admire how beautiful her mother looked in a white gown. Not to mention, photographers are super costly. So like many brides, you want to get the photos right.

Question: How should you shop for a photographer?
Finding a photographer isn't a walk in the park. You need to view the photographer just like the venue or baker. You need to see their work, hear what their strengths + weaknesses are (Everyone has a weakness and if someone says they don't, you MUST walk away), you need to communicate with the photographer and see if she/he is someone who understands your vision but also a person you're comfortable talking to, and of course the price needs to be within your budget.

In my opinion, the photographer should get to know you and your family. After shooting your wedding it shouldn't be just a person but more like a friend. If the photographer just views you as a paycheck or a job, it's not going to be a good match. There's no bond. The photographer needs to truly care for the client and strive to capture the most beautiful moments from this important day.

What did I do? When deciding on my photographer I didn't care if the photographs were 5 star quality.... YOU HEARD IT HERE, I'm okay with some flaws. I wanted the trust and support to be 5 star. 
I had quite a few options. All were very costly and some did chip the price. The person I selected was one who didn't just know Bryce's family but she lived in the same neighborhood. She watched Bryce grow up and she was honored to be asked if she can help with the wedding. She does photography on the side and admits to a weakness; she hasn't done wedding photos in awhile. But she offered many perks that no one else did: to take family photos a few weeks before for free so we can get to know her, to do the ceremony and reception + if we want to have more photos done another day she'll gladly do them, and to take us to other parts of the island for different style photos. Lastly, she loves Holly and wants to spend time with her.

This one I love. It's actually from this part of Florida so I have a good idea on how the water and sand will look. I hope Anita can get a photo like this with the sun setting.

This is another photo I really like. I want to get photos of us in the water SUPER bad. Of course, these are hard to do because the dress is getting wet. We might take these on a separate day.

Question: Should you give the Photographer pictures you want to recreate? 
Yes and No.
I told Anita (my photographer) I have photos from Pinterest to show her and maybe she can recreate them or something similar. She told me that's ONE THING a photographer should be honest with: recreating an exact photo you find on Pinterest is about impossible (photoshop, the time of day and location, the style of camera, presets, etc are all factors). I appreciated she told me the photos I collected might not 100% look the same as mine but she said she will do some of her creative work to make something beautiful.
She DID suggest for me to write down any photo line ups I want.
For Example: Who did I want included in family photos? Do I want to have photos with only parents or photos with siblings partners? Did I want Holly in all my photos or would I prefer to keep her out of some? Would I want photos of random guests?
She also suggested that I look at her usual schedule for Wedding Day photos and see if I want to omit any of it (I’m not having a bridal party so I don’t need 45 minutes invest in photos of bridesmaids getting ready and I’m getting ready at Bryce’s Sisters salon; might want to omit hair and makeup prep photos).

I hope this gave some good information on Photographer shopping and Wedding photos. The images shown I found on Pinterest and are the ones I plan to show my Photographer to see if we can do something similar.
- Pomp and Palms

What to Buy From Forever 21

Stores like Forever 21 are always so exciting to shop in, but some items are not worth purchasing. The fast fashion brand is simply known for making items fast and constantly trying to keep up with current trends. The quality isn't going to be the same as Department stores or Specialty Boutiques. I've shopped the F21 brand since early high school and had my fair share of F21 fails. Luckily, I've had some amazing purchases before too!
Todays post is listing out the 'BEST - bang for your buck' items at Forever 21!

1. Socks
Forever 21 has some great deals on socks. And the quality is surprisingly top notch. I always go for the basic packs that have 4-5 pairs of neutral color socks. The fun printed socks are always a stocking stuffer gift for my gal-pals.

2. Leggings
For $3.90 you can get a pair of basic leggings. And the thing is, I'm currently wearing a pair of F21 leggings that I purchased over a year ago! On office days or gym time - I'm in F21 leggings. NOTE: I size up in them. When I purchase TTS; they fall apart quicker.

3. Tee Shirt Dresses
Most of the Tee Shirt Dresses range in price from 9.90-24.90 (depends on the fabric and print). I've been very pleased with all the Tee Shirt Dresses. I follow the washing instructions and so far, no complaints.

4. Boyfriend Fit Cardigans/Sweaters
I will say when purchasing a Cardi or Sweater make sure its not itchy! Overall I would buy from here before going somewhere else.

5. Real Leather Shoes
From time to time Forever 21 will have a designer collection of nice quality shoes and handbags. (it's normally in the fall/winter time in the form of boots). I suggest trying them on first but I have a pair of Forever21 boots (real leather) that I've had for 4 years and still my go-to boot. Best part, I only spent $29.00.

6. Hair ties, Makeup Towelettes, Face Masks, Beauty Sponges
These items hold up well. I've used all of these before and still have them in my accessory/beauty drawer. They also make great stocking stuffer gifts too.

I hope this post helps on your next Forever21 shopping visit! Next Saturday post will be: What NOT to buy from Forever 21!
- Pomp and Palms

Wedding DIY Projects

Weddings on a budget require some creative tricks, a little trip to Hobby Lobby and a tall glass of wine (or beer). AKA: the Wedding DIY projects! You'll be so surprised at how much money you can save if you take a weekend to do some crafting. My goal is to keep my wedding budget as low as possible so I scouted my Pinterest boards for some wedding decor ideas.

Can you DIY for any style of Wedding?
Of course! Glitzy wedding, Rustic wedding, Halloween theme wedding, Beach wedding, etc. I believe all wedding theme/styles have DIY projects. Todays post I will show you all the DIY projects I'm doing for my Seaside Destination Wedding. Many of these projects can be altered to fit any wedding theme/style. And I'm more than happy to give further details if needed!

1. Table Center Pieces.
I decided my center pieces will be a table runner, some shells + drift wood, a few flowers, and battery power candles. I was shocked to see the florist was going to charge me over $750 to do 6 tables! With this center piece I designed, I was able to DIY it for under $200 (some of the shells and drift wood I found on the beach!) After my wedding I will post images of the finished product on a special blog post. 

So shells was purchased in bundles.

I sorted and cleaned some of the shells to get an idea of how I want my arrangements to look.

I have quite a few extra large shells. Here’s some for example. I plan to tissue paper wrap these in a crate.

My super delicate shells like small sand dollars, urchins, and unique rare pieces I used tackle boxes to store.

2. Guest Sign In Book.
I decided to do a creative Sign In Book. I found this wooden shadow box frame for $5.00. I'm going to glue a few shells on the front and paint inside the shadow box. I bought a pack of wooden hearts for only $3.00 and will have guest write their names on them! I will have images of this after my wedding on a special blog post.

3. Paper Lanterns with Lights.
I found some paper lanterns for $11.90 (for 6 in a pack) and these lovely battery power lights that I'm going to stuff into the lanterns then hang them throughout the pavilion for a romantic and beachy feel.

4. Shell Aisle Runner.
I love Sea Stars. So I had to add them to my ceremony. I plan to have the sea stars line the wedding aisle. Each Sea Star only cost $1-3 dollars each and after the wedding I plan to use them for another project. * I was lucky enough to find Sugar Starfish's to use. These are very rare to find now because of the disease that's killing off the breed. I'm very blessed to have them for my wedding.*

5. Guest Favor Boxes.
I really wanted my guest to leave my Seaside wedding feeling loved and with some memory of the beach. I found these coral boxes for $4.99 (24 per pack), some Sand dollar "Sea Cookies" for $4.00 (a basket with 50-75), and this Jute $3.00. Inside the box I'm putting Sugarfina gummy tester packs $2.50 per pack. I'm going to tie the rope to keep the box secure and then glue a shell on top.

1. Supplies. Sugafina gummy tester, Jute, shells, and 2x2 gift boxes.

2. Once assembled the box I placed the gummy pack inside and decided on which shells will be insides the box and with on the outside.

3. This is how I visualized which shells will look best. I tied the Jute and then placed the shell options until I was satisfied.

The finished product! I mixed the shells and did some different looks but each box has 3-4 shells, 3 small square pieces of tissue paper in sea foam blue, and a Sugarfina gummy pack!

6. Cake Topper.
My Cake Topper cost under $5.00! The two wooden beach chairs were only $1.00 each, the paint was on clearance for $0.75 (the bottle had lost some paint), and the 2 shells I purchased in a giant jumbo pack and once I did the math the shells were only $0.75 each. I had some leftover wooden hearts and my sister wrote "Mr" and "Mrs" with some pens she had in a drawer. * The image below is the example I channeled when creating mine (I will post photos after my wedding) These are an Etsy set that's priced at $35.00 while mine is totaled to cost under $5.00* After my wedding I will post images of the finished product on a special blog post.

7. Dust the Sand Off Your Feet Brushes with Jars OR Jars for Silverware
This is a cute idea I found on Pinterest but I plan to make it 3x more budget friendly. I have some mason jars that I found at a thrift store for 5 cents each! I'm going to wrap some of the Jute rope from the other projects around them and glue a shell on the jars. I considered using these jars to hold the brushes in OR for Silverware holders! I found some brushes from dollar tree (obviously they were $1.00) but to add some extra detail I plan to wrap some of the Jute rope. I might even add a shell or two just for fun.

1. Mason Jar, Jute, and Tacky glue. Simply glue the Jute to the jar.

2. Added some beautiful medium- large size shells for the perfect utensil jars!

Other DIY projects
8. Food Trays
My family and I are preparing food trays and using our Sam's Club cards to get the food in bulk. We have some fun different style platters to display the food on and surprisingly a lot of the trays are from the dollar store! We're going to make custom style tooth picks with little shells glued on the tops and have a jar to collect all the shells afterwards for other projects.

9. Rentals
We plan to rent all the chairs, the arbor, and a few tables. My family is pretty amazing and said some friends will help set the reception up in exchange for a beer and snack. For the entire ceremony chairs, arbor, arbor decor it ended up being $600 (this was the most costly part of my wedding). After my wedding I will post images of the finished product on a special blog post.

10. Wedding bouquet
My mom and sister are going to help me create my wedding bouquet. The ceremony vendor is sending photos of what the arbor arrangements look like and we'll mimic the look. We did the math and this should cost no more than $25.00. After my wedding I will post images of the finished product on a special blog post.

After my wedding is over I plan to be 100% authentic with you all and show how much the wedding cost. I will pin point the most expensive parts for any of my brides-to-be that needs a good budget spreadsheet idea. Being straight forward right now... The most expensive part about my Destination Beach Wedding has been the rentals (like I said I will give a spreadsheet of the totals once the Wedding is complete!) 

Simple Guide to Trends for Fall + Winter 2018

Fall is here and everyone is scouting every media outlet for the fashion forecast. As a gal with a super busy schedule my best option was looking online for a "Simple Guide" to the fashion forecast but was unsuccessful at finding one.
The guides I found ranged from 200+ images that literally had every end of the spectrum of styles or blogs that was only trends that Author likes (which is cool except what if there's a trend she didn't like but I would?).
Am I the only gal that wants a clean list of what the trend forecast is and a few images of looks. Then I can select which trends will suit me...?

Since I hit this brick wall I thought I would do the homework and create what I was searching for in case anyone else would prefer a “Simple Guide" for the Fall + Winter trends!
Below you'll see trend collages to give some inspo. (all images were found on Bazaar's website from the Paris, London, and Milan Fall 2018 Fashion Week)
I'll also make a list of other trending styles in addition to the inspo collages - then when its time to hit the shops for your new Fall + Winter wardrobe pieces you'll know exactly what to shop for!

Hope you enjoy
Stay Sunny!
- Britt

Additional Trends
- Shearling Coats
- Soft Lilac color
- Denim sets
- Ruching
- Corduroy
- Sequins
- Anything Magenta color
- Ponchos
- Pokie Dot prints
- Logos are back!!!!

As always, follow the Instagram and the official Facebook Page for The Pomp and Palms!
If you have any questions please leave a comment or send a message on any of the pages!

Catering for Weddings

My favorite thing about weddings is food. My least favorite thing about planning my wedding... Food! I can't believe how costly it can be! I keep having to go back to the drawing board and re-balance my budget. Today I'll give some tips on how I decided on the Food/Catering budget.

Deciding on what type of food to Cater.

This is where you have to ask your family what type of reception were you having. If you're doing a relaxed 'come and go' reception you won't need to order a massive 4 course meal service. If you were only wanting a dessert theme reception then obviously, you get to grab the dessert menu! One of my favorites is a brunch theme! I also enjoyed the 'family style BBQ' theme my neighbor Amanda had. The importance on decided what style of reception you'll be having is so you can target the right Catering service and focus solely on that style of menu.

How to shop for a Caterer:

- Read reviews online!

- Check local websites and do local google searches near where your venue is! (you don't want to pay an additional travel cost!)

- Visit grocery stores! A lot of grocery stores now do catering.

- Check out your favorite restaurants and see what service they provide.

What to Ask a Caterer:

- Options of food?

- Pricing by tiers or types of food?

- Are they including drinks in the pricing?

- Is there a pouring fee with Alcohol?

- Last date you can confirm guest number?
- Is this a buffet line or a sit down and waiters will bring out the courses?

What did I do? I'm having a "Cocktail Style Reception". This means I plan to have drinks (Wine, Beer, and some non-alcoholic choices), Some simple food trays: Fruit tray, Veggie Tray, Meat Tray, Meat balls, small finger sandwiches, and for dessert Cake and Cookies. 
I wanted to keep my reception simple and wasn't wanting to have a full Dinner for everyone. This was because of price + we're going to be out on the beach! My goal is to have the food compliment the beach vibes so super chill and relaxing. 

Wedding Hair and Makeup

As I've been planning my wedding I kept throwing 'hair and makeup' on the back burner. But lately I've caught myself staying up till midnight on Pinterest searching hair styles and makeup looks. The hard part isn't visualizing how the look will turn out but deciding what is best for the location.

A very important thing to remember when selecting hair and makeup is your venue location. 

Is the event in a hot area? A cold area? Is it indoors? Or outdoors? Will you be doing a lot of dancing and moving? Or do you plan to relax and talk? 

Since I'm getting married on the beach it might not be best to have a ton of makeup on. (No Air-conditioning, sunshine + sweat, if we do pictures with water splashing... yeah, messy makeup!). Hair is very similar to makeup. Being outside in the sun and the ocean breeze certain hairstyles might not hold up as well as others. 

Hair Options

This is option one: having my hair down and wavy with some pieces pinned up.

This is option two: It's more of a updo but still relaxed and has a beachy feel.

Makeup Options:

This first makeup option is very sparkly. I like the eye lid color cause it has that beach bronze glow.

My second makeup option is more of a soft smokey eye.  I like that its not dark and has those earthy brown neutral tones. I also enjoy this look cause its not as sparkle glittery.

Next is deciding to do it yourself or hire someone.

Many girls now stick to watching a few youtube videos or having a girlfriend come by and help them style for the wedding. This is definitely the more affordable option and also gives you a chance to create a look that is authentic to you and using the products you already own and trust.

Then the other option is hiring. When having your wedding hair and makeup appointments tell the stylist where your location will be, what time of year, and what all is going on. She can help create a look that will hold up for the entire event. Once she does have you hair styled walk around with it, stand in front of a fan or toss your hair around to see how the look holds up. If you notice something doesn't feel right - rework it. By the time you leave your appointment make sure you're 100% in love the entire look and confident in the look lasting through the ceremony and reception. Another great tip is to do a look that in 20 years you won't regret. Instead of sticking to big beauty trends go for a look that will last a lifetime but also a look that truly represents you. 

What am I doing? I plan to have Bryce's sister Blair do my hair and help me with some of the makeup. She is a hair and makeup stylist. I also plan to use all my own products cause I'm comfortable using the brands that my skin is used to.