Things to Do After He Proposed

Congratulations and welcome to the hitched club!

Go on and pop the bubbly, because the first thing you should do is to bask in the joy of being promoted from mere girlfriend to THE ONE and only fiancée.

fiancee shirt

Photo from Etsy

When your heartbeat has finally gone down to its normal rate, here is a list of things to do to after you got engaged.

1. Set a wedding date.

This is very important to do before anything else, because it allows you to determine necessary details for the rest of the items on your to-do list.

Some things to think about:

  • Do you want a summer, winter, autumn or a spring wedding?
  • Do you want a longer or shorter engagement?
  • Do you want the date to be easily remembered? (i.e. 8-18-18)
  • Is your wedding officiant available on that date?

Set your chosen date but also be open to the possibility that you may need to move it depending on certain factors later on.

 2. Inform family and close friends and prepare for forever.

Take this opportunity to show off the bling to your babes! Share your happiness to everyone close to you and have an open ear for their tips and pieces of advice. It may also be a good idea to seek pre-marital counsel from older married couples or from professionals. Keep in mind that your wedding is a one-day affair but marriage is a life-time commitment. So don’t just prepare for the wedding day but prepare for forever.

 

wedding rings photography

Photo by Macy Yap

3. Plan a budget and stick to it.

Or not. =D Budgeting for a wedding is such a tricky matter to discuss and things can get out of hand pretty fast. Make sure you take time to sit down with your partner to set priorities and manage expectations.

Some things to consider:

  • What do you want to happen on your wedding day?
  • What are the major elements that should be allocated more funds into?
  • How many people do you want to invite?
  • Do you want to hire a coordinator or do you prefer DIY?

Most often than not, there will be unexpected expenses along the way so it’s better to save some funds for those things, too.

Wedding Saving Funds

4. Book the venue.

After you have (more or less) finalized the budget, it’s time to scout for a place to celebrate. The location can be anywhere – at a hotel, on a yacht, in your backyard or at the community church. Any place can be dressed up to be as dandy, as romantic, and as elegant as a wedding should be.

Some things to consider:

  • Do you want to be indoor or outdoor?
  • What theme or look are you after?
  • Are there ample spaces for a photo shoot after the ceremony?
  • Is it accessible to all your guests?
rustic wedding theme

Photo from Union Hill

5. Finalize the entourage list.

Now that you said yes to your man, it’s time for another proposal- not to another bride but to your future bridesmaids and groomsmen! Go on and ask the question “Will you be my…?” Say it with gifts or organize a pamper session with your besties.

groomsmen gifts

Personalized Bridesmaid and Groomsmen Gifts from Etsy

6. Go hunting for the dress.

Now ladies, do not make this a stressful occasion. It can be a fun moment you and your mom, sisters, and/or bridesmaids can bond over with. Look for inspiration in magazines, on social media, and even your mom’s closet. Not all body shapes are the same though, so it’s important to try every cut you’re eyeing on before saying yes to that dress.

Some things to ask yourself:

  • Are you into classic or avant-garde?
  • Will you dance with it or change into something else?
  • Will it look good with a long veil or a headdress?
  • Do you have time and budget for major alterations?

7. Send e-invites and save the dates.

Once all the major items on your wedding list have been ticked off, it’s time to tell everybody else. There are so many ways you can inform your guests about your upcoming wedding. You can create a Facebook page or send e-invites or even a video clip if you want to save trees and cost.

Some things to note:

  • Send save the dates as soon as you locked in your wedding date and booked the venue.
  • This is not a formal invite so make sure you put a note that the real invitation will follow.
  • Not everyone gets a save the date; 1 household = 1 save the date (and invitation).
Wedding Save the Date

Save the Date Cards from the Roche Shop

Yes, there are still more things to do after this list but you can then breathe and relax a bit, for you have already accomplished the major tasks. Don’t do everything on your own; remember to ask help and get input from your future groom as well.

May the road be smooth and beautiful to your happy ever after!
Xx

Tips on How To Give Meaningful Gifts

When you find yourself not knowing how and what to give, just remember these simple pieces of advice.

Wedding welcome gifts

1. Gift what you love.
Get something you would love to receive yourself. In almost all cases, whatever you value yourself is what others would find worthy, too.

Groomsmen wedding gift

2. Make it personal.
There are so many ways to personalize – by engraving gifts with names or monograms & customizing labels and prints.

Groomsmen socks with personalized labelsJack Daniel whiskey custom labels

3. Hand write messages. 
Nothing beats good old handwritten letters that come from the heart.

Personalized gift tags calligraphy

To His Manness: Gifts for Our Dads, Best Man and Groomsmen

We’ll be honest – when we began curating gifts for Jules & Joy, we only had the ladies in mind most of the time. We were mostly just conceptualizing the best bridesmaids’ kit or that customized beauty gift box for brides and their mothers. Not until we started receiving custom orders for groomsmen and best men gifts that we realized that hey, men need some boxes of tlc too! :p

best man gift

The best gift for your best man

groomsmen gifts

In time for father’s day, we also collected some neat items that our own fathers and the dads in our lives will be glad to keep in their man caves!
father's day gifts

personalized fathers day gifts

Personalized Father’s Day Gifts:

  • Good ol’ Whisky
  • Stainless Steel Beer Mug
  • Personalized Leather Luggage Tag
  • Engraved Pen
  • Monogrammed Argyle Socks

gift for dad

man cave items

 

Happy father’s day to all the awesome and strong daddies out there! Xx

Prepping Up for A Bridal Fair

The wedding season is here and we are more than delighted to celebrate with and serve our new brides to be and engaged couples. Of course this also means the coming of a myriad of wedding shows and bridal fairs and expos happening around the city. As much as we want to join every bridal show there is, we only intend to choose the ones that we can identify with.

Last February, we showcased our custom wedding gifts for the first time at the Swank Wedding Show. This month we will be at the Croatian Cultural Centre along with other wedding vendors for the Bridal Swap event.

“The Original Bridal Swap is a unique concept bringing together Past Brides, Décorators, Craft Artisans and other Sellers who have wedding related goods, with Brides to Be in a fun environment who are on the hunt for their perfect wedding treasures and dresses.”

As a (recent) past bride myself, I think the event concept is perfect! It creates a community of people who willingly share unique items and ideas to help the next bride celebrate her most important day.

Here is a sneak peak of some of the items Jules & Joy will bring in to this fair.bridal fair

These Kraft boxes with a white rose and tulle on the lid are perfect to house mini favors and treats.

kraft favor boxes

First dibs into a limited number of gift boxes, pretty packaging, ribbons, and sweet little things (all budget-friendly) will be available for the early birds. Get your Bridal Swap Van tickets here.
jules and joy gifts

A Gifting Station will also be set up so people can pick and choose items and customize their own gifts.

customize gift station

Hope to see you all there! =)
mini wedding favors