Save the Dates

We have a date! 30 May 2010. A bank holiday weekend. I like the sound of it! And the countdown begins!

Without much time for baking cake with all this wedding planning, the pen and paper aspect of this blog will come out more. That is, if I continue to post wedding things on this blog. I'm not entirely sure what to do. This stuff probably isn't interesting to any of you (to be frank, even I'm getting bored of it), but I would like to record my planning somewhere. I have set up another blog but am not sure whether to use it. Opinions appreciated. For now though, let me post our Save the Dates. These will only be going out to guests in England and abroad, but not to anyone in Israel (since presumably they won't need much prior notice). I intend to include an insert with hotel info and flight info. Or mayble I'll attach a sticker to the back with that info. That is for the weekend. For now, here's the finished product. I think they will match our outdoor venue, and our colour scheme is dark brown and ivory. See, I already sound like those people. A colour scheme, honestly!

Save the Dates

We have a date! 30 May 2010. A bank holiday weekend. I like the sound of it! And the countdown begins!

Without much time for baking cake with all this wedding planning, the pen and paper aspect of this blog will come out more. That is, if I continue to post wedding things on this blog. I'm not entirely sure what to do. This stuff probably isn't interesting to any of you (to be frank, even I'm getting bored of it), but I would like to record my planning somewhere. I have set up another blog but am not sure whether to use it. Opinions appreciated. For now though, let me post our Save the Dates. These will only be going out to guests in England and abroad, but not to anyone in Israel (since presumably they won't need much prior notice). I intend to include an insert with hotel info and flight info. Or mayble I'll attach a sticker to the back with that info. That is for the weekend. For now, here's the finished product. I think they will match our outdoor venue, and our colour scheme is dark brown and ivory. See, I already sound like those people. A colour scheme, honestly!

Headpiece

Dress

Time with the girls and dress shopping

It was a bit strange being in Israel for 8 days after the engagement and not being able to be with my girls. I really wanted to be with them and share the exciting news.

On my first night back Lizzie hosted a dinner for me! It was so much fun and I was really touched! She even opened a bottle of champagne!



My contribution? Cake with a huge hole in it! Something went very wrong!

It was such a fun evening and I felt so lucky to be celebrated by my friends in that way. Miri moved her guitar lesson to be there! Kate bought me a beautiful gift and I felt so spoiled! Thanks girls - love you.

Then, the following day, came a day I had been looking forward to forever: dress shopping. I had made three appointments and Katie and Miri would be coming with me. I had already spotted a dress I liked in Israel so it was a question of seeing how others would compete.

Seriously, parts of the day were ridiculous. Comments like 'this is the bestest finest..', consultants talking to me about fabric terms as though I knew what they meant, general snootiness and the use of every sales pitch in the bridal industry book: 'when Marc sees you walking down the aisle, what do you want him to see'... using my fiance's name in every sentence... witty. We certainly needed some food breaks - it was exhausting.







But the last shop was the best. The consultant would not let me try on a dress I wanted to try, saying it would look bad on me. Now, there are dresses I tried on that day that I didn't think did much for me, but I'm not the largest gal and since I didn't try on dresses that are slinky, most dresses looked okay, if not spectacular, on me. She told me that one dress I did try looked 'awful' on me. Others would have found her rude; I found her comical. Then she insisted I try on this hideous monstrosity encrusted with diamonds and shiny beads when I specifically said that I wouldn't wear anything with sparkle. She would not let it drop but I still flat out refused!

The last appointment of the day was Katie's. We had looked for her dress already and were going in to order it. It was so lovely so see her so excited, happy and radiant. We received champagne (twice in two days, I know) and toasted each other! The fabulous end to a fabulous day!

Venue Hunting

I have spent the last week looking for a venue and you know what? I'm so fed up of the whole process already! Clearly nothing will encompass all the elements that we would hope to find, in addition to the fact that everybody and his uncle three times removed has an opinion on the matter.

And you know the most audacious thing? You can imagine what one of my favourite aspects of weddings is: cake! But, lo and behold, in Israel people don't even have the big wedding cake and cake cutting ceremony! Clearly I will not compromise on cake! But, weddings in Israel are unusual and special and I have always wanted to marry here.

So take a look at my front runner of the moment, a venue called Derech Eretz. It's an open garden whose only disadvantage is that you can't have a band. All music must be played through the venue's amplification system, which controls the sound levels and ensures they comply with environmental standards. Bands won't hook up to this amplification system and thus in all gardens and open spaces people are obliged to have a DJ - something Marc and I didn't want. I'm happy to compromise but I don't want to push him into something he's not comfortable with so we may have to continue the search.

Here are the pictures - what do you think?

Engaging news

I have wonderful news! When Marc said he was taking me somewhere special for the weekend but wouldn't say where, I have to admit, I knew something was up. When I found out we would be going to my homeland, I was touched and excited beyond belief. For those who don't know, I am British and Israeli. I was born in Israel and I lived there until I was 6. We speak Hebrew at home and Israel is close to my heart. And yet, it's a facet of me that most people don't know about and don't see. So for Marc to take me there to ask 'that' question is very special, an acknowledgement of my past and heritage and a promise to help me celebrate that going forward.

We flew in on Friday and spent Friday evening with my parents (eating at a fabulous fish restaurant). On Shabbat we walked to the port of Tel Aviv and enjoyed a stunning lunch of fresh food and a gorgeous sea breeze. Tonight Marc took me to a sensational and beautiful restaurant in one of my favourite areas: near the children's library I used to go to, near the Tel Aviv museum of art and the Cameri theatre and opera. It's a lovely setting, and the restaurant was so elegant.

We had a gorgeous meal and Dad had pre-ordered dessert for us: the most delectable dessert ever (more about the food later). The restaurant brought dessert out that said 'Mazal Tov'! It was so fun!

Then we took a walk around the area and ended up in a public garden that I used to go to as a child. I sat on a swing type thing and Marc got on one knee and said some of the most wonderful things to me, and asked me to be his callah, his wife. I was so emotional and happy! Then he slipped the most beautiful ring on my finger! I won't post it but it looks like the Tiffany Novo.

We called his parents immediately, and then we went up to the flat where my Mum and Dad were waiting for us and relaxed together. A perfect day filled with meaning. I am soooooooo happy and excited about all that is to come! Yayyyyy!