As you all know I make cakes for a living, I make any kind of cakes people are looking for! But the most important cakes are those made for weddings. These cakes will be remembered by all. Whether they were hideous or gorgeous! I have seen many of both sides.

My fiancé and I decided to get married on August 15sth of 2009. We have been dating for almost 2 years and have been engaged for 9 months out of the 2 years. We decided this about 2 weeks ago! I know crazy right? Well yes it is crazy but I knew I couldn't wait until next year to become his wife! I love him too much to give him time to change his mind! Ha! Anyways....  Ever since we have decided on an actual date, I have been running around like a chicken with my head cut off! I did not realize that there are so many things that need to be figured out! We decided on a family ceremony (location to be picked) then a fabulous family dinner at Red Water (this is where we had our first date and where he proposed to me!) And then we decided to have an open house for our guests to come and celebrate with us at our home. We have a beautiful backyard that we wanted to utilize but we had to get working... we had started ripping it up last year to put in a patio but could not finish it and then the year came and we were too busy to even think of it until..... We decided to have the open house at our house! So for the past few weeks we have been working diligently to put in the patio, and re-sod our backyard... As most of you know, Calgary occupants usually do not have a good sized backyard... but ours; well you can put our house in the backyard and still have room! That’s how big it is! So yes a lot of work went in by the missionaries form our church and a family friend and my fiancé! And now the backyard is almost finished! It looks absolutely amazing and what a transformation! We definelty have sown the fruit of our labors!

So on to the topic that is really stressing me out...the cake! As a Cake artist I do a lot of research on cakes everyday! So I see a lot of cakes and save a lot of cakes onto my computer. The only issue is what's my cake going to look like? I am very much a girl and cannot decide on anything (my Fiancé can attest to this quality I have) And being a cake artist... everyone that is coming to the open house and family dinner (I am having 2 cakes) will need to be impressed by these cakes, plus they will forever be in our memories! I have a huge dilemma! ...Everyone always asked me.... "Are you making your own wedding cake?" and of course I replied.... "Yes!" And they reply back... "Are you crazy!?" lol Maybe I am, maybe I am! I know I will be stressed out but I know once our wedding day comes everything will be absolutely perfect! I know I should be enjoying the process of planning this wedding... because it only happens once! But it is very stressful!

I want to also write about DIY projects, I am a very creative person and I absolutely love DIY projects so I guess you can call me a DIY Bride! Of course doing everything yourself equals to more stress but it is also a beautiful thing! I will be able to look back and say to my children, look I made all of this. It's a feel good thing for me I guess you could say. Ever since I was in kindergarten I loved to do anything artsy, as I grew older I took as many art classes as I could. And when I entered high school I wanted to become an art teacher but had been directed to cake decorating by my best friend Mishelle Rose. Well her mother had signed her up for the class but had invited me along... I give my credit to both her and Mishelle! She had started things in motion! So I am now here today doing what I do because of them, but I still love to draw, paint, sculpt etc.

I know many brides are struggling to find a balance between what they want and what they can afford. I am no exception. With the economy being as it is, many people are cutting down on things they would normally purchase or spend money on. Yes we all know it's difficult! But if you can get creative, your expenses can reduce in amounts you wouldn't believe! One step is: Use what you already have. Instead of replacing old with new, find ways to utilize what you already have. Some things that can be done are, refurnishing old furniture with new upholstery to give your furniture a new look without spending thousands of dollars on new furniture! Use old clothes to make pillows, blankets, baby items such as baby blankets and soft plush toys! I know it may take you time to invest to recycle old items into new items but it's worth it, you can learn new skills and help out the environment at the same time!

Another creative step is to purchase things from the dollar store! They carry everything from scrapbooking things to kitchen tools! I swear it's like a wonderland of savings! A dollar store that is close to where I live carries a while isle of scrapbooking things that would cost up to 6 or 7 times more at your local craft store such as Michaels! But I do love Michaels I have to say. When shopping at Michaels be mindful of things that you want, and where you can get them for a less expensive price (like wal-mart). Or Sign up online for their coupons as they do not carry their coupons in their flyers anymore. When you sign up, they send you out coupons for 40%-50% off of one item for a week. But you can print off as many coupons as you like! Hmmm fancy that, unlike before you could only use one coupon for the entire week from the flyer that is delivered to your front porch. On another note, Wal-mart is a wonderland of savings as well. I made my own bridal bouquets and wedding party boutonnieres from flowers I found at Wal-mart. The flowers that I liked were $1.50 for 6 stems on one bouquet. I bought green tape and a spool or tiffany blue ribbon and I was on my way! Of course it took me a long time to figure how to put it together but I did it! Instead of paying a florist to use real flowers (that will die), to put it together and pay delivery fee or any other fee they want to charge you, I made the whole wedding parties bridal bouquets, corsages and boutonnieres for under $50. That would include My bouquet, my two sisters (bridesmaid and maid of honor), My fiancé’s boutonniere, and his best man and 1 groom’s man, my mother and Tony’s mother corsages and my grandmother’s corsage! I don't even want to know how much that would cost me from a florist! 

Another wedding tip is to find a seamstress that will make your dress for a low cost if you buy your own material. Get the seamstress to come with you when you are going to purchase the material so she/ or he can give you advice on what would look good on you and the final product! I was lucky; a family friend had offered her services for free if I were to just buy the material! And since the cost was so low my mother insisted on paying for it anyways! (mothers of the brides traditionally pay for their daughter’s wedding dresses.... but some cannot afford it) Yes some mothers refuse to spend $1500-$9000 on their daughter’s wedding dress! But try to look at it from their perspective... they are spending thousands of dollars on something that is worn once for a few hours and sometimes it’s not logical for them to be in the hole for that reason alone. My dress was costumed designed but had elements from my favorite designer:        "Maggie Sottero" Her dresses are usually around $2,000 to $5,000, but nor I or my mother could afford that! So in total my dress will cost around $300... Yes that’s right $300 and I think my dress will cost less than my mother’s wedding dress 25 years ago! Incredible, I know! So if you can find a friend who is a seamstress and will do it as a wedding present or a favor, you possibilities are endless and your fiancé and budget will thank you forever!

Let’s go into one more money saving fabulous DIY project as I am very busy! Decor, for your wedding and for your home! Weddings have lots of decor, but you want fabulous decorations! Well so do I, but I don't want to have to pay expensive prices from wedding places that have rental packages! Sometimes packages are not the way to go, most of the time they over price everything and most of the time the packages either do not have everything that you are looking for or have too much. I suggest trying to find a small rental company in your area or city that is low key and is even starting out.... most of the time these small businesses have lower prices and can let you design your own package or let you pick and choose what you want from their catalog. Or you can find people whose wedding just happened and they have extra things left over that they are willing to sell at a reduced price just to get rid of it! www.kijiji.ca is a wonderful place to see what people have to offer! (check out the wedding section) Another great place is the Martha Stewart website; you can learn how to make wedding decorations instead of buying or renting them.

Well I hope you will get creative while saving money and mother nature!

Until next time, Eat a cake and be happy!

-Nicole