Embracing the madness

It's been a little while since my last post, and I had myself a flashback to my teenage diary-keeping days. And I do mean actual days: usually the 1st, 2nd and maybe 5th of January. After that, the procrastination and consequent guilt would kick in, with maybe a half-arsed diary entry in mid-February and then nothing. I could wallpaper my house with all the pristine sheets of unused notebooks I've wasted over the years.

Anyway, I'm pleased (and relieved) to find that the blogging urge has taken hold again, so here I am. And I have to admit that I have a slightly different mindset than I had when I wrote my first couple of posts. The goggle-eyed terror of planning this wedding has actually receded a bit. I still feel the panic from time to time, but it's a bit more manageable somehow. I think I'm actually starting to enjoy this!

I have a sneaky suspicion that this change may have something to do with the fact that we confirmed both the church and the reception venue this week – woo hoo!!! They're booked for 364 days from today, in fact. One whole year away. I can manage to plan and execute this thing by then, surely?

One other thing that is helping in a smaller but infinitely enjoyable way is a recent discovery of mine: pinterest.com. It's a genius way to catalogue all the weddingy things online that I've come across, whether that's from online stores or other blogs. You 'pin' a picture you like from a website, and that gets added to your board (or one of many boards that you can set up). Here's a sneaky peek at mine:

I've started by collating all my wedding 'inspiration' onto one board, but further down the line I might reorganise that into separate boards, eg dresses, table decorations, flowers and so on.

The best part about Pinterest is that it removes one of my panic triggers: that I'll see some perfect dress, colour scheme or bouquet online and forget to bookmark it. And my bookmarks folder is already heaving at the seams, so the genuinely good stuff will probably get lost among the over-priced tat that keeps catching my eye (yes, I'm talking about you, er, well-known wedding website). This way, I've got instant visual reminders (which, if you click on one, takes you straight to the website you got the image from). Plus I can add useful details, such as price, to the caption too. Perfect!

One thing I should add before I hang up my hat as Pinterest's unofficial cheerleader: the site is currently invite-only, though you can request an invite (they took a few days to get back to me with one). Once you're in, you get a bunch of invites to hand out too, and I have some spare if anyone wants one...

Anyway, I do have lots more to ramble on about, but time's getting on (yep, I'm back to my post-midnight wedding sessions) so I think I'll save it for next time. Thanks for reading. :o)