u/frankchester

I regret nothing! The classic Elvis ceremony at the Little White Wedding Chapel. We had a blast.

I'm actually flabbergasted at how bad this is.

Imagine designing a top that is supposed to have bust gathers below the bust and then just going OH WELL when you model it on a larger busted woman.

https://criswoodsews.com/products/parasol-dress-and-top

What on earth size should I make?

My waist and hips are pretty much a Size 16. But my bust fits into neither the B-cup or D-cup options. My high bust is 34" which isn't even on the D-cup section, but if I make the B-cup Size 14 and grade to 16, won't it be way too baggy around the upper chest?

High Bust: 34"
Bust 39.5"
Waist 34"
Hip 44.5" 

What on earth size should I make?

My waist and hips are pretty much a Size 16. But my bust fits into neither the B-cup or D-cup options. My high bust is 34" which isn't even on the D-cup section, but if I make the B-cup Size 14 and grade to 16, won't it be way too baggy around the upper chest?

High Bust: 34"
Bust 39.5"
Waist 34"
Hip 44.5"

Like what would you even respond to this question, I’m so confused.

The metal arch fell over in a storm. In order to replace it with this wooden one we had to cut away the pieces of metal from the old rose with an angle grinder. Then put the new arch in and train the rose back in. It was a nightmare but every year in June it flowers and I realise it was worth it!

Drip irrigation on timer too

I lost 140lbs and I’m happy with the fat coverage everywhere else except my FUPA which just won’t shift. I’m switching from strong deficit to body recomposition instead with a smaller deficit so I’m expecting even less fat loss, but I just can’t shift what tummy so I think i need to find a pair of jeans that flatters it?

We did it and it was the BEST decision we ever made.

We decided to elope last year because we just wanted an easy, cheap option without family drama. We love our family and friends but having a micro-wedding would never have worked for us, but the expense of a full wedding didn't either.

Originally we planned to just elope, but a lot of people asked us if we'd do anything to celebrate back home so we did, and it all worked out so well!

Vegas Elopement

We flew from the UK to the US on the Friday, had the whole of Saturday to get our paperwork in order and explore a bit, then Sunday was wedding day! We left for honeymoon in Palm Springs on the Monday and flew home on the Sunday - so a little over a week out of the country.

We went for the full Vegas Elvis experience in the Little White Wedding Chapel and it was such a vibe and so cute. The best thing about eloping was how RELAXED we felt. Our ceremony was at 5:15pm so we had all day (plus jet lag on our side, we were up early). My husband is a big football fan so we went for breakfast and he watched the match in the morning. Then I went back to start showering and getting ready slowly. Just the two of us until the hairdresser arrived, so relaxed. No one else to worry about. No jitters or nervousness of having all these people around. It was a slow, relaxed morning.

We hired a photographer (by far the biggest expense) and a limo to take us to the chapel to keep the travel less nervewracking (i.e not using Uber, although I'm sure it would've been fine).

The ceremony was so good, I was so nervous being "sung at" by Elvis but he's, as they say, the King. Such a pro. It felt relaxed and funny and sweet. He sang Love Me Tender before our vows and I actually felt so emotional. Then after the vows he sang Viva Las Vegas and we all joined in!

After the ceremony we explored downtown with our photographer and had a blast. We got Buzzballz to toast on the street in a little shop, explored around the casino, ate a donut, had celebratory cocktails at the Carousel bar. Then we parted ways with our photographer and had a delicious dinner and drinks before heading back to our hotel.

Seaside Reception

We had 58 guests for our seaside pub evening celebration. It all went so smoothly and was just a total party vibe. We kept it chill, we didn't over-plan (maybe a little to our detriment - the speech we gave was a blur!)

We set up the pub function space in the morning with our maid of honour and best man, took about 90 minutes and we kept it low key. Just paper lanterns, disco balls, and some posie vases for the tables. The biggest job was moving all the tables around haha, but it all worked out and we had enough space for a good dance floor, and outside seating. I remember making a thread on this subreddit that everyone told me our party was going to be a DISASTER because we dared to not have enough chairs for every guest. GUESS WHAT IT WAS FINE. I asked a few people and they all said there was always a spot to sit when they wanted, and plenty of people stood around chatting or were on the dance floor.

We met everyone on the public beach first. We bought Buzzballz on Amazon and put them in a cooler in the morning, then I got my cousins to come pick them up for us and take them down to the beach to serve out to people before we arrived. There is a brewery bar right on the beach so those that got their early got themselves a drink and then had some of the Buzzballz. Honestly they were a hit and it was hilarious.

We took some cute pictures in the town with our family and then picked up two dozen oysters and carried them to the beach for our "grand entrance". It was fun going round an greeting all the guests and offering them an oyster!

We served paella cooked in front of the guests and it went down very well. Again, no formal buffet-calling-up. We just said after the speech "grubs up!" and everyone grabbed a bowl (or two, there was plenty). Then deep-fried choc-stuffed churros cooked right there for everyone. Plus cupcakes, which a lot of people took home in little single-cake boxes we provided.

We didn't have an open bar - it would've literally doubled our budget. We pre-bought 18 bottles of Prosecco from the pub and they poured and left them on the bar, they seemingly went on forever! Open bars aren't a given in our circles so I think the drinks we provided were enough to get everyone going and then they just topped up with what they wanted after.

We didn't have a formal photographer. A friend of mine took photos of us getting ready and some posed ones, and then for the night we had 5 film cameras. We got some hilarious shots on the dance floor and I'd say we got about 60% that weren't duds (mainly because we didn't turn the flash on early enough).

The main professional that we DID hire was a DJ and 100% would do this again in an instant. The dance floor was great (I barely left it) and it was nice to have someone to schedule the evening. Of all the things to spend money on I'm glad we did hire one.

Conclusion

If partying with your friends and family is important to you I 100% recommend eloping and then doing a lowkey party at home. You don't have to have a full faux-ceremony, but if you think outside the box it can be done and it can be done cheaply!