Undeterred by friends and family (yes, I told my mom that I was starting to think about marriage), I continued to plan my imaginary wedding.

1)   I looked at cake vendors.  The location is a bit remote, and the only bakery nearby looked not so good.  I explored many vendors in a 45 mile radius.  Definitely buttercream frosting, no fondant no matter how architecturally appealing.  Thank The Knot, I saved some pictures of attractive cakes, too.

2)   I started watching Yes to the Dress.  My, wedding dresses are pretty.  My vocabulary to describe a dress almost immediately improved.  Pick-ups, I do not like them.  I also now know the names of many wedding designers—very useful information.

3)   Ah, invitations.  So many fabulous choices.  Funnily enough, even though I was planning an imaginary wedding—price is no object!  Helicopters!  Ice sculptures! Horse-drawn carriages!  I’m going to rent out a small town!—I almost immediately rejected fancy wedding invite packages and letterpress and started to explore DIY options and Etsy.  Because how would my boyfriend and I afford such an expensive wedding?  Something had to give.

4)   I started reading wedding blogs.  And that was it; I was really in it.

Cakes from Weddings180.com