Ali's "I Do" Diary: Wedding Planning Favorites

That's right, TSS Co-Founder Ali is tying the knot!  She's excited to share her wedding 

planning journey with our readers.  Read on for more!

Spring is upon us, which for me means one thing... our wedding is right around the corner!  Since we started planning, it seemed as though May 25th (our wedding date) was so far away.  Sure enough, the time has flown by!  Along the way, I've learned so much about the little details that needed to be decided.  Little things... from deciding on a signature cocktail, to figuring out what invitation style we wanted to use.  Luckily, I've discovered a few helpful resources that have made the process a breeze so far.  I'm excited to share a few of my favorite finds, from ordering invitations to setting up a wedding website!

1. Wedding Paper Divas.

When it came to ordering Save the Dates, I wanted a website that offered two things: creative designs, and magnets!  I love putting wedding Save the Dates on my fridge at home, so having it printed on a magnet was important to me.  Wedding Paper Divas offered everything I needed, plus the ordering process was so easy!  They send you customized artwork proofs with all of your requested information before you order, so you can make sure everything is exactly to your liking.  Not to mention, I received them super fast!  I couldn't believe how quickly the arrived on my doorstep, so I could get them mailed out in a snap.

2. Minted.

I went into a few invitation stores to look in person, before deciding to order the actual wedding invites online from Minted.  The invitation stores overwhelmed me, plus they seemed to be super pricey.  I loved the design selection from Minted-- they really had a custom feel to them.  They even allow you to choose which type of "edge" you want for the paper (I chose a scalloped edge) which made it more fun than a standard rectangular piece of paper!  I also decided to go with pearlized paper, which gave the invitations a pretty sparkle finish to them.  Just like Wedding Paper Divas, the ordering & proofing process couldn't have been easier.  They arrived fast, and looking beautiful!

3. Stamps.com.

After ordering the invitations, the next step was getting them mailed out.  I went to my local post office to talk to them about how to go about mailing them... after all, how was I supposed to know how much postage to put on the envelope?!  While I was there, the person helping me told me about Stamps.com.  Not only could I order the stamps with exactly the amount of postage that I needed (I took the completed invitation to get weighed first) but I could also upload my very own picture to the stamp!!  OMG-- a custom stamp with our photo on it?!  I was sold.  I ordered them with one of our engagement photos on the stamp... it made for an adorable personal touch!

4. Wedding Jojo.

Since we're having a destination wedding (hello, Cabo!) having a complete wedding website was a must for us.  We needed a place that we could put every last detail... from hotels to activities.  I searched high and low for the right wedding website host that had every function that we needed, plus one that offered nice looking layouts that weren't cheesy.  I came across Wedding Jojo, and fell in love with their beautiful templates.  For an extra fee, they even let you have your very own custom domain name!  We also were able to get a password protected site, which I liked as well for privacy.  The website was fun & simple to make, and our site came out looking great!

I hope that my favorite resources helps other Brides-to-Be!  Finding the right tools to help make these little details simple was a big relief to me.  No need to stress about invitations (or stamps!) when you know where to look!

xoxo, Ali