Otherwise Engaged!

Getting engaged isn't just something between you and your partner, its a ticket to an exclusive club. Its really strange but I feel like the minute I had that rock on my finger people around me changed.

First there was the "best friend" drama:

I was the single party girl and she was the settled "long termer" but despite our very different circumstances we were closer than ever when I met my boyfriend. After 6 months of being together he proposed. I was over the moon, and although my best friend was happy for me, she was also disappointed that her boyfriend of 5 years (whom she owned a house with) didn't seem keen on the idea of marriage.
Weddings were the only topic open for conversation & I was invited to her mothers for lunch where they discussed her wedding colour scheme, it was awful but for the first time I couldn't say anything as I felt like I would be rubbing salt in in her wounds. Facebook statuses were changing constantly, she would update me on the newly engaged was frustrated with her non-existence status of "in a relationship". 2 months after I had got engaged and a week before our engagement party she split with her boyfriend. All of her wedding talk had made him realise that he never wanted to get married, she wasn't "the one" and marriage would never be on the cards.
It was a disaster, It was like I had entered this "elite club" and not only had my best friend been refused entry, she was seriously hurt on her tumble to the curb. Just when she thought it couldn't get any worse she was given ring side seats as my bridesmaid and made to watch her best friend have the time of her life.
Obviously this isn't how I see the situation, she'll meet the right one and when she does she'll be happier than she could ever imagine. BUT I do see how much things have changed because of this simple symbol and commitment between 2 people. On facebook the other "brides to be" contact you to discuss florists and dress designers and at parties the bridezillas bunch together trying to suss out their "opponents" on who's got the biggest budget, biggest bling or the most unique ideas for their big day....its carnage but secretly us brides love it!
I don't even need to brush my hair anymore when leaving the house, I just need to make sure my bling has been cleaned because lets face it if I bump into someone the only thing they will notice or want to discuss is the ring or the wedding plans.
I'm sure all "brides to be" have seen the film Bride Wars...... I couldn't say it better than the wedding planner in the film "A wedding marks the first day of the rest of your lives....... you've been dead until now!".

Its amazing my mother and I have always had a strained relationship, until now that is. The minute I became "soon to be married", I can't put a foot wrong, it really is amazing. She loves the attention from her friends, and her new found status as"Mother of the Bride". To say she has become territorial is an understatement. She asked me not to invite my bridesmaids to the first dress shopping day because she has a right to feel involved and if my friends were there she would feel left out. Of course I agreed, as long as my mothers happy, who else mattered?!
When I turned to my father for a little sympathy he reminded me this wedding wasn't just my big day, it was also theirs (my mother and fathers). I didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

So, after realising my wedding is apparently about everybody but me I've decided to get on with the planning, and do my best to please others along the way. I've heard many people say that a girls wedding day should all be about her, but realistically I'd rather please the one's I love and involved them as much as I can, even if that means I have no lips left to bite by the time my wedding comes around.

I used to work in events for world famous fashion companies and art auction houses with absolutely ridiculously large budgets. So I have found it hard to cap my creativity and stick to a smaller budget for my own wedding. I've found that if you want something slightly different or unique in the UK you really have to pay for it, and its expensive! In America they are streets ahead in their standard wedding event designs, linen hire, flowers and the general choice for the average person.
I hope I can help you create your perfect day by giving you inspirations, tips and sharing my experiences with you.

So if you've recently had a life changing rock placed on your finger i'm sure your friends will understand that you are now 'otherwise engaged' to anything not wedding related!