Let me start by saying this, I know you've all heard it before, I know you unengaged ladies think it will be different for you, I know you married girls are sitting there like "mhm I told ya so" but here I go...
Wedding planning is NOT easy.
Planning a wedding during a global pandemic, LOL. Didn't sign up for that.
But before I get to the wedding planning, or should I say at this point, re-planning, let me tell you a little about our pre-pandemic plans. We're set to exchange our vows this September at a gorgeous church on the Upper East Side, followed by a celebration of over 250 guests overlooking the New York City skyline. Of course, this sounds like a dream come true under normal circumstances but under COVID-19 circumstances, it's a recipe for postponement.
I'd rather not be social distancing from my loved ones on a day that is all about bringing friends and family close together. While I can admit I have been praying for an excuse to chop the guest list, I certainly don't want to be forced to do so because of regulations. And finally, walking down the aisle with a custom ITES beaded mask just isn't the look I was going for.
We got engaged within 5 days of me starting to run ITES full time. Remember when I said planning a wedding isn't easy? Well planning a wedding within a year in NYC is next level. Planning a wedding when you just quit your salaried corporate job to run your business full time, that's a challenge I could have done without and one that I will elaborate on at a later date. Now, replanning the whole thing due to a global pandemic, checkmate. I'm out.
While I definitely have ITES vision boards galore, I've never made one for my dream wedding. In fact, it took me about 6 full months to figure out what kind of bride I wanted to be. Who knew there were so many aesthetics to consider? Am I a Metropolitan bride? Chic bride? Ethereal bride? Bohemian bride? Luckily by the beginning of March I had finalized my vision just in time to be told I was nothing but a... Corona Bride.
I mentioned in my first blog post that I am a bit of a control freak. I also am a very decisive person. You could ask me to make any business decision and I will do so without looking back or second guessing. Something about making decisions for our wedding was different. I guess I put a lot of pressure on myself to make sure it would be perfect, especially because we would only plan a wedding once in a lifetime. Little did I know, I shouldn't have been so worried because I am most definitely getting to plan this wedding twice, thank you corona.
Interestingly enough, while the stress of being a brand new full time entrepreneur made the stress of wedding planning even more overwhelming, owning my own business gave me a helpful perspective in the process. I knew off the bat I wanted to work with people who were striving to provide the best service and most importantly wanted to make our day special. I was looking to surround myself with a team of vendors for the wedding that run their businesses with the same values that I run Island to East Side. Now, as I embark on the replanning process, I'm humbled to experience how amazing some vendors and fellow business owners have handled these unprecedented circumstances. For the most part, everyone I've spoken with has been immensely understanding and helpful in terms of cancellations and postponements. Unfortunately, I have experienced firsthand working with some businesses that have a pretty disgraceful tone about this situation. It's disheartening to hear and experience this, both as a business owner and as a bride affected whose wedding is impacted by COVID-19. I hope to be a sounding board for all of you and to help my ITES brides navigate this situation. I look forward to continuing to shed some light on my own experiences, both favorable and unfavorable.
Above all, I'm writing to tell you that I, too, am in the same uncertain boat that so many of you, our customers, unfortunately are in. Since the start of the pandemic in early March, I have watched hundreds of emails roll in each week from our ITES brides requesting to have their wedding bags remade with new dates inside. Truth be told, six weeks ago I thought my biggest challenge was going to be sticking to the wedding diet through quarantine. I didn't think I'd eventually be in your shoes, but here I am! I guess on a brighter note, I don't have to be so worried about the wine I am drinking daily and the explosion of cooking and baking that is happening over here.
I think that last statement best describes my outlook. We have to find the bright side, the silver lining, to all of this. It's a hell of a lot to process and I just want to say, I hear you and I'm here to remind you that it's going to be ok. I have already connected with several of you on this topic over Instagram and invite you to continue to reach out to me as your COVID-19 wedding saga continues. I can promise you I will share an update on mine. Until then, as you keep changing your wedding dates on your calendars, we will keep changing them on your bags.
With so much uncertainty, I'll leave you with this. I have absolutely no idea when we will get married, all I know for sure is that when I do, my bridesmaids are going to have some gorgeous bags.
Stay safe, stay sane.
xoxo
Christina
Comment below if you would like me to get more into detail about any wedding related planning, topics, or postponement tips.
VERONICA MARK
Email address: onihaspelltemple@gmail.com
Call/Whatsapp number: + 16692213962
Website: http://onihaspells.com
Sharon Arnett
I’m Sharon by name. I was about giving up already and I thought I Loss My Relationship Until a ship, After my lover left me for months because of my mistakes I was Sad, Lonely And Heartbroken, luckily I was directed to a very powerful man called DR JATTO from AFRICA who helped me bring back my Lover (Deshaawn) and now he love me more than ever am so happy with life now. Thank you so much DR JATTO. I promised to share this to reach out to anyone getting it hard to be with his or her partner. Contact this Great Spell Caster Today and put an End to the Pain & Trauma. DR JATTO Yahoo mail: drjattolovespelltemple@yahoo.co.uk or his Website: https://drjattolovespellte0.wixsite.com/my-jattosite
Joe Jess Thwaite
I love playing the Lottery and I buy tickets every 2 weeks after I get paid. I never wanted to get greedy but I did want enough to live more comfortably. Generally, my luck is pretty terrible. I took a chance when I found a website called [ amberlottotemple.com ] that offers spells to help people. It was the best £415 Pounds I have ever spent! I had to save up for a couple of weeks to be able to afford the spell. I had the spell targeted towards the National Lottery. I heed to DR Amber instructions to buy the ticket after 3days and have faith that I would be the winner. I kept my faith very strong just as DR Amber told me to do. The next morning I got up and saw an email from the National Lottery saying, “Good news, you’ve won a prize”. Today my wife and I are proud winners of £184,262,899.10 Million Pounds. We are here to Appreciate the good deeds of DR Amber. You can reach out to him by Email Address ________ [ amberlottotemple@yahoo.com ].
SOPHIE WHITE
I NEED MY EX LOVER BACK TO ME EMAIL assurancesolutionhome@gmail.com whatsapp +1(424)-261-8520
I contacted DR LARRY and he told me that my ex will come back to me in the next 4days, DR LARRY released him to let me know how much I loved and wanted him. And opened his eyes to picture how much we have shared together. My ex is now back to me again. As I`m writing this testimony right now I`m the happiest Woman on earth and myself and my boyfriend are living a happy life and our love is now stronger than how it was even before our break up. All thanks goes to DR LARRY for the excessive work that he has done for me by helping me to get back with my ex boyfriend. I would like to drop DR LARRY website http://assurancesolutioncenter.website2.me/ and hope you see this testimony and contact him if you have a lover that you really want back so badly, Email assurancesolutionhome@gmail. com or you can whatsapp him on this Number +1(424)-261-8520 assurancesolutiohome.blogspot.com
SOPHIE WHITE
I NEED MY EX LOVER BACK TO ME EMAIL assurancesolutionhome@gmail.com whatsapp +1(424)-261-8520
I contacted DR LARRY and he told me that my ex will come back to me in the next 4days, DR LARRY released him to let me know how much I loved and wanted him. And opened his eyes to picture how much we have shared together. My ex is now back to me again. As I`m writing this testimony right now I`m the happiest Woman on earth and myself and my boyfriend are living a happy life and our love is now stronger than how it was even before our break up. All thanks goes to DR LARRY for the excessive work that he has done for me by helping me to get back with my ex boyfriend. I would like to drop DR LARRY website http://assurancesolutioncenter.website2.me/ and hope you see this testimony and contact him if you have a lover that you really want back so badly, Email assurancesolutionhome@gmail. com or you can whatsapp him on this Number +1(424)-261-8520 assurancesolutiohome.blogspot.com