(Look away now if weddings bore you.) I’ve just discovered the world of online shopping. And let me tell you that many hours can pass while you are looking through online catalogs of wedding paraphenalia. You can find almost anything you want on ebay or in online stores (I switched to looking at German online stores, since the postage from other places is pretty high on average). Once you start looking, you see things that you hadn’t thought about, but of course you need at a wedding. Pininterest is another good place for getting wedding theme inspiration, although I don’t find it very practical for finding items, it’s more just eye candy. Weddix is a useful German site, I spent ages looking at all their table decorations, guest presents and other ideas. Giving sugared almonds is a wedding tradition I remember from childhood; you can buy different kinds of sugared almonds and bags now. I chose bags to match with our planned woodland / nature theme, but there are lots of options.

We’ll fill them with the different options of almonds and wedding candies…take a look.

Since my last update, we’ve at least sorted out some wedding arrangements. We have a fixed date now, in June, and a church with a priest, and a restaurant is booked for the reception – it also has accommodation, so some guests will be able to stay there. I bought a wedding dress and veil from a lovely lady in Pankow who has a home-shop, and we went and picked it up tonight.

Dress in a bag.

I ordered shoes online because size 5 always fits, and name tags for the table, because I loved some I saw in somebody else’s wedding photographs and found similar ones online.

J found a photographer (more hours spent looking at other people’s lovely wedding photos). I have a flower girl – my friend’s daughter – and this multi-talented friend is making her a dress; her equally talented husband will also be our DJ (he is also a great photographer and graphic designer, but one job is enough per wedding I think!). J’s sister is organizing me an appointment at a cosmetics shop so they can plan their wedding strategy. J himself has designed the wedding invitations and they are in the process of being made. The Home affairs office is in motion making me forms and my father a passport, my mother has obtained her passport already. There’s still lots to do (organize a church course, plan a menu, organize a cake, flowers, schedule and transport for the wedding) – but at least we are a bit further along with the planning now!

Wedding invitations in progress…

Here’s some photos of the fun things you can find online, from table decorations to balloons, rose petals to bubble blowers, different patterned serviettes and wedding candles, to anything you can think of!