My cake Spread!

I had cupcake with personalized chocolate toppings. Some said Dami, @, or 25.

OK, maybe I should go and start from the beginning. At first, I was not going to do anything for my 25th, but then decided that God has been toooo goooood, so I decided to celebrate with my friends and loved ones.

DISCLAIMER: Please note that I am extra and I thank God for my friends and fab (especially Bolaji and my sisters. Niyi does not count, he is stuck with me hahahaha), but I went into planning mode and celebrated my bday 20 days before my 25th. On my actual 25th, I was in Nigeria and blogged about that already.

So, my invitation company took care of the stationery. I created a personalized print with DO25 (so my initials with the number 25). I used this print as my theme and think it is a very inexpensive way to bring a party together..all you need is a printer baby. Well don’t use your own printer, hire me…that is much better lol!

OK, check out pics of how I used my personalized print to bring the whole party together.

My Raised Personalized Prints

Back and front of the party invite.

I created tent cards with 25 facts about me. I used this as decor- like everything else, it had the personalized print.  Some of these were funny like-

-I secretly like Beyonce- I used to drive my mother’s car in college, it was a minivan-I love to read- because I wear natural styles does not mean I am a soul sista (miss me with that)-and much more

anyhoo,,,check out the pics..I love to plan events and I had a blast. Thanks again to my friends who came out and my dream team- Niyi, Famili, and da Sisters-

yes, I am that into my self..I had personalized confetti, napkins and coasters

closer look at my cupcakes

food, and favors display...balloons were in that room only..the lighting created a nice effect

bites

my fav bites...mozarella and tomatoes..yum yum yum!!!!

more food..cream cheese, crackers and berry sauce

more food

my "special drink"..of course we had an open bar as well..aint no party without it

Drinks on me--more signage featuring my personalized prints

up close of the wine favor--ofcourse featuring the same print

they were clearly bored..but the servers were in the house as well

I launched my company that day..and the table was labeled "25 and Beyond"

My friends came from far and wide ..special shout out to Ijeoma and her "surprise" visit...By the way, this dress inspired the color for the party. My hubby got it from an Oscar de la Renta sample sale. I shortened that bad boy and had me an outfit!

My boo and I were getting down!

check out my hair action lol...thanks to Oye for the fab pics by the way!

oh yea- and my mini cake had the print on it as well. I picked books to help stagger the cakes cause I love to read and it felt personal to me. Niyi also game this cute personalized book. I love all things personalized by the way lol

I also celebrated with my siblings…they are the best!

My berry chantilly cake that I "begged/demanded" from my sisters from whole foods!!!! um um good!

My darling "thogs"..., by the way you don't want to know what happened to the side of the cake

Yes, I sang happy bday to myself--they were just looking at me crazy -__- Nadia was fascinated by the fire..

Skubs. Me.the knife--watch out there na-

Jums helping me blow out my candle, Me..choking

Yes I had to sit and consult with mi Jesus- making a wish is a big deal ..Sammy Sam and crazy Jums being herself

reading the cute book about sisters they got me together. I have to say my sisters went ABOVE AND BEYOND...vintage shirt, earring, brooch, make up, book, omo they went all out. I need to turn 25 every day!!

I had a blast with my friends and loved ones and I feel so fortunate. This year I want to praise God more than I ever have, I want to laugh more, I want to pray more, I want to call my friends more, I want to LISTEN more, I want to apologize more. The Lord is my strength and so shall it be! If the first 25 years is a reflection of what is in store, then I am about to buckle up! Here is to a fun and exciting 25 more years and 25 more and 25 more….

Yes, we took a lot of bags with us, but we came back with even more -__-

So we were uber excited…twas Niyi’s first time back in about 14 years.

We got to hang with family–which was priceless

Visiting Niyi's Grandad

visiting the nieces and nephews- they are ALL so adorable!

Of course we had to take this pic--with my cousins

visiting my grand mothers

- with the cousins and sammy sam at the "blue" lol

- Family Time -

I also got to celebrate my 25th!

- started off the night before at some cool live music spot...

dinner and drinks at City Grill...we HAD to get chapman

birthday morning! Got to visit an orphanage

Cakes and pastries from Confectionately Yours

:)

the best part was the “small chops” guy in the kitchen

-small chops is the business-

- partied with my fellow Dami and Cousin Janet. Excuse my belly, I clearly had a lot of small chops and chicken pie that day

Next my main gal…Dr. Mayback got married!

niyi-me-mom-sam-janet-lami

We even toured the city by and did a lot of shopping and picture taking…

you have to visit Lekki Arts Market!

Out at Shops at the Park…or sumn like that

Of course I had to visit my number one tailor..Biliki! Ask me about her

- forget all the Lagos designers. San Gros Market is where it is at!

The best part of the trip were the food and drinks. When I tell you my skin cleared up and I was looking like straight butter baby lol

small chops, chapman and a whole bunch of peri peri

corn, obey, boli ati epa...hmmm hmmm good!

My number one drink of choice!

grilled fish and steak from City Grill

small chops! enuff said

Niyi and I having agbalumo for the first time on our trip

hands down the pepper soup of the year from Southern Sun Restaurant

plaintain something from cafe royal

some fish dish something from cafe royal

I also got to meet up with lots of friends…(Too many to put pics up)

I thoroughly enjoyed this trip and looking forward to many more trips with my amazing husband. I am truly a lucky girl I tell you.

I leave you all with this song “Love My Baby” by WizKd that I fell in love with while in Nigeria.

Boy(Niyi of course), I swear to you aint no letting go, Na U dey make my head dey ring o!

Cheers

Dami

By the way, I am 25 not 23 like the article states (side eye Emag)

Please TELL us what you think about the article..I scanned the article, so check it out essence1 & essence2.

Dami-J2911

- copy of our 2011 Christmas/New Year card- we take this seriously as you can see-

This year is already off to an amazing start. DaNi spent the holidays in Nigeria and it was GREAT to say the least. Look out for our DaNi in Naij post lol. When I think of how faithful God has been it can be somewhat paralyzing. I for a fact, KNOW that I am not worthy. I am so grateful for his grace. We hit this year off running and indeed this year is going to be our year of HARVEST. We invite you to join us for the ride !!!! We have had a lot in the works in the past year, well time to start revealing!

I am VERY exciting to say that I finally have my own company. I launched the site for my stationery company Parchmentbydami.com on my 25th bday (will write a post on my 25th soon, I think lol). So, holla at moi for all your paper goods, invites, etc. My hubby also launched his blog in the fall of last year thetirailleurs.com. Niyi is also launching his inaugural ____________ line in the spring of 2012..I can’t say what, but it is going to be FAB!

As I conclude this post, I leave you with this passage that I have chosen as my verse for the year. Jeremiah 29: 11- For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

May your year be filled with laughter!

Dami-J2911

DaNi in front of the famous (insert name) hotel in New Orleans. Shame on me, I don't remember the name. I lav this pic thou!

In the last  year and a half, DaNi has been featured in several publications! I have been meaning to compile them all, and the time has finally come. Our wedding was such a blessing, and we still enjoy talking about it with friends. We still have lots of people stop us and talk about the experience, or how much they loved the pics!

So, let’s get to it…

Of course Mr Metu our photographer did several posts

On our engagement session…

He also featured our Traditional Yoruba Engagement Ceremony…

The Wedding…

And finally, the slideshow. I was watching it today, and was in awe. It felt like I was watching the slideshow for the first time. Great work Mr. Metu! Click the link below

http://www.collinsmetu.com/weddings/damiandniyi/slideshow/

Several other blogs…

Ijorere, featured our pic on her blog. I am so in love with her invites! Check out her site…really cool!

http://ijorereinvites.com/wordpress/2010/12/a-few-of-our-favorite-things-of-2010-whats-coming-in-2011/

Chocolate Brides: This blog featured our engagement pics…

http://chocolatebrides.com/2010/07/dami-niyi-the-start-of-something-new/

Of course the Professional Socialites (day of coordinator) featured us on their blog…

http://professionalsocialites.blogspot.com/2010/09/niyi-dami-july-24-2009.html

I stumbled upon this feature…

http://www.naijawednmore.com/2011/10/love-shoot-dami-and-niyi.html

Niyi’s uncle also posted pics  on his blog for the ”day after”

FINALLY, we were featured on the knot.com

and THE KNOT MAGAZINE! What a blessing

Thanks you all for keeping the DaNi experience alive!

Cheers

Dami

To celebrate, we started off with dinner at an amazing NY restaurant known as Bohemian. Not only was it affordable,  the food was simply brilliant. Now this restaurant is kind of eh special. You have to call them between a certain time and how do you get their number? By word of mouth only,  you can’t find their number anywhere online. Reservation only too. Oh yea, I forgot to mention.  You simply can’t find the restaurant because it looks like the store front is a meat market. You actually have to go in through the side. I guess their marketing scheme is working. I simply am not down for all that wahala  for just one restaurant, but it was well worth it. Thanks Niyi

On our actual anniversary, we went to church and got some dessert later that night after Mr. Okubs got off work.

Dessert Truck

Due to our work schedules, we were unable to go on a real trip to celebrate. So instead we went to Beacon, NY to visit the Dia museum and galleries. It was really nice to get out of NY and visit a small town. Check out the pics from Dia, our bed and breakfast and just Beacon in general.

On our way to Beacon

North East West South by Micheal Heizer

oh this Richard Stella installation.

yeah…

we were in it.

Mt Beacon Bed and Breakfast

the city of Beacon

Finally, we went on a dinner cruise the night we got back from Beacon. It was a complete blast. Enjoy

Beautiful View

Overall, we had a blast celebrating our anniversary. Thank you all for the facebook shout outs, bb status changes, text messages, phone call, and gifts (thanks Alethea for the great surprise).

So as I exit, I leave this gem as a parting shot, knowing that somehow, “For now” is a correct statement.

Thank you all for following us in our journey!

Wedding planning consumed my life for the past year and a half and I wouldn’t  have had  it any other way. Creating this blog is arguably one of the best parts of the wedding planning process for me. I was excited to share my ideas both original and stolen LOL. I hope this blog has helped brides and will continue to help future brides.

It is kind of bitter sweet to write this final DaNi wedding related post. Thank you all for visiting and being part of this process with us. Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions or just want to talk wedding. As you can tell I am in love with all things wedding and I am def. staying abreast with all the new trends and still coming up with ideas as if my wedding has not passed (soo sad but true LOL).

So what is next for the blog? I am not sure :/  For now, we are are going to just leave it up. If you don’t know, I LOVE to scrap book. My next project is to print out every blog post to create a wedding planning scrap book. I know I do too much, but I can not help it goooooosh LOL.

So what is next for Dami? I am back in the classroom, and completing my masters at Columbia University (ONE CLASS LEFT) . I am launching my fine stationery line called Parchments by Dami. I am having a lot of fun working on it, It will be chic and cheap. I know what it feels like to feel like you have no money, but you want really nice invites. This will be launched next year (I  might relaunch DaNi as my invitations blog…who knows?).  Something else that has been following me since the wedding is the idea of wedding planning. It is interesting how you think you have your path figured out, but then life starts to happen. Needless to say, I am fully trusting in God, may His will be done.

To all my future bride friends and just brides to be in general, BE YOU. Make sure you try your best to make your wedding speak to your personality. Please don’t try to compete with anyone or compare your day with others. It is YOUR day. So get to planning and best believe I will be all up on facebook checking them out and oohing and ahhing

Finally, even though we have been married for a little over a month, one thing I am trying to focus on is the Fruit of the spirit. Niyi and I spoke about this during counseling and it is interesting. Interesting in the sense that, it is not the fruit(S) but the fruit of the spirit. Which means that there is no way you can say you have love without having patience, or joy, or kindness, or goodness, etc. It is one fruit which means when you have the fruit of the spirit, you have LOVE, JOY, PEACE, PATIENCE, KINDNESS, GOODNESS, GENTLENESS AND SELF CONTROL all at the same time.  This definitely cannot be accomplished without the grace of God. With that said, may the lord grant you your heart desires, may He guide you and shower you with blessings, cover you with His grace and empower us all with t His fruit.

I will miss this process .

Me in my iyawo trad ...pic taken by Mr. Metu as usual

another pose...trust me I got a lot as usual

Cheers

Dami

Picking a vendor is a huge commitment I tell you. I actually prayed and asked God to help me with the vendors and he sure did

DRUM ROLL PLEASE!!!!!!!!!!

My ratings are out of 5 stars

Chateau Polonez–(FOUR AND A HALF STARS)

I chose the Chateau simply because it is breath taking. They were very professional and easy to work with. I even got reimbursed some money because they sent home unneeded staff. I think that says a lot about them because most  establishments just want the money. I failed to give them 5 stars because I wanted my open bar to start later but they did not let me for some random reason. Everything worked out fine though!

The Centrum (FIVE STARS)

I know most people think I am random for renting a church but I am so glad that I did.  It was simply beautiful, the coordinators, musician, lighting, EVERYTHING WAS WONDERFUL

MONARCH LIMOUSINES (5 STARS)

We used their services for the bridesmaids limos and DaNi’s Rolls. I loved the free personalization in front of the rolls. The drivers were extra respectful and nice. Great company.

PRISCILLA OF BOSTON (FOUR AND A HALF STARS)

We dealt with the Salon in Uptown Park, Houston. We got my dress, veil and our bridesmaids dresses there (by the way my girls had free reign on their dresses, shoes and hairstyle). They were very professional and all, but I had to take half a star cause “they was a lil uppitty up in there.”

MORANTICE VIDEOGRAPHY (5 STARS)

Contact Info: 832 207 2914

Morantice was outstanding to say the least. He worked overtime and his pricing cannot be beat. He came in early to set up and came to wedding rehearsal to ensure that he was fully prepared to capture all the moments of the ceremony. The absolute BEST!  Thanks Mama Nia for the referral!

DJ GQ MIKE (THREE AND A HALF STARS)

I wish he was a little more level headed…but he did rock the house. Thanks to Femi for thinking ahead and saving us from several possible disasters!

FEMI MY OUTSTANDING MC (FIVE STARS)

You know how you ask a friend for a favor and they just go above and beyond? Well, that is exactly what happened with Femi. He totally helped all the way through, I can not even start to mention all he did!

Thanks FEMO!

COLLINS METU (FIVE  STARS)

I just love being a TEACHER..(I thank God that I get a chance to live my dream everyday with my boys in Brooklyn)

I have sooooo many of these engagement pics, I don’t even know what to do with them.

THIS IS MY FAV PIC!

Collins is simply the BEST thing that happened to our wedding. From the engagement pics all the the way to the wedding. We became good friends through the process Very professional, he works HARD, and he is WORTH every penny. Brides please keep in mind that you need someone to be able to document your hard work and help you create life long memories through his pictures. I have to say it again, Mr. Metu, ALL THE WAY!

PROFESSIONAL SOCIALITES (FIVE STARS)

What can I say, my girls were troopers. I don’t think they fully understood what they were getting into–such a large Nigerian wedding–but, they did the darn thing. Crystal was hustling so hard and broke her zipper, but she still held it down. I even delayed the start of their day due to my guest list, but they still came in with a smile. Gotta love the socialites

RALS CATERING (FOUR STARS)

The food was off the chain!!!!! But I hate to have to call a vendor multiple times before getting a call back.  Also, he did not provide the specialty non-alcoholic drink he was paid for…SIDE EYE.  Not  to worry, he will be serving a complimentary drink during my 25th Birthday/Invitation launch party!

CAKES MY GINA (TWO STARS)

( Only the truffles on the edge of the  tray, Rals did the ice cream treat)

They are a HOT MESS!!!! no comment! The truffles they provided were good though…but they are ridiculously expensive and the taste is nothing compared to Supreme Kakes. So save your self a lot of dollars and visit Supreme Kakes

TNT ENTERTAINMENT (5 STARS)

"When God Made You He Must Have Been Thinking About Me"

Bolu, a friend of the blog got some of his singers for us during the wedding. Thank you so much for this because it exceeded ALL of my expectations. They were perfect!!!! Please contact Bolu for any of your performing need needs. Live band, singers, musicians, sound equipments, videographers, lights and the whole audio/sound/video/light productions.

bolu.olupona@tamusicians.com

832.413. 3739

TINELL MCINTYRE (5 STARS)

My sorority sister hooked up my hair…she is also a professional makeup artist. SHE IS OFF THE CHAIN.

Beauty Geeks International   (5 STARS)

I wanted to look like myself and I did

Jums of BGI hooked me up all through and she did the darn thing!!!!!

SUPREME KAKES

(FOUR STARS, even though I am being generous with my rating, I can’t go lower because the cakes were delicious)

At first, Supreme Kakes could not get it together..For my shower, they made a lil stripper cake that I did not accept until they fixed it, and they made a white girl (SIDE EYE). Apart from that, It was perfect!!!

DARRYL AND COMPANY (FOUR STARS)

Great to work with…even though Darryl himself tried to change my display due to the recession (ole oshi!) None the less, they did a great job!

HAVING THE TIME OF MY LIFE—5 MILLION STARS !!!

We planned our wedding for over a year and I took a lot of joy in creating and obsessing over every detail and idea. So here are some of my ideas, feel free to use them .

Bridesmaids: I am not a fan of everyone wearing the same outfit. I wanted all of my girls to look their best . So they all wore different dresses but same fabric, different shoes (they had to be red though), different hairstyles, and whatever type of makeup that works best for them. I got them all the same earrings, bracelets and Nike bought the same hair clips for everyone. They also were required to have  pink nail polish.

Flowers: Even though our colors were grey and yellow, I decided on all white flowers. I also like the clean look of flower balls so that was incorporated at the ceremony and at the reception for center pieces.

Cake: Simple is always best. Always remember that the taste matters just as much as the look. I wanted something elegant and chic. I decided to personalize the cake board with DaNi and our wedding date. I also choose all white with pearl balls scattered around one diagonal. It was perfect. Whatever you do, please make sure your cake fits with your theme. We also chose a different flavor for each layer and made the grooms cake red velvet instead of the traditional chocolate.

Picture and Guest Book: I used a very affordable website known as Mpix.com I did not want the framed picture so we ordered a pic that was already on a board.  It is now on our wall at our new place. The guest book now serves as a coffee table book…

To change or not to change: I decided on a party dress because we wanted to have a party. Simple and true. I wanted to be able to move and have a great time. That is why it is important to have a clear vision of what you want your day to be.

Favors: I think it is very disruptive when individual favors are passed out by a lot of people at a wedding. That is why we had gift bags and boxes pre assembled.

Personalized drinks: It is fun, so do it!

Lounge: I decided on a lounge because I knew the vibe we wanted to create was very chill and almost clubby at the end of the night.

Finally, (1) start planning early. I was able to accomplish a lot myself because I was clear on my vision and started making things  and buying early. (2) Even if someone said they would take care of something for you, always have a plan B. People usually have the best intentions but often times, things don’t work out and you don’t want to be stuck. (3)ENJOY: which means all of that bridezilla stuff is some bull and unnecessary . Yes, it is your wedding day, but how much fun will you have when you are being a bitch to all of the folks that are trying to be there for you. I can def. say that we alllll had a good time. On the wedding day we were running on 1 hour of sleep cause of all of our last minute assembling but no one could tell cause we went with the flow and had a great day. I think this is the most important thing actually, ENJOY.

This must have been 5am night before wedding. I was still creating stuff on the PC. I had the menu card crew(T baby, Vestal and Damz) working hard

Late night Walmart run. We needed some more glue. These negros decided to accesorize their pajamas...and they still bought the purple glue we told them not to buy LOL (Nadia always has to be in the mix)

Bolaji working hard on the guest list. peep the gift bags, the whole house was full

My mom on her 27th "breakfast"...We all could tell she could not sleep. She kept making herself different meals hahha

My final advice (for real this time) is don’t be like me, make sure you get some rest the night before. We clearly were having too much of fun

Cheers

Dami