Weddingbee
Martha Stewart was my gateway drug.
I don’t know, she seemed harmless enough. I guess I figured everyone else reads her. The wedding blogs are always showing off her ideas. The local library stocks her wedding how-to videos. Many of the craft tips can be applied in real life — you know, outside the wedding context? — and there are even recipes. Everyone can use new recipes, right??!?
But then there were the other titles smiling up at me from the racks of every grocery store, drugstore, and bookstore. Brides, Modern Bride, Elegant Bride…. Sure, they’re all wedding magazines published by the exact same company, but I figured a sample of each wouldn’t hurt. You can’t begrudge a girl a little fun! And Bridal Guide was offering a free DVD of beauty ideas and a honeymoon guide, that was a good deal. Ooh, and the local guides might have useful info, so better add a few of those.
And then…. Ah, then. It didn’t take long before the early rush started to fade. They all began to look a bit similar. Hm, already saw that ad. Did I read that article in Brides or in Modern Bride? It got harder to find the same kick from the same old mags. I tried the designer reads like Bride & Bloom, but the thrills just weren’t there.
Enter the heavy stuff. Yes, I’m ashamed to admit I’ve turned to the imports. I’ve been shelling out up to $9.99 a pop for British titles like You and Your Wedding, because they’re fresh and different and the couples say charming British things like “hen night” (bachelorette party) or “We met at university froshers week.” UK wedding magazines have become my heroin. They’re the only things that bring back that bridal porn magic for me, where I can pore over every word and every tiny photo as if enchanted…. But boy do those import prices add up!
And now I — somehow — seem to have ordered 17 back issues of Pacific Rim Weddings off the Internet! Do I live near the Pacific Rim? No. Am I having a destination wedding or a Pacific Rim themed wedding? No. (But it was a great deal — less than $2 each!) Friends and family take note — it is clearly time for an intervention!!!
So, anyone else willing to come clean on your addiction? And/or clue me in on any good mags that I might be missing????
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Oh, yeah, I loved the British magazines! And there are so many of them. I didn’t tell my fiance how many of them I bought.
Hilarious. Yes, you should sue Martha for this!!! hee hee
I am addicted to this site! I only discovered Weddingbee AFTER I got married, so I hang out here and ogle everyone’s beautiful weddings and creations and think, “Oh my gosh, I would so LOVE to have done that at my wedding!!” In fact, I keep bookmarking things I find here. Why? I have no idea. They’re just so dang cute and cool. My justification is that I do have a younger brother who is (theoretically) going to get engaged soon, and a few singleton friends left, so I may be able to put this addiction to use. I heart WB!
“….that bridal porn magic”
You hit the nail on the head 
When I see a bridal mag in my mailbox, I barely make it through the front door before I tear that puppy open and start poring over it.
We should go to rehab together.
I spent $9.95 plus tax on the last issue of The Knot for ONE two-page spread. I feel so dirty!!
ohhhhhhh - gotta go to my local library!
I never even thought of british bridal magazines. I feel like someone who’s been just chillin’ with weed and has just been introduced to smack….must. have. now!!
I think I need a sponsor…or another hit!
Wow - princesskittyHI, thank you for coming clean. I, too, didn’t discover this site until (mere months!) after my own (very fun!) wedding. An engaged friend of mine gave me the first hit: “I check out Weddingbee - I’m getting good ideas for the wedding from it”, and so I looked, with the excuse that I’m her bridesmaid and I need to know what her ideas are. Then I felt the rush of seeing other women find The Dress and The Photographer and The Perfect Tiny Votive Favor With Matching Ribbon For Oh So Cheap…. and now I’m hooked. The first step is admitting it.
Mr. CB was pretty darn shocked when he saw my collection of bridal magazines, most MS weddings that I lent to my friend which was over 1.5 years before we were engaged. hahah! I love weddings, what can I say?
This is such a funny post! I live in the UK and have my subscription to our ‘Wedding Ideas’, and ‘You and Your Wedding’ but find myself checking in on WeddingBee religiously! We have no outlet for creative DIY bridal ideas and so I am really greatful for everything I’ve learned from you ladies! We have fewer ‘essential’ elements to the wedding day so it’s also hard not to get carried away with all that can be included.
Thought I’d include a link to a wedding that had the ceremony in one castle and the reception in a different one! Despite the unpredictable weather - there are a few pluses of getting married in this country
I have been buying wedding magazines since 2003 and I finally broke the addiction after we got married this past June. I must of had 20-40 issues of InStyle Weddings, MS Weddings, Grace Ormond Weddings and my favorite, Pacific Rim Weddings. But my biggest addiction since March/April 2006 is Weddingbee - the best blog on the internet!
I feel *so much* better knowing there are others who share my pain!
Mr. Tulip made me go cold turkey on the purchasing. So now I hang on in bookstores magazine sections, trying to grab whatever glimpses I can in a quick flip. (Your basic junkie looking for free samples of her dealer’s stock….) Till the stores close and Security has to tell me to go home. Sigh.
my boxes of wedding mags are so heavy that I can’t lift them. wow. But you just never know which of them will be the source of major inspiration so…..BUY THEM ALL!!! I say
I’m a bridal mag addict, too! You probably won’t find this in DC, but Ceremony magazine is just gorgeous– there’s an LA and an Orange County version (see ceremonymagazine.com). I saw it in Barnes & Noble and had to have it; it was only $6 and is like a mini coffee table book. No one believes it’s just a magazine.
[...] the whole night what is difference between my wedding blog compared to other more popular ones like weddingbee.com and ohjoys.blog.com. They are always recommending wedding items to buy, in my own [...]
Real Weddings from Australia
oh and Creative Weddings from Australia :O)
Better Homes and Gardens Wedding mags give Martha a run for her money, but they only come out sporadically.
Look for them.
What have I been missing!? I only bought one magazine…but I’ve checked in on Weddingbee at least 3 times a day since March. My wedding is this coming weekend, and I just (2 days ago) subscribed to Martha Stewart Weddings for a year. …I figure I won’t be able to break the wedding addiction and justify it that my sister is getting married in a little over a year.
Hilarious. You are quite the blogger!
grace ormonde wedding style magazine is beyond beautiful. I think it may take hundreds of grands for these weddings but its so beautiful to look at. addicted.
I’m a photographer - you think you have it bad? Heck, I’m asking my husband to pick up some of the UK ones when he goes to London for work in a few weeks. I’ve looked through those Pacific Rim ones and they ARE addicting - I can’t blame you!
Hey, can I buy your collection when you no longer need them? 
Oh. My. Gosh. I never even THOUGHT of importing! *bangs head against wall* What was I thinking?
I have a question though… I got married this past spring, and still have *tons*of bridal magazines (I think my aunt may have been more addicted than me- she kept them coming!) left… what do I do with them? I already gave some to my husband’s best friend’s finance, who’s getting married next year… I mean, these things cost money- it REALLY adds up- so I don’t want to just throw them away (the horror!!!), but I can’t keep them ALL… except for those few favorites that had my florist advertised, or that had special inspiration, or that had dresses that were just too dreamy… Ok, no, I can’t keep them all… but what to do with them??
This is a GREAT post, by the way!
OK, since mb thinks I already “came clean” I should finish the confession…I’m a semi-addict to the magazines as well. I say “semi” because I only devoured certain parts — the “real” weddings and other photo spread-type articles where I could steal ideas from. MS Weddings is da bomb!! Love her! (And I subscribe to, I think, all her other publications…Living, Everday Food, Blueprint, OMG, I’m embarassing myself here.) I was never really a big fan of The Knot magazine b/c I settled on my dress before I even had a boyfriend, and their issues were mostly gowns, shoes and hair.
Natalie so many go on ebay! but maybe theres an organization you could donate them to for a good cause?
Is comment 15 spam by any chance?
OMG..I’m not the only one? I’m a member of BMAA(bridal magazine addicts anonymous) too. LOL. I’ve only been engaged for 2 months and I think I’ve spent over 100 bucks on them these 2 months. Let’s see…here are some other magazines to feed your addiction: I love love love Grace Ormond’s Bridal magazines. They have amazing photos. I’ve also bought those reception magazines. I think they are by Brides magazine. Some favors magazine. I wouldn’t get it though. You can see the same favor ideas at theknot.com.
Hi… my name is H___ … and I’m a wedding magazine junkie.
Yup, full fledged addiction. Now that I’m married (Yes, married… and still I can’t stop reading this blog!) I painfully gave away my huge collection of wedding magazines. My husband felt it was best to get them out of the house. *sniff, sniff*
My only justification for continued blog reading is that my best friend just got engaged. Yay! I can still (discreetly) get my fix with a bit of justification. A girl has to stay up on the current wedding trends to help her best friend out! Right?
P.S. Great post Miss Tulip! Also, I LOVE Inside Weddings. A girl can always dream…
S, thanks for the ebay idea… I might look into that. Would people care if they are from last year or early this year (so they aren’t the newest issues)? I don’t know if any organization would want them? I could probably throw some into my donation bags, just in case. Thanks again!
Ha ha, I just love everyone’s comments here!!
Natalie, you wouldn’t believe what people sell on Ebay. I’ve even bought years-old catalogs, not to mention magazines. Sometimes it’s fun to see something that’s not the newest ideas everyone else is featuring…. But in terms of thrift shop donations — depends on your local shop, but most of the ones I shop at (ahem) definitely do accept and sell magazines. Be sure to cut your address off first if it was a subscription!
Natalie- gosh no! Theres a ton going there at any time!
Sometimes thrift shops (don’t know how it works in the USA) have book sales…but I was also thinking along the lines of the places that you can donate your dress to for less fortunate brides…maybe they have need for them
[...] it appears my little wedding magazine addiction isn’t going away anytime soon…. In the meantime, this weekend I discovered another new UK [...]
Hoping someone might be able to help me, I have recently relocated from New Zealand and discovered Instyle Wedding Magazines, bliss, any chance anyone knows where I can get all the 2006 / early 2007 issues? Anyone out there who wants to post them on ebay with a realistic buy now price and give me prior warning so I can bid on them? otherwise if you have a paypal account, lets work a deal : )
Hi Hoping someone can help me, I recently relocated from New Zealand and have just discovered Instyle Weddings with 3 months to go till my wedding, bliss
Does anyone know where I can get all the 2006 / early 2007 issues, or if anyone wants to list on ebay with a realistic buy now price and pre warn me? otherwise if you have a paypal account contact me and lets do a deal : )
[...] a wedding magazine junkie, my favorite chapter was naturally “How Can a Magazine Cost $12.95 and Not Have Pictures of [...]
Oh my gosh, I’ve found others like me! I’ve been addicted to bridal magazines since I was 16 which is when my brother got married and the wedding bug bit me. My addiction grew when I started working at Barnes and Noble a few months later and I was surrounded by the gorgeous British mags. As nerdy as I am I even started a wedding scrapbook of sorts, cutting out all the pictures and ideas that I liked from the magazines. Now, 9 years later I’m still addicted, have spent far too much money and for some reason found it necessary to subscribe to several magazines when I’m not even engaged! Quite embarassing when my boyfriend gets to the mail before I do!
Mrs. Tulip
Mrs. Tulip, DC
Age and Occupation: 36, Retired
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 33, Counsel/DOO for Small Gov't Contractor
Engagement Date: August 8, 2007
Wedding Date: March, 2008
Venue: Still Looking!
About Me: In all my dreams of the man I'd someday marry, I never pictured anyone as perfect for me as Mr. Tulip. So now we just have to make it through the craziness of the wedding and the moving in together! I love crafts, sewing, jewelry making, and photography, so am looking forward to this chance for DIY fun. When not wedding planning, I'm playing with our dog and 4 cats, Ebay shopping, or watching too much TV (often simultaneously!).
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