Mrs. Powder Puff, ChicagoAge and Occupation: 25, Preschool TeacherFiance's Age and Occupation: 25, Career ServicesEngagement Date: May, 2008Wedding Date: July, 2009Blogging Since: November 12, 2008Venue: Outdoor ceremony, banquet hall receptionAbout Me: I am your typical Midwestern girl attempting to plan a sane, budget-friendly, fun wedding to the man of my dreams. I love shoes, laughing at “Platinum Weddings”, crafts, inspiration boards, candy, and basically anything I can DIY. While weddings can certainly be all-consuming, I honestly can’t wait until the ceremony is over and I can finally call Mr. Powder Puff my husband!
Reader crazeesheila is selling 22 rose silk/satin tablecloths. The tablecloths are sized to fit both 72″ jumbo round tables and 66″ regular round tables. Contact the seller for more information!
Have a wedding item for sale? Post it with pictures in the Weddingbee classifieds and you might see it featured on the blog!
Mrs. Green Tea, SacramentoAge and Occupation: 30, Tea AnalystFiance's Age and Occupation: 31, Coffee CriticEngagement Date: November 17, 2006Wedding Date: August 23, 2008Blogging Since: June 10, 2008Venue: Vineyard on the DeltaAbout Me: I'm just your average obsessive compulsive, arts & crafts loving, funky-on-the-inside/boring-on-the-outside girl, who dares to say 'Hey! I can make that!' Nerdy professional by day, goofy won-ton by night. The won-ton sometimes comes out during the day when I'm fed the dollar breakfast at Ikea. Since our engagement, wedding planning has put me on high alert for bargains and I've been pushing my nimble fingers through callous building experiments!
For many of us, today is a big day tied with many emotions from all over the spectrum. In the GT household, one of us is celebrating in proud red and white stripes, while the other is humming a little bluesy tune.
Since neither of us enjoy political discussions, our differences in political views have not been too hard to deal with. We respect each other’s opinions and agree to disagree. In fact, often times it is tougher for me to deal with my own family or the in-laws, as they can be more hardcore and outspoken about their positions that are also opposite from mine (yes, I am greatly outnumbered)!
Our differences and ability to be understanding surprise a lot of people.
Mrs. Hot Cocoa, Boston/Los AngelesAge and Occupation: 31, JD/PhD StudentFiance's Age and Occupation: 32, Medical StudentEngagement Date: May 30, 2008Wedding Date: March, 2009Blogging Since: April, 2008Venue: Ritz Carlton, Marina Del ReyAbout Me:
I am a professional student by day and an amateur cupcake taster, bargain shopper, and wedding planner by night. I am obsessed with NPR, the Food Network, paper, dance shows, Anthropologie, post-structuralist theory, Weddingbee!, "The Office," and celebrity gossip. When not procrastinating from my dissertation, I spend time catering to Jellyby, our overly anxious shih tzu, and getting to know Mr. Hot Cocoa. We have only been dating for fifteen years, so it's like I'm in love with a stranger! From the East Coast, we are planning a Jewish-Chinese Extravaganza in L.A., where we both grew up.
On Sunday, there was a snow storm that blanketed Boston in a foot of wet, clumpy, hard-to-shovel snow. But not even a blizzard could keep me from meeting up with Mrs. Margarita and Mrs. Corn to see “Bride Snores” — I mean, “Bride Wars”. Miss Latte, the newest of the Boston Bees, joined us afterward for (what else?) coffee. Poor Mrs. Toucan was sick, and her presence was missed by all.
Mrs. Perfume, DCAge and Occupation: 36, Consultant (and Part-Time Professor)Fiance's Age and Occupation: 41, ConsultantEngagement Date: May 13, 2008Wedding Date: May, 2009Venue: The Homestead, Hot Springs, VirginiaAbout Me: I'd like to think that I'm a modern day Little Edie Beale. Only not as..."talented". More realistically, I'm a foodie who can't bake; a dancer and dilettente; an art collector with a penchant for the whimsical and subversive. I live in the city and adore the country, but not much in between. I like smart design, great craftmanship and good value. Most of all, I love the new vintage aesthetic: classic, sweet, delicate, bespoke. If I had to do it all over again, I'd go for a culinary arts degree rather than a PhD; but wouldn't trade Mr. P for the world.
Early on in the engagement, I purchased four wedding magazines. I still, eight months later, have only four wedding magazines. I’ve found various photographers’, designers’, and real-brides-to-be wedding blogs to be much more creative and inspirational.
I found the blog of photographer, Todd Pellowe, that captured this stunningly simple and very stylish vintage-styled wedding. The bride actually found a 1930s wedding dress. It’s absolutely stunning in its understatement and uniqueness. She has super cool vintage style. It’s so one-of-a-kind, and nothing seems cookie cutter!
Mrs. D'orsay, Baltimore/Lancaster UKAge and Occupation: 24, nonprofit communications Fiance's Age and Occupation: 29, Web site developer and designer; co-owner of men's skincare shopEngagement Date: August 10, 2008Wedding Date: August, 2009Venue: Oakland ManorAbout Me: I'm a Maryland raised environmental policy wonk/activist/organizer and communications aficionado. In the past year I've lived in Baltimore, MD, Tucson, AZ, Miami, FL and Lancaster, England. In my not so spare time I enjoy planning trips with Mr. D' Orsay, visiting friends and family and crafting like a mo-fo. I also enjoy modern dance classes, rugby and soccer but have been banned by my mother, MOHs, and Mr. D' Orsay from playing till after the wedding. I have an unnatural addiction to cheese and shoes, but love Mr. D' Orsay more than either and can't wait to become Mrs. D' Orsay!
I’m not dirty you see, as I like things germ-free. I’m just very very messy. A pair of socks here, 10 pairs of shoes there, 4 sweaters over the chair… a towel on the floor. Yeah, I’m only telling you about half the things I see as I look around.
Now, being a slob is fine when you live by yourself, or if you slob it all up in your room and leave the common spaces neat for your roommates. But living with Mr. D I’ve found it much harder to slob it up in our bedroom because apparently we have to share our space. What’s all that about?
So although Mr. D and I made joint resolutions for the New Year (buy local, use our reusable bags EVERY TIME and no more swearing) I wanted to make one of my own. Read more…
Mrs. Latte, Boston/NYCAge and Occupation: 29, College Admissions CounselorFiance's Age and Occupation: 30, Elementary School TeacherEngagement Date: August 23, 2008Wedding Date: July 2009Venue: Stage 6 at Steiner StudiosAbout Me: I am an East Coast girl marrying a West Coast boy. After 2 years of over 3,000 miles between us, Mr. Latte and I are looking forward to finally living in the same time zone/coast/city/home and living “normal couple” lives. I am a crafter at heart and enjoy dragging my friends into new craft projects. I love my Mac, baking cupcakes, wrapping presents, my BlackBerry, naps, good NY style pizza, Jack Bauer and of course, Mr. Latte. I love him a latte. :)
Much to Mr. Latte’s disappointment (or maybe relief is a better word), he couldn’t get out to the East Coast for the 2nd installment of the big, bad venue search. So, Day 2’s victim? Momma Latte. I dragged poor Momma Latte around town to check out three more venues. Our first stop?
There is nothing more “New York” than Central Park. And the CPB is located right smack in the middle of it. It’s also right next to the lake, home of the Venetian gondolas, and also where Mr. Latte and I spent a lot of time talking and getting to know each other on our first date. The ceremony would be held inside the main ballroom, cocktails would be outside on the terrace, and everyone would come back indoors for dinner. The room itself is beautiful… the dark wood and huge windows just gives it a super romantic feel.
Momma Latte loved it! And apparently, so did everyone else getting married in NYC. Not surprisingly, the CPB books up FAST. They didn’t have our holiday weekend available, but had a couple of nights open later in the summer. I wanted to check with Mr. Latte before making any hasty decisions, so we decided to move on to our next location.
We had a huge fight on Friday after my fiance came home drunk (he hung out with old college friends). It seems like ever since we announced our engagement, all of his friends want to take him out drinking to celebrate. (None of them are in serious relationships and I don’t think they understand how much strain their “fun” puts on our relationship.) I don’t mind him going out with the guys once in a while, but it’s been almost nonstop since we told everyone! They always include me in their outings, but on Friday, enough was enough, so I came home early. During our argument we said some hurtful things to each other. I’m so upset still—he’s apologized a million times and promised not to have another drink for 6 months, and has promised no more partying with his friends. I feel like they don’t want to lose him (the crazy fun one) to me (the no more fun wife). I love him so much.
Has anyone else experienced “friend wars” like this? What do I do? Do I tell them to leave him alone and risk looking more like the bad guy? I don’t want tension on our big day. I’m so sad about this situation—we had such a good week. We found our new home (right across the street from the ocean in Narragansett RI). For the first time in my life I felt like I had everything I ever wanted, and now I’m so mad that I don’t want to plan another thing.
Mrs. Cupcake, PhiladelphiaAge and Occupation: 27, Graphic DesignerFiance's Age and Occupation: 29, Construction Project ManagerEngagement Date: February 10, 2007Wedding Date: September, 2008Blogging Since: December 7, 2007Venue: The Desmond Hotel in Malvern, PAAbout Me: Mr. Cupcake and I hit it off at a Halloween party and immediately began a long-distance relationship. After two years, he moved to my neck of the woods, and a year and a half after that, he proposed at the “place we fell in love.” I am a true perfectionist who enjoys designing and creating more work for myself, so wedding planning is my perfect outlet. Mr. Cupcake and I are both old souls, and we hope to weave that aspect of our personalities into our wedding day.
In designing our wedding invitations, I was definitely at a huge advantage over other DIY brides, and for that I know I am very, very lucky. I design wedding invitations and stationery for a living, and have been a graphic designer for six years, so there wasn’t a lot of guessing about how to begin or what to include. But thinking back to when I first designed wedding invitations for a friend over four years ago, I remember how overwhelming it was, which is what a lot of you may be going through. I thought I’d share some of my knowledge with you all, since it seems like a lot of brides go the DIY route for their invitations. I am certainly not claiming to be the end-all, be-all authority of wedding invitations… but I hope this can help a few of you out who may be struggling.
1. Make sure you give yourself enough time.
Designing, printing, assembling, addressing, and mailing your invitations will take a very long time… I’m not going to lie. It may be one of the most time-consuming tasks you will encounter while wedding planning. I’m not trying to scare you — just prepare you! If you think you can complete the task from start to finish in a month, give yourself two months. Everyone works at their own pace but it is better to err on the side of caution and give yourself plenty of time to account for your learning curve. A good rule of thumb is to mail your invitations 6-8 weeks before your wedding date, leaving your guests at least a month to reply before your response date, so try to plan things out so everything is completed several weeks ahead of this timeline in the event that you run into roadblocks along the way. I mailed our invitations on July 22 and our reply by date was September 1 (for our September 20 wedding), so our guests had ample time to let us know whether or not they would be attending.
2. Think carefully about your “reply by” date. Read more…
Mrs. Sea Breeze, Vancouver/Dominican RepublicAge in 2008 and Occupation: 30, Communications ManagerFiance's Age in 2008 and Occupation: 29, Experiential Marketing DirectorEngagement Date: October 6, 2007Wedding Date: November, 2008Blogging Since: July 17, 2008Venue: Majestic Colonial Resort, Punta CanaAbout Me: Planning a destination wedding by the sea should be (oh no she di-in't…) a breeze (…*sigh* yep, she did) but when you've never been to the Caribbean, your powers of imagination are really put to the test. Luckily, I'm 90% resourceful, creative optimist (and kooky, neurotic practicalist-if-that's-a-word for the other ten). Other than writing about our week-long celebration of family, friends, laughter and love, I adore books, shoes and… you guessed it… long walks on the beach.
I’m just going to hit pause on the recaps here for a sec and go into a bit more detail on the Out of Town bags we created for our guests, as several of you wanted to know where we got them from.
But first, here are some shots of our wedding-branded goodies in action:
Mrs. Penguin, Northern CaliforniaAge and Occupation: 27, Weddingbee Editor in ChiefFiance's Age and Occupation: 30, Doctor of Physical TherapyEngagement Date: January 29, 2007Wedding Date: June 7, 2008Blogging Since: September 14, 2007Venue: Winery in the Gold CountryAbout Me: I love the Spice Girls, dogs with underbites, bean burritos, making messes, high fives, avoiding showers, crossword puzzles, blogs, weddings, and blogs about weddings!
All good things must come to an end, so this is the last installment in our ring shot series. Thanks to everyone who took the time to send in their gorgeous ring pictures! This has been so much fun!
If you’d like to keep this series going, please start a thread on the boards, and perhaps we can bring it back one day.
So without further ado…
izon2b took this with her Canon Powershot SD75 and natural lighting. Read more…
Mrs. Bee, New YorkAge and Occupation: 29, Weddingbee PublisherFiance's Age and Occupation: 33, InternetEngagement Date: May 7, 2004Wedding Date: March 5, 2005Venue: Westside Loft, New YorkAbout Me: Yes, my name really is Bee! I love my blogging, wikis, and tabasco sauce!
Mrs. Avocado, SeattleAge and Occupation: 23, StudentFiance's Age and Occupation: 26, ConsultantEngagement Date: July 27, 2008Wedding Date: October, 2008Blogging Since: June 30, 2008Venue: LDS Seattle Temple & Hotel 1000About Me: Somehow this little farm girl found herself a genuine Pole to fall in love and eventually move away to Poland with. I am an LDS bride attempting to plan a private religious ceremony, ring ceremony, seated reception for 100, and an open house while coordinating for guests flying in from across the United States and as far away as Poland. I try to avoid fads, excess waste, and saturated fat. I strongly endorse photography, DDR, calorie counting, rss feeds, cooking, and utilizing your resources.
I’ve recently been crying over the cost of gallery wrap canvas prints. I want to fill my house with them and create my own version of the oft-cited Martha gallery wrap layout.
Unfortunately ordering them through the company my Mom uses for her own professional printing would run me $75 for an 8″x10″ print (that’s wholesale people!). Read more…
Mrs. Crab Cake, Columbus, GAAge and Occupation: 25, Registered NurseFiance's Age and Occupation: 31, Director of Education and Living History for a museumEngagement Date: April 6, 2008Wedding Date: June, 2009Blogging Since: November 26, 2008Venue: Holy Family Catholic Church, reception: National Infantry MuseumAbout Me: I'm a perfectionist trying to balance two jobs, motherhood, my craft obsession, and wedding planning. I am obsessed with all things wedding, especially creative ideas for saving money and DIY projects. A Southern Belle at heart, I love anything southern, especially sweet tea, grits, afternoon thunder storms, crab cakes, and good old Southern hospitality. Mr. Crab Cake and I are planning a vintage inspired wedding with tons of Southern flare (can y'all say that with a thick Southern drawl?).
I’m so sad about this situation—we had such a good week. We found our new home (right across the street from the ocean in Narragansett RI). For the first time in my life I felt like I had everything I ever wanted, and now I’m so mad that I don’t want to plan another thing.
