Mrs. Sushi, Hershey/HawaiiAge and Occupation: 27, Air Force PhotographerFiance's Age and Occupation: 25, Laborer/Aspiring Hip Hop ProducerEngagement Date: December 25, 2007Wedding Date: March 2009Blogging Since: October 9, 2006Venue: Byodo-In Temple, Luau ReceptionAbout Me: I’m a notorious people-watcher who loves all things paper, food, traveling, grubbin’ on food, gossip magazines, food, sock monkeys…did I mention food?! Mr. Sushi and I are both haolepinos (half Filipino, half Caucasian) and hope to be able to somehow incorporate our cultures at our destination wedding in Hawaii. All while planning from the sweetest place in earth, Hershey!
Victoria’s Secret Semi-Annual Sale is going on right now (in stores until January 12th) and if you’re looking for some great threads to wear on your wedding day, now is the time to check it out! Once upon a time, I worked for Vicki’s. While every store will be stocked with different sale items, they do receive new shipments every week, so their stock of sale items might be different week to week. I stopped in at my local Vicki’s last week and was surprised to see the abundance of “bridal” undies they had! Most of these were on sale for $5.99, rather than the original price of $14-$16. I scored a pair of undies with ruffles.
Mrs. Pomegranate, SacramentoAge and Occupation: 27, Technical SpecialistFiance's Age and Occupation: 27, Software EngineerEngagement Date: August 23, 2007Wedding Date: October, 2008Blogging Since: June 5, 2008Venue: R.H. Phillips WineryAbout Me: Hi, I'm Miss Pomegranate and I'm a shopaholic. I have a weak spot for the chic cheap - especially anything I can re-create on the DIY. Shoes are my vice, music is my passion in life and technology is the medium by which I live and work. When I'm not scoping out a sale, I'm spending my quality time training for a marathon, playing Wii with my fiance and snuggling with my Silver Labrador and Teacup Panther - and oh yeah, planning my wedding!
We finished up at the spa, hopped into our respective cars and drove up to the hotel. We quickly checked-in, freshened up and changed. I put on my Ralph Lauren black and white striped dress - but my boobies were NOT going to fill it out. I had to improvise by taking my black wrap and tying it in front to not only cover up the vacant area, but also to hold it up!
Travis Hoehne Photography
First thing I did when I got to the winery? Why grabbed a glass of wine, of course!
Mrs. Peep Toe, San FranciscoAge and Occupation: 29, Policy AnalystFiance's Age and Occupation: 36, Olive Oil Production ManagerEngagement Date: December 16, 2007Wedding Date: May, 2009Blogging Since: November 26, 2008Venue: Hotel VitaleAbout Me: I am a west coast lady who loves the San Francisco Bay Area. I love living with Mr. Peep and our animals: Huck the Dog and Ferris the Cat. I work to save the environment in San Francisco, while Mr. Peep makes ridiculously delicious Olive Oil. On any day you can find me reading the latest book I have gotten my hands on, eating Swedish Fish, and perusing wedding blogs! We are both champagne drinking foodies on a Bud Light budget. We are planning an eco-chic, intimate, and interfaith San Francisco City wedding.
The night before I went dress shopping was horrible. I didn’t sleep and I kept having dreams of the ’fat guy in a little coat’ scene from Tommy Boy, except it was me trying to fit into a wedding dress. I know, I know, I was being WAY over dramatic, but we all have our own wedding neurosis and that was mine. When I finally woke up I thought, “This day is going to be a disaster!”
Sister/MOH Peep Toe was so excited to go dress shopping that she planned the day. She strategically had us start at Bridal Galleria. She figured it was the place to go to try on a wide range of dresses, no matter what the price. I knew with my budget I couldn’t really afford anything there, so it took some of the pressure off. I promptly showed the consultant my dress montage that I had created:
Mrs. Cookie, DenverAge and Occupation: 25, Nonprofit Fundraiser/Theatre DesignerFiance's Age and Occupation: 27, Financial AnalystEngagement Date: September 2007Wedding Date: September 2008Blogging Since: May 8, 2008Venue: Ten Mile StationAbout Me: With a degree in Theatre I never realized that planning a wedding was a lot like Theatre Management, until I started planning my own. I am a coffee addict, especially Starbucks' Grande Mochas, yummy! I love to cook (especially chocolate chip cookies for my honey), travel to exotic places, and be creative. As a couple, Mr. Cookie and I are extremely practical, down to earth, and children at heart. We live in a cozy abode with our adorable Pomeranian, and love to play board games and watch movies into the evening.
After our brush with near cake catastrophe, I was just happy we had cake. Not that not having a cake would have been a catastrophe. I would have married Mr. Cookie without cake, but the icing on the cake—so to speak—was that we were able to participate in the age ol’ tradition of cake smashing. Yes, this perfectly beautiful cake ended up all over both of our faces. 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. :)
Is this for real? Am I really here? As a bee? WOW!
I’m super excited and honored to join the hive! When I received the news, I was at work and screamed so loudly that everyone ran over to make sure I was OK. Is a grown woman sitting in front of a computer screen with her hands covering her face, laughing and crying simultaneously “OK”??? Oh, hecks yeah she is!
I’ve been an avid Weddingbee reader since waaay before I even met Mr. Latte, so my “wedding idea notebook” is full of great tips and pieces of advice from the bees. I hope that my experiences will give you as much inspiration and as many creative ideas as I’ve received from them!
Let me start by introducing us…the Lattes. I live in Boston, Mr. Latte lives in the Bay Area, and we’ve been in a long distance relationship since the very beginning. Read more…
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.
After all of those hugs we walked over to the lawn for the group shots. What is it about walking photos that makes brides love them so much? This shot even has some random car in the background and it is still one of my favorite wedding shots.
Mrs. Dumpling, Las VegasAge and Occupation: 27, FinanceFiance's Age and Occupation: 34, Real EstateEngagement Date: March, 2008Wedding Date: March, 2009Blogging Since: August 26, 2008Venue: Catholic church ceremony & golf course receptionAbout Me: I grew up in the Deep South, and while most people say I have a thick southern accent, I tend to think it only comes out when I need to use it. Living in Las Vegas has definitely been an adventure and Mr. Dumpling and I are loving every minute of it! We are planning a traditional Catholic wedding ceremony and a reception with lots of DIY! We might even get Elvis to show up! I'm a HUGE Beatles fan, love The Office and can't wait to become a Mrs.!
All right—here’s the deal. I’ll just get right to it and admit defeat so everyone can see that Miss Dumpling has some big issues. Our invitations were a huge pain in the rear. I loved them and I worked a lot of hours perfecting them. Only in the end, we tossed out the actual invite card and hired a professional. What happened, you ask? To put it mildly, the Gocco kicked my butt. I think I did okay on the RSVP cards and reception cards, but when it came time to get the actual invitation Goccoed, I just couldn’t make it happen. I don’t have a picture, but they were a mess. Picture a brown piece of cardstock with blobs of pink ink and crooked wording. Don’t get me wrong—the Gocco is fun and can be very easy, but for some reason I just couldn’t make it work for me that night.
So, instead of whining (okay, there was a little pouting and whining) about it, we enlisted the help of Wedding Paper Divas to get us out of our mess. The drama: The other invitation pieces had already been printed on Paper Source Luxe (textured) cardstock, and I was worried that WPD’s cardstock wouldn’t match, not to mention the fact that there was a slim chance that they might have something that remotely matched what I had already printed.
I am planning on buying several bottles of champagne for the toast at the reception, but many of the guests I am inviting do not drink at all. I’m wondering, should I buy something like sparkling grape juice for the non-drinkers to toast with, or should I let them toast with whatever beverage they are drinking at the time? Is the grape juice an unnecessary expense?
Mrs. Ballet Flat, New OrleansAge and Occupation: 24, Geographic Information Systems AnalystFiance's Age and Occupation: 26, IT AnalystEngagement Date: March 16, 2008Wedding Date: May, 2009Blogging Since: September 25, 2008Venue: St. Charles Borromeo Church/Jefferson-Orleans NorthAbout Me: I absolutely love wedding planning, spending time with Mr. Ballet Flat, various crafts, watching football, baking, pop music, bargain hunting and ice cream. My idea of a great date night is dinner and clearance shopping with Mr. Ballet Flat! I currently live below sea level in the suburbs near New Orleans, where I make maps all day, everyday for my job. I'm slowly becoming more and more obsessed with anything New Orleans related for our wedding, and I can't wait for the big day!
This is going to be one of the hardest things I’ve ever posted about myself on here. As you all (may) know, I’m a plus-sized girl. A couple of weeks ago, I asked for a push from you guys, and so many of you offered great advice and tips that I’m slowly incorporating into my lifestyle. I appreciate it so much!
Weight loss has always been hard for me. Read more…
Mrs. Pinot Noir, New York/Napa ValleyAge and Occupation: 24, Health EducatorFiance's Age and Occupation: 31, Market ResearcherEngagement Date: November 10, 2007Wedding Date: October, 2008Blogging Since: June 25, 2008Venue: Auberge du SoleilAbout Me: I am a Minnesota raised, NYC transplant planning a destination wedding in Napa. I'm balancing my love for the environment and my hubby-to-be's love for tradition to create our "green wedding in disguise." Our wedding will include local food and wine, antique touches and lots of love and laughter. When wedding planning isn't taking up my free time (and money) I love to read, cook, workout, watch baseball and travel! Follow along in my adventure as I attempt to plan an eco-friendly and socially responsible wedding (with eco-oblivious Mr. Pinot Noir).
Instead of using traditional table numbers, we named each table after a place that we had visited together. Each table included the location, name, and description of the place (when we went, what we did there, etc.) on one side, and a picture of us in that place on the other.
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!
Hey there hive! Please join me in giving a warm welcome to our newest hot drink bee! Say hello to Miss Latte!
Miss Latte, Boston/NYC Age & Occupation: 29, College Admissions Counselor Fiance’s Age & Occupation: 30, Elementary School Teacher Engagement Date: August 23, 2008 Wedding Date: July 2009 Venue: Stage 6 at Steiner Studios About 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.
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Calling all brides getting married through August 2009! If you haven’t gotten a chance to see our newest round of baby animal characters, check them out here! We’re always on the lookout for fun, diverse, and dynamic bees to join the hive, so send in your application today!
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.
It’s hard to believe that it’s been a month and a half since we left Canada for two supremely amazing wedding weeks in Punta Cana. We have finally settled down into a comfortable groove again and though our tans have faded, the memories we made never will. You know what that means: It’s finally time to recap the Breezys’ Destination Wedding in the Dominican Republic, a.k.a. DW in the DR.
Punta Cana, here we come!
It will probably come as no surprise that the last few days before our departure were HECTIC. I actually fully expected to tear my hair out because I just knew there were so many things that wouldn’t fall into place before the very last minute (isn’t that always the case?), but the situation was worse than even I had imagined.
As (bad) luck would have it, Mr Breezy was launching a big campaign at work right before we left which meant he had to pull some looooong hours at the office and so I was largely on my own. Three days before our flight, somewhere in between me running around town getting last minute things and hyperventilating into a brown paper bag, Mr Breezy basically opened the door to the guest room (our designated Wedding Disaster Area), threw a bunch of clothes in there and said, “Good luck, honey. Don’t forget to pack anything.” Considering I had not only our own stuff to pack but also OOT bags and contents for 60 guests, this was no small feat. Read more…
Mrs. Spring Roll, TampaAge and Occupation: 23, Certified Pharmacy TechnicianFiance's Age and Occupation: 26, Concert PhotographerEngagement Date: May 1, 2008Wedding Date: March 2009Blogging Since: September 16, 2008Venue: Beach Social HallAbout Me: I'm the stereotypical girl who enjoys sewing, baking, and decorating. I am blessed to share my life with Mr. Spring Roll and our two shih tzu's, Isabella and Gabriella. Hello Kitty, musicals, Target, and Chick-fil-a are a few of my favorite things. I have a fear of fish and Freddy Krueger. Planning our wedding has become a huge part of my life, and I love every minute of it!
Naturally, as a girl who loves lace, pearls, and all things frilly, I love mantilla veils. I, however, do not love their price tag. By now, I’m sure you all can guess what I did. That’s right, I made my own mantilla veil.
With a lot of help from Sister Spring Roll, we turned this:
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?).
My first fitting was today. It went very well. I took my camera, but honestly felt no need to photograph the event. It was, well, uneventful. I did learn a few things, thank heaven.
My shoes are not nearly as comfortable as I wanted them to be. But I think it’s just my feet. I have no cushion in the balls of my feet. They didn’t pinch my toes, or my heels. They just hurt the balls of my feet. I will be purchasing a pair of foot petals.
There are some areas that need to be, well, toned, before the wedding. Read more…
Mrs. Deviled Egg, PittsburghAge and Occupation: 27, Public RelationsFiance's Age and Occupation: 28, AccountingEngagement Date: December 24, 2007Wedding Date: May, 2009Blogging Since: October 21, 2008Venue: Historic auditorium and meeting hall in one of Pittsburgh's commuter citiesAbout Me: I am obsessed with all things crafty, especially scrapbooking, knitting, jewelry-making & cake decorating. I also love being an aunt, wrapping presents, watching football (Go Steelers!), shopping at yard sales and consignment stores, procrastinating, singing and learning to play the guitar. When it comes to wedding planning, I'm excited about working on DIY projects and finding creative ways to stay under budget. Of course, nothing is more exciting to me than knowing that the wonderful Mr. Deviled Egg will be my husband.
Up until recently, I never really gave much thought to the linens we’ll have at the wedding. Our venue provides white or ivory tablecloths and napkins as part of the package price. They offer a few choices for napkin colors, but the only green they have available is a dark, hunter shade, which doesn’t scream, “spring wedding” to me. So, white or ivory it is!
But settling on a basic napkin color doesn’t mean that the napkins can’t be a decorative part of the tablescape. There are a variety of creative ways the napkin can be folded to add to the elegance of each place setting. And lately, I’ve been falling in love with creative napkin folds.
All-Inclusion Invitation Suites
