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!
While 95% of the planning is done, I still have a few things left to do. I felt like they were manageable tasks to take care of in the time we had left until the big day. So, I thought, no big deal.
That is, until a little surprise arrived on Sunday.
Yep, I have a nice case of a cold. To note, I hardly EVER get sick. Maybe once every two years I get sick, and when I do, I get REALLY sick. So, I’m being extra cautious in making sure I get over this really quickly. I basically raided Target with my sniffly, sneezy self and bought the basics (in my experience, this will kick a cold’s booty in a couple of days!). Read more…
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.
Since almost all of our guests are from out of town, we need some serious Out of Town (OOT) Bags. While I was watching my pennies spent on the OOT bags, I still wanted to make sure we put a little bit of SF and a little bit of ourselves into the bags.
First up, the perfect bag:
From the Target $1 bin, they’re reusable and the perfect size. Run, don’t walk to your nearest Target to get your own. They also come in blue and tan.
As for what to put in the bag, some of the Peeps’ favorite things, of course: Read more…
Mrs. Joey, SeattleAge and Occupation: 28, Project Administrator for Public Health NGOFiance's Age and Occupation: 30, High School History TeacherEngagement Date: June 24, 2008Wedding Date: August 2009Venue: Eastside Catholic Chapel and Lake Union CafeAbout Me: I'm a Seattle girl through and through except for the fact that I don't drink coffee. I love my job most of the time because I get to travel and work with brilliant people who are trying to prevent Malaria. I love DIY projects of all sorts, cooking, and watching sports. I'd wear anything at Anthropologie and could spend all day on Etsy. I love to travel but shouldn't because I always get myself into unbelievable situations!
When I got home Friday night, I opened my email and saw this note:
Hello Catherine,
I hope you are well! I just wanted to let you know that your custom pearl gray cotton sateen ruffle dress was shipped USPS Priority Mail today, 5/8. To track your package, you can go to www.usps.com and enter your tracking # 0307 xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx.
Your dress turned out so lovely! I really hope you enjoy wearing it on your wedding day!
Thanks again for supporting my designs! It was such a pleasure meeting you.
Best,
Liza Rietz
OMG! It’s on its way!!! The dress is on its way. Read more…
Mrs. French Bulldog, Orange CountyAge and Occupation: 28, Administrative Assistant & Interior Design StudentFiance's Age and Occupation: 28, Purchasing AnalystEngagement Date: November 8, 2008Wedding Date: August 2009Venue: Bernardo WineryAbout Me: I've lived in Atlanta, Dallas and Laguna Niguel; although I've lived in Orange County, CA most my life, I'm a Southerner at heart. I work full time for a Commercial General Contractor (aka my father) and I go to school for Interior Design at night. I love modern design, music, wine, crafting, DMailing, my family, my Westies, and of course, Mr Frenchie! Mr Frenchie and I met 3 years ago on Match.com and have been best friends ever since. I love his "old soul" and how he laughs with his whole body, among many other things. We are planning our summer wedding at the winery near his hometown, just 45 minutes south of Orange County.
It’s weird to me the things that get me excited about our wedding. I know some of you are like me, and you get distracted by your growing “to-do list” and lose sight of what you’re planning for. Sometimes, this wedding doesn’t seem real to me. I really found the man I’m going to spend the rest of my life with? Me? I feel pretentious using the word “fiance”. Read more…
Mrs. Cowboy Boot, Santa FeAge and Occupation: 25, Magazine EditorFiance's Age and Occupation: 29, Artist and Whitewater Rafting GuideEngagement Date: April 28th, 2008Wedding Date: October 2009Venue: Devil's Thumb Ranch, ColoradoAbout Me: I grew up in Los Angeles and have since lived in San Diego, Boston, Italy, Hawaii, New York City, and Santa Fe. I speak Italian and love pasta. My real passion is the outdoors, though. When I'm not at work, I'm snowboarding, hiking with my two dogs, mountain biking, surfing, cross-country-skiing, or boating New Mexico's rivers. Despite my boyish love for adventure, I'm a girly-girl at heart and am overly-excited to pull off the romantic, vintage-inspired, country wedding of my dreams.
Mr. Cowboy Boot and I didn’t really think we were going to take a honeymoon at first. After going through our budget time and time again, there just wasn’t room in it for a trip. We figured we’d save our money after the wedding and plan something big for the following year. My dad, however, didn’t agree with this idea. “It’s really important for you guys to be together as a married couple after the wedding,” my dad told us. “Just the two of you, to feel your decision and let the marriage really sink in before getting back to everyday life.”
Mrs. Gloss, Boston/MaineAge and Occupation: 24, Designer/soon-to-be ArchitectFiance's Age and Occupation: 26, Systems EngineerEngagement Date: May 23, 2008Wedding Date: August 2009Venue: SS Katahdin/Lakeside TentAbout Me: I don't like nickels or the skin that forms on pudding when it's in the fridge for too long. I couldn't live without Pantone markers, fountain soda (3/4 diet, ¼ regular Coke), run-on sentences, or ridiculously oversized sunglasses. I will try to DIY almost anything and am just OCD enough to make most of it work. I am truly excited about having all my family and friends together, becoming Mrs. Gloss, and having amazing photos to prove it!
In my quest for amazing pictures of my wedding day, I whipped up this little bad boy - a cute dress hanger cover!! No accidental “I only have the plastic hanger and it’s going to ruin my dress shot” emergencies for me!
I was going to add a simple navy bow, but I think it would draw too much attention to the hanger and distract you from the dress itself. Instead, I think I’m going to embroider our wedding date and monogram in a light ivory.
Are you planning on getting a special hanger for your big day?
Mrs. Meatball, HollywoodAge and Occupation: 30, Actor/Writer/Office MavenFiance's Age and Occupation: 28, Actor/WriterEngagement Date: October 7, 2007Wedding Date: May, 2009Blogging Since: September 16, 2008Venue: Private Garden/The Bungalow ClubAbout Me: I love melty cheese and diet coke almost as much as I love my man. I'm from Chicago, he's from NYC, and we both miss public transit and great pizza. We have an adorable muppet dog called Paco. I'm part hippie with a healthy dash of hip hop superstar, have excessive empathy for animals, and have not one, but two bionic eyes (long story). We're broke and it ain't no joke. It can't stop us from planning the bold and whimsical wedding of our dreams, but we've had to get pretty creative to make it work, yo!
I gotta keep it real, our invitations are so PIMP, they’re one of my favorite projects from the wedding thus far. Don’t get me wrong, our Save-the-Dates were extra-fly and unique, but something about our invitations just rocks my world in ways beyond expression. I think it’s because they really capture the energy of the wedding, and drive home to guests exactly what to expect out of our funky, eclectic, Magic Carpet Ride-themed wedding!
MAD PROPS to the gals at Elizabeth Anne Designs who worked as design consultants on these and patiently made every suggestion and note that we had come to life. Also BIG UPS to my girl Mercedes for her insane art skillz.
So, let’s get started. I’m dumb and didn’t take a photo of the envelopes before we ran out, but we used Stardream Jupiter A9 envelopes, just like our STDs. We decided to go with printed envelopes because we could use our symbolic Ganesh image and the cute font is better than our handwriting any day of the week!
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.
愛-vey indeed. We’ve reached the point in our relationship about which I’ve long been anxious. This is the part where I recap our wedding, which thereby necessitates my putting up a lot of pictures of myself, which leads to my feeling like one of those parents who keeps spamming their friends with an endless stream of photos of their baby. Baby smiling. Baby drooling. Baby pooping. You get the idea.
Of course, there’s no way around it. So I promise you this: funny captions will be added, embarrassing expressions will be uncensored, and much hilarity will ensue. That’s right. It’s going to be a stream of hilarity. Mrs. HC smiling. Mrs. HC drooling. Mrs. HC… uh, nevermind.
Mrs. Bruschetta, PhiladelphiaAge and Occupation: 25, Communication ProfessionalFiance's Age and Occupation: 25, Physical Therapy Graduate StudentEngagement Date: November 30, 2007Wedding Date: August 2009Venue: St. Thomas of Villanova Church & the F.U.E.L. HouseAbout Me: I’m a self-proclaimed grammar geek who loves singing (like, really belting it) in the car. My mister and I are planning a vibrant summer soiree celebrating our passions – including food and Philly – and when we make it official, we’ll have been together for eight years! Being super competitive is in my nature, and talking excessively is in my genes. I’ve got a terrible sense of direction, but can always easily find my way into Mr. Bruschetta’s arms.
Imagine the simplest of wedding cakes. No fondant, and no adornments or embellishments on the buttercream-iced layers. After the ceremonial cutting — during which a very basic cake (a thin coating of nondescript buttercream between the layers) is revealed — it’s whisked away by the catering staff. Minutes pass (really, how long can it take to slice up such a vapid cake?) and then finally, plates issue from the kitchen. Each holds a piece of the formerly mundane confection; now, however, it’s accompanied by a warm, enticingly sweet sauce. It’s no longer a plain cake, but rather, a fine gourmet dessert… not to mention, a twist on the traditional wedding cake.
When Mr. Bruschetta and I started discussing the dessert we wanted to serve at our wedding, we quickly dismissed the conventional wedding cake, thinking of something with more pizazz and originality. Read more…
Mrs. Swan, New York CityAge and Occupation: 31, Legislative RepresentativeFiance's Age and Occupation: 33, Finance GuyEngagement Date: August 9, 2008Wedding Date: August 2009Venue: Battery GardensAbout Me: I am an un-crafty but resourceful, Caribbean-born but New York-raised woman who's been known to analyze "Dancing with the Stars" and “So You Think You Can Dance”, buy stinky cheese, and use way too many parentheses. I keep lists for fun, am constantly daydreaming of my next international travel adventure (four continents down, three to go), debating sports (let’s Got Mets/Giants!) and dancing around my apartment to stay sane. I am excited to share our wedding planning journey as I hope to plan a streamlined, personal, and fun wedding with the greatest life partner I could ever imagine, Mr. Swan.
So I’m finally going to talk about one of the biggest challenges for me in terms of planning. It’s been even harder than my dress, I think. It’s my HAIR. As I’ve alluded to earlier, I have locs. I don’t call them dreadlocks or dreads because to be honest, there is nothing to “dread” about them. I think people have many ill-conceived ideas about people like me, simply because we choose to wear our hair this way. Common misconceptions include:
We are dirty individuals - I bathe every day. I like to look good, and I think I smell pretty good, too. I take care of my hair. I’m at a salon almost every four to six weeks. I take pride in my appearance.
We can’t get jobs - I have had multiple, very good jobs at some point in my life already. I am now in a job that requires representing important individuals, so I think I have pretty job prospects. I will admit that this has never always been true. Thank God for living in 2009.
We are counter-cultural/trying to make a statement - This one might be a fair assumption. Although I have to admit, for me and many Black women I know who choose to wear their hair this way, it’s because we like the way it looks, as well as the opportunity to wear our hair without chemical and/or heat straightening. Also, it requires little to no daily upkeep, which is great for a lazy person like me.
We all smoke drugs of some form - I never have, and never will… moving on…
We are adherents to Rastafarianism - I grew up going to church in a denomination very similar to the Lutheran/Presbyterian church. I would now consider myself a nondenominational Christian. Obviously, none of that is Rastafarian related. Having done research into Rastafarianism, I think it’s a pretty interesting religion/cultural expression. Some recommended reading on Rastafarianism: “Rasta and Resistance” by Horace Campbell.
April marked five years that I’ve been wearing my hair this way. I love it, and at this point, I have no plans to change my hair (yes, Mama Swan, I’m not changing it). As the wedding approaches and my hair keeps growing, I’ve been trying to figure out some ways to style my hair and to possibly do hair trials. Read more…
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.
Our great friends, Travis and Suzi, hosted a (non)shower dinner for us at their rustic country restaurant, the Heart in Hand, on Friday night. It was so lovely!!! There were about 30 people, and the fun part was that it was kind of like a neat run-up to the wedding. I gotta say, even with only 30 people, it was hard to get around to saying hello to everyone (given it was only two hours long, or so). To encourage mingling, Suzi scared up some name tags for all the guests… even for US!
Today’s photo of the day was uploaded by Chreee123. Her lovely table settings are an inspiration to all peacock and teal-loving brides out there!
There have lots of great uploads to the Weddingbee gallery recently, so go check them all out! And don’t forget to upload and share your own pictures from your wedding as well. Remember, your images must be under 5MB in size, or they won’t load.
Mrs. Yorkie, Miami Age and Occupation: 30, Graduate Admissions CoordinatorFiance's Age and Occupation: 41, Asst. Professor Engagement Date: July 3, 2008Wedding Date: June 2009Venue: Red Fish GrillAbout Me: I’m an East Coast girl with a crafty streak who loves traveling, photography and being outdoors (barefoot, if possible). When I do have to wear shoes, I prefer Mizunos, and have worn out a few pairs running marathons. I have a thing for chai, crossword puzzles, Apples to Apples, The Office and my real-life Yorkie, Bella. My West Coast transplant, Mr. Yorkie, roots for the Buckeyes, loves baseball, and climbs mountains for fun. We’re planning a fun little seaside wedding filled with handmade details and vintage charm. I can hardly wait!
This has been quite the busy week! Mr. Yorkie and I had our last money management session with the financial planner. That has been one of the best investments of our planning time, and I would highly recommend it to any couple getting married. Tomorrow after my morning run, I’ll head home to (hopefully) wrap up a handful of DIY works in progress: the drink menu, aisle runner, seating card tree, and lacy luminarias.
Here are a couple of photos of the drink menu that I’ve been working on. (The shadow box and decorative paper are from Martha’s collection at Michaels, of course!)
Mrs. Cheese, KnoxvilleAge and Occupation: 29, Engineering ManagerFiance's Age and Occupation: 27, CAD DesignerEngagement Date: July 31, 2008Wedding Date: May, 2009Blogging Since: October 16, 2008Venue: Our home and the two acres it sits onAbout Me: I’m an emotional girl who loves sentimental things, parenthetical asides, and trying to do things herself. I can cook, sew, am a whiz at planning, terrible at delegating, and totally in love with my fiancé (who will be my second husband but first love of the rest of my life). For our home/ garden/ DIY wedding, we’ll be moonlighting as interior designers, home improvers, and gardeners with the help of our fabulous friends and neighbors. We can’t wait to be married, and are learning how fun getting married can be.
This post has been brewing since long before I was a Weddingbee blogger, and it bubbled up to the front of my mind while listening to the radio this weekend. You know that song, “Lucky” by Jason Mraz and Colby Callait? “I’m lucky I’m in love with my best friend…” Yea, that one. That song’s not for me.
My fiance is not my best friend.
My first husband was my best friend; he was my everything. When I was with him, I depended on him completely for emotional support. He helped me carry the burdens of my job, my stress and my dramas. If you’d asked me then, I would have told you there could be no other way. How could you be loyal wife if you had another best friend? Was I supposed to talk about him to other people? No way.
Times have changed, lessons have been learned. I have a best friend — who is my MOH — upon whom I rely when my eyes are puffy from crying and I can’t see where I screwed up. I have a mom who has a knack for sifting through the crap and pulling out the important stuff. I have a dad who can always be counted on as an example of how to do it; he doesn’t even need to say anything. My brother fields frantic phone calls over petty crap (even wedding stuff… he will be a perfect groom someday) and my sister dispenses relationship advice with her particular brand of directness. Oh, yea, and I have a therapist. I’m a very intense person, and it takes a village to get me through life, but I’m lucky enough to have a whole host of people who are willing to do that for me. Because it’s about me.
Mrs. French Bulldog, Orange CountyAge and Occupation: 28, Administrative Assistant & Interior Design StudentFiance's Age and Occupation: 28, Purchasing AnalystEngagement Date: November 8, 2008Wedding Date: August 2009Venue: Bernardo WineryAbout Me: I've lived in Atlanta, Dallas and Laguna Niguel; although I've lived in Orange County, CA most my life, I'm a Southerner at heart. I work full time for a Commercial General Contractor (aka my father) and I go to school for Interior Design at night. I love modern design, music, wine, crafting, DMailing, my family, my Westies, and of course, Mr Frenchie! Mr Frenchie and I met 3 years ago on Match.com and have been best friends ever since. I love his "old soul" and how he laughs with his whole body, among many other things. We are planning our summer wedding at the winery near his hometown, just 45 minutes south of Orange County.
I’m sorry. I can’t bring myself to refer to these as STDs (shiver), so if I must abbreviate them, I choose “STDI”, for Save The Date Invitation.
Now that I know the majority of our guests have received our Save The Dates, I am really excited to share them with you. Originally we were going to order postcards from Vista Print, with a picture of Mr. F and I in front of the Bernardo Winery sign. This didn’t end up happening for a few reasons…
1 - We took HORRIBLE pictures the day we went down there.
All-Inclusion Invitation Suites
I was going to add a simple navy bow, but I think it would draw too much attention to the hanger and distract you from the dress itself. Instead, I think I’m going to embroider our wedding date and monogram in a light ivory.
I think people have many ill-conceived ideas about people like me, simply because we choose to wear our hair this way. Common misconceptions include:
Our great friends, Travis and Suzi, hosted a (non)shower dinner for us at their rustic country restaurant, the Heart in Hand, on Friday night. It was so lovely!!! There were about 30 people, and the fun part was that it was kind of like a neat run-up to the wedding. I gotta say, even with only 30 people, it was hard to get around to saying hello to everyone (given it was only two hours long, or so). To encourage mingling, Suzi scared up some name tags for all the guests… even for US!
