Mrs. Lightning, Cape Town Age and Occupation: 22, Journalist and Graphic DesignerFiance's Age and Occupation: 23, Computer ScientistEngagement Date: December 27, 2008
Wedding Date: September 2009Venue: Hout Bay ManorAbout Me: I'm a young American living abroad in the beautiful city of Cape Town with a wonderful South African fiance and our crazy kitty Zeus. We're young, driven and madly in love. Together we're pursuing our wildest dreams including our biggest undertaking yet, a vintage retrospective wedding filled to the brim with DIY madness. I have an unnatural attraction to cake, a passion for blogging and a love of good design. While I might be an overly obsessive creative with too many ideas and nowhere to put them, Mr Lightning is my biggest fan and I can't wait to make my true love mine.
While I spent much of the last weekend recovering, I did manage to accomplish one wedding related task - my veil. Before setting out on making a veil as described in my last post on this topic, I decided to visit another vintage store I’d walked past after dinner one night downtown.
While a lot of the vintage stores in Cape Town are ravaged by fashion scouts for magazines, who take most of the good stuff for their shoots, this particular store was a well-stocked treasure trove. Not only did I find two beautiful vintage wedding dresses (which I swore I wouldn’t look at a second longer, for fear of considering trying them on), but I also found a variety of gloves, stoles, coats and VEILS!
Trying them on in the store, I suddenly felt that a vintage piece was exactly what I needed to complete my ensemble. I even found a gray/silver feather boa in the exact shade of my dress (but don’t worry, I left that behind).
In the end, I settled on buying one item only. And here she is… a vintage 1920s hat and silver veil.
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!
During the planning process, I neglected a lot of things — cooking, cleaning, me. All my free time went into crafting things for the wedding. Our apartment turned into craft central. I don’t think we saw the surface of our living room table for months.
On the flight back from Sydney, I asked Mr. Joey if he was excited to get back to normal. He enthusiastically said he was. He was looking forward to a very tidy apartment, pre-planned meals, and me not crafting while we were watching a movie. I agreed. Then he said he had a request, but that I may not like it—he wanted to ban crafting for an entire month. I thought about it. On the one hand, I couldn’t think of a craft project I was ready to take on immediately, but on the other hand, well, you never know. After some thought, I agreed. No crafting from August 18 - September 18.
Mr. Joey said that cooking is not crafting. Read more…
Mrs. Eggplant, San FranciscoAge and Occupation: 28, Human ResourcesFiance's Age and Occupation: 24, Associate Marketing ManagerEngagement Date: January 19, 2007Wedding Date: October 20, 2007Blogging Since: May 31, 2007Venue: Ceremony at a cement and stained glass cathedral and reception at a boutique hotel ballroomAbout Me: I'm a shopping junkie who lives to discover great deals and a craft addict that loves to scrapbook and knit. My profile picture was taken on the day I got engaged which is why my smile is so huge!
Since planning my wedding, I’ve become a HUGE fan of letterpress stationery. Letterpress note cards, greeting cards, and business cards–I love them all! I realllly want to purchase an antique letterpress machine, but Mr. Eggplant axes the idea because my craft room is already packed to the brim with stamps, die cut machines, and paper. Plus, letterpress machines and replacement parts are often hard to find and expensive, and the learning curve can be steep.
But, this week I just got a newsletter in my inbox that this fall, Lifestyle Crafts (a division of QuicKutz Inc.) will be releasing the L Letterpress, a letterpress machine for the home crafter. And the starter kit is only $149! What?! I know nothing can replace true letterpress, but this might be a fun alternative for those of us who don’t have the space or money for a real machine (kind of like an Easy-Bake Oven versus a Viking convection, yo). I’m crossing my fingers that the L Letterpress machine will allow crafters to create and use printing plates with their own designs, too.
Here is a picture tutorial from the Lifestyle Crafts website:
Mrs. Cub, Chile/PortlandAge and Occupation: 26, AstronomerFiance's Age and Occupation: 28, AstronomerEngagement Date: May 10, 2008Wedding Date: September 2009Venue: Westwind YWCA campAbout Me: I'm a small-town girl who's making a living in Chile, with her heart in the Pacific Northwest. I grew up in Southern California, went to high school in Texas, grad school in New Mexico, and now I can't wait to settle down in Oregon! I love pears, hazelnuts,
knitting, traveling, running, baking, and long talks on the phone with
good friends. I'm planning my Oregon coast summer camp wedding while
abroad with my best friend - I'm always at home when I'm with him!
I know this is obviously not the most important part of the wedding. Why am I not spending more of my time on silly things like venue insurance and lighting? But you ladies like jewelry & style, right? Can’t go wrong with the hive!
Here’s the dish: I have a rather particular look I’m going for. Call it grandma-boho-chic, flapper-tastic, or waterfalls of pearls dripping from my nape. Call it whatever you want, but it looks kind of like this:
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.
When we decided that we were going to have a Interfaith-Jewish wedding, there were a lot of Jewish traditions that were new and intriguing to me. For one, the Ketubah signing.
I am far from the firstBee to post about this 2000 year old tradition, but for a little background, I found this link and this link helpful. To sum it up, back in the day, the contract was used to protect the wife, to ensure that she was to be provided with basic life necessities and to solidify her dowry.
For us, we used the Ketubah as a way to document our love in a contract, so we could hang in our home as a reminder of our love and commitment to one another. It doesn’t hurt that Ketubot are beautiful works of art, and today there are a lot of options out there for more modern, less traditional, interfaith couples.
So, about 30 minutes before the wedding, we gathered our family and wedding party in the Hospitality Room to witness the signing and sealing of our marriage. Since the pictures speak for themselves, I’ve included the text that we chose for our interfaith Ketubah:
Mrs. Peony, New YorkAge and Occupation: 27, Marketing CoordinatorFiance's Age and Occupation: 30, QA EngineerEngagement Date: June 28, 2007Wedding Date: April 18, 2008Venue: The FountainheadBlogging Since: August 7, 2007About Me: Both Mr. Peony and I are huge computer nerds, and our conversations usually consist of the latest gadgets, programming languages, and video games. At the same time, I can also be very girly with an obsession with handbags, makeup, and high heels. And art! I've studied studio art extensively, almost majored in art history, and freelance as a web and graphics designer. Mr. Peony and I are having a ball of a time planning a wedding for 250(!) guests, doing our best to infuse our personalities (geeky chic) with the wishes of our very traditional Asian parents.
I have written in journals since my angst-ridden teenage years. Then came the dawn of the world wide web. As an internet addict and a computer nerd, I happily joined the blogging bandwagon in 2001 and have been doing it ever since.
How did you first hear about Weddingbee?
The very first time I heard about Weddingbee was when my now sister-in-law, Mrs. Poppy, became a Weddingbee blogger. I went through the first few pages of the site and found it very engaging. However, I only stopped by once in a while to see how Mrs. Poppy was doing.
A year later, I got engaged myself. I naturally started blogging about my wedding, and Weddingbee soon became an invaluable source for all things wedding-related. My friends would tell me things like, “Oh there’s this site you have to check out…”, or “Have you heard of Weddingbee? You should apply to be a blogger!”
So I did, and I am happy to say that I was accepted.
Mrs. Taffy, Ann ArborAge and Occupation: 28, Color and Materials DesignerFiance's Age and Occupation: 29, Automotive DesignerEngagement Date: May 9, 2008Wedding Date: May 2009Blogging Since: September 14, 2008Venue: University of Michigan UnionAbout Me: I’m a girl who is crazy about Mr. Taffy, sewing, dancing, almost all types of sweets, and our cute pet canaries. I dislike touching fuzzy fabric of any kind, eating somewhat squishy food, and Michigan winters. Mr. Taffy and I are having a blast planning our Ann Arbor wedding, and cannot wait to share our day with friends and family.
I am so excited to share my bachelorette experience with you! My lovely bridesmaids, knowing that nothing delights me more than dressing up and eating sugary sweets, planned a ’50s themed dress up party for my last night out (or, in this case, in) as a single lady. I scoured my vintage collection the week before the party, excitedly putting outfits together for myself, and for the dress up rack for the guests.
I put my best housewife ensemble together and headed to the party. I was greeted by many of my closest friends, all decked out in vintage splendor!
Here I am with a “girl next door”. As a vintage clothing store owner, she was probably the most prepared for the party! Read more…
Mrs. Stiletto, ChicagoAge and Occupation: 26, Non-Profit/FundraisingFiance's Age and Occupation: 26, Engineer and PhotographerEngagement Date: March 2, 2008Wedding Date: September 2009Venue: The 19th Century ClubAbout Me: My fiance and I love living in the city of Chicago with our cats Basil and Linus, and vow to never move to the suburbs if we can possibly avoid it! We’ve poured ourselves into planning a wedding that reflects our personal style - modern and high contrast with a vintage twist. Blogging keeps me creative, baking keeps me happy, and grande nonfat no foam sugar free vanilla lattes keep me sane.
I’ve been watching our guest count grow and grow over the past couple of weeks. The jury is still out for about 10 of the 72 invites we sent out, but the RSVP deadline isn’t until this Friday. I think that’s a pretty good response rate so far!
We’ve had very few declines… 6 to be exact, in addition to the 5 invites we sent to some family members that we were pretty sure wouldn’t be making the trip, but we needed to send an invitation to. Otherwise, people are apparently excited to celebrate with the Stilettos! Yay.
But what has really surprised me about the response cards is that so many of our guests are not taking advantage of their “plus one” status!
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!
Before we get to the really fun stuff (i.e. the rockin’ reception!!!), I thought I’d show you all a few details from our day. Some of these things I’ve blogged about, and some I haven’t. This Powder Puff has still got some surprises up her sleeve!
My beautiful bouquet. This was a surprise to me on our wedding day, since I had basically given no direction to the florist, just our overall vision. She ran with it and did an absolutely beautiful job!
Mrs. Chick, HoustonAge and Occupation: 28, Rights and Reproduction ManagerFiance's Age and Occupation: 29, Computer ProgrammerEngagement Date: November 15, 2008Wedding Date: April 2010Venue: A farm outside of HoustonAbout Me: Mr. Chick and I met almost ten years ago at Baker Blues, a college jazz party. He was attracted to my intensity, and I was mesmerized by his trivia pursuit skills and his dorm furniture adorned with his initials. We've grown more sophisticated through the years, with our love of wine, owning a house together, and parenthood (of a cat), but we have not lost our silliness or childish sense of humor!
Even though I already have a perfectly beautiful dress, I’m still allowed to lust over other dresses, right?
This is a Vera Wang dress. Yes, Vera. It’s a bit overpriced for me, but once in a while Mrs. Wang comes out with something a little edgy that makes me itch to replicate it.
Mrs. Mouse, AustinAge and Occupation: 25, Weddingbee Editor/AttorneyFiance's Age and Occupation: 31, Civil EngineerEngagement Date: December 19, 2007Wedding Date: September 2009Venue: Barr MansionAbout Me: I just graduated from law school and will be taking the bar, getting married, going on a honeymoon with my guy, and then trying to figure out what I'm going to do with the rest of my life. I was born and raised in a small East Texas town, but I'm no country girl! I'm obsessed with British accents, fantasy (including Harry Potter, of course), and classic rock. My fiance and I consider ourselves both music and beer snobs--but every once in awhile we love to hear a crappy band and drink a cheap brew or two. We're planning an eco-friendly, casual, English garden affair for the end of summer, and we can't wait for it to get here!
We’re keeping our ceremony decor sweet and simple. There’s no need to drop thousands of dollars on florals when you’re already getting married in a beautiful garden.
After our first meeting with our florist, we had decided on hydrangea pomanders tied with black ribbon to hang in the aisle, as well as one large garland to drape over the archway, which will be behind us during the ceremony. The garland will be very natural—filled with lots of greenery, hanging amaranthus, and cream garden roses.
The more I thought about the hydrangea balls, the more I thought they didn’t really fit in with our aesthetic. I came across some amazing inspiration photos right here on the Weddingbee Boards, and a new idea was born: Read more…
Sarah Parrott, Rhode IslandVendor: Invitation DesignerWebsite: Parrott Design StudioAbout Me: I am the designer & printer behind Parrott Design Studio, specializing in custom letterpress and screen printed wedding and event invitations, stationery, and paper goods. With a background in non-profit marketing & art history, I began the studio in 2006 in my small apartment in Providence, RI. Since then I have moved to a studio built my fianc, acquired a Golding Jobber letterpress, & have been happily printing ever since. I grew up in Portland, Maine, and I have always had an affinity for the ocean, mountains, birds, gardening, & the simple life. When I am not printing, I can be found somewhere outside with my fianc & playful pup.
I recently had the great opportunity to collaborate with Jen of Swallowfield on wedding invitations for her cousin. I am a huge fan of Jen’s work and own a few of her prints {this is one of my favorites}, so I was quite honored to work with her. The wedding is taking place this Fall in Newburyport, Massachusetts, a little town on the Merrimack River near the Atlantic. Mary, the bride, wanted a design inspired by Fall, community, and the sea. Jen’s drawing is full of amazing details including little houses, flowers, and a sailboat. I want to live in one of those houses!
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.
Hello, hive! Long time no see. I’ve missed you! Man, does time fly. It seems like only yesterday that Mr. Cookie and I were smoothing out the last minute details for our wedding. Now here we are, almost a year later. Crazy, I tell you. Crazy!
When Pengy asked us bees to consider writing a post about our lives as bees behind the scenes, I too jumped on the bandwagon. Especially for those who are considering applying to be a bee, I think this series will give you a fantastic look inside the hive.
“The Rise of the Blogs”
Funny thing. In 2005, I wrote a paper for a design class I took in college called, “The Rise of the Blogs”. In the paper I talked about the political influence and growing mainstream popularity of weblogs, and then I did a presentation to the class on how to blog. Serendipitous? I think so. Ever since, I’ve had my own personal blog.
Immediately after Mr. Cookie and I became engaged, I started a separate blog to update my bridesmaids — who lived all around the county — about my planning process. As I started searching the web for vendors, I’d come across links to these great wedding blogs. Ironically, through our photographer’s blog, I found Style Me Pretty, which lead me to Weddingbee.
The blogosphere has grown so much since I started blogging. It’s been incredible to watch. Read more…
Mrs. Poodle, Santiago, Chile/San Bernardino, CAAge and Occupation: 27, Industrial & Web DesignerFiance's Age and Occupation: 24, Firefighter & Mountain PatrolEngagement Date: February 25, 2009Wedding Date: January 2010Venue: Mr. P's Grandparents’ RanchAbout Me: I’m a Chilean girl who's crazy about nature and swimming. I enjoy carving, drawing, reading and sewing; I drool over computers, fabric, pretty paper, purple and patterns. To me, chocolate should be one of the seven wonders, right next to lemon pie. I never thought an exchange work experience program was going to change my life forever, but while working in California, I met Mr. Poodle, and ever since my days are better and brighter. We are two goofy souls that, after finding each other, couldn’t help but want to be together forever. It has being a long and sometimes hard road, since we have to deal with such a long distance between us, but we are now facing the last stage of our Fiancé Visa, and soon we will be together. You know the best part? We will be married! So I’ll be blogging from Chile until just a few months before our “green and purple” wedding.
My family has always pushed me and encouraged me to follow my heart and do what makes me happy. But, in this case, we are not talking about pursuing a non-traditional career or taking up a new sport. This time, things will get a little extreme.
Mrs. Sunbeam, San Francisco/Grove City, PAAge and Occupation: 26, Grad Student & Office ManagerFiance's Age and Occupation: 27, Motion DesignerEngagement Date: May 10, 2008Wedding Date: September 2009Venue: Harbison Chapel & The Maple Lane FarmAbout Me: Mr. Sunbeam and I are high school sweethearts. We both come from a small town in PA but are growing to love the California lifestyle. He loves wine and I love cheese... the perfect combination! When I'm not drooling over wedding blogs, I'm attending grad school, out being a foodie, or attempting to "walk" our cat at the park. Two things guaranteed to excite me are wedding cakes and breaking out my suitcase to travel. Mr. Sunbeam and I are personalizing our hometown wedding to celebrate our high school sweetheart status and PA roots with a few CA touches. After ten years of dating we couldn't be more excited to call each other husband and wife!
On my final trip home before the wedding, I had a tasting with our lovely caterer, Jody’s Pantry Catering. My family had done a tasting with them previously when we were in crisis mode to find a new caterer, but it’s always nice to meet, greet, and eat first hand, if possible. Without further ado, I give you our delicious menu which, as I said before, will be served small plate style: Read more…
Source 
