Mrs. Pretzel, SeattleAge and Occupation: 32 Learning, Training, and Development SpecialistFiance's Age and Occupation: 28 Manufacturing EngineerEngagement Date: September 2, 2009Wedding Date: July 2010Venue: Catholic Church & The Engine Room at Georgetown StudiosAbout Me: I’m just a thirty-something girl who never dreamed of weddings, poofy dresses, or ritzy receptions. I am a rabid knitter, except recently, wedding projects have replaced my yarn and needles. I’ve been fiercely independent since the age of 2 and 30 years later I think my family and friends had given up on me settling down and getting married.
Ironically, I had to go all the way to Seattle to find a boy from Purdue. We fell in love over Seattle Beers and cooking together. I love NASCAR, he loves Legos. I can talk like a Muppet and he can fit a whole McDonald’s cheeseburger in his mouth. We are a two reception couple, currently planning a brewery inspired bash.
I’m a tease, guilty as charged. I left everyone hanging with the design of our Save the Dates. We’ve confirmed their delivery. It’s time to fill you in on the rest. When I last left you Mr P had given me this sketch as inspiration.
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.
I faintly remember that our ceremony was lovely, though I can’t be certain, because as soon as I heard the first notes of Mr. HC’s stirring processional music, I had an out-of-body, giddy-like-a-schoolgirl experience.
Somehow, I floated down the aisle and made it to the chuppah, where Mr. HC and I were to circle each other, per Jewish custom. For most couples, this is a solemn and beautiful moment, signifying the the reorientation of their lives around each other.
Mrs. Frozen Yogurt, DallasAge and Occupation: 28, Special Projects CoordinatorFiance's Age and Occupation: 26, Equity TraderEngagement Date: March 19, 2009Wedding Date: April 2010Venue: Marie Gabrielle, DallasAbout Me: I was born and raised in Texas, and have lived in several of the cities across the state, but I currently reside in Austin. I went to college in Boston and have a special place in my heart for the Northeast. I love reading, shopping, wine, reuniting with college friends that are scattered across the country, reality TV, trying out new recipes, and attempting all the DIY projects that come along with wedding planning. I'm a "bleeding heart, save the world type" and thankfully my job allows me to work on legislation and policy to help out those in need. I met Mr. Frozen Yogurt in a bar, though he doesn't even drink! And now we are planning a modern yet vintage wedding in Dallas while dealing with the trials and tribulations of first time homeownership.
I’m currently carrying out dual roles, and it has been great! It makes me feel like a good bridesmaid because while I’m searching for inspiration for my wedding, I’m also searching for inspiration for my friend Ashley’s wedding. See, she’s getting married next fall, and a fall wedding sounds amazing to me. Now, I’m excited about my spring wedding, but there is something about the fall that I just love. It allows me to live vicariously through all the design elements that she is able to incorporate into her wedding. Read more…
Mrs. Spaniel, Los AngelesAge and Occupation: 28, Law StudentFiance's Age and Occupation: 29, PsychologistWedding Date: March 2010Venue: Calamigos RanchAbout Me: I'm a third-year law student trying to balance graduating with starting my career, keeping up a relationship, and, oh yeah, planning an Old World, multi-cultural, "mountain lodge" wedding for 180 guests! A South Asian Jewish girl getting ready to marry my handsome Catholic Dane, I'm hoping to blend our cultures in our wedding just a bit more gently than by providing samosas as appetizers and offering æbleskiver for dessert. (Although that would also be awesome.)
For a lot of people, the best part of a wedding is the open bar (sad, but true). The venue Mr. Spaniel and I are using includes a three-hour open beer and wine bar in the base price, but not a full bar. I had thought that the full bar was an extra $25 per person per hour, but I’ve just realized that I misread the prices, and we could do a signature drink for $15 per person for three hours. Which is awesome, because I would love to have a signature cocktail, which I think really adds to the party because (1) more people are drinking, (2) people have more fun when they are drinking, and (3) a signature cocktail can really help tie together a wedding theme.
Anyway, we’re not totally sure we want to commit to the extra expense (it’s kind of a lot, you know?), but if we do, I’m trying to think of some good signature cocktail options that would fit in our wedding.
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.
Mrs. Cheeseburger, Baltimore, MD/State College, PAAge and Occupation: 25, Medical StudentFiance's Age and Occupation: 25, Medical StudentEngagement Date: June 28, 2008Wedding Date: March 2010Venue: Catholic Church Ceremony & Hotel ReceptionAbout Me: I'm a passionate girl from Pittsburgh, currently living in Baltimore for school, who loves Penn State, seeing movies, football, thunderstorms, black and white photos, Christmas, good beer, my amazing friends and family, and of course, my mister! We met, fell in love, got engaged, and will be married at our alma mater (go lions!) in a traditional Catholic ceremony followed by a hotel reception with lots of DIY details. It means so much to have our families and friends meet at our favorite place on earth to celebrate our love for one another - I truly couldn't ask for anything more!
Mr. Burger and I both are Catholic. While neither of us are super-religious people, I consider myself a spiritual person; I pray regularly, and I believe in God. I had always imagined a church wedding—complete with the Catholic wedding mass—as I never really knew anything different. After the decision to marry in State College was made, I started worrying about finding a church that would marry us.
Being that we are in school, during our clinical years at that, we really were at the mercy of our rotation schedules when picking a wedding date. We had the choice between two weekends—one in December or one in March—and we went with the date in spring for a few reasons (our dating anniversary is in March, and we are hoping for winter to be over - fingers crossed!). Complicating our selection, however, is that the date falls during the season of Lent. Lent, as some of you may know, is a very solemn time in the Catholic church; a time for reflecting on the sacrifices made for us. Traditionally, weddings during Lent are frowned upon in the Catholic church, however, in more recent years they have been occasionally allowed. Sigh. Read more…
Mrs. Trail Mix, New YorkAge and Occupation: 26, PE TeacherFiance's Age and Occupation: 27, MBA StudentEngagement Date: March 2009Wedding Date: June 2010Venue: Tannery Pond at the Darrow SchoolAbout Me: I'm a country girl who somehow found herself living in the Big Apple and loving every minute of it. I'm planning a rustic, country-chic wedding in my hometown in upstate New York and it's going to be a Party with a capital P. White wine, flea markets and running keep me happy and my friends, family and fiance are my world. I'm a little bit crafty, a little bit crazy but mostly just crazy in love.
No matter how simple a DIY project seems before I begin, it seems to always end up anything but. Seriously, I was thinking before I started this project how I would blog about what an easy craft project it was. But no, nothing, as they say, is easy.
First, I should mention that I totally hoard craft supplies. Wrapping ribbon from a recently received Macy’s gift? I take it, roll it up and put it in my ribbon drawer. Good, heavy-duty wrapping paper from Williams-Sonoma? Fold it up and put it in the paper drawer. You get the point.
This project came about because I bought some cardstock from the recently opened Michaels in Manhattan for a Halloween project (I was a mail-order bride! Haha!) and the package I bought (for a grand total of .99 cents) had these sheets of pale blue and yellow, which just happen to be… our wedding colors. Score.
Also, don’t ask me why I tend to do the silly, random crafts first and leave the major things (centerpieces, table numbers, programs, hello?!?!) until closer to the wedding, but that seems to be the way I am operating lately. And so, without further ado, I present my DIY bride and groom chair signs.
First, I downloaded Scriptina font from Dafont.com. Wait a second, back up there… first I attempted 3 different times to download the Scriptina font. After being completely unsuccessful times 3, I finally gave in and watched this tutorial and then finally managed to get it to show up in my Word document. Excellent.
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.
When zipped into its curves, I felt like a bride… Read more…
Mrs. Pudding, Greater Toronto Area/VermontAge and Occupation: 26, High School TeacherFiance's Age and Occupation: 26, Computer EngineerEngagement Date: August 2008Wedding Date: July 2010Venue: Catholic Ceremony, Cultural Hall ReceptionAbout Me: Quite literally a citizen of the world, I was born in Poland, grew up in Canada, and now live in the beautiful state of Vermont. I love reading historical biographies, multi-tasking, teasing my hair, and, despite my height, wearing high heeled shoes. I am the ultimate klutz with an uncanny ability to put on a graceful front. Mr. Pudding and I have been dating for over six years, and are very excited to finally merge our (very large) families. We are planning a traditional Polish-Catholic wedding that is anything but predictable.
This summer, Mr. Pudding and I went to Poland to attend two weddings. About a week before we left, I telephoned our decorator because I wanted to pick out the linens before the vacation. Despite the very short notice, she was wonderful and agreed to meet with Mama Pudding and me. I thought that this would be a breeze; I knew exactly what I wanted, so we would be in and out in a matter of minutes. Boy, was I wrong!
When I got to her studio and sat down, I realized that I actually had no idea what our event is supposed to look like. I explained to her that the main colour was going to be navy, at which point she made a bit of a face and explained that navy is “a very difficult colour to work with”. I told her that I wanted the decor to be mostly navy and white, with yellow accents. She asked me if I had any pictures. Of course, since navy seems to be such a popular accent colour on the internet, I thought that the decorator would for sure know what I was talking about. I mean, she has definitely seen all of those beautiful navy and yellow inspiration boards on Snippet and Ink or checked out the several Weddingbee weddings that were heavy on the navy blue, right? Man, am I a bonehead! It turns out that what works in the virtual wedding world and what works in the real world are two totally different things.
Take, for example, this beautiful inspiration board from Snippet and Ink:
Chellboogie and her FI get creative with their engagement pictures and save the date:
Keep on loading your inspirational wedding pics to the gallery to see them featured here on the blog! Remember, your images must be under 1MB in size, or they won’t load.
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!
Mrs. Moonbeam, Los Angeles/San AntonioAge and Occupation: 26, Intern ArchitectFiance's Age and Occupation: 26, Studio Analyst, aspiring ScreenwriterEngagement Date: May 20, 2009Wedding Date: November 2009Venue: Our Lady of Grace Catholic Church (LaCoste, TX) and Mary Gray Events Center (Castroville, TX)About Me: I was born and raised in Texas, but after college I moved to Seattle for a couple of years and loved it. Then I followed my beau out here to LA and we're getting settled in. I've been making things since I can remember. I was raised by crafters. I love to sew, draw, paint, build, cook, bake (anything with a tangible end result is fair game). In that same spirit, I've been hosting since I was old enough to cook and set a fancy table. I kind of take after my grandmother, who believes that your morning OJ always tastes better out of the good crystal.
But don’t worry, I’m not. I knew that having my mom make the dress would mean we’d be pushing it out to the last minute, but I know it will be done and beautiful. Every time I get to play ’dress dummy’ I get so excited about how it’s shaping up. Read more…
Mrs. Star, New York CityAge and Occupation: 22, ActressFiance's Age and Occupation: 24, Casting AssistantWedding Date: October 2009Venue: Ceremony: The Kraine Theatre, Reception: Midtown Loft & TerraceAbout Me: I’m a professional actress who’s always had New York City in her blood and I'm finally getting the chance to make a home in Manhattan with my fiancé, my dog, and my big dreams! I love polka dots, craft projects, Dunkin’ Donuts’ iced coffee, and anything sparkly. I’m having a blast planning our elegant/dramatic/New York City/acting-themed/largely-DIY wedding and am thrilled to be the youngest current Miss Blogger!
Now that you’ve read about many of the sights in Greece that I expected to see, let me share some of the things that I wasn’t expecting… here goes…
One of the very first things we saw as we came out of the metro station on our first day in Athens was this sign. We were both like, wait, we did not just spend 12 hours traveling to see a SUNY school!
Mrs. Pretzel, SeattleAge and Occupation: 32 Learning, Training, and Development SpecialistFiance's Age and Occupation: 28 Manufacturing EngineerEngagement Date: September 2, 2009Wedding Date: July 2010Venue: Catholic Church & The Engine Room at Georgetown StudiosAbout Me: I’m just a thirty-something girl who never dreamed of weddings, poofy dresses, or ritzy receptions. I am a rabid knitter, except recently, wedding projects have replaced my yarn and needles. I’ve been fiercely independent since the age of 2 and 30 years later I think my family and friends had given up on me settling down and getting married.
Ironically, I had to go all the way to Seattle to find a boy from Purdue. We fell in love over Seattle Beers and cooking together. I love NASCAR, he loves Legos. I can talk like a Muppet and he can fit a whole McDonald’s cheeseburger in his mouth. We are a two reception couple, currently planning a brewery inspired bash.
Come join the bees for some craft beer and bridal babble. Elysian Fields is one of the brew pubs of Elysian Brewing – a favorite in the Pretzel house. Mr Pretzel will be in attendance, so feel free to bring your SO too. Rumor is that Mrs Joey and Mrs Cherry Pie might stop by too. I can’t wait to meet all the FABULOUS Seattle hive members!
Please feel free to PM Miss Pretzel if you have any questions.
Mrs. Champagne, DC/Vail/ColoradoAge and Occupation: 26, Eye DoctorFiance's Age and Occupation: 27, AttorneyEngagement Date: March 13, 2006Wedding Date: February 2009Blogging Since: July 30, 2008Venue: Small church ceremony with mountain-view log cabin receptionAbout Me: I'm a small town mountain girl with a city heart. Found my way to the east coast, and Mr. Champagne kept me here so we're planning a wedding from afar in my hometown Vail, Colorado. I'm secretly obsessed with reality TV, Wii games where I can shoot a gun, country music, and Caesar: Dog Whisperer. I also spend time pretending to golf, backseat driving, having one way conversations with our MinPin Maxwell, loving champagne, and wedding perfecting… I mean, planning. I use way too many repeated symbols and letters when I write, and I'll love Mr. Champagne endlessly…
Before I go into the details of our ceremony, I should warn you that our photographer didn’t do any post processing, and pretty much refused to edit the images because well, apparently he thinks he’s better than that. Sooo, I’ve tried my best to do what I could with these photos (and yes, I know there’s a ton of black/white and the color is off in a bunch of them), so please please excuse my beginner-at-best editing. This is why I work with eyeballs for a living instead of behind the camera. Anyhoo… here we go.
The bridesmaids were in place, and my music started. We hired a violinist, who I actually used to play with in a local orchestra. The wedding party walked to an instrumental version of our 1st dance song, “Broken Road” by Rascal Flatts and my song was Canon in D. Pretty basic, but I love the simplicity of a single violin and piano.
All-Inclusion Invitation Suites
