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.
Remember my first trial for our tablescape? Yeah, don’t feel bad if you don’t because I consider it a big, fat fail! So I changed gears and decided to go in another direction. I wanted some type of holder for the table numbers but couldn’t quite visualize what I was looking for.
So I turned to the master of all things crafty, the bane of my existence as well as my savior: Etsy. And good ol’ Etsy did not disappoint. I was a bit skeptical to see what would come up when I searched “Table Number Holders” but what I found was exactly what I never knew I was looking for.
Tory at The Cherry Grove had exactly what I was looking for. Sweet, rustic table number holders in the form of birch trees. I wish I could tell you that I was all resourceful a la Miss Fro Yo and made my own version but alas, I caved to my internal desires of wanting something RIGHT THIS INSTANT and bought 24 of them immediately, at the bargain price of $2.00 each. Take a look-see:
Mrs. Labrador Retriever, Athens/SavannahAge and Occupation: 24, Student/Sports ReporterFiance's Age and Occupation: 29, Physical Therapy Assistant Student/Future Dr. of PT
Engagement Date: December 31, 2008Wedding Date: November 2009Venue: Whitfield Square/Savannah StationAbout Me: I'm working on my second degree from UGA (Go Dawgs!). I'm a self-proclaimed attention-w****. If it involves a camera, I'm in front of it! You'll never meet a girlier tomboy than me. I can go toe to toe with any guy on the subject of college football, and lift more than any girl in my gym, all without chipping a nail. I hope to someday be the only person you want delivering your sports news. My FI and I are the loving parents of three Labrador Retrievers (one of each color) and are planning a "Southern Romantic Charm" wedding in the beautiful, historic city of Savannah. I'm not extreme in anything except moderation... and wedding planning.
It’s been a while since I last made an appearance. To tell the truth, I’ve dreaded writing these posts about the things that made my wedding leave a sour taste in my mouth. It can be hard to find the right words to explain all my feelings. Not to mention that writing about my experience online could cause some… er… complications… with relatives/friends who disappointed me and a few vendors with outstanding contractual duties.
But I’m going to take a shot at it anyways. This isn’t about them and I deserve to vent about my wedding so I can finally move on.
*Deep breath* Okay, here goes. Gosh, where do I start? Well, for what it’s worth, everything seemed fine until about a week out from the wedding. In fact, it wasn’t until I was in Savannah that things began to unravel. Most of the things that went wrong before the wedding were a direct result from my poor planning.
The mess we made at my SIL’s house with all my wedding stuff.
Mrs. Duckling, San DiegoAge and Occupation: 23, Psychology Grad Student, Youth Diversion Specialist/Marriage and Family Therapy Trainee and an Executive AssistantFiance's Age and Occupation: 25, Marketing and PR CoordinatorEngagement Date: May 17, 2008Wedding Date: September 2009Venue: Rancho Bernardo InnAbout Me: I'm currently living in Orange County, but planning our wedding in my hometown of San Diego. We are a DIY wedding "2fer", as I'm the crafty one and Mr. Ducky is in charge of all of our graphic design and technical aspects. When not wedding planning or reading wedding blogs, I'm attending grad school and rotating between two different jobs to keep things exciting. My favorite things include shoes, Post-Its, Labrador Retrievers, traveling, psychology, delicious food, photography, reading, craft gadgets/supplies, and of course, my wonderful Mr. Ducky!
Yes, the long lost Duckling invitations. I know I have been promising the tips from the DIY process, but due to some computer crashes and general life craziness it’s been a little difficult to get everything together.
The printing of the main invitation was very basic. Read more…
Mrs. Sprinkle, Los AngelesAge and Occupation: 26, Preschool Teacher
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 30, Television Production/WriterEngagement Date: December 24, 2008Wedding Date: September 2009Venue: The Marvimon HouseAbout Me: I'm a Bay Area native trying to create a life for myself (and my fiance, and our three cats!) in the vast city of Los Angeles. I love vegan red velvet cupcakes, pilates ,and mid-century furniture. Mr. Sprinkle and I met when my band toured through his city (we bonded over cake and a mutual love of Morrissey) and we are getting married on the four year anniversary of our first date. When I am not teaching preschool (or blogging!) you can find me perfecting recipes, petting kittens, hiking in Griffith Park, and overusing exclamation points. We are planning a vegan, green-as-possible, DIY wedding, and I couldn't be more excited to share all of the details!
So, we had this chunk of time. After posed portraits, before ceremony. It was a pretty big chunk of time. So we kinda sat around, and drank beer, and talked, and it was great. 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.)
I admit it: I’m a bit of a stickler about sending thank you notes. It’s not that I’m an etiquette freak or anything—okay, maybe I am a little bit—but I think it’s super-important to acknowledge someone’s generosity as soon as I benefit from it. I guess I view most etiquette rules as “guidelines”—they are always safe to follow, but it’s okay to sometimes bend them if it seems appropriate to your situation. But on the issue of thank you notes, there is no bending for me! Read more…
Mrs. Nachos, Chicago/St. ThomasAge and Occupation: 33, Commercial Real Estate & HairstylistFiance's Age and Occupation: 36, Radio ProducerEngagement Date: May 22, 2009Wedding Date: April 2010Venue: Wyndham Sugar Bay Resort, St. ThomasAbout Me: I'm a happy, laid back city girl that can find the silver lining in any situation. An optimist at heart, my motto is to turn your "what ifs?" into "so whats!". My fiance is a radio producer and the biggest Cubs fan you'll meet - our apartment decor definitely shows it. He and I grew up next door to each other and because of it, we have the best home videos and easiest holiday dinners. We are planning an intimate wedding in the Virgin Islands and a cocktail party in June for 150 of our closest friends.
For someone that is always chilly, I sweat. A lot. It’s always been an issue for me to the point where in the summer, I have to be careful of what colored shirts I wear, because sweat marks are never pretty and they show more in certain colors. My mom always said it was a sign that I was healthy. If that’s the case, I ooze health by dripping it from my armpits.
I love Ugly Betty/America Ferrara and I totally feel for her knowing this picture is out there (although I guess I’m just perpetuating the spread of this picture, but it’s for educational purposes, I swear!)…
Thinking about being in the Caribbean has me a little worried, especially since all eyes are going to be on us and lots of pics will be taken. Heat + me = AHHHH pit stains, and that is NOT something I want all over my taffeta wedding dress. So, I have to weigh my options… Read more…
Mrs. Guinea Pig, Baltimore, MD Age and Occupation: 26, PhD student Fiance's Age and Occupation: 26, Operations Director at a non-profit Engagement Date: December 25, 2008 Wedding Date: May 2010Venue: The Chesapeake Bay Beach Club About Me: I'm a tomboy science nerd whose girly side has made a startling appearance thanks to wedding planning! I love to bake, knit and sew but I also ride a motorcycle (that Mr. Guinea Pig wouldn't touch with a 10 foot pole). We live with our three crazy cats and love to read, travel, watch movies, and do home improvement projects together! My parents/family are Canadian but I'm definitely American, although I've lived in 5 different countries, 6 different states, and speak Russian fluently. Mr. GP and I met online (did I mention I'm a scientist?) and had a whirlwind romance - now we can't wait to get married & celebrate with all our friends and family in a blue and yellow waterfront affair!
Following closely on the heels of our semi-stressful appointment at David’s Bridal, and after a wonderfully restoring lunch, my three lovely compatriots and I trekked to another bridal salon. Of course this was one of those stores that doesn’t tell you the names of the designer, nor lets you take pictures, so I have no evidence of what went on there nor any style names to direct you towards. I swear I went, though.
We walked into the store and looked around in awe. There was no one else there! The saleswoman let me know that they only schedule two brides per time slot, and the other bride had not arrived yet, so we had the place to ourselves! It was muuuch better than the first experience. This time it was actually fun! I even twirled in the dresses!
After having each friend pick out a dress I was still perusing the racks when the saleswoman mentioned I should be sure to check out the dresses on display in the halls and the front window, as well. So I headed up to the front of the store, and - there, in the window, a beautiful dress! - I must have squealed, because the saleswoman high-tailed it up to the front to take it off the mannequin. She smelled a sale, I’m sure. By the end of the appointment, there were two dresses I loved (one especially) but I knew I couldn’t buy a dress yet because I really wanted my mom and sister to come shopping with me before I bought anything. So I made sure the dresses would most likely still be there in a few months (they would, they were both new designs), and sadly left them behind. Read more…
Mrs. Scissors, LaGrange, GAAge and Occupation: 25, Photography & Graphic DesignFiance's Age and Occupation: 24, Engineering Grad StudentEngagement Date: January 1, 2009Wedding Date: June 2010Venue: Ceremony - First United Methodist Church; Reception - My parents' house!About Me: I’m a six-foot-three bride with a fifty-foot personality! I love great art, fabulous design, intense color, tons of music, indie photography, watching movies on repeat, and being really awesome. This super-tall, Southern, loud, quirky, neurotic artist is marrying a German, quiet, silly, super-amazing roboticist in an eclectic, funky, fun, snazzy, technicolored June wedding. Anything is game for this shindig, for it is all about us! We’re bringing giant paper cranes, six-foot-tall portraits, fortune cookies, a photo booth, a club-circuit DJ, handcuffs, and possibly a kidnapping to this small Southern town. Watch out, y’all, and try to keep up!
A month or so ago, Mr. S and I went on an epic adventure. We went to visit Tiffany & Co. to look at wedding bands! My engagement ring is from T&Co., so naturally we want to have our wedding bands from there, too.
Mrs. Pug, New York City/Half Moon Bay, CAAge and Occupation: 33, LawyerFiance's Age and Occupation: 32, dittoEngagement Date: July 2008Wedding Date: March 2010Venue: Ritz-Carlton, Half Moon BayAbout Me: The Mr. and I are two 30-somethings who enjoy tasty sweets of all kinds, our neighborhood wine store, and cuddling with our pug. NYC is where we live and the city we love, but we’re doing the deed out in Northern California. We are trying to keep the affair small, intimate, and manageable. Our motto is: the less people, the better! (I’m kidding.)
So, I was looking for a hair flower, having decided that I really needed one. I had begun the search process thinking that I would use a real flower since it would be less expensive and disposable—however, my ventures into the world of Etsy soon led me to other conclusions.
After perusing about a few hundred options on Etsy, I found some deco clay gardenia flowers—I loved the detail and the “real” look of them. They would also stand up better than a real flower. I almost bought this gorgeous one for $23 from Blissful Moments.
Mrs. Rainbow, TampaAge and Occupation: 22, Makeup ArtistFiance's Age and Occupation: 25, Electrical Engineer/ProgrammerEngagement Date: November 27, 2008Wedding Date: May 2010Venue: The Gamble PlantationAbout Me: I'm a quirky (and slightly Type-A) freelance makeup artist who was born in Washington State, raised in Alabama, and now living with my one and only in sunny Florida. I'm fashion and beauty obsessed, and have recently discovered my inner domestic diva extraordinaire. I'm a wannabe chef, decorating addict, and trying desperately to be as crafty as possible---albeit only with a glue gun. I'm hopelessly in love with my fiance, and all things sparkly and feathery. Despite the glittery exterior, I'm a total hippie on the inside. When I'm not making up pretty faces, I love doing what I can to help people, animals, and the environment. Someday the FI and I will change the world, but first we're tackling our modern-vintage-Marie-Antoinette-meets-Alice-in-Wonderland inspired wedding. I just can't wait to be Mrs. Rainbow!
I promised you a tutorial after I fine tuned the clocks (heh), and I’m happy to say that the kinks are officially out. Feel free to sub the clock face for whatever fits your wedding best; buttons or a small doily would be cute.
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!
Now that you know what the flower girls are wearing, you should also hear a little bit about what they’ll be carrying. Our girls, like so many others in the hive, will be carrying pomanders.
After reading many amazing DIY tutorials on Weddingbee (Lab’s and Cloud’s, for example) I figured I could go ahead and give these a try. I headed to the craft store and picked up two six inch Styrofoam balls and some pretty purple flowers that were close to our color. I already had ribbon, glue gun supplies and pearl-headed pins at home, so I thought I was set.
Once I got started, however, I quickly realized that I had severely under-estimated the amount of flowers I would need. Instead of heading back to the store, I decided to take the lazy way out - I cut all the petals off of the flowers and started gluing them on to the balls in tiers. I got a lot more coverage than I would have with the full flower heads, and I saved myself a trip back to the store.
Am I in love with the results? Eh. I much prefer the look of Lab’s and Cloud’s poms, but I think they will do. The project was kind of time consuming, and I burned my hands enough times that I really, really did not feel like redoing them. 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.
YES! Today, after a five-month search, I got these in the mail:
If you remember, months ago I shared my idea (actually, my dream) of wearing purple cowgirl boots the day of my wedding. Well, in that post I got a lot of help from readers who shared places and brands I could take a look at. I found some that were really close to what I wanted, but they were out of my budget, and the ones that were within my budget were either too busy or the wrong shade. Read more…
Mrs. Cola, Mountain View, CAAge and Occupation: 27, Product Communications and PromotionsFiance's Age and Occupation: 28, Managing Partner and Senior DesignerEngagement Date: March 5, 2009Wedding Date: June 2010Venue: The Mountain Terrace, Woodside, CAAbout Me: I’m a Washington State native, enjoying life in Silicon Valley California with my fiancé, our three kitties and one leopard gecko. I like reading wedding blogs, Photoshopping wedding design mock ups, making lists, and planning, planning, planning! I’m a bit of an anomaly, on one side I’m a very girlie girl, I collect shoes, I lay out my outfits 4-6 weeks in advance, and I’d never leave the house without my hair curled and makeup on. But on the other side, I’m a total tomboy, I love to go camping and hiking, play drinking games (hey, I’m Irish!) and most of my closest friends are guys. My fiancé and I are planning a DIY-focused wedding with a balance between easygoing (what he wants) and chic and stylish (what I want), and are tying it all together with elements in lavender, sage, butter cream and chocolate.
After the ladies stole the dress I was going to get as my rehearsal dinner dress, I had to find a back up. Finding my rehearsal dinner and after party dresses were so much easier than finding my wedding gown! And where did I turn, but Nordstrom.com! I love the extensive online selection they have, and it’s so easy to search by the particular color you’re looking for. In this case, I decided to go with white, instead of purple. How many times in your life do you get the excuse to wear a white dress, after all?
After narrowing it down to several choices (which I sadly can’t share because they’re no longer available), this is the one I picked, for $98:
It has a similar cut to the bodice as the bridesmaids’ dresses, especially with the twisted straps, and I love the little pleats on the skirt! Read more…
Mrs. Parfait, ChicagoAge and Occupation: 26, TeacherFiance's Age and Occupation: 24, Senior Online ConsultantEngagement Date: February 14, 2009Wedding Date: April 2010Venue: Signature EventsAbout Me: I have a soft spot for all things sweet and romantic. Desserts, love songs, sappy movies? Yes, yes, and ohh yes. My fiance and I enjoy singing to our dogs, creating crazy ice cream sundaes, and generally being lovey dovey cuddle bunnies. We also do socially acceptable things like dancing, throwing Frisbees, playing high stakes board games, and taking unreasonably fun road-trips. We're planning a Korean/Serbian wedding with plenty of playful, personal touches!
Over the weekend, Mr. Parfait received a big box in the mail. I get overly excited about mail, so I bounced in circles around him, asking him what was inside. And GUESS WHAT HE SAID?
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?).
The mess we made at my SIL’s house with all my wedding stuff.
So, we had this chunk of time. After posed portraits, before ceremony. It was a pretty big chunk of time. So we kinda sat around, and drank beer, and talked, and it was great.
All-Inclusion Invitation Suites
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