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.
I’ve been soooo excited to write this post! Our photo booth was a complete experiment and I was thrilled when I looked through the pictures afterwards to find complete success. Because our cocktail hour ended up inside of our reception barn, the photo booth was really popular as an activity during that time. A line even formed a few times throughout the hour. Plus, there was a lot of light coming in through the windows before dinner, so the pictures were well-lit.
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.
Remember when I shared the positive side of having our wedding postponed until April? Well, one of the positive things was that we were going to have time to make Save the Dates!!!
I have to confess that ever since I discovered what STD meant, I’ve been obsessed with making and sending our own. Thanks to the fact that we do have time now to send them, I can show you all our labor of love:
We used one of the pictures Groomsman Scott shot before our Legal ceremony for the front of our postcards, but we were not sure what we wanted for the back.
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.
During the summer that Mr. Pudding popped the question, I decided to turn my excitement about our looming engagement into something positive, and do a little bit of research on what I was about to get myself into by agreeing to be Mr. Pudding’s “wife”. I picked up thisbook at a local bookstore, and spent our Maine vacation reading about the women who have come before.
I really enjoyed this book, and highly recommend it! Despite the “intellectual feel” of the book, it was a surprisingly entertaining beach read! Are there any other ex history and/or literature students who have rediscovered their love of reading for fun after years and years of reading only material that you had to for class?
The book did bring up an interesting point that I wanted to discuss with the hive. The author discusses the reasons why people entered into matrimony at length, and surprisingly notes that “brides and grooms did not enter marriage with the expectation of “loving” each other as we understand the term” until about the 18th century. For the most part, women married to gain security and status, while men married so that they could have legitimate heirs. 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.
I have to be honest here, I never actually understood the purpose of STDs (and of course I’m referring to nothing other than Save-the-Dates). I look at an STD as a sort of warning. I have never gotten an STD that really helped me at all though, because they force a person to stop and think about their distant future (and I don’t normally plan things that far in advance). I’ve been given all sorts of STDs - STDs of all different colors, fancy STDs, what the heck is this STDs, even STDs that stick to my refrigerator. To some, STDs can seem like a nuisance and be a bit irritating.
You get one and think to yourself, “What the hell am I supposed to do now?” 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.
Well, I should be talking more about my DIY projects, since I was on such a roll, and I’m working on a post about my shoes (and how I was an evil genius to find them), but I feel like switching gears today and giving you all a little more info about Mr. Cola and me!
I thought I’d touch on an aspect of my relationship with Mr. Cola that is a bit unique. The fact that we were good friends for about 2 1/2 years before we started dating, and roommates for about 1 1/2 years prior. Now, maybe some of you out there share this with us, but for those of you who don’t, I’ll share my perspective.
How we got together: Nothing dramatic, no sweeping me off my feet, no “Want to go see a movie?”, just the two of us, sitting on a couch in our house we shared with 3 other roommates, watching TV and having a couple drinks, and he kissed me (this was a whole week after I’d dumped my loser ex). From that kiss on, we were an item, and never felt the need to make a big announcement, or define our relationship. It was as easy as that, friends one minute, a couple the next.
(the oldest picture I have of the two of us, taken at Thanksgiving 2003, about 7 months after we started dating. Sorry for the poor quality, it’s a scan.)
Mrs. Lamb, NorfolkAge and Occupation: 25, Homeland Security ConsultantFiance's Age and Occupation: 27, Graduate StudentEngagement Date: January 2009Wedding Date: January 2010Venue: Trinity Presbyterian Church/Harrison Opera HouseAbout Me: I’m a Homeland Security Consultant with a tendency towards pulling office pranks, taking lunch breaks, and drinking Wawa shakes. I’m also an English major with a serious obsession with alliteration and rhymes. While I’m not keeping America safe, I’m training for half marathons and the Escape from Alcatraz swim. Or moving for the third time this year. Or baking. Or wedding crafting. Or crying about wedding planning. All the while, I’m getting myself into Lucille Ball-esque scrapes and making Jim Carey-esque faces. Our big fat Czech/Baptist/Jewish/Italian wedding is a combination of vintage eclectic, DIY, and little spoonful of sugar from our Event Coordinator. It’s going to be a Norfolk flavored wedding with the verve of an only-daughter-blow-out bash!
My second fitting came up fast on me. I was bee-boppin’ along, minding my own business, when BAM! My second fitting popped up in my Outlook reminders. After the return of the shoe search and a delightful few days of Thanksgiving holiday, December was suddenly upon me. I found myself uncharacteristically nervous about this fitting. First, I was nervous that the dress wouldn’t fit me. Second, I was worried that the shoes I chose wouldn’t match the feel of the gown. Third, I was in stomach knots over the decision to wear the under part of my dress by itself for the reception. With the added last minute stresses, I called in for reinforcements. My friend, C (remember, I caught her bouquet?), stepped in as camera girl, ooh-er & aww-er, and all around opinion giver extraordinaire.
Thankfully, all of my worries melted away when I slid her over my head and the chiffon layers swooshed to the ground. I don’t know how to describe it, but it just felt RIGHT.
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!
Hello hive! We’re always looking to improve your Weddingbee experience, and hopefully by gathering a little information about you, our readers, and your opinions on various parts of our site, we can continue to develop and improve the site! If you could, please take a few minutes and share your thoughts in this survey. It is completely anonymous, unless you choose to enter your email address in the end, which is optional. We would love to know more about what you like, and what features you’d like to see improved or added.
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.)
All in all, I think I have tried pretty hard to be as considerate of my bridesmaids as possible. I set a price cap (for myself) on how much the dresses would cost (anything over $200 and I’d foot the difference—which made the urgency of an affordable dress much more… URGENT!), and I paid the surcharge on the plus size dresses (for my decidedly NON-plus size bridesmaids… darn you, bridal industry sizing!) without telling anyone. I picked a dress that I hope will be re-wearable (I would wear it), but if not, at least it’s pretty. In fact, I gave everyone two choices on their dresses, to make everyone comfortable.
I’m not insisting they throw pre-wedding parties for me, or that they have their hair and makeup professionally done, or even that they do much of anything at all for me other than show up on time and not complain too much. So, I would also like to continue to be considerate of them, my top five ladies, in selecting their bridesmaid gifts! (And also considerate of my ever diminishing wallet!)
So, I took some time to think about what I would like as a bridesmaid. 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!
After our hectic rehearsal, we all grabbed cabs and headed back up to Midtown. A few of us ran up to our apartment to grab the gifts for our families and bridal party, while most everyone headed straight to the restaurant on the next block.
I had to pose for a quick photo op with my favorite bunny:
We finally got everyone to the restaurant and seated at two long, family-style tables, ready to enjoy some delicious CUBAN food! We chose the Cuban restaurant because it’s one of our neighborhood favorites and we knew that many of our out-of-towners had never gotten the chance to enjoy yummy Cuban food!
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!
So, Audrey is here, and she’s fabulous as you might have heard me say (a million times). But something I haven’t yet talked about is the equally-fabulous veil I’m wearing during my fitting:
The beautiful veil belongs to my beautiful mother: Read more…
Weddingbee GalleryFeature Launched: April 10, 2009About: A collection of inspirational wedding pictures from readers and bees.
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. 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.)
What, you’re like, who? It’s me, the Weddingbee reader who’s been avidly following this site for over a year, voraciously reading the daily posts, meticulously combing the archives of all my favorite bees (I know I’m not the only one who has spent a late night or a “work break” clicking “more by Miss/Mrs. ____”!), applied once to be a bee and was REJECTED, tried again, and now I’m here!
Still not helpful? Well let me give some specifics and me and Mr. Pug (the husband to be).
Mr. Pug and I live in a small apartment, with our pug, in NYC. Within a few blocks of our apartment are several delectable bakeries, which is important because I don’t think we can function without constant supplies of sugar. It also doesn’t hurt that there is a cozy neighborhood wine shop nearby—nothing like a bottle of bubbly stashed in the fridge 24/7. Who’s with me on that one?
I like to cook and bake, and we love to have people over for dinner and serve them food on funny paper plates (shaped like skulls or candy corn in October; Barbie princess plates for birthdays) because our “dishwasher” putters out (i.e. Mr. Pug doesn’t want to do the dishes). We enjoy horrible TV shows (him: Korean drama series and me: Girls Next Door), and bestow unreasonable amounts of attention on our pug. In short, we are big dorks.
We met over three years ago when a friend set us up on a date, and we got engaged two years later while on vacation. Here’s the fam:
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.
Mr Trail Mix and I have a meeting with my aunt (who is our invitation “friendor”) soon, and she mentioned that we needed to figure out the exact wording beforehand. Alright, no problem, I glibly replied, thinking this would be an easy decision.
Ha! I’m sure you know where this is going…
Well, it turns out that there are an infinite number of inane ways to invite someone to our wedding. Who knew deciding on invitation wording would prove to be so difficult? A quick Google search turned up gems like the following:
“The future seems so bright and clear
When I picture it with you near”
“Friends forever we will be
Whether walking on the beach or sailing on the sea”
“Kids at heart we’ll always be
As we go through life
You’ll always be my best friend
When we’re husband and wife”
Really, people, that’s the best you can do? Not to be picky, but the last one doesn’t even make any sense! Needless to say, our invitation wording will not start with any of these Hallmark-wannabees…
However, I am extremely excited to pick out the design of our invites. I’m not even going to entertain the possibility of DIY-ing, ’cause there just ain’t no chance of that being successful. Drink stirrers I can handle, invitations I cannot. Read more…
Mrs. Hamster, New York CityAge and Occupation: 28, Finance GalFiance's Age and Occupation: 30, Finance GuyEngagement Date: March 9, 2009Wedding Date: May 2010Venue: The Pierre HotelAbout Me: I'm an original Jersey girl living it up in the big NYC! I love baking for others, hosting brunches, and exploring NYC with my mans. Besides Mr. Hamster (of course), I'm attracted to shiny things, bold colors, snacks, matching and coordination, pork and duck fats, miniature versions of things, corny jokes and puns. We are planning a swanky Spring wedding in the heart of NYC, followed by a second reception in Singapore. From one city that never sleeps to another - I can't imagine a more exciting ride!
Mrs. Ramen, PhoenixAge and Occupation: 26, Optometry StudentFiance's Age and Occupation: 24, Industrial DesignerEngagement Date: January 3, 2009Wedding Date: December 19, 2009Venue: Phoenix Art MuseumAbout Me: I'm an SF-born, Seattle-raised girl, transplanted to Phoenix where I'll be getting married, and planning all the way from Orange County where I go to school (yes, it feels as crazy as it sounds). I loooooove Yogurtland, am slightly very obsessed with all things paper, am heavily addicted to wedding blogs, deeply desire a puppy, thoroughly enjoy cooking, cry when I watch (almost all) movies, thrive on solo car-karaoke, can't stop being sarcastic, am neurotic about taking pictures of almost everything I eat before I eat it, and aspire to travel the world. My super-talented fiance and I are attempting to DIY a majority of our massive (~350 guests) "clean & modern, yet romantic, but completely unexpected, with a teeny dash of vintage" wedding, stay within our not-so-massive budget, and somehow get a really luxe (but still fun!) look/feel at the same time. In music terms (since we're both really into music) think Coldplay meets Motown meets Kanye meets Sinatra.
Miss me? I swear I’m the worst bee… I didn’t mean for this to happen, but I now COMPLETELY understand why some bees disappear ~ 2 weeks prior to their weddings… I am exactly at that point (just under 2 weeks), and I’m a weeeeeee bit stressed.
So, let me make some excuses, like:
Mr. Ramen and I just moved into our *new* apartment!!! This will be our first time living together, so we are suuuuuuuuuuper excited, and I can’t wait to play house with all of our new kitchen stuff. Since Mr. R is finishing up his internship/job in AZ, I am left to setup our new nest alone. It is a bit intimidating to weed out all of the old household hand-me-downs from my mom that I (and my sister) have used throughout college, to make room for all of our new registry toys! I’ve been packing up/moving/unpacking over the past week, in between classes and labs. Phew!
I have 3 exams and 3 proficiencies to take by next Tuesday. It actually wouldn’t be so hectic IF I didn’t have to reschedule my exams and proficiencies for next week so I can try to RELAX before the wedding. Needless to say… school is keeping me a bit busy. Yes, I think my school is determined to kill me. They are currently winning.
I had my Phoenix shower and my second bachelorette. Call it old age, or maybe I have no stamina, but all of these parties (which I loved and appreciated very much!) exhausted me. I can’t hang anymore.
Wedding “crap”. This is the stuff that needs to get done, but keeps slipping through the cracks. I usually remember them while doing something else, which makes me go, “Crap! I still need to pay the florist!” etc.
The usual “can’t do it until last minute” wedding stuff, e.g. reception seating, programs, gifts, last minute arrangements/rentals/payments, etc…
I actually hate giving excuses but I kinda just wanted to vent. And hopefully you won’t think I’m that huge of a slacker, still.
Anyways… this post is actually about, duh duh duhhhhhhhhhh… Read more…
All-Inclusion Invitation Suites
So, I would also like to continue to be considerate of them, my top five ladies, in selecting their bridesmaid gifts! (And also considerate of my ever diminishing wallet!)
