Ms. Stripes, Los AngelesAge and Occupation: 29, Costume Designer/StylistFiancee's Age and Occupation: 29, ChefEngagement Date: June 23, 2009Wedding Date: September 2010Venue: Heritage Square MuseumAbout Me: I’m a type A creative with a messy streak, a loud mouth, and an uncanny knack for combining clashing patterns. I can usually be found with my nose in a book, my feet (or at least my toes) on the ground, my head in the clouds, and my arm around the prettiest girl you ever saw- aka
Fiancee Stripes. Together we’re planning a FUN vintage/modern French carnival wedding extravaganza and rockin’ dance party on a dime. (Say that three times fast!) Good coffee, long lists, Uniball pens, and my iPhone keep me sane, and making art, making trouble, and making out keep me happy! I love urban adventures, bike rides that end with afternoon drinks, breakfast for dinner, beautiful light, photography, travel, my furry family, and of course, my beautiful fiancee! I’m super excited to be here and can’t wait to share all our adventures as we craft a joyful, budget-friendly, design-savvy and all-around AWESOME wedding!
A few more words on food. sigh. I think in my next blogger life I’ll have to write about it in all its delicious glory, I love it so much!
So you’ll remember from earlier that we’re having the BEST taco truck ever cater our wedding, but just what other yumminess will we have for our guests?
We’re thinking that during the cocktail hour we’d love to have a delicious table of cheese/fruit/jam. I imagine it will look like this:
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.
Since our STDs are finished, and the designing process for our invites has stalled due to my inability to use any design programs more complicated than Microsoft Publisher (I’m trying to teach myself how to use Gimp and Inkscape… any other free, user friendly design software out there?), I’ve decided to move on to a new project - our table numbers.
When I first started the planning process, I imagined wooden numbers on our tables, a la Miss Cola:
Mrs. Hot Wings, Chicago/San DiegoAge and Occupation: 28, ProfessorFiance's Age and Occupation: 32, InstructorEngagement Date: December 20, 2008Wedding Date: August 2010Venue: Ocean View Villas/Jasmine Seafood RestaurantAbout Me: I am a psychology grad student living in Chicago and planning my wedding to a fellow psych grad student. I am a Sunny So-Cal bred gal who trudged across the country to follow her love of psychology and ended up finding a partner in the process. I am overly passionate about anything I involve myself with. I am an activist, a foodie, a reality TV watching junkie, an over-analyzer, a photography obsesser, and am utterly cheesy to the core. This is a story of what happens when a boy and a girl meet, fall in love over academic dorkiness, and a shared love for life. We (mostly I) are planning our semi-destination wedding in my hometown of San Diego. We are excited to bring our families and friends together from across our lifespans to celebrate our future in a grand 400+ person culturally blended affair!
Mr. Hot Wings had Future Mother in Law Hot Wing (FMIL), Future Sister in Law Hot Wing (FSIL), and Woman of Honor Hot Wings probe for what I thought was pretty for months! The problem was, I really had no idea. I really liked emerald cuts but really thought they would be too expensive. So I told everyone I wanted a radiant cut diamond and that I wanted a thin band so the ring would look delicate on my short and stubby looking fingers. I also liked the more vintage looking rings with engraving.
So, even though everyone told Mr. Hot Wings that I wanted a radiant cut diamond, he decided I would like the emerald cut better. HE WAS SOO RIGHT! Everything about this ring is oh-so-me! I’ve been wearing it for over a year now, and I still stare at it in awe. In all honesty, I don’t think that I would have picked out a ring so perfect. So in the end, I am so glad to not have been a part of the ring picking/buying process.
** A hint to those buying the ring and trying to be sneaky like Mr. Hot Wings. If you’re going to sneak a ring from your partner’s jewelry box for the ring size, pay close attention to which finger s/he wears the ring on. I always wore my cocktail rings on my middle finger. So my engagement ring that was made for a size 5.5 is now a 4.5.
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!
(I promise this picture makes sense, it’s on the door to the bridal hideaway!)
Immediately following our ceremony, Mr. Sprinkle and I ran back to the bridal hidey-hole for a few glorious minutes of alone time. When we opened the doors we were greeted by two large glasses of water, two cocktails and a dozen little appetizers. We drank and laughed and ate some food, which was DELICIOUS. Ten minutes later, a soft knock reminded us that we should probably get back to the party. We did some super fast posed family portraits and then got busy talking to everyone!
Mrs. Buttons, Clearwater, FLAge and Occupation: 24, "Working on it"Fiance's Age and Occupation: 28, Financial ServicesEngagement Date: June 13, 2009Wedding Date: May 2010Venue: Carlouel Yacht ClubAbout Me: I'm a self proclaimed perfectionist and a professional nomad (seriously, I've lived in TX, WI, MI, FL, NC, and now VA!). I love wine, cooking, curling up with a good book (nerd alert!), spoiling the furbaby, and of course, the wonderful Mr. Buttons! We are planning a lighthearted and whimsical wedding (with a good deal of DIY projects) in Clearwater, Florida, but from a distance of 800 miles away! We are looking forward to sharing our day with our family and friends, and most importantly, starting our lives together as husband and wife!
As usual, in my wedding planning quest, I have stumbled upon some things that I feel compelled to purchase, even if they aren’t completely necessary…
Exhibit A: custom monograms!
I stumbled upon a bevy of monograms on Etsy one day, and I couldn’t stop drooling over them. At first, I couldn’t decided which I preferred: a stamp version, or a digital pdf version… both have great possibilities…
On one hand, I love the rubber stamp option… I can use it to stamp the envelopes on our Save The Dates, and possibly on our invitations. I could use it to stamp our favor bags… programs… the list could go on!
Mrs. Ribbons, Washington D.C./Bloomington, INAge and Occupation: 23, Research Associate for an international development firmFiance's Age and Occupation: 25, Proposal Coordinator for contractor
Engagement Date: May 2, 2008Wedding Date: June 2010Venue: Indiana Memorial UnionAbout Me: I'm an Indiana transplant living in DC with my fiance and our pretty kitty. I enjoy the color pink, I'm obsessed with the Dior New Look and tulle, and I heart my level 80 paladin. I'm a sucker for bad TV, literary theory, and cakes of all persuasion. I also happen to be marrying the cutest closet nerd around! It's all about Bloomington for us because it's where we met -- on the college paper. If there's a theme for our small summertime wedding, it's Dior meets Dorothy Draper on a lark in Bloomington; think poofy, plus graphic prints, bold colors, and a whole lot of prettiness.
I rushed to finish this so I could put the address on our save the dates. It’s pretty bare bones, but it has the necessary information at least!
At first I intended to use a template from one of the wedding sites, but none matched our colors or feel. Every pink template had brown as an accent and I just didn’t want to go there. As a fake communications professional, the first rule of branding is consistency. So I needed to find something with more customization but no html. I do not code.
Mrs. Sewing, San Mateo, CA/Honolulu, HIAge and Occupation: 24, Electrical EngineerFiance's Age and Occupation: 24, Electrical EngineerEngagement Date: June 27, 2009Wedding Date: July 2010Venue: Anela Garden Chapel & Japanese Cultural Center, HonoluluAbout Me: I'm an easily entertained, compulsive idea-scheming machine who loves good art, good food, and a good engineering challenge. I'm planning a half-destination wedding on the beautiful island of Oahu - imagine a plethora of movies, art and games; savory Hawaiian food; blended Chinese and Japanese cultural details; lush, fragrant tropical flowers and all the air conditioning a NorCal native could want! And once I marry the love of my life, we'll come back to the 'mainland' to party it up all over again in my hometown of Salinas, the salad-bowl capital of the world!
One day, the two Sewings walked into a store called Paper-Source. We went mostly on a whim, to see what kind of paper options there were for invites and such.
We were blown away! The paper was so pretty, and they had idea books laid out with samples. Now, I kind of already had an idea of what how we’d make our invites, but there was one thing we saw that completely threw me for a loop:
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!
A while back, the ladies at my dress shop said a veil designer was having a veil show at the shop, so I made an appointment to try on my dress with all different veils. My BFF, my Auntie J, and my brother’s family came with me, fully expecting a veil show. It was not a veil show.
Let me preface this by saying: I love my dress shop. It’s one of a kind and altogether lovely. It took me a long time to write this post, because I don’t want to write anything negative. In order to make this negative experience into a positive, I’ll tell you what I did in this situation, and what I should have done to make it a better situation.
I put on the sample of my beautiful dress, and the sweet shop owner introduced me to… well, let’s call her Ms. Veil. Ms. Veil was the veil designer, but she didn’t seem interested in veils. Instead, she was really adamant about me purchasing some of these:
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.
Today is the LAST DAY to join the swap! Click here for more information and FAQs!
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Dust off your glue guns and bust out some glitter, because love is in the air (more so than usual, around here) and it’s time for the 3rd Annual Weddingbee Valentine’s Day Swap!
Like last year’s swap, we’ll be using Swap-bot to help with the coordination.
Here’s how it works:
1 - Start by creating an account at Swap-Bot. (If you participated last year, you’re already set up. Just take a moment to make sure all your info is current.) Please note that your address will only be shared by your swap partners (otherwise, where will they mail your Valentine?!). Once you’ve signed up, request to join the Weddingbee group. Once you receive a group acceptance, you can sign up for the Weddingbee Valentine Swap! The swap is a private one and not open to the Swap-Bot public. Only those in the Weddingbee group can participate in the swap. Read more…
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!
After our officiant announced us as husband and wife for the first time, our guitarist played us back down the aisle with this song.
Play while you read!
What better song could there have been to accompany us as we made our way, together, out into the rain? (Well, besides a certain Rihanna song.)
Luckily, staff was right there to hand us an umbrella. We ended up getting some of my favorite shots of the day at this point, and they were totally unplanned! Read more…
Mrs. Pencils, Washington DC/Frederick, MDAge and Occupation: 24, Program Director, Education Non ProfitFiance's Age and Occupation: 24, Administrative Assistant, Ocean Conservation Non ProfitEngagement Date: July 26, 2008Wedding Date: May 2010Venue: Morningside InnAbout Me: I'm a nerdy Northwestern girl who always knew she was meant to live in the East, harboring a deep love of ice cream, underwear, Diet Coke with a splash of Coca-Cola, pashminas, scrapbooking, stationery, wall calendars and books written for preteens. I think every day should include good thin crust pizza, chocolate, an obscure historical monument, lots of laughter, a dash of wedding planning and, of course, amazing Mr. Pencils! I'm loving the adventure of planning a Maryland wedding and Rocky Mountain reception, and most of all, I just love love!
You’ve seen my engagement ring. What good is an engagement ring post without an accompanying wedding band story?
As I grew up I saw bands like these on Mama and Papa Pencils’ hands and to me, it is quintessential wedding ring-ness. So, initially, I assumed we’d end up with rings like these:
Then Mr. Pencils went and blinged out my engagement ring and I found myself being drawn to beautiful pave rings that match my e-ring, like these: Read more…
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.
Last Sunday night I ate a lamb sandwich that wasn’t prepared quite right. Needless to say I spent the next two days sick, sick sick. I couldn’t eat much except J-E-L-L-O, tea, and Pedia-pops on Monday. *insert sad face* Tuesday I graduated to plain rice, applesauce, and more Jell-O. By Wednesday night I was ready for my first “real meal” and devoured some Yakisoba chicken.
After the “Bad Lamb” incident, you would think that the last thing I would want to talk about is food. WRONG! I was so hungry this whole week and everything sounded wonderful. While I was dreaming of Pad Thai, Pho, Pizza, and oysters it dawned on me that I hadn’t shared our menu selections or gratuitous food p0rn from our tasting with City Catering. Close your eyes and let me set the stage… Read more…
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!
Here is the seventh installment of our reader ring shots! If you’d like to contribute a picture of your ring to this series (you don’t have to be newly engaged!), take a look at Anne Ruthmann’s tutorial on taking great ring shots, and submit your favorite pictures to this thread. We can’t wait to see everyone’s beautiful bling!
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 was looking through pics on my computer, and I realized I never showed you all the dresses I tried on the first time I went shopping with my ladies! You know how dresses look so perfect online, then you try them on and they look nothing like they do on the model? I love seeing different dresses on real people as opposed to the staged models so I thought I’d share what real person versus model looked like from my perspective. These are all from David’s Bridal…
Alicia.Dudley’s fun save-the-dates capture her upcoming wedding’s twenties theme.
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.
(I promise this picture makes sense, it’s on the door to the bridal hideaway!)
Spring Wedding Favors
