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 can’t wait to walk down the aisle, but the big question is: which one?
I love my Church. Love, love, love. It has a pretty unique layout, especially for a Catholic Church. For weekly Mass I find the layout interesting but for our wedding I find it frustrating. After months of contemplation, I think we have finally figured out a solution but at times I felt like I was working on a logic problem.
Back in December, Mrs Lamb’s post 1 Aisle, 2 Aisle, Bride Aisle, Groom Aisle inspired me to thoroughly document (in PowerPoint) the layout of my Church and the different options that we had for seating and processional. At first glance you might say that my Church is in the round, except there is nothing round about it. Read more…
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.
Phew! My bridesmaids and brother Fro Yo’s girlfriend put together the most amazing bachelorette weekend ever, and I wanted to tell you all about it yesterday, but my head was pounding and I needed a day to recover. Well, I’m recovered and ready to spill the deets.
We started out with a delicious brunch made by bridesmaid Sydney:
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.
We’re getting down to crunch time! The marriage license application has been sent, the final payment has been made, the home party invites have been mailed, and now we wait. In 3 weeks, we’ll be in paradise!
Last week, I received an email from the hotel’s wedding department with our wedding day itinerary. Being left in the dark about the big day until now hasn’t really bothered me except for when people asked me how the planning is going. Uh, we’re done. We have been for a while. We’ve left most of the actual planning in the hands of the hotel… just the way we wanted it.
So when I read the wedding day plan…
5:00: Groom comes to lobby for 1st set of pictures
5:15: Bride escorted from her room for pictures in lobby
5:30: Ceremony begins. Photographer takes pics during and after ceremony at wedding site
6:30: Ceremony and pictures conclude
… I thought it was perfectly simple and sweet. Normally, a reception immediately following the ceremony is expected but we didn’t want to do the expected, we wanted to do things our way and the island way—laid back and low stress. I’m starting to think we’re already on ‘island time’! We don’t have anything planned after the ceremony and the home party has taken on a life of it’s own. We both agree, that is our ’something after the wedding’, it’s just going to happen a month later.
Someone actually said to me, “Isn’t that going to be kind of anti-climactic for you? ‘I do’, then you’re done?” Read more…
Weddingbee GalleryFeature Launched: April 10, 2009About: A collection of inspirational wedding pictures from readers and bees.
Almostduffy’s talented nephews drew a bridal portrait on the program board at their outdoor wedding.
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. Jellyfish, Pleasanton, CAAge and Occupation: 27, Law StudentFiance's Age and Occupation: 26, Air Force PilotEngagement Date: February 21, 2009Wedding Date: September 2010Venue: Casa Real at Ruby Hill WineryAbout Me: In a nutshell, I’m the most optimistic worrywart you’ll ever meet. My family emigrated from Romania to San Jose, CA when I was 8, and I've been a Nor Cal girl ever since! My fiancé is also a Bay Area native, so it’s funny that we met at UCLA, as college freshmen living on the same floor (go Bruins!). Between his career as an Air Force pilot and my path to becoming a lawyer, our relationship has been anything but typical. We currently live together in Berkeley with our puppy Stinson. In addition to spending time with the loves of my life, I enjoy crafting, attempting complicated recipes, environmental law and non-law school reading (Us Weekly, anyone?). Follow along as I plan an elegant 200-person winery wedding, graduate law school, take the Bar exam, get married and get used to the always unpredictable but never boring life of a military spouse!
Once upon a time, there was a newly engaged gal,
Who was so very excited, she called all her pals,
“I’m off to look at dresses!” she shrieked with glee
Her friends thought, “’wow that’s early,’ but couldn’t disagree.
So one Saturday morning, she went to the shop
Tried a handful of dresses – that’s where she should have stopped.
But she was so excited, she bought one on the spot
Her mother, aunt and bridesmaid all assured her she looked hot.
As soon as she got in the car, she felt a sense of panic:
“Did I just buy the wrong dress, or am I being manic?”
She tried to shrug off the feeling, hoping that it would fade
But as the months went on, her fears just weren’t allayed.
Then one fine day, while browsing on the ‘Bee
She saw a reader’s wedding gown and was filled with sudden envy
“I must know who makes this dress, it’s simply so divine”
The next day she drove to the salon to check out the design. Read more…
Mrs. Starfish, Boston/NewportAge and Occupation: 25, Operations AssistantFiance's Age and Occupation: 25, SalesEngagement Date: October 8, 2008Wedding Date: October 2010Venue: The Atlantic Beach ClubAbout Me: I'm a perfectionist who is a planner at heart. I don't do well with surprises. I love planning, crafting, Newport RI, family and friends, and most importantly, Mr. Starfish---all of which will be big components in our October wedding in our favorite little city by the sea.
One of my bridesmaid sent me a text that asked me who pays for the bachelorette party (this wasn’t related to my wedding; she’s in another wedding this summer). Although I have only been in one wedding, I’m not sure where I got this from, but I always though the bridesmaids pay for themselves and split the cost of the bride, and then the other guests attending pay for themselves.
My BM responded that she thought that it was tacky to ask guests to pay for themselves and she thought bridesmaids should pay for everyone. Her reasoning was that a bridesmaid wouldn’t ask a guest to pay their way for a shower, so why is this different? Read more…
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!
“Excuse me, ma’am,” says a great white ghost hanging contemptuously in the dining room. “Remember me?”
Yep. That’s my wedding dress. Completely un-assembled.
Why haven’t I sewn it together yet? The mock-up turned out fine. I reached my target body weight. There’s no other legitimate excuse not to put it together.
But I just can’t bring myself to do it. Read more…
Mrs. Taco, San FranciscoAge and Occupation: 29, writer/editorFiance's Age and Occupation: 37, editorEngagement Date: May 13, 2009Wedding Date: August 2010Venue: The Green Room at the War Memorial Veterans BuildingAbout Me: I like laughing and talking with good friends over good food and good drink, be it wine, cocktail, or brew. I write and edit things for fun and profit, but I rarely "write" these days without a keyboard and high-speed internets. Favorites include Mr. Taco, my Boston terrier, San Francisco, getting out of town, and the Roaring ’20s. I was kind-of planning a wedding since roughly 2006, when I discovered "Whose Wedding Is It Anyway?" on the WE channel. I ran and didn't look back with a theme I called "urban vintage," and it culminated in the most magical day a taco could ask for.
Mr. Taco bought a URL for us a long time ago, since we already had some intermittent discussions about our “wedding website”. The logical step for those who like planning ahead (me) and those with a storied history of compulsive URL-purchasing (him), was to just buy the website and determine its content later.
To preserve that Tacolicious anonymity, note that our website includes both of our first names, separated with an n instead of and. Think rock ‘n roll vs. rock and roll.
The and version of said website is taken by people who aren’t us. It’s been taken since 2002, hence our decision to go with our n version. We don’t know them, other than what we learned by poking around their site. I suppose this makes us either garden-variety curious or total weirdos.
These two actually come up a good amount lately, since we feel compelled to tell people why it’s n and not and. Read more…
Mrs. Oyster, DallasAge and Occupation: 30, Music TeacherFiance's Age and Occupation: 46, Art TeacherEngagement Date: January 9, 2009Wedding Date: July 2010Venue: The Tower ClubAbout Me: I'm a Texa-Californian with a penchant for sparkly things and a tendency to think a lot. I've been known to sing random songs or dance when there is no music on. My fiance and I love world culture, we love to travel, and we have an incredibly eclectic taste in music. We’re thrilled to have the opportunity to celebrate our marriage with our family & closest friends. We're planning an “urban black-tie” wedding and hope to incorporate our personalities and some of our own interests. We look forward to a life of love, laughter, good music, beautiful art, and to creating our home together with our four (!) cats.
… cry while watching someone else’s wedding video. When I started out with this whole wedding planning thing, there were some things I didn’t allow myself to dream about. I spent today’s wedding planning session actively considering one of them: videography.
I grew up looking at my mom’s wedding pictures, and ever since I was little, I always marveled at how beautiful she looked and how young she was. My mom looks great at any age, but she just looked so bridal. It’s amazing! The photos are even more important now since my father passed away.
It sounds far reaching, but often when I think of my wedding I think of how it will look in 30 years, when my husband & I can barely remember trying to choose a dress or a venue or a shade of pink, when our kids are grown and showing these photos to our grandchildren. “Look at those weird clothes!” the kids will say. “Look how young they look!” And we will look at each other and wonder how on earth we were ever so young! And look how naïve we were, taking those vows! So optimistic! So unblemished!
Thinking of my wedding in these terms makes me acutely aware of the moments we’re creating, and how fleeting they are. So of course, I’m in the perfect position to be suckered by a Super8 video. 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.
Oh, sweet laser cutter, how I love what you can do to paper products! But it wasn’t meant to be, and our guests will never see these amazing pocketfold covers that were in my original invitations plans.
I’ve alluded to the fact that the invitations suite I spent the past week posting about wasn’t my original design, so now that you’ve seen the final versions, I’ll go into what I’d previously wanted to do.
It all started back in November, when I decided laser cutting an intricate design on pocketfolds was the end all, be all way to do our invitations. Read more…
Mrs. Veggie, Raglan, New Zealand/Scranton, PAAge and Occupation: 27, Director of Small Non-ProfitFiance's Age and Occupation: 42, PhD Student & FarmerEngagement Date: June 13, 2009Wedding Date: August 2010Venue: Indian Head Camp, Honesdale Pennsylvania
About Me: I am a tree-huggin' farmer turned enthusiastic wedding-planner. I live in a house truck and wear flip-flops more often than shoes. In my old life I was a high school Spanish teacher in love with a crazy guy who lived off-the grid on a farm in New Hampshire. But, we decided to mix things up a bit, quit our jobs and move to New Zealand. My southern hemisphere lifestyle involves growing veggies, teaching, running our small non-profit, and surfing. I love laughing, singing, playing, and the inspirational Mr. Veggie (of course!). For our wedding, I am committed to throwing a killer party that celebrates our values without breaking the bank. Look forward to an eco-thrifty summer-campy weekend-long extravaganza.
I bought a dress today. (Insert girly shriek here. OK- I’m done now. No I’m not. eeeee!)
The story starts in December:
After drawing out the dress saga for many months I turned to Weddingbee for help. I had settled on buying used, and even had an idea of the specific dress I was looking for. After dwelling on the Nicole Miller HG0013 for a few weeks, I found the IK0004 online and just kept coming back to it. I couldn’t get it out of my head. It’s just so pretty without being too formal, and comes pre-wrinkled! I looked online at the pre-owned websites, but even a used IK0004 was well out of our budget. It also seemed to be a pretty in-demand dress, only a few out there and many brides wanting it. I thought I’d throw it out there to the hive to see if anyone had any ideas.
So, my pre-bee self posted a question to the boards. “Anyone have a used IK0004?”
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.)
The year and a half that we spent preparing for the day—and the four months I spent blogging here!—really paid off: once we got started, everything felt effortless. Which is not to say I don’t have some blips and bloopers to tell you about, but you’ll just have to wait until I get to those parts of the story. 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!
Now that I had my hair mostly settled, it was time to move on to the makeup trial! This was fun too, because I can’t even remember the last time I had my makeup professionally done - I think it was a birthday party in middle school where we all got ’makeovers’?!
I searched through many, many photos of makeup inspiration and selected about 4, which I printed on one page and then very cleverly forgot in the printer at work when I went to my trial. So in a last minute scramble in the car in front of Amie Decker’s, I pulled up this photo on my phone and sheepishly showed it to Amie when we sat down:
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.
Things have being pretty busy at the Poodle house, and not only here, but our venue (Mr. Poodle’s grandparents’ ranch) is also experiencing a lot of transformation into our dream ceremony and reception site.
Remember the first post I wrote about making our own chapel? There I showed you all how many friends and family have being working really hard to help us out. Well this post is no different; even my MIL got to drive the loader around to help pave the grounds to make a beautiful aisle with rock paths on the sides.
An while my MIL and I worked on shoveling, my FIL set all the stones for the aisle. 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!
I was organizing my “Wedding” folder on my laptop, and I found this treasure I had created way back when with my trusty design tool… Microsoft PowerPoint:
It doesn’t look like much, but I had spent an inordinate amount of time on it - due to my general creative ineptitude more than anything else. I was hoping to include them with the invitations, the out-of-town guest welcome bags, or somewhere else.
All-Inclusion Invitation Suites
