Mrs. Thimble, NYC/PhiladelphiaAge and Occupation: 26, Actress & Costume Designer (+ day job)Fiance's Age and Occupation: 26, Lawyer & Techie WizEngagement Date: August 22, 2008Wedding Date: October 2010Venue: The Pearl S. Buck HouseAbout Me: I’m an easily inspired over-thinker delighted with the process of designing, building, directing and {dare I say} co-starring in the early-autumn affair I’ve been dreaming up. I’m a sucker for trendied-up comfort foods and old family anecdotes; I have an affinity for adjectives, alliteration, eyelet and earl grey; and I live for quality time with family and friends. I never guessed I’d marry my “high school sweetheart", but when it turned out to be my funny, techie, loyal Mr. Thimble I was committed for life. We’re both mid-career transition and ready to move back to small-townish TBD, PA in a pre-wedding flurry of all-good life changes.
We’ve reached that point in our wedding planning timeline that I’ve been anticipating and fearing, the time that so many brides before me have cursed and reconsidered. It’s that time when a lot of hard work pays off quickly when it’s seen by 200 guests. It’s time to begin assembling our invitations! I won’t have the actual completed, printed invite in my hands until next week, but I need to start addressing envelopes and coming up with a game plan.
Hilary and John are self-proclaimed bookworms who met and fell in love at Harvard. Their library-styled wedding integrated their personalities and history just beautifully!
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The Details
Bride’s Name: Hilary
Groom’s Name: John
Venue(s): The Memorial Church in Harvard Yard; Reception- The Charles Hotel
Wedding Date: May 15, 2010
Bridal Gown Designer(s): Priscilla of Boston and Jovani
Florist: Spruce Florals
Photographer: Michael O’Bryon
Music: Music Management (especially DJ Denise LaCarruba)
Transportation: Brewster Trolley
Stationery and paper products: Gordon Bond Designs and RSVP Mindy
Mrs. Earrings, Fresno, CA/ Nelson, New ZealandAge and Occupation: 20, Student, Wannabe Writer
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 19, Photography StudentEngagement Date: February 14, 2010Wedding Date: January 2011Venue: Gardens of the WorldAbout Me: I'm a girl from down under who grew up in Indonesia and I'm marrying a California boy. I'm addicted to all things sweet, have never met a chocolate silk pie than can get the better of me, and have dreams of one day being a fulltime novelist. I go weak in the knees for lace, tea cups, and a beautifully crafted sentence. When I get excited about something (whether it is historical linguistics or the Beatles) I tend to go overboard in research, and planning this wedding is no different. Mr. Earrings is my high school sweetheart, my best friend, and somehow we combine all our quirks into one big happy mess.
If the lavender in our floral arrangements represents devotion, fidelity and luck, then how about some roses for love, sweetness and passion? It’s a pretty good combination, I think.
I mentioned here that we will be doing our reception centrepieces ourselves. Originally, we thought we would just use lavender, but after deciding on what sort of bouquet I wanted (which I have delegated to our florist), the idea of using roses in those centrepieces started to perk up its head.
First, let’s talk about my bouquet. I never thought about our wedding much until things got serious with Mr E, but one thing I did know from childhood is that I’ve wanted roses in my bouquet. The idea is to have a combination of white, pale pink, and dusty mauve/purple roses interspersed with greenery and (of course) lavender. I’m going for a more “natural” and hand-tied, rather than structured look. These pics might give you a general idea of what I think of when I try to imagine what I want the bouquet to look like:
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.
And since I’ve realized that writing detailed recaps are not really my strong suit in the blogging department, Imma let the pictures do most of the talking and show off some of the cooler things we saw/did during our 5 days in Los Roques.
First off, it was fish central. Bone fish, barracudas, squirrel fish and parrot fish, to name a few, abound. (Also, lest you think I am a dorky, fish-freak who knows all these names and species, let me assure you I am not. It’s Mr Trail Mix who is supplying me with all these names. He’s the fish-freak!)
Here’s a shot I got of a trumpet fish we found while traversing the shallow waters of one of the islands…
Mrs. Husky, DenverAge and Occupation: 26, Systems AdministratorFiance's Age and Occupation: 32, Mechanical Engineer, recently laid offEngagement Date: August 14, 2009Wedding Date: October 2010Venue: Rancho San CarlosAbout Me: I am planning a quirky-crafty wedding with my recently out-of-work fiancé for a (fingers crossed!) warm October afternoon. We are two self-professed nerds with an affinity for all things outdoors---be it rain, snow or shine. Recently relocated from the drizzly Northwest, we're enjoying the many sun-soaked days in the mile high city. Our day will be filled with both of our large families and friends, a self-served Cajun feast, and a Zydeco-style jazz band rocking beneath the beams of a historic red barn.
Immediately after hearing our band play, I was hooked. Not only did they sound great, but they would provide their own sound system, and even compose a version of our first dance song in their style.
I’ve never heard our song done in the Zydeco-style, so I will instead share the music video for the original:
Mrs. Pin Cushion, Oakland, CAAge and Occupation: 25, Nurse Fiance's Age and Occupation: 26, PhD StudentEngagement Date: November 23, 2008Wedding Date: July 2010Venue: Radonich Ranch, Los GatosAbout Me: I'm the 3 Cs: crafty, creative and quirky (oh, that's not a C? Close enough!). I'm also a recycling fanatic, fluent in bad accents and I have the loudest laughter this side of the Mississippi. I have not just one sweet tooth, but a whole mouth full of sweet teeth. I cry at 97.4% of all movies I see, but my fiance's always there to hand me a tissue. My geek-chic fiance and I are planning a wedding full of color, cookies and handmade goodness and I can't wait to spill the beans on all of our crazy ideas!
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.
Two weeks before our wedding Mr Pretzel and I did something we don’t normally do, we took a break from wedding planning. Mr Pretzel went to Vegas for his bachelor party and I had a girls weekend with a Bridal Shower.
My MOH lives in Denver and wasn’t able to make the trip to Seattle (understandably) so she delegated my Seattle shower to the very willing Bridesmaid H. Momma Pretzel wasn’t going to let Bridesmaid H do all the work herself (H was planning a June Vegas wedding) so together H and Momma Pretzel threw me a glorious shower.
Mrs. Glasses, Tokyo/Los Angeles, CAAge and Occupation: 24, English teacherFiance's Age and Occupation: 27, English teacherEngagement Date: September 2008Wedding Date: October 2010 Venue: Parents' backyardAbout Me: I’m an expat living in Tokyo. I’ve been in Japan for almost three years now, where I met my fantastic English fiance. It’s time to leave Japan, so we are planning a fun, intimate, backyard ceremony back home in the suburbs of L.A. in October. Our wedding will be a mix of my love for food, beer, my Japanese culture, and Mr. G’s Englishness. We are on a tiny budget and DIYing almost everything!
Today over lunch Mr. Glasses and I talked about flowers. He had fun.
We talked about how there wouldn’t be a whole lot of room for flowers and decided what we’d use them for. A few centerpieces, and a bridal bouquet. That’s all! Furthermore, since we’re running with a cherry blossom theme, quite a lot of our flowers will be fake!
I’m trying hard to make sure our wedding isn’t super pink for Mr. G’s sake, but I definitely want my bouquet to be pink! Pink is my favorite color.
Mrs. Sand Dollar, HoustonAge and Occupation: 24, Graphic DesignerFiance's Age and Occupation: 22, Electrical TechnicianEngagement Date: January 8, 2010Wedding Date: September 2010Venue: MacLean ParkAbout Me: I'm a domestic diva down to the core. I heart cooking, sewing, baking, decorating and making sure we have a hand-crafted home. The best part about the wedding is I get to incorporate it all! I make sure I put my art degree to good use by screen printing, craft knife cutting, and a whole lotta graphic design. We're having a big-time party on a small-time budget, and I promise to show you a boot-scootin', barbecue-eatin', finger-lickin' good time! Mr. Sand Dollar and I spend most of our time on DIY projects or traipsing around the outdoors with our two pooches Rory and Juno. I'm looking forward to sharing our journey with all of you!
Ceramic rings! Thanks for all your suggestions on the last post; it inspired me to keep looking for more options. Read more…
Mrs. Knitting, TorontoAge and Occupation: 24, Student Recruitment Assistant
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 24, Neuroscience PhD CandidateEngagement Date: October 2009Wedding Date: December 2010Venue: University of Toronto Faculty Club
About Me: I'm a pearl wearing, etiquette book reading Toronto girl who loves cooking and baking, museums, charm bracelets, and collecting books on Jackie Kennedy (a lot). I've been known to spend Sunday mornings at the antique market, Wednesday evenings at sister sushi dinners, and any bit of spare time reading. After six and a half years of many late night walks, watching DVDs together in bed, travelling to places like New York, and Tobermory, doing Sudokus together on the couch, lots of Indian food, the occasional yoga class, moving in together and so much more, Mr. Knitting and I are planning a cozy Christmasy (it's a word!), vintage wedding in Toronto complete with many DIY projects (eek!) and lots of help from our amazing group of family and friends.
I was a bit apprehensive about my next bridal party dress finding adventure because of the fact that my first one wasn’t very successful. Nevertheless, I set off with my younger sister and FG extraordinaire with high hopes. In case you’ve forgotten why I have grown up FGs you can catch up here.
Unfortunately, here’s what was waiting for us at the first store:
Oh no! Apparently I’m cursed to show up at closed stores for all my dress shopping outings. Read more…
ClassifiedsFeature Launched: April 30, 2008About: A roundup of the best Weddingbee Classified listings.
Mrs. Cardigan, AustinAge and Occupation: 21, Student/Soon-to-be Special Education TeacherFiance's Age and Occupation: 20, Student/Soon-to-be Accounting Systems AnalystEngagement Date: August 16, 2009Wedding Date: January 2011Venue: Vintage VillasAbout Me: I'm a native Austinite who was raised as a die-hard Aggie. Luckily, I'm a pretty persuasive girl because I managed to convince my high school boyfriend (now fiance!), Mr. Cardigan, to ditch his hardcore Longhorn ways and join me up at A&M, where we currently reside with our adorable dogs, Cullen & Ranger. We're currently planning a bright, cheery wedding with a ridiculous amount of DIY projects that I can't wait to tackle! I love crafting in any form, reading, and margaritas (I think I love them the most!). Organization is what keeps me sane and I love helping others, which is probably why I ended up as an education major. It gets a little chaotic sometimes when you're planning a wedding among all of the papers, projects, finals, and certification exams, but we're having the time of our lives and we can't wait to get started on our journey as husband and wife - and we're so excited to share our wedding with the hive!
No, actually. I know I can’t dance. In fact, I’m pretty horrible at it. And so is Mr. Cardigan!
But, that doesn’t stop us from dreaming big. You see, we have high aspirations of wowing our guests with our gorgeously choreographed and perfectly performed first dance. Never mind the fact that neither of us has any sort of knowledge of how to dance or has ever attempted anything more complicated than the seventh-grade sway. What can I say, we’re optimistic!
(Source) This is about the extent of our knowledge!
Mrs. Octopus, Boston, MA/Pittsburgh, PAAge and Occupation: 25, Grad StudentFiance's Age and Occupation: 26, Graphics Operator for TV NewsEngagement Date: May 6th, 2009Wedding Date: September 2010Venue: Heinz Chapel Ceremony, Museum Reception
About Me: When my best friend dragged me to a toga party in our freshmen year of college, I was not expecting to meet my future husband; but seven years later, here we are. I'm a crazy-organized planner at heart, and I am a great lover of random trivia, books, chocolate, blogs, new and exciting adventures, mockumentary-style television, and anything heavily flavored with bright orange fake cheese powder. We're planning a festive and fun mini-destination wedding in the place where we met: fabulous Pittsburgh, PA! I can't wait to marry the man I love!
About a month ago, Mrs. Dahlia let the Boston bees know that she’d be in town for a few days, and was wondering if anyone might be interested in getting together for some dinner and drinks. Miss Seahorse and I took her up on the offer, and it turns out that Miss Seahorse is exactly as fun and nice and interesting as she seems on her blog (which is to say, very!). So, now we are blog-turned-real-life friends. The Internet is magical!
Anyway, MOH/Sister Lauren was in town visiting me for a few days, and she and Bridesmaid/Cousin Katie are both avid Weddingbee readers, so I texted Seahorse to see if she was around. She was! So she and Fancee came over to my house and we all drank wine and talked about weddings (and some other stuff)! Lauren and Katie were extremely thrilled to meet a real live Weddingbee blogger in the flesh (I mean, other than me—I am not exciting to them).
Mrs. Locket, Ithaca, NYAge and Occupation: 25, Research TechnicianFiance's Age and Occupation: 28, former Banker hoping to become an Officer of the LawEngagement Date: June 15, 2009Wedding Date: September 2010Venue: Heron Hill WineryAbout Me: I am a little bit of everything all rolled into one: A girly gal with rough edges---I love to get dolled up just as much as I enjoy throwing on some sneaks to toss a ball with Mr. Locket. My love for crafting and creating is quite apparent and I've been referred to as a Wonder Woman/Martha Stewart/Stepford Wife hybrid (yup, I'll take that as a compliment). I adore sewing, photography, sculpture, good eats (mmm tapas), baking, snugging and oh, pretty much everything in between (there's not much I dislike). I am super excited to be planning our vineyard wedding and couldn't be happier to be marrying Mr. Locket. We are a quirky, fun-loving couple residing in our college town with our two pups Maple and Molly. We love to go on hikes, visit our local dog park and to bask in the beauty of many of the local falls and gorges. We are an indecisive pair, but together we somehow manage to make up our minds (it's the easy stuff that's tricky).
Many weeks ago (months after our initial visit) Mr. L and I decided to take another trip to our wedding venue, Heron Hill Winery. I was a combination of nervous and excited because I always think of the worse case scenarios.
What if I didn’t like it anymore? What if it wasn’t as stunning as I remembered? What if I didn’t like the new event coordinator?
Fortunately, all my worries went out the door as we pulled up to the entrance and I saw it again in all its glory: 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.
Shoes haven’t really been a priority on my wedding to-do list. I wear flip flops at the first sign of spring and wear them until the first sign of winter. When it came to shoes for the wedding, I kind of just assumed I’d wear flats or flip flops. Starfish Mom and Sister Starfish are the complete opposite of me with shoes—they love them, especially heels. They told me I have to wear heels. I said, “we’ll see.”
When the dress came in, I tried it on and…. it was too long. I know I could get it hemmed, but my favorite part of the dress is the beautiful detail on the bottom (I would show this, but I’m keeping my dress a surprise until the wedding day). I can’t bear cutting it off. So, Sister Starfish and Starfish Mom are getting their wish… I’ll begrudgingly wear heels on our wedding day.
I’ve looked and looked for shoes, but nothing sparked my interest, until I browsed the Neiman Marcus website and found these amazing heels from Guiseppe Zanotti: Read more…
Unique Wedding Favors
