Mrs. Turtle, Central California
Age and Occupation: 21, Art Student/Teacher
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 22, English Student
Engagement Date: August 16, 2008
Wedding Date: July 2010
Venue: Mr. Turtle's Grandparents' backyard, Arroyo Grande, CA
About Me: I am a California girl who loves the beach and the mountains, but is quite satisfied living right in the middle where I can enjoy the best of both worlds. I am happiest when traveling to faraway places, wandering through museums, watching old movies, or baking up a storm. Mr. Turtle and I are high school sweethearts and fellow book nerds who both drive Mini Coopers and are most likely to be found browsing in antique stores. We're having so much fun planning our European garden wedding with a vintage twist and can't wait to share more of life's adventures together!
When I last left off, we had just finished up our little bridesmaid photo shoot on the farm, and were headed back to the house because it was almost wedding time! Well, just so you know, this isn’t the post where we get married. Not so fast! You haven’t even seen the guys yet! At this point in the afternoon, it was time for the boys to get their Zoolander on.
After the wedding, all of the guys were raving about how they had more fun with our photographer than they’d ever had taking wedding pictures before! I remember thinking that this was a nice thing to tell the bride, coming from guys, but I can’t say that I truly understood what they meant until I saw the pictures for myself…
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Mrs. Meerkat, Kalamazoo, MI/Riviera Maya
Age and Occupation: 30, Application Engineer
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 23, IT Consultant
Engagement Date: July 26, 2008
Wedding Date: December 2010
Venue: Al Cielo / La Laguna
About Me: I’m a tech-savvy tomboy with an affinity for hot tea and good sushi. Us Meerkats are just a couple fun lovin’ geeks from Michigan. We love anything having to do with movies, books, video games or technology and we hold a special place in our hearts for our two very spoiled shih-tzus, Wicket and Bravo. We also LOVE to travel. We love it so much it only took us 12 hours after we got engaged to decide to have a destination wedding. We are working our little Meerkat tails off planning a rustic-chic, travel themed destination wedding in the Riviera Maya with a semi-formal, vintage-turned-modern, outdoor at home reception back here in Michigan.
Growing up, I was always Daddy’s girl. From the day I was born, I was basically glued to his side. He was not only my dad, he was also one of my best friends. He understood my geek ways like nobody else ’cause he was just like me.
Me and My Dad
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Mrs. Elephant, Dallas, TX
Age and Occupation: 27, Financial Operations Analyst
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 27, IT Student/Store Manager
Engagement Date: March 29, 2009
Wedding Date: April 2011
Venue: The Tribute Golf Club
About Me: I'm a Philly native creating roots deep in the heart of Texas. I might be a little obsessed capturing those Kodak moments of anything and everything (mainly on vacations). I've become more of a gamer thanks to Mr. Elephant, who I met online and can't wait to spend the rest of my life with. We are planning a wedding based on our favorite colors, blue and green, with a travel theme for 150 of our closest friends and family. Hopefully our long (2-year) engagement won't kill me!
I don’t wear much makeup on a normal basis and will be looking for a little help for our wedding. As you may remember, we technically had two engagement sessions. For the first one, Mama Elephant hooked me up with a specialist at the Clinique counter. Janice did a wonderful job, but unfortunately there were some parts of it I wasn’t a huge fan of.
I think the thing I didn’t enjoy the most was the foundation. I know that African American skin is prone to being oilier, but I was almost embarrassed when Lynn (our amazing photographer) would have Mr. E put his nose to my cheek. When he pulled away there would be a brown spot on the tip of his nose that I would have to wipe away. On my wedding day I do not want to have to worry about hugging anyone, or makeup coming off on something white…you know, like my dress. 
I didn’t take any pictures after the Clinique makeover, but here are a couple refreshers from our engagement session. (Excuse the sleepy eyes in the second picture.)
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Mrs. Cheeseburger, Baltimore, MD/State College, PA
Age and Occupation: 25, Medical Student
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 25, Medical Student
Engagement Date: June 28, 2008
Wedding Date: March 2010
Venue: Catholic Church Ceremony & Hotel Reception
About 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!
Once we finished getting our group shots, Burger and I posed for pictures at our favorite spots around Penn State’s campus. It was just the two of us, and I finally felt myself relax and enjoy each and every moment, which played out on film as lots of smiles and smooches. 
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Featured on Weddingbee
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Featured Product: Laura Ashley Delicate Damask Invitation
Mrs. Glasses, Tokyo/Los Angeles, CA
Age and Occupation: 24, English teacher
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 27, English teacher
Engagement Date: September 2008
Wedding Date: October 2010
Venue: Parents' backyard
About 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!
I love washi tape. These babies are so versatile and make crafting so easy.
(source)
It can be used for the ever-popular bunting. Imagine how easy this would be to do!
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Ms. Sloth, Philadelphia
Age and Occupation: 35, Account Manager and Fashion Blogger
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 30, Design Admin
Engagement Date: December 25, 2009
Wedding Date: May 2011
Venue: Bartram's Garden
About Me: I'm an internet junkie and music snob with a good eye for a bargain. I couldn't live without thrift store shopping, cheeseburgers, sushi, Coke Zero, websites devoted to silly photos of baby animals, Photoshop, and Mr. Sloth. Speaking of which, he and I are a pair of goofball homebody nerds who love our beagle (the most ridiculously adorable dog EVER) to an embarrassing degree. We're planning a low-key and intimate yet festive and quirky outdoor wedding with DIY details and deeply personal touches, and it's all taking place in the city where we fell in love and call home: Philadelphia.
My first experience with dress shopping was pretty casual—no appointments, no reservations, just me and a few malls. I wasn’t planning to buy a dress yet, but I wanted to at least get an idea of what works on me. See, even when I was at my thinnest, I still had a hard time buying dresses for anything. I have big boobs, so I usually have to size up to fit them into anything, and I don’t have much of a waist, so underneath the boobs I’m kind of a rectangle. It’s frustrating.
Also, I was hoping to find a non-traditional dress—something from a department store instead of a bridal shop.
My first stop was the Franklin Mills Mall, which is a discount/outlet mall in northeast Philly. They have a Neiman Marcus Last Call outlet and an Off 5th Saks outlet. I used to see formal dresses there all the time, when I didn’t need one. So I trekked out there and, unfortunately, I found nothing. They had a handful of formal dresses, but none that were white or ivory. I went into the BCBG outlet and tried on a couple of short ivory dresses, but they were way too casual. Cute, though.
But since I drove 30 minutes outside of the city to hit up the mall, I decided to go into Group USA, a women’s formalwear store.
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Create the honeymoon of your dreams.
Mrs. Argyle, St. Louis
Age and Occupation: 24, Project Coordinator
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 24, Pilot
Engagement Date: February 15, 2009
Wedding Date: September 2010
Venue: Jewel Box in Forest Park and Windows on Washington
About Me: I'm a true Midwestern girl (born and raised), lover of red wine, reality TV and the entire J.Crew catalog. I love to dance regardless of who is watching, and enjoy a good laugh with my girls. I have a soft spot in my heart for planet Earth, my two dogs and my fiance. Fall is my favorite season (which is why we are marrying in September), but I love a warm summer day and the Colorado mountains in the winter. We are planning a modern soiree downtown, with lots of bold colors, and fun, eco-friendly elements.
I said I wouldn’t DIY anything? Oh right, I lied.
I got inspired. I couldn’t help it. I totes fell in love with this (minus the flowers):
Source
So, I had to make some. NOT for all of the tables. Oy, that’s enough to make my head spin. Instead, I’m making them for just 1/3 of our tables—just enough to give some visual interest, and add color.
And, as much as I’m not a DIY-er, this was somewhat of a fun project. How’d I make them?
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Weddingbee Gallery
Feature Launched: April 10, 2009
About: A collection of inspirational wedding pictures from readers and bees.
mauibrideMD loved the intricate back of her dress.
Keep on loading your inspirational wedding pics to the Weddingbee Gallery to see them featured here on the blog! Remember, your images must be under 1MB in size, or they won’t load.
If your photo is featured as the Gallery of the Day, you’re eligible for a special Weddingbee badge for your blog or website! Check out instructions on how to grab the badge here!
Mrs. Lobster, Brooklyn
Age and Occupation: 29, Finance Girl
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 33, Finance Boy
Engagement Date: July 25, 2009
Wedding Date: August 2010
Venue: Stage 6 Steiner Studios
About Me: I'm a New York-born, Virginia-bred girl who's found her way back to the big city. Mr. Lobster and I met in grad school and have been together ever since. I'm clueless about DIY but am an avid online shopper and love all things polka dots, stripes, and ruffles! When I'm not making wedding lists, you can find me looking for snacks, watching Gilmore Girls, or hanging out with Mr. Lobster and our new puppy Buddy! We are planning a fancy-pantsy Brooklyn wedding for a hot New York summer night which is sure to be a misadventure in the making.
It took us a while to get here, but we made it. On our first day in Moorea, we toured the resort. The Hilton Moorea is a relatively small resort which is similar to the other resorts on the island. It was nestled between private residences along the main road. The resort consisted of 2 main restaurants, a small beach, overwater and land accommodations, the pool, small spa, and main lobby/hut where reception was.
Since we started our trip on a Tuesday, it felt less crowded, quiet, and serene. I found staring at these bungalows very peaceful as I lay on the beach.
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Mrs. Hot Wings, Chicago/San Diego
Age and Occupation: 28, Professor
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 32, Instructor
Engagement Date: December 20, 2008
Wedding Date: August 2010
Venue: Ocean View Villas/Jasmine Seafood Restaurant
About 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!
source
I know it’s a tad strange that I’m going backwards right now. You’ve already seen my finished and completed wedding day look (see above). So why the heck would I go backwards to show you my hair trial? Well, most of the photos I’ve seen from our wedding day doesn’t do my hair justice at all. J’adore my hair stylist, Kacee Geoffroy, but you can’t see her work. Even though my trial was a mere couple days from our wedding day, I took copious amounts of pictures to make sure I liked how it looked on all sides.
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Mrs. Mouse, Austin
Age and Occupation: 25, Weddingbee Editor/Attorney
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 31, Civil Engineer
Engagement Date: December 19, 2007
Wedding Date: September 2009
Venue: Barr Mansion
About 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!
Congratulations to our winner, buttercookie!
Williams-Sonoma is definitely “the one” in terms of couples’ favorite wedding registry destinations, and now they are turning the tables on us. They want to hear about the moment you knew that your partner was the one for you!
Personally, my favorite “moment I knew” stories tend to be the quirky or silly ones, as my husband and I have a hard time taking anything too seriously. In fact, I knew he was the one the first time we had a few drinks together and he got super goofy and lovey-dovey. It was about four months after we’d started dating, and we were hanging out with a group of friends, just having a good time. I still have a photo of him from that night, standing on a chair and doing his weird version of the Robot!
We all have our own stories and own journeys to love, and Williams-Sonoma wants to know yours.
Giveaway rules:
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Mrs. Zebra, Providence, RI
Age and Occupation: 24 Marketing/Costume Designer
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 26 Management/Firefighter
Engagement Date: December 12, 2008
Wedding Date: March 2011
Venue: The Providence Biltmore
About Me: I'm a small town New England girl with an affinity for procrastination, crossing the proverbial line, and putting her foot in her mouth. I'm a lover of history, all seasons, sewing and Incubus. I design costumes on the side for my old high school's theatre department, which is where I met my sexy man. Our motto for our Big Fat Lebanese/Portuguese/Irish near-300 person wedding is "the more the merrier"! We are marrying in a Catholic ceremony and are hammering out the details of our Victorian-inspired reception.
This post should probably be a detailed, how-not-to-complete-your-biggest-project book. OK, so if you are a perfectionist…you may want to stop reading now and get back to your life. This post is for all of us who have all the tools to make things easy but still manage to screw things up.
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Mrs. Plaid, Austin
Age and Occupation: 26, Pastry Chef
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 34, Cabinetry Carpenter
Engagement Date: August 8, 2009
Wedding Date: October 2010
Venue: Kindred Oaks, Georgetown
About Me: I am a Jersey girl born and raised but have since migrated to Texas and embraced its twang and Tex-Mex. I could probably eat chips and queso every day but instead I eat popcorn. I use the word “awesome” way too much but I just can’t seem to stop myself. I am addicted to all things DIY and am planning what I call a Texas-Chic wedding. I love snuggling with my two adorable dogs and of course, my adorable fiance. I can’t wait 'til I can call him my husband some day! October 2010, here we come!
I just realized that I never shared Mr. Plaid’s bling with y’all. (I know that title is totally lame. Let me just say that coming up with titles is definitely not my strong suit. Sorry.)
Just stating for the record, I am ecstatic that Mr. Plaid actually wants to wear a ring. It seems to me that about half the married men in the world wear a ring, while the other half don’t. I think it’s nice when the man wears a ring because it’s like they’re bragging about their awesome wife! That’s probably not the reason guys wear a ring, but it sounds good to me so I’m just gonna go with it.
However, Mr. Plaid is in the same boat as I am. He works with his hands, using large power tools, and can’t wear his ring to work. Boo. Or rather, shouldn’t wear his ring so as to avoid any crazy accidents involving his ring and/or his finger having to be removed. Eeek!
But when he’s not working he’ll be sporting this beauty come the end of October:
His ring by itself
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Mrs. Buttons, Clearwater, FL
Age and Occupation: 24, "Working on it"
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 28, Financial Services
Engagement Date: June 13, 2009
Wedding Date: May 2010
Venue: Carlouel Yacht Club
About 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!
Now that our mid-morning wedding rehearsal was complete, we had plenty of time to spare before our rehearsal dinner that evening!
Since we had the wonderful beach house at our disposal, my family planned a beach party for the afternoon! And my, oh my, was it a beautiful day!
We invited the bridal party, family, and any out of town friends that wanted to spend some time in the sun. Brother Buttons and his girlfriend, along with my Aunt S, Aunt J, and Grandma, had arrived at the house when our rehearsal was taking place, and they set up a wonderful spread for lunch! We had assorted sandwiches, chips, and other munchies…as well as a bunch of leftovers from the previous night’s sunset wedding shower.
Our guests quickly filled their plates with food and grabbed cold drinks…
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Mrs. Hippo, New York City/Dallas, TX
Age and Occupation: 34, Event Planner for a Non-Profit
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 35, Finance IT
Engagement Date: August 8, 2009
Wedding Date: March 2011
Venue: Samuel Lynne Galleries and Marc Events
About Me: I’m a thirty-something bride living in New York City and planning a modern-ish wedding in Dallas, Texas. I love trashy reality television (Jersey Shore, anyone?), online shopping, Sunday brunch, Central Park, and random celebrity spottings on the streets of Manhattan. While I love NYC, I miss good Tex-Mex, my college friends, central A/C, and being in close proximity to a Target. I’m thrilled to finally be planning an event that’s not work-related and to be marrying my best friend in what I hope will be a unique and personal ceremony followed by a reception with plenty of good food, good drinks, and dancing (regardless if it’s good or not).
I mentioned the idea behind our STDs here, and I’m happy to report that after many ideas and even more failed attempts, we finally came up with a design that King Hippo and I both liked that could be mailed relatively inexpensively. The whole DIY process was much more painful than I anticipated, and those details are coming soon, but for now, let’s just bask in the glow of the finished project, shall we?
After much debate and multiple unsuccessful trials with ribbons, grommets, and Japanese paper tape, we decided to simplify and go with a folded card made out of pearl metallic cardstock. The pencil is attached on the front and hotel information and our website info is on the inside. Here is the final product (please forgive my amateur photography and suspect lighting):
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