Mrs. Labrador Retriever, Athens/SavannahAge and Occupation: 24, Student/Sports ReporterFiance's Age and Occupation: 29, Physical Therapy Assistant Student/Future Dr. of PT
Engagement Date: December 31, 2008Wedding Date: November 2009Venue: Whitfield Square/Savannah StationAbout Me: I'm working on my second degree from UGA (Go Dawgs!). I'm a self-proclaimed attention-w****. If it involves a camera, I'm in front of it! You'll never meet a girlier tomboy than me. I can go toe to toe with any guy on the subject of college football, and lift more than any girl in my gym, all without chipping a nail. I hope to someday be the only person you want delivering your sports news. My FI and I are the loving parents of three Labrador Retrievers (one of each color) and are planning a "Southern Romantic Charm" wedding in the beautiful, historic city of Savannah. I'm not extreme in anything except moderation... and wedding planning.
Right after the ceremony, we were supposed to take a quick, romantic trip around downtown Savannah in the horse and carriage. But when we got to the end of the aisle, we discovered that it was already gone! I found out later that it was mistakenly booked 30 minutes earlier than we needed it for (which explains why it was at the hotel early), so the driver took off before the ceremony was over.
So we used the extra time to grab a few more photos before our family formals. Only this time, we were husband and wife!
Mrs. Brooch, Arlington, VAAge and Occupation: 25, Writer/EditorFiance's Age and Occupation: 29, Front Desk ManagerEngagement Date: October 3, 2009Wedding Date: April 2011Venue: Oxon Hill ManorAbout Me: I’m an indecisive girlie-girl with a motor mouth, can-do attitude, and knack for making others laugh. I dream of becoming a best selling novelist like Elizabeth Gilbert or Julie Powell (a girl can dream, right?), and love long road trips, a beautiful countryside, music, blogs, books, and all things vintage/thrift/antique/or homemade. I’m a Virgo, i.e. overly sensitive, emotional, and critical, and there’s no such thing as short and sweet in my world. I want to say and do it all. Mr. Brooch grounds me. I point where to go and he figures out the way. He’s a pragmatic fancy-pants who enjoys video games and movies. We both adore our mutt, Rocky, and spending time with our amazingly supportive family and friends. We’re planning a garden wedding with a formal reception with lots of whimsy and unique, Southern-inspired details.
If you thought the Girl who Cried Dress Parts 1, 2, and 3 were going to end in me making a decision, think again! With all of dresses I’ve tried, I’m more confused than ever and to make matters worse, I’m out of time. I have to make a decision now, and I need your help!
Since you know everything I’ve been through and of since most of you have had to make this very tough decision too, I’m looking to you to help me make the final choice from the more than 10 dresses I love!
So without further ado, here are the top contenders and a snippet about each one:
Mrs. Giraffe, ChicagoAge and Occupation: 23, Graphic DesignerFiance's Age and Occupation: 24, Music Student TeacherEngagement Date: October 23, 2008Wedding Date: May 2011Venue: Trinity Lutheran Church & Idlewild Country ClubAbout Me: Coming from the suburbs of the Windy City, you'll often find me with my foot in my mouth while laughing for no reason or telling bad knock knock jokes. I've been crafty for as long as I can remember, and will DIY something twice over before I have someone do it for me. I'm a semi-awkward, typeface obsessed, design junkie and have been know to break out my dance moves for no reason as well as try my best to be ridiculous at all times. My love of pop culture, wordplay, and graph paper almost rivals my love of Mr. Giraffe (who is just the bee's knees). After a 2.5 year engagement, we're planning a modern-in-disguise traditional wedding, and cannot wait!
Now, don’t get me wrong here people—I like eating as much as the next person. I mean, honestly, I do it everyday—multiple times a day, even.
And as a frequent wedding guest, I do realize that traveling to a wedding and partying it up can make for quite the appetite. I know that many folks have dessert or cocktail receptions nowadays, but some (like Mr. Giraffe and I) still want to have sit-down reception dinners. This is all very common, people; don’t be surprised.
I mean, there’s usually a dinner, and my favorite part—a cake.
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.
Mrs. Jaguar, SydneyAge and Occupation: 27, Primary School TeacherFiance's Age and Occupation: 29, IT ConsultantEngagement Date: August 8, 2009Wedding Date: June 2011Venue: Curzon HallAbout Me: I'm an Australian girl who is a self-proclaimed nerd, loves all things stationery and would be lost without books, music and the internet. Mr. Jaguar and I have been together for the past eight years and he finally popped the question last August. Hurrah! We currently live in Sydney, Australia with our adorable cat who thinks he's a person. We're a couple who likes to multi-task: we've been planning a wedding abroad, a permanent move from London to Sydney, and preparing to build our own home all at the same time. Travelling makes me giddy...as does Mr. Jaguar, of course!
I always assumed that Mr. Jaguar and I would foot the bill for our wedding. I wasn’t too worried about this because we knew we’d be having a long engagement and could spend that time preparing and budgeting and keeping our finances on track. Plus, we’re good savers who are generally pretty thrifty by nature, so I knew we’d be able to pull off a wedding that was small, simple, and still beautiful without going into crazy amounts of debt.
Mrs. Hippo, New York City/Dallas, TXAge and Occupation: 34, Event Planner for a Non-Profit Fiance's Age and Occupation: 35, Finance ITEngagement Date: August 8, 2009Wedding Date: March 2011Venue: Samuel Lynne Galleries and Marc EventsAbout 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).
Next on the list of things to do during the Dallas planning extravaganza was deciding on our cake vendor. Oh hell yeah. Bring it!!
King Hippo and I had two tastings scheduled during the week. We headed to the first bakery, which was recommended by our reception venue, and fell in love. Ummm… The. Most. Amazing. Cake. EVER! For real. The cake was dense. The frosting was sweet and creamy (ugh, I hate that word). And the bakery owner was so nice. We were sold.
King Hippo clearly has a mouthful of cake deliciousness.
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!
Oh, I’m sorry - did you think these recaps were over? You’re not rid of me just yet!
After our very emotional last dance, we emerged from the ballroom where a stack of piping hot Canyon Pizzas were waiting!
As I had predicted, I was hungry. Burger was hungry. All of our guests were hungry. They swarmed around me as I went all Italian Mom on the pizza and started passing out slices on plates.
Mrs. Elephant, Dallas, TXAge and Occupation: 27, Financial Operations AnalystFiance's Age and Occupation: 27, IT Student/Store ManagerEngagement Date: March 29, 2009Wedding Date: April 2011Venue: The Tribute Golf ClubAbout 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!
Really? 6 months?? I remember when it was 24 months until the wedding, and now we’re at 6 months?
Where does the time go?
I feel like I’ve just been chugging along on this engagement train—doing projects when I felt like it, booking all of our vendors well in advance, checking things off the list left and right. I really have been cool, calm and collected.
That was until this week.
The realization that the wedding is pretty close has started to set in. It’s been so long since I have signed the contracts or talked to most of the vendors, and I feel like I need to send some, “hey, remember me?” emails. I freaked a little about our guest list, but realized we won’t have a better idea of a head count until those invites go out. We did invite a little more than our ideal number (but less than our venue’s capacity so there are no worries about actually fitting everyone in the room), but I’m sure it will all work out one way or another. Read more…
Ms. Sloth, PhiladelphiaAge and Occupation: 35, Account Manager and Fashion BloggerFiance's Age and Occupation: 30, Design AdminEngagement Date: December 25, 2009Wedding Date: May 2011Venue: Bartram's GardenAbout 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.
I’m starting to have second thoughts about a decision that Mr. S and I came to a long, long time ago—that we wouldn’t have a first dance. It was Mr. S’s preference, and I was OK with it because I can’t dance, and because I don’t like being the center of attention.
When I told my friends that Mr. S didn’t want to have a first dance, they ganged up on him and told him to consider it. They suggested to us that I let him choose the song. And he softened up a bit—he’ll consider it. Yay!
So, if we have a first dance, it’ll be Mr. S’s choice. But there are so many songs I love that would be amazing for a first dance…
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!
Look at the end result of my bridesmaids’ makeup applications. Aren’t they all beautiful? Since Cousin Suzane (aka my makeup artist) and I had decided that I would go with the dramatic double lash eye and a more subtle lip, we gave the hottie women the red lips. I lived vicariously through them. In my mind, I seriously kept thinking about what a beautiful bunch they all are. I’m glad to have pushed them all into the red lipstick and the fakie lashes. They are all seriously gorgeous! Mr. Hottie and I definitely had a glamorous entourage!
Mrs. Seashell, Chicago, IL / Providence, RIAge and Occupation: 28, Marriage and Family TherapistFiance's Age and Occupation: 31, Electrical EngineerEngagement Date: September 3, 2009Wedding Date: September 2010Venue: The Glen Manor HouseAbout Me: Fonts and fashion, stationery and Sundays, photography and french toast... the beauty is in the details for this fun-loving Chicagoan who loves to plan plan plan! The soon-to-be hubs plays "Mr. Fix-It" in our new condo while I swoon over beautiful, personalized stationery and choose shades of aubergine for my bridesmaids' dresses... and thus begins my new fairy tale! Skirting to the East Coast for our September nuptials where my home state of Rhode Island awaits with fall foliage, I'm just a few dress fittings and bachelorette party away from saying "I Do" to a very happy ending!
I can’t start a post about my bridesmaids without sharing how exceptional each and every one of these girls has been to me. They were an easy choice for a bridal party from the start, but they truly stepped up when I needed them most over the past year. It only reinforced that I genuinely have some really, really wonderful best friends.
When Mr. Seashell and I got engaged, these were the first people I called (parents aside, of course). When Mr. Seashell’s Mom was diagnosed with cancer, they were always checking in—not only on her, but on us. Bridesmaid Ashley is a resident at the hospital where Mr. Seashell’s Mom was treated. She often went out of her way to personally say hi and offer kind words. When things took a serious turn for the worse, these girls immediately asked how they could help to plan an emergency wedding ceremony. And, when that quickly became unnecessary, they were there to console, and made eager offers to travel for funeral services after having just traveled for a bachelorette party and bridal shower. Their love and support has been unbelievable.
When it came time to give them gifts as a token of my thanks, I racked my brain.
Mrs. Panther, Atlanta GA/Westport CTAge and Occupation: 24, Web WriterFiance's Age and Occupation: 25, Music Recording EngineerEngagement Date: March 13, 2010Wedding Date: July 2011Venue: The Inn at LongshoreAbout Me: I'm a total goofball who goes through life at a breakneck pace, trying not to knock anything over. I tend to fall in love with everything I encounter, but more than anything, I love my two little kitties, Bela and Josie, and my big kitty, Mr. Panther! As a wannabe crafter, I'm still waiting for my artistic talents to emerge. (Any day now, really.) In the meantime, I spend my days eating anything put in front of me, buying every pair of shoes I see and absorbing wedding inspiration from every inch of my surroundings. Mr. Panther and I are hardcore New Englanders planning Connecticut nuptials from our new home in the Dirty South, and can't wait to mix our newfound love of classic Southern charm with some modern city touches.
I have to admit it: my “How I Met Mr. Panther” story is really not very romantic. And because a large portion of our first encounters were during nights of college shenanigans, it’s also not very detailed. Honestly, it’s all a little fuzzy. But it all worked out, right?
One winter day during my freshman year of college at Northeastern in Boston, I had a really nasty cold. My aunt and uncle had come up to visit me and their son/my cousin, who was in his sophomore year at Berklee, and the plan was to stop by his dorm to pick him up. I looked so gross and was really hoping we wouldn’t run into any of his friends—I was in a relationship at the time, but still didn’t want to meet cute musician boys while looking like Rudolph.
Unfortunately, several of them showed up. I kept my head down and prayed none of them would look at me. I vaguely remember being introduced to a couple guys, but I was too horrified at my appearance to store any of them in my memory. Apparently, this was the first time I met Mr. Panther. Read more…
Mrs. Meerkat, Kalamazoo, MI/Riviera MayaAge and Occupation: 30, Application EngineerFiance's Age and Occupation: 23, IT ConsultantEngagement Date: July 26, 2008Wedding Date: December 2010Venue: Al Cielo / La LagunaAbout 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.
Definition: Geek - One who is perceived to be overly obsessed with one or more things including those of intellectuality, electronics, etc.
I confess. I am totally a geek. When I get into something, I research the subject until I can tell you every little thing about it. Every aspect of our wedding has been researched with geek enthusiasm and picking a company for printing our photo guestbook was no exception.
When I started doing the research I was really surprised how little information there was out there comparing different companies to each other. Don’t get me wrong, there are tons of reviews for each company, but that wasn’t much good to me unless I had some kind of baseline to compare them to.
Seriously, the guy who wrote this, Jason Dunn, out-geeks me any day. (Yes, that is a compliment, in case you were wondering. *grin*) Read more…
Mrs. Turtle, Central CaliforniaAge and Occupation: 21, Art Student/TeacherFiance's Age and Occupation: 22, English StudentEngagement Date: August 16, 2008Wedding Date: July 2010Venue: Mr. Turtle's Grandparents' backyard, Arroyo Grande, CAAbout 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!
I remember being super excited when it was finally time for dessert! Our favorite baker ever, Jeremy at Eclair Bakery in Arroyo Grande, made our cake and cupcakes, so their deliciousness was pretty much guaranteed.
We did have a little mix up though. Remember how my mom found the vintage pink cake stands I wanted on eBay? And how we were going to have a little 6″ cake on the top tier, and cupcakes on the bottom two? Well, when the cake arrived, the cardboard circle that the 6″ cake came on was too big to fit on the top tier, so it ended up going on the middle tier. So our cake tower ended up being a variety of cake stands scattered around the cake table. Read more…
All-Inclusion Invitation Suites
