Weddingbee Blog

I’m so excited that we’re bringing back the A Bee’s Life series, and that I can share my experiences with the hive.

How did I find Weddingbee?

Long before I was even engaged, I found the blog A Backyard Wedding during a Google search for some crafting instructions. Although I wasn’t planning a wedding, I loved the DIY aspect of the blog and when Mr. S and I finally did get engaged, I started reading it again. I also checked out her blogroll, and lo and behold, she linked to Weddingbee.

Now, for the sake of full disclosure, I’ll be perfectly honest: I wasn’t a huge Weddingbee fan at first. I didn’t have any specific problem with the site, but I had a hard time identifying with the bloggers at first. I don’t know what I was smoking back then, because after a few months, I came back to the site and fell in love! My theory is that, when I first discovered the ’Bee, I wasn’t all about weddings yet. When I started really getting into planning, I found that the site was so helpful! So positive! Such a great resource for regular people.

And then I got addicted.

My application story:

I’m a verbose person. I have a lot to say, and I was blogging about my wedding anyway. But more and more, I wanted to be a bee! I wanted to be a part of this community and a resource for others like the bloggers I admired so much were a resource for me. I blogged for about six months before I was eligible to send in my bee application, but I’d been working on it for probably about a month before sending it in. And don’t tell anyone, but I may have even sent it in a few days earlier than my official “8 months out” date! Sssshhhhh.

The day after I sent in my application, there was a meet up in Philly, where I met Mrs. Cupcake, Mrs. Lamb, Mrs. Thimble, and Mrs. Socks. I asked them about the application process and heard stories about other bees sending in these incredible applications. They’d put together PowerPoint presentations or graphic newsletters. I felt a sinking feeling in my stomach—my little word document would never suffice. I figured that I’d wait until I got my rejection and then when I applied for the second time, I’d put together something fancier.

But then, just a few days later, I got the email from Pengy. I was accepted! I was a bee!

As soon as the safari animal generation had been announced a few weeks before, I’d been dying to be Miss Sloth, and now I was!

On being a Weddingbee blogger:

It’s awesome, you guys. I love getting such helpful feedback from the hive. I was very active on the boards before becoming a blogger, and I thought the transition might be strange, but everyone has been nothing but warm and welcoming. I love that I get to share my wedding with such a fabulous group of people. What a great experience!

Here are my tips for those of you who are considering applying to be a bee:

1. Find your voice and be yourself. I tend to write just like how I talk, very conversationally, very casually. I could spend time making my writing more flowery and poetic, but that’s just not me. I’m not a wordsmith, I’m just a girl who likes to run her mouth! Don’t try to be something you’re not.

2. Don’t worry if you don’t feel “unique” or “special.” I was nervous about applying because I didn’t feel like I or my wedding was noteworthy enough. I’m not a DIY queen. I’m not getting married in an exotic location. I don’t have any ideas that haven’t been seen over and over in WeddingBlogLand. I’m just a fairly normal girl having a fairly normal wedding. But I got selected, and you can too!

3. Make sure you are ready for the commitment. Writing 3-4 posts a week is a lot of work, but it’s important to blog with frequency. As a hive member, I would always feel much more of a connection with the bloggers who posted frequently.

4. Try, try again. If you get rejected, keep don’t throw in the towel. A lot of blogger bees have been rejected once or more, and if they’d given up, it wouldn’t be the same if they’d just given up! If you get rejected, tweak your blog and apply again!

I guess that’s it. Now you know how a Sloth became a bee!

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Check out the entire A Bee’s Life series!