Mrs. Prairie Dog, Cincinnati
Age and Occupation: 24, Program CoordinatorFiance's Age and Occupation: 25, PhD/Biomedical EngineerEngagement Date: December 18, 2009Wedding Date: May 2011Venue: Glendale LyceumAbout Me: I'm a pilgrim soul of a girl with a house full of books and a coffee addiction that could slay Juan Valdez. My life is a whirl of grammar correction, good music, glue-gunning, and two pets named Hazel and Winston Churchill. I'm marrying my high school boyfriend in a formal-ish spring affair, roughly themed: "Elizabeth Bennet crashes a party co-hosted by Jay Gatsby and Cath Kidston, and loves it."
I am a freak about music selection. I know what I like, I know what my family/friends like. At weddings I attend as a guest, I make mental notes of the songs that flop and the songs that elicit a “Wooo!” from the other guests. It’s really important to me that we actually like our reception music, and I feel really confident that I know what will go over well on the dance floor. I am planning to design my wedding playlists, top to bottom, for Cocktail, Dinner, and Dancing, and I want very little deviation from these lists.
I am seriously considering the iPod-wedding route…but I think I’d feel more secure having a DJ. But…I fear the over-the-top, cheesy DJ stereotype that you see in movies.
Mrs. Jam, ChicagoAge and Occupation: 25, Writer/Associate Wedding CoordinatorFiance's Age and Occupation: 25, Structural EngineerEngagement Date: December 23, 2009Wedding Date: June 2011Venue: Hunter’s Ridge, Princeton, ILAbout Me: I’m a penny-pinching cat lady getting ready to marry the frugal dog lover of my dreams. Our ideal Saturday morning includes rummaging around people’s junk at garage and estate sales followed by an afternoon date to our favorite café, where we only eat sandwiches that include the word “salad.” We actually love it so much, it’s sort of our unofficial wedding theme: Look at our delicious finds, eat homemade ham salad, and celebrate our love…barndance style. When we’re not obsessing over our love-fest shindig, we’re planning themed parties for our best friends and jamming to '90s music.
When people ask about our wedding plans, they usually go through a few standard questions: When? Where? Will you have an open bar? How’s the planning going? What are your colors?
We have the answers for the first three questions in the bag (and obviously we are having an open bar because our guests would probably burn the venue down otherwise). The answer to the fourth varies from day to day, depending on what we’re struggling with at any given moment (and now it’s all about catering, baby). And up until this point, my answer to that last question has been one word: “Bright.”
And you know what? It just never appeases people.
“But what color are your bridesmaids’ dresses?” they ask.
Mrs. Cinnamon Bun, Calgary, AlbertaAge and Occupation: 26, Stage ManagerFiance's Age and Occupation: 26, Theatre TechnicianEngagement Date: June 22, 2010Wedding Date: June 2011Venue: Calgary Opera CentreAbout Me: I'm a life-long crafter and bookworm living in the foothills of the Canadian Rockies. Some of my loves include Lord of the Rings, Sherlock Holmes, knitting, opera, musicals, Etsy, baking, and of course, Mr. Cinnamon Buns. We're keeping our wedding close to home---the venue isn't very far from our house, and we live within walking distance of 6 bridal salons. I'm using the wedding as an excuse to try out every craft project I possibly can, with the endless help and support of my fiance.
Cinnamon Buns and I went to register the other day. We realise that the wedding isn’t until June, but we get so few days off together that we had to jump on it. We went to The Bay (founded in 1670!), as Bays are all over Canada and seem to be the standard in wedding registries here. We chose The Bay because we wanted it to be convenient for all our Canadian friends, and while Calgary just got a Crate & Barrel, there aren’t many around the country, and we have friends who are (hopefully!) coming from all over.
We went in, filled out some paperwork, and were given the scanny gun. Cinnamon Buns had altogether too much fun pointing it at me and saying, “Pew pew! Lasers!”
Then we got into the nitty-gritty of registering. That conflicted feeling of “Ooooh, blender…Mmmm, KitchenAid pasta attachment” versus “This is so greedy! Why are we doing this? Our friends are artists!”
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Mrs. French Toast, Pleasanton, CAAge and Occupation: 29, Marketing & PRFiance's Age and Occupation: IT geek by day, self-proclaimed handyman by nightEngagement Date: October 2009Wedding Date: March 2011Venue: Palm Event CenterAbout Me: I’m a city girl at heart who moved to the suburbs a year ago. Now I’m adjusting to life with a front lawn, nosy neighbors, cooking attempts, and making sure the garbage pail is pulled out on time every week! When I’m not traveling, Mr. FT and I enjoy marathon sessions of Law & Order: SVU, snowboarding, photography, spoiling our 3-year old yorkie-poodle Mokka and disagreeing over what music to listen to in the car. We’re planning a small winery wedding while incorporating some cultural elements into the day as a nod to our Chinese backgrounds.
I took a whiff of the humid air and sipped some juice from the young coconut. The palm trees behind us were swaying back and forth, and the waves of the ocean set the stage surrounding the tropical oasis.
Sitting across from me at breakfast on this particular morning in Phuket, Thailand was a Wall Street guru turned travel writer. We were traveling as part of a media group, and this was our second morning on the beautiful island.
We were talking about the new book he was writing, and he mentioned that his wife was his source of inspiration. Then he asked me if I was engaged yet. I chuckled and said “no” (at the time I wasn’t) and proceeded to tell him about my dream proposal. (Remember? The one over dinner?) Read more…
Mrs. Canary, New YorkAge and Occupation: 24, MarketingFiance's Age and Occupation: 25, Journalist/EditorEngagement Date: February 16, 2007Wedding Date: July, 2008Blogging Since: October 19, 2007Venue: Pier Sixty, Chelsea PiersAbout Me: I'm a born and raised New Yorker who loves all things crafty and artsy, food (cheese and dessert!), magazines, and shoes. I'm a power shopper always on the lookout for good deals or great quality-- sometimes I'm lucky and I find both! I love to dance and "shake what my momma gave me" but can also really enjoy a quiet night in with Mr. Canary and a good episode of Seinfeld or curl up with a good book.
All photos courtesy of the amazing Angelica Glass, unless otherwise noted. Please note that the photos have only been color-corrected and not fully retouched.
It was time for all of us to be announced and introduced. At our last DJ meeting, we supplied our DJ with a list of the names and phonetic pronunciation notes for each name so that there would be no pronunciation mishaps. Our DJ was super grateful for the list and no one was miffed because their names were all pronounced correctly. Mr. Canary has a complicated last name that a lot of people mispronounce, so it was a definite win-win!
First our parents and the bridal party were announced. Some of them hammed it up more than others…
Then it was finally our turn to be introduced for the first time as Mr. and Mrs. Canary. 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.
Sometimes, I can’t believe how lucky Mr. S and I are. We have such talented, creative, and generous friends and family that are helping us out for free or at an incredible discount.
This post is dedicated to those incredible people. The people who are making our wedding possible. Our friendors.
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.
Candlelight, that is. Ever since I started planning my own wedding I have known that I wanted lace-covered tealight holders as part of the reception decorations because pictures like these had me totally in love:
Mrs. Cinnamon Bun, Calgary, AlbertaAge and Occupation: 26, Stage ManagerFiance's Age and Occupation: 26, Theatre TechnicianEngagement Date: June 22, 2010Wedding Date: June 2011Venue: Calgary Opera CentreAbout Me: I'm a life-long crafter and bookworm living in the foothills of the Canadian Rockies. Some of my loves include Lord of the Rings, Sherlock Holmes, knitting, opera, musicals, Etsy, baking, and of course, Mr. Cinnamon Buns. We're keeping our wedding close to home---the venue isn't very far from our house, and we live within walking distance of 6 bridal salons. I'm using the wedding as an excuse to try out every craft project I possibly can, with the endless help and support of my fiance.
Hive, we have our teaser engagement photos from our photographer! All photos in this post are by Fotograffika.
I haven’t talked too much about picking a photographer, but basically I made a bookmark folder and bookmarked anything that I found in town that I liked. I set up appointments with two of them, and we went. After that, Cinnamon Buns asked to see my bookmarks and made us appointments with a couple more. After our meeting with the Fotograffika duo, Cinnamon Buns and I walked back to the car, and as soon as our doors were closed, I said, “I want to be friends with them!” I like them both; they had actually just gotten engaged, so we talked weddings in general for a lot of our meeting, and I liked their photography.
Mrs. Lobster, BrooklynAge and Occupation: 29, Finance GirlFiance's Age and Occupation: 33, Finance BoyEngagement Date: July 25, 2009Wedding Date: August 2010Venue: Stage 6 Steiner StudiosAbout 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.
Hello hive! I’m back with pics!! I know I’ve been away for a while but hopefully some of you remember me. And if you don’t, well, it’s nice to meet you again. So let’s get to it!
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The alarm barely went off and I jumped out of bed. I consider myself lucky for getting a full seven hours of restful sleep the night before the wedding. How is that? I cut myself off from “wedding planning duty” by the rehearsal and enjoyed myself through the rehearsal dinner. At 7 AM, I drew open the sun shades blinding my sisters (who slept in the king size bed with me). I was ready…to get ready. I had my blue shoes…
Mrs. Waffle, AustinAge and Occupation: 31, Costumer/ArtistFiance's Age and Occupation: 33, AnimatorEngagement Date: July 27, 2010Wedding Date: June 2011Venue: Hummingbird HouseAbout Me: My life is pretty much spent in a sea of fabric, paint, sequins and drama. When I’m not working, I play on a trivia team, take Broadway dance classes, read, buy shoes, and occasionally geek out on video games. I am an American girl who loves all things British and Mr. Waffle is a Brit who loves all things American...I guess it was meant to be!
So, back in my catering post I was soooo excited about the fact that we were serving family style. I even exclaimed, “That’s right, bees, our food will be the centerpieces!” I said it. I said there will be no other centerpieces.
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!
Well, it’s about that time. Time for me to say goodbye.
You’ve allowed me to write about our wedding for over a year, and I am so incredibly thankful for this amazing opportunity. Your kind words, encouragement, feedback, and general awesomeness have been amazing. I can’t imagine having planned our wedding without sharing it with the hive. Thank you so much for everything, it’s been an absolute honor.
I’ve organized all of my posts on my Weddingbee Wiki for easy reference, if you’re ever looking for something I wrote about!
Though my time here at the ’Bee is done, I’ve grown a little attached to this whole blogging thing. If you’d like to follow along as Dan and I move into the next phase of life—new degrees, new jobs, new cities, new homes, and maybe babies, I would be over the moon! Because even though this part of my life has been fun, I really do believe that… Read more…
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).
I wish I was one of those people who simply loves to exercise. But I’m not. In fact…I hate working out. I know it’s important for my health. I know that I feel better about my body and that my clothes fit better when I do it. But I hate it. I really do. With our wedding less than 100 days away though, I’m trying to suck it up and get my ass to the gym so that I don’t regret NOT working out every time I look at my wedding pictures.
So, in order to con/guilt myself into working out, I started this wedding workout calendar earlier this month.
Ms. Cheetah, Los Angeles/Palm Springs
Age and Occupation: 31, Artist, EducatorFiance's Age and Occupation: 32, TV FinanceEngagement Date: April 2010Wedding Date: March 2011Venue: The ViceroyAbout Me: I’m a silly, sassy lady with a compulsion to create. I love to sing and dance, despite the fact that I lack any talent doing either. I somehow manage to be messy and organized at the same time. I like to spend my days road tripping, watching '80s movies, reading true crime books, buying things on sale, sending postcards, playing board games, dining at food trucks, snuggling, and drinking ginger ale. I have a weak spot for all things sweet, especially Mr. Cheetah! I’m a Chicago girl and he’s a Nor Cal boy but we love living in the City of Angels. After 10 years as a couple we are planning a fun-filled semi-destination wedding in Palm Springs. Hope you enjoy the ride!
This weekend Mr. Cheetah and I took a day trip out to the desert to taste desserts. (And to all the people in cooler climates: it was 80˚ and a beautiful day. Yeah, I’m rubbing it in.)
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!
[Because "baci e abbracci" means "kisses and hugs" in Italian, and we had our rehearsal dinner at an Italian restaurant with Bocce courts, I figured "bocce e abbracci" would be appropriate. Get it? Get it!?!? I never get tired of puns.]
After making a splash at our mid-day rehearsal BBQ, we hurried back to the hotel to get ready for our welcome dinner at Campo di Bocce. Where we kept our rehearsal BBQ intimate by inviting mostly family and bridal party members, we invited all of our out-of-town guests to the welcome dinner—we ended up with 73 guests!!
We set it up so that the first hour and a half was bocce play time and court-side appetizers, followed by an hour and a half of seated dinner in the outside courtyard. I had been worried that not a lot of people would play bocce, but to my happy surprise, everyone got really into it! Read more…
