Mrs. Pain au Chocolat, Wilmington, DEAge and Occupation: 29, RealtorFiance's Age and Occupation: 34, RealtorEngagement Date: November 21, 2009Wedding Date: June 2011Venue: Greenville Country ClubAbout Me: An ENFJ with an artistic streak who loves backgammon, sailing, graphic design, and sleeping in. Travel (near or far), good wine, and tasty food makes my heart sing. I'm a compulsive list-maker who lives to plan and organize. Mr. P and I have lived together for 4 years, all the while renovating our city townhome bit by bit. We're planning a whimsical, Anthropologie-inspired garden wedding in June 2011.
My parents live eight hours away. Family-bonding time is limited to the three or four times a year when we see each other. If we’re lucky, there’s a week-long vacation somewhere in the mix. I knew when I returned home for Christmas that Mom and I had some Serious Wedding Business to attend to—all within four days. Priority number one was dress shopping.
Mrs. Dolphin, Gainesville, FLAge and Occupation: 24, Graduate Architecture StudentFiance's Age and Occupation: 24, Interactive Interface DeveloperEngagement Date: February 14, 2008Wedding Date: May 2010Venue: Plantation Bay Country ClubAbout Me: I’m currently a Graduate Student at the University of Florida studying Architecture. I enjoy playing Scrabble with my Fiance, rooting for the Florida Gators, making any drink that involves a blender, cleaning (yes... I’m crazy), design... GOOD design that is, the new Pepsi with natural sugar, taking pictures, discovering new places in the U.S., and obsessing over doing (and designing) everything myself for our upcoming wedding!
Let’s start out by saying that if you are one of those people who have impeccable, baby-smooth, blemish free skin, this post is not for you. And…we can’t be friends. Only kidding.
I know that I wasn’t the only bride out there struggling with acne. Acne is no new thang for me. I have fought a losing battle with acne for many years. I even joke to Mr. Dolphin that I don’t know how he ever fell in love with my crater face (over 8 years ago!). He always tells me that it’s what was on the inside that counts for him…and that he liked my booty. MEN!
So what did I do to get my skin looking like this?
It’s been a long, tearful journey, my friends. Read more…
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.
There have been many posts about last-name-changing before this one, and I’m sure there will many more after it. I just wanted to talk about why I’m making the choice I’m making.
I am not changing my last name once Cinnamon Buns and I get married. End of story, that’s it. It was never really a question in my mind, although I did ask Cinnamon Buns what he thought about it. He said, “It’s your name, you should do what you want!”
Now as to the why…well, from the practical side, I have a career in the performing arts (although I don’t perform, I organize the performers). I’m part of a “union” (I think a better word might be “association” actually), and part of that is registering the name you wish to work under. Here is their official blurb:
Under the constitution each member must have a distinct stage name. If a member already uses the professional stage name you wish to use, you will be asked to change your stage name — even if it is your legal name.
So, I’ve obviously already registered my name with them, and there were no conflicts. I wasn’t expecting any conflicts, which brings me to my second reason for not really wanting to change my name:
Mrs. Bacon, ChicagoAge and Occupation: 26, Digital Advertising ManagerFiance's Age and Occupation: 25, IT Client ServicesEngagement Date: June 17, 2010Wedding Date: September 2011Venue: Ravenswood Billboard FactoryAbout Me: I'm a Midwestern girl that can't seem to commit to staying in one place for too long and is constantly daydreaming about my next adventure. I am an aspiring foodie with a weak spot for the unusual and I love semi-reality food television. My other loves easily include laughing as a form of exercise, a book that I can't put down, summer baseball games, espresso with whipped cream, couch potato days and nights with the ridiculous Mr. Bacon, and our two kitties, Lincoln and Sawyer. We're planning a faux-destination wedding for 150 of our closest friends and family in the city we've both adopted as home that has a modern, yet whimsical twist and as many personal touches as we can manage.
I’ve grown up with all kinds of house pets starting with a smart-as-a-whip German Shepherd mix named Micah when I was itty bitty growing up in a tiny town in Northern Minnesota to matching Siamese cats all through high school. I babysat the class guinea pig over spring break in the first grade, dutifully picking grass for him to eat from the nearby meadow. I helped my dad clean out a fish tank as long as basketball player is tall in the fifth grade. I was pulled around on a sled by a husky-terrier mix in middle school (let me tell you, he was a goofy looking dog with those little legs). I cleaned cat boxes every week in high school for our three cats: Meeka, Mocha and Mooka (please say those names aloud along with the previously mentioned dog). I clipped the claws of a friend’s cat in college.
OK, so this was not actually a pet, but I did horseback ride at Girl Guide camp. Does that count?
Clearly, I wasn’t about to be pet-free once I was a real life adult living in the big, bad world. Enter the roadblock: The Baconator is “not a cat person” and our apartment didn’t allow dogs, nor are we at a place in our lives where we can commit to training a dog.
Mrs. Lox, BaltimoreAge and Occupation: 33, Government WorkerFiance's Age and Occupation: 35. IT ConsultantEngagement Date: May 8, 2010Wedding Date: May 2011Venue: Vandiver InnAbout Me: I’m an East Coast gal born and bred and a suburban brat turned city rat for the last year. Now Mr. Lox and I enjoy walking all kinds of places, having the coolest things around in our backyard, and especially our garage parking. I love gadgets, toys, Ben & Jerry’s Chubby Hubby ice cream, monkeys, and our insane cats. I’m a blonde by birth and a redhead by choice. I’m that girl in the cubicle farm with all the cool toys and the file cabinet covered in magnetic poetry. I still use smiley faces in my emails, whether people like it or not. This is not the first rodeo for Mr. Lox nor me. And together, we are planning an intimate afternoon wedding on a budget we can afford by ourselves.
Today we shall be talking about rings. I will tell you in advance that this is a topic that has brought me no end of stress. I know exactly (and I do mean *exactly*) what I want Mr. Lox to put on my finger. However, Mr. Lox has really had no earthly idea of what I should be putting on his. Here is an actual conversation that took place just this month:
Me: We really should go wedding-band shopping for you. Because it might not be easy, seeing as you have no idea what you want.
Him: I know what I want.
Me: Yeah? What?
Him: No bling, white metal.
Me: You just described hundreds of rings. Is that the best you’ve got?
Him: *blink*
And so it was that we went shopping. All was going well for my pocketbook until Mr. Lox spotted men’s Tacori wedding bands. Did you know Tacori made wedding bands for men? I totally did NOT. But I knew what it meant for my pocketbook. And yet, there wasn’t a darn thing I could do about it. I’ve always promised Mr. Lox he could have whatever he wanted, since this is the ring he will have to wear for the rest of his life. And this is the ring he ended up choosing:
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. 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!
I let you all know how much I love invitation inspiration, and I started off with sharing traditional invitations (that were way more well received than expected, thanks guys).
I don’t think that Mr. Giraffe and I really want floral themed invitations, just because we’re not really having a floral-y wedding. Who knows though, as I love floral invitations and everything about them. They can be super classy, or super modern, or really, both. Originally, I was kind of against floral invites because I thought they were kind of cheesy and predictable, but I was soooo wrong!
See, I can admit when I’m wrong (sometimes), so get ready for some amazing inspiration. First, here are some more traditional (but surprisingly hip) floral invitations.
Mrs. Eggs Benedict, SeattleAge and Occupation: 29, AttorneyFiance's Age and Occupation: 35, AttorneyEngagement Date: December 5, 2009Wedding Date: February 2011Venue: IslandWoodAbout Me: I'm a Northwest girl who spends my time goofing around with Mr. Eggs Benedict and our dog, hiking, traveling, drinking wine and planning a wedding that will showcase the best of what the Pacific Northwest has to offer. I also love photography, beating Mr. Eggs Bene at Mario Kart, and watching the most ridiculous natural disaster flicks you can think of (seriously, how can you deny the awesomeness that is The Core or 2012?? That's right, you can't). We are planning our weekend wedding adventure at an environmental educational center, and I can't wait for the fun to begin!
In between baking cinnamon rolls, decorating cookies, and drinking wine, guess how we spent our weekend?
Oh yeah, that’s right. Assembling the invitations.
They’ve been printed and cut, and now it’s time for the last step—putting them all together. I’m so excited to show you all the finished product! Here’s hoping it all goes according to plan…Until then, I’ll leave you with a sneak peek of our “Weekend Activities” insert. And if you see a typo, please don’t tell me. Unless you want to see my cry.
Mrs. Biscuit, Morgantown, WVAge and Occupation: 24, Dental StudentFiance's Age and Occupation: 26, Chemist at a pharmaceutical companyEngagement Date: April 2010Wedding Date: July 2011Venue: Catholic Church, Lakeview Golf Resort and SpaAbout Me: I'm an engineer who decided to trek back to my hometown three years ago to become skilled in the arts of drilling and filling. I'm engaged to a pretty awesome guy who tests your assorted benzodiazepines by day and home brews by night. Together we have two fur children, Tsali and Tobias N. Fünkat. I'm a lazy perfectionist and eternal sorority girl who enjoys running, crafting, string cheese, good beer, and bad reality TV. We are planning a Big Fat Italian/Sicilian/Polish wedding filled with DIY details and are expecting 300 +/- 50 guests. Our whimsical summer affair is themed "Alice attends the Mad Hatter Vintage Garden Tea Party in a Ballroom. She Thinks That The Venue is Odd for a Vintage Garden Party, but is Tripping on LSD, so She Doesn't Really Care." Yes, I am the Dickens of themes.
Recently I realized I haven’t really talked about our photographer yet. Well, actually, I just received my clinic-induction pictures and realized that I currently look like Ugly Betty and that I needed to show off our engagement photos as an ego boost. Don’t believe me? Check it out:
Mrs. Penguin, Northern CaliforniaAge and Occupation: 27, Weddingbee Editor in ChiefFiance's Age and Occupation: 30, Doctor of Physical TherapyEngagement Date: January 29, 2007Wedding Date: June 7, 2008Blogging Since: September 14, 2007Venue: Winery in the Gold CountryAbout Me: I love the Spice Girls, dogs with underbites, bean burritos, making messes, high fives, avoiding showers, crossword puzzles, blogs, weddings, and blogs about weddings!
If you’d like to submit your wedding to possibly be featured as Project Wedding’s Real Wedding of the Week, click here for more details!
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).
One of the things I’m looking most forward to during our wedding weekend is spending time with my bridal party. With only one exception, the ladies in my bridal party have each known me for more than 12 years. We’ve seen each other go through high points and low points, different relationships, marriages, children, joy and tragedy. To say that we’re close is a huge understatement, so when it came time to think about the wedding weekend, I really wanted to celebrate them as much as celebrating the upcoming Hippo marriage.
Sweet Mama Hippo agreed to host a luncheon the day before the wedding for my bridesmaids and house party ladies, as well as my grandmother, aunts and female cousins, and King Hippo’s mother and female relatives. I just got the invitation in the mail, and Mama Hippo hit a homerun, even using our wedding colors in the invite! Take a peek:
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.
Earlier this week, I ran into the mother of a friend of mine, and we had a memorable conversation. Her son, my friend’s brother, was recently married so she still has weddings on the mind. She asked me about the wedding and I was telling her about our plans, but some of the answers I gave to her questions seemed to shock her.
For example, she asked me if I’d been to a certain bridal expo here in Philly. When I told her that I hadn’t gone to a single expo or show, nor did I plan to, you could’ve knocked her over with a feather. “But how did you find all of your vendors?” she gasped. I explained that I did all of my research online, but then she countered with “But there are always such good giveaways and prizes at those shows!” I couldn’t come up with a tactful way to explain that the true prize to me would be to NOT fight my way through a crowded room, talking to vendors I had no intention of booking, and getting a lifetime’s worth of junk mail as a result, so I just shrugged.
But she continued to look at me like this: Read more…
Mrs. Ostrich, San Francisco/HawaiiAge and Occupation: 30, Fashion Buyer
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 38, CopywriterEngagement Date: October 4, 2009Wedding Date: April 2011Venue: Sweet ceremony by the sea and sunset celebration on the North Shore of HawaiiAbout Me: Born in the city of angels and residing in the city by the bay, I’m a fearless fashion buyer by day, a passionate blog author by night and a dreamy bride-to-be in between. I thank my lucky stars to live in such a stunning city that gives me gifts like organic honey lavender ice cream, movie nights in the park, tucked away beaches, legendary record stores, '80s dance parties, awesome sports teams, stellar flea markets, and vintage bookshops. Oh, and I love to dance! We always find every excuse to escape to the beach, and decided a little seaside wedding in Hawaii is our idea of bliss. Full of our favorite people, music, food and sparkly lights, this is one sunset celebration we will always remember.
“The bond that links your true family is not one of blood, but of respect and joy in each other’s life.
Rarely do members of one’s family grow up under the same roof.” - Richard Bach
{I’m a lucky gal to have these girls in my life. Left to right: high school friend M, Bridesmaid V, and me }
If you were to ask Mr. Ostrich and me who the guests were at our wedding….we would respond, simply, with one word.
Family.
Are they our relatives? A few of them. And yes, by all technical definitions, these blood related few are what the majority of the world would consider “family.”
Mrs. Pain au Chocolat, Wilmington, DEAge and Occupation: 29, RealtorFiance's Age and Occupation: 34, RealtorEngagement Date: November 21, 2009Wedding Date: June 2011Venue: Greenville Country ClubAbout Me: An ENFJ with an artistic streak who loves backgammon, sailing, graphic design, and sleeping in. Travel (near or far), good wine, and tasty food makes my heart sing. I'm a compulsive list-maker who lives to plan and organize. Mr. P and I have lived together for 4 years, all the while renovating our city townhome bit by bit. We're planning a whimsical, Anthropologie-inspired garden wedding in June 2011.
As much fun as it was to devise a clever “we’re engaged!” story for my mom, we brainstormed even harder when it came to our friends. We came up with some creative ways to surprise them, but my favorite “spill the beans” story has to be when we told our good friend R.
The engagement was still a secret. The few family members who knew promised to keep it a secret (and off Facebook) so we could share the news in person with close friends and distant family.
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.
I never had a doubt in my mind that I would take Mr. Starfish’s name. I just didn’t know anyone growing up who did otherwise.
In the past couple years, I’ve seen things differently. In my work culture, it’s actually pretty normal for a woman to keep her own name, hyphenate, or turn her maiden name to her middle name. In this day and age, it really seems like there is no “standard.” I never assume a woman is going to take her husband’s name. I think it’s great that women now choose, yet there was no real questioning on my part on whether or not I’d do it.
Having recently changed my name officially (well sort of—I’m still sifting through all the paperwork with credit cards, banks accounts and all the other little details I’m probably forgetting), I’ve experienced this loss that I didn’t expect.
The first time I saw “Mrs. Starfish” pop up as an e-mail, I kind of did a double take—like, really? Who is that? Read more…
