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.
I’m ready to reveal our invitations to you (FINALLY), but I want to talk about the horrible experience I had getting stamps for them first!
I really wish this post was about how helpful the folks at my local post office are, but unfortunately, that’s not the case. Rather, my mom, Mr. B, and I were all given misinformation on several different occasions that ultimately resulted in (what might as well been a dagger to my heart) mismatched stamps on our wedding invites! Not just any mismatched stamps: the King & Queen of Hearts and the Polar Bear stamp. Ugh.
Let’s start with the back story: My step mom mentioned “the love stamp” to me one day in passing. It stuck out to me as something I definitely wanted to get (even though I had no mental picture of what this stamp looked like) and I told Mr. Brooch about it.
I went to the post office a few days later and the person I spoke with supposedly showed me all of their stamps. She lookedconfused when I mentioned “the love stamp,” and Mr. Brooch got the same reaction when he went asking about it at a different post office. Read more…
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!
Way back when before the wedding I talked about our registry, and how we decided to register for some nice china (though not too fancy, since I get a heart attack thinking about asking people to buy usexpensive plates, even though I still want the $400 per place setting silver that we didn’t register for. Ah, someday!). But we weren’t planning on registering for any everyday dishes since we had our white everyday dishes that seemed perfectly usable and we figured we’d just replace them later on.
Well, unbeknownst to me, Mr. EB decided that he really wanted some great looking square plates from Crate and Barrel. Read more…
Mrs. Magic, Chapel Hill, NCAge and Occupation: 30, Licensed Clinical Social WorkerFiance's Age and Occupation: 30, ResearcherEngagement Date: December 1, 2009Wedding Date: October 2011Venue: Barn at ValhallaAbout Me: I’m a tall drink of water (5’10”!) and a Southern bride with an enormous appetite for Mexican food, good deals, anything French, and all things wedding! By day I am lucky enough to work with individuals with autism and their families. By night, I’m even luckier to be able to spend time hanging out with awesome friends, crafting, shopping, thinking about exercising, and kicking it with Mr. Magic and our two cats. I tend to have sudden, intense cravings that will not be denied (seafood enchiladas! new jeans!) and I’m prone to being a disorganized mess of anxiety and stress. After waiting (and waiting!) to get engaged, I am finally planning the colorful, fun, fabulously awesome Fall wedding of our dreams. In an effort to share the fun and craziness that is wedding planning, I’m gonna blog about it for y’all---the good, the bad, and the pretty!
I have been really stressing about how our wedding is going to look. Sometimes things look good in my head and then they look whack in real life. And since I am prone to liking things that are exact opposites of each other, this wedding could end up a hot mess real quick.
I recently had an appointment to go check out CE Rental. They are the rental place that our caterer, General Store Cafe, collaborates with. The day before, I practically had a panic attack because I was so anxious about choosing what I wanted…or, even knowing what I wanted! As I’ve said many times before, on Weddingbee and in real life, I have never done this before! I can throw a wicked party (if I do say so myself!), but I have never planned an event for over 100 people! I knew there were going to be a lot of options and that meant a lot of choices and that meant a lot of decisions, and I was getting myself worked up before I even got there!!!
Mrs. Buttons, Clearwater, FLAge and Occupation: 24, "Working on it"Fiance's Age and Occupation: 28, Financial ServicesEngagement Date: June 13, 2009Wedding Date: May 2010Venue: Carlouel Yacht ClubAbout 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!
In the midst of the dance party, we were informed by the DOC that it was time to cut the cake! Um, yes please! Since everyone was already on the dance floor, they walked a few steps over to the cake to watch (and get a slice of the goodness)! Mr. Buttons and I had to consult with one another on our game plan. No…wait…lets be honest: I told him what to do.
“Be careful…don’t ruin the pretty lace design. Don’t cut too big of a slice. And don’t cut too small of a slice – I want a considerable piece of that cake!”
Catch up on the entire After “I Do” series here! And if you have a burning question you’d like to see discussed, submit it here!
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How do you handle disagreements? Do you and your SO have specific arguing styles? What topic do you seem to argue/disagree on the most? What were some things you and your spouse have done to work out disagreements?
Our disagreements have come a long way in six years, and we are still working on them (as I imagine we always will be, in many ways). We have come to understand that most of our disagreements are rooted in something else, or one person needing to vent, and we are becoming better about not taking everything to heart, and allowing our partner the space they need at times. Our arguments are rare, though they definitely happen, and we try to talk through whatever we can. I have always perscribed to the idea of never going to sleep angry, while Mr. HC likes to never wake up angry. So, we try to respect this about each other and make it work for us!
I am a person that rarely argues with anyone, and it took me a long time to realize that arguments are a healthy and important part of most relationships—it’s learning how to navigate these waters that is crucial. “Cool down” time has also been really effective, and stops many arguments from escalating to where they might have in the past. Read more…
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.
Mrs. Candy Apple, Princeton Junction, NJ/ Seattle, WAAge and Occupation: 26, Project EditorFiance's Age and Occupation: 26, AttorneyEngagement Date: May 9, 2010Wedding Date: August 2011Venue: St. Joseph's Parish, Seattle Tennis ClubAbout Me: I am a Pacific Northwesterner, born and bred. I have lived in many cities---Santa Clara, Durham (England); Florence; Boston; Princeton Junction---but my heart will always be nestled up near the Cascades and Olympics, which is why we are holding our wedding there. I am a bookworm and a History nerd: I love that my life consists of books, books, and more books, since I work in Publishing! Recently, all waking time not consumed by work and my daily commute has been overtaken by wedding planning. Well, that, and watching Premier-League soccer. There is nothing I love more than a good Tana French mystery, traveling to new places, Anthropologie shopping sprees, Iittala dishware, Kate Spade shoes, impeccable typefaces (think: Archer), and a nice English ale (hellooo, Old Speckled Hen!). Oh, and did I mention my obsession with wedding blogs? Yeah, there’s that too. Join Mr. Candy Apple and me as we prep for our wedding, and, more importantly, our marriage!
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.
This post otherwise titled: “Earrings strikes a pose.” Once I was all bride-ified, the photographer got me to sit on the bed for a few portraits. By the way, I was super lucky to have that bedroom to take photos in. I felt like I was in something straight out of Pride and Prejudice.
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.
When I bought my BHLDN dress, I was so, so, so excited that it had a built-in support, which meant that I wouldn’t need to find a long-line bra.
But then I made an appointment with a seamstress (is that a PC term anymore? It sounds so outdated and sexist to me, like “stewardess.” Howzabout I call her a “dressmaker” instead, even though she is not making my dress?) and while I was speaking to her on the phone, the dressmaker suggested that I buy a long-line bra anyway, just in case.
It’s been about a million years since I’ve bought new bras (you should see how stretched out and ratty my bras are right now, oops), and after losing 30 pounds, I have no idea what my bra size actually is. So instead of ordering a bra online and crossing my fingers that it would fit, I decided to go for a good, old-fashioned bra fitting.
I Yelped and found a little shop just a few blocks from my office, so I headed out on my lunch break. Read more…
Mrs. Hyena, College Station, TXAge and Occupation: 23, Marketing SpecialistFiance's Age and Occupation: 24, Aerospace Engineering Grad StudentEngagement Date: January 8, 2010Wedding Date: May 2011Venue: Downtown 202About Me: I'm a Texas girl who met my future hubby in high school, then headed up to Oklahoma for a college education (BOOMER SOONER!) before moving back to the Lone Star State to be with him. I love reading and recycling, Photoshop and reality TV, making lame jokes and then laughing at them, quoting movies, and Mr. Hyena most of all. I'm perpetually early and I like to get things accomplished. When my cat meows at me, I meow back. We're planning a laid-back, unintentionally DIY wedding with a cocktail-party vibe, and can't wait to celebrate our nuptials with our nearest and dearest!
Bridesmaid J, my college roomie, has dabbled in photography for years. In fact, a few years ago she shot Bridesmaid A’s wedding! Since she’s in my bridal party she couldn’t do our photography, but we did get her to do our engagement portraits!
After college, J moved to Hong Kong, so we had to wait for a time she would be back in Texas in order to shoot them. As luck would have it, she was in the country for parts of January and February 2010, and it was the same week that it snowed OVER A FOOT. In Texas. Score! She did a beautiful job shooting them, and I am so pumped to share some of my faves.
Mrs. Knitting, TorontoAge and Occupation: 24, Student Recruitment Assistant
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 24, Neuroscience PhD CandidateEngagement Date: October 2009Wedding Date: December 2010Venue: University of Toronto Faculty Club
About Me: I'm a pearl wearing, etiquette book reading Toronto girl who loves cooking and baking, museums, charm bracelets, and collecting books on Jackie Kennedy (a lot). I've been known to spend Sunday mornings at the antique market, Wednesday evenings at sister sushi dinners, and any bit of spare time reading. After six and a half years of many late night walks, watching DVDs together in bed, travelling to places like New York, and Tobermory, doing Sudokus together on the couch, lots of Indian food, the occasional yoga class, moving in together and so much more, Mr. Knitting and I are planning a cozy Christmasy (it's a word!), vintage wedding in Toronto complete with many DIY projects (eek!) and lots of help from our amazing group of family and friends.
After I became suitably bridal looking, I was transported ever-so-glamourously to Spadina Museum for our first look. And by glamourously, I mean that I sat squished up in the very front of my dad’s car so that there was enough room for our photographer’s equipment in the back seat!
I know you’ve all heard this a million times before, but I’m so glad we did a first look. I actually can’t believe that I ever even questioned this. I’m really happy with how the photos turned out, which I think is great, since neither us (obviously!) nor our photographer had done a first look before.
Mr. Knitting and his groomspeople made sure to get to Spadina Museum first and by the time we arrived he was set in position:
I slowly began to approach from behind: Read more…
Miss Carousel, Dusseldorf, Germany/Garda, ItalyAge and Occupation: 29, International Product ManagerFiance's Age and Occupation: 31, Front End DeveloperEngagement Date: May 29, 2010Wedding Date: September 2011Venue: I’m an American-Italian girl living in Germany with my Belgian fiancé, planning a wedding in Italy. I can’t wait to show our guests the wonderful Lake Garda, Verona, and want our wedding to be a fun filled, charming, day in the life of “La dolce vita.” Mr. C and I love spending time together, and have added wedding related activities to our cooking nights, dance lessons, and road trips. We love sampling restaurants, could listen to Sinatra all day, and are just a tad geeky and into technology. As we want all of our passions to be part of our marriage, what better way to start than by incorporating them in our wedding day?
In my last post I described how happy we were with ourselves for deciding to have a long engagement, as it was pretty easy to find an awesome reception place. Well, let me tell you, that feeling came back to bite us in the b*** big time!
As some of you probably already know, a long engagement has many advantages and disadvantages: one disadvantage is that things change.
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!
We all go through it. We send out our invites and then patiently wait every day to check the mail and see those RSVPs come in. At first it’s exciting because you get several cards a day from guests that are so excited to share the day with you. Then the responses go from a flow to a trickle, some days not receiving even one card.
The due date comes and goes, and there are still some slackers that you have yet to hear from. You and your family start making calls, sending emails, texts, and Facebook messages—anything just to get a response. Is it really that hard to put a self addressed and stamped card back in the mail??
Mrs. Sparkler, ChicagoAge and Occupation: 27, Communications AficionadoFiance's Age and Occupation: 26, PublisherEngagement Date: July 21, 2010Wedding Date: September 2011Venue: Chicago Illuminating CompanyAbout Me: I’m a Southern lady living in the big city of Chicago. Well, lady may be a stretch, but I’m working hard to keep some Virginia charm in our sleek, urban, wedding-palooza! I’m addicted to marathons, not-so-famous bands, Chicago restaurants, and Mark Twain. I cry during SPCA commercials, and I think LOST was the best show to ever hit television. Mr. S and I met at a classy college mixer and, 7 years later, he’s still by my side. He’s the only child, laid back, free spirit... I’m the oldest of five kids, type-A, organizer. It doesn’t work on paper, but we’ve never paid attention to that stuff anyway. Somehow it works. And like they say, sometimes when you know…you just know.
I stayed away from using “We Have STDs” as the title for this post because I’m trying to be mature. Really. But as I typed “Wedding Packages,” I ended up laughing to myself anyway.
I tried.
Anyway! We did get some exciting wedding packages the other day, and one of them was a box full of STDs! (OK, that’s pretty funny.) I’ve already raved about how great Laurie from Lucky Bee Press is, but the sweet packaging and thoughtful extras included in her shipment really took my adoration to another level. Take a peek!
Perfectly packaged with a personal note on top! So cute. And check out the bee stamp!
All-Inclusion Invitation Suites
Our disagreements have come a long way in six years, and we are still working on them (as I imagine we always will be, in many ways). We have come to understand that most of our disagreements are rooted in something else, or one person needing to vent, and we are becoming better about not taking everything to heart, and allowing our partner the space they need at times. Our arguments are rare, though they definitely happen, and we try to talk through whatever we can. I have always perscribed to the idea of never going to sleep angry, while Mr. HC likes to never wake up angry. So, we try to respect this about each other and make it work for us!
