Ms. Gazelle, Calgary/VancouverAge and Occupation: 32, EngineerFiance's Age and Occupation: 32, Technology AnalystEngagement Date: September 3, 2010Wedding Date: July 2011Venue: Brock House Restaurant, VancouverAbout Me: I am a marathon runner, cyclist, Ironman triathlete and beautiful shoe fiend who also loves kicking back and watching Glee. I grew up a bit of a nomad as I traveled around the world with my family, living everywhere from Australia to England to South America and Indonesia. I finally settled in Calgary a few years ago and met Mr. Gazelle who loves me even though we cheer for different hockey teams. We are planning a bit of a destination wedding in beautiful Vancouver, British Columbia and we can’t wait to share the day with our close family and friends.
This week I had one of those, “Wow, I really need to get a move on some things!” moments. One of those things has to do with cake. We are having our cake tasting soon, so I thought it would be a good idea to get an idea for styles of cake that we both like. Plus, if we are going to get a custom cake topper, then we probably better get that started!
I went to my number-one source for all things custom—Etsy. There are some amazing cake toppers out there! There was one for $180 we both liked, but add in shipping (and most likely duty) to Canada and it just seemed like too much to spend no matter how cool it was.
We both agreed that we loved the custom lovebirds from Bent Branch—handmade, customized, and well within our budget. I contacted the shop owner Krista, and she was in touch with me quickly with fabric colours and options. Here is an idea of what we will be getting:
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!
Our invitations are in!!! And I’ll do a little sneak peek soon (’cause I can’t keep ’em secret for long!), but first I want to give a little insight into the design process, starting with the fonts.
I’m that girl who can look at a font on a sign and tell you what it is. But I took the lazy way out on our invitations. And I couldn’t be happier!
Oh, imagine the horror: all the fonts in our invitation suite…were already standard on my computer!
Let’s put it this way: I could have spent hours upon hours browsing dafont or Fonts for Peas or 1001 Free Fonts. To be honest, that probably would have been fun, but I just didn’t have the energy. I work in marketing, and most of the time the standard fonts work fine for any project. (Myriad Pro is EVERYWHERE, ya’ll!) At my last job, my computer had 11,000 fonts on it, and I never had the time or energy to search through even HALF of those. Even with all those choices, we used the same five for almost every project. As much as I love fonts, I can’t bring myself to go searching for them.
Regardless, I am very pleased with the way the invitations turned out. THRILLED, actually!
Mrs. Pony, Bloomington, ILAge and Occupation: 25, AttorneyFiance's Age and Occupation: 34, AttorneyEngagement Date: March 22, 2010Wedding Date: September 2011Venue: Mackinaw Valley Vineyard; Bloomington Center for the Performing ArtsAbout Me: I found my Southern counterpart in law school and since he popped the question last March, we have been busy graduating, job searching, bar taking, and wedding planning. My loves include must see TV, magnets, quotes, anything green, my car, fun socks, the Cubs, and my Mr. Together we love wine, playing outside, and exploring the world together. Stay tuned to see our Midwest wedding full of Southern charm, vintage flair, lots of DIY details, and a whole lot o’ wine.
One great piece of advice I made sure to follow after getting engaged was to wait and do my research before booking any vendors or buying anything wedding related. I heard this advice from all over the place—the web, my friends, family, potential vendors, strangers on the street…you get the idea. But what great advice it is! Planning a wedding requires a million and ten decisions to be made; even the most decisive person is bound to buy something that goes unused for the wedding.
Taking this lesson to heart, I waited and waited and waited to buy anything. (It helped that I was pretty much broke.) I wanted to have a clear idea of our colors, the atmosphere, and the design before spending our money on anything for the wedding.
Eventually, I caved. I. HAD. to. buy. something.
The majority of my summer last year was spent staring at bar-prep books and being stressed. I decided I needed a mental break. A pretty, creative mental break from all the boring law stuff. I knew exactly what I wanted. Not a dress. Not shoes. A font.
Mrs. Snow Cone, Pittsburgh/Johnstown, PAAge and Occupation: 23, Public Health Graduate StudentFiance's Age and Occupation: 23, EngineerEngagement Date: April 9, 2010Wedding Date: August 2011Venue: OMOS Church ceremony/Sunnehanna Country Club receptionAbout Me: I’m one of the lucky ones---I met my future husband at the ripe old age of 13, started dating him as a mature woman of 15, and have been enjoying the ride ever since. Here we are, 8 years later, living in Pittsburgh, planning a "homestination" wedding in the place our school romance began---Johnstown, PA. I thrive on talking a mile a minute, eating my weight in chocolate, and internet shopping. I love a lengthy to-do list almost as much as I love a healthy amount of chaos in my life. Mr. Snow Cone and I watch countless episodes of Friends and The West Wing on repeat, root for rival college sports teams, and make each other laugh each and every day. We’re putting together a small-town wedding with a big personality and a classically modern (or modernly classic?) look for 250 of our closest family and friends. It’s been 8+ years in the making, and sometimes I still can’t believe I’m finally getting to marry my high school sweetheart!
Maybe my appointment at Celestial Brides didn’t go according to plan. And maybe I was a little rattled about how hard this whole wedding-dress thing was turning out to be. Never a quitter, though, I figured the first trip was a fluke and I would surely get my dress mojo back if I just tried again. A few days after the first appointment, Mom Snow Cone, MOH H, and I headed a few miles west, to Greensburg, Pennsylvania, home of MB Bride, one of the biggest salons in the entire state. Surely a big selection in a big store would help me with this entire process…right?
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!
Before I dive headlong into the details of the weekend, I wanted to let you all experience a little of what I felt like during those couple of days.
What a wonderful weekend! That was the phrase that kept running through my head for weeks after the wedding. Our wedding truly was a weekend event. Yes, the wedding itself was Saturday evening, but because so many people spent the weekend with us at IslandWood, it felt like we had three days of celebrating. Read more…
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.
I’m experiencing a bit of hair indecision. (Confession time! I haven’t had a hair trial yet. I booked my hairstylist without meeting her!) Don’t worry—I will have a hair trial, eventually. But because I haven’t tried any of the hairstyles below, I’m not sure which is best for my gown, hair flower, and personal style. So, I’m looking to you ladies for recommendations and advice! You can weigh in at the end of the post.
Mrs. Cotton Candy, Riverside, CAAge and Occupation: 29, Field CoordinatorFiance's Age and Occupation: 34, Process ServerEngagement Date: July 5, 2007Wedding Date: June 2011Venue: Riverside Art MuseumAbout Me: I’m a girl in love with her best friend planning a small mid-century modern inspired wedding that’s been a long time coming. I love all things design, sewing, flea markets, and a good book. I’ve been known to swoon over a well-designed chair and often find myself craving a new addition to my chair collection regardless of the lack square footage in our home. I’m Mexican American girl who hates all things spicy but loves her rowdy Mexican family and her Latin roots. My wedding muses may not be your typical wedding superstars, but with a lot of DIY, a dash of offbeat style, and lots of love and laughs, Mr. Cotton and I plan to create a day that is unmistakably us.
About 3 weeks after sending our designer Kristen the inspiration pics for our invites, we received our custom proofs. I had begun to get a little nervous about the outcome of the invites since I hadn’t given Kristen any specific details regarding wording, sizing, and color, but I was ecstatic when I received our proofs. Kirsten worked her magic and was able to pull all the elements I loved into three separate invites for us to pick from.
Each invitation was sized to fit in a #10 envelope and had some Mid-century flair featuring our font, Festiva, with sewing and craft touches to unite our handmade modern theme. The first one was inspired by an invite I sent her, and echoed the look and feel of our STDs.
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.
My grandma picked it up in the ’60s on one of her many travels, and I’m honored she’s letting me borrow it for the wedding. Maybe now you can see why I was faced with the conundrum of finding the perfect dress based on this necklace, because HOW CAN I NOT WEAR THIS?! Read more…
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.
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!
How do you decide on the first dance you have as husband and wife? How do you narrow down the dozens of appropriate and swoon-worthy songs that are important to you both? What makes the one, THE ONE?
Since we’re both non-dancers and more of the awkward shufflers/swayers, we’re opting for a traditional, slow, and wordy first dance option. Here are some of our top contenders—though we’ve got one more special song in mind that we’re keeping to ourselves for now… who knows what we’ll choose at this point!? I’ll give you a hint though: it’ll likely be something by “our band,” thanks to the way we met and all.
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!
You may or may not have noticed from various pictures of Mr. E through my time blogging on Weddingbee that he has some tattoos on his arm.
Engagement photo taken by the fabulous Lynn Michelle
When we first started dating, he was finishing up his 3rd masterpiece. He has always wanted to get more tattoos, but in the past four years his extra money was going to rent, bills, school, date nights, his car, and the wedding. Since our guest count came in lower then we were budgeting for and have saved more than we need for the wedding, he decided it was time to get more ink. Read more…
Mrs. Pony, Bloomington, ILAge and Occupation: 25, AttorneyFiance's Age and Occupation: 34, AttorneyEngagement Date: March 22, 2010Wedding Date: September 2011Venue: Mackinaw Valley Vineyard; Bloomington Center for the Performing ArtsAbout Me: I found my Southern counterpart in law school and since he popped the question last March, we have been busy graduating, job searching, bar taking, and wedding planning. My loves include must see TV, magnets, quotes, anything green, my car, fun socks, the Cubs, and my Mr. Together we love wine, playing outside, and exploring the world together. Stay tuned to see our Midwest wedding full of Southern charm, vintage flair, lots of DIY details, and a whole lot o’ wine.
Since Mr. Pony and I got engaged last March, five other couple friends (friends that are couples? I don’t know) have gotten engaged and are planning to wed in 2011. Out of these weddings, I will be a bridesmaid, maid of honor, guest, and, of course, bride. Needless to say, my life is pretty much all things wedding right now (which I love—not gonna lie).
Initially, I thought that having so many friends planning weddings at the same time would be super fun because we could bounce tons of ideas off each other. I know there are so many ideas I would love to incorporate into our wedding that simply won’t happen due to the location, season, or other aesthetic choices we have already made for our wedding. Naturally, I want to share these ideas with my friends who are brides-to-be.
Some ideas I would love to incorporate but sadly will not be able to include:
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!
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.
Once upon a time, I told you all that I wouldn’t be having a shower. I mean, I’m an encore, I’m 33, and Mr. Lox and I have so much stuff between us that we have a storage unit because it won’t all fit in our apartment. So, no shower. Done.
Right. Except no one gave my coworkers the memo. I tried to deliver it multiple times, but they would have none of it. As far as they were concerned, it was their only chance to celebrate our marriage and they were going to have it, by golly. I told them there was no reason to bother. They laughed at me. Then I told them no gifts, and they ignored me. Instead, they put together one of the sweetest things I’ve ever had coworkers do for me. I was floored.
First, there was tons of food. i mean, they really had a great spread. And then, there was the cake, made by the yummiest bakery anywhere near me. I mean, you guys, this is some serious cake.
Look at the flowers in our wedding colors! So thoughtful!
And then there was the thing I tried to stop them from doing. In fact, I tried so hard I didn’t give them any ideas on what I would want. I said nothing. And they knew better than to ask. But this happened anyway… Read more…
Mrs. Snow Cone, Pittsburgh/Johnstown, PAAge and Occupation: 23, Public Health Graduate StudentFiance's Age and Occupation: 23, EngineerEngagement Date: April 9, 2010Wedding Date: August 2011Venue: OMOS Church ceremony/Sunnehanna Country Club receptionAbout Me: I’m one of the lucky ones---I met my future husband at the ripe old age of 13, started dating him as a mature woman of 15, and have been enjoying the ride ever since. Here we are, 8 years later, living in Pittsburgh, planning a "homestination" wedding in the place our school romance began---Johnstown, PA. I thrive on talking a mile a minute, eating my weight in chocolate, and internet shopping. I love a lengthy to-do list almost as much as I love a healthy amount of chaos in my life. Mr. Snow Cone and I watch countless episodes of Friends and The West Wing on repeat, root for rival college sports teams, and make each other laugh each and every day. We’re putting together a small-town wedding with a big personality and a classically modern (or modernly classic?) look for 250 of our closest family and friends. It’s been 8+ years in the making, and sometimes I still can’t believe I’m finally getting to marry my high school sweetheart!
As I outlined in my last post, before I even set foot in a bridal salon I was already a bona fide wedding-dress expert. I had put in the (wo)man hours, flipped through countless magazines, scoured a plethora of websites. My mom’s a college professor and I’m a grad student, so we decided that knocking the whole dress task off the wedding to-do list would best be accomplished during the summer months, when our schedules would be most flexible. With my massive wedding-dress-preparation ego, I made my first ever wedding-dress appointment, expecting to waltz right in, immediately and decisively pick a winner (trying on a handful at most), and reign victorious over the wedding-dress hunt.
Um, no. Not so much. Let’s start at the beginning.
All-Inclusion Invitation Suites
