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.
Hive, have you ever decided you just had to have something for the wedding? I’m raising my hand here because I sure did. The item in question? A custom return-address stamp. It all started when I stumbled across a custom stamp in Martha Stewart Weddings. I was smitten! But we were nowhere near ready to start on invitations, so I bookmarked it to revisit later.
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!
The week before the wedding, my friend J was insistent that we all needed to “slap the floor” during the wedding reception at some point. I wasn’t sure why we were doing it, but it seemed to be the thing to do. This included my mother as well. Let’s do this!
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.
Did you feel that, hive? Because I’m pretty sure a 150 pound weight was lifted off my shoulders. I’m feeling extra light this Monday because this weekend we finally picked a dress for my bridesmaids! Woohoo!
You might remember that I was having a pretty hard time choosing the perfect dress. The thing is, I sort of knew all along which one I wanted, I just couldn’t man up and make the final decision. I just felt like the dress I wanted was missing… something. I couldn’t put my finger on it until I saw this picture:
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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What’s your money management strategy as a couple? Do you have a budget philosophy and is (or was) it different than your SO’s budget philosophy? How did you get on the same page?
(Thanks to kayakgirl73 for the question!)
It’s a joint effort now.
When we started dating, I was a chronic saver (some might say a cheapskate), and Mr. Dahlia was a chronic spender—not going into debt, but not saving anything either.
When we first combined our finances, I was the one who managed it to make sure our spending remained within our budget and that we saved some money, since I wanted to make sure that we were saving appropriately. I would make sure that the bills got paid, and make sure there weren’t any problems. If there were problems or mistakes, Mr. Dahlia would do the arguing with the cable company/phone company/bank. The problem with this is that I would be stressed out about money, and Mr. D wouldn’t be able to provide helpful advice about what we should be doing, since he was pretty distant from the state of our finances.
Now, we’re equal partners in the money management. As I’ve mentioned before, every Saturday morning we have a family meeting to go over our finances, so that both of us can see how we are coming along with our savings goals, the status of our retirement accounts, etc. This year, both of us have been reading several books about personal finance and investing, because we want to learn more about where and how we should be managing out savings.
We set financial goals on an annual basis (we have 1 year, 3 year, 5 year and 10 year goals), and review them between Thanksgiving and Christmas, and start discussing what our goals for the upcoming year should be. Around New Years Day, we map out our goals and major expenses for the new year and come up with a month by month action plan so that we have a map to get us from where we are to where we want to be.
This includes estimating what our bonuses will be and mapping out what they will be used for and where the money will go, so once that income arrives in our checking account, the plan we outlined months before tells us what we are supposed to do with it. (This keeps us from blowing our bonuses and tax refund on fun but frivolous purchases, and ensures that we actually can afford to go to the various weddings we want to attend this summer.) Read more…
Mrs. Husky, DenverAge and Occupation: 26, Systems AdministratorFiance's Age and Occupation: 32, Mechanical Engineer, recently laid offEngagement Date: August 14, 2009Wedding Date: October 2010Venue: Rancho San CarlosAbout Me: I am planning a quirky-crafty wedding with my recently out-of-work fiancé for a (fingers crossed!) warm October afternoon. We are two self-professed nerds with an affinity for all things outdoors---be it rain, snow or shine. Recently relocated from the drizzly Northwest, we're enjoying the many sun-soaked days in the mile high city. Our day will be filled with both of our large families and friends, a self-served Cajun feast, and a Zydeco-style jazz band rocking beneath the beams of a historic red barn.
But you should know that the route from point A [deciding] and point B [wearing] was not exactly straight. In fact, it was quite squiggly. What follows is a word of caution about using Etsy’s Alchemy process.
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!
After our menu tasting at our venue last month, I promptly forgot all about food for a while. You see, in a last ditch effort to get out of this plateau and shed some more weight before the wedding/alterations, I’ve been going full-steam-ahead on a portion controlled diet. It’s going well and I’m down a couple of kgs, but there’s still a long way to go and not a great deal of time to do it in—so yummy things like menu tastings and desserts were tossed aside in favour of healthy breakfasts and lots of veggies.
But alas! We needed to finalise our menus, and FAST! We drew on our menu tasting experiences, highlighted a few favourites and quickly decided on the food for the evening. We both like similar things, so it was a lot more painless than I’d anticipated. I really hope we get a chance to sit and sample some of the food, because I’m hungry just thinking about it.
You’ll notice we kept our menu full of warm and toasty foods, because it’ll be winter in June here in Sydney—we want our guests feeling comforted and cozy!
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 had done my fair share of stalking wedding websites before getting engaged for inspiration, but when it came time to starting the search for real life vendors to make the dream come true, I had no idea where to start. We were lucky enough that our venue doesn’t have a list of preferred vendors beyond their in house catering, so we were free to pick our own vendors that would match our budgets and our vision. Unfortunately, we only knew one couple that got hitched in the Windy City, and they only had suggestions for a florist, which sent us back to square one on the vendor search.
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.
Armed with my wedding binder and inspiration photos, I set off to meet with two florists for consultations. I was interested in a bouquet with dark purple calla lilies, with other purple-toned flowers and no greenery or crystals. Something along the lines of these:
Mrs. Cardigan, AustinAge and Occupation: 21, Student/Soon-to-be Special Education TeacherFiance's Age and Occupation: 20, Student/Soon-to-be Accounting Systems AnalystEngagement Date: August 16, 2009Wedding Date: January 2011Venue: Vintage VillasAbout Me: I'm a native Austinite who was raised as a die-hard Aggie. Luckily, I'm a pretty persuasive girl because I managed to convince my high school boyfriend (now fiance!), Mr. Cardigan, to ditch his hardcore Longhorn ways and join me up at A&M, where we currently reside with our adorable dogs, Cullen & Ranger. We're currently planning a bright, cheery wedding with a ridiculous amount of DIY projects that I can't wait to tackle! I love crafting in any form, reading, and margaritas (I think I love them the most!). Organization is what keeps me sane and I love helping others, which is probably why I ended up as an education major. It gets a little chaotic sometimes when you're planning a wedding among all of the papers, projects, finals, and certification exams, but we're having the time of our lives and we can't wait to get started on our journey as husband and wife - and we're so excited to share our wedding with the hive!
Much like the family photos, taking a ton of bridal party portraits was not something Mr. Cardigan and I were interested in. We absolutely love the photos that we do have, but we have all we need and we didn’t spend a ton of time on them. We took two sets of photos (with both family and bridal party)—one before the ceremony when Mr. Cardy and I hadn’t seen each other, and one after the ceremony.
I actually felt that doing the photos in two separate batches like that helped space things out and helped me (and everyone else) not get annoyed with standing there and smiling for forever. By breaking it up into two photo sessions, we got a little break in-between posing, which was very nice!
Alright, enough talk—let’s get to the photos! First up, I’ll share the ones taken before the ceremony.
Mrs. Seal, San FranciscoAge and Occupation: 25, Personal AssistantFiance's Age and Occupation: 29, Sales and Support SpecialistEngagement Date: December 12, 2009Wedding Date: November 2011Venue: Sts Peter and Paul Church/The Bently ReserveAbout Me: I am a goofy, wannabe crafty, well-intentioned Renaissance Woman (OK, perhaps "aimless wanderer" is a more aptly suited term for me, but hopefully you get the point)—basically I dabble in just about everything and pride myself in such. Without warning, I occasionally breakout into soulful improvised songs and interpretive dances and there's just no stopping me! As so many others before me, planning our wedding has unearthed a deep, intense passion for all things bridal and I secretly fear the day it will come to an end. Mr. Seal and I are quite the pair and life with him by my side is extremely rewarding—I am so thankful to have found him. Together we are planning a black-tie San Francisco affair for 250—light on the stuffiness and with lots of extra Seal-y flair.
Before further developing the “Old San Francisco” motif, it was important to establish a color scheme. I mean, that’s like the second thing people ask when they find out you’re getting married—”What are your colors?!” This seemed like a pretty loaded question, and I had to be prepared!
Prior to coming up with the San Francisco theme, I was dead set on black and white with red accents, like a thiiiisss:
Mrs. Crepe, Queens, NY/Nashville, TNAge and Occupation: 28, Jewelry DesignerFiance's Age and Occupation: 28, Animation DirectorEngagement Date: September 28, 2010Wedding Date: May 2011Venue: A church in downtown NashvilleAbout Me: I'm a native New Yorker who has always been a DIY kind of girl and loves tackling creative projects while getting the most out of a dollar. I'm marrying my college sweetheart and we love frequenting antique stores, exploring together, and playing with kittens. We're planning a fun, "us" wedding in his hometown---with as many handmade touches as we can pack into a day!
The ring pillow was one of those unimportant details to Mr. Crepe and me—we probably aren’t going to have a ring bearer so having a pillow seemed unnecessary. But you know how it is. You come across photo after photo of adorable creative solutions for something so seemingly simple and then it doesn’t seem quite so unnecessary. Besides, it’s such a tiny project, right? Justification is the word of the day. (Or month.)
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.
Marriage is like a well-developed garden; it takes time, commitment and hard work.
That was the quote my uncle shared with us as he wrapped up his short message. Then it was time for our vows. Mr E and I wrote them together—each different but each expressing the same love and promises. I have used our real names in these sections…just ’cause vows seem to require that level of real.
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."
Hive, Imma play it straight. I need to hit you up for some information, so let me just ask you this up front: when you attend a wedding, what are you hoping to have for dinner? Like…what’s the best thing you’ve ever eaten at a wedding? (Dare I ask…what’s the worst thing…?)
Personally, I prefer delicious but somewhat “lighter” foods, so I don’t feel to weighed down to dance later. Easy enough, right? I should have no problem finalizing my own wedding menu.
But here’s my problem: Pdog and I are very eclectic eaters. This past week alone, we ate scallops one night, salmon another, plus Thai, homemade Mexican, Greek, and Indian food. And—fine—I had a bowl of cereal for dinner one night. Like your diet is sooo perfect.
Since I like everything, it’s hard for me to guess what pickier eaters would dislike. I’d like to venture outside of Chicken Parmesan for our reception dinner, but I want to keep options open for choosier diners as well.
We want to feature themes YOU want to see, so if you have a theme or color scheme you’d like to see featured, suggest it in the comments below! We’re not limiting the boards to weddings, so if you have an awesome bachelorette or bridal shower theme that you’d like to see featured, let us know! Of course, there are bonus points for coming up with themes featuring puns. We love a great pun!
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!
Mom Hyena is notorious for ruining pictures by putting her hand in front of her face. With that preface, my parents have a running joke that they use to rile me up whenever we have wedding conversations. It goes like this, every single time:
Mom Hyena: “I’m not going to the wedding if I have to be in pictures!”
Well, clearly, jeans will not do, so Mom Hyena and I planned to go shopping while I was in Dallas. We headed out to the mall, which is my mom’s least favorite place on earth. We trekked through J.C. Penney, Macy’s, Dillard’s, and Nordstrom with no results. The closest we came was this, from Dillard’s:
Very pretty, but she was afraid it was too fancy. Also, she’s wearing her jeans under this dress.
It’s a joint effort now.
