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!
Mr. Candy Apple and I had a tough time figuring out the venue for our reception. I mean, you don’t find many barns in Seattle. At least not cheap ones. (Why are barns so expensive, anyway? For serious.)
So when we were in Seattle this past summer, we decided to check out a few spots. We puttered around downtown, looked at a few hotels. Forced my mom to drive us by SODO. Forced my mom to scope out another few venues. (She’s a trooper!) And what did we end up finding? A place that I have gone to for a lot of my life! Seriously, it was right under my nose. Have you heard of it?
Ladies and gents, we are having our reception at the Seattle Tennis Club. And I have been a member there since I was in middle school. Yep, a long time. (I am an old lady.) I hadn’t really considered it as a venue because, well, I spent a large amount of my youth there, running around in little swimsuits, attempting to conquer the high dive and rolling log, and getting sunburned. For some reason, I guess it just didn’t really pop out in my mind as wedding material.
It is most definitely not a barn. Duh, it’s a tennis club. And it’s perfect. It is right on the shores of Lake Washington and has beautiful views of Mount Rainier. Score! Scenic shots are my favorite (clearly). And, it was on the lower end of estimates that I got from other venues. Double score!! Don’t ask me why, because it is an AMAZING venue, people. I got lots and lots of pictures the last time we were there. And by “I,” I really mean “Mr. Candy Apple,” because he stole my camera. Unfortunately, you can’t really see Mount Rainier in these pictures, but I promise you can see it in person.
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!
While we were out in the vineyards taking bride and groom portraits, our guests made their way into the Grand Salon for the cocktail hour and reception. Here is what they saw upon entering the reception space:
The tables all set up with Casa Real’s standard chocolate brown linens and a mix of high and low centerpieces. You can see our candy buffet in the background. (Cliff Brunk Photography)
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.
I wasn’t that little girl who planned her wedding when she was eight. In fact, up until I met Mr. Seal, I was pretty convinced that I would end up an old spinster with 18 mange-ridden cats. That being said, even though I was (and still am) desperately excited to marry Mr. S and anxiously awaited the engagement, I was a tiny bit frightened that I didn’t possess the “bride gene.”
I did, however, manage to come across this picture of little me dressed as a bride—perhaps early evidence of bridal DNA?
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?
Mr. Caro and I will be celebrating our wedding in a converted church. It took us a while to find the right ceremony venue but we are very happy about our final choice: we think this church has a great intimate vibe and it fits our style perfectly.
The only thing I do not like about it is… the transparent chairs…
Don’t get me wrong: I think transparent chairs look really chic and cool in the right ambiance! I just don’t think the intimate and historic atmosphere of the church fits well with those stylish contemporary chairs for our wedding… 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).
My boss often says, “At every successful event, there are at least three things that go wrong.” The Hippo wedding was no exception, although we lucked out in that the things that went “wrong” were more like little annoyances than major catastrophes… thank goodness! But if I could have a do-over, there are a couple of things that I would have done differently.
Guest book: We tried to make our guest book a unique keepsake by using our engagement photos in a photo book, leaving plenty of white space for guests to write us well wishes and heartfelt words that we could go back and read at any time. I guess our guests didn’t get it ’cause what we ended up with was this:
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.
Any other Pratchett/CMOT Dibbler fans out there? Anyway…
I have an addiction. Its name is Martha Stewart Weddings. I have most of what we need for the wedding, but I can’t stop buying MSW—I guess I think I’ll miss something if I don’t read every issue. Really, they’re all the same ads for dresses and Sandals resorts, but there are still some real gems in there, too! (Full disclosure: Mum got me a subscription to the regular Martha Stewart mag for Christmas, and it is the gift that keeps on giving. Love. It.) The most recent issue had these babies:
I am now obsessed with these essence-of-pie-onna-stick pops. You see, the marshmallow is lemon-flavoured, then you’ve got the meringue, and the shortbread cookie represents the crust… LEMON MERINGUE PIE ONNA STICK. Does it get any better?
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.
This past weekend, Sparks and I moved into our new apartment. It was, in a word… difficult. No, no that’s being too kind. It was actually one of the hardest things we have ever done together. Sure, we moved IN together. But packing up all of OUR stuff at the same time, and moving it to a new location, was a whole new ballgame.
River Dog remained stress-free and content. As usual.
This move was destined to be a nightmare for a variety of reasons. Read more…
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.
So far in writing my recaps, I have found the ceremony posts the hardest to write. How can I sum up so much with just a few words and some pretty pictures? Anyway, I will try my best! 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!
In the grand scheme of budgeting, favors were one of the first casualties. I dusted my hands and was done with that one.
It’s funny how your future spouse can surprise you by being really passionate about something you don’t expect while you’re planning. Sure, Mr. Hyena was fine with not buying 130 people little boxes of candy or other tchotchkes, but since we weren’t going to go with traditional favors, he wanted to do something to honor our guests and participate in an organization that is important to us.
Once upon a time, Mr. H received a Kiva gift card from one of his family members. Kiva is an organization that is helping eliminate world poverty by allowing small-business owners and entrepreneurs in undeveloped countries to become self-sufficient. These entrepreneurs request loans to get their businesses off the ground, and “lenders” donate money to these businesses. As the loans are paid back, you can re-lend money to other entrepreneurs, so your donation goes a lot further than just a one-time payment. Read more…
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.
Prior to getting engaged, I had only stepped into Michaels a handful of times. Now I’m obsessed! I’ve found a few projects I would like to DIY, so it is amazing how many trips to Michaels seem to be required. I blame their coupons! Forty percent off here, 10 percent off your entire purchase between 9 AM and 1 PM there… Never leave home without your Michaels coupons! Mr. Gazelle is a good sport and just chuckles.
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 coworkers are starting to wonder why so many boxes have been arriving for me in the last week. It’s not Christmastime. And it’s not my birthday. This can only mean one thing…our DIY supplies are trickling in!
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!
This post was sort of tough to write so, please, be kind, hive. Guys, I have a confession. Ready? OK, here goes. I pick my eyebrows.
Oh, I do that too you say? No, no, I don’t pluck them in the sense that most women pluck their eyebrows. No, I actually pick them. As in, Hello, my name is Miss Candy Apple and I mangle my eyebrows.
Still confused? Let me explain. As far as bad habits go, nail-biting never really appealed to me, but in late grade school (seventh or eigth grade?) for some reason I started pulling my eyelashes. I don’t really understand why I started doing it, and I eventually kicked the habit, but then in high school I started in on picking at my eyebrows. Stress, maybe? Honestly, I’m not sure exactly why. It is soothing to me for some reason, and even though consciously I know I shouldn’t, I still do it. It relieves my anxiety.
Which is bad. Because wedding planning makes me anxious. So I pick at my eyebrows. Which means that I have patchy eyebrows. But, realizing that I will have patchy eyebrows for the wedding? That makes me anxious too. So I pick at them some more. It’s a vicious cycle, a la Le Petit Prince.
In recent years, the eyebrow-picking has focused mainly on the inner ends of my eyebrows. Those ends have consequently gotten really patchy and ugly; I imagine people think I’m just really terrible at plucking my eyebrows. Sigh. They actually might not even notice. Who knows. But I notice. Read more…
Mrs. Tartlet, Rochester, MIAge and Occupation: Age & Occupation: 27, Post-Doctoral Research FellowFiance's Age and Occupation: 28, Medical StudentEngagement Date: May 2, 2009Wedding Date: May 2011Venue: The Royal Park HotelAbout Me: I'm an exuberant gal from the Midwest with a penchant for Neuroscience and anything sparkly. I'm not afraid to poke fun at myself, and I'm a believer that given the right pair of shoes, a girl can conquer the world. While an interest in the sciences threw Mr. Tartlet and me together (again, and again, until it finally stuck), we share a love for many things---food, video games, car dancing, food, bad puns, travel, did I mention food?---that ultimately led us to where we are now, less than five months from becoming Mr. and Mrs. We're planning a laid-back, romantic, garden-inspired affair with organic and quirky touches that reflect our love for the unexpected!
In a continuation from my previous post, we put serious consideration and thought into rounding out our two weeks in Europe. With so many destination possibilities that fit our desires (culture, art, architecture, and great food), it was tough narrowing the field down, but we finally had an itinerary in hand. Take a gander at the photo below and see if you can guess our first stop before clicking through!
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.
Sadly—no—devastatingly, I have zero pictures of the night of our engagement. I’m going to make a blanket assumption that everyone was caught up in the excitement of the evening and couldn’t be bothered with silly gadgets like cameras and camera phones. Try to bear with me and imagine an incredibly beautiful and emotional night.
After Daddio Seal’s Las Vegas slip-up, I was on my best behavior to not spoil the actual engagement. So I played dumb when Mr. Seal needed to unexpectedly hurry off to “see a friend” or step outside to make a phone call. Eventually, I managed to tune out of my ability to ruin surprises because and I successfully stopped focusing on “getting engaged.”
Anyhoo. Hive, I am absolutely crazy when it comes to the holidays. I love Christmas trees and I love giving gifts—I write and revise dozens of gift-giving lists and tirelessly research for the absolute best deals. (I also try to work peppermint mochas into my daily December diet.)
