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!
After an exhaustive and exhausting search for BM dresses, I came to the following conclusion: with seven bridesmaids, it’s nexttoimpossible to find one singular selection of anything that will appease and please all seven of them. Each girl has her own personality, style, preferences, and comfort levels, making the task of putting together an outfit for all seven of them to wear quite the tall order. I felt such immense relief once we finally picked a BM dress that I couldn’t really muster up the strength to go through the BM ringer once again, seeking the perfect accessories. I gagged at the thought of sending and receiving dozens of emails, all containing various votes and preferences for the umpteen permutations of options, never knowing if some people were being problematically honest while others were politely but unhelpfully biting their tongues. Nope. I’m not going to do it and you can’t make me.
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.
I don’t want to post about the wedding until I have some photos to show you, but our wedding was awesome. It totally exceeded all of our expectations and I can’t wait to tell you all about it.
But until the pics are ready, I’ll just give you all a recap of our super-ultra-mini-honeymoon in Ithaca.
We left at around noon and drove the four hours to upstate New York. The weather was dismal—cold and rainy—and the forecast indicated that it wasn’t going to get any better, but we didn’t really care. We just wanted to relax, and we only had about 48 hours to do it.
We arrived at the City Lights Bed and Breakfast and checked in. You guys, this place was so adorable! They upgraded us for free to an amazing suite, which was just perfect, like a quaint little apartment.
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!
Well, we’re exactly 100 days out from the wedding. 100 days!! What the hell?! I feel like I’m going to hurl, it’s so close. And yet, so far! Can it not just get here right now? Sigh.
I suppose that now is as good a time as any for a sappy, emotional post. I mean, I did miss posting about this on our ome year engage-aversary (YEAH, May 9!!), so 100 days out is going to have to suffice. If you’re looking for lovely pictures, you can go away now—this is all words and mush and sap, baby!
You see, I have been really struggling to find the right words for this post; I am still trying to sort through my emotions on this, and figure out where I am in regards to the whole situation. Also, I feel awkward and weird sharing this with you, but, well, I guess that’s what this whole blog thing is for. Right?
Pretty soon after we got engaged, out of the blue, I received the following text from Mr. CA: 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!
My family is from the South, and even though I technically haven’t lived there since I was 6 weeks old, there are some Southern traditions that have stayed with us (including my propensity to say “y’all” whenever possible). One of those traditions is the bridesmaid luncheon. I believe this usually takes place the day before the wedding, but for logistical purposes we held it on Thursday. My grandmother has hosted this luncheon for most of my cousins, and she and my aunts hosted the luncheon for me. We invited my bridesmaids and Mr. EB’s and my female relatives who were in town to lunch at my aunt’s house.
But first, my girls and I went to get our nails done.
Bridesmaid N and Bridesmaid K
I met my girls in the morning to get manicures and pedicures, which was a great way to kick off the weekend festivities and spend some time together. Unfortunately, while my pedicure was great, my manicure was not and I ended up taking it off before the wedding and just putting on some clear polish and calling it a day. Read more…
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.
Alternative title: How the Wrong Linens Cost Miss Cotton Candy 500 Bucks and Her Sanity
Yesterday I received what I’d describe as a barf-inducing call from our coordinator regarding our linens. I’m not sure what spurred our coordinator to reach out to our rental company to confirm the dimensions of our linens—maybe some sort of wedding coordinator sixth sense—but I’m thankful that she did, because the linens we reserved are too short for our tables. This isn’t the end of the world, but this isn’t really what I had in mind when I envisioned our tables:
Mrs. High Wire, DallasAge and Occupation: 23, Legal AssistantFiance's Age and Occupation: 25, Director of CommunicationsEngagement Date: October 9, 2010Wedding Date: September 2011Venue: Clark GardensAbout Me: My loves include yoga, anything spicy, our eccentric cat, our rambunctious dog, and Mr. High Wire, of course! Like the steadiness act of the tightrope walker, this gal is busy balancing life while planning a wedding to the man of her dreams. We’re hosting a laid-back, vintage-inspired, bird themed wedding with heavy doses of love, good eats (did someone say tacos and margaritas?), and endless Texas charm. Mr. High Wire and I are so happy to have you along for the walk across the tight rope.
Planning a wedding is arguably one big, long test of organization and time management. Staying on top of things is KEY, or the whole process can get really overwhelming and out of hand if you aren’t keeping track of everything. Soon enough, you could have something like this on your hands:
Mrs. Balloons, Aspen, COAge and Occupation: 24, Mass Communications graduate, Web Design student, & winery workerFiance's Age and Occupation: 26, EngineerEngagement Date: July 10, 2009Wedding Date: August 2011Venue: The Sundeck at The Little NellAbout Me: I'm a small-town Midwest girl planning an intimate mountaintop destination wedding complete with a huge DIY at-home reception. As an honors graduate fallen victim to the worst job market in history in my area, we're doing everything we can to still have the wedding of our dreams on a tighter budget. I currently enjoy working at a winery, but I'm lonnng overdue for a day job! I am: a big-time daydreamer, one of the pickiest eaters you'll ever meet, and a lover of pretty paper and awesome fonts. I'm a girly girl who loves to get dolled up, but also a country girl who loves to get muddy and go 4-wheeler riding. I also enjoy singing in the car, boating, going to concerts, the History Channel, carnival food, and going to watch St. Louis Cardinals baseball with my handsome engineer.
I was literally jumping up and down when I opened the box. I don’t have a picture capturing that exact moment, but it went a little something like this:
Mrs. Meerkat, Kalamazoo, MI/Riviera MayaAge and Occupation: 30, Application EngineerFiance's Age and Occupation: 23, IT ConsultantEngagement Date: July 26, 2008Wedding Date: December 2010Venue: Al Cielo / La LagunaAbout Me: I’m a tech-savvy tomboy with an affinity for hot tea and good sushi. Us Meerkats are just a couple fun lovin’ geeks from Michigan. We love anything having to do with movies, books, video games or technology and we hold a special place in our hearts for our two very spoiled shih-tzus, Wicket and Bravo. We also LOVE to travel. We love it so much it only took us 12 hours after we got engaged to decide to have a destination wedding. We are working our little Meerkat tails off planning a rustic-chic, travel themed destination wedding in the Riviera Maya with a semi-formal, vintage-turned-modern, outdoor at home reception back here in Michigan.
I said we were not going to do anything like this. None. Zero. I put my bridal foot down. We were only going to do fun poses. Yea…well it didn’t really happen like that because our moms wanted those photos. And I am a big enough person to admit that I am very happy that they got their way.
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.
Today I received a much anticipated phone call, hive. The phone call I’ve been waiting on for a pretty long time… SIX months to be exact. After I hung up, my brain processed the information I’d just received in this exact order:
My dress came in today.
Oh my God.
MY DRESS CAME IN TODAY.
I AM FREAKING OUT.
Yes, I’m freaking out from happiness and giddiness and girly fun, but I’m also freaking out because… y’all… that dress is going to be snug. And I just said “y’all,” so you know it’s serious.
Mrs. Funnel Cake, Zürich, Switzerland/Columbus, OhioAge and Occupation: 24, Visual Communication DesignerFiance's Age and Occupation: 28, Application EngineerEngagement Date: May 30, 2010Wedding Date: October 2011Venue: Catholic church followed by a botanical conservatoryAbout Me: I'm an American designer who moved to Switzerland for love after a fairytale beginning at the top of the Eiffel Tower. I love travel, photography, museums, learning German so I can speak with my mother-in-law, cooking (eating), cuddling, and I'm not afraid to try something new even if it terrifies me. My Swiss/Brazilian man and I are both down to earth people planning a traditional Catholic wedding in my hometown with some quirky cultural exceptions to reflect our different backgrounds. We look forward to celebrating with friends and family from all over the world in a classic, sophisticated fusion of heritage and love.
Awhile back, Mr. Funnel Cake and I sat down and drafted our invitation text, something that we had been mulling over for the past few months. The first draft went something along the lines of this:
Drs. Daddy and Mommy Funnel Cake
request the honour of your presence at the marriage of their daughter
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!
We’re less than a month away from the wedding, which means it’s the perfect time for me to begin having irrational concerns about the wedding and, more importantly, my wedding-day appearance. This week’s freak-out is all about the teeth. Specifically, I have two main concerns: color and straightness.
WORRY: COLOR
Who doesn’t wantwhite teeth any day of the week, let alone on a day when a few hundred people will be staring at you and snapping a few hundred photos? I’m really nervous that I’ll be less than thrilled with the whiteness of my teeth come wedding day. I have visions of getting the photos back and having a reaction similar to this series of events:
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.
Gah! I really want to share our invitations with you right now, but I’d hate to spoil the surprise for our guests. However, since I am asking you all to wait four months for the big reveal…how about a bit of a sneak peek?!
Like Mrs. Lioness and Mrs. Lemon before me, I’ve decided to invite a couple of VIPs. As these are people who likely have lots of invites to swanky soirees rolling in on a daily basis, I thought it best to send out their invitations a few months early With any luck, I hear you actually get some prettycoolkeepsake responses.
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.
Recently, one of my amazingly beautiful friends, Miss O, announced she is engaged! I couldn’t be happier for her and her wonderful future husband, and I cannot wait to support her in any way possible throughout her wedding-planning journey. The only issue? Miss O and her fiance are getting married six days after our wedding.
When I first got her save the date, it didn’t register with me that our weddings are so close together. I was too busy jumping up and down exclaiming how excited I was for their wedding to even focus on what was written on the card. After I calmed myself down, I realized that our weddings are going to be super close together, and scheduling and other issues are bound to arise.
First, I selfishly worried whether Miss O would be able to come to our wedding. I love Miss O and her fiance, and I would be very disappointed if they were not able to come.
For a brief moment, I entertained the possibility that Miss O chose this date knowing and hoping that we would not be able go to their wedding. About 30 seconds later I realized that this was a ridiculous, narcissistic thought and got over myself because, really?…really? I knew better.
As reality set in, I realized that Mr. Pony and I originally planned to leave on our honeymoon immediately following the wedding festivities. If we leave immediately after the wedding, there would be no way we could get back in time for Miss O’s wedding. Which would make me a sad panda. Read more…
Weddingbee GalleryFeature Launched: April 10, 2009About: A collection of inspirational wedding pictures from readers and bees.
krazy2wedding DIYed her Mario Bros bouquets to look like the Fire and Ice Plants in the games!
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.
With any luck, I hear you actually get some 
