Mrs. Bunting, Grand Rapids, MIAge and Occupation: 24, freelance illustrator & print productionFiance's Age and Occupation: 24, graduate of historyEngagement Date: December 3, 2009Wedding Date: June 2011Venue: Spring Grove Park & St. George Banquet CenterAbout Me: I am a freelance illustrator and designer with a love of nature and a taste for adventure. Textures and color fuel my world, along with apple cider and noodles. I'll try anything once, especially if it involves heights or food. I've hiked the Grand Canyon, gone sky diving, cuddled a baby wolf, and now my latest venture consists of designing and planning a large wedding involving color, DIY details, love, and marrying my best friend.
I have a very strong sense of curiosity. So strong that if Mr. Bunting hints at something that sparks my curiosity, I’ll obsess about it for weeks until he himself can no longer remember what it was about (or at least he pretends he doesn’t remember).
Yes, I was totally one of those kids who would try to find any hidden Christmas presents before Christmas. But I also do enjoy surprises, so when I found where they were hidden I just couldn’t bring myself to finish peeking. Apparently it was enough just to know where they were hidden.
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.
So I’m 30 days out from the wedding (S1*FJ!@KJH sorry, small freak out). And I haven’t heard a whisper of a bridal shower or bachelorette. I know that those are not the things that a wedding is about but still…it’s a little sad-making. My bridesmaids are awesome ladies, and I knew when I asked them that neither was in an awesome financial situation: one bought a house last year and now has the accompanying mortgage payments, and the other was severely injured in a car accident a couple years ago and has only gotten back to working in the past nine months or so. I knew I wasn’t going to Vegas, or even nearby Banff for a bachelorette. I’m also not a huge fan of dancing and clubs. There’s still time for a bachelorette though—nothing too crazy, but people could be gathered to go out at least for some drinks (there’s a martini bar nearby with over 100 martinis on their menu…).
But I think we’re at the point where it is a bit late for a shower, which is a little sad, when I see such cute things like Miss Gazelle’s tea party shower or the British shower Miss Magic threw for a bridesmaid. It’s reminding me a little of the time that I decided 10 years old was “too old” for a birthday party and then was sad for a whole year until my next birthday. Only with this…
Congratulations to our winners hbear and Coffeecake!
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We have a great giveaway for you today! Bunny with a Toolbelt creates one-of-a-kind custom cake toppers for couples that want their personalities to shine atop their wedding cakes. You might have seen their work recently right here on Weddingbee: Mrs. Dolphin has raved about her very own gator and knight cake toppers, custom made by Bunny with a Toolbelt! From robots to giraffes, they can create characters and toppers that fit your personality perfectly.
Today, Bunny with a Toolbelt is giving away two $100 gift certificates to two lucky Weddingbee readers! You can use the certificates toward anything they carry in their Etsy shop, or towards a custom commissioned piece!
You have two chances to enter this contest!
Simply visit Bunny with a Toolbelt’s Etsy shop and check out their wedding cake toppers. Then come back here and let us know which topper is your favorite! And for a second chance to win, follow Weddingbee on Twitter and retweet this contest (if you’re already a follower, simply retweet by clicking here!). Then come back here and let us know that you followed/retweeted. You have until Friday, June 3rd at 11:59 PM PST to enter. Good luck!
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.
We are now about four months out from the High Wire wedding. All of our vendors have been selected and contracted. The big to-dos are now to-DONEs. It feels great.
My passions before wedding planning were very health oriented. Lately, those passions have taken a backseat while I’ve worked diligently on getting wedding tasks accomplished.
But now that the largest tasks are behind me, it is time to combine things a bit.
When I started to put this post together, I immediately thought of a post from one of my favorite blogs, Healthy Tipping Point. Caitlin wrote an awesome post on goal-setting for the new year back in January, and I went to re-read that post today to give me some tips and inspiration. Read more…
Mrs. Poodle, Santiago, Chile/San Bernardino, CAAge and Occupation: 27, Industrial & Web DesignerFiance's Age and Occupation: 24, Firefighter & Mountain PatrolEngagement Date: February 25, 2009Wedding Date: January 2010Venue: Mr. P's Grandparents’ RanchAbout Me: I’m a Chilean girl who's crazy about nature and swimming. I enjoy carving, drawing, reading and sewing; I drool over computers, fabric, pretty paper, purple and patterns. To me, chocolate should be one of the seven wonders, right next to lemon pie. I never thought an exchange work experience program was going to change my life forever, but while working in California, I met Mr. Poodle, and ever since my days are better and brighter. We are two goofy souls that, after finding each other, couldn’t help but want to be together forever. It has being a long and sometimes hard road, since we have to deal with such a long distance between us, but we are now facing the last stage of our Fiancé Visa, and soon we will be together. You know the best part? We will be married! So I’ll be blogging from Chile until just a few months before our “green and purple” wedding.
In part 1 I showed you all some of my favorite pictures before our ceremony. Here is the second part, featuring my favorites of us around the old house, burnt machinery field, and the dirt road. We had to have some pictures of us on the rope swing. Mr. Poodle has played on it ever since he can remember, so it was really cool to have pictures with it.
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.
Here’s another project has been crossed off our to-do list! This can only mean one thing—the end is near. No, not that end. The end of wedding planning! And with every end, there is always a beginning to look forward to. Ah, but that’s a post for another day. You’re here to see latest project, right?
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!
Truthfully speaking, few things make me happier than crossing off items on a to-do list. I’ll admit, I’m the type of person to put “write to-do list” as the first item on my to-do list so I can cross that sucker off within about 30 seconds. I’m an accomplishment junkie, I guess…the less exciting counterpart of the adrenaline junkie, you could say. So you can imagine my sheer frustration that I cannot for the life of me manage to finalize a very specific item on my wedding list of tasks—my jewelry.
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.
Now this is a story, all about fonts…cause our invites need a’written a’right about now…OK, I’m obviously not very good at parodying Fresh Prince, but it’s been a long week and I need a little singing here. You could always humour me and sing along, you know?
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 don’t think of myself as some obsessive compulsive, detail focused, perfectionistic b-word (you could insert the traditional b-word here, or the wedding related b-word…they both work), but maybe I am. Or maybe everyone* else just sucks.
I’m referring to wedding related tasks and actually accomplishing wedding related tasks. Seems like I am doing a lot, which yes, I mostly enjoy…but…others say they will do certain tasks and then…nothing.
My hypothesis is: I’m awesome and do things best, and everyone* else just sucks. Can you have a two pronged hypothesis? I should have read Miss Pony’s scientific post more carefully… 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.
Mr. Pony has an awesome family that I am so excited to be joining in just a few months. They have always been completely welcoming and kind to me. We would like to include as much family as possible in our wedding, including Mr. Pony’s younger brother, Little P. (Hee hee, it’s funny cause he is like six years older than me.)
Although they have spent the majority of their adult lives in different countries, the Ps are still as close as ever:
Little and P showing their distaste for Italian beer
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.
Why a combined bachelor/bachelorette party is basically the best thing ever—and we know because we just had one:
Mr. Jam, bridesmaid Tana & me at the combined theme bachelor/bachelorette party. More pictures (and lots of gabbing about the freakishly amazing decorations) soon…AKA when everyone else uploads pictures. Who do you think forgot to bring her camera? Oy.
1. No embarrassing gifts or games. No lingerie that will reside in the back of my underwear drawer for all eternity; Nothing hanging around my neck that was A) phallic, or B) flashing, which would probably only make me feel drunk; No awkward bar games where I have to dance with a random man wearing a hat, or take whipped-cream-topped shots using only my mouth. Read more…
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.
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!
The Bee’s Life series is so fun, and I had to get in on the action!
1) How did I find Weddingbee?
You should know right off the bat that I LOVE lists. When I got engaged, I didn’t even think to look online for inspiration or planning advice. Instead, I went for ye olde BRIDES magazine. In that first magazine I ever bought, they had a list of the top 10 wedding planning websites. So of course, being the list-freak I am, I added all 10 to my Google Reader. One of them was Weddingbee. Over time, some of them got removed from my blogroll, some just didn’t float my boat, some I didn’t find very useful…but Weddingbee fascinated me. Here was a great community of brides! And they liked each other! And they were freaking brilliant! And OMG I wanted to be a part of that so badly.
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.
Why does it seem like whenever I cross something off our “To-Do” list, 10 other things pop up in its place? Why can’t I seem to accomplish anything during the week? Why are there so many decisions to be made? Why can’t Sparks pick a suit?* Why?
If you couldn’t tell, that was me… freaking out. And it seems to be happening a lot lately. In place of wedding nightmares, I’ve been having full on, daytime freak outs. It’s lots of fun, let me tell you.
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’m just going to come right out and say it: I have stretch marks. I have stretch marks and I don’t even have a cute baby to blame for them. No, no, hive. My stretch marks are lovingly attributed to my life-long struggle with weight. I’ve had these pesky little boogers for a while now (I’m thinkin’ at least a decade). This is particularly lovely because I hear the longer you wait to do anything about them the more difficult it is to fade them into oblivion.
Anyhow, let me illustrate for you. Let’s pretend for a moment that the woman depicted below is me and let’s let the arrows represent the affected stretch mark areas.
Image via Patient UK/Edited for modesty + stretch marks
We had to have some pictures of us on the rope swing. Mr. Poodle has played on it ever since he can remember, so it was really cool to have pictures with it.
