Mrs. Macarons, TampaAge and Occupation: 26, Graphic DesignerFiance's Age and Occupation: 34, Renaissance ManEngagement Date: September 12, 2009Wedding Date: September 2011Venue: Lange FarmAbout Me: I'm creative at heart and a graphic designer with an unhealthy obsession with type. I love roller coasters, spicy foods, and a good glass of Crianza. We’re planning a soft and lovely vintage-meets-modern wedding in a state that’s known for its beaches, glitz and glam. I have a ton of DIY projects and lots of little details I’m dying to share and can't wait to celebrate with our closest friends and family.
If you recall my inspiration board, I love the look of lace wrapped candles. They’re just so soft and romantic—what’s not to love? Beth Helmstetter gives a brief tutorial here, but I thought you’d appreciate a more detailed account.
Mrs. Ladyfingers, Saint Petersburg, FLAge and Occupation: 30, Marketing ManagerFiance's Age and Occupation: 33, Sports WriterEngagement Date: December 24, 2010Wedding Date: November 2011Venue: Palma Sola Botanical ParkAbout Me: I hail from Oklahoma, he was born and raised in Long Island. Fate brought us together, and now we live in a cute little rental house with our nutty dog, and our aloof cat. We both love to read, watch movies, explore our town, and laugh like hyenas. When I’m not obsessively wedding crafting, I enjoy stalking style and decorating blogs, making collages and painting, napping, thrifting, rearranging our bookshelves, and being a total weirdo with my friends. Hi!
Pretty much right from the beginning, we knew we wanted to do cupcakes. The first thing that prompted the decision was the fact that they wouldn’t require a cake-cutting fee. That, followed quickly by…
Cute
Delicious
Flexible (Choosing two to three flavors gives everybody something they’ll probably love, unless they’re on a special diet.)
Affordable
Cutelicious (What? It’s totally different than 1 or 2.)
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!
I am a huge fan of detail shots! Thankfully with Lynn’s awesome team they were able to divide and conquer to capture so many of the pieces that would make up our wedding day outfits.
Miss Marmalade, Norwalk, CT/Raleigh, NCAge and Occupation: 27, Administrative AssistantFiance's Age and Occupation: 28, Army OfficerEngagement Date: December 31, 2009Wedding Date: July 2011Venue: Old Cadet Chapel/Highlands Country ClubAbout Me: I'm a Tri-State area "lady," through and through. A big chunk of my life has been split between NYC and Connecticut, and I'm finally heading down south to live with Mr. Marmalade. Our long distance relationship has been one adventure after the next, we've spent time in Texas, Louisiana, Florida,and Georgia, thanks to his military career. Next to Mr. Marmalade, my loves include live music, useless trivia, shoes, design, and my crazy half-tiger kitty, Oliver. I have a passion for food and wine, and I've been known to travel long distances to get my hands on the best meals. I come from a tight-knit big fat Greek Ecuadorian family---we're loud, we talk with our hands, and we spend hours talking loudly with our hands over large meals. I'm going to miss them so much as I pack up and begin my life, far away from home. But with Mr. Marmalade by my side, I'm ready to take on whatever may come. Next up: our wedding!
Sometimes, after a rough day, all I can think of is meeting up with friends and unwinding over a glass of wine, maybe some pizza (probably both). Well, I had a bad day last week and, instead of craving a glass of red, I had the craziest urge to make something. Instantly I thought to myself, “Cuz needs a ring-bearer pillow. I can tackle that. And if she likes it—great! And if she doesn’t, at least I tried.”
I took my inspiration from the sweet ring-bearer bowls by Paloma’s Nest…
Miss Sweet Cream, PhiladelphiaAge and Occupation: 26, Public Relations Account ManagerFiance's Age and Occupation: 26, Outside SalesEngagement Date: July 4, 2010Wedding Date: October 2011Venue: Our Lady of Grace Catholic Church / Rosebank WineryAbout Me: Born in the ‘burbs of Philly, it took some time living in the Big Apple to realize that I’m a girl who likes her roots. That’s why the mister and I bought a 1950s house on a charming street not too far from our childhood stompin’ grounds. This could also be the reason why our hometown is the scene where we are planning our super sweet, totally charming, BBQ-for-supper wedding that I never knew I always wanted. I DIE over DIY projects and live for vintage, heartfelt inspiration. I obsess over all things mid-century (from forks to furniture). Love is… cartoons and flea markets, and I am known to whip up a mean banana cream pie. I met the Mr. in grade school and after that boy took me for a spin on the handle bars of his BMX, I knew that things would never be the same again. Besides lovin’ my Mr., I also love to plan, sew and create, and that’s just what I’m doing as I navigate through the details, creating a laid-back day that oozes charm; one that will go down in (at least our) history as the Best. Day. Of all time.
So dear hive, I’ve shared with you about some accessories that are a must for me on the big day. But what about my, sweet, sweet Mister?
I told you that we nailed down a general idea of just what he and his guys will show up in on the big day… but I forgot to mention one thing. Well, Mr. Sweets…he likes his accessories manly!
Mr. Sweets is a sucker for watches, cologne, sunglasses, (baseball) hats (that he collects like a kid collects baseball cards!), Nikes, Phillies t-shirts, retro sports jerseys… OK, well maybe some of those aren’t accessories, although they are manly, manly things—but you get the idea.
So, Mr. Sweets has yet to decide on his exact attire for the big day (except that it will be a charcoal grey suit of some kind). But like me, he also loves accessorizing finding things to go with his clothes.
So he thought that these cuff links were pretty darn cool, and just like that, we ordered them!
Mrs. Plaid, AustinAge and Occupation: 26, Pastry ChefFiance's Age and Occupation: 34, Cabinetry CarpenterEngagement Date: August 8, 2009Wedding Date: October 2010Venue: Kindred Oaks, GeorgetownAbout Me: I am a Jersey girl born and raised but have since migrated to Texas and embraced its twang and Tex-Mex. I could probably eat chips and queso every day but instead I eat popcorn. I use the word “awesome” way too much but I just can’t seem to stop myself. I am addicted to all things DIY and am planning what I call a Texas-Chic wedding. I love snuggling with my two adorable dogs and of course, my adorable fiance. I can’t wait 'til I can call him my husband some day! October 2010, here we come!
I decided to show y’all all the details of our programs since some of you were asking. They were definitely one of the most involved projects I took on, but probably the one I was most proud of.
I started by scoping out other people’s programs to see what they included in their programs. I love you Google search! When researching I fell in love with two types of programs: the booklet and the fan. So what’s an over-achieving DIY addict to do? Combine both ideas, of course!
I started with blue and yellow card stock. I cut them to size and used a crease-r to make the program cover.
Mrs. Cucumber Sandwich, Washington, DC/Cape May, NJAge and Occupation: 28, School CounselorFiance's Age and Occupation: 40, Collegiate AthleticsEngagement Date: March 27, 2010Wedding Date: October 2011Venue: Congress Hall HotelAbout Me: I am a school counselor who spends my day wrangling children and my nights attempting to be creative with wedding projects. My enthusiasm for each of these activities far surpasses my skill. Thank goodness Mr. Cucumber Sandwich is there to pick up the pieces and be the voice of reason about my DIY tries. I have an obsession with terrible romantic comedies (‘From Justin to Kelly’ anyone?, anyone?!?), competitive Scrabble play, and hot dogs. I could eat astronaut ice cream for every meal and can’t seem to resist buying more shoes. Our wedding is going to be a true hodge podge of semi-destination, tradition, Yuengling, New England charm, with just a dash of ‘Jersey Shore’ thrown in. It has been six years in the making and I can’t wait to marry my best friend.
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).
I have to admit, I was nervous as we headed to the wedding rehearsal. In theatreland, a bad rehearsal means a good show, but a bad wedding rehearsal for me would have completely stressed me out. I’ve seen many a Bridezilla episode where the wedding party doesn’t show up on time, or they aren’t listening to important instructions or other general chaos ensues. While I knew our wedding party was filled with responsible people, I was still nervous.
Most of our wedding party hadn’t been to the art gallery before, so the first few minutes were spent taking a look around at the amazing art. Just like most traditional wedding rehearsals, we started by getting in our positions at the front of the ceremony, recessing as if the ceremony were over, and then processing into our original positions. Our DOC quickly took charge, showing everyone where to line up—girls on one side, and guys on the other.
Mrs. Penguin, Northern CaliforniaAge and Occupation: 27, Weddingbee Editor in ChiefFiance's Age and Occupation: 30, Doctor of Physical TherapyEngagement Date: January 29, 2007Wedding Date: June 7, 2008Blogging Since: September 14, 2007Venue: Winery in the Gold CountryAbout Me: I love the Spice Girls, dogs with underbites, bean burritos, making messes, high fives, avoiding showers, crossword puzzles, blogs, weddings, and blogs about weddings!
Taking your suggestions, we finalized our next generation of bees and shot them off to our artist Irene today for her to work her magic! Which woodland creatures made the cut? You’ll just have to wait and see to find out! But we will let you in on one of the names—the generation will include a warbler! We thought all you Gleeks out there (including our resident Gleek, Mrs. Mouse) would love it!
Meanwhile we have a slew of awesome icons still waiting to be snatched up in our current Tea Party generation and even a few from past generations beyond that. And since so many of our May/June bees are newly minted Mrs. bees, that means we’re looking for you!
If you’re interested in becoming a bee, check out our application guidelines and apply today! We’re currently accepting applications from bloggers getting married through March 2012. And if you’re looking for some guidance about what it takes to be a bee and what it’s like to be one, check out the bees’ advice for blogging… they’re the experts!
The bees are ready to welcome you to blogging beedom…which bee icon can you see yourself being?
Mrs. Starfish, Boston/NewportAge and Occupation: 25, Operations AssistantFiance's Age and Occupation: 25, SalesEngagement Date: October 8, 2008Wedding Date: October 2010Venue: The Atlantic Beach ClubAbout Me: I'm a perfectionist who is a planner at heart. I don't do well with surprises. I love planning, crafting, Newport RI, family and friends, and most importantly, Mr. Starfish---all of which will be big components in our October wedding in our favorite little city by the sea.
After the speeches and parent dances, we had a quick bite to eat and then began mingling with guests. We opted to skip the receiving line at the church and instead went around to all the tables during the dinner hour to greet our guests.
Once we said hello to every table, my bridesmaids grabbed me and I don’t think we left the dance floor all night. We spent the night dancing away to our favorite songs with our friends and family.As we were recently watching our wedding video, Starfish Mom pointed out that it looked like we only invited females to our wedding.
Miss Marmalade, Norwalk, CT/Raleigh, NCAge and Occupation: 27, Administrative AssistantFiance's Age and Occupation: 28, Army OfficerEngagement Date: December 31, 2009Wedding Date: July 2011Venue: Old Cadet Chapel/Highlands Country ClubAbout Me: I'm a Tri-State area "lady," through and through. A big chunk of my life has been split between NYC and Connecticut, and I'm finally heading down south to live with Mr. Marmalade. Our long distance relationship has been one adventure after the next, we've spent time in Texas, Louisiana, Florida,and Georgia, thanks to his military career. Next to Mr. Marmalade, my loves include live music, useless trivia, shoes, design, and my crazy half-tiger kitty, Oliver. I have a passion for food and wine, and I've been known to travel long distances to get my hands on the best meals. I come from a tight-knit big fat Greek Ecuadorian family---we're loud, we talk with our hands, and we spend hours talking loudly with our hands over large meals. I'm going to miss them so much as I pack up and begin my life, far away from home. But with Mr. Marmalade by my side, I'm ready to take on whatever may come. Next up: our wedding!
I’ve put this off for way too long. As I mentioned before, it was a tough choice to leave our dream venue. So tough, that as much as I love our current venue, there’s a little part of me that still wishes we could have stayed with the original site.
But there’s no sense in regret, especially not when this place is so perfect for us!
I wasn’t sold on having a wedding in New York state, but as time went on, I began to see that it didn’t matter what I wanted, as our local options were very limited. Looking back on it, I wish I could have told myself to chill out because the Hudson Valley is not that far and our venue is awesome!
So let me introduce you to the Highlands Country Club. It’s a small private club located near the Hudson River.
Mrs. Cannon, Toledo, OHAge and Occupation: 27, Financial AnalystFiance's Age and Occupation: 28, AssemblerEngagement Date: February 28, 2011Wedding Date: September 2011Venue: Epworth UMC & Ward PavilionAbout Me: I'm the curious combination of being a go-with-the-flow, laid back, obsessive planner. I try desperately to stay as busy as possible at all times (and am succeeding big time right now!) My biggest loves in life are Law & Order: SVU, Community (the show, not the concept, although I like that, too), ice cream, white cheddar popcorn, beer, hiking, knitting, decorating, writing, being outside, spending time with friends and family and musical theater. Mr. Cannon is pretty sweet, too. We've had a lot of fun traveling and having adventures all over the country, but have finally moved back near our hometown to settle down. We're planning a low-key, colorful, fun wedding and an awesome-to-the-max reception.
Oh, boy! Remember how excited, anxious, and nervous I was about getting back our engagement pictures? Well, not long after writing that post we got an email from the head of our photography company! It felt like forever but was maybe a little over two weeks from the pictures being taken to us getting to see them, which is especially impressive if you consider the fact that said head of the company was giving birth to her first child the same day we got our pictures done.
When I initially wrote about getting our pictures done, I don’t think I emphasized how much we laughed and how much fun we had. Much like creating our registry, it was almost like a little date to get some time together to just goof off. One of the things that has really surprised me about wedding planning is how many memories are made just planning. Mr. Cannon and I work different schedules, and we don’t get to see each other as often as we’d like, so we really cherish any time we do get to see each other. The wedding planning has given us a lot of opportunities to think about our relationship and concentrate on each other in a way that we don’t do on an everyday basis. Taking engagement pictures was a big example of that, and I’m really glad we did it. I think our happiness and love really came through in the pictures, and I’m incredibly pleased with them.
Mrs. Lemonade, Austin/San AntonioAge and Occupation: 28, BureaucratFiance's Age and Occupation: 28, Music ManagementEngagement Date: December 21, 2007Wedding Date: April, 2009Blogging Since: August 22, 2008Venue: Country Club ceremony, ballroom receptionAbout Me: I’m a total wonkette who is lucky enough to be surrounded by her favorite things on a daily basis – awesome music, the great State of Texas and of course, Mr. Lemonade! I find any excuse I can to craft something and am completely infatuated with the 1950’s, all things Kennedy, and my furbaby Vida.
Admittedly I have rather questionable taste in television programming. My DVR is chock full of every installment of the Housewives series, I watched the hell out of RuPaul’s Drag U, I may or may not have a countdown clock set for the next season of the Rachel Zoe Project, and I’m far too excited about Ice Loves Coco.
However, despite all of this I never got into the Bachelor/Bachelorette…until this season. And the kicker? Mr. L happily watches along side of me. So why the sudden interest in one of televisions most riveting and quality programs? Is it because of Ashley’s amazing fashion sense? Has my little black heart finally warmed to the idea that one can find true love on national television? Um, no. It’s all because of this guy:
Mrs. Ladyfingers, Saint Petersburg, FLAge and Occupation: 30, Marketing ManagerFiance's Age and Occupation: 33, Sports WriterEngagement Date: December 24, 2010Wedding Date: November 2011Venue: Palma Sola Botanical ParkAbout Me: I hail from Oklahoma, he was born and raised in Long Island. Fate brought us together, and now we live in a cute little rental house with our nutty dog, and our aloof cat. We both love to read, watch movies, explore our town, and laugh like hyenas. When I’m not obsessively wedding crafting, I enjoy stalking style and decorating blogs, making collages and painting, napping, thrifting, rearranging our bookshelves, and being a total weirdo with my friends. Hi!
I’ve told you how, for five months, I forgot what a control-freak paranoid crazytown person I am, and insisted I’d do my own flowers. And how I came to my senses and decided to hire a professional.
Basically, I already knew who I wanted my florist to be. I’d been trolling enough wedding boards over the past few months to have heard of FishHawk Weddings and their super talented designer, Stephanie. I’d seen the website. I’d drooled over the blog. So I emailed them, and a few days later I had an email from Collette. We set up a phone chat, and I went over some brief details of the wedding.
(By the way, chats like these make me feel like a crazy person. “It’s like a vintage look, but not like totally antique vintage rustic or anything. Like, some vintage, but also some modern. So like, vintage modern. Sort of. Does that make sense?”)
Collette was super sweet and patient, and took down all my random descriptions. The next day, she sent me an email with pictures like this.
All-Inclusion Invitation Suites
