Miss Doily, Cedar Rapids, IowaAge and Occupation: 25, Autism Paraeducator/ StudentFiance's Age and Occupation: 27, Freelance Writer/ PublisherEngagement Date: August 27th, 2010Wedding Date: March 2012Venue: Father’s Vineyard Church/ A Touch of Class Banquet CenterAbout Me: I’m an Iowan girl with a deep love of Harry Potter, classic movies, cardigans, and Post-Its. My type-A Virgo tendencies often cause me to drive my laid-back college sweetheart fiance batty with lists and PowerPoint presentations. I love to be crafty and do things myself, which explains why my two crazy kittens often will prance around the house covered in glitter and ribbons. When I am not bogged down with work, school, or wedding planning, I like to travel to visit my expansive family and have wild adventures with my best friends. After a rollercoaster ride of a love story, I’m ready to take that final plunge, marry the love of my life, and become a Mrs.!
Mr. D proposed with a simple white sapphire solitaire, and he had every intention of upgrading it to a ring that we both liked. Well, hive, that day has finally come. But, it took us quite a while to find something that we both liked.
We knew that we were going to have to look for diamond alternatives since I do not like to wear diamonds (it’s a personal decision). We considered going with a colored gemstone, but Mr. D said that he would prefer something a little bit more traditional looking (meaning, a white stone). So we started looking at those alternatives. After a lot of deliberation, we were stuck between moissanites and Asha simulated diamonds. I told Mr. D that he got to make the final decision since he was the one paying for it. He ended up picking the Ashas because he felt they were more “blingy.”
Before we could order the loose stones, we had to find a setting that we liked. We both have pretty classic tastes when it comes to jewelry—at least women’s jewelry. We knew we wanted something vintage inspired, and something with white metal. Read more…
Mrs. Honey, Durango, COAge and Occupation: 28, Financial AssistantFiance's Age and Occupation: 24, Lab Tech/PhlebotomistEngagement Date: August 1, 2010Wedding Date: January 2012Venue: Vallecito LakeAbout Me: I am a Colorado girl through and through, marrying an adrenaline-fueled Alabama boy. We love the outdoors just about as much as we love spoiling our dog and three cats. On any given weekend you can find us being adventurous, doing anything from rafting to snowboarding, and everything in between. We live in an outdoor mecca and truly believe in "Work Hard, Play Harder." I'm an optimist to the core, a crafter wannabe, a Southern food cook-in-training and a big time believer in girls nights. We met, fell in love and got engaged in eight short months and are now knee-deep in planning what we hope to be a super-fun, very us wedding celebration. Join us as we plan a rustic meets whimsical, Colorado winter wedding with loads of personal touches and good food!
I kind of always thought I would be overly eager to try on wedding dresses. The truth? It took me eight, yes eight, months to step into a bridal shop. Why? I have no idea. Perhaps the long engagement? Maybe the cost? Could it be that we only have one bridal store in good ol’ Durango? I’d say it’s a combo of all three. BUT just because I didn’t physically meet some pretty dresses for eight months, that certainly didn’t mean that I didn’t ogle many of them online.
I did sign up for The Knot the day after getting engaged. My other immediate email subscription? David’s Bridal. So beginning the very first full day of being engaged, I was receiving daily emails from these two websites and obvs they are filled to the brim with wedding-dress pictures. I found it far too intimidating to just casually browse the web for pictures, and I found The Knot to be very sufficient in showing me pictures of thousands of dresses all at one site. I’m ridiculously intimated by designer gowns and their prices, and therefore looking at the fancy schmancy names of wedding designers sent me with my tail between my legs. After a few months of browsing, I just wasn’t too concerned with what I would wear. I felt so un-bridal.
But on the other hand, I knew I would find A dress and I knew that I would fall in love with something. Plus, just looking at the pictures on a monitor is a bit overwhelming. I mentally told myself (read: told my mom) that I was only interested in attending a David’s Bridal, and that I didn’t need to spend lots of moolah on a dress for one day. They have dresses for $99 that are perfectly beautiful! The problem was that the nearest David’s Bridal is just over three hours away. I still managed to save a handful of images in my inspiration folder, and here’s what my browsing provided me:
Mrs. Biscuit, Morgantown, WVAge and Occupation: 24, Dental StudentFiance's Age and Occupation: 26, Chemist at a pharmaceutical companyEngagement Date: April 2010Wedding Date: July 2011Venue: Catholic Church, Lakeview Golf Resort and SpaAbout Me: I'm an engineer who decided to trek back to my hometown three years ago to become skilled in the arts of drilling and filling. I'm engaged to a pretty awesome guy who tests your assorted benzodiazepines by day and home brews by night. Together we have two fur children, Tsali and Tobias N. Fünkat. I'm a lazy perfectionist and eternal sorority girl who enjoys running, crafting, string cheese, good beer, and bad reality TV. We are planning a Big Fat Italian/Sicilian/Polish wedding filled with DIY details and are expecting 300 +/- 50 guests. Our whimsical summer affair is themed "Alice attends the Mad Hatter Vintage Garden Tea Party in a Ballroom. She Thinks That The Venue is Odd for a Vintage Garden Party, but is Tripping on LSD, so She Doesn't Really Care." Yes, I am the Dickens of themes.
Mrs. Parasol, San Ramon, CaliforniaAge and Occupation: 25, Non-profit writer, editor, and bloggerFiance's Age and Occupation: 25, Law school studentEngagement Date: December 19th, 2010Wedding Date: September 2011Venue: Bent Creek Winery (Livermore, California); Reception: Family Residence (San Ramon, California) About Me: I am a California girl at heart. I love the outdoors, sunny days at the beach, and hiking in the woods and mountains. I also love good books and am fresh from completing my Master's degree in English and Comparative Literature in New York City. Living in NYC was an amazing experience, and while I'm glad to be back on the West Coast, I'm also thankful that my two years back East gave me an opportunity to explore new places, make new friends, and indulge my passion for Broadway shows. Oh, and I received a pretty awesome proposal from Mr. Parasol in Central Park. Above all else, Mr. Parasol is my biggest cheerleader and my best friend. But even though I'm thrilled to be marrying him, I wasn't always totally on board with this whole wedding thing and at first, I wanted to run off and elope. I've finally been convinced to throw the wedding I never thought I wanted, and so now I'm busy planning an intimate September wedding filled with DIY details. Along the way, I'm slowly learning to appreciate, perhaps even love the wedding planning process.
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).
There’s not much I need to talk about here ’cause the pictures really are worth a thousand words… I do think it’s fair to say that at the Hippo reception, the dance floor was the place to be! Crazy dance faces were in full effect:
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.
Now that the Sparkler invites are officially on their way to our lovely guests, it’s time to reveal them to you all!
I love our invitations so much I could explode… but they where a PROJECT. Sparks and I spent many nights huddled over our kitchen table assembling, posting, and reprinting until 1AM. The day we dropped them all in the mailbox, I vowed never again to step foot in PaperSource (come on… like that’s gonna happen!) and to always pay someone to address my envelopes in the future (again, probably not gonna happen!). But I am so, SO, happy with the way they turned out! I feel like they represent Sparks and I so well and that they completely match the look and feel we want for our wedding.
I’m going to shut up now and show you the pretty pictures. Without further ado… the Sparkler invites!!!
I totally forgot to put stamps on your invite, Hive! Anyway, don’t worry… the stamps we used are pretty awesome: Read more…
Ms. Ferris Wheel, San FranciscoAge and Occupation: 29, PsychologistFiance's Age and Occupation: 27, PsychologistEngagement Date: May 23 and 28, 2010 (one for each of us!)Wedding Date: November 2011Venue: Parc55 Hotel (city lights ceremony, ballroom reception)About Me: Born in the Southeast, educated in the Northeast, and over-educated on the West Coast, I finally earned my city-girl credentials and have put down roots in gorgeous San Francisco. I’m a raging perfectionist with a lightning quick wit and a terrible sense of both time and direction. Our wedding task list is endlessly growing because of my predilection to think that DIY projects I can make = DIY projects I should make (so not true!). I always go to bed wishing there were more hours in the day to enjoy all the things I adore, whether that be hobbies, friends, my career, our two dogs, or Mr. Ferris Wheel. Ours is a story of a non-traditional couple living an oddly traditional life planning a not-so-traditional wedding in this city we adore. Together we are bustin’ out all of our best skills (and some of our worst ones) to plan a laid-back-chic DIY-craftastic love-alicious affair!
Marriage equality is an *extremely* important topic for the Ferris Wheels. In fact, our marriage talks began back when California legalized marriage for same sex couples because, at the time, we were a same sex couple. We knew we wanted to get married, but we were both still students and the timing just wasn’t right for us yet. Unless you’ve been in this situation, it’s impossible to explain what it feels like to consider rushing to get married because you’re afraid you’ll never again have the opportunity to legalize your union with the person you love. In the end we decided to wait until we were ready, even if it meant that our relationship wouldn’t be legitimized by state and federal governments.
Unlike most other queer couples, we’re now able to access the institution of marriage because of Mr. FW’s gender change. We wrestled with the politics of our decision to get married, and we remain steadfast in our belief that all loving and committed couples deserve to be treated equally in the eyes of the law. We will openly talk about this belief during our marriage ceremony and we wanted to give our guests a way to visibly show their support of marriage equality as well. Enter white knots for marriage equality.
In our ceremony program we plan to include a page with the white knots and a description of their meaning.
Mrs. Lioness, AtlantaAge and Occupation: 25, Physical TherapistFiance's Age and Occupation: 25, AttorneyEngagement Date: August 29, 2009Wedding Date: April 2011Venue: Anthony’s Fine DiningAbout Me: I’m a Southern girl with New England roots. I say "wicked" and "y’all" in the same sentence and I like to drink sweet tea with my lobster. Mr. Lion and I are both former Floridians now living in Atlanta, which fortunately is still SEC country...Go Gators! We both love baseball, coffee, traveling, cooking, and playing Words with Friends with each other on our iPhones all day long. I’m very passionate about the things and the people I love, and I tend to plan things with all of my heart...our wedding, of course, is no different! Oh, and also Mr. Lion is a first generation American of Cuban descent. I may look more like Lucy than Ricky, but I’m doing my best to incorporate some Latin elements into our vintage-garden-Southern wedding!
About a week after our wedding, I met up with some of the bees in New Orleans for fun-filled weekend complete with sight seeing, devouring delicious seafood, and drinking our way through Bourbon Street. I was also fortunate enough to do a Trash the Dress shoot with the lovely Ms. Fondue, who just so happens to be a kick ass photographer!
As you know, I sold my dress, so obviously I didn’t trash my actual wedding dress. Instead, I pulled a Mrs. Cola and found one online for really cheap!
Ms. Fondue and I had a ball, and I was thrilled with the final results. Take a look!
Jim Hunt Illustration creates awesome, one-of-a-kind “save the date” cartoon maps for brides and grooms who want to share something special with their guests. He can include any details the couple requests, from cities you’ve visited together to your childhood home to your wedding venue! His illustrations look great in black and white and in color, and today we’re giving away a custom black and white “save the date” map, comparable in detail to the black and white “Nicole and David” illustration below, from Jim Hunt Illustration!
You have two chances to enter this contest!
To enter, visit Jim Hunt Illustration and then come back here and tell us a few things you’d include in your custom map if you won! 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 Tuesday, July 26 2011 at 11:59 PM PST to enter. Good luck!
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.
We’re baaaaack! It’s official: the Cotton Candies are officially man and wife!
Our wedding was the most amazing, loved-filled affari we could have ever asked for. As expected, we had a few minor hiccups (ahem…eight non-RSVPed guests), but looking back, all I remember is the rush of joy I felt as crept up to meet Mr CC during our first look. Read more…
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!
I slept like a baby the night before the wedding. That is until just before 6AM, when I was awoken by the phone ringing. You guys, I got pranked on the morning of my wedding! I remember staggering over to the phone, listening to some guy called ‘Gary’ speak for a little while, feeling tired, telling him it was my wedding day today and hanging up on him to head back to bed for another hour. To this day I still don’t know who that caller was or how he got my hotel room number. Mysterious, very mysterious.
Mrs. Teacup, Santa CruzAge and Occupation: 34, Pharmaceutical SalesFiance's Age and Occupation: 41, Ditto! (For a different company)Engagement Date: October 1, 2010Wedding Date: October 2011Venue: ceremony in our family's Catholic church in Watsonville; reception at the Santa Cruz Beach BoardwalkAbout Me: I’m learning to embrace my true spirit as GIRLY GIRL after previous careers in the Navy and consulting for the government. My favorite hobby is SLEEP, with dancing HULA a close second. An INTROVERT in extrovert clothing, I’m questing to UNDO 34 years of TYPE A conditioning. Constantly processing the details of our upcoming nuptials, peek into this late blooming bride & groom's roller coaster ride to the altar. Giant Dipper required, sold separately.
Post-proposal, we headed back home to start our normal Friday—except now we were ENGAGED! Yay!
Remember my man-gagement present? Well, so much time had elapsed since we bought it and, in the flurry of excitement in proposing, Mr. Hot Tea forgot that he could now wear his watch. Double yay!
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.
Sigh. My heart still skips a beat at the sight of them. So I knew that I couldn’t resist ordering even more straws after the first order came in and I could touch, see, and feel them in real live person.
This time I took the advice of fellow bee, Almost Mrs-Oka & ordered them from Amazon via Kikkerland ($4.99 for 144 of them!).
But I didn’t know just what I would do with them. Read more…
Mrs. Honey, Durango, COAge and Occupation: 28, Financial AssistantFiance's Age and Occupation: 24, Lab Tech/PhlebotomistEngagement Date: August 1, 2010Wedding Date: January 2012Venue: Vallecito LakeAbout Me: I am a Colorado girl through and through, marrying an adrenaline-fueled Alabama boy. We love the outdoors just about as much as we love spoiling our dog and three cats. On any given weekend you can find us being adventurous, doing anything from rafting to snowboarding, and everything in between. We live in an outdoor mecca and truly believe in "Work Hard, Play Harder." I'm an optimist to the core, a crafter wannabe, a Southern food cook-in-training and a big time believer in girls nights. We met, fell in love and got engaged in eight short months and are now knee-deep in planning what we hope to be a super-fun, very us wedding celebration. Join us as we plan a rustic meets whimsical, Colorado winter wedding with loads of personal touches and good food!
It had been quite a few months since I had touched base with my girls about where my wedding planning stood. Sure we would discuss bits and pieces over cocktails, but never all together and never exactly what I was thinking. Plus, since my last email to them, I had changed my colors and also changed the look of what I wanted them to wear. I had made a couple of trips to Hobby Lobby (which PS, is a 50-minute drive across state lines…yes, I have to venture to New Mexico, a whole different state to get craft supplies). I had visited Hobby Lobby and picked up some basic crafting supplies—paper cutter, stamps, card stock, bone folder—and I was itchin’ to do some craftin’. I decided I would create something to give to my girls showcasing my ideas. Being that I got too anxious and asked my bridesmaids to be in the wedding either via a phone call or an email, I thought this could make up for it.
I will preface this by saying that I did NOT have a clear vision when I started and, because of that, it took me four weekends to complete, with numerous hours devoted to how I wanted this something to look. There were three ideas I knew I wanted to portray to the girls: 1. My Vision, 2. My New Colors, and 3. the Bridesmaids’ Dresses.
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!
While we were outside narrowly beating the storm clouds for those last couple of shots, our guests were inside the venue enjoying passed appetizers and cocktails.
