Mrs. Cupcake, Philadelphia
Age and Occupation: 27, Graphic Designer
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 29, Construction Project Manager
Engagement Date: February 10, 2007
Wedding Date: September, 2008
Blogging Since: December 7, 2007
Venue: The Desmond Hotel in Malvern, PA
About Me: Mr. Cupcake and I hit it off at a Halloween party and immediately began a long-distance relationship. After two years, he moved to my neck of the woods, and a year and a half after that, he proposed at the “place we fell in love.” I am a true perfectionist who enjoys designing and creating more work for myself, so wedding planning is my perfect outlet. Mr. Cupcake and I are both old souls, and we hope to weave that aspect of our personalities into our wedding day.
The Search For The Perfect Shoe
February 7th, 2008 @ 9:28 am by Mrs. Cupcake
I used to call shoes “shoes” because, um, that’s what they’re called…. but since watching shows like Project Runway and What Not to Wear, I have learned that the real style-mavens of the world call them by their singular name — it is not a pair of shoes. It is a shoe.So, I am looking for “a shoe” for my wedding that will accomplish the following:
• thou shalt make me taller, but not quite as tall as Mr. Cupcake (who is only about 3.5″ taller than me)
• thou shalt not make me grimace in pain and curse the day that I bought thee
• thou shalt look dazzlingly handsome with my vintage-esque Casablanca gown
• thou shalt not cost so much that I feel the need to wear them to work with jeans after the wedding in order to justify the cost (even if they are just that cute)
I have never really worn a peep-toe heel, but for some reason that is all I am drawn to when I look at wedding shoes. There is something classic and sophisticated about them, and classic and sophisticated is what I’m pretending to be on my wedding day!
The Horror, The Horror!
February 6th, 2008 @ 9:27 am by Mrs. Cupcake
You know how it goes…. you innocently lie down to go to sleep after a long day of working and wedding planning, looking forward to retreating into the peaceful world of sleep for the few hours you have away from vendor emails and big decisions, only to be terrifyingly awakened by it. There’s no avoiding……
THE WEDDING NIGHTMARE
(dun dun DUNNNN!)
Maybe it’s because we’ve been engaged for almost a year, and the wedding — now less than 8 months away — truly seems “real” now. It’s no longer all about looking through glossy magazines for pretty pictures of my dream wedding and leisurely choosing vendors; it is “down to business” time. And by getting “down to business” I mean “getting as much done as possible to just barely dangle on the edge of sanity so I am not quite as insane as I am likely to be in the last few months leading up to the wedding.”
Hair Flair
February 1st, 2008 @ 11:37 am by Mrs. Cupcake
I sometimes get an idea in my head, and become a little obsessed with that idea until I attain or obtain exactly what I’m looking for. Lately, this idea is a funky and colorful (but not overly loud) adornment for my hair at our reception.
I’ll be wearing a veil for the ceremony and photos, but I’d like to add a little bit of fun hair-flair for the reception. I have found flowers and crystals and feathers (oh, my!), but nothing has yet tickled my fancy.
While doing my nightly wedding blog reading last night, I came across a possible solution to my hair-flair search. Lynn at Handcrafted posted about some adorable flower brooches from Piper Ewan’s Etsy shop. They are exactly what I have been picturing! Just look at how fabulous these are:
Creating A Wedding Website With iWeb
January 31st, 2008 @ 2:09 pm by Mrs. Cupcake
Although I am a graphic designer, I focused on print design in college and never took any classes in web design. I missed the boat when it comes to html, Flash, Dreamweaver, etc. I’ve been wanting to learn, but haven’t exactly gotten around to it.
When it came to creating a wedding website, I knew that this was something I wanted Mr. Cupcake and I to have, but I didn’t know where to begin. I wanted something more than what The Knot has to offer, but I wasn’t thrilled with all of the template options out there. Either the designs weren’t customizable enough or representative of my taste, or the prices were ridiculous. The main purpose of having a wedding website was to be a source of information for our guests, but was it too much to ask to have it look cute without putting a dent in my bank account? I knew I could put something together on my own, I just had to figure out how.
Enter iWeb. (Insert the sound of angels singing.) This handy Mac program was included with my MacBook Pro, and it is as fool-proof as they come. It took me a few evenings of tinkering with the features and pre-made templates to figure out how to create my own design template, but once I did it was super simple. Below is the step-by-step of how I did it, and hopefully it will help some of you create your own fabulous wedding website!
Weight-loss Plan For The OSB
January 31st, 2008 @ 10:32 am by Mrs. Cupcake
…..Ya know, the OSB: Over-Scheduled Bride.Yesterday, I ventured to the gym for the first time in about *cough, cough, static* months. What’s that? You didn’t hear me? Well, let’s just say that the packed gym bag that has been living in my car all this time had a magazine in it which I had planned to read on the elliptical….. so when I finally got to the gym yesterday, I found myself reading about Thanksgiving dinner tips in late January.
Yup, it’s been a while.
It’s not that I’m lazy. It’s that I’ve been so. damn. busy. that it’s really hard to find time to get there. I know it’s the classic excuse, but balancing a new job with wedding planning and trying to keep somewhat sane and connected with my loved ones has proven to be really, really hard. Getting to the gym isn’t always the first thing on my list of things to do with my spare time. (Ha, sorry, I just hallucinated a little bit there and implied that I have spare time!)
A Hug Or A Handshake?
January 24th, 2008 @ 8:30 am by Mrs. Cupcake
I am sure that others have felt the same awkwardness in similar situations, but sometimes I feel that I am particularly awkward and hesitant when it comes to one simple question: a hug or a handshake?
You know how it is….. you run into someone that you haven’t seen in a while, maybe someone you’re not particularly close to anymore…. you’re caught off guard by running into them, and all of a sudden, you think, am I supposed to hug them? Do I stand here uncomfortably with my arms crossed and see if they initiate a hug? Do I just wave like a dork?
There are friends who I see often and immediately give a big bear-hug to every time I see them. I always give my parents a kiss on the cheek and a half-hug when I see them. Cousins, aunts, uncles, former roommates….. hug, hug, hug, hug. But when it comes to my wedding day, there will be a range of people making their way through the receiving line. There will be guests who are closer to Mr. Cupcake than they are to me, or some of his extended family members who I’ve only met a few times, or co-workers’ spouses that I’ve made small-talk with here and there; I get strangely terrified at the thought of the awkwardness that could ensue. After all, there is nothing worse then reaching out for a handshake only to realize that the HSR (HandShake Recipient) is going in for the hug, making for a painfully uncomfortable back-patting debacle.
I’m A Blog Stalker
January 22nd, 2008 @ 10:30 am by Mrs. Cupcake
I have to come clean: I completely stalk my photographers’ blog. Like, if blog restraining orders existed, I might be issued one and asked to stay 100 yards away from their blog at all times. There are not many days that go by that I don’t check it out, hoping for some fabulous new photos to drool over. When there is nothing new going on, I’m a little bummed out, especially during this time of year when there might not be as many weddings taking place.
Well now, the Wiebners have really gone and done it…. they have made their blog even bigger and better and more fabulous. The photos are larger, there are more photos shown from each wedding, you can comment on posts, and you can rate your favorite photos as you scroll through them. The top 14 favorites are shown as thumbnails at the top of each page, so you can choose to check out what everyone is loving the most.
Momma Cupcake’s Wedding Invitations
January 19th, 2008 @ 6:32 pm by Mrs. Cupcake
You may have noticed that my posts have been a little sparse over the last few weeks, but I assure you it is with good reason: my mom, who is getting married next month, asked me to design her wedding invitations, and I happily obliged! Since the wedding isn’t too far off, time was of the essence, so I had to put blogging on the back-burner for a little while.Momma Cupcake and her fiance, George, are having a small ceremony and brunch reception with about 40 guests at Simon Pearce, a fantastic restaurant in the heart of Chester County, Pa., on the banks of the Brandywine River. The restaurant is named for the Irish glassblower of the same name, whose amazing glass designs (and that of his artisans) are found throughout the restaurant and its attached shop. You can also hang out on the first floor of the beautiful building and watch artisans creating their masterpieces — sometimes Mr. Cupcake and I will go if we’re in the area just to sit and watch the glassblowers.
Momma Cupcake and George met at Simon Pearce on their first date six years ago (set up by mutual friends), and it is where they go to celebrate anniversaries and other special occasions, so it is the perfect place for their wedding. The ceremony will be held in a private dining room and the brunch reception will be held in the main restaurant area. This is a perfect, intimate place for a wedding with less than 50 guests!
Venue Envy
January 18th, 2008 @ 1:10 pm by Mrs. Cupcake
Miss Hydrangea’s post from the other day brought up the interesting point that a lot of brides, at least at first, tend to be opposed to the idea of having their wedding reception in a hotel ballroom. I guess the issue with hotel ballrooms is that they’re not seen as unique as all of the amazing spaces people are using for their receptions these days. Warehouses, historical homes, tented outdoor spaces, and art museums are all on the list of extraordinary venues. And, since we live in an age where it is not uncommon to feel pressure to come up with the coolest, hippest, newest ideas, hotels often fall into the “not as cool” category.
Brother Cupcake and his wife got married in June at the stunning Angel Orensanz Foundation in NYC. The structure was originally built as a synagogue in 1849, and was converted into an arts/event space in 1992.
But It’s Not Just A Mixer
January 14th, 2008 @ 12:55 pm by Mrs. Cupcake
It’s the mixer. The KitchenAid Stand Mixer, that is!Mr. Cupcake and I are still slowly adding things to our Bed, Bath & Beyond and Crate and Barrel gift registries, but this one item was a no-brainer. It is the Dalai Lama of all stand mixers. I am not exactly a chef, but I have always loved to bake and there’s nothing like having a really good mixer to help you out. I miss using my mom’s retro pea green mixer from the 70s now that I don’t live at home anymore, and I’m really excited to have one of my own soon.
When we were out registering, Mr. Cupcake was allowed full control over the scanner gun (because he’s still a little kid like that), but I wanted to personally scan my dream mixer myself, which he so graciously allowed. We originally registered for the 5-Quart Artisan Stand Mixer in Metallic Chrome, which is $299:
