Weddingbee

We’ve been in a “baby lull” lately (Mama Penguin’s friends are getting too old to have children, my friends are still a bit young to have children) so I haven’t stopped by the website lately, but I decided to hop on the web today to discover…

Decorate your own Princess Mirror Kit $6Decorate your own Jewelery Box $14

Ballerina Dress Up $11

Make Your Own Sports Door Hanger $6Deluxe Stamp Set $16

…the list goes on! These AWESOME craft sets should keep your younger guests busy during your reception.Check out The Elegant Child’s extensive collection of unique baby and toddler gifts as well! Here’s my personal favorite:

Fantasy Flyer $305

Because, frankly, I don’t even know how you could possibly survive childhood without your own pink plane.

Teri the owner, is quite possibly, one of the most wonderful women in the world.

The Elegant Child
www.elegantchild.com
gifts@elegantchild.com
Open by appointment only, 7 days a week, but online anytime!
Beverly Hills, Ca

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2007 marked the year that UCLA won its 100th NCAA championship, more titles than any other school in the nation. In celebration, the color of the “C” in the end zone of the Rose Bowl was reversed, as “C” is the roman numeral for 100. Clever eh?

image courtesy of “therealmindshed” at flickr.com

It’s left many people scratching their heads, as in “did they forget to color the “A” blue as well?” but for those in the know, it’s something that brings a smile to your face.

I think Mr. Penguin will be thrilled to receive a surprise “C” grooms cake at our wedding, covered in light blue fondant or frosting, and piped with the “old school bruin” on it as well. I was thinking of going with the standard “basketball jersey” cake or “football helmet” cake, but, thrift seeker that I am, I know that the “C” cake will cost significantly less because the design is simple, all the while still being a sweet surprise for him. I’m kind of a sucker for the abstract, and I realize that most guests won’t get what the heck it is. My name happens to start with a “C”, so perhaps they will think that’s what it stands for. But the true fans will know. And so will Mr. Penguin.

…and who knows? Perhaps this year’s promising Mens Basketball team will mark title 101, and I’ll just have to add a big fat “I” to the cake.

How are you incorporating you and your Fiance’s shared loves into your wedding?
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We plan to cut our cake during dinner, while guests are still seated and eating. After all, if we’re going to drop hundreds of dollars on flour, sugar and eggs, you’d better believe every single one of our guests are going to watch us cut it. No crowding, no kids, just an equal-opportunity cake cutting experience.

How are you “spotlighting” your wedding cake?
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Images courtesy of theknot.comBeauty aside, one bloom bouquets are a great option for going the DIY flower route, which I’m strongly considering. I hopped on over to the San Francisco Flower Mart this past June to find some pretty blush blooms that I could possibly use for bouquets at my wedding. I went one weekend in late May, and one weekend in June, since my wedding is in early June I wanted to make sure the blooms that I saw were the blooms that I would see next June for my wedding. I found some beautiful Spider Mums (at least I think they were Spider Mums) and threw in some Freesia, but I think I’ll forgo the Freesia for a cleaner look.

Here’s my trial bouquet. I threw them against a grey background because the bridesmaid’s dresses will be grey. They’re not perfect, but they’re getting there, and hopefully I can do one more trial before “the big day”.

The cost? Unbelievebly low. The flowers cost $6 for 10 blooms, and I used 5 blooms per bouquet. The floral ribbon cost $10 for an ungodly amount (like 100 yards) but I think come wedding day I’ll use a more luxurious and wide satin ribbon, which might cost $10 a yard or so. So all in all, I anticipate the bridesmaids bouquets to cost around $8 each.Which is brilliant considering I blew 1/2 my floral budget on glass vases.

Are you DIY’ing your bouquets? Where are you buying your flowers for the big day?
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I knew if we were going to have all our family and friends flying in from out of town, we’d better find an event space that was unique to our area, one that the majority of our guests wouldn’t find in their own hometowns.

We headed straight for the Gold Country wineries, and found a couple that we really liked. The first was the David Girard Vineyards, who provided a beautiful Tuscan ceremony site:

As well as a hilltop tent overlooking the vines for your reception.

I loved their site, which rented out on peak month Saturdays for $4800, but you had to bring in everything (party rentals, catering, linens, full staff, even portable bathrooms) yourself. So it was great for the couple that really wanted a uber custom wedding, because you’re provided with a clean slate and can go as big (or as little) as you’d like to. One downside was that half of the tent remained closed, so you kind of had a indoor/outdoor look:

I like the idea of a completely open tent…why block the view?

We, on the other hand, were looking for more “handholding” if you will…the thought of organizing (or putting someone in charge of organizing) a dozen vendors on the day of our wedding seemed to be a little more than we wanted to deal with…plus, I don’t handle vendor interviews very well (more on that later), so the less vendors, the better. Stay tuned for our final choice!

For more information on hosting your wedding here, contact:

David Girard Vineyards
http://www.davidgirardvineyards.com/
741 Cold Springs Road
Placerville, CA 95667
weddings@davidgirardvineyards.com

All photos courtesy of the David Girard Vineyards website.

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Crate and Barrel runs their registry events like pros. We were pleasantly surprised by fresh OJ, champagne, pastries, and fresh fruit, even crepes and pancakes that they freshly made on site, doubling as a demo for some of their appliances! The sales associates that were staffed in each section of the store knew answers to questions like “Does this come in another color? How does this doohicky work?” without having to consult a manual, book, or coworker.

We registered for the majority of our necessities at Williams Sonoma, but mostly registered for glassware, bar ware, and everyday china at Crate and Barrel. Their selection is great, and it gave our registry a bigger depth of price ranges for our guests.

Crate and Barrel
Galleria at Roseville
1167 Galleria Blvd
Roseville, CA 95678
(916) 784- 9100

We didn’t find any fine china that really “wowed” us, so we’re making one last stop at Bloomingdale’s to finish up the registry. Two down, one to go!
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Mr. Penguin and his dad tasting

Mr. Penguin’s stepmom and her good friend Bonnie getting into it:

Mr. Penguin and I (as usual, I’m in the clean plate club…)

…and the winners? The Semillion and one of the California Zins.

How are you including your in-laws in the decision making process?
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Kind of fun. I know nothing about cakes, and it shows. Ingrid informed me that if you place fondant ribbons horizontally on a cake like this, they’ll slip down, especially on a hot day. And I really wanted a buttercream cake (mostly because its cheaper, partly because fondant scares me), so while it was a fun idea, unless I wanted white fondant and fondant ribbons, that idea was scrapped.

The night before our initial meeting with Ingrid, I stumbled across the Cakegirls website.

Wow! These are my kind of cakes! They’ve got a wide range of designs, but many with an understated elegance about them. I picked my favorite:

And Ingrid said she could replicate it with square tiers, while staying under budget. And of course, it being such a “simple” cake, she could. Success! Mr. Penguin got to choose the flavors, and of course he picked his favorite: Chocolate with fresh raspberries and raspberry jam. (I am not a big fan of cake so unless its 3 wheels of brie cheese stacked on top of each other, I probably wont eat much of it).

Here’s our budget breakdown:

3 Tier Buttercream frosted Chocolate cake with and Raspberry jam and fresh raspberries, serves 100: $4.50 per slice
Delivery and set up: $40
TOTAL: $490

Ingrid bakes out of her home in Amador City, which I love (because I work out of my home as well!). It keeps her overhead down and allows her to make fabulous cakes for under $5 a slice. She describes her cakes as “just sweet enough,” meaning that you’ll get a decadent “buttery” flavored cake, not an “oversweetened” one. Fabulous!

Ingrid Frasier
Elegant Cakes
Po Box 160

Amador City, CA 95601
(209) 267-0947

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Once Mr. Penguin slipped that ring on my finger though, everything changed, practically overnight. All of the sudden, Papa Penguin became very open and understanding of the idea that once we were married, it would become perfectly acceptable to make such life altering moves and changes for your spouse. Conversations about my future, about us having kids, moving into a bigger house for our family, etc, all now come really easily for my parents and me.

I do think it’s a shame that long term couples aren’t taken as seriously as engaged ones. The last year or so before we got engaged became particularly awkward for my parents, I think. Now my parents see Mr. Penguin and I as a unit, rather than just their daughter and her current boyfriend.

Has your relationship become more “legitimate” in peoples’ eyes now that you are engaged?
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