Mrs. Perfume, DCAge and Occupation: 36, Consultant (and Part-Time Professor)Fiance's Age and Occupation: 41, ConsultantEngagement Date: May 13, 2008Wedding Date: May, 2009Venue: The Homestead, Hot Springs, VirginiaAbout Me: I'd like to think that I'm a modern day Little Edie Beale. Only not as..."talented". More realistically, I'm a foodie who can't bake; a dancer and dilettente; an art collector with a penchant for the whimsical and subversive. I live in the city and adore the country, but not much in between. I like smart design, great craftmanship and good value. Most of all, I love the new vintage aesthetic: classic, sweet, delicate, bespoke. If I had to do it all over again, I'd go for a culinary arts degree rather than a PhD; but wouldn't trade Mr. P for the world.
I should be ashamed of myself. I had low expectations for my bridal shower. As I’ve mentioned before, there was a little bit of tension in the planning of it. I had felt that my BMs weren’t into it, and I was over it. So this weekend, when I arrived at my mom’s house with my friend Michelle (to whom I protested), I was VERY surprised and seriously humbled by the huge effort everyone had made on my behalf.
My mother, BM Abby, and my sister pulled together a wonderful and thoughtful event that came together beautifully. My mom cooked up a storm of Vietnamese lunch goodies. Abby made the cutest guest gifts of spatulas and cookie cutters.
And my sister coordinated the whole thing—despite being a busy lawyer commuting between Tel Aviv and New York. I chalked her harried/haphazard planning up to not caring. (But seriously, if I had her schedule, a bridal shower would be the last thing on my priority list, for sure. It was very perspective-giving.) Read more…
Mrs. Perfume, DCAge and Occupation: 36, Consultant (and Part-Time Professor)Fiance's Age and Occupation: 41, ConsultantEngagement Date: May 13, 2008Wedding Date: May, 2009Venue: The Homestead, Hot Springs, VirginiaAbout Me: I'd like to think that I'm a modern day Little Edie Beale. Only not as..."talented". More realistically, I'm a foodie who can't bake; a dancer and dilettente; an art collector with a penchant for the whimsical and subversive. I live in the city and adore the country, but not much in between. I like smart design, great craftmanship and good value. Most of all, I love the new vintage aesthetic: classic, sweet, delicate, bespoke. If I had to do it all over again, I'd go for a culinary arts degree rather than a PhD; but wouldn't trade Mr. P for the world.
We went to the Homestead this weekend for our final planning trip before the wedding! This time, we brought our officiant… just because (more on that later). Ostensibly, we were there to go over some final details of the timeline, menu choices, and logistics with our coordinator (ugh, there was a problem with the cake… again, more on that later). And we met our new, local, start-up florist (hmm, more on that, too)!!!
I also had a makeup and hair trial. Here were my inspirations:
Mrs. Perfume, DCAge and Occupation: 36, Consultant (and Part-Time Professor)Fiance's Age and Occupation: 41, ConsultantEngagement Date: May 13, 2008Wedding Date: May, 2009Venue: The Homestead, Hot Springs, VirginiaAbout Me: I'd like to think that I'm a modern day Little Edie Beale. Only not as..."talented". More realistically, I'm a foodie who can't bake; a dancer and dilettente; an art collector with a penchant for the whimsical and subversive. I live in the city and adore the country, but not much in between. I like smart design, great craftmanship and good value. Most of all, I love the new vintage aesthetic: classic, sweet, delicate, bespoke. If I had to do it all over again, I'd go for a culinary arts degree rather than a PhD; but wouldn't trade Mr. P for the world.
Way back in December, when I was going for my first round of dress hemming, I found a flower girl dress at the bridal shop that was handling my alterations.
The owner of the shop was trying to get rid of her inventory and had a lot of cute flower girl dresses on sale. She made each one herself. Since our flower girl was not with us, she let us take one of the dresses to try on our little elf, and bring it back at our leisure (nice, huh?).
My niece-to-be (i.e. Mr. P’s brother’s daughter) was barely four at the time. The dress was huge on her. It touched the floor and the arm holes were gigantic. Also, the shoulders were way too wide.
Despite all this, we weren’t worried because five months is a lifetime for a four year old in terms of growth. Read more…
Mrs. Perfume, DCAge and Occupation: 36, Consultant (and Part-Time Professor)Fiance's Age and Occupation: 41, ConsultantEngagement Date: May 13, 2008Wedding Date: May, 2009Venue: The Homestead, Hot Springs, VirginiaAbout Me: I'd like to think that I'm a modern day Little Edie Beale. Only not as..."talented". More realistically, I'm a foodie who can't bake; a dancer and dilettente; an art collector with a penchant for the whimsical and subversive. I live in the city and adore the country, but not much in between. I like smart design, great craftmanship and good value. Most of all, I love the new vintage aesthetic: classic, sweet, delicate, bespoke. If I had to do it all over again, I'd go for a culinary arts degree rather than a PhD; but wouldn't trade Mr. P for the world.
I love Weddingbee because everyone is just so nice. I get great advice and suggestions about everything from Fray Check for my ring pillow, to figuring out a better florist situation, to ideas on invitation designers (you readers are the reason for my invitations)!
And every so often, I’ll get a PM or a comment from a reader who thought of me for some reason. Like, reader, mrspaetz sent me a link (on my post on photography no less) to a great pair of shoes, citing how the pale blue and deco design made her think of me. So. Nice! Read more…
Mrs. Perfume, DCAge and Occupation: 36, Consultant (and Part-Time Professor)Fiance's Age and Occupation: 41, ConsultantEngagement Date: May 13, 2008Wedding Date: May, 2009Venue: The Homestead, Hot Springs, VirginiaAbout Me: I'd like to think that I'm a modern day Little Edie Beale. Only not as..."talented". More realistically, I'm a foodie who can't bake; a dancer and dilettente; an art collector with a penchant for the whimsical and subversive. I live in the city and adore the country, but not much in between. I like smart design, great craftmanship and good value. Most of all, I love the new vintage aesthetic: classic, sweet, delicate, bespoke. If I had to do it all over again, I'd go for a culinary arts degree rather than a PhD; but wouldn't trade Mr. P for the world.
I went in for my semi-annual dental cleaning yesterday morning. As an afterthought, I asked the dentist about teeth whitening, and the next thing I knew they were taking a plaster mould of my mouth. He said I was a good candidate, as I have healthy teeth and gums and my teeth could use some brightening.
Mrs. Perfume, DCAge and Occupation: 36, Consultant (and Part-Time Professor)Fiance's Age and Occupation: 41, ConsultantEngagement Date: May 13, 2008Wedding Date: May, 2009Venue: The Homestead, Hot Springs, VirginiaAbout Me: I'd like to think that I'm a modern day Little Edie Beale. Only not as..."talented". More realistically, I'm a foodie who can't bake; a dancer and dilettente; an art collector with a penchant for the whimsical and subversive. I live in the city and adore the country, but not much in between. I like smart design, great craftmanship and good value. Most of all, I love the new vintage aesthetic: classic, sweet, delicate, bespoke. If I had to do it all over again, I'd go for a culinary arts degree rather than a PhD; but wouldn't trade Mr. P for the world.
So, like many bees, I don’t want to wear white bridal shoes. They’re not very re-wearable (I know, neither is the dress, but that’s a different story).
Mrs. Perfume, DCAge and Occupation: 36, Consultant (and Part-Time Professor)Fiance's Age and Occupation: 41, ConsultantEngagement Date: May 13, 2008Wedding Date: May, 2009Venue: The Homestead, Hot Springs, VirginiaAbout Me: I'd like to think that I'm a modern day Little Edie Beale. Only not as..."talented". More realistically, I'm a foodie who can't bake; a dancer and dilettente; an art collector with a penchant for the whimsical and subversive. I live in the city and adore the country, but not much in between. I like smart design, great craftmanship and good value. Most of all, I love the new vintage aesthetic: classic, sweet, delicate, bespoke. If I had to do it all over again, I'd go for a culinary arts degree rather than a PhD; but wouldn't trade Mr. P for the world.
We just got our invitation for a pre-wedding-non-shower-dinner being thrown for us by a great friend! How no-fuss and old-school-git-’er-dun is this?! After Weddingbee and all the fanciness that is invitations, when’s the last time you saw something like this? I love it!!! It is sooo our friend!
Mr. P grew up in a wuuuunderful “village-town” in Virginia, just outside of Washington DC. It’s unincorporated, quaint, and full of history. As a teenager, he worked in a family friend’s restaurant, an absolutely charming little establishment in an old Victorian street front. Suzi, the proprietor, has since retired to her farm in Leesburg, but her daughter now runs the business. Read more…
Mrs. Perfume, DCAge and Occupation: 36, Consultant (and Part-Time Professor)Fiance's Age and Occupation: 41, ConsultantEngagement Date: May 13, 2008Wedding Date: May, 2009Venue: The Homestead, Hot Springs, VirginiaAbout Me: I'd like to think that I'm a modern day Little Edie Beale. Only not as..."talented". More realistically, I'm a foodie who can't bake; a dancer and dilettente; an art collector with a penchant for the whimsical and subversive. I live in the city and adore the country, but not much in between. I like smart design, great craftmanship and good value. Most of all, I love the new vintage aesthetic: classic, sweet, delicate, bespoke. If I had to do it all over again, I'd go for a culinary arts degree rather than a PhD; but wouldn't trade Mr. P for the world.
Have you ever noticed that all my DIY posts are really about my mom DIY-ing? They should actually be called MDI (mom did it).
The latest project was the ring pillow. I actually helped a little this time. I wanted something like Martha’s (oh-so-ubiquitous) flower pillow (above), and played around with making the blossom.
Mrs. Perfume, DCAge and Occupation: 36, Consultant (and Part-Time Professor)Fiance's Age and Occupation: 41, ConsultantEngagement Date: May 13, 2008Wedding Date: May, 2009Venue: The Homestead, Hot Springs, VirginiaAbout Me: I'd like to think that I'm a modern day Little Edie Beale. Only not as..."talented". More realistically, I'm a foodie who can't bake; a dancer and dilettente; an art collector with a penchant for the whimsical and subversive. I live in the city and adore the country, but not much in between. I like smart design, great craftmanship and good value. Most of all, I love the new vintage aesthetic: classic, sweet, delicate, bespoke. If I had to do it all over again, I'd go for a culinary arts degree rather than a PhD; but wouldn't trade Mr. P for the world.
I’ve been putting off choosing the ceremony music for whatever reason. Maybe because I’m utterly an inside-the-box thinker when it comes to this. It’s going to be exceptionally unoriginal and a unabashedly trite (like the teaser image above).
So tonight, I got it over with; I ripped off that Band-Aid super quick. I scanned our musicians’ (a string trio) recommendations and threw together a list after listening to the music on YouTube (that’s class, right there, ladies!).
All I know is I would prefer not to use the famous Wagner Bridal Chorus (you know, “here comes the bride…”). And when I checked Weddingbee’s ceremony music wiki, I felt validated: Read more…
Mrs. Perfume, DCAge and Occupation: 36, Consultant (and Part-Time Professor)Fiance's Age and Occupation: 41, ConsultantEngagement Date: May 13, 2008Wedding Date: May, 2009Venue: The Homestead, Hot Springs, VirginiaAbout Me: I'd like to think that I'm a modern day Little Edie Beale. Only not as..."talented". More realistically, I'm a foodie who can't bake; a dancer and dilettente; an art collector with a penchant for the whimsical and subversive. I live in the city and adore the country, but not much in between. I like smart design, great craftmanship and good value. Most of all, I love the new vintage aesthetic: classic, sweet, delicate, bespoke. If I had to do it all over again, I'd go for a culinary arts degree rather than a PhD; but wouldn't trade Mr. P for the world.
I vaguely remembered something about the reception room not being set up. But what really stirred me was that I didn’t have underpants. That is, I didn’t have the right ones. Sans proper pantalones. Eeek. My first morsel of panic working its way into my wedding planning psyche. Read more…
Mrs. Perfume, DCAge and Occupation: 36, Consultant (and Part-Time Professor)Fiance's Age and Occupation: 41, ConsultantEngagement Date: May 13, 2008Wedding Date: May, 2009Venue: The Homestead, Hot Springs, VirginiaAbout Me: I'd like to think that I'm a modern day Little Edie Beale. Only not as..."talented". More realistically, I'm a foodie who can't bake; a dancer and dilettente; an art collector with a penchant for the whimsical and subversive. I live in the city and adore the country, but not much in between. I like smart design, great craftmanship and good value. Most of all, I love the new vintage aesthetic: classic, sweet, delicate, bespoke. If I had to do it all over again, I'd go for a culinary arts degree rather than a PhD; but wouldn't trade Mr. P for the world.
Mr. P went to pick up his suit from the shop on Monday. We took pictures of him in it last night! It’s really slim and fitted. Look at how pegged the legs are! He also just got his shirt (that his old Hong Kong tailors made him) in the mail today. He wanted a very slim fitting shirt to go under the coat, with a high spread collar, and thick buttons.
Mrs. Perfume, DCAge and Occupation: 36, Consultant (and Part-Time Professor)Fiance's Age and Occupation: 41, ConsultantEngagement Date: May 13, 2008Wedding Date: May, 2009Venue: The Homestead, Hot Springs, VirginiaAbout Me: I'd like to think that I'm a modern day Little Edie Beale. Only not as..."talented". More realistically, I'm a foodie who can't bake; a dancer and dilettente; an art collector with a penchant for the whimsical and subversive. I live in the city and adore the country, but not much in between. I like smart design, great craftmanship and good value. Most of all, I love the new vintage aesthetic: classic, sweet, delicate, bespoke. If I had to do it all over again, I'd go for a culinary arts degree rather than a PhD; but wouldn't trade Mr. P for the world.
On the to-do list (which Mr. P is always monitoring) was to get attendants their accessories. Last night we stopped in to Macy’s on our way home from work and got a good deal on some ties for the guys. We weren’t too picky. Just something in pale gold or Champagne. And we found them–on sale even–for $25 each. Solid.
And last night I made an offer on eBay for three of these brooches for the BMs dresses, and won.
Mrs. Perfume, DCAge and Occupation: 36, Consultant (and Part-Time Professor)Fiance's Age and Occupation: 41, ConsultantEngagement Date: May 13, 2008Wedding Date: May, 2009Venue: The Homestead, Hot Springs, VirginiaAbout Me: I'd like to think that I'm a modern day Little Edie Beale. Only not as..."talented". More realistically, I'm a foodie who can't bake; a dancer and dilettente; an art collector with a penchant for the whimsical and subversive. I live in the city and adore the country, but not much in between. I like smart design, great craftmanship and good value. Most of all, I love the new vintage aesthetic: classic, sweet, delicate, bespoke. If I had to do it all over again, I'd go for a culinary arts degree rather than a PhD; but wouldn't trade Mr. P for the world.
I’m not sure it really comes across in my posts, but I have a ridiculous sense of humor (actually, I know it doesn’t. All my posts here read as earnest, dweeby, or weird for some reason). And no one knows this (the humor part) more than my sister.
Her non-crafting fingers pulled together a cheeky, casual, and cheestasticEvite invitation for my bridal shower–just the way I like it! A little off-beat, and silly. She used the photo “collage” I made a couple months ago (to unceremoniously introduce the BMs to each other) and put it into an invitation that was perfectly and purposefully craptastik! Along with the conveniences of doing the invitation online was the need to quickly salvage some botched planning.
Mrs. Perfume, DCAge and Occupation: 36, Consultant (and Part-Time Professor)Fiance's Age and Occupation: 41, ConsultantEngagement Date: May 13, 2008Wedding Date: May, 2009Venue: The Homestead, Hot Springs, VirginiaAbout Me: I'd like to think that I'm a modern day Little Edie Beale. Only not as..."talented". More realistically, I'm a foodie who can't bake; a dancer and dilettente; an art collector with a penchant for the whimsical and subversive. I live in the city and adore the country, but not much in between. I like smart design, great craftmanship and good value. Most of all, I love the new vintage aesthetic: classic, sweet, delicate, bespoke. If I had to do it all over again, I'd go for a culinary arts degree rather than a PhD; but wouldn't trade Mr. P for the world.
while back, I posted about my disappointment with the wedding band our jeweler created. I sent it back and ordered a different (less intricate) one. And after almost a month of back and forth emails and waiting, I got the new one in the mail tonight! It’s a prong-set eternity band. The previous one was more antique-y looking with bead-set milgraining and engraving on the side. This one is a lot simpler, and less vintage looking–and can’t be messed up by the jeweler!
Mrs. Perfume, DCAge and Occupation: 36, Consultant (and Part-Time Professor)Fiance's Age and Occupation: 41, ConsultantEngagement Date: May 13, 2008Wedding Date: May, 2009Venue: The Homestead, Hot Springs, VirginiaAbout Me: I'd like to think that I'm a modern day Little Edie Beale. Only not as..."talented". More realistically, I'm a foodie who can't bake; a dancer and dilettente; an art collector with a penchant for the whimsical and subversive. I live in the city and adore the country, but not much in between. I like smart design, great craftmanship and good value. Most of all, I love the new vintage aesthetic: classic, sweet, delicate, bespoke. If I had to do it all over again, I'd go for a culinary arts degree rather than a PhD; but wouldn't trade Mr. P for the world.
We were really excited to check “marriage license” off our to-do list today! During lunch, we went to the Arlington county courthouse to get it. They don’t allow photographs in the building, so we took this outside—all the better for the world to watch our cheese happening. (Mr. P was such a good sport!) Goobers!
Then we went to the bank to combine our accounts—another milestone! Read more…
Mrs. Perfume, DCAge and Occupation: 36, Consultant (and Part-Time Professor)Fiance's Age and Occupation: 41, ConsultantEngagement Date: May 13, 2008Wedding Date: May, 2009Venue: The Homestead, Hot Springs, VirginiaAbout Me: I'd like to think that I'm a modern day Little Edie Beale. Only not as..."talented". More realistically, I'm a foodie who can't bake; a dancer and dilettente; an art collector with a penchant for the whimsical and subversive. I live in the city and adore the country, but not much in between. I like smart design, great craftmanship and good value. Most of all, I love the new vintage aesthetic: classic, sweet, delicate, bespoke. If I had to do it all over again, I'd go for a culinary arts degree rather than a PhD; but wouldn't trade Mr. P for the world.
My mother, BM Abby, and my sister pulled together a wonderful and thoughtful event that came together beautifully. My mom cooked up a storm of Vietnamese lunch goodies. Abby made the cutest guest gifts of spatulas and cookie cutters.
Unique Wedding Favors
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