Miss Frozen Yogurt, DallasAge and Occupation: 28, Special Projects CoordinatorFiance's Age and Occupation: 26, Equity TraderEngagement Date: March 19, 2009Wedding Date: April 2010Venue: Marie Gabrielle, DallasAbout Me: I was born and raised in Texas, and have lived in several of the cities across the state, but I currently reside in Austin. I went to college in Boston and have a special place in my heart for the Northeast. I love reading, shopping, wine, reuniting with college friends that are scattered across the country, reality TV, trying out new recipes, and attempting all the DIY projects that come along with wedding planning. I'm a "bleeding heart, save the world type" and thankfully my job allows me to work on legislation and policy to help out those in need. I met Mr. Frozen Yogurt in a bar, though he doesn't even drink! And now we are planning a modern yet vintage wedding in Dallas while dealing with the trials and tribulations of first time homeownership.
Remember the photobooth we’re going to have at the wedding? Well, I kept trying to think of ways to display the pictures at the wedding. We aren’t using the photos as our guestbook, and I didn’t want them scattered all over because I thought they might get lost. So then it hit me, why not use clothespins?
Miss Poodle, Santiago, Chile/San Bernardino, CAAge and Occupation: 27, Industrial & Web DesignerFiance's Age and Occupation: 24, Firefighter & Mountain PatrolEngagement Date: February 25, 2009Wedding Date: January 2010Venue: Mr. P's Grandparents’ RanchAbout Me: I’m a Chilean girl who's crazy about nature and swimming. I enjoy carving, drawing, reading and sewing; I drool over computers, fabric, pretty paper, purple and patterns. To me, chocolate should be one of the seven wonders, right next to lemon pie. I never thought an exchange work experience program was going to change my life forever, but while working in California, I met Mr. Poodle, and ever since my days are better and brighter. We are two goofy souls that, after finding each other, couldn’t help but want to be together forever. It has being a long and sometimes hard road, since we have to deal with such a long distance between us, but we are now facing the last stage of our Fiancé Visa, and soon we will be together. You know the best part? We will be married! So I’ll be blogging from Chile until just a few months before our “green and purple” wedding.
I thought this week I was going to write the post I’ve been waiting to write for 221 days. I though last Monday we were going to have our visa approved and I was going to be thrilled to announce that I was going to be reunited with Mr. Poodle in just a week. Well, that is not happening, and we won’t be reunited in a week.
Maybe my expectations were too high, but there was a no reason to get any answer but an approval, and even though we were not rejected, after the interview, I felt like we were.
Trust me, I’ve done major research about every aspect of what they ask during the visa interview, so I was pretty confident about it. But to my surprise, I got the answer I was not ready to hear: we have to keep waiting, waiting to know if we get approved (in my head I was screaming at him, saying, “Are you kidding me???” Is 221 days of waiting not long enough or something?).
I was so frustrated, sad, mad, and I felt like my heart was breaking, but I kept my head up, took a deep breath, smiled, and ask him about how they’ll contact me. Later, when I was home, I had to let everything out and I broke to tears. I felt our wedding plans were being trashed away by an Immigration Officer, and more than ever I wished I knew how to build a machine to teleport myself into Mr. Poodle’s arms.
So, yeah… after hours feeling like it was the end of the world, I realized how much of a baby I was because: Read more…
Miss Lamb, NorfolkAge and Occupation: 25, Homeland Security ConsultantFiance's Age and Occupation: 27, Graduate StudentEngagement Date: January 2009Wedding Date: January 2010Venue: Trinity Presbyterian Church/Harrison Opera HouseAbout Me: I’m a Homeland Security Consultant with a tendency towards pulling office pranks, taking lunch breaks, and drinking Wawa shakes. I’m also an English major with a serious obsession with alliteration and rhymes. While I’m not keeping America safe, I’m training for half marathons and the Escape from Alcatraz swim. Or moving for the third time this year. Or baking. Or wedding crafting. Or crying about wedding planning. All the while, I’m getting myself into Lucille Ball-esque scrapes and making Jim Carey-esque faces. Our big fat Czech/Baptist/Jewish/Italian wedding is a combination of vintage eclectic, DIY, and little spoonful of sugar from our Event Coordinator. It’s going to be a Norfolk flavored wedding with the verve of an only-daughter-blow-out bash!
For whatever reason, I feel like these bouts are French and they speak to me in broken English/French – Frenglish if you will. It probably has something to do with the guinea feathers. But don’t tell my Dad, because after Sept. 11, he’s been calling them Freedom Fries and there’s no convincing him that French speaking bouts are funny.
AnyBout, if DIY bouts are up your alley and you were wondering how, wonder no more. I’m going to give you a Bout Tutorial. Or a Bout Toot as I keep saying in my head, because right along with French speaking bouts, Bout Toot is hilarious! Read more…
Mrs. Beagle, AustinAge and Occupation: 26, Electrical EngineerFiance's Age and Occupation: 28, FinanceEngagement Date: July 12, 2008Wedding Date: October 2009Venue: Church Ceremony/Reception at The Waterford HouseAbout Me: I am a true, but rare, Austinite---I was born, raised, and continue to live in this great city! Although
I am an engineer by day, I feed my inner creative side through crafting, sewing, and obsessing over Martha Stewart. I love coffee, my mister, NPR, and exploring all the nooks and crannies of Austin.
I can't wait to share my adventures in DIY and wedding planning with all of you!
Our invitations were semi-DIY. I ordered the actual invite and RSVP card from the White Aisle. Rebecca was really sweet and easy to work with—our invitations arrived in perfect order and on time! I decided to DIY the map and assemble them myself to save some money… although looking back I think what I saved in money was eaten up in the time I spent putting them together.
I originally planned on buying scrapbooking paper or wrapping paper to cut into liners, but I was unsuccessful. I finally gave up and decided to make my own. Our invitation envelopes were an odd size (5.5 x 7.5—the liner templates from PaperSource DO NOT include this size ), so I created liners by tracing the envelope and trimming 2cm off all of the edges. I then stamped the design shown below onto each liner using some purplish ink. I bought all the paper products from Hobby Lobby. This is what our guests saw when they opened up their mail:
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 left off with the hydrofoil ride from Bellagio. We picked up a rental car in Como and headed towards our next destination, Santa Margarita Ligure along the Italian Riviera. Here are some of the highlights. Unfortunately, I broke my camera halfway through…
Miss French Fries, MilwaukeeAge and Occupation: 27, ParalegalFiance's Age and Occupation: 35, Investments AdvisorEngagement Date: September 20, 2008Wedding Date: June 2010Venue: Ceremony: St. Paul the Apostle Church, Reception: Hotel BallroomAbout Me: I'm a Midwestern girl who longs to live in a warmer climate (my feet would be happy in flip flops any day!). I love travel, impromptu napping, grilled cheese sandwiches, my iPhone, singing with reckless abandon in my car, and Mr. French Fries.
Our first round of cake tasting went well, all things considered. The people who helped us were very nice, and obviously well versed in weddings. We were seated at a little bistro table (the bakery is tiny) and given 2 pieces each of the four types of cake that I had listed. Those flavors again:
Genoise cake with vanilla mousse and fresh strawberries covered with white chocolate ganache
Chocolate cake with chocolate mousse covered with chocolate ganache
Red velvet cake with cream cheese filling, covered with white chocolate ganache
Signature cheesecake with raspberry filling, covered with chocolate ganache
Clockwise, from the top left: red velvet with cream cheese frosting, genoise cake with vanilla mousse and sliced strawberries, chocolate cake with chocolate mousse, and their signature cheesecake.
Doesn’t it look yummy?
Miss Rainbow, TampaAge and Occupation: 22, Makeup ArtistFiance's Age and Occupation: 25, Electrical Engineer/ProgrammerEngagement Date: November 27, 2008Wedding Date: May 2010Venue: The Gamble PlantationAbout Me: I'm a quirky (and slightly Type-A) freelance makeup artist who was born in Washington State, raised in Alabama, and now living with my one and only in sunny Florida. I'm fashion and beauty obsessed, and have recently discovered my inner domestic diva extraordinaire. I'm a wannabe chef, decorating addict, and trying desperately to be as crafty as possible---albeit only with a glue gun. I'm hopelessly in love with my fiance, and all things sparkly and feathery. Despite the glittery exterior, I'm a total hippie on the inside. When I'm not making up pretty faces, I love doing what I can to help people, animals, and the environment. Someday the FI and I will change the world, but first we're tackling our modern-vintage-Marie-Antoinette-meets-Alice-in-Wonderland inspired wedding. I just can't wait to be Mrs. Rainbow!
While shopping for my bridesmaids’ dresses, I end up wanting every cute silver dress I find for myself! It’s driving me nuts! I DO want them to look good, after all… even if I AM a bit jealous that I won’t be the one wearing fabulously chic little grey dresses like these:
How fabulous are these? I would love for all 3 of my girls to have different dresses, but apparently it’s very difficult to find 3 different silvers that go well together and aren’t obscenely expensive. One is either too blue, too dark, too taupe, too… something! BM dresses are basically the bane of my existence at this point, can you tell?
Miss Labrador Retriever, Athens/SavannahAge and Occupation: 24, Student/Sports ReporterFiance's Age and Occupation: 29, Physical Therapy Assistant Student/Future Dr. of PT
Engagement Date: December 31, 2008Wedding Date: November 2009Venue: Whitfield Square/Savannah StationAbout Me: I'm working on my second degree from UGA (Go Dawgs!). I'm a self-proclaimed attention-w****. If it involves a camera, I'm in front of it! You'll never meet a girlier tomboy than me. I can go toe to toe with any guy on the subject of college football, and lift more than any girl in my gym, all without chipping a nail. I hope to someday be the only person you want delivering your sports news. My FI and I are the loving parents of three Labrador Retrievers (one of each color) and are planning a "Southern Romantic Charm" wedding in the beautiful, historic city of Savannah. I'm not extreme in anything except moderation... and wedding planning.
As you may know by now, our wedding is an ode to the Southern way of life. I started to think about Southern Belles and realized that for some of our wedding pictures, I really want to look the part. Not quite as done up as this…
… but still with the same essence. So I hopped on eBay and found a very “Southern” looking lace parasol and matching fan. How great will these look in photos of me in my dress walking around Savannah’s famous historic squares?
Mrs. French Bulldog, Orange CountyAge and Occupation: 28, Administrative Assistant & Interior Design StudentFiance's Age and Occupation: 28, Purchasing AnalystEngagement Date: November 8, 2008Wedding Date: August 2009Venue: Bernardo WineryAbout Me: I've lived in Atlanta, Dallas and Laguna Niguel; although I've lived in Orange County, CA most my life, I'm a Southerner at heart. I work full time for a Commercial General Contractor (aka my father) and I go to school for Interior Design at night. I love modern design, music, wine, crafting, DMailing, my family, my Westies, and of course, Mr Frenchie! Mr Frenchie and I met 3 years ago on Match.com and have been best friends ever since. I love his "old soul" and how he laughs with his whole body, among many other things. We are planning our summer wedding at the winery near his hometown, just 45 minutes south of Orange County.
), so I created liners by tracing the envelope and trimming 2cm off all of the edges. I then stamped the design shown below onto each liner using some purplish ink. I bought all the paper products from Hobby Lobby. This is what our guests saw when they opened up their mail:
We decided to enter in on the New York city of Lake Champlain, drive down the islands in the middle, and then over to Burlington.
