Mrs. Cowboy Boot, Santa FeAge and Occupation: 25, Magazine EditorFiance's Age and Occupation: 29, Artist and Whitewater Rafting GuideEngagement Date: April 28th, 2008Wedding Date: October 2009Venue: Devil's Thumb Ranch, ColoradoAbout Me: I grew up in Los Angeles and have since lived in San Diego, Boston, Italy, Hawaii, New York City, and Santa Fe. I speak Italian and love pasta. My real passion is the outdoors, though. When I'm not at work, I'm snowboarding, hiking with my two dogs, mountain biking, surfing, cross-country-skiing, or boating New Mexico's rivers. Despite my boyish love for adventure, I'm a girly-girl at heart and am overly-excited to pull off the romantic, vintage-inspired, country wedding of my dreams.
I’m pleased to meet you, two-month mark. Do you know what you mean? Eight weeks. Literally. That’s right, we’re eight weeks out and to be honest, I’m feeling pretty good about our to-do list. It’s dwindling down to the tiniest of details like finishing up a few DIY projects, making sure the stragglers get taken care of (Mr. CB’s ring? Just a tiny detail), and…
Mrs. Stiletto, ChicagoAge and Occupation: 26, Non-Profit/FundraisingFiance's Age and Occupation: 26, Engineer and PhotographerEngagement Date: March 2, 2008Wedding Date: September 2009Venue: The 19th Century ClubAbout Me: My fiance and I love living in the city of Chicago with our cats Basil and Linus, and vow to never move to the suburbs if we can possibly avoid it! We’ve poured ourselves into planning a wedding that reflects our personal style - modern and high contrast with a vintage twist. Blogging keeps me creative, baking keeps me happy, and grande nonfat no foam sugar free vanilla lattes keep me sane.
I’ve posted about the ins and outs of our invitations… we’ve had them in our house since about February, but actually taking the final step—addressing these suckers—took some planning. We have these fabulous outer envelopes, but I just didn’t know what to do in order to stay in line with the integrity of the design. Oh yeah, and in line with that pesky budget.
Mrs. Star, New York CityAge and Occupation: 22, ActressFiance's Age and Occupation: 24, Casting AssistantWedding Date: October 2009Venue: Ceremony: The Kraine Theatre, Reception: Midtown Loft & TerraceAbout Me: I’m a professional actress who’s always had New York City in her blood and I'm finally getting the chance to make a home in Manhattan with my fiancé, my dog, and my big dreams! I love polka dots, craft projects, Dunkin’ Donuts’ iced coffee, and anything sparkly. I’m having a blast planning our elegant/dramatic/New York City/acting-themed/largely-DIY wedding and am thrilled to be the youngest current Miss Blogger!
So while our invites are just being sent out this week and I can’t yet share those with you, I would love to share a little piece of their DIY goodness: the outer envelopes.
When I first started dreaming about our wedding invitations, visions of letterpress and professional calligraphy danced through my head. Then, reality set in. We didn’t have the budget to splurge on every detail, and…
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.
Based on the title, you’re probably thinking this post is going to be about our linens, but it’s about calligraphy. As you learned in my fruity shower post, BM F and I met in college. She would sit and practice her handwriting when she needed something to do with her hands. I can’t tell you how many times we’d be sitting in the cafeteria and…
Mrs. Swan, New York CityAge and Occupation: 31, Legislative RepresentativeFiance's Age and Occupation: 33, Finance GuyEngagement Date: August 9, 2008Wedding Date: August 2009Venue: Battery GardensAbout Me: I am an un-crafty but resourceful, Caribbean-born but New York-raised woman who's been known to analyze "Dancing with the Stars" and “So You Think You Can Dance”, buy stinky cheese, and use way too many parentheses. I keep lists for fun, am constantly daydreaming of my next international travel adventure (four continents down, three to go), debating sports (let’s Got Mets/Giants!) and dancing around my apartment to stay sane. I am excited to share our wedding planning journey as I hope to plan a streamlined, personal, and fun wedding with the greatest life partner I could ever imagine, Mr. Swan.
As of this post, we are focused on paper over here in the Swan household. We’re in the process of sending out our invitations, and so I’ll blog about some of our invitation elements, starting with the outside of our invitations.
Lemme be real; I’m not into paper. I think it’s pretty, and I love seeing some of the beautiful custom letterpress creations out there. However,…
Mrs. Bruschetta, PhiladelphiaAge and Occupation: 25, Communication ProfessionalFiance's Age and Occupation: 25, Physical Therapy Graduate StudentEngagement Date: November 30, 2007Wedding Date: August 2009Venue: St. Thomas of Villanova Church & the F.U.E.L. HouseAbout Me: I’m a self-proclaimed grammar geek who loves singing (like, really belting it) in the car. My mister and I are planning a vibrant summer soiree celebrating our passions – including food and Philly – and when we make it official, we’ll have been together for eight years! Being super competitive is in my nature, and talking excessively is in my genes. I’ve got a terrible sense of direction, but can always easily find my way into Mr. Bruschetta’s arms.
I’d like to think my printing’s passable. When I’m not rushing, my notes are neat and completely legible. My script, on the other hand, is not so aesthetically pleasing. Sure, it gets the job done — a few loops and flourishes find their way out of my pen when I’m asked to “sign at the ’x’, please” — but it’s hardly the luscious, swirly cursive…
Mrs. Swan, New York CityAge and Occupation: 31, Legislative RepresentativeFiance's Age and Occupation: 33, Finance GuyEngagement Date: August 9, 2008Wedding Date: August 2009Venue: Battery GardensAbout Me: I am an un-crafty but resourceful, Caribbean-born but New York-raised woman who's been known to analyze "Dancing with the Stars" and “So You Think You Can Dance”, buy stinky cheese, and use way too many parentheses. I keep lists for fun, am constantly daydreaming of my next international travel adventure (four continents down, three to go), debating sports (let’s Got Mets/Giants!) and dancing around my apartment to stay sane. I am excited to share our wedding planning journey as I hope to plan a streamlined, personal, and fun wedding with the greatest life partner I could ever imagine, Mr. Swan.
Let’s put this next topic in the “I didn’t think I would really care about this for my wedding” category: calligraphy.
For the “streamlined, cut out everything not necessary” bride like me, I should be getting our computer printer ready for some lovely mailing labels. Yet there I was, about a month ago, looking and practically salivating over calligraphy options for invitations.
Mrs. D'orsay, Baltimore/Lancaster UKAge and Occupation: 24, Stay at home fiance (formerly in nonprofit communications)Fiance's Age and Occupation: 29, Web site developer and designer; co-owner of men's skincare shopEngagement Date: August 10, 2008Wedding Date: August, 2009Venue: Oakland ManorAbout Me: I'm a Maryland raised environmental policy wonk/activist/organizer and communications aficionado. In the past year I've lived in Baltimore, MD, Tucson, AZ, Miami, FL and Lancaster, England. In my not so spare time I enjoy planning trips with Mr. D' Orsay, visiting friends and family and crafting like a mo-fo. I also enjoy modern dance classes, rugby and soccer but have been banned by my mother, MOHs, and Mr. D' Orsay from playing till after the wedding. I have an unnatural addiction to cheese and shoes, but love Mr. D' Orsay more than either and can't wait to become Mrs. D' Orsay!
Hello Hive… Mr. D and I spent two-and-a-half hours attempting to print out addresses for 16 envelopes. TWO AND A HALF HOURS.
It was absurd. We played with page sizes, line spacing, font size, number size, alignment - the whole shebang. We also learned that Mr. D’s computer and printer prefers the metric system, while mine is all about the inches. Which really meanr that to…
Mrs. Bruschetta, PhiladelphiaAge and Occupation: 25, Communication ProfessionalFiance's Age and Occupation: 25, Physical Therapy Graduate StudentEngagement Date: November 30, 2007Wedding Date: August 2009Venue: St. Thomas of Villanova Church & the F.U.E.L. HouseAbout Me: I’m a self-proclaimed grammar geek who loves singing (like, really belting it) in the car. My mister and I are planning a vibrant summer soiree celebrating our passions – including food and Philly – and when we make it official, we’ll have been together for eight years! Being super competitive is in my nature, and talking excessively is in my genes. I’ve got a terrible sense of direction, but can always easily find my way into Mr. Bruschetta’s arms.
I love receiving mail. I’m that person who actually notices the stamp on an envelope, and appreciates seeing my name and address scrolled in fine penmanship.
(source)
Since the little details are important to me, I’m thrilled to have found a talented and affordable calligrapher through Etsy. (And can’t believe I didn’t know about this amazing site until I started reading Weddingbee — blasphemous, I know!) Etsy has…
Mrs. Deviled Egg, PittsburghAge and Occupation: 27, Public RelationsFiance's Age and Occupation: 28, AccountingEngagement Date: December 24, 2007Wedding Date: May, 2009Blogging Since: October 21, 2008Venue: Historic auditorium and meeting hall in one of Pittsburgh's commuter citiesAbout Me: I am obsessed with all things crafty, especially scrapbooking, knitting, jewelry-making & cake decorating. I also love being an aunt, wrapping presents, watching football (Go Steelers!), shopping at yard sales and consignment stores, procrastinating, singing and learning to play the guitar. When it comes to wedding planning, I'm excited about working on DIY projects and finding creative ways to stay under budget. Of course, nothing is more exciting to me than knowing that the wonderful Mr. Deviled Egg will be my husband.
I truly wish calligraphy was in my budget or that I could create such beautiful characters with ease and consistency. I had dreams of teaching myself some calligraphy techniques, but every attempt was a big FAIL, and I just didn’t have the time or commitment to practice the skill. I wanted the addresses to be handwritten, so my own handwriting would have to do.
Mrs. Mascara, Chicago/Upper MichiganAge and Occupation: 25, Biomedical EngineerFiance's Age and Occupation: 25, Process EngineerEngagement Date: July 27, 2008Wedding Date: September 2009Venue: Catholic ceremony, reception at local armoryAbout Me: A lover of Mr. Mascara, crafting, baking, Gossip Girl, diet soda, and all things wedding. A Yooper girl somehow displaced in the Chicago suburbs, planning a wedding from a distance, and counting down the days until I marry my best friend.
There’s something about a hand-addressed envelope in a pretty font that makes me swoon. While definitely not necessary, calligraphy can add a little extra elegance to an invitation suite or an escort card. I’ve been drawn to calligraphy ever since I was little. My aunt even bought me a calligraphy book for my birthday one year when I was about 10, and I practiced until…
Mrs. Kitten, Austin/Grand CaymanAge and Occupation: 25, Law StudentFiance's Age and Occupation: 27, Dental StudentEngagement Date: October 19, 2006Wedding Date: April, 2009Venue: The Grand Old House, Grand CaymanAbout Me: In 2009 I will get married (after a two and a half year engagement!), become an Army wife, graduate from law school, take the bar, move from Austin to Washington, D.C., and start my career as a lawyer! With all this going on, Mr. Kitten and I decided to have a tropical, "stress-free" destination wedding. Nevertheless, my micromanaging, detail-oriented, perfectionist side has prevailed---I am currently obsessed with every last detail of my "stress-free" destination wedding! But most of all, I'm beyond excited to become Mrs. Kitten on a fabulous Caribbean vacation surrounded by my friends and family!
It’s finally time to show off our invitations! I was SO happy with the work Laura Hooper did for us on both our STDs and invitations! Here are a few shots of the final product! If you see any smudgy-looking spots it is due to my POOR photo editing skills (I took out some personal information).
Mrs. Lemonade, Austin/San AntonioAge and Occupation: 28, BureaucratFiance's Age and Occupation: 28, Music ManagementEngagement Date: December 21, 2007Wedding Date: April, 2009Blogging Since: August 22, 2008Venue: Country Club ceremony, ballroom receptionAbout Me: I’m a total wonkette who is lucky enough to be surrounded by her favorite things on a daily basis – awesome music, the great State of Texas and of course, Mr. Lemonade! I find any excuse I can to craft something and am completely infatuated with the 1950’s, all things Kennedy, and my furbaby Vida.
My family has a curse. It has afflicted my mother, father, sister and myself. It is the curse of horrible handwriting (seriously, we should all be doctors!).
When the task of addressing our beautiful Arturo envelopes came to mind, I started to have a mini panic attack as I imagined my awful scrawl splattered all over the front of the cottony goodness. Labels were always an…
Mrs. Piglet, Virginia/OahuAge and Occupation: 28, ConsultantFiance's Age and Occupation: 29, Entrepreneur/Fashion Apparel Wholesale ImporterEngagement Date: June 22, 2008Wedding Date: August 2009Venue: Ceremony at the Lanikuhonua Phase II private estate, reception at a historic hotel in WaikikiAbout Me: I'm an East Coast gal with intense road rage and an addiction to romantic comedies, fast food, gadgets, Korean BBQ, and my wiener dog George aka Georgia May. I carry mustard packets in my purse and I love perusing the aisles at discount stores. A self proclaimed shopaholic, I impulsively buy electronics, software, and craft tools; none of which I know how to use. I'm excited to dust
these babies off and immerse myself in DIY projects galore in
preparation for our DW in paradise!
Me: Do you think we should try to do our own calligraphy?
Mr Piggy: Oh I took calligraphy classes in high school. I can do it.
Me: (1 week later) Hey! I bought a cheap calligraphy set. I’ll start practicing.
Mr Piggy: Here here here, give it to me. I’ll show you. I’m gooooood. You angle the pen like this. See?
Me: (peeking at his writing) What’s that say…
Mrs. Avocado, SeattleAge and Occupation: 23, StudentFiance's Age and Occupation: 26, ConsultantEngagement Date: July 27, 2008Wedding Date: October, 2008Blogging Since: June 30, 2008Venue: LDS Seattle Temple & Hotel 1000About Me: Somehow this little farm girl found herself a genuine Pole to fall in love and eventually move away to Poland with. I am an LDS bride attempting to plan a private religious ceremony, ring ceremony, seated reception for 100, and an open house while coordinating for guests flying in from across the United States and as far away as Poland. I try to avoid fads, excess waste, and saturated fat. I strongly endorse photography, DDR, calorie counting, rss feeds, cooking, and utilizing your resources.
Scene: A slick haired salesman in crocodile shoes approaches the reader’s computer screen. Miss Avocado lags behind a bit out of shyness and apprehension surrounding the critical response.
*knock knock*
A seasoned Weddingbee reader, one who has seen gorgeous DIY invites come from the likes of Miss Shortcake, Mrs. Cupcake, and Miss Pomegranate comes to the computer screen.
Reader: “Hello?”
Salesman: “Special delivery, brought to you by Miss Avocado,…
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