Mrs. Tomato, Napa ValleyAge and Occupation: 25, Technology Project ManagerFiance's Age and Occupation: 27, EngineerEngagement Date: October 22, 2006Wedding Date: July 1, 2007Blogging Since: May 1, 2006Venue: Auberge du Soleil About Me: I love all things beautiful. From handmade stationery, feminine fashion and delicate flowers to the little moments in your life treasured with your loved one. I am also notorious among my friends to be a deal hunter! My best deal was perhaps my Monique Lhuillier dress for $1100 (orig. $5000). I also tend to use a lot of exclamation marks! =)
Remember the picture of the adorable lamps I had included in my bridal shower post? So many readers have asked me about them that I finally got around to asking my friend about the DIY details. Here’s the link for the instructions (it includes the template too!)
Miss Lily, New York/TucsonAge and Occupation in 06: 30, Public Health ResearcherFiance's Age and Occupation: 30, Art/Web StuffEngagement Date: February 11, 2006Wedding Date: April, 2007Venue: Tuscon, ArizonaAbout Me: Here are some things I love?�‚�? painting, drawing, knitting and all other crafty things (including glueing popsicle sticks together); burritos (must be from Arizona); indie/70s rock; whiskey; dogs (if only my tiny apt could support one!); bad TV; and reading. I'm also crazy indecisive so fingers crossed wedding planning doesn't kill me.
I bought TONS of candles from Illuminations for our wedding. We had little hanging votives in the trees (darn there are no pics of that!) and hurricanes on each table next to the flower (hurricanes from Michaels, candles from Illuminations). Their candles were really nice and not so bad in price — if you have a coupon. So here’s one I just got in the mail:
Save $15 on a purchase of $60 or more
Code 999201315
Valid Aug 10-31st
And, hey, these hanging votives (although different from mine) are only $1!
Mrs. Licorice, AtlantaAge and Occupation: 25, Full-time Interior Design StudentFiance's Age and Occupation: 25, PilotEngagement Date: February 6, 2006Wedding Date: September 1, 2007Blogging Since: July 18, 2007Venue: John Oliver Michael, a historic farm house and barn replicaAbout Me: I love artistic pursuits of all sorts! I'm creative and organized, but my downfall is obsessing over details. I enjoy running outdoors, trying new restaurants, and staring at décor and wedding magazines for hours on end. I hope to one day design a hotel in a foreign country, preferably France, Greece, Japan, or Australia. I am elated to marry Mr. Licorice and experience life’s adventures with him!
After writing my last post on lighting, I did some more research on Adam Frank Lumens. As lovely as these fixtures are, they will not create the lighting effect I need. There is a huge blank wall behind where I would like to place the head table, and the shadow produced by the Lumen will be quite small in comparision. I was prepared to suck up the price of a lighting professional, but they were booked on my wedding date! Ack! So, back to the drawing board!
My new plan is quite involved (not really): lots and lots of candlelight! My florist is adding tall candelabras for my blank walls, and I’m adding an almost ridiculous amount of candles for other areas of the reception room. I hope that the overall vibe will be romantic and dreamy, and I think the soft glow will make for pretty pictures. Who doesn’t look good in a dim room? Ha.
You can see the candelabras in the background of this picture. Image from European Floral Design.
Mrs. Lemon, Los Angeles/MontereyAge and Occupation in 2006: 26, Graduate Student (Public Policy)Fiance's Age and Occupation in 2006: 29, Environmental ConsultantEngagement Date: April 7, 2006Wedding Date: July 7, 2007Venue: Rosary Chapel & Monterey Marriott, Monterey, CAAbout Me: My FI and I met online, but we like to tell people that we met at a "cookie shop" which is the technical location of our first encounter. He proposed exactly 1 year, 1 month and 6 days after our first date (it's the only part of his proposal speech that I remember), and we're planning long-distance from Los Angeles for a July wedding in my hometown of Monterey, CA. I have a passion for all things "cool, cute and quirky" and I enjoy video games, reading blogs (WeddingBee, trashy celeb, consumer & political) and crafting in my spare time, if I have any!
The urge to DIY comes in many forms: wanting to save $$, putting your personal touch on your wedding, or creating something that you couldn’t have otherwise. My situation called for all three. When I saw the going rate for centerpieces ($50 for something I would laugh at and $300 for something I enjoyed), I resorted to taking care of the task myself. And here’s what I got:
Mrs. Emerald, ChicagoAge and Occupation: 26, Wedding PlannerFiance's Age and Occupation: 26, ParalegalEngagement Date: October 8, 2006Wedding Date: September 2007Blogging Since: November 29, 2006Venue: Hyatt Lodge, Oak Brook ILAbout Me: I have been dreaming about my wedding forever, and flipping through bridal magazines since high school, so I am in my element! I am calling our theme "Vintage Inspired French/Asian Fusion." Mr. Emerald is very involved in the planning process, but of course he generally defers to me cuz I have a strong opinion of how I want everything to be :-).
Mr. E’s sister was kind enough to give us 4 dozen cylinder vases left over from her own wedding last year. I wracked my brain trying to think of how to put these to best use. So I decided to fill the bottom of each vase with some coffee beans and stick in a long candle. Why coffee beans? Because Mr. E and I LOVE coffee. I managed to get him addicted to his daily cup of joe (although we are both good about limiting our intake to just one cup a day). We also love the SMELL of coffee, so we are hoping that by bringing in the beans, we can bring the aroma of coffee into our reception space. However, I have noticed that the smell isn’t too noticeable, so I may have to add a small layer of ground coffee at the bottom since it smells stronger. I could be wrong, considering that we will have 40 of these vases around the ballroom, and I only have one as a mock-up!
But anywhoo, I could not find the ideal size/shape candles anywhere. I wanted something thicker than a regular taper candle since those don’t last long and they drip too much. Luckily I found these 1.5-inch thick and 9-inch tall candles at Hobby Lobby (candles are 50% off every other week!) for $1 each. Score! Unfortunately the bottoms are designed to fit into a candle holder, so I had Mr. E chop off all the ends. Then I am in the process of burning these candles down to the right height. Let me tell you, these things will burn FOREVER!
Mrs. Jelly Beans, OttawaAge and Occupation: 28, Pediatric Registered Nurse and full time bride to beFiance's Age and Occupation: 28, Investor and very supportive groom to beEngagement Date: July 7, 2005Wedding Date: August 25, 2007Blogging Since: June 20, 2007Venue: Cathedral Ceremony and Rooftop Tent ReceptionHoneymoon: ItalyAbout Me: I have been in wedding planning mode since Mr. Jelly Beans popped the question almost two years ago. I am a very dorky and sentimental person. I love laughing and living life alongside my husband-to-be. We have been in a long distance relationship for over 6 years - he is in California and I am presently in Canada, so you can imagine how excited we both are for our upcoming wedding.
I finally, finally completed my monogram cake topper. I had a really good talk with myself and we both agreed that we needed to sit down and finish this.
I purchased the metal letters in our Bickham Script Fancy font from wedding cuts and the equipment and crystals from Tami’s Place. I highly recommend both vendors.
Mrs. Ladybug (formerly Miss Ladybug), New York/PhiladelphiaAge and Occupation: 31, Full-time blogger from 7 pm to 12 amFiance's Age and Occupation: 31, Playing video games while I blog from 7pm to 12 amEngagement Date: August 2005Wedding Date: April 15, 2006Venue: Ballroom at the Ben, PhiladelphiaAbout Me: I am the 2nd of 5 girls. Yes, you read that right, 5 girls. I don't know if there's anything interesting about my wedding that I can tell you but I was proposed to twice.
Mrs. Kiwi, Los AngelesAge and Occupation in 06: 27, BookkeeperFiance's Age and Occupation: 27, P.E. Teach/Coach @ private schools in LAEngagement Date: March 31, 2006Wedding Date: November 3, 2007Venue: Radisson HotelAbout Me: I'm a bookkeeper who failed high school algebra. I'm currently living in Los Angeles, literally a street over from where I grew up with Mr. Kiwi, my honey of three years. We have a jumbo mini-dachshund (seriously, he's huuuuge), and we're planning an autumn themed wedding on a shoestring, paid for by ourselves. The wedding date is my late grandma's birthday, I needed her there somehow, and that seemed like the best way for us. I can't believe I'm a Bee! I couldn't be more proud!
I finally took pictures of our centerpiece stuff. They are comprised of a golden color pillar candle, some of the floral glass marble things and a vase. There is also a rust colored ribbon, but I just tied it into a bow since I’m not sure what to do with it.
We bought many things to try in the vases - rocks, different colored candles, different colored marbles, and candy. After all the different things were thrown together, this is what we like (again, the ribbon is a test run).
Mrs. Plum, DallasAge and Occupation in 06: 22, Accountant by day/Floral and Event Designer by night and weekendsFiance's Age and Occupation: 24, Security AdminEngagement Date: December 31, 2004Wedding Date: June 29, 2007Venue: Marie Gabrielle Restaurant and GardensAbout Me: I have been engaged for about two years now - yes, a long engagement, because my fiance and I wanted to wait until I graduated college, which I did this past summer! He proposed after dating just two months - crazy, I know, but 2 years later, here we are, still crazy in love :-). We are having not one, but TWO weddings and TWO receptions in one weekend - American-style and Vietnamese-style - in Dallas, Texas, where I was born and raised!
-double boiler and/or a pot with water
-container to hold melted wax (i bought one with a pour spout for convenience)
-wax
-silicone mold (I bought mine off ebay from seller sculpturesinsoap)
Mrs. Strawberry, SeattleAge and Occupation: 25, Radio DJ, Advertising Sales, Day of Wedding CoordinatorFiance's Age and Occupation: 26, EngineerEngagement Date: 07/04/2006Wedding Date: September 1, 2007Venue: Lake Union Cafe, SeattleAbout Me: I'm a Navy brat that has lived all over the world. I love reality shows that are in poor taste, going to new restaurants, and trying to be crafty. Emphasis on trying!
Before I was engaged, I had hobbies. Lots of them. I swear, I really did. One of my favorite past times was decorating. (Is that even a hobby? For arguments sake, let’s say it is.) I collected decorating magazines with the same fever as I do wedding magazines. I was scanning through my stash last night when I realized that there was a bevy of wonderful wedding ideas to be had!
These egg shell candles would be an interesting conversation starter and a fun centerpiece at a low-key beach affair.
1. Break the tops of six eggs and remove the contents, making sure the main part of the shell remain intact. Carefully, wash out the shells and leave to dry, then place them in a cardboard egg carton.
2. Carefully fill each shell about half full with candle sand. Insert wicks in the sand and light.
Mrs. Ladybug (formerly Miss Ladybug), New York/PhiladelphiaAge and Occupation: 31, Full-time blogger from 7 pm to 12 amFiance's Age and Occupation: 31, Playing video games while I blog from 7pm to 12 amEngagement Date: August 2005Wedding Date: April 15, 2006Venue: Ballroom at the Ben, PhiladelphiaAbout Me: I am the 2nd of 5 girls. Yes, you read that right, 5 girls. I don't know if there's anything interesting about my wedding that I can tell you but I was proposed to twice.
I soooooooooo would have bought these for my wedding had they made them sooner!
For those of you with a green/brown theme:
Caprice Votice Cups & Hammered Pillar Plate
$29.70 Set of 6 Caprice Votive Cups
$34.95 Hammered Pillar Plate
(Note: I don’t know why they’re not listing the price of the votives cups but that was the price listed in their catalog) Link
Mrs. Bee, New YorkAge and Occupation: 29, Weddingbee PublisherFiance's Age and Occupation: 33, InternetEngagement Date: May 7, 2004Wedding Date: March 5, 2005Venue: Westside Loft, New YorkAbout Me: Yes, my name really is Bee! I love my blogging, wikis, and tabasco sauce!
Mrs. Emerald, ChicagoAge and Occupation: 26, Wedding PlannerFiance's Age and Occupation: 26, ParalegalEngagement Date: October 8, 2006Wedding Date: September 2007Blogging Since: November 29, 2006Venue: Hyatt Lodge, Oak Brook ILAbout Me: I have been dreaming about my wedding forever, and flipping through bridal magazines since high school, so I am in my element! I am calling our theme "Vintage Inspired French/Asian Fusion." Mr. Emerald is very involved in the planning process, but of course he generally defers to me cuz I have a strong opinion of how I want everything to be :-).
For my low centerpieces, I got my inspiration from this picture that I found on brides.com - a lantern surrounded by a lush “garden” of blooms.
For the lantern in the middle, I found 10 fabulous ones (see below) on Ebay for the bargain basement price of $6 each, and $6 shipping for the whole batch (it was a BIG box too)! I’ve also seen this same exact lantern sold on wedding websites for $25 each! Ouch.
Miss Lily, New York/TucsonAge and Occupation in 06: 30, Public Health ResearcherFiance's Age and Occupation: 30, Art/Web StuffEngagement Date: February 11, 2006Wedding Date: April, 2007Venue: Tuscon, ArizonaAbout Me: Here are some things I love?�‚�? painting, drawing, knitting and all other crafty things (including glueing popsicle sticks together); burritos (must be from Arizona); indie/70s rock; whiskey; dogs (if only my tiny apt could support one!); bad TV; and reading. I'm also crazy indecisive so fingers crossed wedding planning doesn't kill me.
Mrs. Plum, DallasAge and Occupation in 06: 22, Accountant by day/Floral and Event Designer by night and weekendsFiance's Age and Occupation: 24, Security AdminEngagement Date: December 31, 2004Wedding Date: June 29, 2007Venue: Marie Gabrielle Restaurant and GardensAbout Me: I have been engaged for about two years now - yes, a long engagement, because my fiance and I wanted to wait until I graduated college, which I did this past summer! He proposed after dating just two months - crazy, I know, but 2 years later, here we are, still crazy in love :-). We are having not one, but TWO weddings and TWO receptions in one weekend - American-style and Vietnamese-style - in Dallas, Texas, where I was born and raised!
All-Inclusion Invitation Suites
