Weddingbee Blog

Every bee seems to post a big invitation reveal close to their wedding day. We’ve had our invitations for a while, so it’s been hard keeping them out of my blog posts. I won’t break tradition, but I thought I’d share our envelopes now since they arrived just a few days ago.

While I really liked the calligraphy that was on our save the date cards, it was a little modern. I decided to look for someone whose work might be a little more ornate for our invitations. I pored over blogs, Facebook pages, and websites. There are so many beautiful styles of calligraphy out there and many calligraphers command some pretty steep prices for their work. Calligraphy is an art, so I understand the cost.

When I found Elizabeth Bartucci of Tuccicursive (I believe that’s pronounced like the last part of her last name + cursive), I was almost afraid to ask for a quote because her work was so beautiful. The quote was startlingly modest. I couldn’t ship our envelopes quickly enough! About a week later, the package was back on my doorstep. I thought to have Liz address one envelope just for Weddingbee so I didn’t have to block out any of her beautiful letters…

Photo by Miss Mink

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After I shared inspiration for ring bearer flags earlier this week, I’m sure those of you who have been reading could guess what would come on the next DIY Friday. It’s time to share my ring bearer flag project!

My ability to work with fabric is limited by the fact that I don’t have a sewing machine. Most of the flags I saw online were put together using one, so those of you who sew might take a totally different path on this sort of project. I hope that those of you whose sewing skills are like mine, limited to putting buttons back on coats and tacking up hems, find this approachable.

Let’s revisit the inspiration. The flags I saw online were definitely put together using a sewing machine.

From Joyful Weddings and Events / Photo by Jessica Claire

Totally cute, right? I realized that I’d have to make my version very sturdy. It looked like the flag in my inspiration picture was falling apart a little bit. Small hands are going to play with these things. I imagine my nephews might wave their flags with…fervor. Disintegrating flags might ruin the fun.

Supply list
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When envisioning your wedding, you probably imagine the ceremony, your dress, your groom, and dancing the night away with your loved ones. You might think about a few of the details, but only when you jump over to engaged territory do certain details come to mind. Case in point: the wedding card box.

Before I was engaged, if you asked for my thoughts on wedding card boxes, I’d probably ask if people could just leave cards on a tray. Oh no! That just won’t do. One must have a cute depository for cards.

From Elizabeth Anne Designs / Photo by Susan Stripling Photography

Collecting cards in a bird cage has become pretty popular. I’ve seen some lanterns used for this function and goodness knows I have a few to spare. I love the idea of repurposing something for a card box!

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I made a fabric board for our guests’ escort cards a few weeks ago and wasn’t quite sure how I’d finish it. I considered propping the board up on an easel, but also thought about putting the board in a large frame and putting it on a table, leaning against a wall.

The board is 24 inches by 36 inches and a frame large enough for it would probably cost quite a bit. I decided that I should visit some of my favorite antique shops to see if I could find something that would work. If that didn’t work, I’d buy some cheap art at a Home Goods type store and pull it apart to use the frame. A new frame would probably cost quite a bit. The last time I had something framed, the framing cost as much as the piece of art I was framing. It was my first serious piece of art, so it was worth it. My escort card board isn’t in the same league, so spending hundreds on framing it doesn’t make any sense.

Photo by Miss Mink

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My wedding DIY projects so far have come to me while looking for inspiration online.  I’ve been digesting wedding blogs for over a year, and they’ve been integral in helping me develop the special little details that we’ll incorporate into our big day.

One project came to me in a very unusual way. I was on a business trip a couple months ago and built an extra day into my week to see my brother’s family, who live in the city where I’d be working. My brother and sister-in-law have three charming little boys who I adore. While my sister-in-law and I were talking about wedding planning during my visit, their middle child was playing between us. I asked him if he wanted to be a ring bearer in the wedding and, without missing a beat, he said, “I’ll need a flag.”

My sister-in-law was a little startled and tried to tell him that he didn’t need a flag, but I decided that if he wanted a flag, he could have a flag. So I set about looking for a little inspiration.

From Every Last Detail / Photo by K and K Photography

Though most little boys in weddings are quietly sent down the aisle with ring pillows, I could not imagine such a scene at our wedding. I think children in weddings should be natural. Our nephews are energetic, chatty, and exuberant. Therefore, they should be energetic, chatty, and exuberant at our wedding.

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Remember the corn hole boards I painted for our wedding? I’m so excited to see people playing with them during our cocktail hour, and I’ve been thinking about adding croquet and boules (AKA bocci) to the mix to make things interesting. When I pictured the scene, I realized that I was ignoring the little ones. Our ring bearers and flower girl are a bit too small to take part in any of those games, so I decided to make a game just for them.

I’m pretty sure all of the little ones can understand and play tic tac toe, so I made a lawn version for them to play with. To give credit where it’s due, I saw a variation of this project in a magazine last year. If I could remember the magazine, I’d share a picture or link, but I don’t!

I had some canvas drop cloths around and cut a square out of them to use for this project. I turned the edges under and secured them with fabric glue. This gave the “board” a smooth, clean finish.

Photo by Miss Mink

I contemplated painting the tic tac toe lines onto the canvas. I came across some decorative duct tape at a gift shop and thought that it could have the same function and not get dirty.

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I pulled out my passport the other night to send it off for renewal and realized something a little sad. The last stamp in my book is from 2003. I studied two languages and went abroad three times in college. It’s a little startling to realize that I haven’t left the country in almost a decade. The sad fact is that despite telling myself that I wouldn’t let it happen, I’ve become a workaholic. I get to use technology and social media, which make my job pretty enjoyable. It’s not that I don’t travel. I do quite a bit of business travel (enough that I could trade in hotel points for the $200 Pottery Barn gift card I mentioned yesterday). I just haven’t done much leisure travel in recent years. Clearly, I’m really looking forward to our honeymoon.

Mr. Mink, on the other hand, has been to every sunny vacation destination you can think of. Name a tropical island and he’s probably been there. As a result, I told Mr. Mink that he could decide where we’d go, but I had two requests. First, there must be a beach. Second, I want to see dolphins. My response to the idea of swimming with dolphins is a lot like Kristen Bell’s reaction to the idea of meeting a sloth, which you may have seen on the Ellen show recently.

Via The EllenShow Channel on Youtube

For what it’s worth, as an animal lover, I also feel this way about the prospect of meeting a panda, elephant, sloth, sea otter, or seal pup.

Shortly after articulating my two requirements, I thought the dolphin request might be too limiting, so I retracted it, but Mr. Mink said that if I want dolphins, we’ll find dolphins.
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Did you notice that pictures of bridal parties getting ready while wearing flower print kimonos hit the wedding blogs in a big way last year? I saw them everywhere and I have to admit that I was quite smitten with the images! I looked into ordering robes for me and my bridesmaids from the company that seems to be all the rage. Their patterns are so beautiful and I could just picture us getting ready in the bridal suite on my big day wearing them.

Upon further inspection, I thought the robes seemed a bit short. The description says they are knee length, but they seemed to hit mid-thigh on most of the women I saw in pictures on the blogs. Maybe they’re knee length before they are tied? They also seemed a bit expensive in light of what they are. They’re $65 for very lightweight cotton.

From Green Wedding Shoes / Photo by Aaron Delesie

I started to look for alternatives and came across this pretty robe on the Pottery Barn website.
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Right on the heels of my bout with feelings of being old, I realized that it was time to book a hair and makeup artist. Some very kind friends told me that I did my own makeup well, but I honestly feel that my skills are a little lacking in that area. I have one look. I don’t experiment with anything new or different. I’ve been using the same products for years and only changed my foundation when the TSA started limiting how much liquid we could carry on flights (I travel for business and switched to mineral foundation to avoid checking bags).

When I started my search for a hair and makeup artist, my only requirement was that they work on-site. I plan on relaxing and enjoying the beautiful bridal loft at our venue. I don’t want to be running all over town. Luckily, there are plenty of wonderful artists who are willing to work on site.

Image from CvilleMakeup.com / Photo by Jack Looney Photography

As I looked at portfolios and blogs, I was swept up in how wonderful every image looked.There were glowing brides on their big days and beautiful models at dreamy inspiration shoots. Slowly, I realized that I was craving diversity. I’m not a model (anymore) and I’m not in my 20s. I wanted to find someone whose portfolio included some people who might be like me.
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Do you remember the boutonnieres I made for our ring bearers, which I shared a few weeks ago? I stacked rosettes made out of ribbon and added a little puppy figurine to make them a little less stuffy than the traditional boutonnieres that the groomsmen will be wearing. Junior Mink, my golden retriever, is our constant companion (so constant that people seem surprised if they see us downtown without him!), and I thought it’d be fun to have a few references to him at our wedding.

Photo by Miss Mink

In addition to our four ring bearers, Mr. Mink’s niece is going to serve as our flower girl. I have a feeling Mini Mink is going to love her role. I wanted to give her something along the lines of the boutonnieres that would fit in with her position. I decided to make her a fabric-flower corsage.

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Just before Thanksgiving, the boxes started arriving. We hadn’t even sent our Save the Date cards out when the deluge began. Someone told me that I’d start to know the difference between a UPS truck that was going to stop and a UPS truck that was going to pass by and they were right. It seemed as though every few days, a new box arrived.

Our families seemed to be mounting an all out raid on our registry and I was overwhelmed by their generosity. By the end of the holidays, I had a corner of the living room dedicated to their gifts. I was trying not to count the boxes, but we didn’t register for all that much and the stack had me wondering how much of the registry was fulfilled.

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Have you heard of Hyperbole and a Half? It’s a hilarious blog that covers a range of topics from the simpleton dog to the childhood exploits of the author and illustrator. A little over a year ago, she wrote about being a sugar addict as a child and ruthlessly pursuing a cake made for a grandparent once she snagged a bite of it.

I had no idea that once I scheduled cake tastings that I’d morph into a bit of a cake monster myself. All I could think about was cake. Cake. Cake. Cake.

God of Cake is one of the funniest blog posts I’ve ever read / From Hyperbole and a Half

I managed to hold myself together on our way over to Charlottesville baker Anita Gupta’s house one Sunday morning for a tasting. Anita is the wonderful woman behind Maliha Creations and half of the team behind EyeCandy, a company that creates beautiful dessert tables. I met Anita a year ago while attending an event for a charity I was working with as a volunteer (I have met the most interesting people while volunteering…more to come on that front) and was really looking forward to finally trying some of her beautiful cake.
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The Weddingbee boards have had quite a few threads in recent weeks about mothers who haven’t met expectations during their daughter’s engagements. We’re in a period when scores of newly engaged women are embarking on the planning process (the holidays, New Year’s, and Valentine’s Day seem to create a proposal bonanza) and I thought I’d share my thoughts on the mother-daughter relationship during wedding planning.

Most of us have grown up with pretty powerful messages about how wedding planning will work. We think our mothers will be by our sides constantly during this entire process. We may even think that planning with our mothers will improve our relationships with them. We believe our wedding day will allow us to feel the pinnacle of motherly love and affection.

Image by Manuel Meszarvits

Some of our mothers will meet our lofty expectations. For many, though, our expectations are impossibly high.

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Vintage. It’s the word used to describe old things that aren’t quite precious or old enough to be called antiques. We seem to throw it around a lot in the wedding world, don’t we? I never put a name on our wedding’s aesthetic and we don’t really have a theme, so I don’t use “vintage” very often. At one point in gathering inspiration, though, I realized that I had quite a few pictures of vintage furniture being used in weddings. I was inspired to go on a little treasure hunt to find a few tables.

I was looking for real junk that I could rehab. Most of the antique and vintage shops in the Charlottesville area had pieces that would work, but they didn’t present a DIY challenge and I wanted to have a little fun. Just an hour away in Richmond, there are some real junk shops. The kinds of places where you have to climb over piles and get a little dirty to uncover a prize. One Saturday morning, I set off with this picture as my inspiration:

From Marry You Me / Design by Luna and Chloe Weddings

I won’t bore you with the play-by-play, but I found three tables that pretty much matched the table in my inspiration picture.
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Being locavores, we were attracted to our venue because of their farm-to-table philosophy. The catch was that we wouldn’t know much about our wedding menu until a few months before our wedding. We knew who had tastings very soon after booking their venues. We even have a friend whose caterer brought what was essentially a tasting to their very first meeting (it worked…they booked that caterer).

A local photographer who has an amazing way with shooting food (and is a food blogger on the side) recently tweeted about having a shoot at our venue and I knew it was time to book our tasting. As I flipped through nine pages of options, I knew we were going to have fun with the decisions ahead of us. We love food and we love the chefs at our venue. We knew everything we saw would be amazing, but certain items were sticking out more than others.

Pippin Hill’s “Pucker Up Punch” / From Andrea Hubbell’s blog / Photo by Andrea Hubbell Photography

Since I was a child, I have found beef unappealing. I joke that if you put the steak from the Ruth’s Chris ad that’s in every in-flight magazine next to a plate of grilled vegetables, I would pick the vegetables. Mr. Mink, an enthusiastic carnivore, thinks I’m crazy.
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