Miss Coyote, Westchester, NYAge and Occupation: 26, Administrative AssistantFiance's Age and Occupation: 30, Computer ProgrammerEngagement Date: August 2010Wedding Date: June 2012Venue: Franklin PlazaAbout Me: I am an overly-caffeinated, sports-obsessed history nerd who loves a good book and hates bananas. Originally from a small town in Upstate NY, I made the move to Westchester County and never looked back! My loves include NBC Thursdays, red wine, fleece pajamas, and my amazing fiancé. Together we are planning a formal evening affair for 175 guests with a mix of new and old traditions and plenty of personal touches.
Yeah, that black-T-shirt-and-red-boxers look Wayne has going on this photo? That’s what the mister looks like 90% of the time. The first time we watched that movie together I screamed at the TV and was like, “HOLY SHIT, THAT’S YOU!!”
Mrs. High Wire, DallasAge and Occupation: 23, Legal AssistantFiance's Age and Occupation: 25, Director of CommunicationsEngagement Date: October 9, 2010Wedding Date: September 2011Venue: Clark GardensAbout Me: My loves include yoga, anything spicy, our eccentric cat, our rambunctious dog, and Mr. High Wire, of course! Like the steadiness act of the tightrope walker, this gal is busy balancing life while planning a wedding to the man of her dreams. We’re hosting a laid-back, vintage-inspired, bird themed wedding with heavy doses of love, good eats (did someone say tacos and margaritas?), and endless Texas charm. Mr. High Wire and I are so happy to have you along for the walk across the tight rope.
The weekend of our engagement party was nothing short of a success. There was lots of time for me to spend with my out-of-town family who flew in for the occasion from different states, and also with my friends who made the trip into town (from Dallas to Abilene) for the party.
Friday evening all the friends arrived, and we set up a sea of air mattresses in the living room. We wound up having exactly enough room for everyone!
Mrs. High Wire, DallasAge and Occupation: 23, Legal AssistantFiance's Age and Occupation: 25, Director of CommunicationsEngagement Date: October 9, 2010Wedding Date: September 2011Venue: Clark GardensAbout Me: My loves include yoga, anything spicy, our eccentric cat, our rambunctious dog, and Mr. High Wire, of course! Like the steadiness act of the tightrope walker, this gal is busy balancing life while planning a wedding to the man of her dreams. We’re hosting a laid-back, vintage-inspired, bird themed wedding with heavy doses of love, good eats (did someone say tacos and margaritas?), and endless Texas charm. Mr. High Wire and I are so happy to have you along for the walk across the tight rope.
The engagement party is a great way to announce and celebrate your engagement. News travels FAST these days, so it is safe to say this is more of a chance to celebrate the engagement, rather than announce it.
They are a great opportunity to get your closest family and friends together for a happy occasion. It is also a good time for those who are nearest and dearest to all meet each other for the first time, if you all come from different areas.
The engagement party does give you a push to get your wedding-guest list together early, since traditional etiquette for this event says you should not invite anyone to the engagement party who isn’t invited to the wedding.
Who hosts?
Traditionally, the parents of the bride host the first party, but today that isn’t a steadfast rule. Sometimes the bride and groom can host it themselves. Or, the groom’s parents can host. A friend of the couple can also volunteer to host it!
What kind of party is it?
Any style from a formal affair to a pool party is appropriate. A cocktail party with heavy hors d’oeuvres is always a safe bet. Read more…
Ms. Ferris Wheel, San FranciscoAge and Occupation: 29, PsychologistFiance's Age and Occupation: 27, PsychologistEngagement Date: May 23 and 28, 2010 (one for each of us!)Wedding Date: November 2011Venue: Parc55 Hotel (city lights ceremony, ballroom reception)About Me: Born in the Southeast, educated in the Northeast, and over-educated on the West Coast, I finally earned my city-girl credentials and have put down roots in gorgeous San Francisco. I’m a raging perfectionist with a lightning quick wit and a terrible sense of both time and direction. Our wedding task list is endlessly growing because of my predilection to think that DIY projects I can make = DIY projects I should make (so not true!). I always go to bed wishing there were more hours in the day to enjoy all the things I adore, whether that be hobbies, friends, my career, our two dogs, or Mr. Ferris Wheel. Ours is a story of a non-traditional couple living an oddly traditional life planning a not-so-traditional wedding in this city we adore. Together we are bustin’ out all of our best skills (and some of our worst ones) to plan a laid-back-chic DIY-craftastic love-alicious affair!
Now that you know the story of our engagement(s), let me tell you the story of the first real wedding-related event we attended—thrown by my incredible future sister-in-law! Not only have she and her husband given me and Mr. FW the most amazing niece ever (just in time to be a flower girl, no less!)…
{a picture I took of Flower Girl S, just a few hours after she was born}
… but she organized the sweetest engagement dinner for us shortly after we made it all *official.* Just to clarify—this would’ve been amazing no matter what, but it’s particularly meaningful because it was the first time I truly realized the emotional big deal-ness of this whole engagement/marriage thing. I guess I thought that because we’d been together for so long, and because everyone knew we were in it for the long haul, and because it doesn’t seem like the marriage part of our relationship will concretely change anything about our day-to-day lives, the engagement would just feel like normal life except we would have rings on our fingers and I could be more unabashedly open about our wedding planning. But I was so wrong. Read more…
Mrs. Jaguar, SydneyAge and Occupation: 27, Primary School TeacherFiance's Age and Occupation: 29, IT ConsultantEngagement Date: August 8, 2009Wedding Date: June 2011Venue: Curzon HallAbout Me: I'm an Australian girl who is a self-proclaimed nerd, loves all things stationery and would be lost without books, music and the internet. Mr. Jaguar and I have been together for the past eight years and he finally popped the question last August. Hurrah! We currently live in Sydney, Australia with our adorable cat who thinks he's a person. We're a couple who likes to multi-task: we've been planning a wedding abroad, a permanent move from London to Sydney, and preparing to build our own home all at the same time. Travelling makes me giddy...as does Mr. Jaguar, of course!
Do you think it’s strange to want to throw a celebratory bash after we’ve been engaged for over a year? We’re a little torn over it at the moment, and there are a lot of differing opinions on this one from within our little family.
Momma Jaguar is a definite YES and thinks that the way to go would be to hold it inside a community hall, inviting lots of guests and having a buffet dinner that’s fairly cheap and laid back.
MIL Jaguar is a definite NO because that sort of thing isn’t done within their family and people wouldn’t turn up anyway.
Papa and FIL Jaguar have no real opinions, are flexible either way, and would much rather talk about cars or golf.
Mr. Jaguar thinks that since his family doesn’t really celebrate engagements, there’s no point spending money on one.
As for Miss Jaguar? Well, she thinks that something—anything—would be good!
We’re only going to be engaged once, and that time is quickly running out—why not celebrate it? And also, I want a chance to eat more cake. Maybe even cute baby-jaguar cupcakes, like these:
Mrs. Brooch, Arlington, VAAge and Occupation: 25, Writer/EditorFiance's Age and Occupation: 29, Front Desk ManagerEngagement Date: October 3, 2009Wedding Date: April 2011Venue: Oxon Hill ManorAbout Me: I’m an indecisive girlie-girl with a motor mouth, can-do attitude, and knack for making others laugh. I dream of becoming a best selling novelist like Elizabeth Gilbert or Julie Powell (a girl can dream, right?), and love long road trips, a beautiful countryside, music, blogs, books, and all things vintage/thrift/antique/or homemade. I’m a Virgo, i.e. overly sensitive, emotional, and critical, and there’s no such thing as short and sweet in my world. I want to say and do it all. Mr. Brooch grounds me. I point where to go and he figures out the way. He’s a pragmatic fancy-pants who enjoys video games and movies. We both adore our mutt, Rocky, and spending time with our amazingly supportive family and friends. We’re planning a garden wedding with a formal reception with lots of whimsy and unique, Southern-inspired details.
Our friend Vanessa sent us a few pictures of the engagement party this morning, and I’m extremely pleased with her work! Vanessa and I went to high school together, and we have the same circle of friends. She got her college degree in photography and lives in New York now, but she made a special trip to Virginia to take pictures at our party.
I’m so thrilled that she captured all of the details of our day because, as many of you know, a bride loves her details! There’s absolutely no way that Mr. B or I could have taken such amazing photos. Everyone was busy visiting with each other, and as you can see from my previous post, we didn’t get many pictures. We put a lot of thought and effort into the planning and setup of the party, and having these shots makes it all worth it.
Almost all of our details were DIY or the work of family and friends. My coworker’s mom made the cake, and it was delicious. (I mean, it was de.lic.ious!) If you live in Virginia and are looking for a fabulous and affordable aspiring baker, contact me so I can give you her info! I created the welcome sign and put together the collage of engagement photos. My grandmother helped me decorate the frame with flowers, and my mom was the genius behind our game “Checkmate!”
A very special thanks to Vanessa! Please use us as a reference in the future because we will highly recommend you! We know you gave us a huge bargain, and we’re extremely thankful. I see a bright future in photography ahead for you. You did an amazing job—whoever said professional photography is the only way to go didn’t have the talented friends we do!
Mrs. Brooch, Arlington, VAAge and Occupation: 25, Writer/EditorFiance's Age and Occupation: 29, Front Desk ManagerEngagement Date: October 3, 2009Wedding Date: April 2011Venue: Oxon Hill ManorAbout Me: I’m an indecisive girlie-girl with a motor mouth, can-do attitude, and knack for making others laugh. I dream of becoming a best selling novelist like Elizabeth Gilbert or Julie Powell (a girl can dream, right?), and love long road trips, a beautiful countryside, music, blogs, books, and all things vintage/thrift/antique/or homemade. I’m a Virgo, i.e. overly sensitive, emotional, and critical, and there’s no such thing as short and sweet in my world. I want to say and do it all. Mr. Brooch grounds me. I point where to go and he figures out the way. He’s a pragmatic fancy-pants who enjoys video games and movies. We both adore our mutt, Rocky, and spending time with our amazingly supportive family and friends. We’re planning a garden wedding with a formal reception with lots of whimsy and unique, Southern-inspired details.
Our highly anticipated engagement party was a huge success!!
The turnout was stunning! More than 40 people came out to celebrate. EVERYONE was there. Friends, family, and coworkers turned out in numbers. We were so pleased!! The food was delicious, too. Our potluck provided more than enough. We had everything from ribs to deviled eggs, and it was all Southern comfort food, of course. My diet was totally shot.
People really got into it!
There’s something about weddings that people must love because our family was totally into it. We were a bit worried that nobody would want to wear name tags or participate in the group game, but boy were we wrong! Folks snatched up the name tags like they were goin’ out of style! Everyone filled them out with excitement, giving themselves descriptive titles like, “Future Mother-in-Law,” and “First Cousin.”
Everyone loved my mom’s game, “Checkmate!”
The guests were asked to write down a question to ask Mr. B or me about the other. This was to see if we’re ready to get married, which is why the game is called Checkmate. It’s also because Mr. B and I love to play chess. If people couldn’t think of a question, they were asked to write down a bit of marriage advice. My mom had this little bell, and everytime she rang it, Mr. B and I would have to pick a number. Whoever had the paper with that number on it had to share his or her question or advice.
Mrs. Lioness, AtlantaAge and Occupation: 25, Physical TherapistFiance's Age and Occupation: 25, AttorneyEngagement Date: August 29, 2009Wedding Date: April 2011Venue: Anthony’s Fine DiningAbout Me: I’m a Southern girl with New England roots. I say "wicked" and "y’all" in the same sentence and I like to drink sweet tea with my lobster. Mr. Lion and I are both former Floridians now living in Atlanta, which fortunately is still SEC country...Go Gators! We both love baseball, coffee, traveling, cooking, and playing Words with Friends with each other on our iPhones all day long. I’m very passionate about the things and the people I love, and I tend to plan things with all of my heart...our wedding, of course, is no different! Oh, and also Mr. Lion is a first generation American of Cuban descent. I may look more like Lucy than Ricky, but I’m doing my best to incorporate some Latin elements into our vintage-garden-Southern wedding!
One of the other ways I tried to incorporate Mama Lioness’s creativity was by having her host our engagement party. I love seeing an inspiration board featuring an engagement party that could rival a wedding. I didn’t want all of that, though. I wanted something low-key, inexpensive, and casual. Also, I didn’t want people to bring presents, as we hadn’t had a chance to register yet. We decided to have it at Mama Lioness’s townhouse on December 26th, 2009. We were in South Florida visiting three of our four divorced parents for the holidays, so it was a perfect opportunity to take advantage of already having many of our favorite people in the same place at the same time. Five of my six bridesmaids are also from South Florida, so they were home visiting family as well.
Mama Lioness sent out e-vites (did I mention how casual I wanted this to be?) and started brainstorming with Sister Lioness. They decided on afternoon cupcakes and champagne with DIY decor. They got mini-cupcakes from Allegria at the Promenade in Coconut Creek. (They sell fro yo and cupcakes…who could ask for anything more?) These are the flavors they decided on: Read more…
Mrs. Sand Dollar, HoustonAge and Occupation: 24, Graphic DesignerFiance's Age and Occupation: 22, Electrical TechnicianEngagement Date: January 8, 2010Wedding Date: September 2010Venue: MacLean ParkAbout Me: I'm a domestic diva down to the core. I heart cooking, sewing, baking, decorating and making sure we have a hand-crafted home. The best part about the wedding is I get to incorporate it all! I make sure I put my art degree to good use by screen printing, craft knife cutting, and a whole lotta graphic design. We're having a big-time party on a small-time budget, and I promise to show you a boot-scootin', barbecue-eatin', finger-lickin' good time! Mr. Sand Dollar and I spend most of our time on DIY projects or traipsing around the outdoors with our two pooches Rory and Juno. I'm looking forward to sharing our journey with all of you!
A few weekends ago, Mama and Papa Sand Dollar threw Mr. SD and I a wedding reception in San Marcos. Lake Jackson is nearly a four hour drive away, and my parents didn’t want to ask all their friends to have to drive that far and have to find places to stay. So, their solution was to throw a hometown backyard reception so we could celebrate a little closer to home. Read more…
Ms Seahorse, BostonAge and Occupation: 25, Veterinary Jane-of-all-tradesFiancee's Age and Occupation: 36, former non-profit fundraiser in search of something betterEngagement Date: October 17, 2009Wedding Date: September 2010Venue: Fort Pond LodgeAbout Me: By day I'm a cat-wrangler, vet tech assistant, pet-sitter, receptionist, and pre-vet student, but the rest of the time, I'm a former-roller-derby girl turned dedicated-wedding planner. I love reading, writing, bicycles, animals, roller skating, and antique-y things of all sorts. I'm a vegetarian who likes spicy foods, while Fiancee Seahorse is a meat eater who does not like spices. We live outside Boston with our menagerie: a fifty pound dog, a one-eyed, seventeen-toed, toothless cat, and a perfectly put together cat who has a penchant for pooping near rather than in her litter box. In addition to planning our small lake-side wedding, we enjoy running around with the puppy, playing board games (Scrabble, anyone?), having little adventures, talking about how we should really clean the house more, and maintaining our little garden of vegetables and wedding flowers.
So you’ve heard part 1 and part 2 of our excellent engagement party, and hopefully I can tell you about the rest of it in this last post! After the scavenger hunt madness died down, we collected in the living room for a competitive round of Seahorse&Fancee Jeopardy!
For the purposes of showing how awesome my sister is, and how clever this jeopardy set-up was, I will disclose in writing that our names begin with M (me) and D (her). My awesome sister incorporated the first letters of our names into each category:
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 woke up really early (like 6:30 AM) Sunday morning to do the remaining prep work for our friends Michelle and Graham’s brunch. It was worth it. Everything turned out well and the happy couple was ecstatic. They were also pleasantly surprised by the slight nod to Spain (Michelle studied in Spain for a year, and also brought along her friends visiting from Galicia).
Ms Seahorse, BostonAge and Occupation: 25, Veterinary Jane-of-all-tradesFiancee's Age and Occupation: 36, former non-profit fundraiser in search of something betterEngagement Date: October 17, 2009Wedding Date: September 2010Venue: Fort Pond LodgeAbout Me: By day I'm a cat-wrangler, vet tech assistant, pet-sitter, receptionist, and pre-vet student, but the rest of the time, I'm a former-roller-derby girl turned dedicated-wedding planner. I love reading, writing, bicycles, animals, roller skating, and antique-y things of all sorts. I'm a vegetarian who likes spicy foods, while Fiancee Seahorse is a meat eater who does not like spices. We live outside Boston with our menagerie: a fifty pound dog, a one-eyed, seventeen-toed, toothless cat, and a perfectly put together cat who has a penchant for pooping near rather than in her litter box. In addition to planning our small lake-side wedding, we enjoy running around with the puppy, playing board games (Scrabble, anyone?), having little adventures, talking about how we should really clean the house more, and maintaining our little garden of vegetables and wedding flowers.
I told you about the awesome engagement party my sister put together for us. You saw the fabulous crafts we put together and you oohed and ahhed over the prizes for the games. So now, to your delight, the games themselves! Or, at least the first one.
A little background first: once it became clear that we wanted to have an engagement party and that someone wanted to put it together for us – and that people wanted to come! – we had to figure out what people do at engagement parties. From what I could figure out, the party is supposed to be an event at which the two families meet, everyone sees the ring, and the bride is given gifts.
Ms Seahorse, BostonAge and Occupation: 25, Veterinary Jane-of-all-tradesFiancee's Age and Occupation: 36, former non-profit fundraiser in search of something betterEngagement Date: October 17, 2009Wedding Date: September 2010Venue: Fort Pond LodgeAbout Me: By day I'm a cat-wrangler, vet tech assistant, pet-sitter, receptionist, and pre-vet student, but the rest of the time, I'm a former-roller-derby girl turned dedicated-wedding planner. I love reading, writing, bicycles, animals, roller skating, and antique-y things of all sorts. I'm a vegetarian who likes spicy foods, while Fiancee Seahorse is a meat eater who does not like spices. We live outside Boston with our menagerie: a fifty pound dog, a one-eyed, seventeen-toed, toothless cat, and a perfectly put together cat who has a penchant for pooping near rather than in her litter box. In addition to planning our small lake-side wedding, we enjoy running around with the puppy, playing board games (Scrabble, anyone?), having little adventures, talking about how we should really clean the house more, and maintaining our little garden of vegetables and wedding flowers.
One thing that sort of surprised me after we got engaged and told everyone about it was how excited some people were to make things happen! And by some people, I mean my sister.
My sister – we’ll call her Shmoh (for Seahorse Maid of Honor and because Shmoh is fun to say) – is two and half years younger than I am and took a job in Chicago after she graduated from college last spring. It was so exciting that she had finally graduated and might be close to home… and then she accepted a stupid job in a stupid city far away. Luckily for me, stupid Chicago messed everything up and my fantastic sister had to move back to Boston, where she can be excited about wedding stuff close by.
So we got engaged and some of the first questions we got were, “Should I be planning a party? What are my responsibilities as your mother/sister/important person?” And we thought to ourselves, Hm, this would be a good excuse to throw a party.
What the internet told me was that the engagement party is a place for families to meet for the first time and to announce the engagement. Read more…
Mrs. Starfish, Boston/NewportAge and Occupation: 25, Operations AssistantFiance's Age and Occupation: 25, SalesEngagement Date: October 8, 2008Wedding Date: October 2010Venue: The Atlantic Beach ClubAbout Me: I'm a perfectionist who is a planner at heart. I don't do well with surprises. I love planning, crafting, Newport RI, family and friends, and most importantly, Mr. Starfish---all of which will be big components in our October wedding in our favorite little city by the sea.
A few months after the proposal, a couple of friends threw us an amazing engagement party.
They held the party at The Estate, a fancy nightclub in Boston. The bachelorette scene from Bride Wars was filmed there. Apparently, Kate Hudson is a huge fan of the club.
I’m a new fan, too! It was the perfect setting for the party. My friends reserved a private room. It was actually two rooms, one had a bar and music, and the other side was a little more intimate. Read more…
Mrs. Jellyfish, Pleasanton, CAAge and Occupation: 27, Law StudentFiance's Age and Occupation: 26, Air Force PilotEngagement Date: February 21, 2009Wedding Date: September 2010Venue: Casa Real at Ruby Hill WineryAbout Me: In a nutshell, I’m the most optimistic worrywart you’ll ever meet. My family emigrated from Romania to San Jose, CA when I was 8, and I've been a Nor Cal girl ever since! My fiancé is also a Bay Area native, so it’s funny that we met at UCLA, as college freshmen living on the same floor (go Bruins!). Between his career as an Air Force pilot and my path to becoming a lawyer, our relationship has been anything but typical. We currently live together in Berkeley with our puppy Stinson. In addition to spending time with the loves of my life, I enjoy crafting, attempting complicated recipes, environmental law and non-law school reading (Us Weekly, anyone?). Follow along as I plan an elegant 200-person winery wedding, graduate law school, take the Bar exam, get married and get used to the always unpredictable but never boring life of a military spouse!
About a month after we got engaged, my parents threw us an engagement party at their house in Gilroy. The party was absolutely perfect and brimming with love. We had so many family friends helping out in different ways that it made it really special and unique. For example, my mom’s friend H did the flower centerpieces for all the tables. She is so talented!
Then each of my mom’s friends brought a different dish, so it was potluck-style! Who needs catering when you have a dozen Romanian ladies who know their cookin’? My mouth starts watering just thinking about it. Read more…
All-Inclusion Invitation Suites
