Weddingbee

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I was very excited about this gift, and wish we could have given it to all our parents, but unfortunately you need wireless internet in your home or office to be able to use it, so we were only able to give one to Mr. Penguin’s Dad and Stepmother. Basically, you can upload photos to this frame from anywhere in the world, wirelessly! So now that Mr. Penguin’s parents have it set up in their home, we are able to send them pictures through an email address unique to the picture frame, and they instantly see the pictures that we send to the frame. Mr. Penguin and I can now send new pictures to their frame, as often as we like, and they can enjoy them 3000 miles away in their living room. The best part about the frame is that it is NOT subscription based, like other versions of WiFi photo frames are, so there is no monthly fee.

For Mr. Penguin’s Mom, we also gave her a digital photo frame, but because she doesn’t have wireless internet, we’ll email her pictures to manually load up to her own frame.

For my parents - Gift certificates for a round of golf for four, and a sushi dinner. I come from a very “gift-cardy” home. My dad’s idea of a great Christmas present is cash, and I definitely don’t have any complaints about that. So shopping for my parents is hard, because they don’t actually like physical gifts, but the trusty old “round of golf and dinner” gift still gets them pretty excited. My mom is raring to hit the links, despite the fact that it’s 100 degrees outside right now in the thick of July. You crazy, lady.

For my bridesmaids - Flight 001 “F1 To Go Bottles” and the “F1 Seat Pak,” and Manicure/Pedicures.

images from flight001.com

Flight 001 is one of my favorite stores of all-time. They carry everything for the chic traveler! I noticed that while we were all in Vegas for my bachelorette party, we were all scrambling for toiletries, as we had all flown with only carry-on luggage to Vegas, and lots of girls relied on the fact that others would carry toiletries like shampoo and lotion with them. Plus their own toiletries were not 3 oz or less, they couldn’t bring their own large toiletries onto the plane, and they didn’t want to waste time checking luggage. This pack of 7 various bottles, all regulation carry-on size, means that none of my bridesmaids will go toiletry-free on their next trip! Also, the F1 Seat Pak is great to hang on the tray table knob in front of you, so that you don’t shove important documents and items in the seat pocket in front of you on your long trips, only to forget them once you’ve deplaned. I love the Seat Pak because it keeps your personal items and documents super organized on long flights! Also, because, quite frankly, sticking your hands in the seat pocket in front of you is kind of a disgusting gamble.

For Mr. Penguin’s Groomsmen - Liquor. Mr. Penguin gifted his party various forms of Whiskey and Scotch. They all smelled bad and probably tasted worse. But I hear that they enjoyed them, as Mr. Penguin and friends killed a couple bottles at the hotel the night before the wedding and had a jolly time! One thing Mr. Penguin wishes he had done for his groomsmen was shopped during the holidays. There were some great gifts and samplers available during the holiday season that weren’t available come wedding time. Mr. Penguin had his eye on this great high-end Bourbon sampler, only to discover that it was only available around Christmas.

Do you plan to give useful or sentimental gifts to your bridal party and parents?

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Of course we had to have beer, a homage to our first wedding DIY project/groomsmen get-together.

Though they were a little suspicious about the reason behind the get-together, I don’t they think they had any idea. So we munched on some food, had a few beers, played some Mariokart on the Wii and watched some “Hitched” on t.v.

Then came time for the gift giving. We got five 20gb Xbox 360s and one Nintendo DS Lite with the game “Trauma Center: Under the Knife” for our groomsman Henry since there was a higher chance of him actually playing the DS with his hectic schedule (he’s a doctor).

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Only half of them showed up, figures! Our wonderful best man, Ernie, got a pair of Oakleys as well, which was perfect because he needed a pair of sunglasses. I think they liked their gifts cuz Oliver, the guy all the way to the right kept saying, “are you serious???” Young, the guy in the middle was like, “I’m going to sell my PS3 now!” It made us so happy to see our friends happy!

What did you get your groomsmen? Did you find it hard to find something they all would like?
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The earrings were designed to match the colour scheme of the bride’s gown (rich embroidered and beaded lace in autumnal gold tones); half of each colour in gold and half in silver. They were packaged in custom made silk lined pashmina gift bags (also made my me and a complete extravagance) with a printed and stamped gift tag (ditto).

The guests loved getting such a special gift and most wore them at the brunch the next day. They also proved to be a nice icebreaker as guests swapped pairs among themselves during the night.

I thought it was a cute and cheap favor idea for semi-crafty brides and worth sharing. I managed to get the DIY cost per pair (using online retail suppliers, not wholesale) down to around US$3 - using sterling silver, 14 k gold filled components, freshwater pearls and swarovski crystals, including the bags and tags. Which is pretty amazing and much cheaper than you’d think.

These are the DIY instructions:

Materials (per pair):
2 large (8-9mm) freshwater pearls
4 Swarovski 4mm crystal bicones
4 small (4-6mm) freshwater pearls
2 earring hooks or posts & backs (or DIY wires; 1 inch of 20 gauge wire per hook)
15cm / 6 inches of fine (24 gauge) gold filled or sterling silver wire
9 cm / 4 inches of thicker (20-22 gauge) gold filled or sterling silver wire

Tools:
Cutting pliers
Round nose pliers for forming loops
Flat nose pliers
Bent nose pliers
(www.beadaholique.com has a set of good quality pliers in a pouch for $15.99 not including postage)

(I definitely recommend practicing the techniques below with scrap wire before attempting with precious wire. The neater your wraps are the more impressive the finished product will be.)

Instructions:
-Cut the smaller gauge wire into 3/4 inch lengths with cutting pliers.
-Cut the larger gauge wire in half to get 2 2 inch long pieces
-Make a wrapped loop (clear directions with pictures here) with a 3/4 inch length of 24 gauge wire, leaving a 10mm tail at one end.
-Thread on a Swarovski crystal and using the flat nose pliers, bend the leftover wire over on itself to create a crimped loop that holds the pearl in place. With practice, you will be able to get this loop as small and subtle as a manufactured headpin. Trim any excess wire.
-Repeat for the other Swarovski crystal and each of the smaller pearls.
-Using a piece of the 20 gauge wire, make a bend 3/4 of an inch from one end. Begin to make a wrapped loop with a large loop (use the thicker end of your round nose pliers), being careful to slip the four smaller wrapped beads onto the wire and into the large loop before you wrap the wire tail. The beads should be positioned so there is one pearl and one crystal on each side.
-Wrap the long wire tail around the wire neck five or six times. This creates a stem and the right amount of space for the beads to dangle freely above the larger pearl. Trim excess wire.
-Thread the large pearl on the exposed wire and create a crimped loop as before and trim excess wire
-Using a pair of each pliers, twist the ear hook open sideways (the correct technique is listed here) and insert the earring.
-Twist the ear hook opening closed
-You have a finished earring!
-Repeat to make a pair.

Tips:
-Buying materials in bulk and online means great savings- If you are prepared to shop around for the best prices. The following suppliers sell in bulk, ship all over the world and have some of the best prices I’ve seen for the quality of their products:

Swarovski Crystals: www.anybeads.com
Genuine Swarovski crystals, great range at amazing prices.
(4mm bicones work out to 6 cents each not including postage)

Freshwater Pearls: www.integritypearls.com
These guys are great. Wonderful range of pearls to choose from and super cheap.
(8mm nugget pearls work out to 10 cents each, 5mm nugget pearls are 4 cents each not including postage)

Semi Precious wire: www.beadaholique.com
For sterling and 14 k gold filled wire, ear hooks or posts.
(Prices vary)

10KT 10/40 filled gold wire and .925 sterling silver filled SS/40 wire   www.catdancingranch.etsy.com
This wire is cheaper than standard gold filled wire as the gold layer is thinner. It is still perfectly fine for this purpose and the gold won’t wear off. Great range and great service; highly recommended.
(prices vary)

Please: Always be very, very careful when buying beads from ebay. I would suggest you first buy from reputable sellers like the ones above; but if you want to risk it, here are some tips:

-Swarovski crystals: should never have bubbles in the crystal and are never sold on a string. Look for a seller with a broad range of bead shapes and colours; the more they have the more likely they are to be the real deal. Swarovski crystals aren’t called “clear” “blue” or “red”, they have very descriptive names for each colour tone.

-Pearls: look for subtle colours. Brighter colours are more likely to be heavily dyed and fade or transfer dye onto your skin or clothes. Natural freshwater pearls are very rare; most of what you’ll see for sale are cultured freshwater pearls. Shell pearls are lovely but they are man made pearls; they have a reconstituted outer layer of nacre (the pearly finish). The only ‘natural’ pearl colours are muted pinks, peaches and purples. All the rest (including white and peacock) are bleached or dyed.

-Gemstones: Often the clear quartz family (citrine, amethyst, smoky quartz, crystal quartz) are sold as gemstones when they are glass. Look at the other stones the seller is offering. Catseye? cheap Gemstone Chips? Then I’d suggest they are synthetic. Bubbles are a dead giveaway. Likewise the ‘fruity’ quartzes are synthetic too (cherry quartz, pineapple quartz…). As is most of the stuff called “Moonstone”, which is actually synthetic Opalite. Real moonstone is a chalky white with rare flashes of blue. Opalite is a translucent milky white with yellow/pink/blue reflective tones. Most gemstones these days are colour treated or chemically altered. Very few sellers will actually tell you this! It’s not a bad thing, but just be careful not to pay more than what they are worth.

DIY Earhooks
There are lots of sources on the web, particularly this.
A ballpoint pen with a grooved rubber grip is the only tool you’ll need (other than pliers). Bending the wire around the pen gives a perfect bend that can be replicated again and again for a uniform finish. The rubberised grooves stop the wire from slipping while you bend it. Remember to file down the ends of the wire with an emery board to avoid rough cut edges cutting your guests ears!

All the best,
Emily
www.blossomluxe.typepad.com
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Mr. Corn travels every week for work, and he has been interested in a portable satellite radio for a while. He has held back on his decision because XM satellite has hockey and baseball, but Sirius has football and Howard Stern.

Well, I have made the decision for him.

That sounds a bit pushier than it is. In reality, I have done lots of research and polled Mr. Corn various times and came up with the logical choice of XM radio. In all likelihood, XM and Sirius will eventually merge (hopefully sooner than later) and they would be stupid to alienate 1/2 of the subscribers by not making all the shows compatible, so it became a decision of which receiver was better quality and more convenient for traveling. I also picked up the car kit so he can use it in his rental cars, too.

I can’t wait to give this to him on our wedding day.

Are you getting anything for your hubby to be? If so, what are you getting?
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She told Mr. Radish that red symbolizes good luck and the boy and the girl are because she hopes we have one boy and one girl. The fish that the children are riding on is to make our family always has enough fish to eat and enough money. I’m sure there is a lot more symbolism in it than that, but she had a hard time explaining it in English to him. Has anyone else ever gotten one of these for a wedding gift? Also does anyone know what the Chinese characters on it say?

Well anyway, I was deeply touched by this gift. I know that she is someone who has almost nothing and she is in no way obligated to give us any gifts, but she told Mr. Radish that she really wanted us to have it. I guess she must appreciate what little Mr. Radish does for her by helping her with her English. This is definitely a gift that we will keep and treasure for years to come.

Has anyone else out there gotten any gifts that really touched you in a way you didn’t expect?
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So, what to do now? I am certain that Mr. Pumpkin has forgotten all about a present for me now that he is back at work, and that is cool because the present that I bought him is really for both of us! In much the same way that traditional presents would not work for Mr. Lemon, Mr. Pumpkin does not wear suits and so would have no use for cuff links, and he has promptly lost every watch that I have purchased for him in our 14 year courtship so that kind of stuff was out. I needed something cool, something that he wouldn’t think was coming and something very special to him. It finally dawned on me while I was waiting in line to buy a poster at our Dusseldorf Pearl Jam show - the elusive Missoula ’98 Pearl Jam poster!!!

See, every Pearl Jam show has its own limited edition poster designed specifically for that show and Mr. Pumpkin and I have a poster from 14 of the 15 shows that we’ve been to. Here are some of my favourites:

The only one we were missing was the Missoula ’98 poster from the very first PJ concert we went to. We have been looking at buying it on-line for a while now, but unfortunately for us the Missoula poster is quite a rare find and therefore quite expensive, so we have never taken the plunge. Until now, that is! I found a mint condition Missoula ’98 that is actually signed by the artist (Ames Bros) and has the serial number (#45/500) on it as well on this super cool eBay seller’s site. The poster is currently being framed and I hope to give it to Mr. Pumpkin next weekend when he comes home from Calgary.

Without further ado, my wedding present to Mr. Pumpkin… and myself:

* Pearl Jam, of course!
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I solicited a few artists that I had seen in some local shows at Gallery 1988 to see if any would be interested in creating a painting for me of Stitch and Tinker Bell. You see… my nickname is Tink (my parents rarely ever call me by my first name) and Mr. Lemon is quite infatuated with Stitch. His impression of the little alien is impeccable, and our dog Memphis resembles him as well. We also have a small collection of pop artwork and Disney art, so I figured this would fit in well with everything else. The artist, Rex Hackleberg, did an amazing job and it turned out perfectly… too bad I’m not as stacked as Tink is in this piece!

Mr. Lemon loved it and I think I picked well! So if you can’t find the perfect thing out there for your beau, be creative and find someone who can create it for you!
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January - Vacu Vin Pineapple Slicer / Corer
February - Cuisipro 5 Piece Odd Size Measuring Spoon Set
March - Norpro Egg Slicer/Wedger/Piercer
April - Lamson & Goodnow Granny Fork
May - Microplane Grater / Zester
June - Zeroll Ice Cream Scoop
July - Kernel Kutter
August - Kuhn Rikon Julienne Peeler
September - Vacu Vin Wine Saver
October - Mrs. Anderson’s Pie Shield
November - Silicone Basting Brush
December - Professional Cocktail Shaker

Maybe I should also get him a set of dishwashing gloves. *hint hint*
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Mixbook.com is currently in Beta, but it’s up and running and some of my friends who are experienced with it love it! Basically, a user can upload photos and design pages online with a wide variety of templates and backgrounds, much like other photobook-publishing sites. However, Mixbook also has the capabilities to let groups of people upload photos and share them, so everyone has a wide pool of images to work with, and users in a group have access to others’ pages, so everyone can contribute to one book, too.

Once the “Order” button’s been clicked, it takes only a few days for the sturdy, glossy-paged book to be printed and sent off to your door. And the best part, especially for budget-conscious brides? The price: right now, Mixbooks are only $9.99! Besides printing, one can share the book online or post it in a blog.

This could definitely be a cool way to get some nice books of those candids taken by wedding guests, laid out and compiled with ease… or a group memoir of a bachelorette night or bridal shower… or even a personalized bridesmaid’s gift. I personally love to scrapbook together with those of my friends that do — and now this is even possible online. Who woulda thunk?

P.S. And, as if you didn’t already have enough to read… Mixbook also has a blog. Check it out!
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