Guest Provisions
April 14th, 2008 @ 2:07 pm by Mrs. Lovebug
I don’t know when or where she said it, but when Mrs. Bee said that her bathroom baskets were a saving grace to a few of her guests, it lodged firmly in my brain: MUST MAKE BATHROOM BASKETS.
Lip Smacking Good
April 9th, 2008 @ 3:35 pm by Mrs. Lovebird
As a destination bride, one of the things I have put a lot of thought into are my out-of-town bags since everyone is going to be from OOT.
One of the great things I’ve come across are personalized lip balms from Lip Balm Express!
Box ‘O Shoes
April 7th, 2008 @ 4:28 pm by Mrs. Sundae
Mama Sundae and I found this box at Hobby Lobby, but the first time we saw it I passed it up. When we went back and it was still there a few months later, on sale, I knew that I had to have it. It’s actually covered with a thick, almost canvas-like fabric and has some great grosgrain ribbon tied around it. Part of the reason I passed it up the first time is because I wasn’t sure what I would do with it. Then I realized that it would be the perfect box to house some black flip-flops and a sign that says “For Your Tired Toes” (or something along those lines).
Read more…
Stranded In New York
March 28th, 2008 @ 4:50 pm by Mrs. Canary
Mr. Canary and I are working on our guide to NYC to include on our wedding Web site and as a little pamphlet in our out-of-town bags. This is a great little pet project for Mr. Canary who loves to write, but also a lot of fun for both of us to reminisce about our favorite spots. I’ll post more on that when we’ve completed the project, but while we were compiling our list, one of my most favorite places in the city came to mind, The Strand Bookstore.
If you’re a New Yorker and a bibliophile like Mr. Canary and me, you’ll know why The Strand is a “must-visit” on our list. It was one of the first places I took Mr. Canary when he’d visit me during our summers in college. It’s the best no-frills shop… all about books (over 18 miles actually!)
The Strand circa 1938 {Image from here}
A Tisket A Tasket, A Southwest Welcome Basket
March 24th, 2008 @ 11:57 am by Mrs. Lovebug
For the out-of-towner welcome baskets, we decided to dish up some Southwestern goodness. (Did you know that Tucson is home to one of the largest annual rodeos in the country? Yee to the haw.)
I picked up everything locally, and tried to coordinate all the treats, papers, etc. in a palette of, well, Southwest-y colors: turquoise, brown, red, and gold:
Safe And Sound
March 18th, 2008 @ 1:10 pm by Mrs. Peacock
Mr. Peacock and I are throwing the party of our lives. Every vendor has been considered according to how much they can add to the party - band, caterer, bar options, decor. We want everyone to stay until the last dance and then keep breaking it down all the way to the after party.
When we were considering Medinah for our venue, one of my primary concerns was transportation. I could swing the costs for the bridal party, but renting buses for the entire wedding would be a stretch. Medinah isn’t terribly close to any hotels and none of our friends or family live in the immediate area. I knew that many guests would miss our ceremony or be worrying about getting home if we didn’t rent transportation on a grand scale.
Read more…
What Really Matters
March 5th, 2008 @ 10:31 am by Mrs. Sundae
Before we sent out our Save the Dates, there was much talk about the guest list. You all know how it goes… there is the A list, the B list, the people we will invite but there is no way they will come list, etc. There were two people on our “no way they will come” list that are very special to me - my Grandpa’s brothers (also known as my Great Uncles). My Grandpa and I were very close - after two boys I was his first granddaughter. As I was growing up we lived in the same town so I spent a lot of time at their house… things are always more fun when you’re pretty much allowed to do whatever you want! Needless to say, we had a really special relationship so I took it pretty hard when he passed away. I was only in 6th grade, old enough to understand what death meant but young enough that it was still hard to understand.
Even though they’ve lived in California for as long as I can remember, our family was always particularly close to two of my Grandpa’s brothers. Even after he passed away there were still many visits and calls; they made an effort to keep in touch with all of us. But these days everyone is a little older and a little further away and I had no expectations that they would actually make the long trip from California to Wisconsin. Flights, hotel rooms, it’s a lot to ask even of family. But sure enough, after we mailed the Save the Dates I received two of the nicest emails from my Great Uncles telling me how excited they are and that they’ve already booked their flights and hotel rooms. I get all emotional just thinking about it!
Read more…
Humble Pie All Over My Face
February 21st, 2008 @ 8:28 am by Mrs. Penguin
I know every bride goes through it, the inevitable “cutting of the guest list.” Our guest list was pretty hard to shave down… we were aiming for 120 guests, and with my mom having 5 siblings, and Mr. Penguin’s mom having 9, you can imagine that our cousins alone could fill out that list in a heartbeat. But we shaved it down the best we could, and realized that if we had it to do all over again, we’d have booked a venue with a higher max capacity.
Anyhoo, I had asked my mom for some addresses of her friends in order for my MOH to send out shower invitations the other day, and she confronted me with those dreaded words…
“I know the guest list is full, but I really think we should invite so-and-so.”
In an “I-can’t-be-bothered-to-argue-with-you-right-now” moment, I quickly said, “Fine, invite them, I don’t care, if we bust max capacity, I’ll deal with the ramifications later.”
So, naturally, we also added the female guests to the shower invite list, and that was that.
Read more…
Mapping It
January 18th, 2008 @ 5:29 pm by Mrs. Hydrangea
One of the handiest things that I’ve done for our wedding is create a personalized wedding map. While reading through the WB archives, I found a post by Mrs. Bee about a cool website called Wedding Mapper that let’s you put all the locations for your wedding events in one spot. I visited the site and thought it would be a great addition to our wedding website.
(sample map via wedding mapper)
I Know I Should Be Happy But…
January 17th, 2008 @ 3:38 pm by Mrs. Caramel
I know I have so much to be thankful for. For example, God has blessed with me with sacrificial friends - girls who went out of their way just to be there for me. One touching thing was when I found out that my girlfriend had broken up with her boyfriend the day before our wedding. She didn’t want to tell me because she didn’t want to ruin the wedding mood, so she acted sooo happy for me on the wedding day and didn’t tell me until I got back from my honeymoon! I was so amazed at her selflessness!
And of course, I had the best bridesmaids a girl could ask for. One of my bridesmaids had been asked to be a bridesmaid FOUR TIMES within the span of 6 months! I was her 3rd wedding, but she acted just as excited and happy for me, as if I were the only wedding she was a part of. I had so much love and support from my girlfriends.
But now that all is said and done, I can’t help but feel a bit hurt when I think about the invited guests who didn’t come to the wedding. After all the guest list cutting and MONTHS of working to make a wedding and reception happen, it just feels like some people didn’t understand that this was our one and only wedding. I know it sounds a bit whiny, but I’m wondering if any others out there felt the same way.
