Mrs. Mole, Los Angeles/Las VegasAge and Occupation: 29, Test Prep InstructorFiance's Age and Occupation: 31, User Experience ArchitectEngagement Date: April 2011Wedding Date: January 2012Venue: Wynn Las Vegas/Bouchon BistroAbout Me: I’m a Wisconsinite-turned-Angeleno who is planning a destination wedding in Las Vegas. I am passionate about education: I spent 23 (!) consecutive years in school, and now I work to help other people get into graduate programs. I love running on the treadmill, buying bath products from Lush, learning new moves in step aerobics, and exploring my neighborhood on foot. I am sometimes snobby about food, but I am rarely snobby about books. I read everything from Geoffrey Chaucer to Iris Murdoch to Chuck Klosterman to Candace Bushnell. My fiance and I are getting married on our third anniversary!
After putting on the finishing touches, our photographer spent a few minutes taking some glamour shots of me. Now, I know that “glamour shots” brings with it the association of overly teased hair, neon makeup, and gradient backgrounds. Fortunately (or maybe unfortunately, depending on your perspective) there are going to be none of those things here. However, the photos that I am about to show you make me feel truly glamorous—much more so than I ever thought that I could be.
Some of these photos are digital; some of them are film.
Mrs. Aardvark, Beaver Dam, WIAge and Occupation: 23, Assistant Product ManagerFiance's Age and Occupation: 31, Business Analyst Engagement Date: May 28th, 2011Wedding Date: April 2012Venue: St. Philip Catholic Church/Arcadia Brewing Co.About Me: I am a resourceful lady who love surprises and adventure. At the same time, I value traditions, family and friends. I like to make crafty messes, sometimes, clean them up, and do pretty much anything outdoors. The Mister and I are pretty avid cyclists---we have nine bikes in our home right now...and one motorcycle! We both enjoy eating food we can't pronounce (language doesn't really matter) and going places we've never been. We currently reside in rural Wisconsin, enjoying the cheese and beer it has to offer, and getting outside whenever we can!
Mrs. Pin Cushion, Oakland, CAAge and Occupation: 25, Nurse Fiance's Age and Occupation: 26, PhD StudentEngagement Date: November 23, 2008Wedding Date: July 2010Venue: Radonich Ranch, Los GatosAbout Me: I'm the 3 Cs: crafty, creative and quirky (oh, that's not a C? Close enough!). I'm also a recycling fanatic, fluent in bad accents and I have the loudest laughter this side of the Mississippi. I have not just one sweet tooth, but a whole mouth full of sweet teeth. I cry at 97.4% of all movies I see, but my fiance's always there to hand me a tissue. My geek-chic fiance and I are planning a wedding full of color, cookies and handmade goodness and I can't wait to spill the beans on all of our crazy ideas!
In case posing in front of murals painted by elementary school kids wasn’t kooky enough, we decided to up the “fun ante” by bringing back a prop that we used in the Pin Cushion engagement photos.
That’s right. We used fake noses and mustaches in our wedding portraits.
Mrs. Mole, Los Angeles/Las VegasAge and Occupation: 29, Test Prep InstructorFiance's Age and Occupation: 31, User Experience ArchitectEngagement Date: April 2011Wedding Date: January 2012Venue: Wynn Las Vegas/Bouchon BistroAbout Me: I’m a Wisconsinite-turned-Angeleno who is planning a destination wedding in Las Vegas. I am passionate about education: I spent 23 (!) consecutive years in school, and now I work to help other people get into graduate programs. I love running on the treadmill, buying bath products from Lush, learning new moves in step aerobics, and exploring my neighborhood on foot. I am sometimes snobby about food, but I am rarely snobby about books. I read everything from Geoffrey Chaucer to Iris Murdoch to Chuck Klosterman to Candace Bushnell. My fiance and I are getting married on our third anniversary!
I woke up early on the morning of our wedding. I had been having some stress dreams during the week before, mostly involving being lost or forgetful. Like that crazy dream where you realize that you have a huge exam coming up and you didn’t even remember that you were enrolled in the class in the first place? However, I woke up that morning with an overwhelming sense of anticipation and eagerness. I was fully, completely ready to get married.
There’s always that subtle change in a relationship, from wanting someone to be part of your life to realizing that someone is an integral part of it. Over the course of our three years together, we made that change and celebrated it with our engagement. Now, we were prepared to make that change permanent through our wedding.
I was also prepared to make the shift from bride to wife. The only thing left to do was to get physically ready. My dress was cleaned and pressed, and my hair and makeup artist was on her way.
My mom and my sister arrived at our suite at 10:30 AM, and Amelia C. and her intern immediately got to work. I opened a bottle of Kung Fu Girl Riesling, and we drank the wine through straws as we talked, read gossip magazines, and took our turns getting all made up. Amelia was great. My makeup was gorgeous. My hair was also really nice. Mr. Mole really liked how soft and natural my hair was that day (read: my trademark cowlick made its presence known).
Mrs. Ostrich, San Francisco/HawaiiAge and Occupation: 30, Fashion Buyer
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 38, CopywriterEngagement Date: October 4, 2009Wedding Date: April 2011Venue: Sweet ceremony by the sea and sunset celebration on the North Shore of HawaiiAbout Me: Born in the city of angels and residing in the city by the bay, I’m a fearless fashion buyer by day, a passionate blog author by night and a dreamy bride-to-be in between. I thank my lucky stars to live in such a stunning city that gives me gifts like organic honey lavender ice cream, movie nights in the park, tucked away beaches, legendary record stores, '80s dance parties, awesome sports teams, stellar flea markets, and vintage bookshops. Oh, and I love to dance! We always find every excuse to escape to the beach, and decided a little seaside wedding in Hawaii is our idea of bliss. Full of our favorite people, music, food and sparkly lights, this is one sunset celebration we will always remember.
“Love is a promise, love is a souvenir, once given never forgotten, never let it disappear.” - John Lennon
Today’s post is—no doubt—my favorite recap post. In the whole universe.
Why? Because this was the part in the wedding where the intimate ceremony and those vows—that we created in our hearts and inscribed on paper—were spoken for the first and only time.
And the delicate, exquisite promises crafted from Mr. O’s heart and pen left not one dry eye on the beach.
So please, come sit with me by the proverbial sea, and relive these words and this unforgettable moment…
Mrs. Mole, Los Angeles/Las VegasAge and Occupation: 29, Test Prep InstructorFiance's Age and Occupation: 31, User Experience ArchitectEngagement Date: April 2011Wedding Date: January 2012Venue: Wynn Las Vegas/Bouchon BistroAbout Me: I’m a Wisconsinite-turned-Angeleno who is planning a destination wedding in Las Vegas. I am passionate about education: I spent 23 (!) consecutive years in school, and now I work to help other people get into graduate programs. I love running on the treadmill, buying bath products from Lush, learning new moves in step aerobics, and exploring my neighborhood on foot. I am sometimes snobby about food, but I am rarely snobby about books. I read everything from Geoffrey Chaucer to Iris Murdoch to Chuck Klosterman to Candace Bushnell. My fiance and I are getting married on our third anniversary!
On Friday evening, we arranged for all of our guests to meet at our hotel suite before walking to Stripburger for our “rehearsal” dinner. Rehearsal is in scare quotes here because we didn’t do a practice run-through of our ceremony, so the only thing that we rehearsed that day was eating delicious food. Anyway, it was the first time that weekend that we saw all of our loved ones together, including people who had to travel from Chicago and Milwaukee and New York City to get to Vegas.
Mrs. Sparkler, ChicagoAge and Occupation: 27, WriterFiance's Age and Occupation: 26, PublisherEngagement Date: July 21, 2010Wedding Date: September 2011Venue: Chicago Illuminating CompanyAbout Me: I’m a Southern lady living in the big city of Chicago. Well, lady may be a stretch, but I’m working hard to keep some Virginia charm in our sleek, urban, wedding-palooza! I’m addicted to marathons, not-so-famous bands, Chicago restaurants, and Mark Twain. I cry during SPCA commercials, and I think LOST was the best show to ever hit television. Mr. S and I met at a classy college mixer and, 7 years later, he’s still by my side. He’s the only child, laid back, free spirit... I’m the oldest of five kids, type-A, organizer. It doesn’t work on paper, but we’ve never paid attention to that stuff anyway. Somehow it works. And like they say, sometimes when you know…you just know.
After what was a pretty restless night, I woke up on our wedding day feeling refreshed and ready to get married. Finally! I can’t really remember what time I woke up, or if I showered or who was already out of bed…all I remember was that the moment my eyes opened, I thought, “Oh holy sh*t. I’m getting married. TODAY.”
Sister Sparkler jumped into action immediately, rounding up Littlest Sis and grabbing breakfast for everyone. Then it was off to get our hair done in Wicker Park. Everything was going so smoothly, everyone was on time, and then I realized…where the heck is ol’ Pirate Sis??? Apparently, my second littlest sister had, ahem, imbibed a bit too much at the rehearsal dinner and wasn’t going to make it to her appointment. OK, deep breath, no big deal. Mom Sparkler is a wiz with hair and I knew she could take care of it later. Plus, my mind was already preoccupied with getting back to the hotel to slip into these pretty things:
Mrs. Pin Cushion, Oakland, CAAge and Occupation: 25, Nurse Fiance's Age and Occupation: 26, PhD StudentEngagement Date: November 23, 2008Wedding Date: July 2010Venue: Radonich Ranch, Los GatosAbout Me: I'm the 3 Cs: crafty, creative and quirky (oh, that's not a C? Close enough!). I'm also a recycling fanatic, fluent in bad accents and I have the loudest laughter this side of the Mississippi. I have not just one sweet tooth, but a whole mouth full of sweet teeth. I cry at 97.4% of all movies I see, but my fiance's always there to hand me a tissue. My geek-chic fiance and I are planning a wedding full of color, cookies and handmade goodness and I can't wait to spill the beans on all of our crazy ideas!
Mr. Pin Cushion and I didn’t want to be too serious with our wedding-party portraits. I debated for weeks about where we should take our photos. Getting married in Santa Cruz meant I could choose from beautiful beaches, redwood forests, or rolling hills. After considering each of these places, I was left thinking, “Well, that’s not very fun.”
Which is how we ended up taking our photos at my elementary school. In front of murals that were painted by seven- and eight-year-olds. Because seven- and eight-year-olds know how to have fun (and how to use color!).
Mrs. Bunting, Grand Rapids, MIAge and Occupation: 24, freelance illustrator & print productionFiance's Age and Occupation: 24, graduate of historyEngagement Date: December 3, 2009Wedding Date: June 2011Venue: Spring Grove Park & St. George Banquet CenterAbout Me: I am a freelance illustrator and designer with a love of nature and a taste for adventure. Textures and color fuel my world, along with apple cider and noodles. I'll try anything once, especially if it involves heights or food. I've hiked the Grand Canyon, gone sky diving, cuddled a baby wolf, and now my latest venture consists of designing and planning a large wedding involving color, DIY details, love, and marrying my best friend.
Mrs. Mole, Los Angeles/Las VegasAge and Occupation: 29, Test Prep InstructorFiance's Age and Occupation: 31, User Experience ArchitectEngagement Date: April 2011Wedding Date: January 2012Venue: Wynn Las Vegas/Bouchon BistroAbout Me: I’m a Wisconsinite-turned-Angeleno who is planning a destination wedding in Las Vegas. I am passionate about education: I spent 23 (!) consecutive years in school, and now I work to help other people get into graduate programs. I love running on the treadmill, buying bath products from Lush, learning new moves in step aerobics, and exploring my neighborhood on foot. I am sometimes snobby about food, but I am rarely snobby about books. I read everything from Geoffrey Chaucer to Iris Murdoch to Chuck Klosterman to Candace Bushnell. My fiance and I are getting married on our third anniversary!
Our wedding in Las Vegas took place during the Chinese New Year festivities. Chinese New Year, which celebrates the first day of the lunar calendar, is the most important—and the longest—of the traditional Chinese holidays. Two thousand twelve marks the year of the dragon: the year that is often considered to be the luckiest. Mr. Mole and I didn’t specifically plan for our wedding to occur during this holiday, but it ended up being a happy coincidence.
One benefit of having our wedding at the Wynn during Lunar New Year was that the casino was completely decked out for the holiday. The atrium featured Chinese-inspired floral and sculpture displays, which included more than 8,000 red and yellow chrysanthemums, cherry blossoms, red lanterns, and silk dragons. There were also dozens and dozens of kumquat trees, decorated with hanging red envelopes.
Good luck and fortune!
On Friday morning, we had plans to go get our marriage license. Part of our wedding package included a limo ride to the courthouse, which seemed like a fitting form of transportation on the fifth day of Lunar New Year, the God of Wealth’s birthday. I had never been in a limo before!
Mrs. Petit Four, San Antonio/Isla MujeresAge and Occupation: 25, Technology teacherFiance's Age and Occupation: 30, Math Teacher and Football CoachEngagement Date: Feb 13, 2010Wedding Date: March 2012Venue: Zama Beach Club, Isla Mujeres, MexicoAbout Me: I am a polka-dot obsessed, destination wedding diva living and loving in the great state of Texas. I am an island girl at heart and I visit the beach as often as I can. I am a wannabe DIY goddess, but that doesn’t mean I won’t give it my best shot. I love pearl earrings, the color pink, and ruffles are a part of my everyday wardrobe. My wonderful fiance and I are planning a destination wedding with our closest family and friends and we’re leaving a trail of glitter in our path!
Once we got to the airport and on the plane, it was so nice to finally be able to breathe!
Papa PF surprised us with upgrading our tickets, so we got to sit in first class. It was so fun and we were totally trying to act like it was no big deal…
Ms. Gazelle, Calgary/VancouverAge and Occupation: 32, EngineerFiance's Age and Occupation: 32, Technology AnalystEngagement Date: September 3, 2010Wedding Date: July 2011Venue: Brock House Restaurant, VancouverAbout Me: I am a marathon runner, cyclist, Ironman triathlete and beautiful shoe fiend who also loves kicking back and watching Glee. I grew up a bit of a nomad as I traveled around the world with my family, living everywhere from Australia to England to South America and Indonesia. I finally settled in Calgary a few years ago and met Mr. Gazelle who loves me even though we cheer for different hockey teams. We are planning a bit of a destination wedding in beautiful Vancouver, British Columbia and we can’t wait to share the day with our close family and friends.
Mrs. Ostrich, San Francisco/HawaiiAge and Occupation: 30, Fashion Buyer
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 38, CopywriterEngagement Date: October 4, 2009Wedding Date: April 2011Venue: Sweet ceremony by the sea and sunset celebration on the North Shore of HawaiiAbout Me: Born in the city of angels and residing in the city by the bay, I’m a fearless fashion buyer by day, a passionate blog author by night and a dreamy bride-to-be in between. I thank my lucky stars to live in such a stunning city that gives me gifts like organic honey lavender ice cream, movie nights in the park, tucked away beaches, legendary record stores, '80s dance parties, awesome sports teams, stellar flea markets, and vintage bookshops. Oh, and I love to dance! We always find every excuse to escape to the beach, and decided a little seaside wedding in Hawaii is our idea of bliss. Full of our favorite people, music, food and sparkly lights, this is one sunset celebration we will always remember.
Mrs. Pin Cushion, Oakland, CAAge and Occupation: 25, Nurse Fiance's Age and Occupation: 26, PhD StudentEngagement Date: November 23, 2008Wedding Date: July 2010Venue: Radonich Ranch, Los GatosAbout Me: I'm the 3 Cs: crafty, creative and quirky (oh, that's not a C? Close enough!). I'm also a recycling fanatic, fluent in bad accents and I have the loudest laughter this side of the Mississippi. I have not just one sweet tooth, but a whole mouth full of sweet teeth. I cry at 97.4% of all movies I see, but my fiance's always there to hand me a tissue. My geek-chic fiance and I are planning a wedding full of color, cookies and handmade goodness and I can't wait to spill the beans on all of our crazy ideas!
Mrs. Snow Cone, Pittsburgh/Johnstown, PAAge and Occupation: 23, Public Health Graduate StudentFiance's Age and Occupation: 23, EngineerEngagement Date: April 9, 2010Wedding Date: August 2011Venue: OMOS Church ceremony/Sunnehanna Country Club receptionAbout Me: I’m one of the lucky ones---I met my future husband at the ripe old age of 13, started dating him as a mature woman of 15, and have been enjoying the ride ever since. Here we are, 8 years later, living in Pittsburgh, planning a "homestination" wedding in the place our school romance began---Johnstown, PA. I thrive on talking a mile a minute, eating my weight in chocolate, and internet shopping. I love a lengthy to-do list almost as much as I love a healthy amount of chaos in my life. Mr. Snow Cone and I watch countless episodes of Friends and The West Wing on repeat, root for rival college sports teams, and make each other laugh each and every day. We’re putting together a small-town wedding with a big personality and a classically modern (or modernly classic?) look for 250 of our closest family and friends. It’s been 8+ years in the making, and sometimes I still can’t believe I’m finally getting to marry my high school sweetheart!
As the final notes of our first-dance song winded down, Mr. Snow Cone swapped positions with my dad and we went right into the father-daughter dance. I was really looking forward to this part of the evening, because I had no idea what song my dad had selected for this symbolic dance. As my dad strode out to meet me on the dance floor, the DJ announced that we’d be dancing to “You’ll Be in My Heart” from Disney’s Tarzan.
Immediately, I was smitten. My family is populated with Disney-lovers, but I like to think I take the cake in my adoration for all things Mickey Mouse. On top of that, my dad and I have had a special Disney bond since I was a wee little tot. I don’t remember it, but apparently my dad proved to be quite the softie when it came to Disney souvenirs for me when I was very young. On my first trip for Disney, he made a last-minute trip to a gift shop to purchase a ceramic music box figurine so I’d have something from my first trip there. A few years later I, according to my parents, lusted hard after a full-blown Minnie Mouse costume. Apparently all it took was one set of pleading eyes directed at my father, and I was the proud owner of the beloved garment. So, when you take all of that into consideration, dancing to a Disney song that had a completely perfect father-daughter sentiment was only fitting.
His first words to me when he swept me up into his arms? He asked to make sure I was OK from my fall. Whatta guy. Once that was covered, we shared a really sweet dance that I can’t think of without getting teary eyed. It was fun and lighthearted, but with the appropriate amount of sentimentality.
Unique Wedding Favors
