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 getting ready, we made our way through the casino. We ended up in a small green space outside the Wynn, tucked away behind the taxi stands. Now, this does not sound like it would be a good spot to take wedding photographs, but it ended up being perfect. The noise of the casino and the Strip and the traffic dulled. It felt like it was just the two of us. (Well, plus the taxi driver who kept grinning and giving us thumbs-up from across the road.)
These definitely aren’t your typical Vegas shots—and we love them for that.
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!
At this point in the reception, the only thing left on the to do list was celebrate. Coming into our reception, I hoped all of our guests would have fun, and I knew with full certainty that I’d have the time of my life. I didn’t form any concrete expectations regarding how that fun would emerge; I knew that with good food, flowing drinks, and all of my favorite people in the same place, I’d be one content newlywed. I figured that I could split my time between dancing, visiting with guests, and enjoying some of the quieter spaces of our reception. As the evening progressed, though, it became clear that the center of the dance floor was exactly where I wanted to be. Mr. Snow Cone was never far from my side, and we spent the first evening of our marriage dancing the night away.
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. 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!
We talked a little bit before the wedding about the possibility of Mr. Mole getting ready in another room. My mom suggested that he could get ready in my sister and brother-in-law’s room, since they were staying next door at the Encore. Our photographer mentioned that we could always stage his “getting ready” shots if we decided to go in that direction.
However, we decided pretty quickly that we would get dressed in our suite, together. I liked the symbolism of it. We got ready for our marriage together—by talking about our aspirations and dreams, by discussing our wants and needs, by growing as individuals and as a couple. Thus, we would get ready for our wedding together as well. It was the best decision for us, and I wouldn’t have wanted it any other way. It was wonderful to spend that time with him.
(Plus, on a practical note, we had a huge, multi-room hotel suite. We had plenty of space to each get ready without getting in the other one’s way!)
Mr. Mole says he wasn’t nervous about the wedding, but it took him two tries to tie his tie correctly. (Of course, I can’t talk here, as we had to try multiple times to tie the belt on my dress.) He did it perfectly, though, in the end.
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.
Today in Ostrich Recap Land, we have a little wedding-video goodness starring that impulsive kiss, the breezy recessional, a short and sweet certificate signing, heavenly picture taking, sparkling laughter, and a sneak peek of our cocktail party by the sea.
Ostrich Wedding Video, Pt, II / by Love Sick Weddings / Personally edited in iMovie
Sit back, press play, and enjoy a few more dreamy minutes of the Ostrich Beach Wedding.
All photography by Max Wanger Photography unless otherwise noted. Asterisks (*) indicate that post-processing was done by me, and thus, should not be held against Max.
Mrs. Honey, Durango, COAge and Occupation: 28, Financial AssistantFiance's Age and Occupation: 24, Lab Tech/PhlebotomistEngagement Date: August 1, 2010Wedding Date: January 2012Venue: Vallecito LakeAbout Me: I am a Colorado girl through and through, marrying an adrenaline-fueled Alabama boy. We love the outdoors just about as much as we love spoiling our dog and three cats. On any given weekend you can find us being adventurous, doing anything from rafting to snowboarding, and everything in between. We live in an outdoor mecca and truly believe in "Work Hard, Play Harder." I'm an optimist to the core, a crafter wannabe, a Southern food cook-in-training and a big time believer in girls nights. We met, fell in love and got engaged in eight short months and are now knee-deep in planning what we hope to be a super-fun, very us wedding celebration. Join us as we plan a rustic meets whimsical, Colorado winter wedding with loads of personal touches and good food!
We didn’t plan a cocktail hour; in fact, we didn’t give much thought to just how the time right after the ceremony would be spent…with a room filled with 170 people, this could have turned into a disaster.
I mean, c’mon, how did I not plan this out?! Fortunately, that room was filled with our favorite people and with an open bar stocked with three choices of beer, four varieties of wine, and a rum cocktail, the crisis was averted. Thank you, alcohol.
If there was one thing I knew about our wedding, it was that it would be a party. I’ve shown proof of that with evidence of libations at every turn over our wedding weekend. Without plans for a cocktail hour, but a plan to serve dinner around 5:30, we did in fact end up with an unintentional cocktail hour, and our guests got an early start to the party.
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!
The last “scheduled” event of our reception was our tosses. We were definitely correct in our assumption that we’d have a lot of young guests eager to participate; the dance floor was pretty packed for both the ladies and the gentlemen! See for yourself!
Photo by Mr. Snow Cone’s aunt, G
We kicked things off with the garter toss. Traditionally (at least in my experience), the bouquet gets tossed first. However, we decided to mix things up a bit based on some feedback from our DJ. During the planning, he suggested doing the garter first so that the single men can’t alter their willingness to go for the lacy fabric based on the bouquet-catcher. Apparently, he’s worked at weddings in the past where a less genetically blessed woman, to put it politely, catches the bouquet and the result is that no one is remotely interested in catching the garter. Can you imagine?? I didn’t have reason to think that any of our female guests were less than gorgeous or that any of our male guests would be insensitive enough to behave in this manner. Nevertheless, we decided to err on the side of caution and go with the garter toss first.
As the theme from Mission:Impossible played, Mr. Snow Cone politely found my custom rivalry garter.
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. Funnel Cake, Zürich, Switzerland/Columbus, OhioAge and Occupation: 24, Visual Communication DesignerFiance's Age and Occupation: 28, Application EngineerEngagement Date: May 30, 2010Wedding Date: October 2011Venue: Catholic church followed by a botanical conservatoryAbout Me: I'm an American designer who moved to Switzerland for love after a fairytale beginning at the top of the Eiffel Tower. I love travel, photography, museums, learning German so I can speak with my mother-in-law, cooking (eating), cuddling, and I'm not afraid to try something new even if it terrifies me. My Swiss/Brazilian man and I are both down to earth people planning a traditional Catholic wedding in my hometown with some quirky cultural exceptions to reflect our different backgrounds. We look forward to celebrating with friends and family from all over the world in a classic, sophisticated fusion of heritage and love.
Wednesday morning before our wedding, Mr. Funnel Cake and I headed to the airport to fly from Switzerland to Ohio. After a long, painful day of flying, we arrived in Columbus around 7 PM and were greeted by Mama and Sister Funnel Cake, my MOH, and her family. It was a happy but short reunion. I had a hair trial to get to!
My friendor stylist is still an apprentice, which means that during working hours she can only observe her assigned stylist. Her only days of the week off work were Wednesday and Sunday, which meant that Thursday, Friday, and Saturday she would be working. (Crap!) Our only time to do a trial would be in the evenings…and on the wedding day she would need to come early enough to make it to work on time—which was fine because I needed to get ready at early-o’clock for our 9:00 AM church date!
Friday night was out because that was our rehearsal-dinner night, and Thursday didn’t really work either unless I wanted to cancel my mini-bachelorette dinner with my sisters. That meant that the only possible time we could get together for a trial was after I had been traveling for 18 hours.
Grrreat.
At my parents’ house, in my little sister’s room, Friendor and I discussed the two inspiration styles I had shown her:
Mrs. Funnel Cake, Zürich, Switzerland/Columbus, OhioAge and Occupation: 24, Visual Communication DesignerFiance's Age and Occupation: 28, Application EngineerEngagement Date: May 30, 2010Wedding Date: October 2011Venue: Catholic church followed by a botanical conservatoryAbout Me: I'm an American designer who moved to Switzerland for love after a fairytale beginning at the top of the Eiffel Tower. I love travel, photography, museums, learning German so I can speak with my mother-in-law, cooking (eating), cuddling, and I'm not afraid to try something new even if it terrifies me. My Swiss/Brazilian man and I are both down to earth people planning a traditional Catholic wedding in my hometown with some quirky cultural exceptions to reflect our different backgrounds. We look forward to celebrating with friends and family from all over the world in a classic, sophisticated fusion of heritage and love.
OK, hive, I admit to a long, guilty newlywed pause here…but we need to get this show on the road. Funnel Cake recaps are starting, rain or shine!
Photo by www.timwill.com / (Funny tidbit: we got married on the 29th, but the photographer wrote the “Ninth” here. Just noticed that now! At least he got the year right…)
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. 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.
Unique Wedding Favors
