Mrs. Glitter, Los AngelesAge and Occupation: 27, Research Consultant/WriterFiance's Age and Occupation: 29, AccountingEngagement Date: May 6, 2007Wedding Date: June, 2009Venue: Millenium Biltmore HotelAbout Me: I was born and raised in West Los Angeles, California. I spent eight years in the Northeast working and completing my education. Having split time between two sides of the country has given me a true appreciation for both coasts. It has also provided an overabundance of cross country drives, flights and long distance relationship fun/misery! I love my family, my doggy Emma, fabulous wine, Anthropologie, politics, reading, being outdoors, exploring new cities, and good movies! My fiance and I are complete opposites, but somehow we have managed to fall completely and hopelessly in love.
Wedding gifts can sometimes be an awkward subject. There is always chatter about guests who give registry gifts, non-registry gifts, cheap gifts, strange gifts, or maybe none at all. Some couples don’t want or need wedding gifts. Others do. And how many times can I say “gifts” in this short paragraph?
Anyway, I thought I’d share with you a few of the most heartwarming and thoughtful…
Mrs. Peep Toe, San FranciscoAge and Occupation: 29, Policy AnalystFiance's Age and Occupation: 36, Olive Oil Production ManagerEngagement Date: December 16, 2007Wedding Date: May, 2009Blogging Since: November 26, 2008Venue: Hotel VitaleAbout Me: I am a west coast lady who loves the San Francisco Bay Area. I love living with Mr. Peep and our animals: Huck the Dog and Ferris the Cat. I work to save the environment in San Francisco, while Mr. Peep makes ridiculously delicious Olive Oil. On any day you can find me reading the latest book I have gotten my hands on, eating Swedish Fish, and perusing wedding blogs! We are both champagne drinking foodies on a Bud Light budget. We are planning an eco-chic, intimate, and interfaith San Francisco City wedding.
So it’s been a few weeks since I’ve posted. I know I’ve left readers hanging on how I eventually found my bridal glow—just in time to walk down the aisle, I might add. And I started Part One of the Pre-Wedding Week Frenzy Recaps. I promise everything is coming soon—including the highly anticipated recaps (well, at least I am highly anticipating them!!).
Mrs. French Bulldog, Orange CountyAge and Occupation: 28, Administrative Assistant & Interior Design StudentFiance's Age and Occupation: 28, Purchasing AnalystEngagement Date: November 8, 2008Wedding Date: August 2009Venue: Bernardo WineryAbout Me: I've lived in Atlanta, Dallas and Laguna Niguel; although I've lived in Orange County, CA most my life, I'm a Southerner at heart. I work full time for a Commercial General Contractor (aka my father) and I go to school for Interior Design at night. I love modern design, music, wine, crafting, DMailing, my family, my Westies, and of course, Mr Frenchie! Mr Frenchie and I met 3 years ago on Match.com and have been best friends ever since. I love his "old soul" and how he laughs with his whole body, among many other things. We are planning our summer wedding at the winery near his hometown, just 45 minutes south of Orange County.
Remember way back when I told you guys about how hard it was for Mr Frenchie and I to nail down our everyday plates?
Source
Now, Jonathan Adler has threatened to add another plate into the debate! I would LOVE to “try white on white for an uptown vibe with graphic zing”, pleeeease.
Mrs. Joey, SeattleAge and Occupation: 28, Project Administrator for Public Health NGOFiance's Age and Occupation: 30, High School History TeacherEngagement Date: June 24, 2008Wedding Date: August 2009Venue: Eastside Catholic Chapel and Lake Union CafeAbout Me: I'm a Seattle girl through and through except for the fact that I don't drink coffee. I love my job most of the time because I get to travel and work with brilliant people who are trying to prevent Malaria. I love DIY projects of all sorts, cooking, and watching sports. I'd wear anything at Anthropologie and could spend all day on Etsy. I love to travel but shouldn't because I always get myself into unbelievable situations!
Some friends of ours were a little shocked to discover that with less than 25 days left, we’ve only received 4 wedding presents, only one of which was from the registry.
Is that weird? Our friends told us the presents started rolling in when they got to the 3 month mark. They literally were getting presents every day. I think that was the case because they…
Mrs. Apple Cider, New York/CharlotteAge and Occupation: 27, Corporate Communications ManagerFiance's Age and Occupation: 26, Grad Student – Clinical Mental Health Engagement Date: September 13, 2008Wedding Date: October 2009Venue: Banner Elk Winery & Blueberry VillaAbout Me: I am a North Carolina girl with a New York City spirit. I love crafting, blogging, laughing and dreaming. I know every word to the Anne of Green Gables and Little Women movies. I own every single Martha Stewart Wedding Magazine and have been dreaming of weddings since I was little. I believe life is about doing what makes you happy. If you aren't happy re-evaluate what you are doing. You should never look back on your life and not be proud of what you are doing. If you want to travel - travel. If you want to sing - sing. If you want to start a company - start a company. If you want to blog – blog!
After our experience with the “big brands” (e.g. Bed, Bath & Beyond and Williams-Sonoma), we felt an overwhelming need to find more “us” stuff. Don’t get me wrong… we registered for plenty of stuff at BB&B, but we have a love of unique art pieces, so I thought we should create an Etsy registry.
Currently Etsy doesn’t have an official registry, so I decided to create…
Mrs. Apple Cider, New York/CharlotteAge and Occupation: 27, Corporate Communications ManagerFiance's Age and Occupation: 26, Grad Student – Clinical Mental Health Engagement Date: September 13, 2008Wedding Date: October 2009Venue: Banner Elk Winery & Blueberry VillaAbout Me: I am a North Carolina girl with a New York City spirit. I love crafting, blogging, laughing and dreaming. I know every word to the Anne of Green Gables and Little Women movies. I own every single Martha Stewart Wedding Magazine and have been dreaming of weddings since I was little. I believe life is about doing what makes you happy. If you aren't happy re-evaluate what you are doing. You should never look back on your life and not be proud of what you are doing. If you want to travel - travel. If you want to sing - sing. If you want to start a company - start a company. If you want to blog – blog!
We did it… we finally registered and we felt like huge jerks. I wish registering felt better than it did. EVERYTHING IS SO EXPENSIVE! Living in NYC has given us a different view on life. Everything is expensive… our rent, our food. Neither one of us was that excited about registering. I am not sure why. Maybe it is that it is hard to imagine…
Mrs. French Bulldog, Orange CountyAge and Occupation: 28, Administrative Assistant & Interior Design StudentFiance's Age and Occupation: 28, Purchasing AnalystEngagement Date: November 8, 2008Wedding Date: August 2009Venue: Bernardo WineryAbout Me: I've lived in Atlanta, Dallas and Laguna Niguel; although I've lived in Orange County, CA most my life, I'm a Southerner at heart. I work full time for a Commercial General Contractor (aka my father) and I go to school for Interior Design at night. I love modern design, music, wine, crafting, DMailing, my family, my Westies, and of course, Mr Frenchie! Mr Frenchie and I met 3 years ago on Match.com and have been best friends ever since. I love his "old soul" and how he laughs with his whole body, among many other things. We are planning our summer wedding at the winery near his hometown, just 45 minutes south of Orange County.
Looking over her registry the other day, a friend of mine asked me for suggestions on things she could add. I came up with a list of things some people don’t think to add, and a couple things Mr Frenchie and I love to use.
1 - Tools - Right now, any tool I want is at my disposal in my parents’ garage. My dad is a…
Mrs. Mouse, AustinAge and Occupation: 25, AttorneyFiance's Age and Occupation: 31, Civil EngineerEngagement Date: December 19, 2007Wedding Date: September 2009Venue: Barr MansionAbout Me: I just graduated from law school and will be taking the bar, getting married, going on a honeymoon with my guy, and then trying to figure out what I'm going to do with the rest of my life. I was born and raised in a small East Texas town, but I'm no country girl! I'm obsessed with British accents, fantasy (including Harry Potter, of course), and classic rock. My fiance and I consider ourselves both music and beer snobs--but every once in awhile we love to hear a crappy band and drink a cheap brew or two. We're planning an eco-friendly, casual, English garden affair for the end of summer, and we can't wait for it to get here!
From the get-go, the Dude and I knew we didn’t want a traditional registry. We’ve been living together for over three years at this point. We have everything we need. Not to mention, we just bought a house last October, so we’re pretty settled where we are and with everything we’ve accumulated for ourselves over the years.
Source
I didn’t want to forgo the registry entirely because…
Mrs. Cowboy Boot, Santa FeAge and Occupation: 25, Magazine EditorFiance's Age and Occupation: 29, Artist and Whitewater Rafting GuideEngagement Date: April 28th, 2008Wedding Date: October 2009Venue: Devil's Thumb Ranch, ColoradoAbout Me: I grew up in Los Angeles and have since lived in San Diego, Boston, Italy, Hawaii, New York City, and Santa Fe. I speak Italian and love pasta. My real passion is the outdoors, though. When I'm not at work, I'm snowboarding, hiking with my two dogs, mountain biking, surfing, cross-country-skiing, or boating New Mexico's rivers. Despite my boyish love for adventure, I'm a girly-girl at heart and am overly-excited to pull off the romantic, vintage-inspired, country wedding of my dreams.
Much like The Bear Cubs, we, The Cowboy Boots don’t really need all that much stuff for our house. We’ve lived together for over three years at this point, which means we’ve made numerous trips to Bed, Bath & Beyond, Target, and many other home goods stores throughout the course of our relationship. True, we don’t have much furniture (we rent a partially furnished place)…
Mrs. Gloss, Boston/MaineAge and Occupation: 24, Designer/soon-to-be ArchitectFiance's Age and Occupation: 26, Systems EngineerEngagement Date: May 23, 2008Wedding Date: August 2009Venue: SS Katahdin/Lakeside TentAbout Me: I don't like nickels or the skin that forms on pudding when it's in the fridge for too long. I couldn't live without Pantone markers, fountain soda (3/4 diet, ¼ regular Coke), run-on sentences, or ridiculously oversized sunglasses. I will try to DIY almost anything and am just OCD enough to make most of it work. I am truly excited about having all my family and friends together, becoming Mrs. Gloss, and having amazing photos to prove it!
Mrs. Bruschetta, PhiladelphiaAge and Occupation: 25, Communication ProfessionalFiance's Age and Occupation: 25, Physical Therapy Graduate StudentEngagement Date: November 30, 2007Wedding Date: August 2009Venue: St. Thomas of Villanova Church & the F.U.E.L. HouseAbout Me: I’m a self-proclaimed grammar geek who loves singing (like, really belting it) in the car. My mister and I are planning a vibrant summer soiree celebrating our passions – including food and Philly – and when we make it official, we’ll have been together for eight years! Being super competitive is in my nature, and talking excessively is in my genes. I’ve got a terrible sense of direction, but can always easily find my way into Mr. Bruschetta’s arms.
For two foodies, we own surprisingly few kitchen tools.
In the past, the mister and I needed to commandeer a kitchen — his mother’s, or my parents’ — when we wanted to toss together a meal. While this detail often meant we weren’t cooking together — or as often — as we’d have liked, with each workspace, we did have access to a variety of helpful…
Miss Labrador Retriever, Athens/SavannahAge and Occupation: 24, Student/Sports ReporterFiance's Age and Occupation: 29, Physical Therapy Assistant Student/Future Dr. of PT
Engagement Date: December 31, 2008Wedding Date: November 2009Venue: Whitfield Square/Savannah StationAbout Me: I'm working on my second degree from UGA (Go Dawgs!). I'm a self-proclaimed attention-w****. If it involves a camera, I'm in front of it! You'll never meet a girlier tomboy than me. I can go toe to toe with any guy on the subject of college football, and lift more than any girl in my gym, all without chipping a nail. I hope to someday be the only person you want delivering your sports news. My FI and I are the loving parents of three Labrador Retrievers (one of each color) and are planning a "Southern Romantic Charm" wedding in the beautiful, historic city of Savannah. I'm not extreme in anything except moderation... and wedding planning.
Contrary to popular belief, wedding registries are not that much fun to put together. In fact, it’s a lot of work and it loses its novelty very quickly. I believe people get this confused with the actual bridal showers where you RECEIVE the gifts, not REGISTER for them. That was your PSA for the day. You’re welcome.
Mrs. Cub, Chile/PortlandAge and Occupation: 26, AstronomerFiance's Age and Occupation: 28, AstronomerEngagement Date: May 10, 2008Wedding Date: September 2009Venue: Westwind YWCA campAbout Me: I'm a small-town girl who's making a living in Chile, with her heart in the Pacific Northwest. I grew up in Southern California, went to high school in Texas, grad school in New Mexico, and now I can't wait to settle down in Oregon! I love pears, hazelnuts,
knitting, traveling, running, baking, and long talks on the phone with
good friends. I'm planning my Oregon coast summer camp wedding while
abroad with my best friend - I'm always at home when I'm with him!
Okay, so maybe we don’t quite have our marriage license yet - one thing at a time.
We are, however, diligently working on our registry!
There are obviously a million and one ways to make your registry, and even more things to put on the registry. Ever the joker, Mr. Cubbie intro’d our registry as follows:
“Hi! When we’re not out gallivanting around the universe, we have realized that…
Mrs. Cub, Chile/PortlandAge and Occupation: 26, AstronomerFiance's Age and Occupation: 28, AstronomerEngagement Date: May 10, 2008Wedding Date: September 2009Venue: Westwind YWCA campAbout Me: I'm a small-town girl who's making a living in Chile, with her heart in the Pacific Northwest. I grew up in Southern California, went to high school in Texas, grad school in New Mexico, and now I can't wait to settle down in Oregon! I love pears, hazelnuts,
knitting, traveling, running, baking, and long talks on the phone with
good friends. I'm planning my Oregon coast summer camp wedding while
abroad with my best friend - I'm always at home when I'm with him!
I want a KitchenAid like little kids want to stick their fingers in the wedding cake!
Doesn’t it seem like everyone has a KitchenAid on their registry these days? I really need one, too! I baked brioche and sourdough bread from scratch this weekend, all using my hands. Kneading is tuff stuff!
Sometimes I wonder, though, if my kitchen gadget fiending type-casts me as uber-white. We’re under…
Mrs. Joey, SeattleAge and Occupation: 28, Project Administrator for Public Health NGOFiance's Age and Occupation: 30, High School History TeacherEngagement Date: June 24, 2008Wedding Date: August 2009Venue: Eastside Catholic Chapel and Lake Union CafeAbout Me: I'm a Seattle girl through and through except for the fact that I don't drink coffee. I love my job most of the time because I get to travel and work with brilliant people who are trying to prevent Malaria. I love DIY projects of all sorts, cooking, and watching sports. I'd wear anything at Anthropologie and could spend all day on Etsy. I love to travel but shouldn't because I always get myself into unbelievable situations!
I was chatting with my friend Jeremy (of the panel) about registries and whether he and his lovely bride Dani got many gifts from it. I’ll admit, I’m a little worried about it. I’ve been stalking our registries; I admit that, too. Anyway, as we were chatting, I realized he must have thought that I was really superficial about presents. I’ve blogged way too much…