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squirrellypoo posted:a-HA! I knew there was a wedding thread in here, but with search down I couldn't find it... Awww, congratulations! I think I met you in the fall at a goon meet in London. Weren't you the girl who is also from PA but moved to England? I just got engaged three weeks ago, there must be something in the London air . I don't know of any UK sites, but it's probably easier to find a theme you want and pick the location accordingly. That way you can look at any wedding site and find ideas, decorations, etc. without worrying that it's UK specific. I bought Martha Stewart's collector edition wedding magazine at Heathrow and it's incredible as far as food ideas and decorations are concerned. Aside from that, I've found blogs particularly helpful. We were toying around with the idea of doing a vintage rustic theme (which could potentially work with your 1949 dress), and these sites are really good. http://bridalcheek.wordpress.com/2008/04/06/vintage-rustic-wedding/ http://www.elizabethannedesigns.com/blog/ http://wedding.blogdig.net/archives/date/24/April/2008/2 And because I've been showing anyone who will look, how awesome are these centerpieces? http://www.whitelacewedding.com/50226711/CRANBERRY%20CENTERPIECE.jpg I'm pretty sure we're skipping out on the big wedding and reception anyhow and just flying somewhere exotic instead. Such is the hassle of trying to plan the elaborate wedding and deal with all the immigration issues of an American and a Brit. .
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# ¿ Jul 4, 2008 17:18 |
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# ¿ Apr 27, 2024 14:57 |
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squirrellypoo posted:But for us, the transatlantic thing means we're doing the ceremony and reception here (with very close friends and family flying over) and then doing a PA reception a week or so after for everyone else who can't afford to come all that way. But that in itself kinda sucks because now we're limited to North America for our honeymoon, unless we somehow win the lotto and get a round the world ticket and continue flying west... And trying to find venues with any sort of character whatsoever over there is proving difficult. Yeah, we're in a similar situation. We're going the U.S. fiance visa route, which means we either go on a honeymoon in the U.S. after he enters the states or do a pre-wedding honeymoon so we can legally go abroad. I think we're doing the latter so we can go somewhere beachy that isn't Hawaii. Tickets from the UK to Bermuda are relatively inexpensive, and tickets from Bermuda to the U.S. are only a few hundred dollars. It might be worth looking into! I don't know what you're looking for in a honeymoon, but here are a few U.S. places that we considered. https://www.chenahotsprings.com (a resort in Alaska where you can see Aurora Borealis) https://www.duntonhotsprings.com (a place in the Rockies) https://www.blackberryfarm.com (a luxury farm in Tennessee, very pricey) https://www.theorchidinn.com (a cute place in Hawaii) http://www.oldwestbb.com (a bed and breakfast in Arizona) I think we should open this thread up to more honeymoon chat! Where's everyone going? How did you decide?
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# ¿ Jul 6, 2008 18:55 |
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RedFish posted:We didn't use a lawyer. We didn't need one, or want to pay for one when we were just as capable of filling out the paperwork ourselves. Our case was simple, straightforward, and my visa was approved so fast I sputtered and asked the Consular Officer at the end of my less than three-minute interview "Is that it?". Thanks! I'm sure I'll have loads of questions as the process nears, so I really appreciate your offer. We've been using visajourney for a while now and we're just getting the K-1 petition packet ready to mail next week. We're not worrying about the fuss of a lawyer either, I think we're more than capable of filling out the paperwork ourselves. How long did it take you from start to finish, and if you don't mind me asking were you also going through the London embassy? The wait appears to be around 8 months now, so we're hoping he'll be in the U.S. for good around April of next year. We're planning to have a really small ceremony near an old mill with our immediate families and two or three close friends. We thought about doing a quickie wedding, but I still wanted the girly thrill of wearing a pretty white dress in front of loved ones (which I bought for $30 at a vintage shop!!!) I don't think we're going to worry about the Advanced Parole stuff either. I'm still a student and I won't really be able to take time off for a honeymoon mid-semester. We're going to either go somewhere tropical before the wedding or to Alaska during my Christmas break. Aaah, I'm so glad there's another goon who went through this process. Thanks again and again .
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# ¿ Jul 15, 2008 23:54 |
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Just out of curiosity, what kind of readings are you using at your ceremony? We're not a religious couple at all but we still want to have someone read a few nice poems and such. So far I've found some nice things from Saul Williams, Pablo Neruda and Ted Hughes but nearly everything Google pulls up is horribly tacky.
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# ¿ Jul 31, 2008 04:38 |
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Thanks so much for all the links! By the way, the hot air balloon engagement looks amazing.
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# ¿ Jul 31, 2008 17:41 |
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Cassandra Complex posted:We both aren't religious or part of a religion, so we don't feel right in having a pastor. My sister was married by a judge for her wedding but I'm not entirely sure if I want to do that, either. Have any of you heard of good alternatives? If by some chance you're from Pennsylvania or would consider getting married there, it's one of the only states to allow a self-uniting marriage where you don't need a third party officiant. I'm looking into it myself and although it looks like some counties don't offer it, it's worth checking out. I think Colorado allows self-uniting marriages too. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Self-uniting_marriage) I've heard of people who have paid to have close friends or family members do an online course to become their officiant but I have no idea how that works. Good luck with finding a ring!
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# ¿ Aug 2, 2008 18:15 |
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It's beautiful! Congrats!
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# ¿ Aug 14, 2008 06:18 |
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Narwhale posted:Does FFA = Future Farmers of America? Oh man, I hope so.
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# ¿ Aug 14, 2008 17:20 |
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While we're posting pictures of wedding dresses...maybe you guys can help. The search is going to be the end of me! A few months ago, I found a really cute vintage dress at a local consignment shop for $30. I think it's really different than the normal strapless dress you see today, but I don't think it's particularly flattering in the front and I know nothing about alterations or if there's anything that can be done. As you can tell from pics from the back, it originally had sleeves that my grandma removed. The back is the most gorgeous part of it, but most photographs will be from the front anyhow. At the same time, can I justify spending $500+ when I have a fairly pretty dress as is? What are your thoughts? I've included pics of me in another dress that's a strong contender. We also might do a ceremony with just me and my fiance and fly to Hawaii or something, in which case I'd want something much more portable like the last dress. Help! Or: Or:
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# ¿ Oct 11, 2008 04:10 |
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Thanks for all of the responses! I like the second one better too, I'm just not sure about spending $700 on it. To add to my last post, I think I found the perfect elopement dress (if that's what we decide to do). I went to Toronto for the weekend and found this little number. What do you guys think, is this bridal enough for an impromptu NYC or Hawaii getaway? Sorry it's all crooked. It's SO stressful not having a clue when the wedding will actually be since we don't know when his visa will be processed. Depending on the time of year, we might have to elope (U.S. immigration requires us to get married in 90 days of his entering the country) or we might be able to hastily throw together a big elaborate wedding. Of course all of this determines what kind of dress I'll have....
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# ¿ Oct 13, 2008 06:30 |
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WolfensteinBag posted:Wai-Ching dress http://kvetch.indiebride.com/index.php?t=msg&th=21072&start=0&rid=0&S=392eeb1c15e42a46b6c6cf052b27cd9d Thanks for all the input on my little dress dilemma. I haven't bought anything yet (aside from the $30 one) and probably won't until we know when his fiance visa is processed. On another note, my best friend recently got engaged and just ordered her dress today. They told her it won't come in for 6-8 months. Is this normal?! amethystbliss fucked around with this message at 22:43 on Oct 15, 2008 |
# ¿ Oct 15, 2008 22:40 |
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Congratulations, Tatiana! Your ring is absolutely gorgeous. I was oh-so-close to getting an aquamarine engagement ring, too. We must have similar taste between that and the 50's dress love. The dress I posted can be found here. It's $3,000 http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?ref=sr_gallery_11&listing_id=9995314 However, there's a thread on indiebride dedicated entirely to tea length dresses. You must check it out! http://kvetch.indiebride.com/index.php?t=msg&th=28128&start=0&rid=17838&S=392eeb1c15e42a46b6c6cf052b27cd9d CagedLiberty, I looooove your photographer! The pictures look so classic and elegant. Photography is definitely one of the most important purchases for me too. We're having our engagement photos taken in Oxford and/or London so we're going with either http://www.davidmmcneil.com/wedding-photography/portfolio/pre-wedding-photoshoot/ or http://www.foreverafterimages.com/portraits/. We're also looking at http://www.carynazurephotography.com for our elopement shots. We're still unsure as to what to do for our honeymoon, but we've recently been talking about renting a log cabin in the woods and having a cozy getaway since it will be winter and I won't have much time off of university to fly anywhere exotic. We might wait until summer but then travel is much more expensive. Plus, it's been 3 months since I've seen him and I won't see him again until New Years, so we're really antsy to have our romantic getaway asap. How romantic does this look?! http://www.vacationrentals.com/vacation-rentals/22174.html I put way too many links in this post. amethystbliss fucked around with this message at 18:32 on Oct 20, 2008 |
# ¿ Oct 20, 2008 18:09 |
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WolfensteinBag posted:The best thing about Danielle is her price for what you get.
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# ¿ Oct 20, 2008 18:34 |
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Tatiana: It just so happens that I was looking at an Australian dress site earlier this week! I'm not sure how reputable they are, but these dresses are all made to order. The first one is $299 AUD and the second is $499 at https://www.dressofyourdreams.com. Just thought I'd share jomiel- I'll be sure to let you know if I find a similar dress! The closest I've found are full length prom dresses that I could potentially alter. We're actually having that very photographer do our engagement photos, so I'm reaaally excited even if I look like a copy cat. I thought about posting it here in the first place since red wedding dresses are somewhat of a fad now but I thought the shopping thread was more appropriate. Since so many people have commented and PMed me about it though, I may as well crosspost it. Please let me know if any of you know where on earth I can find something like it!
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# ¿ Oct 21, 2008 02:58 |
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We found our elopement venue! (http://www.buhlmansion.com/) It's a mansion turned luxury spa that offers an elopement package. It will still be winter when we get married and I think the mansion will look stunning in the snow. It also has an amazing jacuzzi in their fanciest room. Aaaannd and I found my dress! I stumbled into a dress shop in search of that pesky red engagement dress and found this Maggie Sottero number. I'm in love with it! Yay! Edit: Image removed because I'm paranoid about my sneaky fiance stumbling across it. amethystbliss fucked around with this message at 02:01 on Nov 6, 2008 |
# ¿ Oct 26, 2008 02:27 |
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clyemne posted:And here's some pictures of my recent wedding for fun:
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# ¿ Oct 26, 2008 07:43 |
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Tatiana posted:We're going to be leaving for Japan the week after for more schooling, so we need to find a tasteful way to tell people not to buy us any giant crystal bowls or blenders and give us a check instead.
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# ¿ Oct 26, 2008 15:37 |
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ElanoreMcMantis posted:Okay people, what flowers do I want? I do not know. Carnations and roses bore me, but lillies won't dry well, and Birds of Paradise aren't really bouquet friendly. I can get pretty much whatever I want included in the price of my wedding (unless its crazy exotic), I just have to send them a picture of it. Anyone want to help me find a unique with good box-frame drying potential pretty please? I don't know meanings of flowers or anything good, but our colors are ivory for me, dark teal for the girls, and the boys are in black. I really like baby's breath for a bouquet. Simple and really elegant looking. I know nothing about drying potential, though.
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# ¿ Nov 7, 2008 19:37 |
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Gravitee posted:I would like to know: Yes and no. One night my fiance told me that he really wanted to propose but was worried about the ring. We'd already discussed our future a lot and the fact that he was planning on immigrating from the UK to the US to be with me. He said he really wanted to go all out on a nice ring, but was torn because he couldn't justify spending what he wanted to with the expenses of immigration plus flights to visit each other. I had a smaller diamond ring my mother got me for my 16th birthday with me in England, and on one romantic, teary night I gave it to him and told him to propose whenever he wanted, not to let money determine our happiness, and that we could always upgrade later. He was so happy, relieved and grateful and still managed to totally surprise me with his proposal a few months later . He saved up a bit more and when he came to visit the U.S. this summer we went shopping together for the ring I will wear for the rest of my life. Thanks summer sale + £ to $ conversion!
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# ¿ Nov 27, 2008 06:27 |
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zman8 posted:I am not trying to sell the farm. I was under the impression that there is still the "3 month's salary standard." Is that no longer true? Absolutely not. I agree with everyone else who said to talk to her and see what she deems appropriate, whether you explicitly ask her or dance around the issue. She may rather you spend that money on a down payment, a trip overseas, the wedding itself or the honeymoon. Or she may want the big rock, who knows. But don't feel obligated to spend a set amount without asking her first, just tailor whatever you buy to her taste. My ring was under a grand and it's perfect and I think you'll find many girls who feel the same way.
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# ¿ Nov 28, 2008 23:05 |
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We had our engagement photos taken this week in London and Oxford. We are SO pleased with them! I know some people think they're a waste of money, but we had so much fun! We will likely use the same photographer for our wedding, so it was great to test him out and make sure we're comfortable in front of the camera with him. Edit: Wow, sorry they're so huge.
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# ¿ Jan 10, 2009 14:03 |
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Thanks for the compliments on the pictures! Those were just a preview from the photographer, we're anxiously awaiting the rest of them . We were together for 10 months before we got engaged, but knew each other for a year and a half.
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# ¿ Jan 11, 2009 04:03 |
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King Skinny Pimp posted:Should I go ahead and factor in the cost of another tent or two just in case?
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# ¿ Jan 26, 2009 06:54 |
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We're getting married pretty young, 22 and 23, and we certainly feel a rush to get married. Of course, we're going through the immigration process and are legally required to wed within 90 days of his entry to the U.S. So we don't really have a choice. We either have to do a transatlantic long distance relationship for another few years, or go for it. Hello, elopement! We're waiting to throw our big family receptions until after we're a bit more settled. I refuse to go into debt for a wedding we can't afford.
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# ¿ Jan 28, 2009 06:51 |
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That's gorgeous!
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# ¿ Jan 29, 2009 21:42 |
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So, our wedding plans have totally changed! We're now (nonlegally) eloping and honeymooning in Barcelona on March 3rd! We've hired a photographer and makeup artist from the U.K. to fly in, we plan to purchase a little cake at a local bakery and I'll get my bouquet at the flower market. We've narrowed the locations down to two parks. We're writing our own vows and having a wine ceremony to incorporate our families. Flights are booked, hotels are booked and we're also taking cooking classes and seeing a few shows. It's going to be lovely! My fiance is immigrating from the U.K. to the U.S. and we just got his visa interview date today, which officially allows him to come live in the States. So our legal courthouse wedding will take place on Friday March 13th! We got engaged on a Friday the 13th, so the timing is superb. Then we're throwing two big receptions-one in England and one in the U.S. The U.S. one is going to take place over Christmas 2009 and we've just started working on stuff for it. Save the dates are finished and after-Christmas clearance sales at Michaels have been incredible. It will be a classy wintery celebration. I'm so excited! And for those of you looking for unique ring ideas, we wanted to get a great ring on a budget and this is what we ended up with. I get so many compliments on it, and it cost much less to buy many small stones than to buy one large center stone. I didn't want him to spend too much on it, but I also didn't want to feel like we were settling. My rings are perfect and I adore them. amethystbliss fucked around with this message at 08:06 on Jan 30, 2009 |
# ¿ Jan 30, 2009 06:18 |
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JCrew dresses are lovely! I just bought their Sophia bridesmaid one in ivory for my after-elopement legal ceremony. It's so soft and fits perfectly.
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# ¿ Feb 3, 2009 00:48 |
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Wow, I'm so sorry to hear about your accident. I hope they caught the guy.
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# ¿ Feb 12, 2009 23:57 |
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Residency Evil posted:I know this is probably something to discuss with my girlfriend, but I figured I'd ask if any one of you have dealt with a similar situation first. I'm currently in med school. This means that pretty much all of my income comes from loans. My girlfriend will make more than I do for the foreseeable future. You should definitely ask both your family and hers (if you feel comfortable) if anyone has any kind of heirloom jewelry. It's personal, seeped in history and free! Women collect loads of jewelry that they never wear, so someone may just have the perfect ring lying around. My fiance proposed with a ring my mother gave me when I turned 16 since a new one wasn't in our budget at the time. We've since upgraded to the 1/2 carat diamond ring I'll wear forever, but it was still under $1000. We bought it at the local outlet mall. And as others have mentioned, if she's into sapphires or other nondiamond stones you'll dramatically decrease the price.
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# ¿ Feb 17, 2009 21:02 |
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We got married this week! Our Barcelona elopement was absolutely gorgeous and the day was perfect. To sum everything up, I'm from America and he's from England and visa requirements are quite strict. It was too difficult to get everyone in the same location, and we have to legally get married within 90 days, so we decided to elope! We thought it was more spontaneous to elope abroad than in the U.S. so we had a nonlegal ceremony in Barcelona and will have our legal wedding in the States a week from today. We'd asked our family members to write us letters blessing our marriage, giving advice etc. since they weren't going to physically be at the wedding. The night before we had a bottle of cava and some fancy chocolates and got all misty eyed reading dozens of letters from our loved ones. Those of you who are thinking of eloping- this was one of the best decisions we made. It really made us feel like our friends and family were a part of our day. We woke up early, I had my hair and makeup done, we ventured to a gorgeous old park for our tearful vow ceremony and then we took a long walk together before meeting up with the photographer for photos around the city. We did everything on our own terms and were able to be really spontaneous. There were so many loud cheers and car horns honking as we walked around Las Ramblas. Afterward, we went to an incredible (if not a bit touristy) flamenco show where we had an amazing three course dinner and were so close to the dancers we could see the sweat spray off of them. We returned to the hotel only to find one of my very good friends had the huge pleasure of meeting Saul Williams that evening (amazing spoken word artist/poet/musician whose work we used a bit in our vows) and recorded a video of him wishing us the very best. Celebrity endorsement of our marriage- yay! We only have one picture from the photographer for now, but here's us waiting for the Metro when hailing a taxi failed miserably: If anyone has any questions about eloping, feel free to ask! amethystbliss fucked around with this message at 15:20 on Mar 6, 2009 |
# ¿ Mar 6, 2009 15:18 |
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squirrellypoo posted:Congratulations!! It sounds like you had the perfect day you wanted, so I'm even happier you got to stick two fingers up to Immigration, too! The Metro photo is fabulous, and I can't wait to see more of your dress. Yoga posted:Just wondering which park you got married it? I lived in BCN for a while, I miss it. I'd love to see more pictures! Zaftig posted:Yes! I think everyone here thought I was terrible for basically wanting to get married away from my family, but I guess I just hadn't thought of it as eloping. How exactly did you ask your family members to write you letters? Did you send out a letter? How did you phrase it? My family is just so huge and I can't imagine spending so much money on a party (even if a lot of them wouldn't come because of distance), but I want them to know they're important to me. As for the letter writing, we actually called it a 'wine ceremony', although it turned out quite differently than expected since it was difficult to transport wine internationally. To advertise, we put information about it on our wedding website, made a facebook event (corny, but it was the easiest way to communicate with many of our friends) and my aunts, who were in charge of my bridal shower, wrote a little note asking family members to write letters and bring them to the shower. Here's how we phrased it on the website/facebook: As many of you know, Sebastian and I will be eloping to Barcelona due to immigration technicalities. It will be just us- zero guests- and we'll throw a big party to celebrate with you all within the next year. Watch out for invites! Of course, we're a little sad that none of our friends and family will be there for our wedding day. We want a way to incorporate our loved ones, though, so we're having a wine ceremony! A wine ceremony is when the officiant asks the couple getting married to find a strong wooden box that will hold two bottles of wine and two wine glasses. The bride's side of the family is asked to purchase one bottle of wine and the groom's is asked to purchase another. The couple is then asked to each write a letter to one another, expressing their thoughts about the good qualities that they found in their future partner and their reasons for falling in love with each other. Under no condition can they read each other’s letter. Family members and friends are also asked to write little notes about love, marriage, or their own blessings on the union. At the ceremony, the notes are placed in the box with the wine and glasses. The officiant will explain that should the couple ever find their marriage in serious trouble, before making any irrational decisions, they must open the box, drink wine together, and read the letter that they wrote to one another to reflect on why they fell in love with each other in the first place. They will also have letters from friends and family to reflect on the support of their union. The hope is that there will never be a reason to have to open the box, and the couple will enjoy the wine on their 25th anniversary! We're doing our own twist on this- if you want to be a part of our big day, we'd like you to write us a note blessing our marriage, giving us hints to a happy union, etc. We'll open them and read them on our wedding day! If you could write a small note, seal it in an envelope with your name on the front, that would be absolutely wonderful! Our big day is March 3rd but we leave on February 27th, so we'd need to receive it by then. Sorry for the super long response! Hope it was helpful.
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# ¿ Mar 6, 2009 19:22 |
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We got one more image from the photographer! He said the rest may be a while so I figured I'd go ahead and post it for those of you who were interested in seeing more. It's a bit photoshop heavy, but I think it's really unique. Note: I didn't wear that silly hat all day. It was just a dramatic prop I brought for photos.
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# ¿ Mar 8, 2009 19:09 |
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Locutus of Borg posted:Immigration The rest of our Barcelona elopement pics are in! Since so many people are talking about eloping in this thread, I thought I'd share a bunch of pictures to show how fun yet traditional it can be. We were able to fly to Spain, fly in a makeup artist and photographer from London for their services, stay in a 4 star hotel for 6 nights, book tickets for at least 3 different tourist attractions, attend a classical music concert at a major venue and have a 5 course gourmet dinner + flamenco show on the night of our wedding for less than $3500. And that was essentially the wedding + honeymoon. Oh, and did I mention we met on SA? Who would've thought... Some dress detailing: Ceremony: Park where the ceremony was held: Around the city: Fun fact: Farlopa = Spanish slang for cocaine!
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# ¿ Mar 21, 2009 17:30 |
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SplitDestiny posted:These pictures are really amazing and I think this has solidified the idea of eloping. Neither of us care for a traditional ceremony and the only purpose it would serve is to gather friends and family together. The wine ceremony is an amazing idea though and I definitely want to do that. Like many others are talking about, we did the legal ceremony separately and I really recommend that as well. It saved us the hassle of looking for and paying for an officiant and it meant we could "get married" wherever we wanted without needing a special wedding permit or paying frivolous elopement package prices. Let me know if you have any questions about eloping!
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# ¿ Mar 23, 2009 05:42 |
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MarshallX posted:Wow - those are some fantastic photos/backdrops. Don't suppose your photographer is free and lives near Detroit? When we were talking to him about flying to NYC for an elopement (before we decided on Barcelona, that was the plan) he was going to charge $1200 for the same thing. He's pretty young and was/is looking to build his portfolio with international weddings. I'm sure his extremely low price also had something to do with the fact that we did our engagement shoot with him and I did a boudoir shoot with him. We also got married in March, when flight and hotel prices are considerably cheaper. Worth sending him an email if any of you like his work, though!
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# ¿ Mar 23, 2009 13:46 |
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squirrellypoo posted:Whoa, his website is quoting a grand, minimum, for wedding photos, though! That first picture is gorgeous, Calamity Kate!
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# ¿ Mar 23, 2009 17:47 |
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GoreJess posted:Sorry if I came off rude, I didn't mean it that way. http://travel.state.gov/passport/fri/ChangeName/ChangeName_851.html The name change thing is quite intense. I've been told to start at Social Security and then go to the DMV. After that, there's passport name changes as well as debit cards, credit cards, the university's registrar's office, student IDs, hospital IDs and both health and car insurance companies. I've heard there are kits you can buy for like $45 that includes everything you need to change your name everywhere, but I can't personally vouch for it.
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# ¿ Mar 24, 2009 00:38 |
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tvb posted:My wife and I had the exact same problem (in PA). The only recourse, as explained to us by the courthouse, was to be civilly married the day (or sometime) before the ceremony. Then you can have whoever the hell you want perform the ceremony, because it's just for show and in no way official.
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# ¿ Mar 24, 2009 23:44 |
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For anyone looking for a reasonably priced wedding dress or mantilla veil, I've just posted mine for sale in SA Mart. Here's the link! http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3116068 I'm also selling a black dress I wore for my engagement photos in this thread if any of you are looking for something frilly to wear in yours: http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3116081
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# ¿ Apr 11, 2009 19:07 |
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# ¿ Apr 27, 2024 14:57 |
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Chokes McGee posted:honeymoon registry I can't really think of a way to ask people to make bank deposits without offending.
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# ¿ Apr 12, 2009 18:46 |