Today’s Real Bride to be is Jessica from Minnesota.  She and fiance Josh are planning to marry next month at the Midland Hills Country Club in Roseville, Minnesota.  Jessica admits to being a bit of an Etsy addict.   “I remember reading a friend’s Facebook status about how she bought something off of Etsy and I wanted to go see the site for myself.  Needless to say I became hooked!”

When did you get engaged? 

We got engaged on January 29^th, 2009

When is your wedding date and where are you getting married?

We are getting married on October 9, 2010 and are having both the ceremony and reception at the Midland Hills Country Club in Roseville, Minnesota.

What is your theme and what inspired it? 

Our theme is the fall.  We met in the fall and it’s our favorite time of the year.  We both love the fall colors Minnesota has.Our main colors are black and ivory; we are accenting with fall colors (deep, rich reds, oranges, yellows, and gold).

Share some of your favorite Etsy purchases so far:  

Cake topper by RedlightStudio

Head piece/crystal pins by MissJoansHobby

Garter set by SugarPlumGarters  

Bridal clutch by Mollusa  (Shop is no longer active )

I am in love with our cake toppers.  I love birds and even more so, owls.  Going with our fall theme and adding some personality to our wedding, I wanted to have a little something different then the traditional bride and groom cake toppers.  For our cake, we have these beautiful bride and groom owls.  The artist asked me about what we would be wearing that day (type of tie Josh would be wearing and the type of veil I would wearing) and added it to the owls for a more personalized touch. 

I really do love everything I have purchased from Etsy for my wedding. Everything has exceeded my expectations and each are exactly what I was looking for. 

How does Josh feel about your Etsy purchases?

Josh has liked everything I’ve purchased from Etsy for our wedding.  When I first told him I bought the owl cake toppers he was a bit nervous.  However, when they arrived in the mail and he saw them, he actually chucked a little bit and said they were great, not at all what he was expecting.

Do you have any advice for other brides?

I believe the more personal touches the couple adds to their wedding the better.  They don’t need to be big and over the top.  In fact, I find it’s the little things that the couple has added to be the best.  Items or decorations that show more of the couple’s personality (or what they enjoy) are always fun to see.  For us, we are adding in our favorites parts about fall.  For me, it’s the subtle hint of owls throughout our décor with our cake toppers and our number cards (which I made – below). 

For Josh, he loves sitting by fire so we’re having fire pits set-up outside on the patio of the country club for guests to enjoy.  We enjoy visiting apple orchards during the fall months so we are having caramel apples as our favors. 

Today’s Real Bride-to-be Amy first came across Etsy when a friend began listing jewelry on the site to sell.  “I was curious to see what Eetsy was all about” she explained.  “Ever since my first time looking at the website I have been obsessed!”  Amy and Fiance Mo will be getting married on October 1st.  Their engagement session was shot by Abella Studios. 

When did you get engaged?

 January 29, 2009

Where are you getting married?

Galloping Hill Estate, Colts Neck NJ (Ceremony)  and The Crystal Ballroom, Freehold NJ (Reception)

What is your theme and what inspired it?

We are doing a Moroccan themed wedding to incorporate my fiancés Middle Eastern culture.  I love deep jewel toned colors so I loved being able to use rich dark colors for my color scheme.

Share some of your favorite Etsy purchases so far:

Invitations by By Invitation Only (Ivandy27)

Flower Girl Basket by SongsFromTheGarden

Bridesmaids Custom Bracelets by 5andUnder

Bridesmaids Shawls by ClassyWedding

 I love EVRYTHING I have bought on Etsy so far for the wedding! My invites are probably my favorite though.  Being that my colors and theme are not traditional it was very hard to find invitations that reflected our wedding vision.  Luckily Ivandy27 was able to create wonderful invitations that we went nuts for! We have gotten nothing but compliments on them.  I also was able to get a custom flower girls basket that is just too adorable and tied in our deep purple color.   I also loved the bridesmaids gifts I found which were custom bracelets and shawls.  The prices were really reasonable on all of these items, but the quality is fantastic! I am also in the process of purchasing handkerchiefs from MollyandMom as gifts for our parents and grandparents.

How does your fiance feel about your Etsy purchases?

My fiancé calls me the mail order bride! I have found so many great things through Etsy and I am always getting a new package in the mail.  He loves the idea that our items are handmade and custom to our wedding, so no one else will have them.  We tried very hard to not have a cookie cutter wedding and we are both thrilled that Etsy was able to help us with that.

Do you have any advice for other brides?

Relax! I was so stressed out at some points that sometimes I lost sight of what this day was really about.  I vowed to relax and enjoy the next few months, because this is a day that will be wonderful no matter what happens to go wrong.  I have to have faith that my vendors will do what I want, that the weather will co-operate and everything runs smoothly, but if all fails I still end the day married to my best friend 

A big thank-you to Ranah for sending in these cute engagement pics.  She and fiance Joshua are due to be married next week.  We’re glad she managed to squeeze us in with the wedding just around the corner. 

When did you get engaged?
We got engaged in March, 2009

When is your wedding date and where are you getting married?
We are getting married on August 27th, 2010 in Brookfield, Wisconsin

What is your theme and what inspired it?
Our theme is nature, and it is inspired by our reception venue. The banquet room features stone walls, floor-to-ceiling windows, and lodge style beams. It’s very earthy and we loved the simplicity of patterns found in nature.

Share some of your favorite Etsy purchases so far: 

Perfect Pearl Necklace by roundabout 

Bridal rhinestone crystal headband by ChantalEveleen

“Fern Gully” Locket by birdzNbeez

Love- 5PK Gift Tags by sweetharvey

“Drops of Jupiter” Vintage Brooch by ALaProchaine

Sheer Crystal Organza Wedding Table Runners by floratouch

How does your fiance feel about your Etsy purchases?
He gets pretty excited to see what I come up with, and appreciates the money we save by scoping out shops on Etsy. We have actually gone through and created wedding wish lists together for random things like guest books and centerpiece ideas.

Do you have any advice for other brides?
Two words. Silk flowers. Some Brides assume they’d be just as costly as the real thing, but craft outlets like Hobby Lobby and Michael’s have frequent “50% off floral” sales. I bought all of my wedding flowers (including all bouquets, centerpieces, favors and ceremony decor) for around $500. My sister and I spent two days assembling everything, and we had so much fun learning how to work with the flowers. It’s great for the DIY bride.

Thanks for sharing Ranah!

Today’s Real Bride-to-be comes from New York.  Alison and fiance Kevin’s E-session was shot by Geoffrey Tischman of  Geoffrey Tischman Photography at a variety of New York locations.   She first learned about Etsy in 2008 through a co-worker who sold her vegan baked goods on the site.

More from Alison:  Once I started looking around, I couldn’t believe how many  amazing things were on there. Once we got engaged and began planning, I knew it was going to be one of my go-to sites.
 

When did you get engaged?
We got engaged on Memorial Day 2009 – 5/25/2009

When is your wedding date and where (venue) are you getting married?
We are getting married on 10.10.10 at the Queens County Farm Museum in Floral Park, NY

What is your theme and what inspired it?
Our theme is kind of a cross between a country farm, an apple orchard, and a farmer’s market. It was inspired by the season and the natural beauty of the farm — the farm animals, the barn, apple picking, hay rides, pumpkin picking, that sort of thing.

Share some of your favorite Etsy purchases so far:

Wedding flowers by SongsFromTheGarden  
Vintage animal bunting for the reception by humunuku
My dogwood pearl vintage post earrings by cmyk  
Mr. and Mrs. Photo Prop Thank You Signs by pertyfultings 
My champagne feather hair pin by YJdesign

How does your fiance feel about your Etsy purchases?
I think so far my fiance really likes the purchases we’ve made from Etsy — they’re all very much in keeping with our vintagey, homey, style

Do you have any advice for other brides?
I think the most important thing I’ve learned is to do what makes you both happy, and what feels right for you as a couple. The wedding has to reflect you both … and if that means you want to get married on a farm, and have a pit-BBQ reception and carnival desserts, then do it.

Real Bride-to-be Ashley sent over these great engagement pics shot by Lee Mann Productions in London, Ontario, Canada.    She has been shopping on Etsy since early in her engagement and enthusiastically agreed to show off some of her purchases and give credit to the talented Etsy sellers.  Ashley and fiance Ryan plan to tie the knot in September.

When did you get engaged?
Oct 2nd, 2009, our 4 year anniversary.

When is your wedding date and where (venue) are you getting married?
Sept 25, 2010 in the Crystal Ball Room at the Lamplighter Inn in London, Ontario.  http://www.lamplighterinn.ca/weddings
 

What is your theme and what inspired it?
GLAM! (black and white, feathers, lots of bling) My bedroom actually inspired our wedding.  You will understand when you look at the engagement photos! I’ve also had a weird obsession with feathers since I was young, so it was only fitting that they be a big part of our day.

Share some of your favorite Etsy purchases so far?

 Edmonton Oilers garter by GartersByKristi 
 Thank You Parasol by iDoOriginals 
 Personalized Napkins by amsny 
 Personalized Dress hanger by lilacfrances 
 Feather Unity Candle by leighannkline 
 Satin hankys (for the moms) by GarterLady 

How does your fiance feel about your Etsy purchases?
He shakes his head everytime  a package arrives because it seems to be a weekly thing.  But once I open the package and he sees what I’ve found he always loves it.

Do you have any advice for other brides?
Start ordering/buying right away.  The wedding may seem far away but the best thing I did was not wait until the last few months before the wedding.     I started right when I got engaged… if I would have waited I wouldn’t be able to afford all of the awesome things I ended up finding on Etsy.  Another website I had great luck with was shopwildthings.com.  Also, I would suggest  joining or at least reading wedding blogs.  I’ve found so many great ideas on these sites, and the other brides are always so helpful.

 
Thanks Ashley!  Can’t wait to see the wedding pics.