Author Archive

This is Kelly Prizel, one of the co-founders of So You’re EnGAYged. I really appreciate your continued support and I’m currently putting together the next phase of So You’re EnGAYged. I want to re-focus on what and why So You’re EnGAYged exists. And to me, that’s community.

So with that, let me get my bullhorn out! We are looking for new volunteers and ideas. We would love to hear from you! Think you would make an awesome coordinator for our real weddings features? Pipe up. Know you kick butt in grammar and would like to be our content editor? Email us right away, ha!

So shoot your emails to: kelly@soyoureengayged.com

We have some news about the next chapter of So You’re EnGAYged: after much consideration, we’ve decided to stop working on real weddings and vendor listings.

This is obviously a huge decision, and one that didn’t come lightly. We know how much you all really love this site as it is, especially the real weddings section. Both of us (Kelly and Lara) are currently dealing with health issues, as well as work/life balance (we have full-time jobs in addition to running So You’re EnGAYged). Real weddings and vendor listings eat up the bulk of our time outside of our full-time jobs, and it’s time for us to end our work on them. This means that there will be no new real weddings or vendors added to the site, but the existing ones will remain.

A ton of thought has gone into this, and though it’s a sad decision for both of us, we’re so happy with how the site has evolved over the years and the joy it has brought to us during that time. We’re not sure what’s next for SYE, but we’ll definitely be posting about it after taking some time off! Our awesome bloggers have been given the opportunity to keep blogging if they choose.

Lara: It’s been phenomenal running this site. I’ve learned so much about this community and how vendors can be truly LGBT-friendly. I’ve learned so much about the technology behind it, and what it takes to run a successful business. The people we’ve met, the loving comments we read, and the chance to work with your best friend day after day are some of the most treasured things about SYE. We keep joking – this wouldn’t be such a hard decision if So You’re EnGAYged weren’t so awesome. :)

Kelly: I can remember coming up with the idea for So You’re EnGAYged and wondering what/where/how to go about such a large project. Working with Lara, who is my best friend, to continually set new standards for the wedding industry and push for more awareness has been my driving force. I love that I’ve goten to work with so many couples as they submitted their real wedding/engagements, and in our next chapter, I hope to focus even more on serving amazing LGBT couples as they navigate the sometimes-murky waters of planning an LGBT wedding. This was an extremely hard decision to make, but I know in the end, whatever path So You’re EnGAYged takes will be one that allows me to continue to serve my LGBT and offbeat clients with my wedding photography business and gives me snuggle time with the wife.

Thanks to all you readers for being so terrific. It’s been a true pleasure creating this site for you.

Jen and Meghan: Jen and I met through a mutual friend, on a whim, and not as a set up. I was a hair stylist in LA and needed a model my first week, with no notice. My friend called Jen since she worked in LA. It was not love at first site and we barely spoke. But Jen was nice enough to let me crash at her place in Long Beach while I was commuting 2 hours to the salon. I soon got a place in Long Beach (I didn’t just fall for Jen) and we began a friendship which quickly led to where we are now.
Neither of us are great planners, nor can we keep a secret, so the engagement was in our typical style! We signed the Domestic Partner papers, had them notarized at the post office, and didn’t sweat at all! We headed for a great weekend in Palm Springs, won a little money, and ended the weekend with a trip to the jewelry outlet. With bejeweled fingers we set out to plan our reception. It’s been smooth sailing from there on out, surprisingly.

Photography: Pro-Gay Vendor Holly Steen of Cakes and Kisses Wedding Photography

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It’s high time we featured a super-fun summery shoot that includes baseball. Enjoy!

 

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Mari and Grace: Grace and I met at a birthday party a few years ago in Denver, Colorado. I was a graduate student with a one year position in Boulder at the time, and wasn’t looking for anything serious. However, Grace knew how to “hold on loosely” and seem to intuitively understand what I needed in a partner. Nine months after we meet it was time for me to head back to Minneapolis, Minnesota. Despite vowing that I would never do long-distance dating again, we just couldn’t let go of the loving and joyful relationship we’d begun to build. We somehow managed two years of long distance – trying to see each other at least every 5 or 6 weeks and taking longer visits when my graduate work allowed. I was finally able move “home” to Denver last September. We will celebrate our 4th anniversary in the fall.

Photographer: Pro-gay vendor Timothy Faust Photography


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Rainbow rose bouquets- yes, that’s right. You know you want to see the rest of the photos pro-gay vendor Aubrey Greene sent us.

We got married at Willowdale Estate in Topsfield, MA on a chilly, cloudy, beautiful day surrounded by our families and closest friends. We each had a bridal party of four of our favorite people and created a rainbow theme with their shoes and flowers. The hour or so before the wedding that we got to spend getting ready with our parents, siblings and best friends was a really great way to begin the day and get excited for all of the other things that were to come.

We asked Alyssa’s aunt to perform the ceremony and made a last minute decision to hold it inside so that our guests did not freeze. The ceremony was unique to us and included every person in attendance. After the ceremony, it was all about dessert and dancing. We had cake, an ice cream sundae bar and gigantic, and warm chocolate chip cookies. Guests flowed between the dance floor and the photo booth, which allowed us to capture some awesome memories instantly. The photo booth pictures were pasted in a scrapbook and our guests wrote extra nice notes for us next to their hilarious poses. We really enjoyed looking through the book the next morning.

In the end, despite some seriously stressful moments during the planning phases, our wedding day was exactly what we wanted it to be: unique, colorful, and all about our love!

 

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