The satin opera gloves I ordered to go with my wedding dress were scheduled to arrive in the mail today. Between satin gloves, shiny shoes, and even a tiara, I was starting to feel a little less stressed and a little more like a princess. I planned to write a blog post this evening about the positivity of dressing up, stressing down, and taking a moment to give yourself the royal treatment.
Then something else arrived in the mail, completely unexpected, that made me truly feel like worthy royalty.
Perhaps you've heard of Belle, the peasant girl turned princess after marrying a beast turned prince? You know, the one from my favorite movie of all time that's only the inspiration behind my entire wedding? While the character herself is fictional and her actions are pure animation, Belle comes to life in the 1991 classic Disney film through the voice of Paige O'Hara, a real woman, singer, painter, and turns out resident of Henderson, Nevada. We share a zipcode.
I actually learned this weeks ago after watching a documentary about Ms. O'Hara from a bonus feature on my Beauty and the Beast DVD. I had the super unrealistic pie-in -the-sky thought that maybe Paige O'Hara could attend my nuptials. Spoiler alert: that's not the big news. She isn't going to be at the wedding, as cool as that would be. Since we are strangers and I'm just a fan, I sent an invitation to her local address anyway, with a polite letter explaining how her voice work left an impact on me and hundreds of thousands of little girls who grew up in the '90s. I told her that like Belle, I loved to read, and grew up to be a librarian. I told her that I was also a fan of her artwork--the paintings she had done of Belle and Beast, of which I owned three different prints. I explained that after becoming engaged, I had started to plan a wedding inspired by Beauty and the Beast too. I enclosed three pictures to show my dedication: one photo of her paintings that I owned and two photos from our library engagement photo shoot that included B&B colors and signs.
Today, in the mail, I opened an RSVP envelope with no RSVP card inside. Instead, I pulled out my three photos, signed in silver marker:
"To Stephanie and Jayson. (Belle) -Paige O'Hara." "Congrats! Love, Paige O'Hara."
My favorite Disney Princess knows my name!!
Not only did she take the time to personalize three autographs (and read my fiance's name in the invitation to spell it correctly), but she took the time to mail the photos back just in time for my RSVP deadline. While she didn't return the card (and yes, I'm assuming it's a "Regrets" instead of an "Accepts" response), I like to think that's because she liked it so much she wanted to keep it as a souvenir. And who knows? Maybe she will decide to do a last-minute surprise guest appearance on the big day! But even if she doesn't, I'm still smiling like my six-year-old self again, just so happy to know that she cared. And now I have an incredibly unique keepsake related to my wedding and my favorite movie. I've collected autographs since I was a kid going to baseball card shows with my dad, so I know how special words on paper and words on pictures really are. Plus, this makes for a cool story, which is also always special to me (I'm a book loving librarian after all!).
To be recognized by a true princess, an entertainment industry queen, makes me feel more like royalty than a tiara and gloves can do alone.
Then something else arrived in the mail, completely unexpected, that made me truly feel like worthy royalty.
Perhaps you've heard of Belle, the peasant girl turned princess after marrying a beast turned prince? You know, the one from my favorite movie of all time that's only the inspiration behind my entire wedding? While the character herself is fictional and her actions are pure animation, Belle comes to life in the 1991 classic Disney film through the voice of Paige O'Hara, a real woman, singer, painter, and turns out resident of Henderson, Nevada. We share a zipcode.
I actually learned this weeks ago after watching a documentary about Ms. O'Hara from a bonus feature on my Beauty and the Beast DVD. I had the super unrealistic pie-in -the-sky thought that maybe Paige O'Hara could attend my nuptials. Spoiler alert: that's not the big news. She isn't going to be at the wedding, as cool as that would be. Since we are strangers and I'm just a fan, I sent an invitation to her local address anyway, with a polite letter explaining how her voice work left an impact on me and hundreds of thousands of little girls who grew up in the '90s. I told her that like Belle, I loved to read, and grew up to be a librarian. I told her that I was also a fan of her artwork--the paintings she had done of Belle and Beast, of which I owned three different prints. I explained that after becoming engaged, I had started to plan a wedding inspired by Beauty and the Beast too. I enclosed three pictures to show my dedication: one photo of her paintings that I owned and two photos from our library engagement photo shoot that included B&B colors and signs.
Today, in the mail, I opened an RSVP envelope with no RSVP card inside. Instead, I pulled out my three photos, signed in silver marker:
"To Stephanie and Jayson. (Belle) -Paige O'Hara." "Congrats! Love, Paige O'Hara."
My favorite Disney Princess knows my name!!
Not only did she take the time to personalize three autographs (and read my fiance's name in the invitation to spell it correctly), but she took the time to mail the photos back just in time for my RSVP deadline. While she didn't return the card (and yes, I'm assuming it's a "Regrets" instead of an "Accepts" response), I like to think that's because she liked it so much she wanted to keep it as a souvenir. And who knows? Maybe she will decide to do a last-minute surprise guest appearance on the big day! But even if she doesn't, I'm still smiling like my six-year-old self again, just so happy to know that she cared. And now I have an incredibly unique keepsake related to my wedding and my favorite movie. I've collected autographs since I was a kid going to baseball card shows with my dad, so I know how special words on paper and words on pictures really are. Plus, this makes for a cool story, which is also always special to me (I'm a book loving librarian after all!).
To be recognized by a true princess, an entertainment industry queen, makes me feel more like royalty than a tiara and gloves can do alone.
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