Themed Tuesdays

This week's Themed Tuesday is post is about travel-themed weddings. This theme is great for couples who have jobs that require them to travel, or for couples who just enjoy jet-setting around the world. 

Invitation and RSVP card

Adorable boarding pass Save the Dates

Luggage tag Save the Dates

Seating chart map of the world

Suitcase wedding cake!

Cute idea. Paper airplane place cards.

Passport wedding programs.

(images from Pinterest)

Reception Fun

I always thought that when you went to a wedding reception you had dinner, danced a lot, took advantage of the open bar, signed the guest book, and listened to a bunch of drunken toasts. Apparently there are a ton of other things that you can have at your reception to make sure your guests have fun. Pinterest, Style Me Pretty, and DIY Bride have posted some awesome ideas for receptions.

Put these coloring kits at tables where kids are sitting.
Ask them to make a card for the bride and groom.
This is a good idea to keep them from getting
bored during the toasts and speeches.

A s'mores bar for a winter wedding, of course.

Photobooths are the most popular trend at weddings today.

Who Wears the Cake?
Whoever has more money in their glass gets a face full of cake.
You can use the money as extra cash for your honeymoon,
or if you're feeling philanthropic,
you can donate the money to a charity of your choice.

Cute photo idea that guests can do throughout the night.

Each bottle represents a year.
Guests write notes and slip them in whichever bottle they want.
The couple opens the bottle for that anniversary.

If you're an Instagram addict like me, this is an awesome idea.

A Wish Jar.
Guests write and sign wishes and give advice to the couple.

Wedding Do or Don't: Mismatched Bridesmaid Dresses

I love this trend. Gone are the days where all of your bridesmaids have to wear the same dress, color, cut, shoes, jewelry, and hairstyle. Bridesmaids have the freedom to accessorize their dresses to show off their own personal style (with the approval of the bride, obviously). 

Not all of your bridesmaids are going to have the same body type, so why assume that one style is going to look good on all of them? A flat-chested girl is going to feel more comfortable in one style, while a girl with a larger chest will feel more comfortable in a different one. To me, a bride should want her bridesmaids to feel as comfortable in their dresses as possible. A comfy bridesmaid = a happy, confident bridesmaid.

Of course there are guidelines that a bride can follow to ensure that her bridesmaids look coordinated, without looking too random:

1. Same color, different styles

This is good for a bride who wants to embrace the trend, without straying too far from tradition. 

2. Same color, different shades

This is a great way to showcase the trend. 

You can go from each end of the color spectrum, or stick to a few key shades.

3. Same dress, mismatched accessories

This is a good way to let your bridesmaids express their individual styles, while still looking uniform.

4. Complementary color palette

Whether it's jewel tones or pastels, make sure the colors really complement each other, or else you run the risk of looking like your bridesmaids picked random colors.

 

The rules are pretty limitless when it comes to your bridesmaids. It's really just up to the bride to keep communicating with her girls to make sure that they like their dresses. Whether you choose to keep them in the same dress or mismatched, the most important thing is that they're happy. The last thing you want is for your bridesmaids to be trash talking the color or style choice to anyone who will listen (and trust me, they will).

(images from Belle the Magazine)

Winter Wonderland

I would love to have a winter wedding. The idea of getting married while there's snow falling outside around the holidays is so romantic to me (but with our luck, the year we get married we'll have 2 inches of snowfall all winter). The holidays also happen to be my favorite time of year. I love giving gifts, snuggling in front of a fireplace, and holiday parties. I also love winter colors. Deep, rich reds and blues, accented by gold or silver are my ideal holiday shades. 

Here is some winter wedding inspiration courtesy of The Knot and Style Me Pretty.

Gorgeous shot. Probably really hard to recreate.

Perfect favors

I love the touches of gold. Subtle and not overwhelming.
The feather against the contrasting burlap table runner give a nice "city meets country" feel.

I absolutely love the tented ceilings. The lights are great too.

The silver tablecloth, crystals, and white flowers are great colors for a winter wedding.

I love this center piece.

Tree branches painted white are a great, easy way to add a winter feel to the wedding.

Not a huge fan of the tablecloth, but I love the ornaments hanging from the tree branches over the table.

Pinecones are a winter staple.

This is a great coat to wear over your dress when you're taking pictures outside.

DIY Sunday

I'm going to dedicate Sunday posts to creative DIY ideas that I find. This Sunday's DIY comes from mydiyweddingday.com via wedding and event planner Angela from Oh So Joyous. I'm not sure how much money this idea would actually save you, since the materials used for this project can be pretty expensive, but for craftier people, this idea is really cute.

Thank you cards are (hopefully) one of the last expenses a couple needs to worry about for their big day. Angela came up with an awesome DIY thank you card that looks very professional and polished, but adds that personal touch from the newlyweds.

(Taken from mydiyweddingday.com)

"This thank you pack includes an embossed card and the couple’s favourite wedding photos all wrapped in a pretty little pocket folder and finished off with a ribbon."

What you will need:

• watermark ink or embossing ink

• ink of your colour choice (I used black)

• thermal embossing powder of your colour choice (I used gold)

• rubber thank you stamp

• rubber stamp of your choice for front of card (I used a custom monogram stamp)

• heat gun

• cards and envelopes

• ribbon

• luggage tags

• pocket folders

• a selection of your favorite wedding photos

Here's what to do:
1. Using a thank you stamp, stamp the luggage tags with the regular ink and put aside.
2. Press the rubber stamp on the watermark ink and stamp the image on the card by pressing down firmly and removing the stamp quickly.
3. Shake the thermal embossing powder over the image until it is completely covered. To remove the excess powder tap the card over some paper and then empty this back into the thermal embossing powder container. Make sure the card has no flecks of powder by brushing them off.
4. Turn on the heat tool and melt the powder this may take a few seconds.
5. Once you have filled in the cards with your note and enveloped them you can insert the card and photographs into the pocket folder and seal it.
6. Put the ribbon through the luggage tag and tie it around the pocket folder, finish it off with a tie of your choice and voila!

You can check out mydiyweddingday.com for a picture tutorial of how to put the cards together, but here's a picture of the finished product from the website.

Wedding Do or Don't: Colored Wedding Dress

I'm saving the big "dress" post for later because it is far too early for me to begin thinking about the most important dress I'll ever wear, and it will most likely be more than one entry anyway. Even though 99% of all brides won't consider wearing anything but white on their wedding day, I explored the idea of wearing something other than the traditional color. Brides initially wore white to signify their purity and virginity, but let's face it, my fiancé and I have been living together for 2 years. Draw whatever conclusions you want.

How important is it to me to wear white on my wedding day? Most likely I'll end up wearing white, but I decided to take a look and see what a colored wedding dress would look like. Forget the fact that most of the dresses I found looked like cupcakes, colored wedding dresses quite honestly, don't look like wedding dresses. To me, they look a lot like what you see a 17-year-old girl wearing to her prom. However, I managed to find a couple of exceptions that made me think twice. (See Gwen Stefani and the last picture in the set below) So I ask this: Are colored wedding dresses a do or a don't?

These colors aren't terrible. For wall paint.

I don't mind the color as much as I mind the swirled yogurt design of the dress.

Gwen Stefani took the traditional white gown, and put her own ombré spin on it.
I love this dress on her.

This dress reminds me of a dead crow I saw on the side of the road one day.
I would wear this dress to Elton John's funeral.

Marchesa 2012. I'm torn on this. I like the dress, but not for a wedding.

I love the touch of color this bride put under the sheer layer in her skirt.
I'm not a big fan of the cut of the dress, but she looks fabulous.

VIPS (Very Important Planning Sites)

One of the best websites to find inspiration for not just a wedding, but for anything in life, is Pinterest. If you don't know what Pinterest is, click here and prepare to have your life changed. (Not really that serious, but Pinterest is pretty awesome) 

I follow a lot of different boards, but for obvious reasons, I've been following a lot of wedding boards lately. I'm in shock at how many amazing ideas I find from other pinners. I could never be that creative in a million years, but hopefully seeing a bunch of DIY ideas, I'll be able to find my craftier side.

Here are just a few of my favorite pins that I've found. I don't know if I'll end up using all of them at my wedding, but they're too awesome not to post.

(all photos were found on Pinterest)

I definitely want to do this.

A framed picture with different significant dates (birth dates, date they first met, date they got engaged, date they got married)

A floating lantern send off at the end of the night

Since we are both Jewish we're going to get married under a chuppah. This one is spectacular.

Love this idea. A wish tree. 

Guests write wishes or advice that they have for the couple and hang them on the tree

HAPPY PINNING!