Wedding Vase

One of the most enjoyable parts of planning a wedding or event is getting creative with the décor. Before making any decisions, it’s important to set out a budget for what is to be allotted for the decorations. Next, a color theme should be chosen not only for the wedding party, but also for the color palette of the venue décor and flowers. Be sure to decide if you want the reception or ceremony to be causal or black tie, traditional or modern, so you can decorate accordingly. Here are a few creative ways to incorporate color and style into any décor budget:

Flowers:
A main focus for the wedding and reception, flowers add fragrance, ambiance and beauty to any room. From the bridal bouquet to table centerpieces, flowers can either be in the same color palette as the wedding party, or you can use contrasting colors to give them the attention they deserve. While flowers can be expensive, the silk kind are more real looking than ever, and they allow you to choose any color or style no matter if they are in season or not! Check with florists to ask about a discount on bulk orders, or stop by a local farmer’s market to inquire about flowers grown in the area. Some of these smaller florists are willing to cut a deal to get the business.

Tablescapes:
The choice of dinnerware, tablecloths, napkins and place cards are all also beautiful ways to get creative. Many venues offer the use of tables and chairs, as well as tablecloths and chair ribbons, but prices for such services can add up. Instead, think about going to a local fabric store and purchasing swatches to add to plain white tablecloths. Place cards offer guests direction when it comes to seating, so be sure to add these to each place setting.

Centerpieces:
Here is where you can get really creative! Flowers, candles, even miniature pumpkins for fall weddings or Christmas Tree Ornaments for a winter wedding all look beautiful when enhanced with tea lights or small vases of flowers. Candles are a beautiful and romantic way to set the mood in the reception for an elegant dinner party, and they are also very economical. At themed weddings, you can get creative with centerpieces, such as a sand and seashell combination for a beach-like wedding or pine cones and other materials for an outdoor wedding.

There is no limit to what you can do with a wedding or event. Balloons are tastefully done at many wedding receptions, in the colors of the wedding party or more traditional colors like silver and white. Using balloons on the dance floor gives it a festive look, as well as using them to attach to the getaway car for the bride and groom. Whether you’re planning the wedding yourself or using the help of a wedding or event planner, there are many styles, colors and ideas you can find through bridal magazines and websites to incorporate into the wedding, or even adapt with more economical ideas to stay within your budget.

If you and your significant other are the type who find weddings boring and stuffy you may want to consider having a themed wedding. They can be very casual and light-hearted, and you will certainly be giving your guests something to remember.

A couple of things to keep in mind when considering a themed wedding: choose a theme which speaks to who you two are as a couple; make the theme easily accessible to others, don’t choose something so obscure that others might have trouble dressing for the occasion.

What are 7 top themes you might consider for your wedding?

1) Hawaiian or Beach Theme.

The good thing about a Hawaiian or beach-theme wedding is the amount of decorations you can find. You can make your own paper leis or paper palm trees, or find Hawaiian-themed items anywhere. Be sure to check the local thrift stores for anything tropical – dishware, shirts, dresses, etc. Just make sure all the decorations, as well as the attire, scream “BEACH.” And, you can cut down on the cost of champagne and serve Mai Tai’s or other tropical drinks.

You might think a Hawaiian or beach-theme wedding is just perfect for a summer wedding. Well, you’re right. But, a beach-theme wedding can also be fun during the wintertime as well, and give people a fun respite from cold, dreary weather. Just remember if you’re having a beach-theme wedding during the winter to hold it indoors. Those slinky Hawaiian dresses and breezy Hawaiian shirts can get a little cold in the snow.

2) Country Western Wedding Theme

Plan a shotgun wedding with a country western wedding theme. Western outfits are fairly easy to create or assemble, and a western cookout will surely keep your wedding reception costs down. You can either hire a company to have a western-style barbecue, or just use your own grill.

Western decorations are very easy to make or buy. Again, thrift stores can be perfect places to find boot-shaped vases, cowboy hats and shirts, or other western items for decorations. For music you can play country-western CDs or hire a country trio or band.

3) Wine Wedding Theme

For those of you into wine, a wine-themed wedding can be a great idea. You can hire a sommelier to put together a flight of wine for a reception tasting, or choose wines that mean something to the both of you. Perhaps the first bottle you ordered at a restaurant. Or a champagne dated the year you met.

Decorations can include grapevines, wine bottles, or posters of wine regions. For wedding favors you can give your guests a bottle of wine with a personalized label of the bride and groom.

4) Butterfly Wedding Theme

Butterfly releases after the wedding ceremony are becoming quite popular with couples. If a butterfly release will be part of your wedding, you can make butterflies part of your theme with butterfly decorations.

5) Sports Wedding Theme

No matter what type of sports the bride and groom are into, you can turn it into a wedding theme. You could have a theme of a certain sport, such as golf or baseball, and decorate with items from those sports, with wedding favors reflecting the sport given to guests. Or, you could celebrate a certain team.

If you wanted to go totally casual the bride and groom can dress in attire from the sport, such as basketball jerseys, with all the guests dressing in costume as well. As for the bouquet that the bride throws? Maybe instead of a bouquet she’ll throw a football or toss a baseball.

6) Las Vegas Wedding Theme

Hire a few poker, roulette and craps tables and a few Vegas-style dealers and you have yourself a Las Vegas-themed wedding. Throw in an Elvis impersonator and you have yourself a wild Vegas-themed wedding. In most large cities there are companies which rent out tables and dealers, as well as any number of Elvis impersonators to choose from.

For wedding favors consider a pack of cards with the bride and groom’s picture.

7) Pirate Wedding Theme

Decorate your reception hall to look like an old saloon or the deck of a ship. Peg legs, hooks for hands and eye patches make nice touches to your pirate wedding costumes. You might consider using a treasure chest to store your wedding gifts.

As you can see, when it comes to wedding themes, the possibilities are only limited by your own imagination.

Wedding Reception Planning:

Celebrate your wedding in your own unique style!

Every bride dreams of having a special wedding celebration, it’s the definition of special that may vary from bride to bride. When I got married I knew that I wanted the atmosphere and décor to be a reflection of my own personal style. The big challenge for me was; what was my personal wedding style? Sure, I knew my colors, chocolate brown and scarlet red, two sensuous shades that have always spoken to me. And I was also confident that I wanted our wedding to be a really fun and fabulous night for everyone in general. Now, I know that you are probably thinking, “Who doesn’t want their wedding to be fun?” but what I mean more specifically by a fun and fabulous night is that I wanted our guests to experience that awesome, magical kind of fun that you can’t plan on just any old night out. It was important to me that instead of memories of me cutting a cake, tossing a bouquet and otherwise basking in the spotlight, our guests left with memories of dancing to their favorite music, enjoying delicious and unusual delicacies and reconnecting with old friends and family. I had little other wedding planning ideas past these, but these I was sure of.

I was a very fortunate bride-to- be in that I have experience in event planning, not tremendous experience, but enough to feel that I was starting this process with an advantage. And unique to many other brides, without panic. So I carefully and thoughtfully began, step by step, to formulate the decisions that would define the atmosphere and décor of our wedding in a way that would help it to stand out among the typical cookie cutter wedding reception that we have all come to tire of. I would love to share some of my tips, techniques and advice that allowed me to plan and execute the wedding of my dreams and even enjoy doing so!

#1 Tear Sheets

Congrats! You are engaged! Now run immediately to your favorite newsstand and buy every bridal magazine! WAIT! There are so many more resources out there than every bridal magazine. I suggest buying two bridal mags to get a read on what the trends are in the wedding industry. Are brides going for traditional gowns? What are your contemporaries doing for favors? Find the look of invitation that most catches your fancy. Scour the two magazines you choose for whatever peeks your interest and then tear, tear, tear! Move on then to the interior decorating magazine you picked up with your latest issues of “Modern Engaged Bride-to-be”. And then pour through an issue of “Real Simple” or “Fine Cooking”. These are magazines dedicated to the finer aspects of living and celebrating life and they offer great insight into chic and distinctive ways of hosting a spectacular event. Lastly go through your favorite home catalogues, mine is Crate & Barrel. Tear out the pictures and advice that speak to you and along with the pages that you favored from the bridal mags and lifestyle publications begin a wedding production binder. Spend some time with these images and ideas, envision how you could incorporate them into your ceremony and reception and give yourself a little time to think on it! Before you realize it, your style will begin to rise to the surface.

#2 Book your locations

While you are mulling the images and ideas over and over in your mind, begin making appointments with ceremony and reception locations. While you factor in cost, layout, capacity and availability, keep in mind the mold-ability of the location and how you could incorporate your pages from your production book. Is there a great built in fireplace that you could fill with candles? Is the décor shabby-chic just like your favorite catalogue? Are the draperies inspired by your favorite destination? Make mental notes of the design influences in the space you are checking out, you may be able to play off of those features in a way that makes HUGE impact! Once you find your locations, the remaining decision fall into place much more easily.

#3 Invitations & Dress

Not many wedding planners would likely group together two such major event aspects like stationary and wardrobe, but for style purposes – they work well together. Keep in mind that both areas will complement the style of your wedding but are typically considered separate areas of the event. Well, they are and they’re not. For one, the invitation and dress set the tone of the event. By choosing the best wedding stationary and wedding gown, you can bring together all of the aspects of your wedding style that you have selected. If your décor is a sleek and modern white wedding staged outside under a tent of glowing Chinese lanterns, your perfect invitation, menu and escort card could be printed on delicate rice paper featuring the Chinese ideogram for love. Your ideal dress may be a gauzy and simple boat necked gown cinched sharply and intentionally at the waist with a silk obi. This complete look, preceded by the invite and completed by the décor, harmonizing food and drink and capped off with arrangements of cherry blossoms and votives, will be breathtaking! Pulling off your wedding style is as simple as minding your details and keeping in mind that every decision is an opportunity to make a statement.

#4 Food, Drink, Tunes & Favors

The final details to incorporate into your fabulous event are the guest’s favorite! Perhaps you have chosen a location at a beach club. Your stationary could feature a save the date “flip flop”, a lobster embossed engraved invitation and escort cards of painted seashells. Your dress is a simple silk bias cut sheath, with a gorgeous cowl neck accented with a designer flat thong. Imagine your guests enticed by the scents of lobster hors devours wafting though the air and the whimsical sounds of a steel drum band. You could have your signature “beachcomber” cocktail passed on trays with mini umbrellas in them! This is the making of a memorable event! As your loved ones depart they can take with them his and hers flip flops in the colors of your wedding, wrapped in a beach towel monogrammed with your wedding date and a message of thanks! The trick to adding the best details to any event is to ignore the pressure to make a decision and think of a natural choice. Sure, the websites and magazine might suggest favors for a wedding being hosted at a country club, but those favors wouldn’t incorporate the feel of your event. Use your imagination. If you decide that you would rather have centerpieces of hurricane vases filled with shells and candles rather than flowers than you can make it happen! Shells and candles are easily obtainable at craft stores such as Michaels. Another cute centerpiece idea for a beach wedding is a aluminum sand pail with shovels filled to the brim with garden roses according to your colors. What an impression you would make!

I hope my approach to wedding planning has given you a decent jumping off point. There are a few more areas to tackle, like wedding party plans and transportation… Look for my next article dedicated to bridesmaids, groomsmen and carting them around. There I broach the subjects of shopping for flattering dresses in bulk and censoring the Best Man’s toast!

Good luck, enjoy and follow your heart. It will lead you right to your style!

By: Ellen Preimesberger

http://www.TheWeddingColony.com

Flowers have always been an essential part in every wedding. They are able to express emotions more intentionally than words can. Every type of flower and each color convey a meaning and sometimes reflect the feeling in this memorable event. A wedding is an amazing occasion that flowers takes a significant part in. Different varieties of flowers with vibrant colors are used to decorate the wedding ceremony and the reception area.

Flowers also play an important element in the outcome of the wedding videography. Its effervescent quality will give the wedding energy and life which will surely be interpreted in the wedding video. They create an atmosphere of romance and good wishes to the whole affair. So it is wise to find time to choose the kind of flowers that will fit the wedding ceremony and reception perfectly.

Since a wedding is a special event, it also demands some uniqueness especially on the flower arrangements. Selection of the flowers may depend on the theme of the wedding and its seasonal availability. If you prefer different shades of pink flowers, fall might not be the best time for you to get married. On the other hand, if you adore lilacs or tulips, perhaps you should have a spring wedding.

There are many ways to create a romantic mood at your wedding ceremony using flowers. One popular way is adorning the church aisle with fresh or dried rose petals. Flower filled urns can also be placed at the entrance ceremony which can later be brought to the reception. If you are planning your wedding in the late afternoon or evening, use candlelight and rich blooms to lighten your path and create that dreamy ambiance.

The most popular wedding flowers will include roses and calla lilies. These flowers will look amazing and an advantage is that they are available all year round. But if you want something a little bit different, add some tropical blooms in your wedding bouquet. This will surely look amazing and provide stunning wedding videography opportunities.

For the reception, there are a lot of fresh ideas you can choose from to create that magical moment for you and your guests. Use elegant vases with colored blossoms or simply scatter rose petals at center of the table around glittering candles. Instead of the usual floral centerpieces for each guest table, submerge beautiful blooms of orchids or tulips in a crystal glass. Another idea is to have your florist decorate the table with small five or six separate centerpieces instead of a big one so that each couple on the guest table can take one home. Use you imagination and do not be afraid to show your creativity. Just remember that the level of these arrangements should not interfere with guest’s ability to talk with each other.

Wedding flower arrangement is only one factor that can help you set the mood for your wedding. Deciding on the perfect flowers that will suit your style and personality can take a lot of time and patience. It will be an advantage if you consider some of these ideas to create the magical feeling in your wedding. This will definitely provide the ultimate touch in making your wedding more special and unforgettable.

Indeed, you don’t want to spend the first few months of your married life paying debts made during your wedding preparations. This is one major reason why today’s bride and groom-to-bes are wise and thrifty enough on spending their wedding budget, and they are very careful with what to spend on. There are several areas of the wedding where you can save some extra dollars on.

Personalized Decorations. You can save money on your decorations by having your own creation displayed in your wedding reception. It can also add a personal touch to the celebration. For instance if you and your partner is a painter or photographer, you may use some of your artisan collection as the main subjects for the reception design. You may also use them as your wedding invitation and keepsakes. You may also consider the cost of church decorations. You may want to check if there will be another couple that will get married on the same day. They may want to coordinate what decorations can be used for both wedding ceremonies to lessen the need to change decorations before or after the wedding and to split the cost.

Go For Rent. There are may wedding supplies which can be rented, from wedding outfits, car to decorations. After all, these items will be used once only, so you may not need to buy brand new ones and spend a lot of your budget. For instance, most of the items that will be used for decorations will not be used again. These include the centerpieces, the vases, the arc way and artificial flower arrangements. You may ask other people’s advices and suggestions for options to rent these pieces.

Save Money On Wedding Menu. You can cut down the cost of your wedding reception by serving food that doesn’t cost you a fortune. If you belongs to a family that have a good taste on food and have the skill to cook as good as the iron chefs, then gather all of them in your kitchen and have some fun time cooking, tasting and laughing. Or perhaps if this is not the case, you may inquire with cooking and culinary art schools. They may agree to cater for your reception for just the price of each food, or perhaps, a little more. You may also consider a pot luck reception by asking family members and close friends to cook and bring their own dish. You can also cut down the cost of your reception by of course not inviting too many people. You may only invite the people during your engagement party. Usually, only cocktails and hors d’oeuvres are served, which cost less than the full set of meals for the wedding reception guests.

Consider Local College Band Or DJ. For the music, you can have these people entertain your wedding. You may opt to play your favorite songs downloaded from the Internet during the reception.

Others. Other cost-cutting ideas to save money on you wedding is by giving out affordable wedding favors such as cookies, candies, mints and chocolate wedding favors. You may also choose to make your own favors. There are DIY wedding favors kits available in many craft stores and wedding shops. You don’t have to spend a fortune also to give gifts for your wedding attendants. Why not give inexpensive bridesmaids gifts and groomsmen gifts? There are lots of affordable ideas for these people, all you need to have is an enough time for shopping.