The Wedding Favor Debate

Finding the perfect wedding favor not is not only tricky, but these days, it seems, the tradition is almost unnecessary. It is not uncommon for the bride and groom to forgo giving their guests wedding favors completely. While I completely understand why, I knew that for our wedding I want to give our guests a little token of our gratitude. Coming up with the perfect wedding favor is tricky! Something edible is always a good choice. At least you can safely assume it won't go to waste.

How cute are these favors?

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There are lots of fun things you can do with jam. I just adore these setups.

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Ultimately, I would like to do something meaningful, inexpensive, and that our guests would appreciate. Any ideas??

*What did you/are you going to give as favors at your wedding? Or are you against giving favors altogether? *What was the best wedding favor you ever received?

Floral Inspiration : The Centerpieces

I realize this is my 3rd post about flowers, but stick with me...flowers are a huge part of my inspiration! Last time I posted about my first floral appointment and bridesmaids' bouquet. Last weekend, we had our 2nd floral appointment- this time, to talk centerpieces. {The Inspiration} : A “Garden Party” affair that is both classy and elegant, but also somewhat informal.

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I love these photos for inspiration, but in reality, flowers are expensive, and, let's be honest- they die. But- pictures last forever so I wanted to create something that was beautiful with the feel of these whimsical garden photos, minus the price. I worked with our wonderful florist (New Jersey brides- if you are in need of a florist, please contact me...she is amazing). Here is what we came up with.

I am thrilled with the results! It has the same feel as my original inspiration and goes perfectly with the bouquets and overall vibe of the wedding, all while staying in our budget. Our florist also completely gets my vision and inspiration. Her assistant even pointed out how this just proves that you don't need a big budget to create beautiful decor.

Swoon-Worthy Stationery

I can't believe it's already time to start thinking about invitations! When Dan and I got engaged {last February}, our 17 month engagement felt like an eternity. It is crazy to think that we are now merely 5 short months away from becoming husband and wife! Invitations are one of those places that I feel okay cutting costs. In all honesty, people will eventually just throw them in the garbage. Still, I love all things pretty and I am convinced that I can find something beautiful without breaking the bank. As with all of my other decisions, there are a couple of directions I am toying with.

{The Modern Invite}

Via Minted

{The Fun Invite}

Via Minted

And of course, the more traditional option...

{The Traditional Invite}

via Wedding Paper Divas

Programs

I've also been thinking a lot about programs for the ceremony. I know they are not necessary, but I always think its nice for your guests to have something to flip through while they wait.

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*What do you think? Are programs necessary? What is one place you are choosing to cut costs? 

The Wedding Cake

In the spirit of Valentine’s week, how could I not write about our wedding cake today? In some ways, we are lucky that our wedding venue includes the cake in our package cost. On the other hand, that gives me less control over what our cake looks and tastes like. Luckily, we have already attended a cake tasting and while they are all delicious, they are somewhat generic looking. I have a few ideas to personalize our cake to match our wedding vibe- flowers and/or cake toppers. Here are a few cakes and details I love.

{Floral Additions}

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{Cake Toppers}

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I love the floral cakes, I just don't know if our caterer will allow it or how to execute it. Are the flowers real or sugar? I have a second meeting with our florist this week and hope to gain some insight then.

*Which do you prefer? Think there is anyway to do both?

Styling :: The Groomsmen

A few weeks ago I showed you our inspiration and decision on the bridesmaids. Now it's time to talk groomsmen. Styling the men is more difficult for me. I know when something looks good, but I'm lost when it comes to putting it all together. For women, I like to think I know what looks good on different body types and skin tones but I don't have a clue where to start when it comes to the men. Dan and I both agree we do not want to go with tuxes- it just isn't our style. We want something more laid back and casual like khakis and navy blazers, but don't want it to look to preppy. Like the ladies, I love the idea of having the men mismatched, and I found some great pictures where all the men are wearing the same vest, but different shirts, ties and/or shoes. Also, since we are not going with tuxes, it is likely the men will have to buy their outfit. I kind of like this idea because Dan usually spends about $200 to rent the tux when he is in wedding. At least the guys will get to keep their clothes. Here are some of the images I love. I'm warning you- they are all across the board. Please help me narrow my vision!

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What do you think? Advice is welcomed!

Showered with Inspiration

It is pretty unconventional for a bride to be involved in planning the bridal shower, but when my mom and sister requested I be a part of the process, I just couldn’t refuse! Over the years, bridal showers have earned a reputation for being somewhat of a chore for the guests, so I hope we can create something that is light, fun, and truly a celebration for everyone involved. Two thoughts I had were a tea party or a champagne brunch.

Since I decided to go with the light pink and mint green color palette for the wedding, I know you are all expecting me to go blush pink and ivory for the shower, but I have a new vision! Since my inspiration for the wedding is soft and romantic, I thought it would be fun to liven things up a bit with lots of bright colors for the shower.

Tea Party Shower Inspiration:

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OR- how much fun would it be too attend this fab bridal shower brunch? {inspired by this stunning bridal shower feature}

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*Which party would you prefer to attend? OR If you are a bride- given the option, would you want to be involved in planning your own shower?

Who Says They Need to Match?

By now, it is no secret that I adore pink and no matter which color palette we choose, pink will play a part! That being said, lets talk bridesmaids, shall we? As I've mentioned before, Dan and I decided to have a long-ish engagement (15 months). We've been engaged for just about a year now, and we've accomplished a lot in that time: the reception venue, church, photographer, and music, just to name a few, but with less than 6 months to go, I haven't been able to decide on a bridesmaids dress. My friends like to tease me that I blog about weddings but manage to be so behind when planning my own. In my defense- I maintain that I am not behind, merely meticulous about every detail and decision because I blog about weddings. They assured me they had faith, but I know, they were concerned. Since I had a clear vision of how I wanted the flowers to look, I decided to start there.

The vision:

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I also knew I didn't want everyone in the same dress. I want my girls to look great and appear somewhat natural so I wanted to give them (some) control over what they will be wearing.

 This is not the best example of the style I am going for, but I just love how fun this photo is! Photo Credit 

I love the idea of letting the girls choose their own dress, all from different designers and stores, but I worried they would not look cohesive enough. I also didn't want to offend anyone if I didn't like their choice so I decided to go with one designer and color and let each girl choose her own style. I made an appointment to see some dresses with a few of my girls and explained what I was looking for. We started trying some things on and surprisingly, everyone fell in love with the same designer, Amsale. So, it was decided- short, crinkled chiffon Amsale dresses in blush. The best part of the line we chose is that there are so many choices, literally more than 50, so each of my girls will be able to choose something that complements their own style while still staying true to my vision. Even my athletic, dress-hating, stunt actress bridesmaid approves (and even kind of likes) the dresses we found.

Here are a few photos I found of the dresses. In the examples, the dresses are the long version of the dress (we will be having them cut short) but you get the idea.

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*What do you think? Too much pink? Don't worry...I can take it : ) Matching bridesmaids? Yay or Nay?

The Venue Revealed

I don't know why it took me so long to put together this post. It probably should have been one of the first few posts published, but for some reason, I could not bring myself to do it! Maybe because the venue we chose is such a huge part of my inspiration, and I haven't been able to find photos perfect enough to express how beautiful the venue truly is...I have been working on this post for weeks and it is time to share the place we will celebrate our marriage. But first, some background.

It has been nearly one year since Dan proposed. After dating for nearly 5 years of dating (we are now going on 6!), Dan finally popped the question. I never really intended on having a long engagement, but I knew I wanted a summer wedding (because I am a teacher) and I didn't want to rush the planning process, so July 2012 it was! In the first few weeks of our engagement, we set out to find the perfect venue to celebrate our marriage. We looked at 3 very different types of New Jersey venues: the Highlawn Pavilion, Oyster Point and the Madison Hotel.

The Highlawn Pavilion is a well known restaurant, located in northern, New Jersey, famous for their exquisite views of the NYC skyline. We ultimately decided this was not the venue for us. Native New Jersey folk can typically be divided into two categories: city people and non-city people and we definitely fall into the later group, so on to the next venue it was.

Our next stop on the venue search was Oyster Point, a hotel located on the Navesink River in Redbank, New Jersey. My fiance grew up on the Jersey shore and loves to be on the water. We loved the views of this venue and even played with the idea of arriving by boat! Ultimately, the inside of this hotel was a little too modern for my taste, although, this was my fiance's first choice!

Finally, we toured the Madison Hotel, located in the quaint New Jersey town, Morristown.

 Source

This stately-looking hotel, is located not far from where I grew up in northern, New Jersey. I loved the beautiful building and absolutely adored how old it was. Our favorite part of this location was a room called the Conservatory, a glass room attached to the hotel.

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I knew it was the perfect place for our July, garden-inspired wedding and after seeing the Conservatory, my fiance agreed! We loved how unique this room was and had never been to a wedding in a place like it! After booking our beautiful venue, I scoured the internet in search of inspiration from other weddings that took place here.

Photo Credit: Madison Hotel Wedding by Kay English Photography

 We decided that our ceremony will take place in the church I grew up going to and our reception will be in the conservatory.

Thank you for all your comments about my color palette dilemma! I am working on an update for next week!

A Tale of Two Color Palettes

It is coming down to the time I need to secure a color palette for the wedding and I have it narrowed down to two options- Light Pink and Mint Green or Blush Pink, Ivory and Champagne. Please help me choose! *Light Pink and Mint Green

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*Blush Pink, Ivory and Champagne

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I love both palettes so much, I'm thinking of using one for the wedding and one for my shower! (I am helping my mom and sister plan my shower).

Which palette do you prefer?? What are/were your wedding colors?

Floral Inspiration Brought to Life

You may remember this post from a few weeks ago, as I was pulling together inspiration for our meeting with the florist. Well, we recently had our first floral meeting and I could not be more inspired. I took my mom along with me (Dan had no interest in accompanying us) and I arrived prepared with photos of my inspiration, a bag full of possible items to incorporate into the centerpieces, and of course, my laptop and camera. We arrived at our appointment and filled out the necessary paper work. I was so nervous the owner was going to throw me out of there for trying to design the flowers without having chose bridesmaids dresses or even having an established color scheme. I explained to her that I had more of a clear vision of what I want for flowers than for the dresses. The owner, obviously a lover of flowers herself, completely understood my thought process and was happy to see my vision.

{Inspiration}:

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I showed her the photos I brought and she immediately got my vision. Hold on, she said. I'll be right back. She was gone for a good 15 minutes, then came back with this and I nearly cried.

Bridesmaid Bouquet

I cannot believe how perfectly she executed my vision.

Blush pink and ivory roses, a couple of perfect peonies and just a hint of green. She put the entire bouquet together and wrapped it with a champagne ribbon. Blush pink, ivory and champagne? We found the perfect color palette! Then she explained that this bouquet is for my girls. She will come up with something with more pink for my bouquet and will prepare sample centerpieces for our next meeting. Then, as if things could not get any better, as we were wrapping up our meeting, she handed me the bouquet. Here, I made it for you. You love it so much you have to keep it. Go home and put it in some water. I was in heaven.

Inspiration, actual

I think I actually like my bouquet better : )