Winter Wedding Inspiration Part 2

Back by popular demand is another of my features on Winter Weddings. I think if I had the opportunity to choose my favourite theme for a wedding it would be a winter wedding theme.

The most important aspect of a winter wedding is obviously the colour - White, although there is still room for a little colour. Accents of light blue, silver or a deep red give an element of romance.

Add to that lighting, twinkling lights all around and starlight backdrops. Don't forget that lighting always sets the mood, so its a good idea to get a lighting expert to create the atmosphere for you.

Centrepieces of branches, whether they are plain or have been  sprayed silver or white, draped with beautiful crystals always look stunning and will become a talking theme.
Add to that tablecloths sprinkled with silver and gold confetti or crystals and a few snowflakes delicately hung from the ceiling or certain spots around the venue.

All these elements put together will create a magical atmosphere for your wedding.

With a winter wedding its the perfect excuse to add bling to everything, anything that sparkles will always catch the eye.

Gorgeous fur shrugs added to your dress not only keep you warm when it turns cold, they also give your dress a real winter wedding look.

Winter wedding bouquets

Jam Jar Hanging Decorations

One of my favourite decorations for parties and weddings are often the simplest and least expensive. Who would believe that you can create such stunning decorations by just using some wire, glass jars or bottle, glue and maybe some fabric or lace?

Jam Jar flower decorations are perfect for an outdoor wedding or vintage theme

What nicer way to put a personal touch to your occasion

             

  Whether you have them hanging on a hook, or above from the trees, the overall effect can be stunning.

Birdcages ..... inspiration

Birdcage Inspiration

With the Vintage theme still going strong for weddings Birdcages are still as popular as ever!

Whether you decide to hire them or buy them to decorate yourself, they can really add a lovely touch to your wedding venue.

So here are a few ideas to get you started...............

Candles inside grouped and finished with co-ordinating ribbon 

photograph www.theknot.com 

Flowers with artificial birds

Small vase of flowers - colour to match your theme

you could use it for the guests to put their wedding cards inside for safe keeping

I love this birdcage dressed in peacock feathers

I love this idea of putting the guests favour boxes inside

Don't fancy using flowers? how about feathers instead?

Do you have a christmas wedding or function? a simple way of dressing a birdcage

So let your imagination run free, there are so many different ways you can add your own identity to your big day, with just a few personal touches they are sure to be a talking point.

Friday Feature........ Lightbulbs

Lightbulbs? Really?

Yes, When I stumbled across this picture I just knew that I had to share it.

Such a simple and inexpensive idea to re-create

Ethnic Inspiration

Stunning Venue Decor by Jeyahendran Krishnan

Friday Feature .... On A Tight Budget?

On a tight budget? Looking for ways to save on some of your costs?

Here are my top tips and ideas

Be Creative and put together your own Centrepieces

Cover Tin cans with decorative paper - perfect for a vintage theme

If you are the creative type why not try putting together your own centrpeices, it can be a great way to incorporate your own personal touch. Why not ask your friends, family or wedding planner to help you out with putting them together on the day.

 Skip the favours

Favours are nice but are they something that guests really want? you could be saving hundreds of pounds by going with a more original option such as a Candy Table instead, you can do your own and save money.

 Forget the floral centrepieces and use cupcake stands instead

Centerpieces using cupcakes decorated to coordinate with the colours and theme of the wedding can be less expensive than flowers and are a fun way to serve dessert. Make sure that your venue are happy for you to do this as some do not allow you to take extra food other than the main wedding cake.
You may still want to provide a cake and have a traditional cake cutting ceremony, maybe you could downsize your wedding cake which guest may like to take home later.

 Give the bridesmaids something to carry besides bouquets

Parasols or a clutch bag is a great idea. These can both be decorated with silk or fresh flowers to match you theme.

 Use full-bodied flowers with fewer stems

A few large blooms or multiple stems of one kind of flower can create a bold look.
Where possible try to select flowers in season to save money.

 Downsize the bar

Alcohol is one of the trickiest things to estimate when it comes to your big day, it is not hard to end up spending too much money on drink that is not really needed.

Firstly think about the guests you have coming to your wedding, is it really necessary to provide a free bar? no, one suggestion could be that you have a set amount behind the bar and offer guests a bar token so that they may have their first drink free.

When looking at the wine for your wedding, think about what is necessary? do you really need champagne for toasts on top of a bottle of red and white on each table? what about just having a nice sparkling rose or white wine and ask the staff to top up the glasses for the speeches and toasts. Doing this not only keeps costs down but keeps wastage down too!

Some brides like to supply their own alcohol but before you do, check the corkage fees. Some venues and caterers charge high fees when clients provide their own drinks so it ends up working out cheaper to purchase them from the venue.

In reality your guests are at your wedding to celebrate your marriage and enjoy the day, not necessarily to get drunk. Dont forget to consider that some of your guests may be driving so will not be drinking at all.

 Select a venue that is “all-inclusive”

Rather than choosing a site that requires you to do all the work, look at all inclusive venues. They can often do some really good deals, especially if you are getting married out of season or on a weekday. Everything you need is supplied. One thing to bear in mind though some venues may restrict some of your choices and by booking with them they will only let you use their chosen suppliers - for example their DJ or their photographer. This is fine but be aware as where you may originally make savings it could end up costing you more.

 Have a Wedding breakfast, or lunchtime ceremony instead of a dinner

Why not consider an alternative time of day. These meals are usually less expensive and not all guests will want to drink a lot of alcohol during the day. Also if you are looking for something more low key or informal then by doing this you do not have extra expense of an evening reception.

 Expensive flowers should only be used in the bridal bouquet

If you are considering using expensive flowers in your bouquet,  then why not choose something equally stunning but less costly for the bridesmaids. By only having the most expensive flowers in your own posy this will keep your costs down whilst allowing you to still have the flowers you really want.

Venue Decor

Sometimes less is more - it is very easy for brides to get carried away, with so many lovely things from centrepieces, floral decorations, candy carts, balloons, birdcages, lanterns, to the organza swags draped around tables, the list goes on and on. Try and think logically, cost everything up and work out what really works. If you have an old venue thats perhaps a little tired in places then maybe it will need extra drapes to cover up the walls, but if you have a modern venue then keep it simple.

If you have any money saving tips that you would like to share, please let me know

In the meantime to all our lovely brides out there happy saving!

Daytime to Nightime Outdoor Weddings

With the unusual warm March we have just experienced in the UK followed by a visit to a lovely outdoor reception venue it was easy to be inspired into doing a blog about outdoor decor.

This pretty venue has been decorated in beautiful wild flowers and things have been kept simple using just a few paper lanterns and flower displays

For this simple garden wedding. strings of lights have been run from tree to tree, a few parasols have been put around the garden to create some shaded areas, and tables again have been kept simple with candelabras for centrepieces

Instead of marquees here simple gazebo's have been used to keep guests shaded

I love these following ideas for dressing your outdoor venue

Again these lights would be easy and low cost option to  recreate

If you have good chairs, why not show them off with simple bows without the chair covers

or ribbons to co-ordinate with your theme

Lighting is also important for an outside wedding. Several lights are used, strings of fairy lights, lanterns or even making handcrafted lamps and hanging them at desired place can actually enhance the atmosphere to the outdoor. Lights herald mood in addition to serenity to the occasion. Don’t combine too many lights though, everything needs to compliment each other. Just remember simplicity is key.
When you look at pictures of beautiful outdoor weddings, one thing that many have in common is decorations suspended from the trees. It can also be a perfect opportunityand bring your wedding colours into nature.

I really love these DIY glow in the dark lanterns, click on link below to see how simple they are to recreate.

http://www.intimateweddings.com/blog/diy-glow-jars-tutorial/

I love this pretty trellis decorated with fairy lights and garlands of flowers and organza also could be simply recreated.

Chinese lanterns are perfect for the evening, what a wonderful way to light the night sky. Just make sure that you check with the venue that they are permitted, as safety has to be a priority.

However you decide to decorate your venue for your outdoor ceremony or reception, I am sure it will look both enchanting and magical