Hydrangeas, apples, and leaves, Oh my!

The hydrangeas are in season and apples are a fall favorite…put them together and you have a stunning autumn centerpiece that is not only easy on the eyes, but easy on the wallet! If your wedding is in late August or September, hydrangea costs will be at their all-time low (and odds are, you probably have some in your backyard already) and apples are going to run you what…$2.00 a lb? So cheap + cheap = fabulously cheap!!

I attended an event this week (not a wedding…wish it was. It was relatively boring) and they had these beautiful centerpieces adorning the tables.  I thought, how pretty! I must share this idea…so I snatched one (just kidding…they gave it to me) and here it is, to amaze and inspire you!

Colored pins are placed in the apples to dress them up. Go with rhinestones for some sparkle and glitz!

If you’re going for an apple theme (which I love), how cute are these apple escort cards with leaf-shaped tags and colored pins?

The change from summer to fall is bittersweet…but at least the air conditioning bill should start to come down…leaving you more money for your wedding budget, right? 😉

Happy planning!

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Yes, you too can write calligraphy!

Everyone loves the look of handwritten calligraphy on their invites. It’s beautiful, meaningful, and personal. The outside of those envelopes is the first thing your guests are going to see about your wedding (well, minus the save-the-dates if you’re sendin’ those out…in which case, this will also come in handy!)…and you want that envelope to look gooood. But not all of us have the penmanship (I don’t) or the money (I sure don’t) to have the luxury of handwritten calligraphy on our invites (or save-the-dates).

Well, not anymore!…Goodness, I sound like an infomercial…Alright, down to the goods. Designsponge, a lovely daily website dedicated to home and product design run by Brooklyn-based writer, Grace Bonney, found an awesome DIY solution to our calligraphy dilemma- faux fancy handwriting.

Here’s how it works:

• Choose your favorite font on your computer (you can find alternative FREE ones at http://www.dafont.com/…or purchase fonts on other sites for relatively low prices)
• Then print each address on the envelope in a slightly darker ink color so it is faint enough to see after printing (so if your envelope is baby blue, print in a slightly darker blue)
• Then go back over the lettering with a paint pen, covering up the printed portion and giving it a more hand-written look. Side note: depending on how thick your pen ink is, you may want to increase the space between each character on your envelope (To do this, go to Font –> Character Spacing).
• And you’re done! You now have the beauty of handwritten calligraphy without the price or the stress of keeping your lines straight.

Just another way for you to achieve that chic, yet cheap day. Good luck! If you try this, please let me know how yours turned out! 🙂

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Inspiration: Aqua and yellow

Ahhh, more bright and flirty color combos to get your wedding wheels a turnin’. I love aqua and yellow together. It’s fresh, it’s clean, it’s fun…and it’s perfect for Spring or Summer. Makes me want a lemon drop just thinking about it. Enjoy! 🙂

Sidenote: If you’d like an inspiration board to help you with your vision for your wedding, but don’t have the time/know how to do it, I’d be happy to help! Leave me a comment and I’ll be in touch asap.

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Giveaway Alert!!

The UPrinting network is offering my readers a chance to win 200 custom postcards or custom greeting cards! For you, my lovely weddingistas, this means 200 free save-the-date postcards, 200 reply cards to go along with your invites, or 200 thank you cards! And they’re completely custom! Send in a design you’ve created, or have had created for you, such as a design from Pink Lily Press that I blogged about here. The ideas and options are endless!

Now, for the details.
To enter, simply leave me a comment telling me how you’d use 200 custom postcards or greeting cards for your wedding. Do you want to create a quirky save-the-date like the one above? Or are you just dying to have custom reply cards, but the budget won’t allow it? However you wanna use ’em, I wanna hear ’em.
*Don’t forget to leave your name and e-mail address so I can contact you if you win.
The winner will receive:

• 200 Custom Postcards (choose your size: 4×6, 4.25×6, 5×7″); 14pt gloss or matte, 13 pt uncoated

• Full Color on both sides (4/4)

• Shipping must be paid by Winner. Offer Valid for UNITED STATES SHIPPING ONLY.

The winner will be chosen (at random) on September 3rd, so please get your entries in by September 2nd, no later than 5:00 pm PST.

If you don’t enter, then you can’t win! So enter away, and be one step closer to the chic and cheap wedding of your dreams!

Good luck!

Sponsored by:

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September flowers to fit your budget

September is fast-approaching and if your planning your big day during this beautiful Autumn month, and want to keep your flower costs low, these are the flowers you should check out:

Asters

The name is Latin for “star” because of the flower’s shape. Aster is the herb of the goddess Venus. Ancients believed burning the leaves would drive away serpents. One myth is that asters were created from stardust when Virgo looked down from the heavens and wept, thus it is the flower of September.

Roses

You are never going to be disappointed if you choose rose wedding flowers. Roses are the most popular wedding flower and with good reason:

• They are a beautiful shape
• They are have year round availability
• They are available in lots of colours to please just about everyone

They look fantastic on their own, but they mix easily with other classic flowers. This is great if you want a rose bouquet but want the ceremony and reception arrangements to feature other flowers alongside the roses.

Sunflowers

To highlight a country or late summer/early fall wedding, and easily keep within a budget, an excellent selection for wedding and bridal flowers is the sunflower. It’s meaning and adoration fits well into any wedding theme and its size and versatility will enhance both the wedding party and the décor of the reception or ceremony location.

Since the flower head of a sunflower is large, a minimum number will be needed for a bouquet. Complimentary flowers that work well as additions to the bouquet should be simple, such as mums and carnations in shades of orange, white or purple.

Lilies

Elegant, seductive, and lush, with its delicate perfume and rich beauty, the Lily has always had an elusive and inimitable appeal. In recent years, that appeal has broadened, as extensive hybridization has produced a myriad of exquisite new varieties, ranging from vibrant (and scent-free) Asiatic Lilies to snow-white Oriental Casablanca.

Carnations

Carnations are perhaps one of the most popular flowers in the world, though they’ve recently gotten a bad rap for being “cheap.” Well, I ask, what’s wrong with cheap?! Carnations come in a large variety of colors and are very versatile. Due to the fact that carnations last long even when cut, carnations are very popular as boutonnieres, in corsages, bouquets, and in a wide range of floral arrangements. So give those carnations a chance!

So, if you’re getting married in September, these flower varieties will not only look beautiful on your Autumn day, but they’ll keep your budget in check. Happy planning!

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Inspiration: Lavender

While I’m in the “inspiration board mood,” I thought I’d share another fabulous wedding color scheme that I threw together for a friend. Lavender! Beautiful for spring or summer, this color paired with darker purples, whites, and greens evokes a perfectly sweet, romantic, and lush look and feel for your big day! Enjoy!

Sidenote: If you’d like an inspiration board to help you with your vision for your wedding, but don’t have the time/know how to do it, I’d be happy to help! Leave me a comment and I’ll be in touch asap. 🙂

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Inspiration: Aqua and red

Everyone is loving these colors lately. And it’s easy to see why! The blues keep the mood bright and cheery while the reds inspire romance and elegance. A friend is considering these colors for her 2010 August wedding. And I say go for it! Hopefully this board will inspire her- and you (!!!) to fall in love with this gorgeous color combination.

Happy planning!

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Etsy Find Alert: Birch vases for your fall fete

I CANNOT believe it’s August already…ahh! As the leaves are starting to turn here in Portland (seriously…they are), so is the wedding season from bright colors and warm weather to golden hues and crisp autumn air. Fall is one of my favorite seasons and is becoming more and more popular for brides and grooms to say “I do.”

Sooo, with fall comes fall wedding decor. While browsing through all of the magic that is Etsy, I found these adorable birch vases, that the seller will customize for you for FREE!

How amazing would these look at your fall wedding, with your initials, wedding date, favorite quote, or whatever you want, carved right into it! Use them as centerpieces, to decorate the cake table, or wherever your little heart desires…fill with greenery, flowers, or votives to achieve the look you want.

These little treasures are listed for $14 a piece, which can get spendy if you need quite a few. However, if you live in an area where birch is prevalent (like Portland! woo!), or have another tree in mind, and you’re handy with a saw, making these shouldn’t be too difficult. Use a dremel with a small head attachment for quick and easy carving (also works great for carving pumpkins).

So if you’re getting married the fall and are going for that outdoor, rustic, romantic look, these birch vases might be just what you need. Here’s to bringing in fall and another great wedding season! Happy planning!

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Real Wedding: Under budget and overwhelmingly beautiful!

Ok, while searching for decorating ideas for my boyfriend’s new house, i stumbled upon an amazing site called Young House Love, where a young couple has documented everything about their 53 year old house, from remodeling every room to getting married in their own backyard for under $4000! Sherry and John have done an amazing job remodeling their home, which I highly encourage you check out. But since this is a wedding blog, I’ll try to stay focused.

You can read and see details from their entire planning process to the big day here, but I’ll share with you a few of my favorite details.

It helps that Sherry and John had an amazing backyard that worked perfectly with their vision for the day. If your backyard doesn’t look like this (mine sure doesn’t), I bet you know someone whose backyard does (or would with a little help from a weed whacker).

One of the biggest qualms about hosting a wedding at home is the rental cost- everything from tents, to tables and chairs, to serving ware. But John and Sherry only shelled out $350 for rentals. How? They actually purchased silverware and glassware (hail Ikea) for less than the cost of renting them ($250 spent) and were able to donate all of it to a local charity after the wedding…talk about philanthropy and a $250 tax write off!

Refreshments were served in recycled wine bottles (FREE from a local wine retailer) for a classy, glassy look on the tables.

The only real splurge the Petersik’s indulged in was a photo booth for $1200 that coordinated with their save the dates and favors. And for $1200, they and their guests received endless memories captured on adorable film strips and keepsakes they’ll treasure forever.

In lieu  of a traditional slide show, John and Sherry hung pictures on a “clothesline” depicting their life stories, from childhood to falling in love. With a project like this, you’ll not only save money (they spent $20 total), you’ll save so much time scanning and editing mountains of photos.

The menu could be a described as a classy BBQ, with entree options including blue cheese burgers with Parmesan Caesar dressing, sweet apple chicken sausage with honey dijon, and tomato and cheddar veggie burgers, sure to satisfy even the pickiest of tastes. Sides included shrimp cocktail, fresh fruit, lemon pepper potato chips, and other simple, yet classy fares.

With famous cupcakes from a local grocery store and s’mores around the fire for dessert, this garden wedding was nothing less than a picture-perfect event for this DIY couple.

See more pictures, get DIY tips, and check out the final cost breakdown here. This is what it’s all about. Beauty, fun, a whole lot of love, and a day they’ll never forget…with money leftover to put in savings, go on a lavish honeymoon…or to remodel their 53 year old house! Love it. 🙂

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