Brilliant Ideas for Photos

Reasons I love this idea:
1) It looks amazing as a backdrop.
2) We have a ton of loose sheet music left over from making paper flowers.
3) John and I are musicians so this would be a fun way to tie that in. :)

Spotted on Hi-Fi Weddings, Photography by Amanda Doublin. What a brilliant idea!

Vintage Book Page Decoration

I recently saw two fabulous photos where brides made use of vintage book pages in their decor, to stunning results.

Seen on Green Wedding Shoes, photos by Focus Photography 

Seen on Love and Lavender, photography by Jason and Anna Photography

The second version is a lot easier to pull off, but both are so beautiful!

Bourbon Tasting

I saw this wonderfully styled small batch bourbon bar here, and was instantly smitten with the pretty crystal decanters and vintage glassware.

Not exactly something I'd do for a wedding, but would be fun for a more informal, cocktail-style party with a few bourbon-aficionado friends. 

All photos from here, photography by A Bryan Photo.

Perfectly Outfitted

I spotted this little shoot on OnceWed, and am smitten. The dove gray Vera Wang dress is beautiful, but it almost looks mint green the way they shot it, doesn't it? The flowers are stunning, the sash is gorgeous, and I love the simple accessorizing; just a bling bracelet.

Also, gotta love the carpet of purple flowers and greenery. It really sets off the dress, dont' you think?

Photography by Tec Petaja, Hair/makeup by Amy Lynn Larwig

Photography by Tec Petaja, Hair/makeup by Amy Lynn Larwig

Photography by Tec Petaja, Hair/makeup by Amy Lynn Larwig

A Loving Tribute

I love this idea from an old Ruffled post: the bride displayed her mother's and grandmothers' dresses on dress forms at the entrance to the reception.

Spotted on Ruffled, image by Claire Barrett Photography

This is such a sweet idea! If I could have fit into my maternal grandmothers' dress, I would have worn it; I love it so. I wonder how hard it is to get ahold of vintage dress forms? Would I be able to borrow, or can they be rented? I would love to ask around; this would be such a neat idea!

Hand-drawn invite love

The groom hand-drew details from their entire relationship
I love how the response card is tucked in with photo corners!!!

Above the outgoing address, it said "Dear Postman, warmly deliver
this tender parcel to our fine guests." LOVE.

What a fine invitation set! To see the whole wedding, check out the feature on Martha Stewart.

Cooking and not cooking

I just finished this article: The Joy of Not Cooking. It made me sort of sad, even though it's all true. It talks about how people spend more money on their kitchens even as they spend less time in them.

The article said the average woman in the 1920s spent over 30 hours a week in their kitchens preparing meals, while today women spend only 5.5 hours a week on average.

It talked about how we buy silly gadgets and restaurant-quality everything even though we rarely use them, which made me feel a little guilty about our ice cream maker and our little deep-fryer.

But I think the difference is, John and I don't outfit our kitchen in order to keep up with the Joneses and their granite countertops. We do it because nothing is more exciting than a date night spent at home when we bust out the fryer to make vegetable tempura to make sushi rolls. We really enjoy cooking and eating well and exploring different recipes. It's something that brings us together.

Which brings me to some recipes:

How can you not love Strawberry-Nutella homemade poptarts? I don't know. But I know I couldn't resist them as soon as I saw this:

If that wasn't drool-worthy enough, today I was reading honey & jam (one of my fave blogs), and this recipe crossed my path: Honey & Rosewater Tapioca

They look so heavenly, and the photography just adds to that. I've never tried to make tapioca from scratch. I might have to try with this recipe, though!

Favorite Proposal

I recently sorted all my links, and came across one of my favorite stories, an artistic proposal using a vintage book. Gotta love the creativity of this groom, an illustrator. He wrote a story about the ring, an antique brass and coral ring with a carved floral pattern.

There has always been something about that last photo of the ring that really inspires me. Perhaps it's the inky navy he chose to print to offset the bright red/orange of the coral. I don't know. I just know I love this image, I love this wedding proposal, and I wish the couple-Joel and Chantal-many happy years together (even though I don't know them!).

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

I typically balk at theme-y wedding posts on the blogs. Sometimes, though, a really beautiful, thoughtful holiday wedding pops up. This wedding inspiration shoot was on Snippet and Ink today, and I was so in love with the Irish theme, captured by Larissa Cleveland (who is based in San Francisco, not Cleveland!).

Love the vintage fridge used to store the flowers!

One of the prettiest boutonnieres I've ever seen!

See more here. The venue is gorgeous and moody, and the palette of creamy white with spring green is so well done!

Simple Bouquet

My jaw dropped at this photograph on OnceWed:

!!!!

My heart skipped a beat at the shape of the white lilac and the touch of glam in the sparkly ribbon tie. I would certainly consider adding some white lilac into my bouquet; the smell would be amazing and it looks incredible!

Not to mention, this particular picture has the most amazing backdrop to make the flowers pop!

Winter Inspiration

Whoop Whoop! This inspiration shoot, featured on Ruffled, was not only adorable, it featured vendors from Ohio (Dayton, to be exact)! Woo!

I used to dream of having a winter wedding, but I'm not brave enough to chance the weather. The probability that your day will look pristine like this? Not very high. I wouldn't want all my loved ones traveling in a potential blizzard just so I could wear a long-sleeved gown and a cute coat on my big day. I am, however, really drawn to these weddings. The white snow is such a stark, perfect backdrop for wedding photos.

Love her locket, and her diaphanous layers!

Um, those tights rock!

My favorite shot.

For John and I, the wedding season was dictated by logistics. Our academic calendars were more conducive to a summer wedding, when we both have vacation. Plus, most of my bridesmaids are on academic calendars as well (med school, teaching in Baltimore, law school, etc), so it made more sense to have them come up for a summer wedding. Plus, the weather is less likely to suck and a good time will be had by all.

It might be hot as Hades (it is in August, after all), but we'll deal. The lodge is air-conditioned, so they'll only have to suffer for maybe a half hour for the ceremony.

Valentine's Inspiration

This post today on Ruffled put me in the mood for some pops of bright red. And just in time! This snowstorm coupled with the chilly temperatures had me squarely in the middle of the winter doldrums.

Love the white lace dress with the bright red tights!

Not to mention the giant gold heart necklaces!

I love everything about this picture!

Um, adorable. Vintage toy oven+cupcakes?

Pretty florals: bright red with soft purple.

Meant to be a wedding bouquet, but who doesn't love
getting flowers for Valentine's Day?

Love his jacket and boutonniere!

Beautiful Shot

I was looking at a fun Style Me Pretty inspiration shoot this week, and this shot really stood out:

Holy cow.

Things I love about this image:

1. Warm cream colored gloves on the bride.
2. Groom hat.
3. The bride's amazing hat and cape!
4. The detail on the dress of the skirt.
5. The colors of the groom's ensemble.

Wow what a shot! You can see many many more images from this beautiful shoot here.

A little sunshine on a gray day...

From this post on Ruffled. I love the sunlight, the backdrop, and her quirky giant bouquet.

Thought I'd post a sunny image to bring some color to an otherwise chilly, monochromatic day (outside my window is a blanket of pure white and a sky to match).

What.

This image amazes me.

Flower Power!

John loved the vibrant purples in these flowers,
which inspired the pop of purple in the color scheme.

My Bouquet

I like the soft peachy colors in this one.

The inspiration for my bridal bouquet, only I want to wrap mine in lace
and vintage gold lockets with pictures of my grandparents in them
I love this one <3

LOVE the loose feel and the colors of this one!!!

Bridesmaid Bouquets

I'm thinking more vibrant for the bridesmaids' bouquets,
adding more of the bright purple

More bridesmaid bouquet inspiration!

Love the quirky mix of colors in this one
(and those ferns at the bottom)!

I love the purples and oranges in this group! So pretty!

Groomsmen Boutonnieres

Boutonniere idea; I like the velvet ribbon. I could get it in our colors...

Another idea for the boutonnieres. I want to replicate this look in our colors
with velvet millinery leaves and flowers to match the bridesmaids' fascinators...

And one more pretty picture, for good measure

And, just a beautiful all-around shot. I love her face in profile,
her beautiful expression, and the quirky colors of her bouquet.

The end! 

(...for now)

Overwhelmed by Color Part II

So, when we left off, I was arranging swatches for hours on end. John would look over at my boards and chime in "Green isn't really a wedding color to me," or "I love the combination of purple and orange," or "That board is sort of bland." I really valued his input, especially since most grooms I know of don't give their two cents about this sort of thing.

So these were the top four boards. We loved the purple and orange, but it just didn't feel right for Autumn. Part of me thinks we were destined to have an Autumn wedding, personality-wise, but it just didn't make sense with our academic careers and schedules of our loved ones...

So we let go of the purple/orange board.

Bye, we'll miss you!

Next, I tried to throw in cobalt blue with the creamy, peachy palette. I was inspired by these two boards to try to throw in the true, deep blue.

Pretty, but predictable.

I love the color, but it ultimately felt too safe with all the cream and peach. John even said "It looks too bland. It needs a pop of another bright color to make it work." I think he was right about that.

Remember me?

Next, I went back to the idea of teal and peach. With the first two boards, I felt like I was betraying my engagement ring. Since I picked a teal diamond it's been sort of inevitable that I'd have some form of teal in my wedding colors, to set it off nice.

But it still seemed like something was missing, though we were on the right track.

I kept coming back to the seafoam green with the orange-y peach.

Then John said something that made it click for me "I think you should try it with purple in there somewhere."

The one.

So it's settled. I still get my soft peach/seafoam green, with some graduated bluegreen/teals, and a pop of bright purple. Everybody is happy, and if we stick to orange-y peaches it's almost like having the purple/orange combo.

Now, the fun part. A color scheme alone doesn't make a wedding, though it's a nice start. Out of these colors, I have to figure out what color the bridesmaids should wear and the groomsmen (and me, for that matter; I'm not necessarily sold on a white gown). I have to start making the actual aesthetic decisions.

But it feels like a major milestone! Also, our deposit is paid on our venue, so it is totally, completely booked. Hooray!