Happy 4th of July!

Hope your holiday weekend is full of fireworks, BBQ, and some relaxation! I am using the weekend to hang out with friends and maybe get a little bit of wedding planning down. I am starting to wish my wedding could be on July 4th so we could have a fun fireworks picture!

Bridesmaid Tales: Attire

One of my biggest regrets from wedding day was not taking a picture of my bridesmaid attire. The good shots will have to wait until  the professional pictures come back, but I will show you the style and color of the dress.

The BM dress is made by Aria.

 

We wore the dress in the the color Periwinkle:

 

My friend made us the sashes to go with the dress in a lime green and we wore lime green shoes!

Here is the best picture I have of the dress, but you get the idea! The groomsmen wore coordinating suits and everyone looked nice together.

Have you recently been in a wedding? What did you wear?

Bridesmaid Tales: Cocktail Hour

Once the ceremony was complete, guests retreated to the house for a fabulous cocktail hour while the wedding party took pictures together.

Before the ceremony, guests grabbed a mason jar and wrote their name on it. This would be their glass throughout the night.

 

Guests could then take their glass inside the house to the bar. There they served the couple’s favorite drinks, wine, and locally brewed beers.

 

The house and front porch were filled with cocktail tables and grass centerpieces.

 

As a cocktail hour activity, the bride and groom set up a table with paper and pens and asked guests to write them a note for them to read on their one year anniversary.

Their staircase was hung with tulle and hydranga clusters.

No table in the house was left without decor. The lemon lime table was in the dining room and the table above is their pool table! Can anyone guess the couple’s color scheme?

At the end of the cocktail hour, guests went to take their table escort card to direct them to their seating assignment. Then it was off to the reception!

My dear friend has really transformed what it means to have a gorgeous wedding at home. It was beautiful, but it was also personal. I will be posting a few more wedding details this week so stay tuned!

Bridesmaid Tales: Ceremony Setup

As with most weddings, the big day came with an extensive to-do list. The bride had everything planned, and it was time for execution. I thought I would share a few of the ceremony setup details with you today! 

The ceremony was arranged in a circle format (there was no bride’s side or groom’s side). The bridesmaids and some family members helped to tie sashes around the chairs into bows.

 

The 4-sided alter corresponded with the 4 part ceremony. The bride and groom stood on each edge of the alter as they read scriptures, recited vows, planted a unity tree, and of course kissed! You can see the bride’s house in the background of this image.

The florist was able to come the day before the wedding and help to decorate the custom built alter. Hydrangas were one of the most common flowers found in the decor.

These archways were built and setup at each entrance to the circle. Pictured is the archway the wedding party walked through to enter the ceremony.

And finally, when the ceremony was over, the bride and groom along with the rest of the wedding party retreated away to this bridge. Two of the bridesmaids worked very hard to make sure the floral arrangements were perfectly hung from the bridge. It was a great location for pictures!

Stay tuned for more wedding photos to come next week!

{All photos either from my camera or fellow wedding guests}

Bridesmaid Tales: Rehearsal Dinner

I wanted to begin the New Mexico wedding recap with the rehearsal dinner. Please note that these are not professional pictures, but ones I shot rather quickly with my camera. The rehearsal dinner took place just across the border into Colorado at an outdoor event facility located right on the Florida river.

The event had a Western theme and everyone wore their hats and boots. Picnic tables were set up outside, and they served a delicious barbecue dinner.

 

This was the beautiful view we had as we walked to the location!

Picnic tables and games were set up on the lawn. I played a round of croquet and a little bit of Frisbee golf! The rehearsal dinner had a rather large guest list, and the lawn games kept everyone entertained.

 

While we waited for dinner, a couple other bridesmaids and I walked down the path that ran next to the river. The water was absolutely beautiful- I wish I was a little closer to such pretty scenery.

As we walked, we came across this tepee, which made for a good photo opt.

I wish I had snapped more photos during the rehearsal dinner, but the truth is, we were having so much fun, I forgot about my camera. I do like this moment I caught of my fiance hanging out by the river. This one is going in a frame! Some of my other favorite moments were the group picture before dinner and the impromptu line dancing. Overall it was a great way to kick off the weekend!

Next up will be some wedding details that may provide a little inspiration for your big day!

BRB

Still traveling back from a fun wedding this weekend, but I am so excited to share the details with you! Stay tuned…

Away at a Wedding Weekend

Tomorrow I am a bridesmaid in one of my dear friend’s weddings. I have so many details I can’t wait to share with you next week when I get home including the Western-themed rehearsal dinner, fabulous decor, and of course, my BM attire! It is going to be a lovely wedding filled with DIY treasures and lots of love. My friend has put so much time into this event, and I know it will be amazing.

To read more details about this wedding experience, check out my page Bridesmaid Tales. I will be posting my pictures from the wedding there next week so stay tuned. 

I will leave you with a little location teaser:

 

Happy Weekend!

Registry Hopeful

I love recording videos on my digital camera, but eventually I would like to have an actual camcorder. Enter Flip, the ultra chic and easy to use video recorder. This would be a great thing to add to a gift registry because you could potentially use it during your wedding to capture some informal video. What makes Flip unique is its user friendly design and affordability. Retailers sell Flip at a variety of price points ranging from $59.99 to $229.99. I found low prices on Amazon, but I haven’t shopped around for it much. I am considering adding an item like this to our registry in the future. Does anyone have one and want to share their user experience?

Vera Wang Does Ballroom

Whenever I think of wedding dresses, I think of Vera Wang. It cannot be helped. Her wedding dress designs have helped shape the industry, and I love her style. I read over the weekend that reportedly Vera Wang has signed on to participate in the next season of Dancing with the Stars. I was so suprised, but I’m excited to watch her compete if she takes part in the season lineup. It will be fun to watch someone who is normally behind the scenes take center stage on the popular dance show.

My question is, will she get to design the ballroom costumes?

Honeymooning On A Dime

My fiance and I are 9 months away from our wedding- the last 6 months have flown by! I have many exciting things to share with you in the next month including our photographer decision (once everything is finalized) and eventually our wedding invitation inspiration. But until then, I want to share something else that has been on our minds a lot lately… where should we go on our honeymoon? Being budget conscious is very important to us, but we also want to go somewhere exciting. Here are some ideas I have been brainstorming to find a fun, but inexpensive (under $1,000) honeymoon:

• Road Trip. This could be a fun option for couples ready to hit the open road. Although this is a honeymoon that is highly dependent on fuel prices, it could be fun to pack up the car and drive. You will need a good map, a list of sites you want to visit, and a great playlist for sure! Even though I’m not a roadtrip person, I like the freedom this honeymoon gives the newlyweds. Whether you are a strict planner or a “play it by ear” type of couple, you can customize a trip that fits your style. Be sure to check out historic B&B’s and state parks along the way.

• Cruises. I never knew how affordable a cruise could be until I did a bit of research. If you have an easy way to reach the port city , it can be a great money saving option for young couples hoping to hit the open seas. With cruises, you will find fees for things like seaside rooms, alcohol, and group shore excusions, but if you want to venture out on your own, the costs can stay pretty low. We are looking at potentially going on a cruise that leaves from Galveston.

• Vacation Packages. I’m not always the best at finding good deals on airfare, but apparently they’re out there. My fiance and I recently went clicking arond on sites like Hotwire and Priceline to see what we could find. I was surprised by the number of resort deals out there on the web, most of which are all inclusive. Do a bit of research and who knows what you could find!

 

What are you planning on doing for your honeymoon? Any suggestions for me?