Pretty shoes all in a row

 Photo via Style Me Pretty

I do apologize for my little absence. I came home for Christmas and dove into wedding planning immediately following. More to come but I thought I'd post this in the meantime. 

Holly hair pins

Holly bobby pins from The Honey Comb. Merry Christmas!

Beverage as decor

Pretty thirst quenchers.

Photo from the Knot

Photo from Style Me Pretty

Photo via Martha Stewart Weddings

Glamorous decor

photo via Martha Stewart Weddings

Champagne glass tower. Love them. Perhaps you do too?

Festive centerpiece

Winter wedding? Collect some pretty metallic bulbs like these and display them in a variety of containers. They're inexpensive and will be useful again at your first Christmas. They're about the most low-maintenance centerpiece idea I could possibly imagine. 

Photo from Martha Stewart Weddings

I loved this idea to add some sparkly buttons to the mix. So glam.

Photo above and below via bowerpowerblog

Wrapping paper decorations

 

Photos from Eat Drink Chic

Decorate with your leftover wrapping paper! See more at Mae's shop on Etsy.

Place setting

I love this place setting of a glass plate over a paper doily charger with elegant script. It doubles as a seating card. What a pretty place setting.

The classic side chignon

Great hairstyle for wedding or the holidays. Photo and instructions from {This is glamorous} blog. 

Biltmore Estate Wedding

I'm a big fan of these lovely photos from this Biltmore Estate wedding. All photos by Woodward + Rick via Style Me Pretty. 

Pretty presents

Great feature on bridesmaid gifts over at Snippet and Ink courtesy of guest blogger Simple Song. 

Another Love feature...

Photo by Events by Elaine via Project Wedding

Memorabilia

When you're planning a wedding on a budget you have to decide how you're going to spend your money. You've read all the articles about choosing to spend your money on the things that are most important to you. Perhaps the meal is the most important or the music, maybe you're most excited about a decadent cake or a deluxe bar. Whatever the category may be, you already know to spend your money there first and cut in other places. 

Photo from Martha Stewart Weddings

But besides that more general rule, I would also recommend thinking about the future. What do you most want to keep from your wedding? Obviously, everyone wants at least a few good photos. But what about memorabilia, what things do you want to save?

 Photo by Elizabeth Messina

I don't care to keep my dress or to spend a lot on my shoes or jewelry but there are other items that I'll be selecting with care. Those items include the program, cake topper, some paper decorations, my veil and a tablecloth from our table at the reception that I'll have monogrammed. I'd like to keep my cake topper for fun and as decoration in our home (I'll prove that they can be beautiful), my veil for sentimental reasons and perhaps I can lend or give it to someone later, and the tablecloth for our table on special occasions. I'm less concerned with saving and spending big money on my dress, shoes, and jewelry which is where people will push you to spend. There's obviously nothing wrong with those things but I would encourage you to think past the usual big ticket items and consider what else might be important in the future, especially in regards to your everyday life. 

Photo from Martha Stewart Weddings

With this ring

A tiny detail but, if you're having a ring bearer, might a recommend one of these for inspiration? You can find more from Martha Stewart Weddings. 

Planning the honeymoon

Photo by Brooke Schwab via Snippet & Ink

This is how I want to pack for my honeymoon, but I don't think my fiance' will want to carry it all. 

We're discussing the honeymoon. He wants an adventure filled with hiking and the great outdoors and I want relaxing getaway filled with beaches and shopping. We're working on a compromise now, oh what good preparation for marriage. He's making a list of his top five picks and I'm making a list of my top five. I'll share them with you when we're finished, along with the chosen destination. 

Simple winter table decor

Enjoyed these ideas for a cozy winter table via Project Wedding. 

"Your marriage is the point"

Here's a great guest post on Snippet and Ink from Meg at A Practical Wedding. She's helped keep hundreds of brides grounded. 

A dancin' song for your wedding.

This song, "Hey, I love you" by Michael Franti has been on my favorites list for months. It's such a fun song and the lyrics fit perfectly for a wedding- "I love you, I love you, I love you", "Rockin' in the dance hall movin' with you", "But I know one thing, that I love you", etc. It's perfect for a choreographed dance, that is, for anyone brave enough to attempt it!

The great...

wall of ribbons by Amanda Perkins Photography via Style Me Pretty.

So Chic.

Photo by Erin Hearts Court via Once Wed. 

Matching never looked so good.

Crafting a home

I'm increasingly excited about setting up a home. This book, Crafting a Meaningful Home, looks like a good read, filled with ideas for creatively decorating and incorporating family photos. More from Design Sponge.

Printable matchbook covers

Free downloadable matchbook cover from Creature Comforts. Use as a match book cover or as a little notebook.

I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Too much doily?

I realize that I've been pushing doilies like a little old lady in Spring but I can't stop myself! With the right design and some modern styling they can be beautiful decorations, like this doily curtain. 


If you need curtains for a tent or to cover some wall space at a reception hall then consider a curtain like this. 

An underrated flower

How to do a carnation bouquet here.

Believe in the beauty of our dreams

A pretty print for decoration.

Remix.

Spin-off of Canon in D major.

Bride and Groom

I dig these Bride and Groom rosettes. I found them at Grey likes weddings and you can buy them here. 

5 Show-Stopping Historical Weddings

My fiance' introduced me to this show by How Stuff Works. The hosts share stories about the people, places and events that you aren't likely to discuss in school. They just posted this show on show-stopping historical weddings. I enjoyed it and thought you might. You can listen here. You can also subscribe on itunes for free. I'd highly recommend it. 

Party hard!

Photo by Josh Goleman Via Eastside Bride.

I've posted some of his photos before but I just found another that I really enjoyed. Here it is for your viewing pleasure. 

Savings at the spa

Sorry for my lack of posts these last three days. I took a little trip to visit my fiance' and got stuck without internet for three days! It was strange (and occasionally stressful) to be detached for so long but it was a nice break. 


On Sunday, I had a great conversation with some friends about sites like Groupon and Living Social. I use them for many things and you probably do too. Why not use them for wedding-related services? They offer stellar deals on spa services and hair treatments/styling. Consider watching for deals on highlights, haircut, massage, facial, manicure, pedicure etc. that you could use right before the wedding. 

Character inspiration

Molly Ringwald, as Andi from the movie Pretty in Pink. Her character inspires me, it's a fun 1980's romance and her friends, Duckie and Iona are hilarious. I highly recommend this movie. Not much to do with weddings but Andi would have make her own wedding dress.

Another group photo

Great shot of the bridesmaids from Ashley Maxwell Photography via Forget.Me.Knot.

One of my favorites

I think this is my favorite cake topper thus far. Photo and directions via Project Wedding.

Charming

Here is a great tablescape idea from Good Housekeeping. These particular crocheted doilies look like snowflakes. Winter wedding anyone?