Happy Monday! The days are getting colder here in California but no real Fall color has come to join us quite yet. With our Indian Summer making the nights cold but the days up in the 80's it is a bit confusing to our poor trees. However it got me thinking of a Forest Wedding. Here are some ideas if you are considering having one next Fall!

 First of all comes the invitations. For some a lacy or frilly invite is the only thing that will do but when you are planning a Forest themed wedding you may want to scale back the "girly" and punch up the "manly" feel of the invitations. These may be the only invites your new husband will love!

 If you plan your wedding on the edge of summer and the beginning of Fall then you will have nice enough weather for an outdoor service with the woods being your decor. Not just beautiful but really budget friendly too!

 Look for a way to present the rings in an unusual holder or tray. This little glass box filled with moss makes a perfect place for your rings. 

 Of course if your ring bearer is young then you may not want to put glass in their hands. How about this idea of gluing moss to a center cut tree ring and tying you rings on with a bow? Beautiful and if he drops it you won't have to worry about glass everywhere.

 Your flowers can pick up the theme as well, using woodland additions like thistle and fiddle head ferns.

 Ok, I know the idea of the men wearing converse shoes or tennis shoes isn't going to be a hit with everyone but what a great gift for them and a nice way to add a little playful humor to your day!

 Continue your Forest theme with your escort cards. This really is just as easy as cutting a log in half, placing it on a table covered in moss and tucking the cards into little slits cut along the length of the logs.

 And how about a guest book that echos your theme and can then go into your home as a wonderful keepsake? Just print out or draw out a tree with no leaves. Now pick up a few "Fall" ink pots from the craft store and let everyone print a leaf onto the tree. (make sure to have baby wipes there to clean their fingers!) I'll be honest and say that I think the whole fingerprint thing doesn't feel safe to me but how about just getting leaf stamps and letting them stamp a leaf and leave their names instead?

 If you are having your reception in a barn or in a place that has antique furniture let it step in as decor for you as well. You can go "rustic" and still be elegant. This dessert bar would be wonderful for your guests!

 Add touches of Fall to your tables with these place card holders. You can always use them as escort cards, as shown in the photograph, or seating cards place at the head of your place settings on the table.

 Favors can range from a dollar to ten dollars. It all depends on your budget. These cute little candy apples are just mini apples dipped twice into caramel and then speared with clean and sharpened sticks. Favor tags tied on just say Thank You. These would cost less than a dollar. How totally cute!

 These adorable pine cone candles would look great in the center of each plate on the table. They run about $2 each and make a great gift for your guest as well as add more "Forest" decor to your tables.

 If your budget allows and you are having your reception at a winery then this leave wine bottle stopper (about $4-$6 each) would make a lovely gift. 

 Speaking of gifts. Don't forget your girls. This locket and charms are from Origami Owl and would make lovely gifts for your 'Maids. The lockets range from $20-$38 and then the little charms are about $5 each with the little dangles coming in at about $10. Place a few charms that match your day or match your 'Maid so you end up with a very personalized gift. 

 And don't forget about you. A locket filled with charms that will remind you of your wedding day such as a ring, the eternity symbol, a leaf, a heart, would be perfect to hang from your bouquet. Just remember to remove it before tossing!

Finally there is cake. Yes, a frilly lacy wedding cake is always gorgeous to find at a wedding but this type of theme needs a cake that fits in perfectly. This fiddle head fern cake from Cat's Cakes would be perfect for your Forest Themed Wedding.

This upcoming week is my birthday! Due to orders in the weekends before and after my birthday we are spending the day here at home so I get to make my own birthday cake this year!!! Yup, I'm totally excited! So what I'm going to do is come up with a party plan that would match the cake I'm going to make and share it all with you next weekend! See you then!

Cat

Seahorse Beach Wedding

 This week on the Party Blog we are sharing some ideas for a Seahorse Beach themed Wedding Day! If you are actually having your wedding on the beach, or overlooking the beach, then half of your decorating needs are taken care of already! The view sets the mood, the color palette and floor to sky view. So let's add a few more personal touches... 

 There are so many different invitations that feature the seahorse motif that you will find it hard to pick just one! We loved the colors on this one. 

If you want to go with a general invitation that just sets the mood and theme of the ocean and of a beach wedding then you could print out your own invitations on watercolor paper and do it yourself with watercolor paints or you could order these beautiful invitations from Wedding Paper Divas

Welcome your guests with a hand painted sign (you can purchase one like it on Etsy if you are not a DIY'er) that becomes a wonderful reminder of your wedding day in your home.

 Set out these beautiful fans from Imbue You and your guests not only have a way to keep cool, a way to know what is going to be happening in your ceremony but also it's a wonderful way to add to your decor!

 Blue and white is commonly used in beach weddings but if you want to just have touches of blue for your day rather than make it a focal point, then you can just put bits of it here or there like these white and green bouquets tied up with navy blue ribbon.

 Or maybe you want to take blue and make it a major focal point! We have found that it is easier to mix hues of color rather than just pick one color for your day and then highlight those different hues at different places in your day. Here the dresses give a wonderful pop of color so you don't need to have the flowers add to that. Pure white flowers tied with white satin ribbon are perfect against the backdrop of the aquamarine colored dresses.

 Don't forget that you will be walking on the sand if you have a ceremony out on the beach. This is impossible to do in heels so unless you want to go barefoot then you will want to get a great pair of flats. These from Extraseed would be simply beautiful! What a great way to show off your "something blue"!

 You can easily buy bags of seashells online that you can then use to line your ceremony aisle. If you have your heart set on flowers just tuck single blooms in between each shell!

 Add a touch of your theme to your hair with a decorative piece of jewelry. There are several places online where you can find one that fits your hairstyle.

A sand ceremony is a beautiful way to show your commitment and create a wonderful keepsake of your day. Are you blending families? Then just use different colors of sand for each member of the blended family. Each child will feel loved and included in the wedding day.

If you are looking for a unique way to say thank you to your Bridesmaids then how about finding a beach bag and filling it up with great stuff for the weekend. A personalized towel, some snacks and a beach themed magazine would be beautiful! 

 We love the signs used for this drink table! It just adds a bit of Beach Chic to your day. Notice how the stacked limes adds a bit of green color that matches the Mojito Bar idea. Perfect!

 As I mentioned before, the beach and ocean do most of the decorating for you so keep your tables simple. 

 A wonderfully easy DIY project is these vases. Just wrap clear glass containers with rubber bands and then spray paint them the color to match your reception. Tuck in a candle or use them for your flowers for a beautiful and budget friendly way to add more art and decor to your day.

 Using shells for decor is a "gimmee" when it comes to a beach wedding. How pretty would these shells tucked with single blooms be in the center of each place setting...or use a sharpie to write the guest names on the shells and use them as place cards!

 If your budget allows a few more details then consider adding napkin rings that match the theme. They are not budget friendly at about $5 each but if your budget allows they would make for beautiful favors for your guests. Just remember to attach a tag so they know the napkin rings are theirs to take home!

 And speaking of favors. I found so many sites out there where you can get chocolate seahorse favors for your guests that the hard part will be deciding what flavor you want!

If you are going with a dessert bar instead of a cake, or with a smaller cake, then having your caterer set up a "sampler" filled with different types of puddings would not just be yummy but would be beautiful for your reception tables! A little bit of something for everyone.

But if you are looking for a wedding cake then one like this one from Cat's Cakes would be a beautiful centerpiece for your day. Covered in white vanilla fondant, trimmed in sugared fondant and then decorated with colored fondant and sugar hand painted seahorses this cake is made even more perfect by adding a topper of poured sugar "water" and more sugar seahorses. Quite the showstopper to WOW your guests!

I'm a beach baby so an ocean themed day is my favorite. Hopefully you found some tips to make your day more colorful, beautiful and personalized. Next week we'll head the other way and give you some ideas for a Forest Themed Wedding. Until then you can get daily tips and tricks on our Facebook Fan Site ! 

See you there!

Cat

Neutral Wedding Palette Wedding

Happy Monday! This week we present a "Neutral Wedding Palette". Lots of ideas for your wedding day!

 First we start off with invitations from Wedding Paper Divas. These have a more modern feel to them for those who don't want a "frilly" feel to their wedding day.

 But if you want something that feels a bit more Vintage or Classic then these, also from Wedding Paper Divas, cost about $1.30 per invitation so they are affordable as well as beautiful! 

 Greet your guests with a charming directional sign to your ceremony space. Easy to DIY or to pick up on Etsy.

 "Nude" "Champagne" "Ivory" are all names for "off white". These colors offset your white dress gently. Because they are in the same color palette they compliment your dress perfectly.

 You don't have to remove color from your wedding, just choose muted colors that fall inside that neutral color palette. Pink, sage, peach, butter yellow all fall in that neutral palette so they will work for your wedding day!

 If flowers are not your thing then you can substitute them with a beautiful fabric bouquet. This one from Etsy costs the same as a real flower bridal bouquet but you get to keep it forever!

 Looking for a way to show off your "something blue" without flashing a bright color at your neutral colored wedding? These stick on gems are available at most craft stores like Michaels and will look beautiful on the arch of your shoes!

 Dressing up your ceremony aisle can be expensive or more budget friendly. Here they grouped clear cylinders with pillar candles at about every 3 rows of chairs and rose petals heavily dusted down the aisle. This is the expensive version. You can place the same candles at the beginning of the aisle, the middle of the aisle and the head of the aisle and you can use carnation petals, which look very pretty and frilly and cost about a fourth of what rose petals cost, or even boxed silk rose petals sprinkled down a little lighter or thinner down the aisle. You will get the same feel as the more expensive set up. 

 Another very cute idea is to take an old, damaged romantic book (they used Pride & Prejudice here) and a heart paper punch and have your flower girl sprinkle these hearts all the way down the aisle. Nothing to stain your dress and very romantic!

 Dressing up your reception space is easy if you keep your colors in that neutral palette. Gold Chivari chairs are the more expensive rental but worth the cost when you consider they add a bit of bling and shine to your reception space! Remember that the smallest of details make all of the difference.

 Trying to fill up the ceiling of a large space is not only expensive, it's impossible. So pick your areas and just create a grouping, like these tissue paper pom poms, in that one space. 

 Little details like the Mr. & Mrs. hangers on the back of the chairs add another layer of romance to your day.

 Picking a venue that is already heavy with the colors of your palette makes decorating the tables that much easier. This is a very grand display but you could easily just choose crystal candle holders with large poms of baby's breath or hydrangeas and set out lots of votives to illuminate it all.

 You can find birdcages in your local craft store like Michaels. They usually come in white but you can easily spraypaint it to be whatever color you'd like. They used a very dark bronze here to give it an antique look. You don't need to tie with ribbons but just place a little "Cards" card on the front so your guests will know where to set theirs on the table. In fact, have your parents start off the trend by placing their cards in first.

 Or you can make a "Card Box". Cut the bottom out of the top and middle boxes then glue them together into the stack. These are covered in beautiful metallic scrapbook paper but you can use any type of wrapping paper for this project. Tie with a pretty bow, glue on a matching flower and stick a rhinestone button in the center. 

 Guest books are largely out of fashion because most people have figured out that they just live in a plastic tote somewhere after the wedding. However, if your guest book is filled with photos from your engagement photo session then you know it will be looked at lots of times over the years. Either have your photographer make you a photo book that has blank pages across from each image or make one yourself on Shutterfly!

 Your centerpieces do not have to be expensive. You can easily make a beautiful and budget friendly grouping for your centerpieces with dollar store containers, sand, votives and single blooms.

 Or take those same dollar store vases, wrap with rubber bands, spraypaint with metallic paint and, after dry, remove the bands to create beautiful vases or candle holders for your centerpiece!

 Even if you have the large centerpiece you can illuminate them with these little charming candles. Filled with lightly colored sugar, but you can use sand, then topped with various neutral colored faux pearls, these votives are elegant and beautiful as well as budget friendly!

 Using neutral colored favor boxes is another way of adding a layer of detail for your wedding palette. You could tie them with brown ribbon or any other neutral color like peach or cream. They put heart shaped seed hangers in theirs but you could fill it with a truffle or other candy or even a special candle if you like.

 Or purchase pre-made, pre-wrapped favors like these vintage key shaped bottle openers. These range between $1.50 to $2.50 each and all you have to do is set them out on the tables.

I have no idea who made this simply gorgeous cake but if you do please let me know so I can give them credit! It fits into the neutral color palette perfectly while being gorgeous and elegant and, did I mention gorgeous? What a beautiful centerpiece for your wedding day!

Next week we'll cover the Black & White Wedding! Until then you can visit us for daily tips and tricks at our Facebook Fan Site.

Cat