Bright Ideas for a Beautiful Summer Wedding

Are you planning to exchange vows this summer?  If yes, here are some ideas to help you prepare for a beautiful summer wedding.  I also searched Pinterest for stunning photos of summer weddings to inspire you even more.

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A romantic bohemian wedding in the summer!

Tie-the-knot outdoors.  Summer is the perfect time to get married out in the sun.  Why not plan a beach wedding or a garden wedding and make the most of the beautiful, sunny weather?  Don’t have a big budget for a destination wedding?  It doesn’t matter!  There’s no need to go far.  Even a small, backyard wedding can be exceptionally wonderful as long as there is a plan and the preparations are done right.

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Simple outdoor wedding banquets arrangements  

Complement nature.  What’s great about an outdoor wedding is that you can actually take advantage of the natural beauty of the place.  Indeed, decorations can be very minimal, which is great especially if you’re on a budget.  Whether it would be an early morning ceremony by the seaside; a brunch in an orchard; or a late afternoon wedding in the garden; the occasion is bound to be beautiful even without lavish adornments. As cliché as it may sound, what could be more picturesque than two people exchanging vows amidst sparkling bluish green waters; lush, green landscape; or under a glorious sky?

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A long piece of plain, white fabric drapes over a tree to create a stunning frame ; 

lighted string jars hung from tree branches add a romantic glow to an evening reception

Flower power.  Bouquets and garlands of fresh flowers are a feast to the eyes.  Calla Lilies, Chrysanthemums, Cockscomb, Columbine, Daisies, Hydrangeas,  Blue Delphiniums, Gerberas, Gladioli, Lilies, Peonies, Roses, Wildflowers, Zinnias ~ these are but a few names to choose from.  It would be a good idea to ask a gardener or a florist a few months in advance which summer blooms are available in your region. Needless to say, flowers in season would be cheaper than the rare varieties.  But don’t forget to consider succulents and greens in your flower arrangements.  They never fail to bring texture, uniqueness, and charm to a bunch of blossoms.

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love the simplicity of these bridal bouquets ~
an assortment of greens, wildflowers, summer blossoms an succulents

How about fruits?  Fruits! Of course!  What's a summer wedding without cocktails!  Berries, cherries, watermelon, mangoes, oranges, lemons and citruses ~ A beverage station is a must for all weddings, but most definitely with outdoor weddings.

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summer fruit punch in glass, jars and bottles

But summer fruits not only make delightful thirst-quenchers! Mixed with colorful florals, fresh fruits make lovely accents on the banquet table and place settings as well.

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Bring in some vegetables!  I love the idea of having a fruit and veggies bar where guests can help themselves of healthy treats anytime during the reception. 

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little, red raddishes with flowers make unique, vibrant centerpiece; 
artichoke bouquet, anyone?;
a colorful veggie bar featuring fresh veggies and a variety of dips and dressings

Ice cream, please!  It should be safe to say that all the guests would surely be delighted to have something cold and sweet to beat the summer heat?  How about frosty ice cream or gelato for dessert! Get in touch with a local ice cream vendor and see if you can hire an ice cream cart or if you have an ice-cream maker, you can set-up your own help-yourself homemade ice-cream booth, complete with cups, cones, and all sorts of toppings to choose from.  Another fun option to cool the palate are popsicles!

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A vintage style ice cream cart;
ice cream snack bar;
homemade ice cream in glass jars ready to be served

Parasols and fans would come in handy for a summertime wedding and would make great souvenirs too! You may choose to distribute these before the start of the ceremony, placing one parasol or fan on each chair or let your guests take one from the basket.

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yellow & white umbrellas await guests on each seat;
paper fans;
white parasols with ribbons in a wooden box;

a heart-shaped fan with the bride & groom's monogram

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An early evening wedding outdoors with the splendid sky as the backdrop.

These are just a few suggestions that you may consider.  Which one of these ideas would you like to incorporate on your wedding day?  Do you have other summer wedding ideas to share?

Online Wedding Shop: Pom Pom Factory

I featured poms last week and couldn't help but be smitten by these beguiling photos by a shop called Pom Pom Factory.  Based in East London, the shop is owned by Karen Hsu, who specializes in creating poms and flower installations for weddings and other occasions.  Her products are made from 100% biodegradable and recycled tissue paper.

Bridal Inspiration: All the Pretty Bouquets

I find myself breathless after spending an hour browsing over the pages of Magnolia Rouge online, How I wish I could leaf through the pages of this magazine on paper.  I'm actually trying to avoid reading online for too long because it is straining on the eyes.  It  would be nice if I could take this magazine to bed with me so I can read through each page at my leisure.  

The magazine is filled with beautiful wedding inspirations from real weddings across the globe.  It is truly a must-read especially for those who are searching for wonderful ideas for their special day.  I am loving these bridal bouquets!  I think they are perfect inspirations for Spring and Summer weddings.  Taking advantage of the season and making use of various blooms which are found in the local garden.  I love how vines, ferns, and succulents have been incorporated with an assortment of flowers in each arrangement.  The small bunches are nice but oh, how I love the bigger ones!

Which of these bridal bouquets did your like?

Wonderful Wedding Decor Inspiration: Pompoms

Pom-poms are wonderful decorations which can be used for the wedding ceremony and reception.  The materials needed are also cheap compared with other craft projects.  They can be made out of yarn, tissue paper, or recycled fabric.  Yes, if you are working on a small budget, decorating with poms is a great way to create a cheerful, dreamlike ambiance, fitting for a wedding. 

Pompoms come in many sizes - from small bursts of colors  to large balls of fluffy radiance; you can make them as little or as big as you like. Poms can be sewn into a string to make a garland of puffs, seemingly floating in the air.  They can also adorn the banquet table as centerpieces and prettify each place setting. 

The trims can be cut in various degrees of slantness to replicate different blooms.  Of course, you can choose from a wide variety of shades to match your motif.  Some couples choose to fill the place with a rainbow of happy poms while in some weddings, you can see lovely clusters of poms of the same hue like giant hydrangeas suspended in the air.

Take a look at these real wedding inspirations I've gathered from a couple of wedding websites.  You can click on the links after each photo to read the exact details.

Lauren & Ian Wedding via Birchtree Photography
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Jen & Ben Wedding via The RocknRoll Bride

 Kate & John Wedding via Before the Big Day

Weddings by Michelle 

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via PomPom Factory

I love this idea of decorating an entire wall with large poms and pinwheels in assorted colors and patterns to create a quirky, gleeful backdrop for wedding photos. So fun and pretty:)

via Style Me Pretty

Photography by Love Is A Big Deal 

Poms by Simply Nesting

Nope, pom-poms aren't just suitable as indoor decorations.  If you will have an outdoor wedding, colored poms would be stunning against the natural light and greenery, like these cascading pink and purple poms set in a garden wedding reception. 

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Poms by PomGlow

Pompom wedding decorations can be pretty easy to make too.  If you enjoy crafting or if you would like to try your hands on making poms, here are DIY tutorials from various blogs that you can check out: DIY Tissue Paper Pompoms at Boho Weddings, Whimsical Wonderland Weddings, RocknRoll Bride and Martha Stewart Weddings.  Fabric Pompoms at Once Wed, Green Wedding Shoes, and Craftaholics Anyonyms.  Here (found via: Bridal Musings) is a video tutorial by Creature Comforts on how to make Yarn Pom Poms. RMW blog also takes on this DIY.

However, if you don't have time to make a whole bunch of poms, you can order readily-made pom poms.  Each set comes with all the accessories needed so all that's left to do is fluff and set them.  Here are a couple of Etsy shops that sell beautiful handmade poms.  HINT: Check out the many different ways in which you can decorate or embellish with poms.

Fiesta Pompom ; PomGlow

Pretty with Sprinkles ; Sweet Tea Paper

Makelle Designs ; Pretty with Sprinkles

Pom Garden ; Bell Bloom Design

 Peckled ; Just Embellish

Pom Love ; Theading Marigolds

 PomGlow

Which of these ways of styling poms have you incorporated in your wedding or would you consider for your wedding?  If you have other ides on how to style pompoms for a wedding, please share them.  And if you know of other useful tutorials online, you're welcome to share the links in your comment.  Thanks for reading :) 

Four Pretty Things: Pastel Purses

Beginning today, I will be featuring four pretty things from different wedding shops at Etsy each week. I hope that this particular segment on this blog would help future brides who are looking for a particular accessory or wedding item, by narrowing down their choices. Apart from curating pretty wedding things, I take a moment to read about the shop, making sure that the sellers on spotlight are passionate about their craft.  

For my first post on  this segment, I looked for handmade bridal or bridesmaid purses in pastel hues of yellow, blue, pink and mint.  

pastel yellow silk clutch with bow :  Blackbird's Pearl

baby blue pouch with Rossette & lace : lolos

peach with lace wedding purse : Atelier Edyta Loukia

mint green box bridesmaid clutch set : Vincent V Designs

Wedding Mag: 2013 Bridal Lookbook By Ruche

Have you seen the 2013 Bridal Lookbook by Ruche?  Entitled Forever and A Day, the look book features soft, flowing, vintage-inspired gowns in Grecian style. Nothing stiff and nothing too heavy. Wonderful for outdoor weddings or garden weddings this Spring and Summer seasons.  I also love the whimsical  headdresses, the heirloom jewelry, and the vintage accents.  Here are some of my favorites:

A Closer Look at Three Beautiful DIY Weddings

I absolutely adore DIY weddings! I would love for me and my hubby to get married again and DIY everything for the occasion.  It would be a lot of work, there would be some challenges but I'm sure that it would be fun and exciting!

Are you planning to do DIY projects for your own wedding?  If yes, I think you would be inspired by these three beautiful handmade weddings featured at Etsy.  I'm sure that ideas would fly.and your creative bone would be poked after this read.  I highlighted some of my favorite aspects from each wedding but you can click on their links to read their stories and view all the photos. Continue reading...

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