Wedding Inspirations

Are you overwhelmed by all the decisions you have to make to plan your dream wedding? Which centerpieces should you get? What color theme should your wedding be? Which bridesmaid dresses should you pick? What if the style doesn't go together? You are not alone. That's why it helps to create your own wedding inspiration board. Collect any images that caught your eye while you're browsing the internet or flipping through magazines or while traveling. Have your digital camera with you wherever you go and capture anything that inspires you. You'll notice a recurring theme and your vision will come to life.

What are your wedding inspirations?

Weirdest Wedding Gifts Ever

I found this on MSN. Recently theknot did a research on married couples about the weirdest gift they ever get. It's interesting! Here are the result:

Monetary Oddities

"$10 in scratch tickets."
"$100 worth of quarters."
"A graduation card with $7."
"A hundred $1 bills rolled up in a rubber band."
"Boxers with money in them."
"Two cents and a nasty note inside a card."
"A check from my husband's friend, and in the 'for' line, it said 'vasectomy.'"
"A check that bounced."

Obscure Decor

"Broken fake-marble horse head bookends."
"'Rosie the Riveter' bookends."
"Moosehead bookends."
"Zebra shower curtain."
"A crystal block with a face in the middle."

Weird ... but Useful

"A hurricane evacuation backpack full of MREs (meals ready to eat), first-aid kit, ponchos, etc."
"A pink can opener with the word 'love' on it."
"A used walking cane."
"Asparagus."
"24 double rolls of toilet paper."
"Dental floss."
"Octopus-shaped baster."
"A high-heeled shoe cake server."
"A magnifying glass."

Weird ... and Useless

"Dog shock collar — we don't have a dog."
"Pirate flip-flops."
"A 3-ft. SpongeBob SquarePants pirate doll."
"Autographed picture of Bret Michaels."
"Bronze kangaroo."
"Fake vomit."
"A cat suit."
"A picture frame with the wrong initials on it."

Kind of Creepy Gifts

"A bronze bust of myself."
"A book that a friend of mine had written and dedicated to me alone, not my husband (he apparently has a large crush on me) ... very stalker-ish."
"Toilet paper with writing on first few sheets."
"A birthing video from a professional midwife! Ew!"

Budget Concious Bride

I found this great video for DIY wedding centerpiece. For those of you who's trying to save some money by making your own centerpiec, you should see this. It's a series of several videos, make sure you watch all of them.

How to Make a Wedding Flower Arrangement

Flower Centerpiece Ideas For Your Wedding

Flowers are important element for wedding decorations. The fragrants and colors will make a reception place feels warmer and more beautiful. So , what type of flowers should you choose? what colors? and which styles?

Type of Flowers
There are two types of flowers flowers: seasonal and all-year-long. Flowers such as Lily,Calla Lily, Roses, Gerbera daisy, Hydrangeas, Hypericum Berries, Chrysantemum are popular to use in centerpieces and usually available all season. Other favorites flowers such as peonies, ranunculus, and lily of the valley which commonly used in bridal bouquets are only available in the spring and summer time.

Seasonal Flowers and Colors
Spring Flowers
Spring time is a time nature bursts into life. The colors hues in spring are usually light pastel colors such as pink, light blue, light yellow and lilac. Popular spring flowers are : peonies, ranunculus, lilac, lily of the valley

Summer Flowers
Bright colors flowers typically bloom during summertime. Summer wedding are all about the strong and vibrant hues. Fuchsia, purple, bright yellow, blue, orange. Popular summer flowers are: snapdragon, stock, delphinium, anemone, poppies,daffodil

Fall Flowers
When people think of Fall wedding flowers, it is often the colors as much as the actual flowers that are important. Rich reds, fiery oranges and beautiful yellows are the order of the day. Amongst all seasons, autumn is one of the most popular time for wedding. Popular autumn flowers are dahlia, chrystantemums, hypericum berries and crab apples. Also see Fall Wedding Favors Ideas

Winter Flowers
Most people refer the winter wedding to a "White Snowy Wedding" or "Red Christmas Wedding". Although not many colorful flowers are available in winter, there are still some all year round flowers you can use like freesias, lilies, poinsettias, hydrangeas or even roses. Combine winter flowers with winter accents such as pine cones, holly leaves, baby's breath and glittery birch to make a beautiful centerpiece. White feather also make a nice touch to your bridal bouquet. Also check out Winter Wedding Favors

DIY Budget Friendly Flower Arrangement
Flowers for wedding centerpiece can be costly, so if you have a low budget you might want to consider do-it-yourself. It's best to pick a simple style, so that your friends and family can help with the arrangement. The more types of flowers you use the harder it is to predict the costs. If you want something classic, pick 1-2 types of flowers for every arrangements and try to use the same flowers for bridal bouquet and boutonniers. Shown on the left is a picture of carnation flower bouquet in white.


Modern style centerpiece arrangement usually is simple and easy to do. The picture on the right is an example of a simple and budget friendly wedding centerpiece. The cylinder vase filled with water and 3 stems of alstroemeria or some call it Peruvian Lily. Alstroemeria is an all year long flower and you can get it almost anywhere in the US, you might have seen this flowers at a grocery store.

RESOURCES

Flower Vases, Candle Holder and other wedding supplies:
Wal-Mart is a great place to find inexpensive flower supplies.
99 Cents Store - depending on where you live, some 99 cents store may carry simple round clear glass vases.
Save on Crafts - has great prices and selections for vases.
IKEA - Believe or not the retail price at IKEA sometimes beats supplier's wholesale prices.

Inexpensive Flowers:
Costco Floral has great prices on flowers you can order them online and have it delivered to their neares warehouse in your area or you could order it from the local suppliers where they get their flowers from.
Rose Source
Fifty Flowers

Practical Unity Candles

For a candle that's only being burned for an hour, unity candle is huge for its size. It takes so much space to keep it and it's a waste of waxes. Fortunately, these days the wedding industry have come up with some alternatives for unity candles. These are some practial unity candles ideas I love :

Engraved Medallion for Unity Candle
You can buy any scented candle of your choice, attach this medallion on the candle, and Voila! You've got your own personalized unity candle. After the wedding you can burn the candle at home and keep the personalization medallion as a keepsake or tie the medallion around your marriage certificate.

Personalized Pedestal Unity Candle Stand
Less is more. The pedestal is one of creative invention for unity candle. With this pedestal unity candle stand, you only need a medium sized candle. After the ceremony, bride can burn the rest of the candle at home and reuse the pedestal stand for special occassion, or display it in the living room as keepsake of the couples memento.

Floating Unity Candle and Vase
Adored by many, I have to say this floating unity candle & vase idea is among one of my favorite wedding stationery. If you think about it, your ceremony only lasts for an hour, who needs a huge candle to burn? The floating candle size is perfect. It such a practical design. Both the floating candle and the vase are reusable. Although sized almost as big as the traditional unity candle, the vase can be displayed in your living room and make a beautiful personalized decoration at home rather than sitting in a box somewhere in your storage.

Wedding Trend: Something Old , Something New, Something Borrowed and Something Green...

Going green is the hottest wedding trends right now. Many couples decided to spend their money wisely by throwing an ecofriendly wedding.

Maria McBride, the wedding style Director at brides magazine said
“Going a little bit green is better than not at all, because every thoughtful action helps our environment,” she said. “Celebrating your wedding with global awareness is a satisfying way to begin a life of commitment together and an important way to guide the marketplace to provide even more environmentally correct business practices.”

So what's the typical "Green Wedding" like?

The Dress: A dress that could be worn again after the wedding. The dress usually made of organic cotton, hemp, soy or silk.
Location: An outdoor garden setting over a large, energy-sucking reception hall.
Menu: Organic, Pesticide-free Food
Dinner Plates: China or disposable plates made out of sugar cane
Utensils: Silverware or disposable utensils made from potato starch
Napkins: Linen napkin or disposable recycled napkin.
Transportation: The groom organized car pools in hybrid vehicles
Gift Registry: Donations to charities foundation that helps saving the earth
Bridesmaid Gifts: Eco Friendly Organic Tote

Asian Chic Wedding a la Lisa Ling

The 33-year old TV Reporter, Lisa Ling ties the knot with Oncologist, Paul Song on Memorial day weekend. She walked down the aisle in a dashing red gown designed by Vivienne Tam. Lisa Ling's wedding reflects her style, personality and the couple's Asian background. The ushers were reportedly dressed in "karate kid" like outfit which gives more character to the wedding.

The reception room were decorated with Asian red lanterns and large painted hand fans. Guests include Kelly Hu, friend and mentor Connie Chung and Ling's close pals, Patricia Herrera and stylish Rachel Zoe.

Lisa Ling has successfully created a wedding that's uniquely hers. She proves that a wedding doesn't have to be white and any bride can look fabulous in any dress color.

Asian Wedding Favors