Centerpieces: Why Go Traditional?

Are you tired of all the normal wedding centerpiece ideas you see out there? Why not go with something unique. Not everyone is a fan of lots of flowers and candles. What about stones?



If you want something a little more colorful why not try something like rock candy?



If you are doing a candy buffet, candy centerpieces are a great way to decorate your tables!



If you are looking into something more natural, why not do a fresh fruit centerpiece? The fresh fruit can also double as your favors!




Another great natural look is that of wheat.



Sources for Picture 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10

If done right, all of these things can be done at low cost.

Honeymoons

Ever notice how so many go to Cabo for their honeymoon? Or Jamaica? That kind of honeymoon isn't in everyone's budget. Even so, couples on a really tight budget can still have a romantic affordable honeymoon. Using creativehoneymoonideas.info, I found 3 great honeymoon ideas for couples on a small budget.

Go Cross Country:

Why not have a road-trip honeymoon? There are so many great things to see in this country. I once took a 3-week trip and visited over 13 states on our west-coast and had a blast. Several notable places I visited were Las Vegas, Yosimite National Park, and the Hoover Dam. Granted I was traveling in a motor home so I didn't have the cost of motels and I was traveling with a friend and her family and I was 13, but hey you can still do it. Taking a car and cooler (back food and drinks in the cooler, to be refilled as you go along) and stopping at random small-town motels (no need in spending over $100 a night at the Hilton) and you could spend only $100 a day for you honeymoon.

Camping:

If driving all day long isn't your thing, what about camping? When I say camping, I don't necessarily mean roughing it with only a sleeping bag and bug spray, unless you are into that kind of thing. You could simply purchase a tent (approximately $50 depending on the size) and go to a local campground or to your state park and spend the weekend. Tent = $50, Queen size air mattress = $20, food for the camp grill for the weekend $60, Spending time alone in a small tent with your new husband = priceless. On a side note, most if not all campgrounds have showers.

At Home:

Now if you really don't have the money to go anywhere, even for the weekend, you can still have a romantic honeymoon. Just have it at home. The following are great ideas for having a romantic honeymoon at home:

1. Relive you first date. I think this would be a great way to start off your honeymoon.
2. Have breakfast in bed. One of the most romantic things can be as simple as breakfast in bed.
3. Exchange Love Coupons. These coupons are great and extremely inexpensive (an entire book for less than $5).
4. Cook together. This is a great way to spend time together, especially if one or both of you don't normally cook.
5. Take a bath together. If you have a bath tub big enough, that is.

I hope these examples show that with enough research and with keeping your interests in mind, having a memorable and romantic honeymoon doesn't have to cost $500 or more. Sticking to the basics and simply enjoying the time you have together can make any event one that you will never forget.

Reception: Wine Bottles Anyone?

You remember that almost empty wine bottle in the back of your fridge you've been meaning to throw out? Why throw it out when you can save it and use it for your centerpieces? Vases and glass cylinders can be expensive and run upwards of $3 a piece, but why spend that extra money when you can use something lying around the house? Wine bottles are a great way to add a vintage look to your wedding reception and when done right can look amazing. And if you don't drink wine, chances are you know someone who does. You could even contact a local bar or restaurant about using their empty bottles. You can use the bottles as candle holders, flower vases, or table number holders!





Sources for pictures 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Ceremonies: Outdoor Beauties

Having an outdoor ceremony is one way of saving costs (outdoor receptions tend to be expensive). Really the only things you need are chairs and decorations. Chairs can be rented for about $2 a piece and by using the alter as your focal point you can save a lot of money with decorations. For instance, if you are getting married outside with a gazebo or other covering, focus your decorations on that. As these three weddingwire pictures show, minimal decorations doesn't take away the beauty of the ceremony.

New Addition to my Wedding

While searching for ideas for my recent cupcake post I chanced upon a recipe for koala bear cupcakes. My FH's nickname for me is koala and I call him panda, long story. Well my colors are purple, black, and white. The koala bear cupcakes are purple and the panda cupcakes are black and white so it is PERFECT for my wedding. I'm already having cheesecake and the groom's cake, but I'm also going to add this because I think it would be a great addition and would be something cute and about us.

The koala bear recipe is from Cupcake-creations and the panda bear recipe is from Family.Go.

Wednesday's Dresses

One of the biggest decisions a bride has to make is her dress. Every bride, I don't care what they say, dreams of their wedding from childhood. Their dreams may not be the typical fairy-tale wedding but they still dream about it. And every bride dreams of being in the dress of her dreams. I'm a firm believer, among other things you will learn, that you don't have to spend $800 or even $1000 for a gorgeous dress that you feel wonderful in.

Since it is summer and hot outside, well in my area at least, I'm going to focus on knee-length wedding dresses today. I think shorter wedding dresses are a great idea for casual wedding but you can still get a very elegant and glamourous short dress for a formal wedding as well.

The following 3 dresses are beautiful and provided by LightintheBox and all fall under $140! The great thing about LightintheBox is you can order your dress in a particular size or by your exact measurements! The weight of alterations are taken off your shoulders by getting a dress made custom for you.

Style 00035247 Style 00047937 Style 00047948

Vegas Cupcakes

For brides on a budget, cupcakes are a great way to save money while still having a great looking dessert table.

A lady over at WeddingWire asked me to help her with her cupcake decorations. She is having a small Vegas wedding and having a small cake and cupcakes. Two of her colors are teal and white, so I first decided to find a decorating idea that stuck with that color. I think the following design is adorable and affordable! The first requires either a fondant box mold or this how- to and the second only requires a fondant cutter.



If she wants to go with more of a Vegas theme, these decorating ideas are also great and affordable! Simply purchasing fondant and small cutters for the shapes, and there you have them. The first is from Flickr. PinkCakeBox provides the second picture.



If you don't want to try your hand out at using fondant for the pieces, simply buying poker sugar pieces will create the same effect.

Land of Blue Flowers

It seems to me that I haven't seen much of a request for blue bouquet or blue floral arrangements so I've decided to use blue as my first inspiration for flowers. A great budget saver on flowers is by going with silk flowers. Afloral.com is my favorite website so far. I have found no website that compares to it. The 3 following bouquets can be purchased from $12.99-$22.99 each.

For instance you can get an adorable Turquoise and Chocolate gerbera daisy and ranunculus bouquet for only $12.99 when you order one. Afloral also sells boutionneres that match. A lovely chocolate ranunculus boutionnere is not something you see everyday. If you don't like the chocolate bout, try the cream gerbera daisy one.

If you want more of a royal blue look, this rose and gerbera bouquet is simply gorgeous. The two shades of blue and cream mixed in keeps the royal blue from being too overpowering. By pairing it with either the blue or cream boutionnere and you have winners.

Well, if you are looking for something really unique, why not try this phalaenopsis orchid (aka butterfly orchid) and freesia bouquet. This isn't a common bouquet, in my opinion and pairing it with the cream phalaenopsis orchid boutionnere creates a very elegant look.

Favors, Galore!

Since Tuesdays are going to be all about Favors, I decided that I might as well go ahead and get started. It seems like every website I go to has the tux and dress favor boxes.

Frankly they are outrageously priced, in my opinion, since I know where to get 10 for $1 -- that's right 10 FOR $1. Dollar Tree is truly amazing, in my opinion. You could order them online, if you had at least 720 guests. The website is strictly for bulk purchases, but if you go into your nearest Dollar Tree, they have them there in smaller quantities.

Favors don't just end at the boxes, however. The big bucks come from what you put in the boxes. Your options range from candies, mints, magnets, photos, you name it. I'm personally not a fan of any of the above mentioned, but hey, that's just me. I don't see the point in giving out a favor that the guest either doesn't want or can get themselves at any local supermarket.

I have found an eco-friendly (and outrageously inexpensive) favor that is truly unique in my opinion. They are Clyde and Robin's wedding wildflower seeds. They come in their own individual packs and you can pick the wildflower and the look of the packet, at no additional charge. At a whopping little price of $.25-$.35 each (the more you get the cheaper they are) you could get 100 seed packets for only $35. You can even add a personalized message to the packets for $85-$115, but that is completely optional. This favor is so cute, that I'm using them as my favors!

Schedule for Blogs

To keep my mind sane, I am creating an inspiration schedule Keep in mind that all inspirations have budget brides in mind. So no outrageously priced ideas from me!

Monday -- All about Centerpieces
Tuesday -- Favors
Wednesday -- Bouquets and Boutionnieres
Thursday -- Dresses!!
Friday -- Ceremony
Saturday -- Reception
Sunday -- Honeymoon