What's in my file: Rolling Waves

Over at amorology we have caught the ocean blues! Those ocean blues have come with a spoonful of sunshine yellow. The surf will be just right tomorrow for Erica and Nick's surf themed wedding. We found our inspiration in stripes and tides. Envision rolling ocean waves splashed with a retro beach vibe. This is the wedding that Gidget would have died for. Guests will be pleased to find a fun blue specialty drink along with surfboards and a big dose of love. Erica and Nick make each other so happy and we can't wait for everyone to see!

Want a bigger dose? Look at our making waves board on our pinterest.

Real Wedding: Jandee and Shane

If you don't love anything else about this wedding, you will fall in love with the venue! It is a tree filled overlook in the mountains and could not be more gorgeous! When you throw in a stunning bride and a vibrant bouquet, this wedding had amazing written all over it. The lovely photos come from Jason G.

Here are so details from the bride Jandee:
We wanted the wedding to be more of a weekend event rather than just one day. For most of our guests this was a destination wedding, so we wanted to have it somewhere that would provide a relaxed atmosphere and plenty of rooms. A colleague suggested Rockledge Country Inn and we were immediately attracted to its charming atmosphere and beautiful Colorado craftsmanship. We were able to rent out the entire house for the wedding party and rented Onaledge, which is another home the B&B owners have, for family. They were within 20 feet of each other so it was very easy for everyone to be together for the long weekend. 

We made our own wine for the wedding at D'Vine wine in Manitou Springs. The whole process was so fun and interesting. They really took the time to explain why we were doing what throughout the couple of months that it took to make. We ended up renting the space out for our rehearsal dinner. Everyone loved being able to see where we took the time to make the wine at.

Seeing the whole thing come together was a lot of fun. If I had to pick my favorite it would have to be the first dance. Shane and I spent months and a lot of money taking dance lessons to prepare. We had this whole routine, which once we got out there, went out the window! We ended up just doing our own thing and it was perfect.

Photographer | Jason G

Venue | Rockledge Inn

Event Designer | Sapphire Celebrations

Hair | Girls and Curls

Don't forget to enter for you chance to win $150 from Williams-Sonoma!

Real Wedding: Ariane and Ethan

There is something so lovely about a DIY backyard wedding. Today's is chock full of sweet rustic charm and darling details. The bride, Ariane, summed up planning a small budget wedding perfectly: "Even though our budget was small, I knew I had to pay attention to the details to make the event seem bigger than it was." This is exactly what you should do when planning a budget wedding. Even the smallest of details have a big impact on the overall look and on your guests.

From the lovely Ariane:
Ethan's Aunt and Uncle own a beautiful home in Swampscott, Massachusetts and offered to host the wedding in their backyard as soon as they heard about the engagement. We couldn't resist, since it is such a gorgeous space and the free price fit into our very small budget. Ethan and I had talked a lot about how we wanted the wedding day to go. We were uncomfortable with spending lots of money on just one day and we knew we could make it special in our own way without a large budget.  I'm a fairly crafty person and with the help of our talented friends and family, we were able to pull off the perfect vintage, backyard wedding on a tiny budget. The wedding day turned out to be more beautiful than I had imagined.

Our wedding was completely DIY.  My mom and I found Martha Stewart printable invitations at Michael's on sale - 100 invitations, envelopes, RSVP cards and envelopes for $20.00.  I designed the invitations and hand stamped a design on each one.  I also designed, the menus, programs, and save the date cards myself.  I made 100 tissue paper pom decorations thanks to a Martha Stewart craft idea, hand painted the table numbers, and hand stamped the tags on the mason jars we used for glasses.  Even though our budget was small, I knew I had to pay attention to the details to make the event seem bigger than it was.  The last thing I wanted was to make the day seem cheap.  Little details make your event special and memorable for everyone.  The rest of the decorations were things we found at yard sales or already owned.  Making everything myself got stressful at times and we jokingly called the wedding our "huge mistake."

It truly was a family affair.  Ethan's brother is a chef and cooked most of the food we served which revolved around a backyard cookout theme.  Ethan's mom baked all of our pies and desserts including gluten free and vegan options for our friends with food allergies.  We bought flowers at the whole sale flower show in Boston and my friend Rebecca made the flower arrangements using blue mason jars we bought at a vintage store.  My mom is an artist and quilter and hand sewed our chuppah, which meant so much to us since the chuppah represents the home the couple is building together.  

We had a traditional Jewish wedding ceremony and a not so traditional reception.  Our immediate families gathered around the chuppah with us as we said our vows.  It was such a joyous occasion and everyone was radiating love.   Our fantastic photographer, Lauren Piper, captured all of the wonderful moments of that day.  She really caught the mood and the vintage feel of the wedding.  We had all of our closest family and friends with us to celebrate as we became husband and wife.  It was a perfect day.  I think it was so special because we had all worked so hard to make it happen - I know I put in plenty of blood, sweat and tears into the day.

Photographer | Lauren Piper
Bouquets | Roses and Thistle
Gown | J. Crew
Earrings and Shoes | J. Crew
Belt | Little White Dresser
Bridesmaid Dress | Anthropologie
Make Up | Daniela Shappee
Groom/Groomsmen Suits | J. Crew
Cake Topper | Baumbirdy
Stamp | Paperwink
Chuppah | Mother of the Bride
Ketubah | Gallery Judaica

Inspiration Board: Golden Apple

Spring will soon be here and I'm inspired by bright golden yellows. I love spring weddings with some sweet rustic charm. Mixing patterns is an easy way to bring in a bit of country chic. A bounty of fresh flowers adds sunny cheer. Serving up a few tasty tarts and pies in lieu of cake is always a delicious option. And I am a huge fan of the vintage key escort cards. It is always sweet and unexpected. I love this cute flower bracelet by Alexis Bittar, its the perfect accessory for a spring wedding.

[ Credits ]

Top: Ellen Silverman, Style Me Pretty, Alexis Bittar, Martha Stewart Weddings

Bottom: Style Me Pretty, Minted, Jenny Yoo, Martha Stewart Weddings

Real Wedding: Alison and Zack

Today's gorgeous wedding is modern and bright, with a sweet vintage touch. If I told you this was a DIY wedding, would you believe me? Because I wouldn't have guessed it. This bride has style and she definitely let it show in her wedding! All the details are perfectly planned and expertly designed.

Here's what the lovely bride Alison had to say:
My husband and I got engaged in August 2009 and starting searching for wedding venues in December. I am from the Bay Area and he is from the Chico area. We both knew we didn't want to get married in our hometown's; we wanted something more memorable and unique. I used to go to the Santa Cruz area every summer with my family, and Zack had gone with us a few times; we both really liked it down there, and we thought it would be a beautiful place to get married. He wanted something by the ocean or tropical, and I wanted something that was outdoor, but not necessarily on a beach.

We were searching venues down in the Santa Cruz/Monterey area, and we stumbled across The Holly Farm. There we some pretty neat looking pictures on their website, which made us very interested. We set up a few different appointments with various venues in the Monterey area, but as soon as we walked into The Holly Farm, we knew that was the place. I loved the funky, vintage vibe, and he loved the tropical oasis feeling. We both really felt a connection, and The Holly Farm had so many different elements that fit both of our tastes.

My mother owns an antique store in the Bay Area, so I have been raised around antiques and vintage style. I always knew I wanted my wedding to be modern and glamorous, but with touches of vintage chic sprinkled throughout. When The Holly Farm had a few dates open for fall 2010, we knew we needed to book fast. As we were in the office at The Holly Farm I was flipping through wedding albums of previous weddings at The Holly Farm; as soon as I picked up Meg Perotti's album, I knew I had to have her do my wedding. To me, after the wedding is over all you have left are the memories, so pictures are one of the most important things for a wedding; they capture the special moments throughout the day, so they can last forever.

I always wanted to plan my own wedding, and make sure I didn't just have someone else map it all out for me. Between my mom and the antique store and my aunt the interior designer, I think designing and planning runs through my blood. Not only was I a big part of the planning process, but so was my husband. He was really interested in having a say about many of the details, and it was nice to here his ideas and opinions about specifics; after all, it was his wedding, too! :) I did work with a florist for my bouquets/boutonnieres/corsages and some of the table centerpieces, but I designed all of the orchid box centerpieces on my own. I went to the SF flowermart and starting picking combinations of flowers I thought were fun, flirty, and timeless. I knew I wanted a black and white wedding, but it wasn't until I went to the flowermart that I decided to go with yellow for my accents. We chose yellow football and spider mums, and mokara orchids, along with traditional white orchids. 

The yellow candy bar was an idea I had seen online, but I tweaked it by using all yellow candies and apothecary jars. I designed the labels for the baggies the candy went in with our monogram and date using our computer and printer. The table number frames were also a DIY project using cheap black frames and our printer. I brought some vintage cameras, and a monogrammed paper parasol to use as props for fun pictures at the wedding. Overall, I feel like our wedding was a great combination of traditional style, elegance, but with a fun, vintage flair.

One of my favorite parts of the day was when I was getting ready; things were starting to get set up and I snuck down to the dining table and ceremony areas. I saw all of my planning unfolding before my eyes and everything was just as I had always dreamed. It sounds so cliche, but I really had dreamt of my wedding day since I was a little girl! Another big moment was when I was coming down the aisle. The look on my husband's face was priceless (a combination of complete awe and nervousness) and the mokara orchids hanging from the arbor over his head with all the beautiful tropical orchids and plants that fill The Holly Farm were just amazing. As I turned that corner with my dad, it was like a dream. I could go on and on about special moments from that day, but altogether it was great to feel so proud of a wedding that I was a part of the planning process every step of the way. As my husband and I were circulating the tables after dinner and mingling with guests, we repeatedly heard how amazed everyone was with the venue, and how amazed they were that we had done so much of the preparing and planning on our own. I was very pleased with how everything turned out, and enjoyed every minute of planning and creating the wedding of my dreams!

As for advice, I would say, "Be an active part of planning your wedding. It is something that most girls dream of their entire lives, so make sure you leave no detail left unturned." 
"Make sure you pick a style, venue, and overall feeling for your wedding that fits your personality. Your guests should see decor that fits you and represents your style, not just something that is trendy or 'in style' right now, but something that you can look back on in 50 years and still be in awe about. Blend elements of modern and traditional for a timeless look." 
"The day flies by! All the months of planning whiz by in mere moments, so make sure you and your husband have a chance to step back amongst all the hustle and bustle and soak it in! After all, it is the biggest day of your lives!"

Photographer | Meg Perotti
Event Planner | Grapes of Wrath Catering
Reception | Historic Holly Farm
Florist | Ribbons and Roses Florals
Cake | Layers

Thanks so much Alison and Zack for sharing your gorgeous wedding with us!

And many thanks to the incredibly talented Meg Perotti for the stunning images!