If you have a pet, you know how they can easily become a member of the family. As such, many couples wish to incorporate them into their wedding day. I have come up with three ideas on how to incorporate your pets into one of the biggest days of your life (and they don’t even have to be there for some!)
Depending on your thoughts on a more traditional wedding ceremony, one option is to have your pets walk you down the aisle. As seen above, you can dress them up especially for the ceremony. One thing to consider, though, is to make sure that you have someone who can hold on to your dog during the ceremony, and who is ready to run out if your dog misbehaves. If you have a particularly rambunctious dog, this may not be the best option for you. One of my best friends had her dogs walk her down the aisle, and it couldn’t have been more perfect for her. Her dogs are extremely well trained, and I don’t think that she or her husband could have pictured the day without them. After the ceremony, they just hung out in the house on the property while the human guests partied the night away.
If you don’t want to commit to having your dog physically present at your wedding, one idea is to incorporate them into the cake topper for your wedding cake. That way, they are a special part of your big day, but you don’t have to worry about taking care of them while you’re already worried about every other detail.
The solution that I came up with was to incorporate our dog, Tucker, into our engagement photos (as seen above). We were so happy to capture this special time with him, and we ended up displaying these pictures at our wedding around the venue. We felt like this way, Tucker was there with us in spirit, even though he couldn’t physically be there.
Have you incorporated your pets into your wedding day? I’d love to hear what you did, and what the outcome was!
There are many reasons that a couple might want a wedding without flowers- allergies, flower availability (or lack thereof), budget, or they may just not like flowers. I decided to find some creative options to still have a fun personalized day, just without the floral element.
Impactful lighting can really make a difference in a wedding, and can be used as decor with or without flowers. I loved how this display brought your eye up, but also created a beautiful canopy over the tables.
Fabric is another wonderful way to add drama to your event on a lower budget. As you can see above, three pieces of fabric hung in a simple way add such an impact to this ceremony background.
Terrariums have been very popular in the blogging world lately, so I loved this beautiful decoration idea. You could easily rent terrariums from a local rental shop, and then put a few tea light candles in each, which is extremely inexpensive.
If you love the floral look, but can’t have actual flowers due to allergies, another option is paper flowers. I love these oversized paper flowers used in this wedding. While these can cost a pretty penny, they make a huge impact in terms of decor.
When I saw the company EcoFlower on the TV show Shark Tank, I was so taken with the way that they use wood to make flowers that look so real. They also come with different scents, so if you wanted your whole wedding smelling like cinnamon for some reason, that would be an option.
I love this wreath boutonniere featured on Style Me Pretty. It would be perfect for any season, but I particularly like it for a winter or spring wedding. I like that it is still masculine, since many other boutonnieres are not.
This golf tee boutonniere is such a fun way to incorporate the groom’s hobby into the wedding. This would be something easy to make on your own, which could also save money.
I love this option of parasols instead of bouquets for a sunny wedding. This could also be flipped for a rainy wedding to be clear umbrellas to protect the bridesmaids (or groomsmen) from the rain.
This wheat bouquet is one of the coolest bouquets that I have ever seen. It is tailor made for a fall wedding, and would really be different than anything that most guests have seen. I’m all about unique options, and this would definitely be unique.
As with the wheat bouquet above, this pinecone bouquet is perfect for a fall wedding, but this one could also work for a winter wedding as well. Again, this is something that could easily be made on your own, even with pinecones from your backyard!
The drama of having candles as “bouquets” is so fantastic. I could see this in a formal church wedding, or even in a nighttime woodsy wedding. These would be so beautiful.
This golden display is perfect for a fall wedding, from the pumpkins and the pinecones to the burlap and the wooden chargers. This could easily be put together for a wedding, but could also be a centerpiece for a beautiful Thanksgiving table.
These domes remind me of fairies or fireflies caught in a jar, and would be magical for an evening wedding as a centerpiece. They would provide their own glow to the table, in addition to any other lighting at the event.
For bookworms, this centerpiece would be a perfect addition to a wedding table. There is something romantic about well used books serving as centerpieces for a beautiful day.
I am obsessed with this wooden centerpiece for any wedding. I love that the couple’s initials are carved into the piece of wood, and I particularly like the moss that adds an earthy vibe to the table.
Personally, if I were to go with a centerpiece without flowers, this is what I would choose. I love how romantic candles can make a venue feel, and I think that if you have enough of them, they can be all of the decorations that you need.
If you’re married, did you have flowers at your wedding? Have you ever considered throwing something as floral-centric as a wedding without any flowers at all? I’d love to hear your comments!
When I was researching invitations for my daughter’s first birthday party, I decided to look into options that involved technology. Online event invitations have been growing in popularity for the past few years due to the low cost and eco-friendly nature of their design. I had only used one service in the past, Evite, and was curious to see if there were other similar websites that offered this service. I found 5 services that offered unique options and designs, and have detailed them for you below.
1. Evite
Photo Credit: Evite.com
We’ll start with the most recognizable site, Evite, which has over 32 million users and is definitely the most used online invitation software. They offer both free and premium paid designs for a variety of occasions. In addition to providing invitations, they also have greeting cards, party ideas, and instant gifts available.
Pros:
Easily accessible
Many designs
Customizable responses
Guests have probably used it before
Open invitations (link can be posted and guests can RSVP without you having to enter their email address)
Instant gifts and gift lists
Cons:
Fairly generic
Premium designs cost money
All greeting card designs are premium
Only an online service (cards cannot be printed)
Design your own invitation is a premium feature
2. Paperless Post
Photo Credit: Paperlesspost.com
I was so excited when friends of mine used Paperless Post for their daughter’s first birthday party, since I had never heard of any online invitation site other than Evite. When I explored their website, I was so pleased to see how many designs they offered, and the different types of events that they offered them for. Any invitation can be customized to your liking.
Pros:
Partnerships with brands like Kate Spade, Disney, and Rifle Paper Co.
Most designs are free, with the exception of designer invitations
Displays a map of the location on the invitation
Designs can be ordered as a paper version so that you have a keepsake or for a relative that does not use email
Cons:
RSVP process can get a bit confusing if you add all of the features available
Not as recognizable of a name as Evite- attendees may not recognize that it is an online invitation
There are many upgrade options for cards, but they all cost money
3. Pingg
Photo Credit: Pingg.com
Pingg launched in 2008, and has been hosting online invitations and greeting cards ever since. They are the only online invitation site that allows independent designers to create their own collections and earn money off of their designs.
Pros:
Option to add potluck item sign ups on invitation
Option to add photos and videos to the invitation
Ability to create a gift fund to go in on a group gift for an event honoree
Tickets can be sold for events through Pingg’s software
Designs can be ordered as a paper version so that you have a keepsake or for a relative that does not use email
Cons:
Guest list size is limited to 75 unless you pay
Tickets sold for events cost $1.00 each, so cost may be a factor
The interface is not as aesthetically pleasing as others, so it’s not as enjoyable of an experience creating an invitation
Not as recognizable of a name as Evite- attendees may not recognize that it is an online invitation
4. Punchbowl
Photo Credit: Punchbowl.com
Punchbowl is an online event invitation site that offers designs with favorite childhood characters, handmade cards, and many more beautiful designs. They have different membership levels for higher tier events, and even have a business membership for corporate events.
Pros:
All invitation types have easy to navigate buttons at the top that let you search for cards based on things like the children’s character that you want on the card, or the age of the honored guest
You can send a card as an invitation that includes an RSVP, or a Save the Date without an RSVP
Digital envelope is included in the free membership
Option to add potluck item sign ups on invitation
Partnerships with venues like Chuck E. Cheese’s and Color Me Mine for themed invitations
Cons:
You need a paid membership to get advanced features and premium designs
Not as recognizable of a name as Evite- attendees may not recognize that it is an online invitation
5. Smilebox
Photo Credit: Smilebox.com
Smilebox is a bit different than the other sites that I have detailed above, because it is a program that you download rather than being hosted on a website. Smilebox allows you to create a full experience with the card that you send, including the option to add a slideshow and music.
Pros:
Add photos and videos to your card to personalize the recipient’s experience
Send slideshows to recipients as a way to provide more information and in a way that makes most sense to your event
Cards are animated, which really sets them apart from designs from other sites
You can share cards by email, an online link, printing them at home, saving them as a JPG, or ordering high quality prints directly through Smilebox
Cons:
You have to download the software to use their product
There is a bit of a learning curve with their software, because it is set up so differently from the other online invitation sites
I ended up going with Paperless Post for my daughter’s birthday, because I loved the simple user interface, as well as the fact that I could upload my own design for no additional fee. I absolutely loved it!
I would love to hear if you have any experience with any of these websites, or if you know of any others that I missed!
For my daughter Riley’s first birthday party, I wanted to pick a theme that wasn’t very common, but that would be easy to find or make decorations for. I spent months thinking of every possible theme I could wrap my mind around, but then one of my friends would inevitably use that theme for one of their kids. Eventually, I decided that a traditional picnic birthday party would be perfect for our needs. I searched for red gingham on every website I could find, and got planning.
I tried to stick to the traditional parts of a picnic as my decorating scheme. I used plenty of red gingham, fake grass, red wagons, picnic baskets, and some adorable little ants. I honestly didn’t know how it was all going to come together on the day of the party, and I bought way more than I actually needed, but it all turned out great in the end.
I hired my friend Aly to make the desserts for the party (find her on Instagram at Dollys_BakeShop) and everything turned out SO beautiful. We ordered four different flavors of cupcakes (s’mores, lemon vanilla, strawberry shortcake, and brown sugar vanilla) and a four inch vanilla bean smash cake for Riley to destroy enjoy. I bought the little burlap cupcake flags from Hobby Lobby (link) and painted the color coded hearts on each one to signify what flavor they were. We decided to use our mini radio flyer wagon as the smash cake stand to set it apart from the cupcakes.
Lucky for me, my parents offered up their backyard for us to host the party in, and with the backyard came this amazing popcorn machine. This was a once in a lifetime find that my mom and I scored at a garden show for $50. They sold it as a non-working popcorn machine, and once we got home my dad ordered the parts that were needed and had it working within a week. Guests (especially little ones) enjoyed fresh popped popcorn until the main course was ready.
I had grand plans for what I wanted the favors to be. I was planning to make cookies in the shapes of fruit, and individually ice them to look like the fruit they tasted like. I had planned to do this because I had bought these berry baskets (pictured above) and wanted to use them in a creative way. Once I realized how much I really had to do the days leading up to the party, that was immediately out the window. I ended up picking up blueberry muffins from Costco (those amazing giant ones) and individually cling wrapping each one to put in a basket. This saved so much time, and I got a lot of feedback of how cute this idea was.
In terms of entertainment, we had a couple of options. We had bocce ball available to play or watch (sometimes watching is even more fun with our family) and we also had bubbles for the little ones. It was hilarious, because once we turned on the bubble machine it was like a beacon for every kid in the party. They came from left and right and all gathered around the bubble machine. Best $20 I’ve ever spent!
We ended the party with cake, and the birthday girl smashed the heck out of her own little one. Overall this was a very successful event (especially since it was the first ever kids birthday party that I had planned).
partydarlings.com 