Country Charm Wedding

We're wrapping up wedding week with one of the sweetest weddings I've ever been part of. From the story of how these two came together to the dessert bar reception...everything about this day was just, well, sweet. And I couldn't have wished a sweeter day for two more deserving people! 

Meet Jen & Tim...

I could write an entire blog post on the incredible story of how God brought these two and their amazing families together. Jen is by far one of the strongest women I know with a faith like no other...so to see her find such a kind and caring protector like Tim was a true answer to many prayers.

For their big day, Jen and Tim wanted a simple and intimate setting for their closest family and friends in an afternoon ceremony followed by a dessert reception. And if you know the bride, there are two things she loves: cowboy boots and the Clemson Tigers! So of course, those had to be tied into the theme of this country casual fall wedding. 

All the guests who sported their favorite boots!

Instead of a traditional guest book, family and friends signed these log slabs instead!

The ceremony and reception were both held in the same room, but to keep things casual, the bride opted for round tables for both the ceremony and reception....or what I like to call a "family style" ceremony.  

With wood slabs, burlap, pinecones and pumpkins...these fall centerpieces were accented with some bright fall flowers (including Clemson orange and purple, of course) to match the bride's bouquet.

Oh, and remember my awesome Craigslist fireplace mantle find from my sister-in-law's wedding? Well it made an appearance here as well, but with a few more "country style" accents!

After the ceremony, guests were serenaded by live music from our buddy Chris Cauley (you might remember him from Team Adam on NBC's The Voice) while they enjoyed some amazing desserts!

Then it was time to send off the happy couple! But you can't do sparklers in the middle of the day, so the bride hand made ribbon wands to wave them off..in true Clemson football style, of course.

Cheers to a lifetime of love...and cowboy boots. 

Congrats Jen & Tim!

Photo Credit: http://lindsayhooten.com

All photos were provided by my dear friend Lindsay over at Lindsay Hooten Photography...if you're in the Atlanta area, you should check her out!

Pink & Purple Wedding

We're having a blast talking all things weddings this week!

Today, let me introduce you to Emily & Clinton...

Photo Credit: http://www.sugarsnapatl.com

These two are super special to me. That's because for this wedding, not only was I the designer, planner and florist...I was also sister-in-law to the bride and matron of honor. (talk about pulling double duty!) 

Photo Credit: http://www.sugarsnapatl.com

When it comes to siblings in law...I hit the jackpot with this gal, she's just swell. We did this same pose at my wedding (see below right) and of course, had to carry on the tradition!

Photo Credit: http://www.sugarsnapatl.com

Photo Credit: http://www.sugarsnapatl.com

cinderella-carriage

Anywho...if you know Emily, you know she loves all things fairytale related. In fact, Clinton even proposed to her with an adorable Cinderella carriage snow globe (that we displayed on their cake table) So from the princess style ball gown to the sweetheart cupcakes and every detail in between, we wanted to make her day feel like her own special farytale. I LOVED the bright pink, purple and black color palette she chose...it was so vibrant and fun! And when we found dyed hydrangeas to match her vision, we hit the jackpot!

Let's start with the flowers. Sam's Club came through for me again with a great selection of affordable flowers, and perfect colors to match! (to read more about how I used Sam's Club for my own wedding bouquets, check out my DIY tutorial HERE) 

Oh my word our tiny apartment was busting with flowers! (did I mention my hubby's allergic? oops!)

Emily wanted bouquets, but she also wanted flowers integrated into all of her centerpieces, so this order cost a little more than my last, but for just under $700 here's what we got:

1 Large bridal bouquet

6 Large bridesmaids bouquets

2 Mother's carry bouquets

3 Grandmother's carry bouquets

13 Boutonnieres

20 Centerpiece arrangements

12 Aisle arrangements

2 Large buffet table arrangements

7-10 small arrangements for altar and other accent tables

Talk about getting some bang for your buck! We had flowers everywhere and they were gorgeous! The bouquets and arrangements were made up of pink & purple hydrangeas, green hypericum berries, hot pink roses and purple tulips.

Photo Credit: http://sugarsnapatl.com

Photo Credit: http://sugarsnapatl.com

Photo Credit: http://sugarsnapatl.com

Photo Credit: http://sugarsnapatl.com

Photo Credit: http://sugarsnapatl.com

Photo Credit: http://sugarsnapatl.com

Now let's talk decor. Emily wanted this fairytale day to have a country club setting with a slightly rustic feel (which I love, because in wedding world these days rustic is the new black). So we accented her decor with touches of burlap and mason jars...galvanized buckets and vintage lanterns, barn wood framed chalk boards and DIY distressed table number frames. It was lovely!

Photo Credit: http://sugarsnapatl.com

Did you see that adorable little sketch in the picture above? That's actually their save the date. The bride's grandfather is an artist, and he sketched that picture for them. My husband then scanned it in and added the text...it was so cute and personalized just for them! I also designed all of the Bride & Groom's invitations, programs and wedding favors. I created a custom "logo" for them that we placed on any of the printed signage for the day such as place cards, etc.

The logo I created for them.

The wedding favors were another adorable burlap touch, complete with the couple's logo and filled with purple and silver Hershey's Hugs & Kisses.

One of my favorite pieces we created for Emily & Clinton's big day was the fireplace mantle altar. Since the wedding was at a country club, there was no "traditional" altar for the focal point. In fact, the ceremony and reception took place in the same room, so while the guests were enjoying cocktail hour on the gorgeous veranda, the room was flipped...however this altar remained in the room and doubled as a backdrop for the dance floor. I actually scored the mantle off of Craigslist for $50...what a steal! (the story of how we actually got it to fit in a vehicle is a comical tale for another day...let's just save you the trouble now and say it will NOT fit in a Rav4)

The mantle was in great condition, so we just added two wood planks at the bottom to enable it to stand up and painted them white. I bought some sheer curtains at Ikea for $5 (similar HERE) and tacked them on the back to give the center some filler, and then we ran a strand of twinkle lights along the back of the opening to give it a soft backlight glow effect once the sun went down. It turned out beautifully!

Another subtle fairytale touch with the unity candle. Photo Credit: http://sugarsnapatl.com

Photo Credit: http://sugarsnapatl.com

Photo Credit: http://sugarsnapatl.com

For the aisle, we couldn't actually do an aisle runner because the dance floor was already in place, so to jazz it up I created mason jar floral arrangements and accented them with burlap. We then dressed the center aisle with pink, purple and white rose petals.

They're married! Dancing back down the aisle. Photo Credit: http://sugarsnapatl.com

After a cocktail hour on the veranda, the guests came back into the ballroom for dinner and dancing....oh, there was so much dancing! The centerpieces contained an eclectic mix of vintage lanterns (no two tables were the same!), with mason jars wrapped in burlap, tied with ribbon that matched our bridesmaids dresses and filled with white hydrangeas.

Photo Credit: http://sugarsnapatl.com

Those table number frames cost $1 each from Michael's. I painted them a purplish pink to match the decor and overlaid a layer of ivory to give it more of a rustic/distressed look. We used chalk-paper card stock (did you know they make that?! It's awesome!) and chalk pens, both also from Michael's.

Photo Credit: http://sugarsnapatl.com

And here's just a few more of my favorite shots from the day...

Photo Credit: http://sugarsnapatl.com

Photo Credit: http://sugarsnapatl.com

Photo Credit: http://sugarsnapatl.com

Photo Credit: http://sugarsnapatl.com

Photo Credit: http://sugarsnapatl.com

Venue: Dunwoody Country Club

Hair & Makeup: Sineat Heintzelman (she's amazing!!)

Flowers & Decor Design: Sweetwood Creative Co.

Wedding Cupcakes: Gigi's Cupcakes of Buckhead

Dress: Bride Beautiful

Here's to Emily & Clinton's Happily Ever After!

Rustic Chic Bouquets

As we continue with Wedding Week, today I'm excited to introduce you to Lindsey & Jonathan...

Their wedding day was just so sweet, but their love story and illustration of God's faithfulness has been even sweeter. Lindsey is a co-worker and friend of mine, and I've known Jonathan for years...so it's been really cool to watch two friends I've known independently come together and fall in love. And I was so honored to be able to play a small role in their special day!

When Lindsey and I sat down to discuss her vision for the bouquets, I knew she wanted three things:

1.  Rustic in style

2. Blush and white in color

3. Affordable

So I created 8 bouquets, 1 flower girl bouquet, 2 large ceremony arrangements, 8 medium sized reception arrangements and about 40 (yes 40..see pic below) small baby's breath arrangements for the reception tables...all for right around $450.

The bouquets consisted of the following flowers:

Blush Garden Roses
White Garden Roses
White Hydrangeas
Dusty Miller
Baby's Breath
White Hypericum Berries
Blush Spray Roses

I wrapped them all in burlap and tied with twine to continue the rustic feel. They matched perfectly with the bridesmaids blush dresses!

All photos courtesy of Kyle Hale

Congrats to the happy new couple!

Real Weddings: Simply Sweet Hydrangeas

Summer is definitely here, and everywhere I go in Atlanta I see all those beautiful hydrangea bushes in full bloom! In honor of those beauties, I thought i'd treat you to a glimpse into another set of DIY hydrangea flowers I did for an amazing couple...who happen to be some dear friends of mine!

Photo Credit: http://www.theduplooys.net

Kristin and Joe had a sweet and simple intimate morning wedding in an old industrial building that's been converted into a church.  With a minimal color palette and rustic DIY touches, the bride created a perfect atmosphere for brunch with their closest friends and family.

Photo Credit: http://www.theduplooys.net

She selected pure white hydrangeas as her flower of choice for both her centerpieces and bouquets that I made. I added a few white roses and some baby's breath to the bride's bouquet to give it just a little extra texture. (my poor boyfriend, now husband, he got roped into helping me transport everything!)

Photo Credit: http://www.theduplooys.net

Photo Credit: http://www.theduplooys.net

For the centerpieces, we continued the hydrangea and burlap look by wrapping galvanized buckets in burlap and matching ribbon, then adding three hydrangea bushes to each bucket. 

We cut green (wet) floral foam blocks to fit in the buckets, soaked them fully in water and inserted them into the bottom of the bucket.

We then paired that with the cute DIY table number frames made by the bride.

Photo Credit: http://www.theduplooys.net

I just loved some of the personal touches, like the wedding favor coffee cup sleeves made by the bride for the coffee/hot chocolate bar!

Photo Credit: http://www.theduplooys.net

Photo Credit: http://www.theduplooys.net

Here's to a lifetime of love just as simply sweet as they day they became one!

Photo Credit: http://www.theduplooys.net

Photo Credit: http://www.theduplooys.net

Photo Credit: http://www.theduplooys.net

Photo Credit: http://www.theduplooys.net

DIY Wedding Bouquets for under $350

When it comes to weddings one of the most beautiful, yet most expensive budget line items always winds up being flowers. You wouldn't believe some of the quotes I got from florists, just for the bouquets alone, mind you (we're not even talking centerpieces, decor, etc). I literally could have funded our entire honeymoon with what some were asking. (hmm...sit on the beach and sip fruity drinks with my love, or have pretty flowers that will last about 3.2 days. Yep, that was a no brainer)

Photographer: Sugar Snap Photography

But the good news is, with a little elbow grease and some creativity, I made my own bouquets for about a third of the price, AND I got to sit on the beach without feeling guilt for the money I was throwing down the drain for flowers! Winning!

Here's what I made:

1 Bridal bouquet

9 (yes, NINE) Bridesmaids bouquets

2 Mothers mini-bouquets

4 Grandmothers mini-bouquets

2 Ceremony floral arrangements

Rose Petals for the flower girls

And do you know how much that all cost me (including supplies and ribbon)? A whopping $345.64! And guess what, they were just as beautiful as the bouquets I had picked out in the magazine...I couldn't have been happier!

Photo: Sugar Snap Photography

Here's how I did it:

I first spent days looking online to get an idea of what type of flowers I wanted. I knew I wanted to include hydrangeas in my bouquet because not only are they beautiful, but they are very full...so a little goes a long way in making a bouquet look bigger with less flowers to purchase. I love roses, so I knew I wanted to include a few of those as well. And I knew I wanted my bouquets to be round and a pop of green (to match my shoes and my color scheme of gray with dark purple & green accents).

I went to the Sam's Club website and here is what I ordered:

Lime Green Hydrangeas (30 Stems)

Green Baby Hydrangeas (40 Stems)

Green & White Roses (125 Stems)

Green Hypericum Berries (100 Stems) Note: I loved the added depth these surprisingly gave the bouquets!

The total for all of the flowers came to about $326 (and BONUS: Sam's Club had FREE shipping!). Then I spent about $20 on green floral tape, burlap and ribbons. I would recommend ordering the flowers so that they arrive by Thursday for a Saturday wedding. That gives you a day to receive them, clip and put them in fresh water (as soon as they arrive...this is important) and still be able to make them Friday morning while having the rest of your day to enjoy the rehearsal, rehearsal dinner & wedding without having to feel rushed! This also gave us a buffer for shipping error...which happened to be a great thing, because my roses were delayed a day due to a hurricane! Yikes!

Once you receive your flowers, clip them, and let them drink some water over night (they travel a long way, those puppies are thirsty when they arrive!), here are the other supplies you'll need:

Green Floral Tape (I used about 2-3 rolls for 10 bouquets)

Burlap

Ribbon of your choice

Glue gun

Floral clippers

Clear plastic rubber bands (they help hold the bottom of the bouquet together where you want it while you wrap with floral tape)

An extra pair of hands to help hold the bouquets while you wrap is super helpful.

I started with the bridesmaids bouquets...I had 9 to make, so I knew they'd take the longest! Here are the flowers I used for each of these bouquets:

3 large hydrangea stems

2-3 mini-hydrangea stems

4 green roses

3-4 hypericum berries

I stripped the leaves off of all the flowers except the large hydrangeas...I used those as the "base" greenery around the bottom of the bouquet. Once you arrange the bouquet in your hand how you like it, place a clear plastic rubberband at the top of the stems (about where you want to start your tape...leave a small space at the top to see a little bit of the stem) and one at the bottom, where you will end your tape. Have someone else hold the bouquet while you wrap the stems tightly with floral tape and secure. (this tape is sticky, so it will stick to itself...no need to glue it down)

Once your'e done with that, place the bouquet in water and set aside. Note: It was easier to do this process for all the bouquets first, then add the burlap and ribbon together as the last step, because the floral tape will leave your hands sticky!

Next I made the bridal bouquet:

5-6 large hydrangea stems

3-4 mini-hydrangea stems

8-9 white roses

5-6 hypericum berrie stems

I basically did the same procedure as the bridesmaids bouquets, I just made mine slightly larger, and used only the white roses (instead of green ones) to make it look a little different. I used green ribbon with my bouquet to match my green shoes, and on the bridesmaids bouquet I used dark purple ribbon to match their shoes.

Photo: Sugar Snap Photography

The mother's & grandmother's mini-bouquets were basically smaller versions of the bridesmaids bouquets with 3 roses, 2-3 mini-hydrangea stems and 2-3 hypericum berries...sadly I couldn't find a picture of those - sorry!

Once you've got all of your bouquets assembled, it's time for the burlap and ribbon. We cut a piece of burlap just slightly larger than the width of the floral tape around the stems, and left room to fold down the top and bottom sides (so that the edges were smooth and not jagged).  Fold down the top and bottom edges of the burlap, wrap around the base of the bouquet and secure with one line of hot glue (be careful not to burn yourself!) you'll need an extra pair of hands for this process as well to get it tight and secure.

After the glue dries, tie the ribbon of your choice around the center, where the tie will face outward. I chose to tie mine in a knot, you can do a bow as well...it's totally whatever look you prefer!

For an extra touch of glam, as well as my something old and borrowed, I added a beautiful brooch from one of my grandmothers, and underneath it, I tied my other grandmother's original wedding band. They looked beautiful and made my bouquet extra special...I felt like I was carrying them down the aisle with me!

Photo: Sugar Snap Photography

Once you're done with your bouquets, be sure to store them in a vase with water and also in a cool place - hydrangeas are absolutely beautiful, but they do wilt easy...keep them cool!!

And that's it, beautiful bouquets for about a third of the price... I couldn't have been happier with the way they turned out and the money we saved!

Photogapher: Sugar Snap Photography

Photographer: Sugar Snap Photography

Photo: Sugar Snap Photography

Hope this helps for any brides who are toying with the idea of doing  your own bouquets...please feel free to comment below with any questions! Happy arranging!

Photos Courtesy of : Sugar Snap Photography

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