Destination weddings have become more and more popular for newlyweds. Combining a beautiful locale, your honeymoon vacation, and a great place for guests to get a little R & R as well is the way to go for many couples. Martha Stewart has even partnered with Sandals Resorts to offer her brand of beautiful wedding packages for the destination brides and grooms.

http://www.sandals.com/weddingmoons/weddings/collections/

In honor of the new Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and their recent wedding, I wanted to dedicate this week’s blog to white weddings. I love color. But, with the intensely beautiful and elegant wedding HRH Prince William and Catherine Middleton had, I simply must praise their choice of ivory and natural greenery in the floral arrangements along with the overall theme.

Pippa Middleton, Catherine’s sister, looked incredibly beautiful in her ivory gown. And, I may be ruffling some feathers or be intensely opposed on this matter, but she looked incredible and did absolutely no “upstaging of the bride” whatsoever. I would like to dispel the belief that a maid of honor in white or ivory is inappropriate.   Pippa is not married. She is the bride’s sister. And, she is very beautiful. Yet, when Catherine Middleton arrived at Westminster Abbey, Pippa’s presence in an ivory gown complemented her.   How lovely and generous and confident of Catherine to go against people’s opinions about what brides should and should not do. Granted, Catherine was getting married to a Prince and was impossible to outshine, but I think all brides should take something from this wedding and throw the old insecurities about brides being the only ones to shine on the wedding day out the window.

Ring pillows are one of the points of interest and focus during your wedding ceremony. There is nothing cuter than a little boy who’s been kept clean and dressed in a tidy suit or outfit with the responsibility of bearing the rings that join a couple in marriage.

The basic inexpensive ring pillow is made of a cheap synthetic satin and lace. With the many Etsy, Wedzu, and custom wedding accessory designers out there, a special ring pillow that is one-of-a-kind is easy to create!   After all, you have spent all the time and effort to coordinate your wedding and make it special, why overlook the ring pillow?

My personal feeling towards ring pillows is that they should not be overly feminine. After all, we have a boy carrying the rings, and he already has to wear uncomfortable attire and be well behaved for longer than 15 minutes for goodness sakes. Why give the poor little chap a fluffy pink pillow overflowing with lace?

This spring we see bold colors everywhere! And not just in the daffodils popping and tulips opening their blooms. Bright colors are in all the fashion accessories this season and are as tempting to add to your wedding as the candy they are inspired by.

But how to incorporate that pop of orange or electric blue without looking back on the wedding photos in a few years with the same cringe you experience from looking at an 80’s bride’s bouffant hair and embellished lace brow-band attached to her veil? Well, you have to be very selective. Go for what you love and then edit!

Shoes are a great way to add a lot of personality to your wedding party. Brides today are loving the option of having a fabulous pair of blue shoes on when they walk down the isle. Blue shoes add your something blue, and are just fun!

The traditional tuberose or flower corsage is being replaced with ever more creative and personalized boutonnieres, and I for one am a huge fan!   One of my favorite ideas is the fly boutonniere. Grooms have interests and passions that can be implemented into the wedding and boutonnieres are a great way to express them. For sportsmen, there are feathers, flies, and woodsy elements that make handsome embellishment for their lapels.

www.violetsetc.com

This blog was inspired by an article I read regarding the increasing number of couples who want to reflect their concern for the environment in the choices they make for their wedding. While eliminating paper and certain traditional aspects of weddings is acceptable for some, for others there is simply no compromise for paper invitations and providing a really fun positive experience for their guests.

Invitations are the first impression a couple gives of what their celebration is all about. Today there are beautiful and numerous varieties of recycled papers and even papers that contain seeds and will grow if you toss them in the garden. Some are completely tree-less and made of highly sustainable materials like hemp! E-vites are simply not as personal as many brides want to be. Something about going to your mailbox and getting a nice envelope, opening it, and holding a beautiful invitation for a friend’s or loved one’s wedding just cannot be captured in an email.

http://www.greenfieldpaper.com/asccustompages/products.asp?fav=0&fpage=1&page=1&categoryID=49&productID=83&cartID=735278841

Chocolate is a popular and easy favor for your wedding guests.  With the huge selection of high quality chocolates available these days, you can offer some truly amazing favors at a very reasonable cost. 

One of my favorite chocolates is Ritter Sport from Germany.  They come in square bars with a lot of super yummy flavors and usually cost around $2.80.  My personal favorite is the Ritter Sport with marzipan filling.  Simply buy a quality chocolate bar and wrap it in some paper that coordinates with your invitations, reception, or theme.  Dress them up even more with a ribbon or embellishment. Print a special message on shipping address labels with a beautiful font and use them to attach your customized wrappers.   Simply measure your chocolate bar’s width and cut your paper into strips.  No need to wrap the entire bar as they are already wrapped!