Jason and Joanna's North Idaho Wedding

Our friends Jason and Joanna got married on July 9th, 2011 in Bonner's Ferry Idaho. Yesterday I shared details of Joanna's cute bridal shower, so today I wanted to share some of my favorite pictures from their wedding. All of these photos were taken by Cali Jenae Photography. If you're looking for a wedding photographer, or someone to do your family portraits in eastern Washington / north Idaho, it looks like she does a great job and I know Jason and Joanna really liked her. Dylan and I have been wanting to do a fun, relaxed couple session, so we might have to give her a call!

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JoJo with her sisters, Maggie, Carly and Bryne.
I love this one extra! Jason with all of the girls sending smooches cracks me up!

The talented Joanna made her own wedding cake! How crazy is that?! It looks so beautiful!

That location in Bonner's Ferry looks gorgeous. It covers all of the bases -- they get a picture with mountains, a picture with meadow, a picture in the forest, and even a picture with a river flowing behind them!

We just want to wish our dear friends the best! Jason and JoJo, we love you guys and we wish you a lifetime of love, health and happiness together! Congratulations!

Joanna's Rustic Carnival Theme Bridal Shower

Recently I attended my friend Joanna's bridal shower. Her sisters Carly and Bryne created an adorable carnival themed shower that was laid-back and kid-friendly. I wanted to share the details, as well as capture the day for Joanna.

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The bridal shower was held at the home of one of her bridesmaids in Rathdrum, Idaho. The song lyric "over the river and through the woods" summed this location up just about perfectly! It was a hidden gem in an otherwise residential neighborhood. I couldn't believe how beautiful it was; I envy Audrey for getting to wake up out there every morning! The surroundings were so rustic and earthy, I loved it!

The bales of hay really did double duty by adding to the carnival vibe and providing extra seating. Some of the kids put on a puppet show for entertainment using the elaborate puppet show stage.

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JoJo's mom and a family friend worked the food both. They served fun carnival themed food -- corndogs, popcorn, bags of peanuts and corn on the cob. They also did prize giveaways of gourmet treats!

The yard was filled with funny wedding related carnival games. The resident puppy especially loved the "Cake in the Face" game, because it meant he got to sneak over and help clean up the cupcakes and frosting that people were throwing!

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My personal favorite detail was the fun face-cut-out prop of a bride and groom. That's Joanna as the bride and me as the groom!


This is Joanna with her newly married twin sister Carly. Of course they were maids of honor for each other.


JoJo's sister Bryne and a friend made these sweet treats as a parting gift. What says carnival more than caramel apples? Yum!

Citrus Punch – Backyard BBQ Wedding Theme!

I just showed Dylan this inspiration board and he said, “I’m not sure I’d be able to make it through the ceremony if I knew there was a reception like that waiting! YUM!”

I think that’s a pretty great summary for this theme. I call it citrus punch because it’s filled with so many bright, juicy fruit colors: tangerine, apricot, peach, mango and papaya shades of orange, with pineapple and lemon yellow.

This theme really emphasizes the fantastic food and informal fun atmosphere. Who wouldn’t love a backyard BBQ with bright yellow napkins and gingham tablecloths, homemade pies, cupcakes, and refreshing summer drinks? You could even do it potluck style if you’re on a really tight budget.

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Once again, Martha Stewart provided lots of help with the visuals, including the BBQ feast, the assortment of delicious pies, the apricot tart, the apricot place card holder, the peach prosecco sangria, the groom with the orange dahlia boutonniere, and the majority of the bouquets. Another appealing aspect for Dylan was that I had also shown him the Paloma Cooler recipe I found on Martha Stewart.

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The sweet photo in the center of the board is from one of my favorite photographers, Stephanie Williams.

The lemon cupcakes are by Jesi Haack Weddings and Sweet & Saucy Shop.

The orange marmalade was photographed by Victoria Pearson.

The pretty yellow and orange themed table and the matching stationery are both from a real wedding photographed by Union Photo.

I like the idea of a simple tan suit (maybe linen for a hot summer day), maybe with this J.Press bowtie.


The cute orange elbow length sleeve pleated cardigan sweater is from Banana Republic. Perfect for the bride or her attendants if the evening festivities start to get chilly.

Etsy finds:

The Chateauroux large flower hair clip is by Mandizzle. She’s going to think I’m stalking her with as often as I’ve incorporated her stuff, but she really does just have a great variety of lovely hair accessories. Plus, as I may have mentioned before, she looks like a super model, and I like to add lots of pretty to my palettes.

The mango pearl earrings (called Henna) and the honey jade earrings that reminds me of peach Jelly Bellys (called Vilette) are both by ThePeachTree.

The tangerine flower ring is by IndiaAndChic.

The green background of this picture throws it off a little, but look at these insanely adorable mason jar lemonades I found on Intimate Weddings! They would be so perfect with this theme.


If you do go with a theme like this, I have a great MONEY SAVING TIP – try to find a local flower farm and see what they’ve got that you might be able to use. I actually put an ad up on Craigslist for a friend of mine saying that we were looking for a certain color of flower, preferably something with large blooms and ended up receiving emails from a dahlia farmer and a begonia farmer who both offered insanely good deals. We’re talking about a dollar per stem, versus the several dollars per stem most florists would charge. For this palette in particular, I especially love dahlias and ranunculus. Daffodils, gerbera daisies and sunflowers would all be gorgeous, too.

Also, if you go with this theme, feel free to invite us! Or at least send us pictures.

Light Blue and Red -- Cute and Crafty Theme!

I just asked Dylan what color I should call this shade of blue and he said, "Chartreuse?" I laughed and had to tell him that was actually a shade of green. Then he tried, "Um... light blue?" so at least he was getting closer.

Initially I wanted to do an aqua and red wedding palette, but as I sorted through photos I decided that the cute crafty stuff that I liked best was closer to a sky blue, pool blue, or yes, even just light blue.

I love the spunky combination of textures and patterns. I decided to use fewer pictures for this board because I didn't want to overwhelm the eye with too many details.

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The stitched flower cake by The Caketress (Lori Hutchinson Designs) inspired this board -- I just thought it was cute as a button!

The program pockets on the white chairs are from Martha Stewart.

The candy cones are from Brides.com (photo by Dasha Wright).

The rest are my crafty Etsy finds:

The button blossoms on the top right and bottom left corners are Retro Red and Aqua Plaid Pair by ButtonTails.

The cute little hair clips that go perfectly with that great cake are called Red White and Blue Trio by NinjaBowTique.

I love the button accents on the cake, so I also thought the Fresh Summer Red and Blue Button Charm Bracelet by MrsGibson was a great addition, too.

The Red Poppies Enclosure Cards with Aqua Envelopes are by Michelle Brusegaard.

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I started imagining more details of how a theme like this could be used for a wedding, and I started thinking about some wedding pictures I'd seen recently of a light-hearted, informal wedding where the groom was wearing a western style shirt untucked. This would be a cool theme for a couple with a rockabilly style, but it makes me imagine a wedding in the middle of a meadow somewhere like Montana or Wyoming. It's just relaxed and cool, with a whole lot of personality and spunk.

Here are some examples of some shirts that could be paired up with today's theme. These are all from Nordstrom:

(I think I'd like this one better if it were long sleeved, but the colors and pattern are good.)

(Is it just me, or does this guy want to be Robert Pattinson's less appealing brother? Still, it is a pretty color of sky blue. Especially if you have a blue eyed groom.)

(The colors aren't as good on this shirt, but this is more the style and fit I was looking for.)

Warm Whites

Please don't think I've gotten lazy, I've just been spending a tremendous amount of time in the last few days trying to research some local venues. As it turns out, some of my favorite venues right now aren't so local afterall. We're going to make arrangements to go visit some of those venues over the next couple of weeks. Keep your eyes peeled, because as we narrow it down, I plan to show some lovely venues scattered around the Spokane and Seattle areas. Maybe even western Montana!

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Today's palette is all about pure, delicate and lovely white. This board is full of warm white, ivory, cream, and white chocolate.

There's something breezy and effortlessly elegant about white. With this board I emphasized dainty and feminine with bite-sized sweets and floral accents.

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I am in love with well done candy buffets. I think the colorful buffets are a ton of fun, but there's something both bridal and comforting about an all white dessert buffet.

The sweets I'm showcasing here are by two of my favorite event planners: Amy Atlas and Lollipop Events.

The gorgeous ice cylinder full of branches used to chill the bottle was photographed by the insanely talented Kathryn Kleinman.

Martha Stewart provided the delicate pressed sugar boxes and the Mexican wedding cakes.

The featured Etsy crafter of the day is Mandizzle. That's the beautiful girl in the center of the board who makes those gorgeous floral hair accents. She even looks like a blushing bride! The three pieces shown are called The Bloom (on top), The Bliss (bottom left) and one of my personal favorites, The Cora (in the center and on the bottom.)

I also wanted to share these fantastic Badgley Mischka shoes I found on Endless!

Bottle Green and Dark Cherry Red

I've been brainstorming for this theme for a while, but it took a little extra time because I decided I needed to make two inspiration boards to really get the idea across the way I was hoping.

If you're planning an early July wedding, it's the perfect time to use fresh cherries. There are several delicious varieties of cherries available, but I looked for bing cherries for this palette. On the other hand, this color palette could be made really versatile for almost any season.

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Martha Stewart is responsible for the majority of luscious cherry desserts I used in this style board. The bing cherry mojitos look especially terrific!

The heart and star shaped pocket pies are actually from Williams-Sonoma. If you've got a knack for baking, what a cute DIY idea!

The fresh cherry topped wedding cake was from a real wedding on The Knot.

The individual boxes of cherries for wedding favors are by Intimate Weddings. I've just started exploring that page, but I'm definitely going to spend more time there. MS had a similar idea, but her cherry favors are in scalloped paper bags.

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I decided to call this color bottle green, but I would also consider it a tourmaline green. Tourmaline is one of my favorite stones, so that's what I searched for on Etsy to find some beautiful accessories.

Etsy finds (from left to right):

• Royal Ann Pearl Earrings by The Peach Tree (these are perfect for this theme!)
• Green Tourmaline White Gold Ring by mastergoldcraft (they use conflict-free diamonds!)
• Tessa Earrings with Green Quartz and Rock Crystal by L'atelier des Bijoux (I love the little green quartz rondelle beads!)
• Sterling Silver and Pearl Bauble Ring by TZTUDIO (you can custom order this ring in a ton of gorgeous color combos -- these would be great bridesmaid gifts!)

The Green Tourmaline Raw Circle Solitaire Ring pictured on the top and bottom of the center row is by singleBbeautiful. Her rings are gorgeous, and many of them are stackable. I love that they're simple, handcrafted and lovely. She also uses recycled metals and gives the option of conflict-free diamonds.

The gorgeous green dress, the burgundy satin halter dress, and the longer burgundy lace halter dress are from Amazon. They're all less than $100! The dress on the model is scarlet tissue taffeta by Lazaro.

And last but not least, the shoes are all from Endless.

From top to bottom:

Mia Mabel T-Strap Pumps in Hunter Green

Nine West Hearts Mary Janes in Dark Red

Seychelles Silver Spoon Leather Wedge in Green

Refreshing Summer Reception Idea!

The first aqua and orange style board I posted two days ago incorporated pictures from a circus themed wedding. It had me thinking about the circus, carnivals, and going to the fair on a hot summer day. It gave me a fun idea that I wanted to share with you, especially if you're planning a summer wedding: SNOWCONES!

I did a little search and found Fresher Than Fresh Snowcones.

How adorable would it be to have someone like Lindsay and her little snowcone trailer at your outdoor reception?

It sounds like they have some really tasty and unique flavor combinations, like watermelon basil, green tea pear, lemon prickly pear and espresso with Mexican cane sugar.

If you don't live in Kansas City, you'll have to do a local search for a snowcone vendor in your area. While you might not be lucky enough to find someone with freshly made syrups, it looks like there are some fun snowcone syrup flavors readily available online. I saw a list of syrups that included flavors like Lychee, Daiquiri, Mango Margarita, and Passion Fruit. I've even seen Wedding Cake and Red Velvet Cake flavors! It'd be a great way to incorporate your palette into your reception by choosing syrups that compliment your color scheme. On the other hand, I've also seen flavors with disturbingly mysterious names like Ninja Turtle, Tiger Blood, Spongebob Squarepants, Rock N Roll, Popeye and Silver Fox. I'd steer clear of those, even if they do match your colors. :-P

P.S. It could also be a delicious and refreshing grown-up treat to make snowcones with something like Kahlua or a fruity liqueur.

Aqua, Orange and Yellow Wedding

I have decided to make a part two for the aqua and orange wedding theme, because I found so many cool possibilities.

Yesterday was aqua and orange, with dark brown accents. Today is aqua, orange, and yellow. I kept the orange yesterday a soft, almost coral color. Today the orange is brighter, ranging from papaya to persimmon. Speaking of tropical fruit, I think this would be a good island wedding palette.

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All of the larger photos and the flowers on this board are from a lovely wedding featured on amorology. I love that their tables are marked with cute names like Honey Buns and Lemon Drop, and that they decorated them in such a cute and simple way with feverfew flowers.

The gorgeous candy and dessert buffets were made by Sweet & Saucy Shop and Jesi Haack Weddings. Check out Sweet & Saucy's blog here and Jesi Haack Wedding's blog here. I wish they were all in my neighborhood, because their desserts and events look lovely!

The Spiegel Signature Graceful Jersey Empire-Waist Dress in Persimmon is available on Amazon for under $50. The aqua bridesmaid dress is by Watters.

The orange shoes are Diego di Lucca Ladonna Flats. The Velvet Angels Rainbow Room D'Orsay Pumps in Pool Blue might be perfect for your "something blue" if you're splurging.

My Etsy finds on this board are the aqua and tangerine glass lampwork bead bracelet by Steinbem and the Scrabble tile pendants called Mod Pop Flowers and Aqua Orange Paisley by Blue Finger Studios. I think these would all make cute little gifts for your bridesmaids. Blue Finger Studios is even offering a special right now that when you buy 3 pendants, you get the fourth one free. They have a ton to choose from, and from what I can see, they're all less than $10 - go nuts!

I think these earrings are pretty if you're looking for aqua with darker orange. They're called Exuberant by Designs by Autumn, made with apatite and carnelian briolettes.

I think this JPress bowtie is fun for this palette, too.

Aqua and Orange Wedding

I keep seeing the color combination of aqua and orange lately, and even though I'm not always big on orange, I love this palette. I have found so many great pictures, I think I may even make this a two part theme! I also included some dark brown accents on this board, but you could really play with this palette to customize it for spring, summer, or autumn.

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Some of my inspiration came from a really fun, whimsical circus themed wedding that was captured the photos of Josh Goleman. The details are great, including a kissing booth and the bride wearing a super short and flirty dress that you can almost picture up on the highwire. I'm also loving this trend of 'photo booth' style shots of wedding guests in funny poses or with interesting props. When we find a photographer, I'm going to have to see if we can make arrangements for something like that!

Another website that has some fantastic inspiration is amorology. I just discovered it recently, and it's definitely one of my new favorites. She recently posted a wedding with yellow, orange and aqua that I'm going to try to incorporate more in part two of this theme.

The cutesy eyelet lace look L-O-V-E sign, and the guest books in the lower right corner are from Darling Dexter, as are these color coordinated napkins:

Whitney (the voice of Darling Dexter) and her husband Dustin had a beautiful wedding with this color palette and tons of lovely DIY details.

The rest is from Etsy! I always like to include some handmade crafts into my themes, and I found a ton of great stuff using these colors!

• The orange rosette and aqua beaded necklace (called Scent of Lisabetta) is by Sora Designs.
  
• The tangerine chrysanthemum ring is by Gingeroni1.
  
• The orange / aqua stripe tie is by MeandMatilda.
  
• The funky bib style crocheted necklace is called Summer Statement by DaintyCrochetByAly. (Maybe I'm partial because we share a name?)
  
• The invitations are called Mum Madness by Decadent Designs.
  
• The turquoise button with coral flower earrings are by Sincerely Beaded.
  
• The coral branches picture is by ara133photography.
  
• The Clara earrings by JLeeOhioDesigns feature tiny briolette faceted citrine and moonstone with large blue topaz. While they are more expensive than what I usually try to feature here, her jewelry is really beautiful and I have to give Jennifer props for being a proud ASPCA supporter. Me too, Jennifer!
  
• A more budget friendly option could be the aqua chalcedony and orange carnelian drop earrings by The Gem Shoppe.
  
• I also think this Festival Felt Button Bracelet by Poor Robin is really cute with this theme:
  
  

I forgot to add this earlier, but I love love love these shoes with today's theme. They're John Fluevog Men's Rusnak in Vegas Dark Brown. I'm always happy when I can include some cool shoes or accessories for the guys!

Patriotic Theme for 4th of July!

Today is the perfect day for an outdoor picnic or BBQ. I decided to make a 4th of July inspiration board that can be used for an informal wedding, or just a weekend party!

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I think getting married on the 4th of July does have some unique appeal -- just imagine your outdoor wedding reception with a spectacular fireworks display over head! Plus, if you or your fiance are in the military, it might be an especially meaningful date to celebrate.

The Patriotic Jels are from Keepsake Favors. They're even fun flavors. The red is strawberry, the white is champagne, and the blue is blueberry. Cute and tasty!

Most of the patriotic decorations on this board are from Oriental Trading Company. Patriotic paper lanterns, paper plates, candleholders, and even an inflatable beverage cooler. They really have a ton of inexpensive decorations.

The bow-tie is from JPress. If your groom isn't wearing his dress blues, I think a lightweight tan suit and this bow-tie could be really cute and simple.

The firework / sparkler wedding invitations are by Wedding Paper Divas.

The luscious berry desserts and the layered sand candle centerpieces are from Martha Stewart.

And don't forget to try that peach, mozzarella and basil salad this weekend. I served it at a dinner party this week and it was a definite hit!

Have a safe and happy 4th of July!

Marigold Yellow and Pewter Gray

Today’s board is a little different, because usually I draw my inspiration from quite a few different sources and combine them myself. This time, I am largely showcasing the lovely wedding details of Erica from Thoughtful Day.

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She did such a nice job of putting everything together; my biggest challenge was just trying to arrange everything to highlight some of my favorite parts! I love that she included succulents. By now, you know that I can’t shut up about how much I like succulents worked into wedding themes. I also think her cake topper is adorable. And of course, I’m big on bows.

Erica is quite talented! She started by designing and making her own wedding stationery, and now she can make your wedding stationery, too! I think her designs are downright dreamy and I highly recommend checking out her store.

The details that aren’t Erica’s are the place setting by Martha Stewart and the shoes are Kelsi Dagger Women's Ladonna Hidden Wedge in gold.

I also wanted to throw in this bowtie from JPress. I have no idea what Erica’s husband (Patrick, based on the invitations) wore, but I hope it was this! No worries though, because based on how well she coordinated everything, I’m sure he was no exception!