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.

Kitschy Woodland Wedding Theme

I keep seeing all these cute kitschy woodland wedding details lately that I finally had to put it together into an inspiration board. Even if this theme isn't your style (and I know it won't be for everyone), today is a GREAT day of wonderful wedding finds. Make sure to check out some of the artists and shops I'm featuring today, because they're really exceptional.

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I really wanted to showcase Rifle Design today. They are responsible for the custom stationery designs featured in the center of the inspiration board, and the thank you cards above. I just really like their artwork. It has a sweet folk art and almost campy feel to it, but in a really good way. I love flora and fauna, and the idea of using custom artwork for wedding invitations. They were a big part of the inspiration for today's board.

Martha Stewart Weddings magazine this month featured a really whimsical wedding that included the fantastic butterfly bouquet, the dainty butterfly placecards, the brightly colored dessert buffet, and the perfectly coordinated groom. I love how free-spirited and playful all of their details are.

The lush berry patch photos with invitations and coordinated badges or buttons were taken by the very talented Tec Petaja. This is a silly example of his photography skills, but his work is gorgeous. If he gives me the thumbs up, I'll have to highlight some of his work in a future post. Lately I've been researching for local photographers and I'm having a hell of a time. I'm dying to find someone like Tec Petaja, Jose Villa, or Stephanie Williams in Washington state. If you know a fantastic fine art style wedding photographer, send me an email!

The perfect little toadstool boutonniere is a Fritts Rosenow Bespoke Boutonniere. They have some of the BEST non-floral boutonnieres I've ever seen. They really customize them for each guy's personality, and they are incredibly detailed.

The ornate and delicate butterfly cupcake wrap is by Paper Orchid Stationery.

The daniblack Wanda Slide Sandal with the red and white polka dots just reminded me of the cute toadstool details.

I love to bake (even though I haven't had much time to do it lately) and I went bonkers when I visited the newly opened Layer Cake Shop. Dylan and I are both huge animal lovers, we want to include acorns in our theme, and I am the squirrel queen. It's a long story. But regardless, all of those things combined made my heart go pitter-patter when I saw all of the adorable cookie cutters and fun cake decorations on their site. I'm waiting for them to get back to me about some acorn possibilities, because I'm all over that. They even have a July special for free shipping with a $50 purchase. Another really cool thing they carry are really inexpensive and cute labels like the ones below. Wouldn't those be great to label some home baked goodness, especially if you're giving away edible wedding favors?

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.

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!

Chartreuse -- A.K.A. Bright Yellow - Green

Today's inspiration board is another non-traditional color choice, but I'm digging it. I think I'd call this color chartreuse:

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I was inspired by the totally adorable dress that I found on J. Crew. It could be a sweet bridesmaid dress, a rehearsal dinner dress, an engagement party dress, even a "Let's run down to the courthouse and get hitched!" dress. I love the ruffle, the bow, and the details on the sleeves. It comes in several cool colors, but I think this one is funky and fresh. (Funky fresh? Really?) Okay, so how's this -- today's board is sponsored by the letter F because it's fun, feminine, flirty, funky and fresh! YEAH!

The shoes I used on the board are also by J. Crew, but I found a couple other pairs that I like with the dress. Seriously, Endless.com could be my downfall. Just click on the shoe to get their details.


I love the fiddlehead ferns (I told you, sponsored by the letter F) in the bouquet to balance out the light and bright colors of the flowers.

The clematis boutonniere is also a sweet idea. I'm a fan of clematis and I think this is the first one I've seen used that way.

On a final F-related note: My fiance has finally finished school! He had his last final today. He graduates on Saturday! HOORAY! Way to go, baby! I'm so proud of you!

Sunshine Yellow

Since I spent much of last week using pinks in my inspiration boards, I've decided to avoid pink all-together this week. The focus of today is all about shades of one delightful color: sunshine yellow!

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I just wanted this yellow inspiration board to radiate warmth and fun. This could be perfect for a light-hearted spring or summer wedding. The flower possibilities are great for yellow themes. I used daffodils, narcissus and calla lilies, but you could also go for gladiolus, tulips, roses, daisies, and buttery yellow stock.

I love bow accents with this cute theme. The dress is by Thread. The brighter yellow heels with the bows are called Rossi by Steve Madden. The darker yellow peek-a-boo pumps are Pura Lopez from Nordstrom.

The bow shaped napkin fold and the lovely wedding cakes are from Martha Stewart Weddings.

For the menu, lemons are an obvious choice -- lemonade, lemon sorbet, maybe even lemon meringue tarts? Yum!

Melon Inspired Summer Reception: Canary Yellow, Watermelon Pink, Cantaloupe Orange

I made this board after talking to a couple about their upcoming summer reception. They were lucky enough to get married in Hawaii, so now the focus is on a fun, budget-friendly party with family and friends.

Emphasis:

• Fun
• Lively
• Refreshing
• Summery
• Budget-friendly
• DIY
• Simple

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A lot of the ideas on this board are from Martha Stewart and Costco, so it makes the party planning easier and a lot more affordable.

I'm currently enrolled in a floral arrangement class (just for fun), and the instructor there said that Costco actually sells a lot of their flowers for the same price that she has to pay at the wholesale florist -- and often times, the Costco flowers are actually more fresh and look better! I'm all over that tip, so the yellow and orange roses and gladiolus flowers pictured are right off the Costco.com website.

The floral garland (it reminded me of the couple's Hawaii nuptials) is a DIY from Martha Stewart -- you just buy cheap silk flowers, pop the blossom from the stems and slide the flower heads over the light bulbs on a strand of lights! The butterfly lanterns and the DIY dressed-up paper plates are also hers.

The last little touches that I really like:

Using pictures of the couple, especially pictures from the wedding and honeymoon, for the table numbers to make guests feel more included with the big event.

Providing a tray of sunblock, paper fans and parasols for guests to use as needed.

Big pitchers of sangria! A perfect summer drink that's delicious, beautiful, AND budget-friendly. Talk about more bang for your buck!

Is it just me, or is anyone else craving melon right now?!