Eco-Vintage Weddings

Invitation Inspiration!

Good Friday morning to everyone!

I apologize for not posting yesterday; one of my very good friends from high school was in town, and we spent the evening chatting about boys, playing games and reminiscing about our days at Brandon Valley High School. It was a blast!

Today’s post is a lot of fun – I’m beginning to hone in on what I envision for our wedding invitations! As you all are aware, I’m in love with all things vintage-inspired, and I desperately want to incorporate this love of old things and of tradition into my wedding while still keeping some elements new. I am starting to realize that J and my wedding will be a blend of “Something Old” with “Something New,” and I love that!

As of now, J and I are planning on a mid-July 2010 wedding, so instead of the deep browns and crimson reds and olive greens that I was imagining for a fall wedding, I’m now thinking bright and bold colors! Lately, I’m loving the idea of bright, fuschia pink flowers and cobalt blue dresses, ties, and linens. How fun does that sound!

If we indeed go that route, I found this WONDERFUL and (get this: FREE) invitation suite on IDIY awhile back, and I just love the simplicity of it! All we would need to do is change the wording to fit our needs, add our own personal touches to make it our own, and print away! These invites have an old-world feel to them that I love!

However, I’m also So. In. Love. with the invitation below, and I think I can tap the graphic design skills of a few friends and family members to get something like this done. It’s a new twist on a wedding invitation; get ready to scroll, people!

Hope you have a wonderful, restful weekend!

[Photo credits: IDIY]

Reception Venue Woes

While J and I initially wanted a fall 2010 wedding, I have recently decided to test my luck at getting into graduate school for the fall of 2010 (I’d love to get an MFA in Creative Writing – Creative Nonfiction). For this reason, J and I have been tossing around the idea of a summer 2010 wedding.

A few weeks ago, I was absolutely against the prospect of a summertime wedding for two main reasons: 1) I hate hate HATE being hot, and if I am going to be in a wedding dress, the last thing I want to be is hot; and 2) I know that weddings are (generally) more expensive in the summer, because everyone wants to get married then.

But now, J and I have discussed how important it is that I am able to focus on school and school alone, should I get accepted into a creative writing program; basically, I don’t want to have to worry about planning a wedding that’s meaningful and special while working my tail off in school. My biggest fear is that if we do wait until the summer of 2011 to get married that my lack of time to devote to planning will force us into a cookie-cutter, Wedding Industrial Complex-like wedding event, and we both would absolutely hate that.

So, here’s the “woes” part of this post:  Finding a reception venue in the summertime is nearly impossible, especially when you’re looking for a site less than 1.5 years ahead of time.

We live in South Dakota, so while we have prairies, farms and parks, reception venues are in short supply in comparison to a bigger city. I’m not crazy about getting married outside, because of the obvious – I don’t want to have to worry about weather – so that, again, limits us.

My first choice for a reception venue:  the Museum of Visual Materials in downtown Sioux Falls, SD.

The Museum rents for $650, and they have all of the tables, chairs and dinnerware on site for rent as well. The space is a converted warehouse building with hardwood floors and exposed beams, and I just LOVE the idea of having my wedding reception there. Another reason to love the space? It’s an LEED-certified green building, which means the building runs on geo-thermal heating and cooling, and also utilizes solar panel energy!

The problem (or, as I’m trying to see it, the opportunity):  No availability in June, and only Fridays are left in July. To all of you brides out there:  have you ever considered a Friday wedding? How’d you pull it off? Did your guests complain about having to take work off to attend your ceremony?

My second choice, and a more expensive one at that:  the Old Courthouse Museum in downtown Sioux Falls.

This space is so beautiful, but J and I are struggling with a few things: 1) the space charges almost twice what we’re willing to pay for a space; 2) we’re required to jump through hoops both to rent the space and to serve alcohol to our guests; and 3) the largest section of the Museum holds 140 people, which we feel is just a little small for the number of guests we’d like to invite.

However, there is one major plus to renting this space, apart from the sheer beauty of the Museum’s architecture:  the Old Courthouse Museum is still available on 2 Saturdays in July.

For all of you readers out there, what would you do? Would you have your wedding on a Friday and save money on the reception space, or would you pay a more money and sacrifice some of the guest list to have your wedding on a Saturday?

[Note: Photos taken from Museum web sites, as linked above.]

Tuesday Fanblog: A Practical Wedding

I know, I know: it’s Wednesday. But J had two softball games last night (the advent of fall ball), and the night got away from me. So, as a treat, you’ll get not one, but two blog posts from me today!

This week’s fanblog goes out to Meg of A Practical Wedding. I’m always a fan of brides pushing against the Wedding Industrial Complex (the big, bad societal creation that forces brides to believe in monogrammed reception napkins and the like), and Meg and her guy created their own perfect day on their own terms. In fact, Meg’s a newlywed; she and her hubby just tied the knot on August 9, 2009!

For a glimpse at Meg’s wedding, page through her last few posts on A Practical Wedding. It’s evident from her writing that Meg has a confidence about her in creating a wedding day that she will remember for a lifetime, despite what society may say she “needs” to have for a wedding to be memorable. Plus, her wedding was BEAUTIFUL!

I feel so inspired to have found this blog so early in my wedding planning; there’s nothing better than to find another soul in the world who doesn’t want their wedding to be wasteful and commercial! Many blessings to you and your new hubby, Meg!

Click here to check out A Practical Wedding.

[Note: Photo obtained from A Practical Wedding blog; photo credit: One Love Photo.]

Me + brooches = Love

A thoughtful engagement gift from my amazing maid of honor, my cousin and lovely best friend Kristen, reminded me of a confession I have yet to make to you, dear readers:

I am obsessed with brooches.

Not only do I daydream of these vintage beauties, I actually bought 12 or so brooches to incorporate into my someday-wedding a few weeks BEFORE I was engaged!

Explanation: J and I had been discussing marriage for months, and both of us have felt like we were really ready to move forward since the beginning of summer. So, when I went to visit my friend and former college roommate Jessica in Lincoln, Nebraska, over the 4th of July, we went antiquing downtown, and before I knew it, I was walking out of the store with a sackful of antique pins. It was an AMAZING deal (I got 12 antique brooches for $40 dollars!), but I have to giggle now, because poor J must have thought I was nuts purchasing beautiful adornments before he even popped the question!

Regardless of my premature excitement, my wonderful MOH Kristen gifted me a beautiful silver brooch with a simply elegant flower design to it; it’s so lovely, I think I will use it to embellish my bouquet, like this photo from Melissa Suzanne, a wonderfully talented floral artist whose blog is so, so chic!

Click here for a conglomerate of vintage brooch beauties from Etsy sellers! The exquisite pin above is from Etsy seller SecondhandBijoux.

My List of Wedding Must-Haves

Greetings, fellow lovers of what Fridays bring! Can we just take a moment and breathe in the goodness of another weekend approaching? Aah!

Because I’ve only been engaged for 15 days (who’s counting!?), I haven’t hammered any concrete wedding details out yet. However, I do know that my daydreams are filled with incorporating the following motifs/items into J and my wedding:

1. Twine
I love the rustic quality that twine has – it reminds me of barns, of farms and of kissing a sweetie in loose hay. For this same reason, I’m also fascinated with burlap (think: table runners) and with raffia (invitations? programs?). As an added benefit, twine can be made from organic hemp – eco-chic!

2. Chalkboards
I love the idea of writing “Guestbook” on a chalkboard and placing it next to a vintage guestbook (click here for some great guestbook finds on Ebay!). Chalkboards would also be wonderful for menus, table numbers, “Reserved” signs, wine & spirits listings, etc. Plus, the chalkboard pictured here has a vintage appeal with its embellished swirls and distressed edges! As a P.S., chalkboards are also eco-friendly – think of the paper waste you’d have if you used paper goods for menus and simply threw them away post-reception!

3. Birdcage veils
A friend of my family’s got married earlier this summer, and she donned a birdcage veil and vintage sleeve gloves for the ceremony (click here to see a few shots of her wedding, photographed by Schuldt Imagery in Sioux Falls, SD). I loved her look, especially after I came to appreciate my love for all things vintage.

My favorite birdcage veils have been found on Etsy, a WONDERFUL web site that functions to sell handmade, homemade lovelies. The site boasts a huge wedding selection for everything from custom wedding dresses to handmade bout’s for the groom and his guys.

Here are a few of my favorite Etsy veilmakers; click on their names to view their Etsy shops: PowderBlueBijoux and Portobello. For all things ring pillows, click on Y&EBridal’s shop; you’ll be amazed at what they can create!

Have a restful weekend! XOXO Sara

[Note: All photos found via Google Images]

Style Me Pretty’s Style Circle

Since the moment Jordan proposed, I began scouring the Web for wedding lovelies, and I definitely found what I was looking for in Style Me Pretty. Their tagline is “Obsessions for Brides,” and isn’t that the truth: just take a look at today’s Southern wedding to fall in love with SMP.

One of SMP’s newest features is Style Circle, a new interactive site that not only allowers registered users to blog about anything wedding-related, but also has an AMAZING inspiration board builder! I tried it out for the first time today, and man, was I wowed. The design process is easy as pie: click and drag photos onto a pre-figured board design, or freestyle with a blank canvas.

Here’s my first attempt at formulating part of the loveliness I hope to incorporate into my wedding: rustic elegance. The best part about the decor I’ve chosen is that many of these objects can be found/borrowed and reused! What’s more eco-chic than that?!

Head over to Style Me Pretty’s new Style Circle to make your own inspiration boards; feel free to email them to me at sara.eiesland@gmail.com!

I can’t wait to see what you all come up with! You’ll never believe all of the WONDERFUL photos are available to choose from! Best of all, if you fall in love with a SMP featured wedding, the chances are good that you’ll be able to use some of those photos as your own inspiration!

Tuesday Fanblog: Vintage Glam Weddings

Good evening, all! (Actually, how about great evening? Are you having one?)

As an attempt to develop a blogitorial calendar, I figured I would devote my first Tuesday post to honoring the talents of others who have inspired me to devle into the world of vintage-inspired or eco-conscious weddings (hence the title: Tuesday Fanblog). First up: Vintage Glam Weddings.

Arriving at my office each morning is exciting, and apart from the peanut butter toast that I’m about to consume (it’s one of my Monday – Friday rituals), the majority of my eagerness to open the office doors each day stems from the blog I view first each morning: Vintage Glam Weddings.

From her super-chic photography showcases to her wonderful knack for knowing what makes weddings special (it’s in the details, people!), Amanda is a vintage bride herself, and it shows (click here to see her unbelievable wedding photography). Not only does Amanda offer free downloads (like this telegram template), but the weddings that she showcases on Vintage Glam Weddings are inspirational in their DIY goodness and their creativity.

Vintage Glam Weddings certainly provided a wonderful launching pad for me in trying to decipher what I wanted for my own wedding, and for the endless inspiration that Amanda provides, a big THANK YOU!