I was lucky enough to be invited along to our friend’s big day, this was the first time I have ever saw a full-on floral wall mural used in a wedding, it was beautiful. This was when I knew I needed to stay on top of the latest mural wallpaper trending designs. I figured there has to be a way to include wall murals in my home. I decided to put in living room wallpaper that fits my personality and that’s exactly what I did.

1) Pinterest  2) Marvin Tsai  3) Mike Brensen Photography  4) Flickr  5) Kay English  6) Finishing Touch Event Design  7) Village Green Florist (Violet Vendor)  8) Buy Poppy Pods  9) Everly True (Tumblr)  10) Melissa Tuck Photography  11) iphone wallpapers  12) Pinterest  13) Cakes We Bake  14) Minnesota Bride

It’s true that traditionally, brides carry a floral bouquet down the aisle with them. And while doing this is still incredibly common and popular for brides, many women are beginning to look for something a little different.

Whether it’s because they want a unique twist, they’re allergic to flowers, or they prefer something that goes along with their wedding theme, there are many ladies who are choosing fresh flower bouquet alternatives. Here are some of the best around, compiled by the wedding professionals at Vatican Banquet Hall in Los Angeles.

Butterflies

Just the thing for a springtime wedding. A bouquet of lovely fake butterflies will be colorful, innovative, and permanent. You can select any colors you want to match your wedding palette, and it will definitely be a topic of conversation!

Pom Poms

Colorful and fanciful, soft pom poms arranged just right can add a sweet and youthful element to your wedding ceremony. These work especially well for summer or springtime weddings.

Popcorn Cone

Why not give a little back to your guests? Imagine walking down the aisle holding a beautifully decorated…popcorn cone! You can toss it at your guests as you walk, flower girl style, or offer it to them straight from the cone as you make your way to the altar. Charming!

Seashells

With seashells available in nearly any color, they can make a completely dazzling bouquet. They’re just as earthy as flowers, yet they will last forever. This is a no-brainer for beachside weddings, but could also be fabulous for any summertime wedding.

Parasol

If it goes just right with your dress, a parasol can add a lot to your bridal look. There are many options available to choose from that will match your wedding palette or style, and it is quite unique and uncommon to see. A parasol also calls to mind a sweet Southern vibe, so if that sounds like you, by all means consider a parasol as a bouquet alternative!

Pinwheel

Why not, right? Pinwheels are whimsical, fun, and colorful—just like your wedding. These have long been used as alternatives to a flower girl basket, but some brides have chosen to carry them as well.

Sparkler

We’ve all seen wedding guests holding sparklers for the wedding send-off, but what about the bride carrying one down the aisle? This could be rather poetic—carrying the torch, igniting the flame, feeling the spark—and will look wonderful in photos, particularly for an outdoor evening wedding.

Pearls

Pearls are already very wedding-flavored, so it makes sense that they they also just happen to make lovely bouquets. Gathered together, they are elegant, gorgeous, and romantic.

Pinecones

A fabulous idea for an autumn wedding, a pinecone bouquet is simply darling. They have the same organic feel of flowers, but are much more rare and will fit in perfectly with rustic or bohemian weddings. Hyper-textured and cozy, everyone will love the concept of pinecones as a bouquet.

Fan

A fan can be very beautiful and practical, if it happens to be warm outside. They’re also versatile: you can probably find any fan to match your specific wedding style or theme. For example, there are feather fans, palm leaf fans, vintage fans, exotic fans, and countless others.

Camera

Want to always remember what the faces of your family and friends looked like as you walked down the aisle? By substituting a floral bouquet with a camera, you can. This very modern concept is being picked up by more and more brides in order to capture that truly once-in-a-lifetime moment.

Lollipops

How sweet it is! Lollipops are a colorful and bright, just like flowers—but they are more whimsical and interesting. Just the right “arrangement” can be truly dazzling.

Or, perhaps you like the idea of flowers, but you don’t want to go the typical route. If that’s the case, consider these options that are floral, but not usual.

Porcelain Bouquet

If a bouquet that lasts a lifetime is what you’re looking for, a porcelain bouquet may be just the thing for you. Very unique and interesting, a porcelain bouquet could almost pass for the real thing, yet is more like a piece of art or luxury décor.

Unique Fake Flowers

Floral bouquets made from paper, felt, cloth, yarn, or even leather can be absolutely stunning. If you love the look of flowers but are perhaps allergic or maybe just want to keep your wedding bouquet forever, this may be a great idea for you.

This concept also gives you plenty of creative freedom. For example, if you or your soon-to-be-spouse is a musician, you can make a paper floral bouquet out of sheet music. Or you can create a gorgeous ombre paper bouquet to match your wedding colors.

There are literally countless options available for a fake flower bouquet!

Baby’s Breath

Baby’s breath is quite underrated when it comes to bouquets. Most of the time, florists, wedding planners, or brides tend to add other types of flowers to baby’s breath—but there’s no need. It’s absolutely gorgeous on its own, with a sprawling, elegant look that is soft yet textured. Baby’s breath is light, airy, and very romantic. What’s not to love?

Arm Garland

Why not go hands-free altogether? A beautiful arm garland will add an ethereal, romantic, boho vibe to your bridal look, while also allowing your hands to do whatever they want.

A Single Stem (Or a Few)

The bouquet version of shabby-chic, single stem bouquets, or holding just a few, creates a rustic, stripped-down element to a wedding that many couples love. This is for those who love naked cakes, white Christmas lights strung up around the dance floor, and rugs tossed straight onto the grass.

Hopefully this list gives you some inspiration if you’re searching for the perfect fresh flower wedding bouquet alternative. Be creative and stick to your own taste and creativity. Have fun, and good luck!

Plethora of emotions work behind planning the big day and you tend to focus on sentimental value ignoring the monetary issues. Here’s how you can stick to your budget and organize the beautiful day with your loved ones without thinking about those huge credit card statements.

1. Maintain a diary for lists

We understand you will need to spend some quality time staring at your wedding ring before starting with the hectic wedding plan. Once that is done, start by making a list of things you will need to do. Go as detail as possible and jot down whatever comes in your mind. The list won’t be completed at one go, you might remember something you missed out while doing something else. Make sure you write those down and plan a realistic budget of all those. You can also make use of a free budget template to make the process even easier. 

2. Keep track of sale in shops

The wedding dress is something that you are unwilling to compromise and you want something that fits well with your personality. There are two ways to deal with it. Either spend more on the dress and cut costs in other expenses or stay updated about the latest designs and buy them during the sale season. Make sure you visit designer clothing stores and keep notes on the fabric and other details and browse for it online which will be less costly.

3. Fix the date smartly

Wedding season varies country to country, culture to culture. Try to avoid the rush hours and fix the date when the venue costs are lower. An off season wedding could be something unique to the guests and friendly to your wallet. This will actually cut down costs in various other sectors such as the venue, invitation cards, wedding flowers and many more.

4. Be creative with wedding flowers

Boutonniere, corsages, bouquets and most importantly for the arches and accessory decors, you will need wedding flowers for almost everything! Compare prices of flower packages online and try to get the best deal. If you want something customized, go for the cheaper options. Go for seasonal flowers or put similar looking flowers which are cheaper. For instance, use peonies instead of roses. If your favorite flower is bit expensive, use those only in selective places where you will take more photos.

5. Don’t forget to research

You can always buy the same high-quality material somewhere cheaper. Spend good money on one thing that you prioritize the most. For the rest of the things, if you find something that is not suited to your budget, ask peers, browse online and visit relevant shops, especially wholesalers for a cheaper option. Your wedding planner will look at convenience rather than budget and so you need to take matters to your own hand when it comes to taking major decisions.

6. Use personal finance apps

Keep track of your spending habit until your wedding date. You will be notified when you’re going out of line with the wedding shopping. Personal finance apps will help you understand where you stand in your wedding planning. For bonus, you can cut down on everyday expenses through this and get some extra cash to spend on the wedding.

7. Innovation is the key

While cutting down costs, you might sometimes feel that you are compromising with your wedding celebration. Use this motive to come up with interesting and innovative aspects for your wedding. For instance, you and your partner can build the arch with ribbons together. You can make handwritten invites to cut down with the printing costs. You can actually use the cost minimizing as an excuse to spend more time with your partner brainstorming and coming up with creative ideas.

8. Be realistic with food

The most good looking cake, appetizers, desserts are highlights for the guests. If you are a people’s person and your guest list is huge, just keep the main course and some tasty desserts. Don’t go for big cakes as it will be used mostly for photographs. Big fancy wedding cakes are more icing and décor than actual food. Rather use that budget to bring few varieties of desserts.

9. Treat yourself

Using money wisely and saving them is important but not on the cost of your happiness. Incentivize yourself by planning out holidays, fancy dates and spas with your partner with all the money you will save from the wedding. You deserve to be pampered after all the stress you have been through for the wedding and use the saved money doing something that makes you happy.

Some flowers grow all year round, while some are seasonal. When flowers are in their peak season, they will be the most available and budget friendly. At the times when the florist has fewer to chose from, like off-season or the ends of the season, the price might go up or they may run out.

So as you think about choosing your wedding flowers, consider the season. Talk to a florist ahead of time to make sure he or she will have what you need in stock. This guide will help you start to think about which wedding flowers are in season, so that you can align your preferences, color palate, and budget with your floral choices.

Winter

Amaryllis

The Amaryllis flower is one of the rare flowers that is in season in the winter time. In general, flowers are most abundant in the summer time, and least abundant during the winter months. The Amaryllis starts out as a bulb, and grows into a sturdy plant with large, lily-like blossoms. There are many different varieties of Amaryllis flowers, but the most common colors are white and red.

Winter Jasmine

Winter Jasmine grows on a vine. The flowers are small and yellow. On a healthy plant, the entire vine will be covered in one inch wide flowers. These look gorgeous in large arrangements. This would be a unique choice; perfect for a winter wedding with a bright color scheme.

Snapdragon

Snap dragons are cold season, annual plants. They’ve been given their name because the curvy blossom looks almost like a dragon face. They can be found in rich, vibrant colors including pink, marroon, orange, and violet.

Spring

Iris

Irises are works of art. Many have been bred to unfold into blossoms that look like paintings, streaked with several different colors.

Daffodil

Daffodils come in all different combinations of white, yellow and orange. They are an iconic springtime flower.

Tulip

Tulips offer a wide varieties of colors, including purple, pink, yellow, and peach. The thick, smooth petals of tulips come together to make a sizable blossom. Tulips are aesthetically simple and elegant.

Crocus

Crocus plants can blossom in the fall, winter, or spring, but one of the most common times to harvest them is the spring. They are a relative of the iris flower, and you’ll see some of the same painterly qualities in each petal. One difference between crocus’s and iris’ is that crocuses have one blossom per flower, while iris’ can bloom in clusters.

Lilac

Lilacs have a strong, sweet scent. Lilac bushes can produce many blossoming, clustered flowers at once. These are a very budget-friendly flower option.

Summer

Poppy

You may know poppies as a reddish orange papery flower with a dark center. Many poppies are red, but there are also poppy varieties in breathtakingly pretty varieties of pink, orange, and purple. The petals can get very large, too!

Hydrangea

Hydrangea bushes can blossom anywhere from late spring to early fall. Most hydrangea flowers are white. Sometimes, you can find them in different shades of blue, pink, or purple.

Gladiolus

The showy, multiple-tones blossoms of the gladiolus are sure to impress. The complex, beautiful blossoms come in a wide variety of colors.

Lily

Lily’s are a flower with a great deal of symbolism attached to them. Traditionally, they signify humility and devotion. They are often used at funerals, as well as weddings. They come in countless varieties, so you can find many different colors.

Daisy

These spunky little white and yellow blossoms can provide cheer to a summer wedding. The blossoms are relatively small, so they look great in bunches, like in the photo above.

Fall

Sunflower

Sunflowers will steel the focus away from all of your other flowers! These attention-grabbers are in season in the fall, and can add awesome bursts of gold and yellow to your decor.

Asters

The pale bluish purple of an aster is so unique. These delightful little flowers would look great at a backyard wedding.

Chrysanthemum

Chrysanthemums are intricate and delicate. Many tiny petals make up symmetrical, circular bulbs.

If you chose a flower for your wedding that is in season, it can help you stick to your budget. Talk to a florist, scout out wild flowers, or harvest from yours and your families gardens. There are so many beautiful options! What season are you planning to have your wedding in? Let me know in the comments below!

Sometimes the most delightful details are the simplest.  A transparent mason jar can become a charming centerpiece with just a few touches. Fill the jar with dried flowers, a few petals, and feathers for a Western, Native American vibe. Here are the steps:

Collect and wash out clear mason jars. If you recycle and use jars that once held food, you might have to soak them in soapy water and run them through the dishwasher at least three times to get rid of any lingering smells!

Sketch out a simple design before painting it onto your jar. White paint in a symmetrical, geometrically patterned image looks great for a desert style. Keep it very simple!

If you make more than one jar, they should look similar. They don’t have to match exactly, but use a unifying theme. You can paint your design with white acrylic craft paint. If you want to have the jars last and look beautiful for years to come, use a glass paint that can be fired in the oven.

Your first anniversary will be here before you know it! There are some beautiful ways that you can connect your wedding to your first anniversary, and they take some forethought. Before you even get married, you can plan ahead so that your first anniversary will be filled with special memories from your wedding day. Create your wedding time capsule by following the steps below!

Have A Signature Fragrance

Before your wedding day, find a perfume that matches your emotions about the day that is approaching. Find something floral, exotic, bubbly, or celestial. Whatever you pick, make it unique. You’ll only wear this on your wedding day — and each anniversary that follows!

Create A Memory With Flowers

Preserve your flowers or buy golden and glazed real roses by Eternity Rose which you can take out on your anniversary night, each year. Flowers serve as a reminder of the day you shared, which was filled with beauty. This sentimental reminder will give you and your husband a reason to say “I’m yours” all over again.

Save Some Wedding Wine

When you order wine for the wedding reception, make sure to order several extra bottles that will not be opened that night. Save these special bottles for the years to come. In one, five, ten, or thirty years you can be uncorking a bottle with your man and remembering the night that you wed. Some wines age better than others, so be sure to read up a bit first. Save the bottles somewhere cool — 55 degrees Fahrenheit is ideal.

Notes From Your Guests

Ask guests to write notes to you and your beloved, which you will open after one year. This is such a fun way to receive love and support from your family and friends, after you are one year into your marriage.

Save Your Champagne Glasses

Keep the glasses that your first wedding toast occurred in. If you plan ahead, you can get glasses that have been customized to commemorate the occasion. Keep these glasses away from the every-day kitchen supplies, and only take them out of their box once a year, as you toast to your marriage once again!

Freeze The Top Of Your Cake

Save the top of your wedding cake, and as soon as you can after the evening wraps up, pop it in the freezer for a few hours. This pre-freeze hardens the icing to help you keep the shape and flavor of your cake. Next, wrap it in plastic wrap as well as aluminum foil, and place it in a container in the freezer. Thaw one year later, when you are ready to celebrate again!

There are many ways to celebrate the date that you first said “I do”. If you think ahead, you will have a delightful first anniversary, and many more after that! These special touches will help you re-experience all of the love that was shared on your wedding day. I hope that you have fun creating your own wedding time capsule! Please let us all know if you have any other ideas for time capsules in the comments section below!

Are you any your husband-to-be feeling like two love birds? A love bird themed wedding is a sweet ode to the love that you share. I love these lines from Hafiz: “I saw two birds on a limb this morning/ Laughing with the sun.”  Plan an event that will have you and your loved ones laughing in the sun! Use vintage-inspired birdcages, painted in pastel colors, to house your follower arrangements. These are perfect to hang off of trees!

You could also make lovely D.I.Y necklaces that look like little bird nests full of precious eggs for your bridesmaids! This will forever remind them of your wedding day and the love that was hatched.

Are you planning on having a uniquely themed wedding? I can’t wait to hear about your creative theme ideas! Please leave a comment below!

1) Wear them in your hair

Arina B Photography

Diana McGregor Photography via gws

2) Use as lay-flat table decor

decorotation.com

3) Table Garland

Eden Ingle Photo

4) Boutonnieres

Meredith Coe Photography

5) Escort Cards

via moncheri bridals

6) Place Settings and Menus

Paper Antler

paper pleasures

7) Ferns on Cakes

Photo by D’arcy Benincosa via Style Me Pretty

8) On Chair Backs

Jose Villa via Style Me Pretty

9) Along the Aisle

Pretty Planner Weddings & Events via smp

10) Fern Bouquets

Arina B Photography

11) Hanging Installations

via Pinterest

 
Honey of a Thousand Flowers, Leo Patrone Photography

The Wedding Scoop

  
Nordic Handfasting – @alexandragracephoto


Rylee Hitchner via snippet and ink

Pinterest via Style Me Pretty

Genoah

Pinterest via Green Wedding Shoes

Marina Muravnik

Vicki Grafton Photography

Jeremy Chou Photography

Christine Sara Photography

Amanda Grace Photography

Mink Photography

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1) Escort Cards – Attaching a name to the paper flower style of your choice! Your guests also get to keep a beautiful little piece of art. Pictured here: DIY watercolor and crepe paper poppy escort cards.

2) Cake Decor – Either on the cake or on a cake topper. These are so cute! There are even edible rice paper flowers that you can request for your cake (like below right).

Left: Paper Treats | Right: Craftsy | Below: Pinterest

3) Paper Bouquets: Imagine being able to keep your bouquet! Whether you want the flowers to look almost real, or whimsical and artsy, there is a style out there for you.

Left: Lia Griffith | Right: Lia Griffith | Below: The Aviary

4) Place Settings – Another wonderful and easy way to incorporate paper flowers. For these you don’t even need to create a stem. See the DIY for this paper magnolia here.

5) Hanging Installations – Whether used as a ceremony backdrop, or overhead at the reception these create such a romantic atmosphere.

Left: Wildflowers Photo | Right: Gabriel Boone

6) Backdrops – These are great for dessert tables, photo ops, and ceremony settings.

Above and below: Paper Flora

7) Boutonnieres – Perfect if you’re looking for a small-ish DIY project. Below left: Ameli’s Lovely Creations | Below right: Rachel Emma Studio

8) Centerpieces – These gorgeous creations are something your guests can enjoy at their tables, and you could even give them away as gifts at the end of the night to your closest family. The one seen below was created by Craft and Clover.

9) Garlands – A beautiful paper flower garland is perfect if you want to incorporate a bit more leaves and these can be used as table runners, wrapped over a ceremony arch etc. Below left: Handmade by Sara Kim | Below right: Flower Decoration

10) Paper Flower Crowns – These make for gorgeous keepsakes that you can treasure for years to come!

Above: CeeBee Recycle | Below left: Crafts on Fire | Below right: Handmade by Sara Kim

11) Over-sized Paper Flowers – If you want to feel like you’re Thumbelina, or Alice in Wonderland then oversized flowers are the way to go! These are nothing short of magical.

Love Me Do Photography

Caramel Studio – Alice in Wonderland Wedding

Elisheva Golani Photography and Balushka Paper Artistry