DIY Friday: The Kids Table

If you are planning on children attending your wedding,
our one piece of advice is to keep them entertained. A great way to do this is
by having a kids table at your reception. A kids table is not only a place for
the young ones to eat, but a place to keep them entertained and busy while the
parents enjoy themselves. Kids tables can be done many ways, but you don't need
to spend tons of money to make it look good.
Here's a little inspiration and DIY for the kiddos.

This bride placed small suitcases filled with goodies for the children attending
the wedding. By filling it with crayons, stickers and small toys, they were entertained throughout dinner. Giving them paper place mats gives them a place to color.

Instead of including the children with the rest of the escort cards,
make finding their spot fun with name tags on lollipops that coordinate
with your wedding colors.

For a relaxed, backyard bash, put out picnic blankets with pre-made snack boxes.
Use stamps to label the boxes with the guests' names.
Put out some bubbles for entertainment!

Waiting for the cake cutting could make the kids a little anxious. If they need
a sweet treat earlier, put out doughnuts and milk in carafes with fun straws.
Be sure to place flattened cupcake liners between the layers of doughnuts
so they don't stick together.

Cover the top of the table in paper for more space to color and draw.
If you have some favors for the kids, wrap them and label them with their names.
Who doesn't love to open a present?

Create a game of "I Spy" in your wedding colors. Place it next to some disposable cameras to allow the kids to catch a few picture perfect moments of their own.

The over-sized balloons make it easy to find the kids table.

Create a fun and colorful centerpiece with candy for the kids.

Make their dinner fun too by printing a sticker to go on top of their personalized pizza box.

Some candy, Silly Sludge, bouncy balls and slinkies are tucked away
inside metal tins at the table.

After dinner, kids can get a little sleepy. Putting some pillows and blankets by the kids table allow for some down time. Plus, how cute is that bucket?!



What are you planning for your kids table? We would love to know!



Love,
The Emily Weddings Team

Photo credits:
1. Martha Stewart Weddings
2. Julie Dreelins Beach Productions via The Knot
3. Brian Dorsey Studios
4. Martha Stewart Weddings
5. Martha Stewart Weddings
6. Martha Stewart Weddings
7-11. Elizabeth Anne Designs

For the Love of Luxe

When it comes to wedding decor, some choose a chic and fashionable style. Others choose the "going green" approach, and some just work around a color palette. While the good majority of us find the simplistic beauty in these themes, we occasionally salivate over the elaborate and breathtaking decor of celebrity weddings. Event designers such as Preston Bailey, David Tutera, Colin Cowie and Marcy Blum have wowed us with their expertise in transforming a simple, average space into an event venue that would make any bride quiver with excitement and lust.

Today's post is dedicated to the "eye candy" of event decor. After all....a girl can dream can't she?

Who is your favorite celebrity event designer? Do you have a favorite picture of their work? We'd love to see it! 

Love,

The Emily Weddings Team

All photos courtesy of the Knot and Preston Bailey

Statement Jewelry

When it comes to bridal accessories, the small and dainty are becoming a thing of the past. Make way for the bold and beautiful pieces that are showing up on brides everywhere. Statement pieces help make your look one-of-a-kind. Check out this new trend below.

Statement jewelry is a great way to mix in vintage pieces, even your something
old or something borrowed! What do you think of this new trend?




Love,
The Emily Weddings Team






Photos from left to right: Courtesy of Weddings Unveiled, BluePigDesigns via Etsy, Tinywater Photography via The Knot, Orange Passion Photography via The Knot, Inizzb via Etsy, RaquelCastillo via Etsy, LoreliDesigns via Etsy.

A Palette to Love!

With summer at its peak, and the temperatures on the rise, we can't help but anxiously look forward to the fall! What's not to love about the fall season? Cooler temperatures, changing leaves, and gorgeous season inspired weddings! We've all swooned over beautiful weddings, rich with warm golds and browns, but today we're sharing a new, modern color palette for this upcoming fall season.

"Ink + Mulberry + Marigold"

 

We love new and creative color palettes! Have an exciting color scheme you'd like to share with us? We want to hear all about it!

Love,

The Emily Weddings Team

Photos Courtesy of: the Knot, Private Receptions, Project Wedding

Wedding Traditions and Superstitions: 50 Wedding Facts and Trivia

Here they are, from the wise to the wacky - wedding traditions
and trivia from our friends at The Knot.

Good Luck and Bad Luck

1. Hey brides, tuck a sugar cube into your glove - according to Greek
culture, the sugar will sweeten your union.

2. The English believe a spider found in a wedding dress
means good luck. Yikes!

3. In English tradition, Wednesday is considered the "best day" to marry,
although Monday is for wealth and Tuesday is for health.

4. The groom carries the bride across the threshold to bravely protect
her from evil spirits lurking below.

5. Saturday is the unluckiest wedding day, according to English folklore.
Funny - it's the most popular day of the week to marry!

6. Ancient Romans studied pig entrails to determine the luckiest time to marry.

7. Rain on your wedding day is actually considered good luck,
according to Hindu tradition!

8. For good luck, Egyptian women pinch the bride on her wedding day. Ouch!

9. Middle Eastern brides paint henna on their hands and feet to protect
themselves from the evil eye.

10. Peas are thrown at Czech newlyweds instead of rice.

11. A Swedish bride puts a silver coin from her father and a gold coin
from her mother in each shoe to ensure that she'll never do without.

12. A Finnish bride traditionally went door-to-door collecting gifts
in a pillowcase, accompanied by an older married man who represented long marriage.

13. Moroccan women take a milk bath to purify themselves before
their wedding ceremony.

14. In Holland, a pine tree is planted outside the newlyweds' home as
a symbol of fertility and luck.

It's Got a Ring To It

15. Engagement and wedding rings are worn on the fourth finger of the
left hand because it was once though that a vein int hat finger led directly to the heart.

16. About 70% of all brides sport the traditional diamond on the fourth
finger of their left hand.

17. Priscilla Presley's engagement ring was a whopping 3 1/2-carat rock
surrounded by a detachable row of smaller diamonds.

18. Diamonds set in gold or silver became popular as betrothal rings among
wealthy Venetians toward the end of the fifteenth century.

19. In the symbolic language of jewels, a sapphire in a wedding ring
means marital happiness.

20. A pearl engagement ring is said to be bad luck because its shape
echoes that of a tear.

21. One of history's earliest engagement rings was given to Princess
Mary, daughter of Henry VIII. She was two years old at the time.

22. Seventeen tons of gold are made into wedding rings each year
in the United States.

23. Snake rings dotted with ruby eyes were popular wedding bands in
Victorian England - the coils winding into a circle symbolized eternity.

24. Aquamarine represents marital harmony and is said to ensure a long,
happy marriage.

Fashionable Lore

25. Queen Victoria started Western world's white wedding dress trend
in 1840 - before then, brides simply wore their best dress.

26. In Asia, wearing robes with embroidered cranes symbolizes fidelity for
the length of a marriage.

27. Ancient Greeks and Romans thought the veil protected the bride from evil spirits.
Brides have worn veils ever since.

28. On her wedding day, Grace Kelly wore a dress with a bodice made from
beautiful 125-year-old lace.

29. Of course, Jackie Kennedy's bridesmaids were far from frumpy.
She chose pink silk faille and red satin gowns created by African-American
designer Ann Lowe (also the creator of Jackie's dress).

30. In Japan, white was always the color choice for bridal ensembles -
long before Queen Victoria popularized it in the Western world.

31. Most expensive wedding ever? The marriage of Sheik Rashid Bin Saeed
Al Maktoum's son to Princess Salama in Dubai in May 1981. The price tag? $44 million.

32. In Korea, brides don bright hues of red and yellow to take their vows.

33. Brides carry or wear "something old" on their wedding day to symbolize
continuity with the past.

34. In Denmark, brides and grooms traditionally cross-dressed to confuse evil spirits.

35. The "something blue" in a bridal ensemble symbolizes purity, fidelity, and love.

Food and Family

36. In Egypt, the bride's family traditionally does all the cooking for a week
after the wedding, so the couple can relax.

37. In South Africa, the parents of both bride and groom traditionally carried
fire from their hearths to light a new fire in the newlyweds' hearth.

38. The tradition of a wedding cake comes from ancient Rome, where revelers
broke a loaf of bread over a bride's head for fertility's sake.

39. The custom of tiered cakes emerged from a game where the bride and groom
attempted to kiss over an ever-higher cake without knocking it over.

40. Queen Victoria's wedding cake weighed a whopping 300 pounds.

41. Legend says single women will dream of their future husbands if they sleep
with a slice of groom's cake under their pillows.

42. An old wives' tale: If the younger of two sisters marries first, the older sister
must dance barefoot at the wedding or risk never landing a husband.

Show Off at a Cocktail Party

43. In many cultures around the world - including Celtic, Hindu and Egyptian
weddings - the hands of a bride and groom are literally tied together to
demonstrate the couple's commitment to each other and their new bond as a
married couple (giving us the popular phrase "tying the knot").

44. The Roman goddess Juno rules over marriage, the hearth, and
childbirth hence the popularity of June weddings.

45. Princess Victoria established the tradition of playing Wagner's "Bridal Chorus"
during her wedding processional in 1858.

46. The bride stands on the groom's left during a Christian ceremony,
because in bygone days the groom needed his right hand free to fight off other suitors.

47. On average, 7,000 couples marry each day in the United States.

48. Valentine's Day and New Year's Eve are the two busiest "marriage" days
in Las Vegas - elopement central!

49. The Catholic tradition of "posting the banns" to announce a marriage
originated as a way to ensure the bride and groom were not related.

50. Stag parties were first held by ancient Spartan soldiers, who kissed their
bachelor days goodbye with a raucous party.

Love,
The Emily Weddings Team

Photo by mywedding.com

DON'T DIY Friday: Cake Wrecks!

We've heard this many times over. You have a sweet Aunt who just absolutely loves baking and has been making you cakes all throughout your childhood. While the idea of allowing your sweet Aunt to make this beautiful staple to your wedding day sounds sentimental and cost efficient, let's think about how you'd like your cake to look and if your sweet Aunt can deliver. Don't forget, your cake will be photographed countless times throughout the day!

By all means, if you've seen the work of anyone who you contract to bake and decorate your wedding cake and you trust that the results will be beautiful,  go for it. But let these pictures be a reminder of the "what if" scenarios should you choose to hire a non-professional or just let a sweet and generous family member take on the task.

♫ Unforgettable...♫

Unforgettable...

 

 That's what you are...

Unforgettable!

Beyond subpar!!

Like a song of Love, that CLINGS to me...

How the thought of you does things to me..

Never before...has something been mooore...

Unforgettable!!

In every way...

And forever mooore....

They'll rue the day!

That's why darling..

It's incredible..

That a wreck...

So unforgettable...

Could also be so...

...dang inedible toooo!!!

♫ Apologies to Nat King Cole = ) ♫

We encourage you to truly research whoever you choose to make your wedding cake, as the results could be devastating.

Virginia Beach Brides-We have incredibly talented bakers in the area! Who have you decided to use to make your beautiful wedding cake? We want to hear all about 'em!

Love,

The Emily Weddings Team

All photos courtesy of CakeWrecks, Song by the unforgettable Nat King Cole (with lyrics slightly adjusted by the author of Cake Wrecks).

Make Your List and Check it Twice

Selecting items in your favorite home store can be a little overwhelming when you're handed a registry scanner. It can be very easy to forget the mental list you made of the wants and needs before you left the house. We suggest taking along a checklist similar to the one we have provided. We know that everyone's registry is different, but we have listed some basics and some extras that are included on most registries, both big and small. We hope it helps!

BATH

2 bath mats
6 to 8 bath towels
4 to 6 hand towels
4 to 6 wash cloths
1 shower curtain and liner
1 soap dish
1 toothbrush holder
1 hamper
1 wastebasket

BEDDING

1 bed skirt
2 blankets
1 duvet cover
1 mattress pad
2 to 4 pillows
2 sets of 2 to 4 pillow cases
2 to 4 sets of pillow shams
2 sets of fitted sheets
2 sets of flat sheets
1 winter comforter

KITCHEN

2 baking sheets
1 blender
1 coffeemaker
1 cutting board
1 food processor
1 can opener
1 garlic press
1 corkscrew
1 salad spinner
1 dutch oven
1 toaster
1 knife set
1 set of salt and pepper shakers
2 oven mitts
1 teakettle
2 round cake pans
1 round pie pan
2 multipurpose pots
1 2-quart saucepan
2 10- to 12-inch skillets
1 6-quart stockpot
1 set of measuring cups
1 set of measuring spoons
1 set of measuring bowls
2 casserole dishes
2 serving spoons
1 standing mixer
1 whisk
2 wooden spoons

DINING

1 large salad bowl and serving utensils
8 to 12 cups and saucers
8 to 12 drinking glasses
8 to 12 mugs
8 to 12 wineglasses
8 to 12 cloth napkins
8 to 12 napkin rings
8 to 12 place mats
8 to 12 place settings (formal, casual or both)
2 to 4 serving platters or trays
8 to 12 sets of silverware
8 to 12 steak knives
2 tablecloths
1 pitcher

EXTRAS

framed art
picture frames
candles
vases
luggage
vacuum cleaner
gardening tools
holiday decor
iron
steamer
rugs
decorative pillows
throws
wall mirrors
grilling tools
electric toothbrushes
furniture

What are you asking for on your registry?

Love,
The Emily Weddings Team

All photos (with exception of kitchen, Coastal Living) courtesy of Pottery Barn.

Proving That True Love Does Exist...

They've been there for you every step of the way...they've taught you a good majority of what you know...and they've loved you no matter what! Even thought it's not technically their wedding day, your parents hold a special role in the day's events. And whether they are single, divorced, divorced and remarried or committed to a 30+ year marriage, your parents were your examples of what relationships are and what they can be. To all those committed parents, their lifelong dedication to the well being of their children should shine on throughout the wedding day as it truly is an important milestone. For many of us, our parents' relationships serve as proof that true love really does exist.

Looking to pay tribute to your parents on your special day? Here are some fun and meaningful ways to show them just how much you appreciate their love, support and the wonderful example they set for you.

These coasters feature the bride and groom's names and wedding date with a sweet dedication to their parents on the back. <3

Some couples choose to perform a Rose Ceremony during their wedding, where the bride or both the bride and groom include their mothers in the ceremony and give them a single rose.















Include a special poem in the program or leave the written poem on their chair with a rose. It will be a beautiful surprise that will only make the day more meaningful.

Example: 

"(Your Title) My Very Special Parents Mom and Dad
I may no longer be that little child who always Wanted another hug or minute with you But I still miss you when we are apart.
I may no longer need your hand for every step I take But I still need your acceptance and support of everything I do.
I may not be that little child who asked For all the things I ever wanted in the world But that’s because long ago you taught me How to go after my dreams.
I may no longer be that little child who Looked to you to share every hurt, smile and tear But I still feel like that child whenever I think of you… 

I’ll always love you, Mom and Dad, With the heart of that little child Grown to love you only more."

 

Feature the wedding pictures of your family, whether it's your parent's, grandparent's, brother's or sister's, pay tribute to your family.

Remembering Deceased Parents:

Although they may no longer be with us, our parents are still our parents. And they would be so happy and proud to watch their children enter into a beautiful marriage, just as you would love to honor them and the life they shared with you.

**Are you planning on including your parents in a unique and special way on your wedding day? We would love to hear all about your ideas and the impact your parents have made on you and your idea of "true love". <3

Love,

The Emily Weddings Team

Ombre Inspired Details

Ombre wedding details seem to be popping up everywhere this summer.

So what exactly is ombre? The term ombre refers to an effect where

a shade of color fades from light to dark. We have seen ombre on

everything down to the wedding cake. Is this colorful trend for you?

Check out these inspiration boards for some fabulous ombre detailing.

For an ombre effect, dress your bridesmaids in different shades of the same color.

Or pack a punch with ombre flower arrangements.

Are you featuring ombre in your wedding?

We would love to know!

Love,

The Emily Weddings Team

From left to right: 1. La Partie Events 2. The Knot 3. We Heart It 4. Andreas Murkudis dresses 5. Martha Stewart Weddings 6. The Sweetest Occasion 7. Once Wed 8. Martha Stewart Weddings 9. Maggie Austin 10. Martha Stewart Weddings 11. Call Me Cupcake 12. Anthropologie 13. Christian Louboutin 14. Martha Stewart Weddings 15. BCBG 16. Photo by Lisa Lefkowitz Photography via Style My Pretty

Signature Cocktails

The Signature Cocktail not only sets the mood for your wedding reception, it's also another opportunity for the bride and groom to add their personal touch to the day. No matter how simplistic or complicated it may be, let your signature cocktail reflect you! Does your groom fancy a simple bourbon and coke? Are you a bride who appreciates a good cosmopolitan? Feature them!

The Knot.com has a wonderful and convenient page that features signatures cocktails, both simplistic and elaborate, and organizes them by event type, color and season. They also provide mouth watering pictures for each cocktail.

For couples on a budget, having a signature cocktail is a wonderful way to save money! The concept has been around for years but is gaining popularity in recent years. Ideally, you could serve beer and wine throughout the night, have champagne for toasts (if you'd like), and have your one or two signature drinks for kicks! Make sure your signature drink stars your favorite liquor, it could even match your wedding's color scheme!

Consider placing creative and festive signs near or on the bar to draw attention to your featured drink(s) of the evening. Include a brief description of what is in the drink and give it a creative name!

We absolutely love the idea of a signature cocktail! What a creative and delicious way to personalize your wedding, right down to the bar top!

**Are you planning on having a signature cocktail at your wedding? Share the mouth watering details here!**

Photos courtesy of: Project Wedding, Wedding Rumors, Hindsight Bride, Flickr, Etsy