How To Preserve Your Wedding Day Bouquet

Make the memory of your wedding day last a lifetime with our wedding bouquet preservation tips and tricks.

Many brides often wonder what on earth they will do with their beautiful bouquet after their wedding day has passed.  This is definitely a topic that should not be overlooked. Because flowers usually stay fresh for only about 4 days, preserving your wedding blooms is something that should be carefully planned and thought-out.  Not a last minute afterthought.  To ensure the memory of your wedding day lasts a lifetime, finalize your bouquet plans a few weeks before your big day.  Either book a professional or purchase all the DIY tools needed to tackle your preservation right after your wedding is over.

The Methods - The 4 most popular methods for preserving your bouquet are 1) hang-drying, 2) freeze-drying via a professional service, 3) pressing, and 4) drying with silica gels.

1) The Vintage Approach - Hang drying your bouquet is probably the easiest method available and the result will be a gorgeous vintage looking memento.  After taking your bouquet apart, simply hang your stems loosely upside-down in a dark closet for about a week or more.  After your flowers are completely dry, spray your blooms with flower spray (or hairspray) to preserve.  This method will give your bouquet a vintage look because the dried flower colors will vary so dramatically from the original stems.

Tip: Turn your dried petals into homemade potpourri.  Take your bouquet apart and hang individual petals to dry.  Afterwards, crush each petal up and add your favorite smelling oils to create your very own wedding day potpourri.  To learn more on creating your own potpourri, check out these articles here and here.

2) Forever Young - Our 2nd choice is freeze-drying through a professional service.  This method is the best way to keep your flowers looking as fresh as the day you got them.  What is freeze-drying?  The freeze-drying method is done by a professional service and usually takes about 8 weeks.  Your flower professional will spray each bloom and freeze them so your bouquet will literally be preserved for years and years to come.  While this method can be expensive (usually a couple hundred dollars), consider having only a portion of your bouquet freeze-dried to save cost.  When opting for this method, it is best to keep your wedding bouquet in the cooler during your reception and use a toss bouquet instead to ensure your wedding day petals do not get crushed or damaged.  Also, to ensure freshness, be sure to make professional arrangements well in advance so your bouquet will get sent out right after your wedding.

3) Picture-Perfect - Pressing your blooms is a vintage and unique way to preserve the memory of your big day.  This method usually takes about 6 weeks to complete.  Select only a few flowers from your bouquet, press them between sheets of wax paper and cardboard, and lay a heavy book on top.  After about 4-6 weeks, you flowers will be ready to be assembled into your pressed mini bouquet.  Frame your bouquet for a lasting keepsake.  For a unique twist, add your favorite wedding day photo of the bride with her bouquet and frame the two together.

4) DIY Bride - Silica gels are a way to bring the benefits of freeze drying and hang-drying together.  Not actually a gel as the name implies, silica gel is actually a sand-like substance that flowers get submerged into removing all moisture.  Great for sturdier flowers like roses and dahlias, silica gels are not recommended for more fragile blooms.  To learn more about this DIY approach, read these articles here and here.

Happy Planning!

Allie

Credits: Purple flower bouquet courtesy of david wedding photography, Potpourri in DIY cardboard container via esprit cabane, pressed flower frame courtesy of martha stewart weddings

Carve Out a Place for Pumpkin Centerpieces!



September has quickly come to a close. For a lot of October and November brides the mad dash to create beautiful fall centerpieces has just begun. Luckily, our latest blog posts have offered many ideas on easy fall decor. I wanted to add to that list by focusing strictly on my favorite - the pumpkin.

I'm not talking about jack-o-lanterns with spooky faces. Of course if you are planning a spookily elegant Halloween wedding, I am all for it! But the pumpkin has much more  to offer than just being the missing head to the headless horseman. It can be carved to create beautiful centerpieces that add a warm glow to a romantically lit reception.  Table numbers and monograms can be scrolled into the pumpkin. Simple designs can also be added for either centerpiece pumpkins or lanterns to light outdoor walkways and aisles. Mini pumpkins can be quickly converted into votive candle holders as well!

Photo Credit:  Pumpkin Monogram from Marry Monograms. Pumpkin Topiary from Southern Living. Poka dots and Flower Pumpkin Trio from Crafty Nest.  Mini Pumpkin Votives from Totally Table Tops Blog. Polka Dot Pumpkin from Lacour Photography via Picasa Web. Lovers Silhouette Pumpkin from Masterpiece Pumpkins. Pumpkin Walkway from Southern Living.

I'm sure at this point, some of you are in love with the idea of carving pumpkins for your wedding or fall dinner party but are not confident about your skill. Don't worry! All lettering, designs, and monogramming can be printed off your computer and easily transferred to the pumpkin using carbon paper or a pattern tracer. This small tool has a spiked wheel that is used to trace around the pattern and will leave a perforated line to guide the carving. These can be purchased either in the sewing aisle (for tracing sewing patterns typically) or in the inexpensive pumpkin carving kits that are almost anywhere this time of year. Once the design is in place, there are a variety of tools that can be used to carve out the image. Get your groom involved by allowing him to take his jigsaw and drill to carefully cut out the image. X-acto knives or utility knives are also great tools for pumpkin carving. A steak knife... not so much. The simplest, yet one of the most beautiful, pumpkins I have seen simply used a drill to create perfectly round polka dots all over the pumpkin. Use a variety of drill bit sizes to create larger and smaller holes.
The gooey mess that is scooped out before carving the pumpkin can actually serve a purpose! Place it all in a strainer and use cold water to rinse away the pulp surrounding the seeds. Bake the seeds following the recipe of your choice and voila! A tasty fall snack that could also serve as a fun favor! Even if only placed in a candy dish on the table, the roasted seeds are sure to be a hit!

Off to the pumpkin patch!
~ Jenna

Personalized Wedding Gifts

As the heat of summer gives way to cooler temperatures, a new season of beautiful autumn colors and fall weddings begins. This fall, finding the perfect gift has been made easier with an abundance of items available that can be personalized as the perfect gift for the wedding couple.

Custom prints are becoming more popular with a wide variety of themes available such as romantic beaches, family names, sports teams, Irish pubs, and tree of love to name a few that are guaranteed to match a couple's personality or home decor.

While wedding gift registries allow insight to the individual tastes of the bride and groom, creating your own personalized gift or ordering from an on-line store is priceless. Have the names of the wedding couple and wedding date engraved, printed or embroidered on a unique gift for a treasured keepsake that they can share with their children and grandchildren for years to come.

Renee'

How to Throw a Fun and Unique Bachelorette Party

Are you tired of the same old bachelorette party, with the same food and games? If you are getting married or you are a maid of honor that needs to plan a bachelorette party, I have some tips on how to make your bridal shower one of the best.

Invitations: Magnets are a great choice when it comes to invitations. There are so many varieties and themes to choose from. Also, they won’t get lost in a pile of mail on someone’s desk; they will be hung on the refrigerator.

Location: This can be tricky depending on the budget but whether you have the party at a beach house, hall or at your home; you can make it the best with good food, friends and fun!

Cocktails: Plan on having a signature drink that you name after the bride to be. Don’t make it complicated, just add a splash of fruit juice or liquor to her favorite drink and make it something special. Of course you are going to need some fun drink glasses to go along with the signature drinks. Personalized cups or koozies are a creative accent to your party but they are also a fun gift for everyone to take home.

Food: I definitely recommend doing an over the top dessert table. This is a great chance for the bride to splurge right before the big day. If you are doing a theme, such as pink, make all of the cupcakes, cookies, candies and cake in different shades of pink. The dessert table will add to the décor of the party. Of course you should also have some real food to eat. Hors D'oeuvres or finger foods are much more fun and allow your guest to munch all night long. Try cutting chicken salad sandwiches out with heart shaped cookie cutters or fruit and cheese kabobs are another fun idea. If you can’t think of fun finger foods you can always serve the food on some fun platters. Add dazzle to appetizers by serving them on mirror or marble tiles.

For the décor: Choose bright and bold colors to make the party that much more fun! Hot pink and lime green or orange. The more color the better. Try to use lots of beads and feathers to give texture to your centerpieces. Go all out. This is the last bash before the wedding day. The more feather boas and rhinestones the better. This will be a party that all your friends and family will talk about for years to come!

Carrie

Custom Rubber Return Address Stamps

Add flair to your wedding stationery or everyday letters with a custom rubber return address stamp complete with your name(s), address, monogram and/or design.

I absolutely love this idea because it makes a seemingly tedious task super easy.  You can address your wedding invitations in half the time it would take to do them by hand and yet they still will look elegant and custom made.  (Much prettier than the alternative option of stick-on labels that can sometimes end up looking cheap.)  The best part about rubber stamps is you will never have to worry about your hands cramping up after addressing...oh say....400 wedding invitations or so  (I wish I would have seen these a year ago when sending my wedding invites out.  Alas....).  Better yet, after your wedding you will always have them on hand for all your stationery needs.  From thank you cards and holiday greeting cards to everyday bills.

The beautiful return address stamp above is from Primele of etsy.com.  Featuring a custom calligraphy look, Primele's stamps are priced around $60.  While the price may seem a bit steep, learn from my mistakes and remember to ask yourself..."What am I willing to spend to save myself from carpal tunnel..." To check out this beautiful stationery must-have and more, visit Primele at etsy.com.

For the ultra-creative, you can opt to make your own rubber stamps.   While I would not recommend this project to just any DIY'er, I have faith in our readers.  To learn more, check out these step-by-step tutorials on rubber stamp making here and here.

Happy Planning!

Allie