Classic Art Inspiration

Sorry for the day - I tried to post this yesterday, and Blogger wouldn't let me upload any images!  Whoops...

This weekend, M and I snuck off to New York to surprise my dad for his birthday/Father's Day.  While we were there, we couldn't resist getting a little touristy and visiting some of the attractions, like Rockefeller Center and the Museum of Modern Art.  We don't visit museums too often (though, living near DC, I think I've almost reached black-out in Smithsonian bingo) so it's nice to take a few hours and wander around, viewing the works of the greats.  Of course, being engaged, I couldn't help but wonder how some of those paintings could make their way into a wedding...

Reflections of Clouds on the Water-Lily Pond by Claude Monet


Monet has always been one of my favorite painters, thanks to the influence of my mom and her love of impressionist art. His most famous paintings are the water lily still lifes he spent the later years of his life working on, and I lingered in this room the longest to see his gorgeous triptych up close.

Sources  Center: http://www.shockleyartclass.com/?p=1336, 1) http://www.weddingstand.com, 2) http://www.artinstituteshop.org, 3) http://www.kellyoshiroevents.com/blog/2010/04/06/bridal-style-revealed-carolina-herrera-preview/, 4) http://littlepheasant.blogspot.com/2010/07/water-lily-bouquet.html, 5) http://sierrasprings.commanderdata.com, 6) http://www.projectwedding.com, 7) http://blogs.dexknows.com/weddings/2010/08/top-pic-blue-green-wedding/, 8) http://www.etsy.com/shop/bobbijordan, 9) http://www.theknot.com.au, 10) http://www.catherines-cakes.co.uk, 11) http://www.weddingpaperdivas.com, 12) http://www.artinstituteshop.org

For a Monet inspired wedding, I picture soft pastel blues and greens, with pops of sapphire blue.  Water lilies might be hard to find for a bouquet, but white mums and light blue hydrangeas would work well with this palette too.  Floating centerpeices are one of the easiest DIY projects and would really bring the outdoors into your reception hall.

And of course, if you choose a botanical garden or a Japanese koi pond for your venue, half of your work is done for you!   

So what do you think?  Have you been inspired by classic art at all? 

Inspiration Round-Up

M and I are off on a secret mission today, so I'm updating quickly and from the past so you'll have something to greet you on Friday.  And what better than some wedding loveliness?  Joining Pinterest has opened me up to a world of awesome pictures, here are some of my faves!

Easy reception decor with a big impact:

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I love how they mixed lace with the flowers for extra oomph:

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And I thought custom address stamps were cute!  This Etsy seller makes portrait stamps!

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SUCH a pretty cake!

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I can't find the original source on this one, but it's so sweet!  Let me know if you know the proper credit and I'll update:

Have a happy weekend!

Flower Power

A long time ago (like, last month), I promised myself I would never use flower balls or pomanders for our wedding decor.  They were just too everywhere, I thought.  It seemed like every bridal blog had a tutorial for tissue paper pomanders, and every bride had at least a few strung up at her reception.

But lately, images like these have been changing my mind...

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Breathtaking, no? [src]

Pomanders for the flower girl are pretty common, but what about...

Mini flower balls for the bridesmaids...  [source]

...Or a whimsical moss ball bouquet for the bride? [from]

Still, it wasn't until I saw this picture that I realized how beautiful these little fluffy flowers looked as aisle decor:

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Love at first sight?  I think so!  I went out and bought 16 short shepherd's hooks at Dollar Tree practically the next day.  My grand vision is to spray paint them gold and hang a mix of purple flower balls and lanterns on each side of the aisle.  Our ceremony site has white chairs like the ones pictures above, and the walkway from the boardwalk to the pergola is paved with slate flagstones so I think the overall effect will be pretty similar to my inspiration photo.

Like this maybe?  [src above, photoshopped by moi]

So what's your opinion on pomanders?  Love them?  Hate them?  Have you ever had a strong opinion change the more you looked at pictures?

Flavor of the Week

Guess what?  This weekend, M and I are taking yet another roadtrip down to our venue-to-be... and signing the contract!  Thanks for your patience leading up to the big reveal.  I'd have hated to show off our gorgeous, awesome venue to you all and then have it not worked out.  Next week you can look forward to a bunch of venue posts, about all the lovely details of our site to the nitty-gritty logic and how we came to sign our contract.  It's been a month in the making, folks, and I'm excited!

Today though, let's talk about theme.  It seems like you can't have a wedding anymore without some kind of theme.  Whether it's just your wedding colors that inspire the decor, a motif or quote used throughout, or a full-blown creative choice that dictates the look and feel of the wedding.

An inspiration board showcasing lavender and pink decor [source]

It could be that less is more, but I want it all.  I'm in love with the large-scale themed weddings some brides have put together:

[sources credited here]

What's not to love about a carnival themed wedding?  It's the perfect mix of fun and love (without the carnies).  I even briefly considered this theme while having a small love affair with Glen Echo Park, but sadly, it was a short-lived fantasy.

All photos from WeddingChicks, Image created by MosaicMaker

Then there's the adorably whimsical Up-themed wedding that Lynnette and James created.  M and I have a special spot in our heart for all things Disney (we visited Disney World on our first vacation together!) and I love the giant balloons, pastel palette, and romantic touches (the mailbox??  *sigh*).  I doubt there's a bride out there who hasn't spent at least a second awww-ing at these pictures.

But even though I love these all-out efforts, it doesn't seem like it's in the cards for our wedding day.  Still, I want something to tie our wedding together outside of our color scheme.  Something we can repeat on signs and stationary, that will inspire the centerpieces and cakes, and remind us and our guests of our wedding for years to come:

All photos from WeddingBee, Image created by MosaicMaker

Like the super sweet typewriter theme that the erudite Mrs. Lovebug put together?  Adorable.  I'd rip this off right now if I felt like I was literary enough to pull it off.  Unfortunately, I've never owned a typewriter, and gave up my creative writing major after one semester.  This blog, and a certain love for Courier  is all I've got.

But wait, there's more....

Lovebirds [source]

Damask motif [source]

Music theme [source]

In the end, having our wedding at a vineyard will surely end up influencing almost every aspect of our wedding (I've already been browsing wine-themed centerpieces, invitations, escort cards, favors... and on.)  But I wouldn't call M and I master sommeliers, or even great wine-lovers.  We're just as likely to be sipping micro-brews or a mixed drink (we're equal-opportunity drinkers).  So I'd like to find something more personal to us to flavor our wedding.  What that is?  I have no idea.

DIY - Do you?

This weekend M and I did absolutely nothing wedding-related.  We probably should have gone to see some more venues, but I think we were both burnt out and needed a weekend off.  Plus, I'm tired of writing about the never-ending venue search.  So let's do something a little more fun!

Let's Get Crafty!

I think one of the reasons I was so excited to start planning a wedding (um, aside from my love of M and how much I want to marry him of course) is that I love craft projects, but never get to do them.  They always fall to the bottom of my to-do list - where I spend a bunch of money on supplies and then get bogged down with the reality.  While I know that my wedding DIYs might end up the same way, that doesn't stop me from dreaming about all the cool artsy decor I can incorporate into our day.

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When I first saw this sweet design on WeddingBee it was love at first sight.  I'm huge into fonts and lettering (don't get me started on how excited I am to design an invitation suite) and love this simple monogram featuring that curvy beauty, the ampersand.  I already use M and I's initials for, uh, everything (have you noticed?) and feel like this will be an easy and cheap way to add some fonty flair to our decor.

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Without really realizing it, I've always been planning a vineyard-themed wedding.  And even though I'm not sure if we'll actually have our reception at a vineyard, I still love these cute winery touches.  I know there are several options for wine-themed escort cards, including the ever popular (and daunting) wine cork holders, but I like wine charms the best.  We're also considering etched wine glasses as favors, to tie the theme together.

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And speaking of wine-themes DIYs, aren't these wine bottle luminaries gorgeous?  I imagine using a mix of dark and clear bottles to accent our centerpieces and other tables.  This is easily the hardest project I'm considering, since I have no idea how hard it will be to collect all the bottles I'll need and cut the ends off (though I have several friends who would be glad to come to a "bottle collecting" party...).  We don't own any saws or sanders, so I can see this being the most expensive project as well, though we might be able to borrow tools.

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I love the romantic look of these lacy candle holders.  They're super simple to make (Bellenza has the instructions on their site!) and offer the impact of a fancy candle at a cheap-o price.  Plus, it perfectly matches the ivory and gold wedding colors we're using in addition to purple.  

What, if any, crafts are you planning for your wedding?  Have you attempted any of them yet, and did they turn out well?  Do you see DIYs as a way to add personality and save some money, or an added stress?