Wedding Blog - The Handmade Wedding - Real Weddings and Handmade Ideas for the Crafty Bride

DIY Succulent Wedding Favors/Centerpieces - Perfect for a Summer Wedding!

2016-06-23T18:20:00.000-07:00

There are a lot of cool options for DIY center pieces and decor. Currently, one of the more popular options is to use succulent plants in lieu or in addition to flowers.

Succulents are a great alternative to flowers because they don’t require as much care, and if you’re doing a DIY wedding, you can put together your succulent wedding decor weeks ahead of time without having to worry about them wilting, which did happen at my wedding (trust me it can be a downer, especially in 110 degree weather!). During the span of days, plants may not need anything, and if you prepare them a couple of weeks ahead of time, they will not need much more than a light watering. Additionally, these beautiful arrangements can also be used as wedding mementos for your guests to take with them after the party is finished, serving as both table decor and awesome succulent wedding favors.

Mini succulent kits can be purchased in bulk, and include everything you would need to create your arrangements yourself. Below is a cute video from that will walk you through quick and easy succulent kit-building.

Foodie Wedding Gift

2015-08-05T20:03:00.001-07:00

I loved this find from Happy Gift Company! It's the perfect wedding gift for a foodie!

If you don't have time for gift buying-let's face it sometimes gift-giving ends up low on the priority list-Happy Gift Company has a bunch of really cute gift collectives that make your experience finding a gift easy. You won't have to run from store to store. And as an added bonus, the company includes free gift wrapping. Always a plus.

Wedding Video of the Week

2015-03-11T06:00:00.000-07:00

This weeks adorable wedding video is brought to you by Alin + Elisa. It was shot by videographer Paul Sinpetrean. And, for those of you who like Converse shoes, watching the video definitely makes it seem a little more okay for your entire wedding party to wear sneakers.

Bridal Headpieces from BB World Bridal + Special Reader Discount!

2015-03-10T13:54:00.000-07:00

I love these bridal headpieces! BB World Bridal sells modern vintage-inspired bridal accessories. They work directly with factories to provide artfully crafted handmade bridal headpieces at a price-point that wont break your budget, and are still handmade!

"My sister and I are two entrepreneurs who have taken over a 30-year-old wedding brand and are now working to give the company a fresh face. Our company, BB World Bridal, previously sold exclusively to bridal storeowners and, in 2015, we decided that the best way to revive the brand and reconnect with brides was by engaging with them directly via online channels. We hope you love our headpieces as much as we do," Emma from BB World Bridal told us.

P.S. You can get 30 percent off your order from BB World Bridal by using the code NEWLYWED at checkout! Discount will be available until April 1st.

Photo courtesty of BB World Bridal

Wedding Photo Booth with A Twist

2015-03-05T13:33:00.000-08:00

Do you like the idea of having a photobooth at your wedding, but can't fit it into your budge? Or simply don't have anyone who can manage it?

I love this new app, Vello, which lets its users collaborate on videos together. Having everyone in your wedding party with a smartphone download the app and then share their own snippets, which will then be connected into one longer video, can be a great alternative to a photobooth.

"Rather than being confined to a booth, guests can record themselves raising a glass, dancing the night away or sharing some advice with the newlyweds – special, fun and hilarious moments that the couple may miss out on given the hectic nature of the day. The app stitches each guest’s clip together into one personal wedding video," Kristina, a representative for Vello told The Handmade Wedding.

If nothing else, it sounds like this could be a great way to compile moments from your big night!

Wedding Video of the Week

2015-03-04T19:07:00.000-08:00

Wedding Video of the Week:

Wedding video in Borgo Egnazia, Apulia Italy // Jenny&Tony from Matteo Castelluccia on Vimeo.

Videographer: Matteo Castelluccia

Delicious Wedding Food Recipes from Metropolitan Bakery

2015-03-03T16:42:00.000-08:00

How often do you think of your wedding food?

Are you thinking of having a family member cook?

Joe and I did. His dad cooked the most amazing BBQ that until this day, I really regret not finishing my whole plate. It was that good. If BBQ isn't your style, this wonderful cookbook from the artisan bakera Metropolitan Bakery in Philadelphia has delicious looking recipes including an awesome looking coconut cake and finger foods that look mouthwatering. They even have a few recipes available online.

Photo Credit: Metropolitan Bakery

Handmade Wedding Favors

2015-03-02T20:35:00.001-08:00

Wedding favors are usually always on the to-purchase list for brides. You want your wedding favors to be cute, whimsy, and most importantly taken home.

Martha Stewart Weddings has put together a wonderful collection of handmade wedding favors.

Photo credit: Maria Robledo

Spring Boutonniere DIY

2014-01-25T06:00:00.000-08:00

An adorable boutonniere DIY, perfect for a spring wedding, via One Fab Day.

More boutonniere inspiration:

Monogram boutonniere's.

DIY for a boutonniere made out of a multitude of flowers.

Flurry of feathers boutonniere.

Use backyard stems to create the perfect spring boutonniere.

20 more boutonniere ideas for spring.

Real Wedding Video: Anne + Chris

2014-01-23T06:00:00.000-08:00

I'm in love with this real wedding by David Whitlow.

Chris + Anna | michigan wedding film from David Whitlow Photography on Vimeo.

To see more by David, click here.

Real Weddings: Kaile + Jon

2014-01-21T06:00:00.000-08:00

I'm launching this week's posts with an adorable couple: Kaile + Jon, and their amazing outdoor wedding.

Thank you so much to Kaile and Jon for sharing their big day with us, and congratulations!

From Kaile: Jon and Kaile first met when he was 10 and she was 8; she maintains she doesn’t remember the occurrence but he swears it happened. After that, his family left the church where they met and they didn’t meet again till he texted her out-of-the-blue a year after she had friended him – nearly a decade later – on facebook. They bonded over a mutual love of the films of Wes Anderson and about a year after he first asked her to be his girlfriend, they got married.

The wedding took place in La, Center WA in August, 2013. When Kaile’s finace proposed in May, 2013, she knew she only had about 3 months left to plan a wedding if it was to take place outside, which was a bit of a non-negotiable. So she got down to planning, with 3 months and a $3,000 budget, and the handmade details started to come together. She ended up designing and printing her own programs, CD’s, invitations, table placecards, and more. During the planning stage, the bride-to-be spent an inordinate amount of time skimming Goodwill’s for mason jars, in order to provide drinking glasses with chalkboard labels (ordered from Etsy) for guests to take home, inspired by a pinterest idea showing a sign reading: “Your glass for the night, for whatever tastes right!” Another handmade element of the wedding was the light-up letters “ KJ” hung on the barn door. The bride’s brother cut out cardboard letters, drilled holes, and stuck Christmas lights in them to make a marquee style heading, then provided the valuable input of arranging them as KJ instead of JK, since “just kidding” at a wedding may have sent the wrong message ;) Other handmade elemets included a triangle banner made to frame the barn door, made from discount fabric and twine found at Jo-Anne Fabric. Oh, and homemade raspberry jam was also available as a take-home treat. Another budget-friendly aspect was found in the bridesmaids dresses, all purchased at Forever 21 and coming in at under $30 each.

Food at the wedding was catered by the delectable Pizzicato, with kegs of Ten Barrel Brewing’s “Swill” providing the libations. The mother-of-the-bride made the desserts, double chocolate and “pig-licking good” cupcakes, with generous friends proving sides. The flowers were arranged by the bride and her friends the day before, with bouquet stems wrapped in burlap ribbon. Something Borrowed, a vintage wedding rental shop in Portland, OR, provided the rustic details such as a small barn door used for a table top, chalkboard labels, wine barrels, and the “petite fleurs” flower box seen on the couples table.

Portland Wholesale Florist (Flowers):www.portlandwholesaleflorist.com
Pizzicato Pizza (Food): www.pizzicatopizza.com
District 5 Boutique (Wedding Dress): www.district5boutique.com
The Party Place (Birch Benches): www.thepartyplacepdx.com
Something Borrowed (Decor): somethingborrowedpdx.com/
Natalie Jane Photography: http://instagram.com/nataliejanephotography
Event Location: La Center, WA. The event took place on a neighbor's property, an immaculate and gorgeous farm.

French Wedding Inspiration

2013-09-12T06:00:00.000-07:00

Today I'm featuring some gorgeous French wedding inspiration from Marius & Co. featuring romance and sweet handmade ideas from pastries to flowers.

To the Marius & Co. team, thank you so much for sharing this French wedding inspiration session! It's beautiful!

From Jessica:

Marius & Co. has chose Aix en Provence in the heart of Provence to organize this smart and romantic French wedding shoot.

A poetic atmosphere, pastel colors and a bit retro, a delightfully romantic bride modeling short and long dresses, fresh flowers, some sweet cupcakes. All the ingredients were gathered for a lovely event!

With regard to other preparations, Caroline, our lovely bride, received a natural and romantic make-up combination. For the hair style, Laurent opted for an entangled loop with a rounded braid to accommodate the crown of fresh flowers, including Baby Romatica roses prepared by Lolita.

The bride wore divinely long and short dresses, signed Elsa Gary. Flowing dresses can be worn simply or be customized with a colored belt, suspending lace and other accessories (lace, satin, tulle ...).

For the decor, there is a sweet space with a wedding cake decorated with lace and flowers as well as some delicious cupcakes. We created a vintage and romantic place with the old stool and the pretty wedding table.

The menu, announcement and place cards, made to measure by Mallory.

Marius & Co. is an event agency located in the heart of Provence and created in 2012 by Julien, Jessica and Maeva. Marius & Co. is a family agency which organizes events for individuals and professionals, combining the styles and trends to create unique and memorable celebrations of life.

Crédits : BleuCitronprod - Marius & Co.

Bride : Caroline Photographers : Méd - BleuCitronprod / www.anticliché.com Make-up : Mathilde Gomez Hairstyle : By K Chou - Laurent Gilly Flowers : Pure Nature - Lolita Paper : Sweet Paper Faire-Part - Mallory Dresses : Elsa Gary - Nathalie Décoration : Marius & Co. and Ambiances et Styles Manosque Cupcakes et Weding Cake : Cakes Paradise - Morgane Wedding planners : Marius & Co. - Jessica et Julien

Jolly Edition Handmade Wedding Invitations

2013-09-11T21:49:00.000-07:00

I've been meaning to blog about this find for a while now.
I love these Jolly Edition handmade wedding invitations!

Aren't they adorable?! The Baltimore based shop owner duo created custom wedding invitations full of color, coolness and beauty.

DIY Feature: Easy Beaded Bracelet from Cutediys

2013-07-31T16:48:00.000-07:00

Today, I'm featuring a cute bracelet DIY from Cutediys, a new DIY website run by Pooja. Thanks so much Pooja for your DIY submission!

I love this project idea for your bridesmaids! Especially if they're going to be mismatched. You can easily replace the beads with rhinestone strands as well, if you're looking to bling up the tutorial.

From Pooja: I started this blog because I wanted to let people know that with a little creative thinking, you can practically make anything and everything at home. Whether it be for brides on a budget or just someone looking to "get their craft on", cutediys.com is website for everyone! The unique thing about Cutediys is that I feature video tutorials on YouTube that help the reader understand the DIY project better. My main goal at Cutediys is to make the reader feel that crafting can be easy, affordable and a lot of fun!

For the Groom: Allen Edmonds Neumok shoes

2013-07-28T06:00:00.000-07:00

My husband has been searching for months for nice brown oxfords. And I really do mean months. I've spent more time in the Nordstrom men's shoe department than some of their sales people and I am not proud of that. But I did get a chance to check out some shoes that would look amazing on a groom or his groomsmen.

Photo: AllenEdmonds.com

One of my favorites is the Allen Edmonds Neumok Wingtip Oxford. And speaking of Nordstrom, they are in the midst of their Anniversary Sale, and the Neumoks are $100 less than normal price. A steal.

If you're not familiar with Allen Edmonds, just know that you're making an investment in a pair shoes that can last a decade if treated right. They are handmade in the USA out of premium leather and sport a hot-cork sole that molds to your feet over time. Give them a few wears (seriously it takes 3-4 wears to break in), and they will fit like a glove. And as the sole or shoe wears out, you can send it back to Allen Edmonds and it'll come back like new for a fraction of the cost you paid for new shoes. Check out this video. You're not just buying a shoe for one day, you're buying one for a years to come.

A rule of thumb is shoes as ornate as the Neumoks are not formal enough to pair with a suit. But that is an old man's rule. These shoes look amazing and would look just as amazing with a suit as they would with a pair of nice jeans. The colored laces add a little pop (though they do come with neutral laces) and could be a great finishing touch to the ensembles of the men in your wedding.

Photo: AllenEdmonds.com

The Neumoks come in various colors as well, including brown, olive, navy and red. You'll surely be able to find a color to satisfy.

Do you have any other shoe recommendations?

Wedding Hair and Makeup Video

2013-07-26T06:00:00.000-07:00

Adorable wedding hair and makeup tutorial video from BHLDN.

Mini Whisky Bottle Favors

2013-07-25T06:00:00.000-07:00

How adorable are these?!

They can act like wedding favors and escort cards, too, which make them even more awesome!

Like em'? See more wedding favor ideas on our Pinterest!

Photography: Annie McElwain Photography, Coordination, Design + Florals: Bash, Please

Wedding Boutonnières + Flower Guide

2013-07-24T06:00:00.000-07:00

I love this wonderful DIY tutorial by Maddie Eisenhart, Managing Editor at A Practical Wedding, that teaches you how to make a boutonnière!

Click the image to the left to view the entire tutorial.

Combine the tutorial with this wedding flower guide from BHLDN and have all you need to make boutonnières for your entire grooms side of the bridal party.

Linda + Brad: Real Engagement Session

2013-07-23T06:00:00.000-07:00

Today, I'm featuring a real engagement session. What prompted me to share this session, wasn't that there was a huge amount of DIY ideas for an engagement session, or simply that Linda and Brad are adorable. But, more so that the session is a perfect illustration of how sometimes less is more and at the end of the day all the little details that go into a wedding aren't as important as the relationship between you and your partner. Plan an engagement photography session that centers around places you love and have fun with your future husband or wife!

Thank you so much to Linda for sharing your story with us! Congratulations to you and Brad!

From Linda:

Brad and I met almost seven years ago when we both worked at a Chicago Loop restaurant. Funny enough, our first encounter was nothing like love at first sight. We saw the bold, stubborn, loud characteristics in one another right off the bat. But slowly, through working together and living in this big city we came to be friends and find feelings beneath that friendship.

Though we had moved away from Chicago, we returned so our friend and incredible photographer, Blythe (http://blythecollins.blogspot.com/), could run our photo shoot. She knew me very well and us as a couple, so we asked her to suggest sites which she thought would have good character for a shoot. Since Chicago was woven into the fabric of our meeting and courtship, if you can call it that (though we're not very old school), we wanted it to be evident in the photos. We even wanted to feel it as we spent the afternoon together.

Blythe took us to an alley which had cobblestone street pieces and a huge iron garage door. It was, symbolically, also located near the seminary where I studied for my Master's degree (Moody Bible Institute). Cool! We shot a series beneath the Brown Line train tracks, which I used to ride to visit Brad at his apartment. So Chicago. And we finished at a quirky used book store in Old Town called Open Books which is vibrant, colorful, and had a huge stuffed gorilla, by chance.

Brad and I, about 3 years before we decided to get married, talked seriously about getting married (and decided not to). But we donated to a gorilla relief fund and "adopted" a gorilla. Her name was Segasira. It was the first unified thing we did together. And we were a couple who never lived together before marriage, so our gorilla daughter, Segasira, was this unity symbol we had. Somehow, I think it was always an indicator that we were meant for one another.

Brad and I were married on October 8, 2011 in Palos Park, IL, just outside Chicago on a stableground. We had a Western themed wedding and processed into our ceremony on horseback, wearing cowboy boots and (Brad) a holstered gun and hat. It was such fun.

Since being married, I've learned that Brad doesn't mind eating his food lukewarm. I always love my food to be piping hot, right out of the oven. But, Brad is never in a rush to get down to business at dinner. I can't believe I never knew!

Share your story with us here!

Mark + Ash - Video short story

2013-07-16T08:00:00.000-07:00

mark + ash // short story // 10 november 2012 from Humdrum Films on Vimeo.

Inspiration Board #39: Beach Wedding

2013-07-15T22:00:00.000-07:00

My big sister is getting married in October! Eeep!
As her beach wedding is fast approaching, I can't stop thinking about beach details!
I had to post a beach inspiration board today. And it's a long coming update!

(From left to right: starfish pins, ring box, personalized sign, beach wedding gown, beaded seashells sash )

Maid of honor takes speech to another level

2013-07-13T14:24:00.002-07:00

If you haven't seen this great maid of honor speech, you should. What's the best you've seen?

Real Weddings: Karis + Josiah

2013-01-28T06:00:00.000-08:00

From Me: When I first saw the photographs from Karis' and Josiah's wedding, I immediately feel in love not only with all their DIY touches, but with the atmosphere of their wedding. From the start of their "First Look" to the end of the night with the release of the lanters, their wedding was adorable, charismatic, had tons of great DIY ideas, and was beyond rustic-tastic!

Karis & Josiah - Thank you so much for sharing your big day with us! We wish you a lifetime of love and adventure together! Congratulations!

From the bride: I never dreamt of getting married like the typical little girl. I hadn’t planned what dress I would wear or the color scheme or what flowers I would have. But as soon as we got engaged, one thing sparked in my memory: Thorncrown Chapel in Eureka Springs, AR. We just had to get married there! It was rustic, organic, and homey.

Josiah and I are really laid back people. We both agreed that we didn’t want a fussy wedding in an uninspired local banquet hall. After booking the chapel, everything else fell into place. I let my bridesmaids pick there out dresses with the only guideline being that I wanted the dresses to be "coffee colored". Basically, shades of creams and browns. With loads of help and creativity from my artist mother, we created a DIY wedding that felt like home.

My goal was a simple, romantic wedding with touches or vintage and DIY elements. For the reception, I wanted less of a dance party and more of a big family get together. And coffee. There had to be coffee! I think my the most memorable part was our send off. We used biodegradable floating lanterns. It was so special and such a beautiful sight to watch them float out above the lake at our reception venue.

Photography by: Photo Love Photography

Friday Link Day

2013-01-25T06:00:00.000-08:00

Are you on a short wedding budget? Joe and I definitely were!

I love these wedding budget saving ideas from Martha Stewart.

Butterfly Bridal Hair Pins

2013-01-23T06:00:00.000-08:00

How cute are these butterfly bridal hair pins?

With spring just around the corner, I'm starting to look for fresh finds that remind me of flowers blooming and sunshine like these hair accessories from Sew Smashing.