Spotlight On Groomsmen’s Gift Ideas

Wedding season is pretty much upon us, and after a small hiatus, we are back with some groomsmen’s gift ideas that will help busy brides and grooms put smile on the faces of their main men…

For the fashionable & timelessly put together guys:
LGFG wallets: http://www.lgfg.ca/product.html

For the trendy but practical dudes, how about these cool N-product time pieces? We were so very excited to find these unique wrist pieces, which hail from our home base of Ottawa, right here in Vancouver at Walrus! These i-pod nano holders are a fashionable way to keep your i-pod on your wrist and to have it double as a watch: http://n-product.com/collections/deckster.
You can order these babies online or check out their website for stockists in Canada or the US.

For the sporty bunch, how about a personalized sterling silver golf ball marker? These beauties by E. Ria Designs are timeless and classy: http://ca.etsy.com/listing/93135317/personalized-golf-ball-marker-pocket?ref=shop_home_active&ga_search_query=Golf+ball+marker

Happy shopping!

A Gorgeous Vintage Glam Wedding: Michelle and Luc

While I sit here still inspired by the romance of Valentine’s Day, I am more than excited to bring you our first feature wedding of 2013! First of all, it’s obvious that this is one stylish couple! The old hollywood glam vibe that characterises these beautiful photos by Evan McMaster is a true testament to that. Let yourselves be taken away by the beauty of Luc & Michelle’s vintage-glam East Coast wedding.

A few words from the Bride: Luc and I were completely ready and happy to get married. We did everything backwards, first us, then along came our dog Rocco, then we had our first son Olivier and then our second son, Leo. At this point we had it all, a beautiful loving family. That’s when we realized we wanted to get married, for all the love we already had. What a great way to bring everyone who has supported us all along together.
Our main goal for our nuptials was for everyone to have a great time and to dance the night away. We kept it simple and true to us, which I think is really important for a couple planning a wedding. We made every single decision together or with each others opinions so we could both really enjoy the process and the day itself. I’m not saying it was easy; we didn’t agree on everything and we both had to let some things go that we wanted in order to make it work. As most brides, I had a vision that I wanted to execute in the best way possible and this is how I became a DIY bride.

Michelle’s advice: <<…to any bride willing to take on this crazy challenge: Make it about you AND your fiance. The men may not want to pick out flowers but they do want to be involved, have an opinion and feel important. Don’t sweat the small stuff. We made a list of the things that were most important to us at our wedding (food, music, photography, decor etc…) and we put more focus on those things and it made us feel much more relaxed for the big day!
Don’t be afraid to ask or to refuse help. Make sure you get the right people for the tasks that need getting done and don’t let just anyone do the things you want done a certain way.
Only take on challenges you are ready to tackle and finish with a smile, you want your wedding planning to be a great memory, not a job. Last but not least, stick to your budget!!! I can’t say it enough. I never budget anything else in my life but I added up every single penny we spent for our wedding and we never had any issues about our financials because we had agreed on what we wanted to spend. There are hundreds of wedding planning books that can help (yes, I had one… two actually!) and all brides should have one.
All in all our wedding was really everything we had dreamed of and much more. Our families and friends moved us like never before and it truly is an amazing thing to feel that much love in one room, all for us. Our wedding party made the whole day so much more fun and I would do the whole thing over again the exact same way even though some things didn’t go according to plan. It was perfect and we are so happy.>>

Venue: St. James Gate http://www.stjamesmoncton.com/stjamesgate/ at  Fox Creek Golf Club: http://www.foxcreekgolfclub.ca/front; Catering: St. James Gate;                         Bride’s Dress: Mori Lee http://www.morilee.com; Shoes:http://www.littleburgundyshoes.com
Bridesmaid dresses:Allure Bridal http://www.allurebridals.com/index.php?id=3&product_id=751; Hair and Makeup: Sereno Hair and Body Care                            Men’s Tuxedos & Shoes: http://www.mooresclothing.com/mor/index.jsp
Boutonnieres & Corsages: Pomp and Plumage:  http://www.etsy.com/listing/61449836/andersen-boutonniere-in-purple-feathers?ref=usr_faveitems; Photographer: Evan Mcmaster http://www.evanmcmaster.com
DJ: DJ Sonny D http://www.djsonnyd.com;                                                                          Host: Julien Dionne http://www.juliendionne.com
Nails: Tina Wedge http://www.facebook.com/pages/Nailtini-Nail-Bar/248097925217753?rf=226863610668467; Cake: Cake Box, Moncton, New Brunswick
Dessert tables and entrance decor: Lace and Twine: http://laceandtwine.com

The DIY Bride’s Top 5 Secret Weapons

It’s a new year! We all know that the holiday season is the perfect time of year for love birds to profess their undying love for each other and where a whole new crop of beautiful blushing brides-to-be appear.

Planning a DIY wedding can be an amazing and rewarding experience, but it also requires time and energy.  Here are a few secret weapons that will help DIY brides-to-be tackle their do to lists, deal with challenges like last minute seating changes, and serve as budget friendly multi-task tools:

1) A CUSTOM LETTER STAMP SET & INK PAD: For the DIY creative types these weapons are the perfect ingredient to add last minute customized touches to countless wedding decor, stationary, favours and more.  It’s a tool that can be re-used time after time and that can save you lots of pennies.Try this set by Martha Stewart:http://canada.michaels.com/on/demandware.store/Sites-MichaelsCanada-Site/default/Product-Show?pid=C_ms0851

2) TWINE OR RIBBON: Twine or a ribbon of your choice representing the color scheme or theme of your wedding is the perfect accent to help you embellish and tie together various features like Save-the-Dates, Invitations, Favours, Programs, Table decor and much more.

3) A PRINTER: Wedding stationary DIY projects can be a huge money saver.  A printer is essential for the DIY bride who plans to tackle stationary jobs herself!

4) ERASABLE SURFACE SEATING CHART: This one may be the biggest weapon and life saver of all…!  An erasable or amendable seating chart will make sure you avoid last minute madness which can be brought on by last minute guest cancellations or additions.  Here are a few ideas that may inspire you.

  5) W-ABLE ONES: Last but not least, you can’t but a price tag on your “w-able” (willing & able) loved ones.  Wether it be your fiancé, friends or family you will always be thankful to those who lent their time and talent to help make your dreams come true.

Bloomin Vendors: Vancouver’s Hidden Flower JackPot…Queensberry Flower Company

 

We absolutely had to share with you the gem that is Queensberry Flower Company: the little vendor that could, hidden deep beneath the streets of downtown Vancouver in the underground corridors of the Granville SkyTrain station.

Their beautifully arranged pint sized bouquets, perfect for bridesmaids, immediately caught the corner my eye during a recent treck home. What jumped out even more was how reasonably priced these beautiful arrangments were: $10 for a beautiful bouquet!  At that price, even a DIY bride has to ask herself if it’s worth grabbing a dozen more to add some floral to her table arrangements!

Winter Wonderland Engagement Photoshoot by Evan McMaster

As the first signs of Winter begin to roll in, and the trees lining our city streets come alive with a flurry of beautiful Christmas lights, it’s hard not to get a warm fuzzy feeling inside and begin to feel a little festive….and maybe even a little romantic.  After all, who doesn’t like the idea of keeping warm by cuddling up to your sweatheart?

With this in mind, we are very excited to bring you this romantic Winter Ottawa engagement shoot by none othere than Evan McMaster.

 

The Perfect Union: Marrying Favours to your Favourite Cause with Favour Donations

A popular trend with wedding favours has been to replace the more traditional <<take home>> favour with donations to the bride and groom’s favourite charity in their guests’ honor. 

In honor of Movember (the month formally known as November), here is a fun DIY project which can be done easily to highlight your Favour Donations during your dessert course or at your dessert table.   This DIY project can be adapted to almost any cause…all you need is cardstock, a pair of scissors, a stamp and some ink.

Include a note card on each serving platter, or a framed note on an easel as the centerpiece to your dessert table, explaining that a gift has been made in honor of your wedding guests.  It will make a bold, thoughtful statement.

DIY PROJECT: Easy Fall Inspired Table Centerpieces

We’ve drawn inspiration from our friends at Ottawa’s The Flour Shoppe for a great idea for Fall inspired table centerpieces: spray painted pumpkins. This diy project is extremely easy and quick…all u need are some pumpkins and spray paint to match your colour scheme. Group a few together in different sizes or hollow them out and fill with water to transform into flower vases.

Spotlight on Photographers: Spreading the Love for a Good Cause with Juna Photography

A couple of weeks ago we spread the word about 100 Moments of the Love, the wonderful event being put together in support of Vancouver charity Take a Hike,  by the very talented Vancouver based photographer Justin Morrison of Juna Photography.

Today, we are extremely happy to give you a sneak peak of Justin’s endeavours which have benefited this very worthy cause: http://www.junaphotography.com/blog/. To see more of Justin’s work go to www.junaphotography.com.

Write to us at admin@wildflowerweddingsblog.com to tell us about your charity event!

Spotlight on Gift Ideas: Eco-friendly, Up-Cycled Bridal Party Gifts

We’re quite excited to share with you yet another wonderful weekend wander find….this time, we are bringing you inspiration for cool gifts that are sure to get a nod of approval from your groom’s best dudes.  Billy Would Designs is a Vancouver based company which crafts unique handmade accessories, for men & women, using recycled and reclaimed hardwood.  Check out these awesome cufflinks made out of recycled skateboard decks.

For more unique gift ideas for your bridal party, or to find out where to buy Billy Would, check out the Billy Would Designs website at www.billywould.com.

Vancouver Lovebirds: Last Call to join us for 100 Moments of Love!

Looking for something unique and fun to do with your sweetheart on this Sunday afternoon?  Join us for 100 Moments of Love in Vancouver. There are a few last spots left, we would love to have you join us for this amazing event. Visit http://www.junaphotography.com to register.