{Pin it Friday} Post-it Note Seating Chart

Source: somethingturquoise.com via Layla on Pinterest

Oh the dreaded seating charts! I love post-it notes and this great example I found online. Post-it notes come in very handy for this task! Use a bowl to trace round tables, but you might have rectangle tables… in that case use the bottom of a cereal box. Number the tables or label them with your theme names. The different Post-It colors to help categorize our guests by: my family, his family, our friends and work people. * If you plan to have a plated meal you will need to put choices on your RSVP cards for everyone to choose a meal that you two decide on after looking at menu choices. If everyone chooses their own meal that means you will have to have assigned seats and a pretty seating chart for guest to know which table they are at and ALSO let the caterer have your assigned seat map usually 2 weeks before the event, plus notify of any changes on the day of the wedding. PLEASE always give a copy of the master seating chart to your planner and also notify of any changes!!!

{Organic Wednesday} Natalie Portman's Wedding

Natalie Portman Images

I have been a pretty big Natalie Portman fan ever since she was a little girl and starred in Beautiful Girls. Did you know that in 2003, Portman graduated from Harvard College with an A.B. degree in psychology, pretty smart eh!! How do you like them apples!? Well I did some snooping and only found a few paparazzi pictures online of her recent very Organic and Eco-friendly wedding, but have all the details. By the sounds of it, I would have LOVED their wedding, sadly I was not a guest.

"Although Portman debuted the rock at the Oscars last February, she and Benjamin Millepied made it official with a super-romantic wedding ceremony Aug. 4, 2012 at a private residence in Big Sur, Calif.

Wearing a bohemian wedding gown designed by her pals at Rodarte, the same house that made the purple dress that Portman wore to the 2010 Oscars. She wore flowers wrapped around her head and a long veil, she exchanged vows with French choreographer/dancer Millepied, 35, beneath a hand-crafted chuppah just after sundown on a spot overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Presided by a rabbi, the vows took place by candlelight beneath a hand-crafted chuppah. They were surrounded by family – including 14-month-old son. During the ceremony, the couple were wrapped in a tallits, a Jewish prayer shawl, and in keeping with custom, things ended with Millepied smashing a glass to shouts of "Mazel Tov!"

The wedding between Natalie Portman and Benjamin Millepied reflected not just the bride's Jewish faith and the groom's French nationality, but also the couple's outlook on the world. 

Instead of having flowers flown in, the ceremony featured wildflowers indigenous to the Big Sur coast where the ceremony took place, and instead of "fish or steak" the menu was strictly vegan in keeping with the bride's diet. Also instead of the traditional wedding cake, the couple opted for French macarons.

The reception was held under a tent at a private residence, and featured a Klezmer band. The newly married couple kicked the dancing off with a 20-minute hora dance before being lifted up in chairs by guests. 

When things wrapped up around 2 a.m., the approximately 100 guests took home packets of wildflower seeds as party favors. The packets were inscribed with a single word: Merci".

sources: read more and even more reading

{Pin it Friday} Lawn Games

I love the ideas of lawn games, but WOW I've never seen these giant size games before!! I may have to turn this one into an inspiration board! One of our clients has the best plan for their rehearsal dinner - they are going to a park with all their family and going to have a field day filled with fun & games. Plus their setting up picnic style blankets with food and drinks.

 

Source: onefabday.com via Layla on Pinterest

{Bright Idea Thursday} Non-Flower Centerpieces

I recently did some research online searching for ideas on non-flower centerpieces to help a client and figured I'd share what I found! Sometimes you don't have enough money in your budget for spending a lot on flower arrangements or maybe you are not a huge fan of fresh cut flowers. Whatever the reason, you may like some of these ideas. 

Buy gift card sets and frame them to put around the tables with candles, this etsy artist does beautiful drawings of historic Savannah locations. Or buy a variety of Savannah postcards and frame them. Instead of fresh flowers use Potpourri in shallow vases, it will smell really nice too. Or combine minimal flowers cut really short that can live for awhile without water and place in vases with fruit. Another way of using minimal flowers is the example with the wine bottles and recycled glass containers, which uses inexpensive flowers sparingly. Going along with the wine theme, maybe you save your wine corks and don't know what to do with them-why not use them as decorative details for your wedding. You could also buy potted plants that are in season or create herb centerpieces to place on each table. Candles can be bought in bulk and look so pretty on their own like the example of the DIY lace candles or just wine glasses with floating candles. If you are feeling crafty and want to include photos for your centerpieces, consider trying to make the DIY photo frames with votives. Your napkins can help with adding a design element to the tables and place settings too. Well, I hope I gave you some inspiration!

{Elopement} Carrie & Shan

Carrie & Shan traveled to Savannah from Ohio to elope and were wed at Whitfiled Square. Since this was a destination location Carrie hired us months before and we helped plan all the details. They had a beautifully small ceremony and toured Savannah's beautiful city via horse carriage. On the way to the ceremony Carrie & Shan stopped to pose for a few picturesque photos in front of the Hull-Stoddard-Barrow House in Chippewa Square. The ceremony was beautiful and you could tell they were thrilled to be saying their vows to one another. Even though the witnesses were few, it didn't stop Reverend Joe from announcing them as man and wife to the entire city of Savannah. Tourist in their cars, passerbyers, and all of us cheered! It was a pleasure to meet this lovely couple and I wish them the best in their bright future together.

Wedding planner, coordinator, and florist: Simply Savannah Events/All the Little Details Designs

Photographer: Studio Gap Photography

Cake: Publix

Topper & Toasting Flutes: Red Envelope
Hair: Colorboxx

Reverend: Rev. Joe

Horse Carriage: Madison Tour Company

Eco-friendly details: horse carriage transported the couple all around Savannah for their wedding day, "green" wedding photographer, plates, forks, napkins, table, tablecloth, cake stand and servers are reused as part of Simply Savannah Event's elopement package.