Wednesday, February 18, 2009

Vintage wedding Inspiration







Vintage wedding

The resurgence of vintage-styled clothes, dances and songs has renewed the interest of brides-to-be on this wedding theme. What would it take to have your very own vintage wedding? Here are a few ideas...

Pick an Era, Any Era
Every decade has a definitive style, a unique place in history. There are so many to incorporate that spirit and panache into your wedding design. Be thorough with the design elements and you’ll have an impressive theme.

VICTORIAN:
Defining Trends - Society structure was strict and coded. Afternoon tea in the Garden was an elegant soiree.
Attire - High-collared, lace-corseted gown with bustle. Opt for large brimmed hats or jeweled hair combs rather than a veil; gentlemen in top hat & long coat. Look to the movie “Titanic” for design inspiration.
Decor - English garden or Victorian home; antique lace in ivory shades and pale pastels. Accent with pearls.
Music - String quartet elegantly flows in the fresh afternoon air. First dance is a waltz.
Menu - Tea sandwiches, scones, Champagne Punch.
Magic Moment - Recess down the aisle in a shower of floating feathers.


JAZZ AGE:
Defining Trends - Prohibition couldn’t stop the energy of a decadent decade.
Attire - Light layers, shorter hemlines and longer veils. The waistline is non-existent. Black-tux with tails and top hat reigned for the men. Rent “The Cat’s Meow” or “It Happened One Night” for fantastic attire ideas.
Decor - Au Art Deco Hotel serves as your speakeasy. Let the architecture inspire your cake shape, invitation fonts, and flower accents.
Music - Ragtime piano during cocktails and a swing jazz hand to dance the Charleston. First Dance is a fox-trot to anything by George & Ira Gershwin.
Menu - Cocktails were essentially invented during this era; create a menu of specialty offerings (The Side Car, Bathtub Gin Martini, etc.).
Magic Moment - Guys take home their very own personalized flask and a pink flask for the ladies!

HOLLYWOOD GLAM:
Defining Trends - During economic strife, Hollywood kicked into high gear with streamline fashion and musical extravaganza.
Attire - Dresses accented the feminine body, clinging and sensual. Fabrics are lush (heavy satin) to accent a simple design. Double breasted suit and bow tie for the gentlemen. “The Aviator” will provide plenty of inspiration for the apparel.
Decor - Give your guests the red carpet treatment, with screaming autograph seekers and paparazzi vying for their attention.
Music - The Golden Age of Hollywood Musicals lends a library of classic tunes. First dance in Fred & Ginger style to "Cheek to Cheek."
Menu - The Cosmo came into vogue during the ‘30s.
Magic Moment - Place a Polaroid from the paparazzi into a mini film tin as the party favor.


SWING ERA:
Defining Trends - Simplicity was key, but certainly not boring.
Attire - Even with wartime rations, 1940s gowns were distinct. Sophisticated hair styles accented with a flower help define the era. Military dress uniform or double-breasted business suit with fedora for the gentlemen. For inspiration, rent “The Palm Beach Story.”
Decor - After a trip to the courthouse, treat your guests to a swing dance lesson before the dinner reception at a supper club.
Music
- Only the Big Band tunes will do—Goodman, Miller, Dorsey. Let Ella serenade your first dance "For Sentimental Reasons."
Menu - Straight from mom’s kitchen: home cooked comfort foods. Send guests home with a slice of groom’s cake (a traditional wedding favor).
Magic Moment - Making your get away in a 1940 Packard Limousine.


ATOMIC AGE:
Defining Trends - The return to innocent, a boom in invention.
Attire - Gowns were fitted and bell shaped with lots of tulle and decorative accent. Veils were fingertip length. Gentlemen are styling in a midnight blue tuxedo jacket. The original “Father of the Bride” is a definitive example of 1950s wedding glamour.
Decor - Think sock hop, book a bowling alley or transform a high school gym into a “prom night.’ Color palette of cotton candy pink, mint green and lemon yellow.
Music - A DJ can spin early rock & roll standards. Elvis’ “Can’t Help Falling In Love” is a dream of a first dance selection.
Menu - What would June Cleaver serve? Gourmet-up the menu of Tuna casserole, macaroni & cheese, meatloaf with mashed potatoes—milk shakes for dessert!
Magic Moment - Guests are treated to a special appearance by Sandy & Danny look-a-likes.

From Hanson Ellis

  • Bride's Attire

  • Go for a slim fitting suit or a drop shoulder slender fit satin dress with full length gloves and a hat with a netted face veil. Finish it off with accessories such as seamed nylons and spiked healed shoes (make sure they are comfortable though.)

  • Groom's Attire

  • Pin striped suits were still all the rage, or because of the war, army uniforms were often worn.

  • Bridal Party

  • The bridesmaid dresses and groomsmen clothing should be along the same lines as the bride and groom.

    Big Band Wedding Theme Invitations

    • If you're making your own, decorate the invitations with pictures of either big band instruments (saxophone, trombone, tuba, bass, trumpet). Another choice is to use a graphic of a wine bottle draped with a string of pearls.

    • Use a sepia photo (one that has been made to look antique) featuring you and your fiancĂ©e as your background. Surround the picture in a border created to look like it's in an antique frame. Print your wording on vellum paper and secure it over the photo.
    1940's Vintage Wedding Decorations

    • Fill balloons with helium and float them above the dance floor.

    • Create several balloon bouquets and place around the room.

    • Secure a mirrored, slow-turning "disco" ball over the dance floor.

    • Add strings of small lights over doorways.

    • Buy cheap children's musical instruments (saxophone, trumpet, etc.) and create an arrangement on the main food table as a centerpiece focal point.

    • Have a fountain that produces bubbles.

    • Use posters of famous people of the forties. Hang on the walls.

    • Find pictures of cars, bi-planes, etc. that relate to that period. Hang on the walls.

    Theme Favors For a 1940's Vintage Wedding

    • Give an actual antique photo of yourselves in an antique looking frame.

    • Create a music sheet with your favorite song, roll up and secure with ribbon.

    • Present small bottles of wine or champagne decorated with some ribbon and a string of fake pearls.

    • Another idea is to buy cheap champagne glasses and fill with rose petals or mints.


    Themed Centerpieces

    • You could use wine bottles draped with pearls or army dog-tags.

    • Lay long white gloves in the center of the table and scatter rose petals over them. Place a tall vase with a single rosebud next to the gloves.

    • Buy a large champagne glass for each table and fill with glass beads; place a candle in the middle of each and drape fake pearls along its stem.

    • Create a musical arrangement centerpiece. At a craft supply store, purchase miniature musical instruments (saxophone, trombone, trumpet, etc.), along with a small "music stand" and place an antiqued sheet of music with your songs on each stand.

    Suggested Pewmarkers

    Buy the small, plastic horns, drums, etc. available at craft stores (usually I've seen them in the Christmas section). Create small music song sheets and secure the instrument to the sheet with a ribbon. Hang as pew markers.

    Wedding Programs

    Make your wedding programs look like a music book, with a dark "leather-look" cover with your initials or names on it. On the inside, use a music score sheet for your backgrounds (faded, watermark type background) with your program information written within.

    1940's Vintage Wedding Music

    Any of the big band music that features Jazz and/or Blues -- basically, think "Lawrence Welk" (for those of you who remember who this is - if not, follow the link for a Wikipedia explanation.) You could hire an actual band or find a D.J. that enjoys this type of music and knows what to play.

    Search for the appropriate music by the following artists:

    Andrews Sisters
    Louis Armstrong
    Fred Astaire
    Gene Autrey
    Cab Calloway
    Nat King Cole
    Count Basie
    Bing Cosby
    Dorris Day
    Tommy Dorsey
    Duke Ellington
    Gracie Fields
    Ella Fitzgerald
    Benny Goodman
    Fletcher Henderson

    Ink Spots
    Spike Jones
    Sammy Kaye
    Franky Laine
    Guy Lombardo
    Jeanette MacDonald
    Glenn Miller
    Mills Brothers
    Cole Porter
    Artie Shaw
    Frank Sinatra
    Mel Torme
    Fats Waller
    Woody Herman


    A 1940's Big Band Wedding Cake

    • Get a regular wedding cake (2 or 3 tiers) and place small, plastic musical instruments along the edges. For the topper, have two figures standing in front of a music stand.

    • Have the cake shaped into a musical instrument such as a saxophone, trumpet, drums, piano, tuba, guitars, etc. Brass instruments were very popular then.

    Tuesday, February 17, 2009

    Monday, February 16, 2009

    Photo wall with a difference

    From Wedding Obsession

    Set up your own picture station with a laptop, digital camera, and photo printer. Have a friend or hire someone to man the booth. Pose, snap, and print! Consider setting up rows of string like the picture above and hold the snapshots with butterfly clips. The photos will be ready to go when it’s time for the guests to head home.

    Or, if you prefer, use the ‘clothes-line’ idea to put up any pictures of you and your groom (baby pix, when you first met, first date etc.). I’m sure it will be a great alternative from the usual slideshow presentation.

    Jelly centrepieces


    From Rachel Ray Magazine

    - Combine six boxes of Jell-O powder in half the amount of water specified (to get a more vibrant color).
    - Chill the mix in your choice of vase for approximately 30 minutes.
    - Push the flowers into the semi-firm gelatin.
    - Leave to set

    Rose Ice Cubes



    Rose Ice Cubes

    For a truly romantic evening, whether it’s for Valentine’s Day or an anniversary, show your love with this wine bucket filled with roses encased in ice. They’ll melt any heart.

    Is it edible?

    Most roses are indeed edible. However, many growers use pesticides on the roses, so I would avoid putting these ice cubes in drinks unless you’re sure there were no chemicals used. Just use the ice to cool the wine or champagne bottle.

    What you’ll need:

    (per ice tray)
    12 spray roses (the small ones)
    12 twist ties
    2 wooden skewers
    1 ice tray
    Floral tape


    1. To keep the roses submerged in the ice trays, we have to build a framework that will weigh them down. Cut the spray roses, leaving about 2 inches of stem, and use twist ties to attach the stems to the skewers.




    2. Place the roses, which are attached to the skewers, upside down in their individual ice compartments of the tray.

    3. Tape down the skewers at the ends of the ice tray to keep everything from floating when you add water. Your ice tray should look like the one in the photo.

    4. Add water to the ice tray and freeze overnight.