Wednesday, September 29, 2010

Garden Geometry

Seriously, choose a nerdier title.  What can I say?  I dig the alliteration.

As I've mentioned before, we're going for a certain look with our wedding: vintage garden with extra whimsy on top.  Our wedding ceremony will be outside in a garden, and the reception will be inside the same venue's ballroom.  One of the best parts about a garden ceremony is that it requires very few additional decorations.  Sure, you can add more if you want, but the scene would still look pretty complete without it.  But I wanted our theme to be consistent throughout.  How does one bring that same outdoor greenery inside to the reception?

Enter the topiary.  Topiaries certainly have vintage appeal; personally, they remind me of something you'd see on a Victorian valentine.  They also emit a sense of whimsy, especially because they can be sculpted into just about anything you could possibly imagine.  What's more whimsical than imagination?

I found this topiary idea on Martha Stewart and knew it would fit in perfectly at the entrance to our reception.

I love everything about this, but I was afraid it looked a little expensive.  Then it dawned on me: we could DIY!  A little styrofoam, some crafting moss...totally doable.  I promise a tutorial after a little trial and error!

We thought a nice way to tie in this same look throughout the reception was to use these little babies:

Such adorable little place card holders.  I looked into making these myself, but frankly it just wasn't worth it.  The materials ended up costing about the same amount as actually buying them pre-made, and then there was the labor.  Oh my goodness, the labor.  Making 125 of these things just sounded terrible.  I don't mind biting off more than I can chew with some DIY projects, but this one was not one of those projects!  Plus, the 'Bee sells these beauties now for a pretty good price :)

This one's not particularly my style, but I would certainly appreciate it if I saw it as a DIY centerpiece at another bride's wedding!

Then, there's always the option of edible topiaries.  Like this fruit one...

...or this cupcake one:
{personal photo}

You could even extend the topiary theme to your invites if you wanted to!  Okay, okay, maybe these aren't exactly vintagey-looking.  But look how cute the little birdies are!

How have you carried a theme throughout your wedding plans?

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