As you are planing your wedding you will eventually need to plan your grand exit.  Many venues recently have restricted the use of rice and flower petals due to the extensive clean up after, or a possibility of harming animals!  Many couples have found creative ways to still have an exciting exit with birdseed, bubbles and sparklers, my favorite obviously being the sparklers!

At night these sparklers create such a dramatic effect leaving you with breathtaking pictures!  I suggest informing your photographer that you plan on using sparklers for your exit so they can come prepared with the proper night gear and flash that they need to get the best possible picture.  A great idea to help save money in your budget is to also use these as your favors!  I would suggest tying up five or so sparklers with a cute lighter and leaving it at each place setting.  After they use the one for your exit, they can take the rest home with the lighter!

Make sure you plan the exit in a large enough area to fit all of your guests comfortably with still leaving a wide enough aisle for you and your dress to make it safely through the sparks!  Although sparklers are simple fireworks you still have to be careful while celebrating that you aren’t waving the sparkler around when you are close to other guests!  These are still potentially dangerous so make sure kids are watched while using them and you keep them away from all flammable materials!  When your reception venue tells you they don’t allow rice or rose petals get creative…and consider using sparklers to celebrate you big day!!

Sources: The Knot, Dallas Brides, Sparkle

After the wedding is planned. your last invitation has been sent out, and the final program printed, your focus moves to the one thing that you can not change… the weather!!  There are so many superstitions told about rain on your wedding day: rain is lucky; the rainier the day, the more children you will have; the Italian saying “Sposa bagnata, sposa fortunata“, which means that a wet bride is a lucky bride!  It might be lucky if it rains on your wedding day, but I think most brides will take their chances and pray for no rain!

My outlook on rain is that it is one of the few things you have no control over, so don’t let it stress you out.  I admit: I was one of the many brides who checked the weather once a day, every day, two weeks prior to the wedding (OK, so maybe it was three times a day).  But considering it stormed all morning on my wedding day and cleared up to be hot and humid for the ceremony- I learned my lesson well!

There are two things that can help prepare you for rain on your wedding day: an adorable umbrella and unique rainboots.  My opinion is, if it is going to rain, you might as well remember it with great pictures!! Here are a few examples of how brides kept a positive attitude on their rainy wedding day!!

The red umbrella creates a picture-perfect opportunity on a rainy day!

Why let the rain ruin your day? Just soak it up!!

Don’t let it figuratively rain on your day!  Always remember, when the day is over, you will be married and on your way to your honeymoon—hopefully somewhere sunny and warm!!!

To help you plan for rain, check out these two great sites:

I love the umbrellas at Bella Umbrella and the rain boots at What a Pair.

You have one day for your wedding…don’t let a little water make it anything less than unforgettable!!

Sources: Adrienne Maples Photography, Bride Net, Elizabeth Anne Designs

Your wedding is your time to let your personality shine through! Create a day that reflects you and your fiance’s style, filling it with details that are unlike anything seen at other weddings!  My favorite part of weddings is seeing those quirky details that I would have never thought about! To clear up any confusion, my view on the term quirky is not negative but a fabulous way to make your wedding your own!

Rock n’ Roll Bride is a blog I read that truly highlights brides’ and grooms’ individual styles.  The weddings featured here show these quirky aspects of weddings and how much fun you can have when you get creative with the details of your day!  I love reading this blog and am inspired daily to think outside of the box from the typical weddings I’ve seen.

I think it is easy to see pictures and attend weddings that creates a picture of what a wedding is “supposed” to be like.  There is a lot of talk about tradition that surrounds weddings and everyone wants to do it the correct way.  I strongly believe that there is no such thing as a “right” wedding, which is why i adore Rock n’ Roll bride so much!  It encourages not sticking with the status quo and bringing your own ideas into your day. For example, every groomsman I have worked with has complained about the shoes that come with the tux… why put yourself through pain… check out these fun shoes the group decided to wear!!

These are a few of the many unconventional pictures you can find at Rock n’ Roll Bride’s blog that is proof of how getting away from the norm can create a wedding that belongs to just you! Send me picture of your details that made your wedding unforgettably yours!

Source  Rock n’ Roll Bride

After taking a week to celebrate love around Valentine’s day, I am excited to get back to the Weddings A-to-Z Series!  I have been looking forward to this post for the simple fact that I get to write about Polka Dots!  Adding polka dots to your wedding creates a playful atmosphere and makes a fun statement to your guests.

I believe you can create a theme around polka dots for your wedding, just be careful not to overdue it!  I think you will have the best results by first choosing a main color scheme, and then adding in polka dot patterns in details where it isn’t expected!  Examples of this is finding shoes that sport the pattern or have your fiancee wear a tie as shown below.

I love when florists use polka dot ribbon to wrap the bouquet, another simple but eye catching addition to your wedding!

If you want to make a more dramatic statement with your polka dot theme you can have the bridesmaid dresses, cake and invitations covered with cheerful dots! I adore this pink J. Crew polka dot dress I saw at DC Nearlyweds!

As I mentioned earlier, this theme is playful and exciting for your guests.  Plan out the details that you want to add polka dots to and have fun with it!

I can not finish a blog on polka dots without mentioning Australia’s Polka Dot Bride!  Her blog is not only inspirational but it will give you so many ideas for stylish additions to your wedding!

Sources: Apple Cellar Bakery, Amy Carroll Photography, Katie and Ryan’s Wedding, Bizarre Wedding Flowers, Huckleberry Karen Blog, Favor Studio, DC Nearlyweds

As a bride, you may give yourself over a year to plan, and have as many binders and to-do lists as humanly possible, but I want to let you in on a little secret: Something on the Big Day will not go as planned!  This post is written to help you breathe, look at the bigger picture and enjoy your wedding day!

Worst case scenario— You are in the middle of saying your beautifully written out vows, and you feel everyone looking at you. The outside heat of the hot June day is finally getting to you…and you faint! I promise, at the end of the day, you will still be married. (I am speaking from first-hand experience!)  I think my favorite comment was “You looked so graceful falling into your dress”! Let’s be honest, I scared 250 of my friends and family to death.  I could have very easily let my embarrassment get the best of me and let my wedding day be ruined, but I didn’t.  I came to, made a joke about it, and continued on with the ceremony. I was determined to make it to the final kiss, (whether I remembered the ceremony or not!)  My friends’ comments that night consisted of “that was the most exciting wedding I have ever been to” (from the male guests of course), and “I can’t believe how well you handled the situation”.

That’s the key to this story: dealing with obstacles when they don’t go as planned on your wedding day… It is all about how you handle the situation!  In every couple’s wedding I have coordinated, something unplanned has happened (whether the bride and groom know about it or not).  You either realize that at the end of the day you will still be married despite the mishaps, or you join the “bridezilla” club and let it rain on your parade.  I would guarantee that the majority of brides you ask will have their own horror story to tell and they all lived through it.  Someone will show up late because of traffic, it will rain, the guys’ tuxes won’t fit, or the cake will melt due to the heat. Deep breaths…

Ideas to help you relax during the planning process and when the big day finally arrives:

1. Always remember the goal of the day: To marry the man of your dreams
2. Plan what you can, Prepare for the worst
3. Go on dates with your fiancee – enjoy the love you share
4. Hang up your cell phone…or give it away to someone you trust
5. Learn and practice Yoga
6. Ask for Help!!!