For all of you wine fanatics out there, have you considered combining your day of celebration with your love of wine?  Hundreds of couples every year plan wine-themed weddings; from destination weddings in Tuscany, to simple but important details with wine bottles and corks.

Even if your plans don’t take you to Napa or Bordeaux, it is very easy to share your love of wine with your guests at the wedding. I think these save-the-date cards are modern and eye-catching & send a preview of the day!

Begin with a wine and cheese cocktail hour.  Have a beautiful cheese display of your favorite varieties of cheese. Also, plan to have passed wine, I suggest choosing three reds and three whites to give guests plenty of choices.

Next, your reception decor can make guests feel as if they are in a romantic vineyard with decorations such as candles, vines, grapes and wine bottles.  Focus on colors such as greens, deep purples and creams to bring out the wine feel.  A fun idea for your table names would be to name each table a different variety of wine. At each table have a fun wine fact about the style of wine their table is named after.

After your engagement, start collecting all of your friends’ and family’s old wine corks! Use these for your escort cards.  This will be a creative DIY idea that will continue to add to the theme of the day!

Talk with your caterer or chef about wine pairings throughout the meal.  Introduce a new wine with each course that matches in flavor and enhances your guests experience!  If possible, the servers could help educate everyone on the wine and why it goes well with the food being served.  Your family will appreciate the gesture and love learning more about wine while they enjoy the tasty food before them.

Leave your guests with sweet (or dry) memories from your day with personalized wine bottles as favors.

Good luck in planning your romantic wine-paired evening.  I wish you delicious food—and wine to complement! In conclusion:

“Wine makes every meal an occasion, every table more elegant, every day more civilized.”
— André Simon

Source: Good Things Wedding Favors, Kelly O’shiro Events, All Occasions, Magnet Street,The Knot, Simply Sparkling Events, Tuscan Wedding Site

WARNING: Valentine’s Day is less than 1 week away!!!  If you have failed to prepare a surprise…or are planning to pick up a special gift, you are running out of time

Valentine’s Day, the day when we celebrate those around us who we love, falls on a Saturday this year.  Not only does this mean you should start thinking about making your dinner reservations early, but thousands of couples have been planning their wedding around this upcoming day of love!  I read recently that 500,000 people get engaged every year on Valentine’s Day.  I can only imagine how many couples are taking advantage of this weekend’s holiday and inviting friends and family to join them in celebrating their new marriage.

If you are planning a wedding for February 14th and want to stick to the classic Valentine’s Day theme, I have some ideas that will hopefully inspire you!  I have always believed red roses are the J. Crew of flowers; you can not go wrong with them.  They are classically beautiful and work perfectly for a Valentine’s Day wedding!

Begin with Invitations that will show off your color scheme and scream love with a picture of you and your hubby.

Abby Jean Press

Next, pick out bridesmaids dresses and a stunning cake design like these found at The Knot that will leave your guests breathless!

Strut down the aisle in chic shoes that are sure to leave an impression…

Celebrate with perfectly decorated centerpieces and a table set that shows off your Valentine’s Day theme!

Photobucket & The Knot

Finally, Tie up your theme with some conversation hearts made into cookies to give as favors.  Have sayings like: “Will you Marry Me”, “Be Mine”, “02.14.09″ or “Kiss Me” written on the cookies.

Pacific Weddings

This Saturday, many couples will be married and will have decor like the pictures above, red roses and bridesmaid dresses.  If you love the idea of getting married on Valentine’s Day, but hate the color red, don’t feel any obligation to this theme!  This is your special day and should reflect you and your fiance’s style, not what the most expected color scheme is!  There are many ways to highlight and celebrate being in love on Valentine’s Day without the color red or lots of heart decorations.

Did you have a Valentine’s Day wedding? Send me pictures with the colors and decorations you decided to use!