Well Well Well…. if it isn’t Madam O’Shea taking over the Friday afternoon D.I.Y slot

Actually that is a small fib. It is in fact Kim Neville, wedding planner lovely lady from the Pink Pumpkin who has kindly supplied us with some of her top tips and trends for 2011 weddings and a cute, simple and cost effective way of creating your own table plan.

Do it yourself paper pretty if you will.

So in preparation for the weekend we’ll leave you with some snippets of gorgeous gowns, delicious decor and a clever way to seat your guests….

Trends 2011

Big, English weddings will be back. Think billowy ball gowns, tiered cakes and lots of glamour!

From left, Coppelia by Ian Stuart and Octubra by Rosa Clara

The trend for vintage weddings will continue into 2011 but there will be a focus on 1950s style grown up glamour. Weddings inspired by films such as Breakfast at Tiffany’s will be a huge hit with ballrooms decked with crystal candlesticks and pearls

Colour is very much back in vogue with strong colour schemes becoming popular again. Starting the day with a light colour palette and enhancing to bolder colours throughout the day with lighting and floral displays is also a great way to transform a venue

Image courtesy of Brett Harkness Photography

Entertainment has become a top priority for many couples who want unusual ways to keep their guests entertained throughout the day. From circus acts and burlesque dancers to food displays and flair artists, the options are endless

Surprising elements for guests are also seeing a rise in popularity. Marquee reveals from day to night are a great way to completely transform the setting and keep the day visually exciting

Image courtesy of Appleby Photography

Food presentation is another visual element that guests love and top caterers are always coming up with new and interesting ways to present food such as ice-cream canapés, dessert bars and miniature cheese towers

Alternative table plan displays and escort cards are still on the rise and there are a number of pretty ways to display these. One of my favourites is the table plan tree as it’s simple to make and looks beautiful all year round

D.I.Y Table Plan Trees

Table plan trees are a lovely way of displaying your table plan and can be made with ease at home. One advantage is that they can be done quite near to the wedding; often stationers require final names and table plans a few weeks before the wedding, but making a plan like this means that you can do it much closer to the time and take into account any late RSVPs or cancellations.

Items needed:
 

Card

Ribbon

Willow Stems

Urn or vase

Oasis

Flower heads or moss

 
Instructions:
 
To make the cards themselves, simply print the table name at the top of your document, with the guest names underneath.

Print your document on a card, with the list on the right hand side of the card like so:

Attach a piece of ribbon, in a loop to the inside of the card, and then fold the card over and stick with double-sided tape or glue, so you end up with a card and ribbon hanger:

To construct the plan itself, place some oasis in the bottom of your urn/vase and insert willow twigs to form the tree base.

For a smaller wedding this would work well using escort cards; each guest would have to find their own card which tells them their table – for larger weddings logistically this is quite complex so it’s best to stick to table names.

Hope this has given you some inspiration lovelies!

With thanks to Kim at The Pink Pumpkin, go visit her website for more ideas and general eye candy.

Big Make It Pretty Love

Charlotte xxx

It’s an early one for DIY Devotee today, as later on I’ll be blogging live at the National Wedding Show at Earls Court, London. If you’ll be attending over the weekend you can get some hot tips on what we rate there and a sneak peek at the fashion show hot picks too. Of course if you’re going today then give me a wave!!! There will be updates all afternoon as I post them so please keep checking back from lunch time regularly – it’s live so I can’t tell you more than that, except wish me luck!

So the nights are starting to draw in and winter weddings are on the cards (don’t worry, we’ll still be sharing HEAPS of pretty summer affairs here on Rock My Wedding,) but we certainly don’t want to be leaving those planning a ‘do’ in the colder months out!

And cold is the key here. There’s absolutely nothing better than a bit of warmth at a winter wedding, whether that be a thoughtfully placed fleecy blanket as a favour for guests, a roaring log fire, the warmth of candle light or in this case, a little bit of warmth to take home.

DIY Hot Chocolate Favours

One of the favours ideas that I love the most are the edibles ones. There’s nothing I love more than seeing delicious treats all wrapped up pretty and piled hight to share with the ones you love and invite to celebrate with you. I’ve been thinking of doing some DIY favours myself for some time, but until I have the time I thought I’d sahre this winter warmer with you all from Oh, Hello Friend.

For the full how-to, make sure you check out the full blog post for last minute hot chocolate.

Of course it’s not a new idea and I have over the years seen several little DIY projects around the interweb but this one stuck out in my mind for todays post too. From a little while back, and a blog thats yet to grace the DIY pages, StyleMePretty doesn’t often have DIY projects, however when they do, you just know they’re going to be awesome and this one was no exception.

There’s a detailed how-to and templates to down load for this Hot Coco and Marshmellows DIY project over on SMP.

Of course, neither of these projects has to be your project, but I hope they give you some inspiration and a taste for whats to come in terms of wicked winter weddings to look forward to.

Hands up for a winter wedding anybody?!

Yours Truly,

Rebecca
xoxo

Today I’m sharing a couple of DIY projects and making a little hommage to my FAVOURITE blog in the whole of history and cyberspace, Design*Sponge.

For those of you who don’t know it (where have you been?) it’s my idea of heaven… design and interiors inspiration, creative fuel for the mind and stunning style. Although interiors based they have a monthly wedding feature and have regular DIY posts which get me pretty excited.

DIY Log Dome Display Jar

This really harks back to the kind of decor thats very cool over on the US wedding blogs and has been for some time. It’s a quirky, rustic, retro look and the reason I wanted to share this is that it is a great example of the kind of thing I fancied emulating in my planning days but felt was impossible to recreate on this side of the pond… not any more ladies!

Get the full, (very simple I might add) DIY how-to over on Design*Sponge. And if that’s the kind of decor that floats your boat, how about these found Terrariums or these amazing Terrarium ornaments.

DIY Tin Can lanterns

We’re on a bit of a rustic theme today with these Tin Can lanterns via MaggieMakes.

If Lanterns are your thing, Design*Sponge also has a super easy Paper lantern DIY (above) also by Karen at MaggieMakes. Some clever person even thought they would make a cute little gift (the one above was taken as a thank you to the hosts of a BBQ party,) but they’d be gorgeous little favours for your guests, especially if they matched some you hand made for the wedding – a perfect reminder .

Perfectly tiny floral displays

My last little offering is a little self indulgent as I completely fell in love with this when it was first posted back in April… if somebody would just make these as little center pieces at their wedding, I’d be one very happy blogger.

They’re rustic to say the least and you don’t see many wild violets in these parts, but I think these would look super cute with little purple and yellow violets from your average garden centre or any number of other minature plants. Perfect in spring time and for smaller gatherings. Line the glass with moss too if you don’t want to see any soil and you’ll find that local charity shops and car boots are positively overflowing with these kind of glasses – which get a whole new spin when they’re the receptacle for these beautiful miniature blooms.

I hope these ideas have stretched your imagination a little about the decor options available to you… do let us know if you’ll be attempting any of these for your day or if Design*Sponge is on your daily blog stop list. I can’t stay away!

Yours Truly,

Rebecca
xoxo