Tag Archives: inspiration boards

A Vintage Winter Inspiration board

Vintage Winter Wedding Inspiration Board

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Thanks to Helen Carter from Helen Carter Wedding Planning for sending through this gorgeous vintage winter wedding inspiration board – I love this one and I know all you vintage lovers will do too!.
Photography credits:
Venue: Claridges; Vintage glassware and bride: Ashlee Carter via Love My Dress; Fur stole: Amy and Stuart Photography via Style Me Pretty; Votives: Nordic House; Gypsophila centrepiece and chandelier: Ryan Phillips via Style Me Pretty; Wedding gown: Claire Pettibone; Tube station: Mark Bothwell; Ice skaters: A Polar Bear’s Tale; Flowers: Red Gallery Photography

A belated Happy New Year to all you lovely LMW readers! It’s great to be back and I’m delighted to share another of my design concepts with you. I’ve known for a few weeks that I wanted January’s design board to be a white winter wonderland with plenty of sparkle, inspired by frost-laden trees, fluttering snowflakes and glistening icicles. However, I didn’t want the monochromatic colour scheme to feel all chic and uber-modern, so I’ve added a vintage twist for something a little different.
For me this is most definitely a city wedding that would take place somewhere upmarket and sophisticated, such as the stunning mirrored ballroom reception at Claridges in London. It’s all about natural, understated elegance and seamlessly blending the old with the new. The use of silver and sparkle in this design is really important both in punctuating the backdrop of white and incorporating a wintry feel – mercury glass votives on tables, decadent chandeliers, crystal wine goblets and soft lighting all help to create an air of seasonal vintage chic.

I love the idea of using large spheres of white gypsophila (baby’s breath) to decorate the dining tables. Not only do they make for wonderfully simple and classic focal pieces, they also look like giant snowballs and so perfectly complement the winter feel of the design! Subtle decorative touches are also important in adding to the styling of this wedding – occasional smatterings of cut glassware and vintage perfume bottles dotted on windowsills, perhaps a silk shawl draped casually over a welcoming comfy armchair, and a collection of old books left lazily open on a coffee table.
The atmosphere of this wedding should be a delicate balance of traditional formality and luxurious relaxation, with an overall easygoing feel to the proceedings. I’d hire a fabulous cocktail pianist for the drinks reception, and for the evening would have waitresses serving French martinis on silver platters whilst a swing band plays classic jazz tunes from the ‘20s and ‘30s.
I hope this design has given you plenty of inspiration – let me know what you think!

Click here to look at all the wedding inspiration boards on LMW and also make sure that you check out Helen Carter’s site. What are your thoughts on this one….. PS you can look here at all the LMW vintage wedding ideas.

LMW Winter Wedding Inspiration Board

Some favourite posts from 2009.

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I know we’re way into 2010 already but given that I think I have some new readers, who presumably haven’t had a chance to trawl through all my old blog entries, I thought that might be a good time to highlight some of the popular posts on LMW last year. As you know every post on LMW has a special something ;-) (hence why I featured it) but here is a pick of those definitely worth another read….

1 * Everyone is talking about Teal as the wedding colour of 2010 so no wonder this Fuchsia Teal and Pewter Inspiration Board has been a favourite – Helen Carter’s inspiration boards are fab. I need to learn how to do them myself!

LMW Winter Wedding Inspiration Board

2 * I might be biased because I had one, but there is something so romantic and cosy about a winter wedding. I love the work of Elemental Photography and Planet Flowers – both who were involved in this very special Edinburgh wedding where Jude and Matt tied the knot at the end of last year. That is the bridesmaids bouquet – a lovely change from the norm.

Bridesmaid bouquet

3 * I have to mention this one as its clearly very popular with my readers -the fantastic 1920′s vintage wedding shoot – dresses by Lindsay Fleming are gorgeous and so on trend (you can read more about his dresses in this subsequent post 1920′s inspired wedding dresses). I love the wedding venue House for an Art Lover in Glasgow, Scotland and Archibald Photography, as always do a great job on the photography side of things.

1920's vintage bride

4 * For those of you in the ‘wedding blog’ know, Kat from RocknRollBride.com is one of our top UK bloggers (and LMW is all about showcasing UK talent). I was lucky enough to do an interview with her about how she got in to blogging, what she loves about it and get behind the scenes with Kat from RocknRoll bride.com
That is her below, she now has bright pink hair! – photo by English Rose Weddings .

5 * Last, but by no means least – really natural summer wedding flowers for a summer wedding at High Road House, Chiswick, London. This post really meant something special to me as not only did we spend our first night of married bliss at this lovely hotel, but Britt, from Flourish and Green, also did the flowers at our wedding too. If you’re looking for natural summer wedding flower inspiration then do take a look at this post.

Summer Flowers in Urn

I hope you have enjoyed this post – I could go on forever as there are good few more worth a mention (including Wedding and Wellies engagement shoot) but I’ll leave those for another time.

What do you think? Were there any posts on LMW that you particularly liked reading? Do you prefer real life weddings, engagement shoots, or looking at floral inspiration? Its great to get your feedback.

5 Tips for a successful winter wedding

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I love winter weddings – I think they’re beautiful and have an almost magical feel about them. If you’re planning a winter wedding, there are a number of extra things you might want to think about to ensure your day runs smoothly and everyone enjoys themselves. Check out my top 5 tips for planning a winter wedding:

LMW Winter Wedding Inspiration Board

1. Keep your guests warm. There’s nothing worse than feeling cold, and your guests aren’t going enjoy themselves if they’re sitting shivering! If you’re having a winter wedding you will need to ensure your venue is well heated – this is particularly important for churches or older buildings that may be draughty, or barns that don’t have central heating. If necessary, hire stand-alone fan heaters than can be switched on before your arrival to warm the air and create a cosy atmosphere.

2. Don’t leave your guests in the cold. Think carefully about when and where you will have your photographs taken. Your guests won’t want to stand outside in the cold for hours whilst you and your wedding party have lots of group shots taken. I would recommend having the majority of your photographs taken at your reception during the drinks reception, so that guests can relax indoors.

3. Serve warming refreshments. When you come in from the cold the last thing you want to be drinking is ice-cold champagne. Instead, serve warm cocktails, hot toddies or mulled wine to warm your guests and create a more seasonal atmosphere.

4. Plan for the weather. Make sure you have plenty of umbrellas available to keep you and your guests dry. You could leave them in a stand outside the ceremony or give them to your ushers to hand out to guests. If it looks like temperatures will fall below freezing, make sure paths are gritted the night before to avoid any falls or injuries. You might want to wear trainers or wellies to get from the car to your ceremony in order to avoid ruining your wedding shoes.

5. Think about timings. Remember that it will be dark from about 4 pm onwards, so if you want your photographs in daylight you will need to have an earlier ceremony time – I would suggest no later than 2 pm. For a truly wintry feel you could incorporate the earlier evenings into your wedding by having your ceremony at dusk.

Thanks to Helen Carter for these top tips and the lovely Winter Wedding inspiration board that you created for LMW a couple of days ago- check out Helen Carter’s site for more info on her planning services and to find out how you can save 20% off her services.

LMW Winter Wedding Inspiration Board

Winter Wedding Warmth with Fuchsia, Teal and Pewter

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Winter Wedding Inspiration board created by Helen Carter, a London based wedding planner – its just gorgeous so thanks Helen for taking the time to put it together and for talking us through your ideas for the perfect winter wedding (having seen the below I wish I’d had you on hand to offer me a bit of guidance for mine!)

LMW Winter Wedding Inspiration Board

I’m very excited that Emmie recently asked me to create an inspiration board with a winter theme for Little Miss Wedding. For this board I wanted to create a design that could be used throughout the winter season, not just at Christmas, with a warm and cosy, yet stylish and glamorous, feel.
In order to avoid the board feeling too festive I decided not to use the traditional combination of red and gold, and instead opted for a vibrant shade of fuchsia teamed with wintry pewter and teal. I feel this palette would suit almost any winter weather, looking striking against a snowy or frosty backdrop, or feeling warm and inviting if it’s wet and windy.

LMW Winter Board Colour Palette

I imagine this wedding to take place in late afternoon, with a candlelit ceremony followed by mulled wine and hot canapés in front of a roaring open fire. To enhance the winter theme I’d have scatterings of fake snow around the reception space, and would use large, structured floral centrepieces to create an impact. I love the idea of framing doorways with bare branches entwined with white and purple flowers, with hanging votives and fairy lights adding a touch of warmth and frost-like sparkle.

During the evening I’d transform the space with coloured lighting to create a livelier, almost nightclub-like, atmosphere. I like the idea of covering the ceiling with fairy lights to create the impression of a clear, wintry sky, and envisage a funky band keeping everyone dancing until the small hours. Sky lanterns would round off the celebration, with bacon sandwiches and hot chocolate available to keep out the winter chill.

By the way Helen Carter has a special offer on at the moment for anyone looking to take advantage of her wedding planning service as she is offering a 20% discount. Click here for more info on this fantastic discount with Helen Carter.

Photo Credits:
Flowers: Dee Akright via Project Wedding
Winter scene: The Photographers via Style Me Pretty
Grey bridesmaid dress: Monsoon
Table name: Jose Villa via Style Me Pretty
Ceremony: Project Wedding
Purple tree: Troy Photography via Style Me Pretty
Bride and groom:Scott Zuehlke Photography
Green bridesmaid dress: Lazaro
Cake: Maisie Fantaisie
Votives: Sage Inspired By Life
Wedding gown: Ines Di Santo
Reception setting: JL Designs via Brenda’s Wedding Blog
Frosty leaves: Flickr

I'll be posting top Wedding tips from Helen Carter shortly so make sure you check back LMW for her tips and let me know what you think of this gorgeous inspiration board!