landlocked bride® | midwest + mountain west wedding inspiration

Your family and friends are traveling near and far to be with you on your special day, so why not show your gratitude and surprise them with a bag full of goodness upon their arrival. These bags don’t have to break the bank, just keep them unique and thoughtful. Below are some tips on the necessities to include as well as additional options for making these bags memorable, not to mention the perfect introduction for whats to come on your wedding day!

 The Necessities

• Welcome letter: Something short and sweet from the bride and groom thanking guests for helping celebrate your special day.
• Weekend Schedule/Directions: Some guests are likely to forget to bring along your invitation, so provide them with a plan B in case this happens.
• Local Activities: If you know your guests will be staying more than one night, or there may be some down time in-between the ceremony and the reception – provide your guests with some local activities or a list of your favorite local establishments.
• Bottled water: If you’re feeling extra crafty add your own monogramed or personalized wrap.
• Snacks (Salty): Throw in your favorite brand of chips, pretzels, or nuts – whatever it is, your guests will be happy to have something to snack on upon their arrival.
• Snacks (Sweet): Chocolate… because who doesn’t love chocolate?!
  

 Wedding Itinerary: Simple Simon Design on ETSY| Wedding Map: Magnolia Papers on ETSY | M&Ms: Photographed by Charlotte Geary Photography

A Little Something Extra

• Stay local: Include items that are near and dear to you and your fiance, or to the location you will be married. Getting married in Wisconsin? Throw in some of your favorite Cheese Curds! 
• Stay Personal: Did you meet your fiance when you were in elementary school? Throw in some personalized #2 pencils. A cute poem or description of why certain unique items are included is also a great addition – or add this to your welcome note.
• Have fun: Custom hotel door hangers (a personal favorite) or mini champagne or wine bottles are additional ways to wow your guests and let them know what exactly they are in for – a wonderful celebration for 2 of their favorite people.
• Personalize the bag: Although paper bags are completely acceptable, take it one step further with personalized tote bags that your guests can reuse once your wedding has conclude

Tote: Wedding Chicks | Wisconsin Cheese Curds | Pencils: The Common Grade on ETSY    | Door Hanger: Lucky Girl Paper on ETSY

What fun and unique items do you plan to include in your oot bags?

I could not believe how much of this wedding was handmade by the couple and their families and friends. Everything came together so beautifully, and I loved the bride’s sentiment that regardless of the cost, it was their memories of the day that would last forever. This wedding is proof you can have everything you want, like two dresses, or “extras” like late night snacks, without compromising the budget if you’re willing to prioritize and work hard to make it happen.

From the Bride:

My high-school sweetheart and I love city life but also relish in the small town, Midwest farm lifestyle. 

From the get-go, I envisioned lots of DIY projects, a neutral palette with a hint of blue and a rustic feel. I also wanted to incorporate peacock feathers, and my in-laws just so happened to pick up two pet peacocks during our engagement.  With the help of our amazing parents, family and friends, we created, constructed, and revamped almost everything you see.  Piles of birch wood were turned into candles, vases, and an arbor. Peacock feathers + tulle flowers = perfect corsages.  Old hatch door? Well, why not turn it into a mason jar chandelier.

As an avid bargain hunter, my ceremony dress was my best find to date.  I stopped at an outlet bridal store, and they just happened to have the most gorgeous Sottero & Midgley sample dress from a few years back – and it was in my size! I just had to have a party dress too! This vintage number was custom designed by me and constructed using yes, I have to admit, a $20 dress I found on Craigslist (it had great bones!) and my grandma’s lace wedding dress, also worn by my matron of honor (my aunt) on her wedding day.

Per the hubby’s request – the bar included pickled goodies including turkey gizzards, sausages, and eggs.  True love right there. Per my request, we had a late-night feast with s’more lovin’ and popcorn bars.  Total crowd pleasers!

There is a little piece of my husband, myself and our loved ones in every detail of this small (for Nebraska standards!), intimate wedding of 130 guests. We scrimped here, splurged there, and the whole wedding came in well under $10,000.

It was worth more than all the money in the world; we will cherish the memories of this day forever.

This wedding is vintage. This wedding is retro. This wedding is full of life, love and plenty of DIY. The bride and her family did all of the decorations themselves… all of them. (Did you see that burlap monogram!) What’s even more special and unique about this wedding is that Meghann & Clark’s guests participated in the traditional dollar dance, but this wasn’t just any dollar dance. Their dollar dance was a fundraiser for the orphanage the couple volunteered at in Uganda this past year. Talk about adding a personalized touch to your wedding day… amazing.

Keith Czechanski Photography

Floral Designer: Chinell’s | Reception Venue: Governor’s Row House | Bakery: BlueBird Cakery

While the photos from this wedding are gorgeous on their own, the story that comes with them is one of my favorites. When the ceremony is so personal (and silly in the right places), it really just gets to me that this whole day is about celebrating two people joining their lives together forever. Okay, and the vintage details are to die for!

From the Photographer:

Dana & Aubrey were married on May 27th, 2012 in Des Moines, Iowa. Every part of their wedding day was jam-packed with meaning and emotion! Aubrey put together details to create a lovely, feminine, vintage theme to her day. From her shoes to her veil to the chandelier at the ceremony, everything was delightful! They got ready at the house Dana & Aubrey bought only a month before their wedding, and we began the portrait time in their beautiful front porch. Everyone in the bridal party was such a trooper to endure the thick Iowa heat! A few important details and stories: Aubrey’s father gave her a heart necklace years ago and told her that he will keep the key to her heart until the man comes along that she will marry. During the ceremony they did a very joy-filled, emotional “giving the key away” ceremony. It could not have been a more beautiful picture of a dad giving his daughter away to the man of her dreams! Right before the ceremony’s processional, Aubrey & Dana’s proposal video was played. The video was incredibly emotion-filled as well as quite humorous! Most of the guests were left with tears of joy. It was such a beautiful way to begin the ceremony, as the proposal laid the foundation of their commitment to each other. The video can be found on my blog post of their wedding here: http://www.allisonmariephotographyblog.com/kansas-city-wedding-photographer-aubrey-dana/ There were all sorts of surprises during the ceremony! Aubrey sang to her new husband (and she is not known as a singer!!), her brother performed quite the dancing act, and all the groomsmen and ushers sang a hilarious version of a boy band song to Aubrey! Details: A friend of Aubrey’s custom made the bridesmaid dresses, and another friend designed their bouquets! Words cannot express how deeply moving, joy-filled and emotional their wedding day was! Even I, the photographer, was in tears

Typically, I cringe at the idea of painting flowers for any reason, but when my boss came back from Engage 12 with photos of this:

Bob Gail, Scott Clark Photo, Ready Luck

my mind opened up a little. It looks like a succulent statue! So many brides are in love with succulents for their rustic feel, and some choose them because they love their earthy colors. I personally like them for their texture, and so using them as a blank canvas for color intrigues me. There are so many possibilities!

Bornay, a florist hailing from Barcelona, has been making true art out of succulents for a long while now. Literally, he takes pieces of art, usually paintings, and recreates them using flowers of all kinds, but his succulent creations are my favorite.

Top Left, Top Right, Bottom Left, Bottom Right 

He also created these amazing boutonnieres.

Carissa of JL Designs used succulents to create a silver pop in her tablescape. This is a perfect idea to incorporate a metallic if there is one present in your color palette.

Aaron Shintaku

I’m dying to see this done with a mix of greens, bronzes and golds, neon pops, or black and white.

It’s no surprise I’m not a DIY fan. Let me re-phrase. I don’t like to actually do DIY projects myself – but I love to see what everyone else comes up with.

When I found these adorable (and, easy) ribbon wands, I couldn’t not share them. Like I said, they’re easy to make, plus, they are a great alternative to bubbles or birdseed for a wedding exit.

So, what do you need?

- One or two feet wooden dowels (Quantity will vary based on your guest count)
- Ribbon, cut in strips at 3/4 yard in length (The more ribbon per dowel, the better the effect)
- Scissors

This project includes no glue, staples or sewing. Simply tying ribbons onto wooden dowels. And, let me tell you, it’s the perfect project to recruit your bridesmaids to help with (and, you can include wine without feel of stabbing or poking yourself with something sharp).

Images courtesy of Project Wedding

While DIY is not in my blood (well, it is a little), I love when a bride can truly harness her creativeness and put together a great project.  I only recently stumbled upon these invites, which were originally featured on the bride’s blog, and then on EAD Weddings as the EAD DIY Project Contest held back in 2008.

At each step of the process, the bride really paid attention to detail, but I what I love the most is how she packaged it all together (with the help of friends, of course).

The invite and all of the enclosures were placed inside a handmade pocketfold.

Plus, the bride glued a doily to the back of the pocketfold, and tied it all together with ribbon and a die cut circle with her and her fiance’s first initials.

Those pieces were placed inside a purple envelope that was tied with twine and a few die cut circles, and the entire invitation suite was packaged into a vellum envelope (which I seriously love).  She used a custom cut sticker on the front for a mailing label.

All images courtesy of Lee & Hamilton Wedding via EAD Weddings

And, as ambitious as the project may have been, her hard work definitely paid of.  How can you not appreciate that?

If you have my family, chances are you don’t need any games or ice breakers to get the party going.  I come from a long line of talkers and have-a-good-timers.

BUT, that doesn’t mean you still cannot entertain your guests with a little fun during the cocktail hour or reception.

This particular bride, Jenny, created a wedding “I Spy” game, encouraging guests to take pictures (there were disposable cameras on the tables).  Not only would this get your guests going, but it’ll provide you and your significant other with some interesting and entertaining photos from the evening.

Image courtesy of Jennifer Dery Photography via Polka Dot Bride

When I first saw these on iDIY, I assumed they were printed just like Miss Cowboy Boot‘s map.

I mean, the yellow is rich and the detail looks great. I was pretty sure they were screen printed, or maybe even Gocco’ed. But, better yet, they were printed at the bride’s home, on her ink jet printer. Wha?! Yeah, that’s right.

Images by tulle and feathers

By using a technique that involves ironing freezer paper to the back of the handkerchief, you can print directly on fabric using your ink jet printer (so long as it is not water resistant).

You can visit the bride‘s blog for more details.

Wedding signs are clearly a new trend.  You’ll find them all over Style Me Pretty and other wedding blogs, so it’s no surprise that there are a million different variations on them.  I found this one thanks to Cyd over at The Sweetest Occasion.  Since I work at a design company, I have developed a love for typography.  I already have a sad (or crazy, however you look at it) obsession with fonts, so it should be no surprise that I love this sign.  And, I realize, most of what I feature on this blog I love, but I wouldn’t feature it if I didn’t love it!

The sign was made using nails and string. I really do remember doing something similar to this in elementary school, but we didn’t exactly make letters. I’m pretty sure we made something simile like a circle. We were still figuring out our cursive lettering, so I think sticking to shapes was a safe bet.

The yellow string really pops on this sign, plus, it is definitely something unique and classic enough that could be hung in the home after the wedding. A great way to remind you of your wedding day.

All images courtesy of Kyle Read via The Sweetest Occasion