I was planning to make the bridal shower invitations for my friend’s wedding, but as the date neared I realized that I was going to have trouble making them and sending them out in time.  As an alternative, my sister found a great site called Zazzle.  On the site there are hundreds of different card options to choose from.  It can be overwhelming, but I was able to narrow down my choices by searching for starfish, the symbol for the wedding.

The step-by-step process of choosing and then ordering the card was super simple.  After selecting the design of the card you have the option of selecting from a variety of paper types.  This site is great because if you do not know the difference between linen, speckled, felt, etc., each one comes with a short description to help you make your decision.  There is even a recycled paper option for all of you eco-conscious brides.  After that, all you have to do is enter in the specific information (bride, address, time, and RSVP info).  One of my favorite things was that after each change the picture is updated to reflect your choices, allowing for a comprehensive preview before placing the final order.

If you are feeling extra ambitious, each design also has a more in-depth customization option.  On this page you are allowed to change the colors, font type or size, alignment, and pictures.  You can even add your own photo to the invitation.  In total we spent about 15 minutes choosing the design, editing the overall look by removing some of the starfish on the front, and adding in all of our own information.  The invitations arrived yesterday and they look just as I imagined, with no surprises.  I couldn’t be happier and am definitely considering Zazzle again next time I need cards or invitations!

In the world of digital bliss, planning is very easily managed online. If it isn’t in your excel spreadsheet, or shared google docs, it might be your online calendar, or the latest mobile app. Whatever the case, increasingly daily tasks are completed online. Why not use those same principles when planning your wedding? When it comes to weddings, somehow it is easy to end up nowhere close to where you started out. With online wedding tools, life can get a little easier.

I’ve already covered Google’s free Wedding Docs, but there is so much more ground to cover when it comes to budget friendly and green eWedding options. Here’s a simple idea to keep things PRACTICAL, and more importantly BUDGET FRIENDLY – Integrate your Wedding Invitations and RSVP process online.

eCard RSVP Online

Wedshare.com is a great resource for online wedding invitations with a seamless integration into your wedding website.

Reasons why you should consider this option:

1) Save Money – Create beautiful designs that match your wedding website and send them instantly to all your wedding guests. When you add up the costs for the paper, custom design, envelope, postage, and reply cards, it will be a nice little bundle of savings.

2) Save Time – When you send the invitations out to your wedding guests, they can instantly reply with their response with just a click of the mouse. The wedding responses are populated into your wedding guest list hosted on your Wedshare wedding website. No need to create a manual wedding list because the process is complete for you.

3) Save Paper – This is obvious. No paper trail.

For those of you who still want paper invitations. I have an alternative option for you.

4) Zero-Carbon Wedding Stationery – You can still be GREEN! Wedshare.com partners with Wedvert.com to provide you with a “zero-carbon wedding stationery line. The paper used for the VERT line is made from of 100% PCW (Post Consumer Waste), and is FSC certified (Forest Stewardship Council). The paper is Processed Chlorine Free (PCF), made Carbon Neutral (CN), and can be recycled. Soy-based inks are used which are biodegradable and do not necessitate the use of toxic cleaners.”

And…you can still match your wedding invites to your wedding website design!

If you follow the philosophy, KISS, this is a great option. No need to make your wedding process more difficult, or more expensive than it needs to be. For the PRACTICAL and BUDGET wedding couples, this is for YOU.

Destination weddings have become increasingly popular.  If you are considering having a destination wedding but want to keep it relatively close, then Yosemite could be your answer.  When planning a Yosemite wedding you have the option of having your wedding ceremony and reception in the Yosemite Valley at one of the hotels, or just outside the park at the Tenaya Lodge.

Yosemite Valley

Yosemite Lodge at the Falls, the Ahwahnee, and the Wawona hotels are all located inside the Yosemite Valley, offering the unique wildlife and vistas offered in Yosemite.  Their locations are perfect for nearly any size wedding, and are capable of servicing anywhere from 25 to 200 guests.  Along with fantastic views and their unique location, all three hotels offer world class chef’s to prepare the food for your reception, with packages ranging from $39 per guest up to $165 per guest (varying depending on location, time of the week, and food packages).   You have the option of booking mid-week or on weekends year-round.

Tenaya

The Tenaya Lodge encompasses 35 acres of gorgeous property located two miles south of Yosemite.  Tenaya is positioned to offer you a beautiful wedding location, while also offering the unique amenities associated with Yosemite.  There are a variety of locations throughout the property that are ideally suited to host wedding ceremonies and receptions, and the lodge can accommodate as many as 800 guests and the wonderful chef at Tenaya works with couples to create a menu that fits their needs and style.  They are a fully certified green hotel, using organic and sustainable resources in addition to focusing on recycling and composting.  The recently renovated spa offers a great place to relax either before or after your wedding day.

In addition to all of these fantastic amenities, all locations provide you with help from an event coordinator.  The coordinator can help you plan activities for your guests, turning their trip into a vacation.  These activities include biking, rafting, hiking, a group moonlight tram, and anything else you can think of that the Yosemite Valley offers.

Contact information:

Janis Kunz – Group Services manager for DNC Parks and Resorts at Yosemite, Inc.  – jkunz@dncinc.com

http://www.yosemitepark.com/MeetingsEvents_Weddings.aspx

Kim DaSilva – Wedding and Special Events Manager Tenaya Lodge – kdasilva@dncinc.com

http://www.tenayalodge.com/Weddings.aspx

Rice, or no rice?  Traditionally, rice is thrown at the bride and groom to symbolize fertility, fruitfulness, or other good wishes.  This tradition has been passed down since the Middle Ages and there is no good reason to stop the tradition now.  In recent years, people began spreading the myth that birds would eat the uncooked rice, it would swell in their stomachs, and they would burst.  According to multiple articles, this is untrue, and the uncooked rice thrown outside a church will hurt the birds no more than birds eating rice out in the fields.

Champagne Bubbles From American Bridal

However, due to the popularity of this myth, a number of alternatives to rice throwing have taken hold in the wedding industry.  In addition to the simple option of throwing birdseed, one new alternative is blowing bubbles as the happy couple makes their way out of the church.  American Bridal is one company which offers a number of different keepsake bubble bottles, including these adorable ones shaped like champagne bottles.

Another alternative to rice are flower petals.  I recently went to a wedding where the bride’s mom and aunt dried all of their flowers from their gardens

Rose Petal Cones from Moments of Elegance

during the months leading up to the wedding.  They then rolled paper into cones and decorated them with black bow ties to represent men, and maroon ribbons for women.  They were adorable and everyone had a good time throwing the petals.  You can buy these pre-made cones from Moments of Elegance if you do not have time to make them yourself.

What are you planning to do for your wedding?  If you like the tradition of throwing rice, then I say, let them throw rice!

Secondly, I just love my photographer so much that I have to share them. (once like a spark) photography is named after a line in an ee cummings poem, who happens to be my favorite. It’s a collective of a couple of the freshest, most original wedding photographers on the West Coast, Chicago, Boston, and Atlanta. Everything is online, from payment to profile to print ordering. Our engagement session was amazing, and our photographer Michael was very generous with his time and talent. He was open to suggestions from us and also had some great ideas himself.  Check out their website at http://www.oncelikeaspark.com.

Thirdly, I found a pretty awesome etsy decoration that is cheap, festive, and original. On the etsy.com site, search for “party poms”. They are these amazing paper pom poms that you can order in any color – just tell the artist your colors. They come out to about $4 per pom, are made from recycled paper, and can be recycled (rehearsal dinner – wedding – farewell brunch, anyone?)

Lately I’ve noticed an increasing number of party invitations arriving via e-mail.  I know it is cheaper and much less time consuming than creating paper invitations, but how do you make an evite classy?  The answer…Paperless Post!

Invitations sent by Paperless Post arrive via e-mail and look like a typical envelope you would find in your mailbox.  When you click on it, the envelope opens and out pops the invitation.  Clicking on the invitation generates an RSVP to the host.

I decided to give Paperless Post a try and created an invitation to a bachelorette party.  The choices for invitations seemed endless with a large variety of colors and backgrounds, font styles, and pictures.  For more personalized invitations you even have the option to upload your own photos.  In under ten minutes, and for about thirteen cents a card, I was able to create something environmentally and user friendly.

With Paperless Post you still have a classy invitation but at a much lower cost.  What do you think about going paperless?

How many of you have been to weddings where you leave with a photo of the bride and groom, a mug with their names and the date, or any number of cute, but useless, trinkets?  I definitely have, so I made it my mission to help my friend come up with a useful and cute favor.  During my search I discovered “The Perfect Pair” slogan, and websites went overboard offering different pear shaped items including cookies, candles, salt and pepper shakers, and even soap.  After a while I noticed that the simplest option of them all was missing: an actual pear!

Instead of buying any of the above-mentioned pear shaped items, why not take an actual pear, and tie a tag to the stem?  As a favor, labels could be printed on cardstock with the name of the bride and groom and the date, and the ribbon and cardstock could match the wedding colors.  They could also be turned into a great place card by including the name of the guest.

Pear Place Card From Sunset Magazine

In addition to reducing waste by providing everyone with an edible gift, guests would have a tasty and healthy treat to take home that they will actually use and enjoy.  Now, the trick is to get married while pears are in season!