Color Crisis

I think a lot of future brides are afraid to commit to wedding colors (not to marriage obviously) for good reason. The colors determine everything else! Choosing your colors is such an important decision and it's one of the first we have to make. We can't pick flowers, bridesmaid dresses, or really delve into decor without first picking our colors!

I've always imagined my bridesmaids would wear olive green, because it's my favorite color, but that was before I knew I was going to have a garden ceremony. I don't want my wedding party blending in with the trees! Is that a legitimate concern? Are certain colors off limits for outdoor weddings?

{Photo credit: The Knot Real Weddings}

Initially, we wanted to have pale colors like pink, champagne, and creme to go with our olive green. However, I've heard that soft colors such as these do not look good in the fall and I'm having a fall wedding. Traditionally, fall colors are bold like orange, red, and mustard yellow. I like those colors, but again I'm worried my bridesmaids will blend into the fall foliage.

To solve my problem, I think I'm going to mix and match the colors. I'm going to add just one striking color to our muted base, therefore, having olive green, champagne, and burgundy! The bridesmaids will wear the bold burgundy so that they are sure to stand out during the ceremony and we will accent everything else with the lighter colors.

{Photo credit: The Knot Real Weddings}

Here are some pictures that inspired my burgundy vision:

{Photo credit: Brides}

{Photo credit: Etsy seller Mollusa Wedding Art}

{Photo credit: Vintage Design Company}

I feel like a babbling mess, going on and on about colors! Please tell me I'm not alone. Are you debating your colors? Are you afraid to commit to one palette? How did you decide what color your bridesmaids would wear?

My cake saga...

I don't have a wedding cake.

I am getting married in 2 1/2 months and I have yet to find a cake in Charleston that makes me happy. I have bakeries in the DC area that I love like:

Pastries by Randolph

Heidelberg Bakery

Firehook Bakery

Bittersweet

So if you're getting married in the area, definitely check those places out.

My dilemma is that I think I might be too particular about what I want. I want a three layer cake, iced in butter cream, ivory colored. First and biggest layer is white cake, second is carrot cake, and last and best layer is pumpkin chocolate chip. The white cake from Heidelberg and Randolph are my favorite. Bittersweet and Firehook make my fave carrot cake. My boss's wife makes the best pumpkin chocolate chip cake. I cannot find a baker in the Charleston area that has combined two of the three desired cakes flavors or who makes cakes like the bakeries listed up top. I am a little bummed.

So today while browsing the wedding section of The Daily Candy I came across ideas for "Cake Alternatives." I thought about their suggestions...

One idea was to serve mini-cakes. There is a baker in Charleston who makes really cute petit fours that I think would be a near alternative to a large cake or even cupcakes. So that might be an alternative worth looking at.

The other option suggested was mini-donuts.

(image found on: http://melissabagley.wordpress.com/2009/06/25/new-wedding-trend-donuts/)

While I am never one to shy away from donuts and I think there is a definite cuteness, even chic-ness to this (as seen in the delicious pic above), I just don't know if I want donuts in lieu of a wedding cake. I love donuts....I am in love with cake. There goes suggestion # 2.

The third suggestion was wedding pie. Next to cake I think I love pie second. We are having a fall wedding so maybe some Thanksgiving themed pies would be great. I thought mini pies would be cool:

But those really look like they work better as wedding favors. No pie for me.

The last suggestion was having an ice-cream sundae bar. Again, this is more an alternative to a coffee or candy bar, or in addition to those things. So as much as I love the idea of all these alternatives, I think in the end I want a good old traditional wedding cake. Wish me luck as the search continues!

What do you think of the alternatives? Have you found your cake yet?

Centerpieces: Flames vs. Flowers

One of the things that I have encountered as being more difficult than it should be is trying to figure out centerpieces. My current battles are:

DIY vs. Buy, which then leads to candles or flowers?

Here's the deal. I can easily put together a swarm of candle on a table and call it a day. But is that the "look" I want? Or I can throw a bunch of blooms in a vase and voila! Instant centerpiece. Or do I want a flower candle mix? I know it seems like it shouldn't make a difference either way, but I plan on spending the majority of my wedding day at my reception and I really want those tables to look warm and inviting.

So as the wedding day looms over the horizon, my future mother in law has lovingly sent me emails asking what my plans are for the centerpieces. I am torn. I am usually really good at making decisions: I picked out the save the dates without feeling torn, picked the invite wording immediately, and picked the bridesmaid dresses in an instant. So here are my current choices/inspirations:

(image courtesy of www.weddingbee.com)

or

(image courtesy of ftdflowers.com)

How did you pick out your centerpieces?