Badge Madness!

Ever since I saw this picture on Offbeat Bride, I have been a bit obsessed with badges.

Isn't that a really cute way to personalise a buttonhole? I really like it, and immediately started looking for a cute badge for Karl's buttonhole. Unfortunately, he is the pickiest man on the planet, and everything I suggested was shot down.

So I'm still looking and he is thinking about what he would like a badge to say.
I also think it would be nice to have a badge attached to the stems of the bouquets, so that the bridesmaids can tell who's is who's. I've since some really nice charms on bouquets, with the girls initals, but since 3 of my bridesmaids have names starting with K, this wouldn't really work.

Anyway, I found some really lovely badges:

Wedding Party Badges

I like the style of these, but don't think I would want everyone to have a badge with their role on it. I'm not sure why...

Source

 

 

These are from Folksy, from the seller Maushaus and are the cutest things I have ever seen! You can request personalised ones, and they are all handmade too. I also really like the ones that say "eek" on them, since that is exactly how I imagine I'll be feeling!

Source

While looking at all the badges, I started to think that it would be really cool to have a load of badges to give to the guests, as an extra little favour. I got very excited when I found some very cool pictures of couples who had done just that!

 

Like I said, I'm a bit obsessed! I even started thinking about what our badges could say and came up with a few designs.

We had loads of fun thinking of what to put on the badges! Some of them I am unsure about, since not everyone will get them. For example, the Gibbs badge, with WWGD? (what would Gibbs do?) - some of our friends will love this, since they are also big NCIS fans, but everyone else might be a bit confused. Same goes for the "Haven't you always wanted a monkey?" badge - this is a line from our favourite Barenaked Ladies song - I know my family will love this, but it won't be as funny for people who are not BNL fans.

I am loving the "Team" badges though - I would be very interested to see who ends up on which team!  I originaly thought about attaching a badge to the place cards, but then realised that that would mean choosing which badge to give to which guest - which I just couldn't do! Instead, I think we would probably have all the badges in a bowl for guests to choose their own - probably by the guestbook or something.

Unfortunately, these badges might never happen. The cheapest I can find personalised badges for is 70p each, which for 100 badges is £70! That's more than we are spending on our current favours! If these were going to be our main favours, I would spend that much, but we already have the vodka favours brewing. I even looked into a badge making machine, but they are about £150, so unless I can find someone who alread has one and is willing to let me borrow it, badges for the guests will remain just a fantasy :-(

However, I will continue to think of more designs for our badges, on the off chance that we are able to find them for cheaper. And I'd still like to have badges for the buttonholes and bouquets. Karl thinks that the Team Karl and Team Kayleigh badges should go on the buttonholes and bouquets, but I'm not so sure.

Maybe if we win the £112million on the lottery tonight, we could have badges for everyone!

DIY Cupcake Bar Idea

When we first started planning, I really wanted a sweetie buffet (or Candy Bar, if you're reading from across the pond!). Now I've sort of gone off the idea. I don't know if it's because every wedding on the internet seems to have one at the moment, or because we decided to go down the 3 course meal route instead of a buffet or BBQ, meaning that we'd have dessert, wedding cake AND sweets. Too much sugar, even for me!

Anyway, when I was researching them, I realised that they wouldn't be as cheap as I originally thought - even if you get all the containers and things for next to nothing, you still have to buy a shed load of sweets - and that can end up being really expensive!

I saw this on Style Me Pretty - wouldn't it be a a really cute alternative to a sweetie buffet?
It's a Make Your Own Cupcake Bar - you provide plain cupcakes, several different kinds of frosting (buttercream? Vanilla? Chocolate? One in your wedding colours?)  and a couple of different toppings (hundreds and thousands? Chopped nuts? Chocolate chips?) and your guests can frost and top their own cakes!

 

I really love this idea - although we probably wont be having it at our wedding because, like I said earlier, we already have dessert and wedding cake. 

I suppose you could use it as a favour idea - that would be quite fun. Or maybe even as the dessert for any children that attend?

[all photos from Stylemepretty.com]

Avast ye scurvy dogs!

Happy International Talk Like a Pirate Day!

Slightly off topic for a wedding blog, I know, but I do have a tedious link!

When we lived in Brighton, we went the the wedding reception of some friends of ours and it was pirate themed! It was actually amazing - held in this little pub in the lanes, with a live band and everyone was dresses as pirates. So much fun!

Here's a pic of Karl at the wedding!

Anyway, my point is that a wedding doesn't have to be a traditional dinner and dancing affair. After the ceremony it is, after all, basically just a party, so you might as well enjoy it! I love the idea of fancy dress weddings (I would love a halloween one!) and I think that if your guests are willing to make an effort and really get into it, then it would be amazing!

See? Very tedious link! Basically I just like talking about pirates! 

Another gorgeous wedding

Another gorgeous wedding on Style Me pretty caught my eye today. I love how its looks quite simple but still beautiful and elegant. I am completely in love with outdoor weddings (although I'm possibly a tiny bit biased) and I also adore all the lights at their reception. I'm also a sucker for a fake moustache...

So pretty, *sigh*

I want that one!

I love looking at real weddings on Style Me Pretty - they are all (predictably) so pretty! Everything is always perfectly placed and so co-ordinated - they look more like magazine photoshoots than real weddings!

Like I said, I love looking at them, but it also makes me a little depressed. I mean, I seriously doubt my wedding will look as amazing as those do! But I'm ok with that, because it will be everything I want it to be, all the people I love will be there, and most importantly, afterwards I'll be married to my lovely fiancé!

So I look at Style Me Pretty weddings with a kind of detachment because I don't think of them as attainable - nothing I'm involved in will ever look so flawless!

That being said, when I saw this couples photos I had major wedding envy! They had lime green, which I love, and the whole simple, fun, relaxed vibe that I am aiming for....

[all photos from www.stylemepretty.com]

And I really want Hay bales for the guests to sit on now! It might look a bit out of place on a golf course though....