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Hey Abby // How To Make A Seating Chart Your Wedding Guests Will Love
One of the best compliments I received from our wedding was that our family and friends felt like they had great conversations over dinner and were able to meet new people they had a lot in common with. Carefully selecting the seating arrangements at your wedding can foster new bonds and relationships between the people in your life, allow your guests to have a fun and lively dinner together, and kick off a GREAT party.
Here’s my three-step formula for making the perfect seating chart:
A Life Lately Update!
It’s been a bit since I’ve posted an update about the happenings here at Heirloom and for life in general, so I thought this rainy Friday afternoon might just be the perfect time to catch you up! I have a steaming cup of tea next to me in my office and multiple dogs sleeping by my feet.
So...a few big things have happened in the last few months:
5 Tips to Create Beautifully Personalized Wedding Welcome Bags
Welcome bags are most certainly my love language! Creating a special welcome for your guests who have traveled for miles and carved a weekend out of their schedules is a lovely way to say thank you. But, it doesn't have to be complicated. A few creature comforts go a very long way. Today Molly from Flour & Fig is sharing some great tips on how to thoughtfully welcome your guests in a beautifully personalized way!
Read MoreHey Abby? // Can I Use An Electronic RSVP?
So here’s the deal. Traditional wedding etiquette stipulates the only way for guests to RSVP to your wedding is through a paper response card. This will always be a very beautiful way to collect your guest responses and is the right choice for many people. However, electronic response collection is gaining popularity for ease of use and is no longer considered tacky when done well. As with many of your wedding decisions, the best choice will be based on individual factors and what’s most important to you. Here are some reasons paper vs. electronic may be YOUR best option:
Read More5 Ways to Personalize Your Wedding Paper
Bespoke wedding paper is a great way to incorporate some meaningful custom detail into your big day—uniquely highlighting your personalities and memories together. A beautiful invitation suite can also double as a frameable keepsake to adorn your walls long after the wedding.
If you're looking to create customized paper for your event, here are a few ideas for inspiration:
How to Plan Your Wedding With Style and Substance
Weddings are a wonderful time to bring together family, friends and acquaintances to share in the experience of your marriage. They also are large scale events with a lot of moving pieces and a short time frame. The mentality that it’s “just one day” often leads people to choose items for their wedding that feel disposable.
“It all gets thrown away tomorrow, so it doesn’t really matter” - This statement makes my stomach turn.
Read MoreHey Abby? // How To Plan Your Wedding When There Are Bigger Things Happening in the World?
Today’s Hey Abby post is slightly different. No specific logistical question to answer or decor item to comment on. I wanted to talk about something else that seems especially relevant right now. When you’re engaged and in the thick of planning, you just want to shout from the roof about all.things.weddings! The beautiful silk ribbon you found, or the welcome cocktail you selected feel like the biggest victories of your week.
But what happens when there’s something bigger going on in your life? It might be things that are happening in the world in general, or in our political arena that you feel incredibly passionate about. Or it might be something much more personal, such as a family member struggling with illness, the death of someone close to you, or other loss.
Read MoreTips for Hiring and Working with a Videographer
Are you looking to hire a videographer? This post is jammed packed with great insights from BOTH the client and vendor perspective!
Read MoreHow To Gracefully Answer Wedding Planning Questions at the Holiday Table
This week so many of us will be sitting down to holiday tables with friends, relatives, in-laws, friends of friends, and likely some people you’ve never met before, all who want to know the details about how your planning process is going! Here are some tips on how to navigate the questions gracefully without ruining your favorite side dish (#teammashedpototes!).
Read MoreHey Abby? // Should I Include a Bouquet and Garter Toss?....and some thoughts on Wedding FOMO.
Hey Abby,
I can’t decide if I should include a bouquet/garter toss in my reception. It feels like an antiquated tradition. I’m worried my single girlfriends won’t like being called out, and I always hate watching the garter toss as a guest. But I don’t want to miss out on anything or look back and regret not doing it.
Hey Abby? // Should My Wedding Party Get A Plus-One?
Hey Abby:
When I’m determining my guest list, should I include a plus-one guest for the members of my wedding party?
Oh, the hotly debated plus-one guest conundrum. I’ve seen even the most aligned couples and friends become vastly divided on this topic.
Read MoreCity Vs. Country Wedding Inspiration
My life is a constant pull between city life and country fantasies. Having lived nearly my entire adult life in large cities, I'm so comfortable strolling down city blocks and hustling through train turnstiles. And yet, every free day I get, I find myself in the car driving out to the country to just feel like I can breathe again. The constant grass is always greener situation.
Some of my clients know immediately which feeling they want for their wedding, and others are right there in the same struggle of city lights over country charm.
So which one is more your style? City or Country?
How to Plan Your First Look
Image Credit: Nancy Marie Photography
There are many factors that will go into your decision to have a first look or not. Consider your personal wishes, the wishes of your partner, the schedule for your day and how you’d like to spend the hours leading up to your wedding.
If you decide that a first look is right for you, here are some tips on how to pull off a great one:
Read MoreRoom to Wedding: Vol III
This morning's Room to Wedding edition is inspired my a children's room! Yes, you read that correctly. A deeply fabulous children's room for sure! From the home of Christine Dovey, originally seen on Style Me Pretty Living, I loved the mix of subtle patter and texture and the soft pops of color.
Hey Abby? // Can I mix metal tones at my wedding?
Hey Abby:
Should I mix metals tones in my wedding design, or should I stick with all one tone?
This is a question I get ALL the time! There’s a deeply rooted seed that we learned somewhere in our mother’s or grandmother’s closets that metals are not meant to be mixed and all of your jewelry must be either gold or silver. So when we’re faced with the bevy of options out there in metal tones for wedding decor, we panic. Can I have silver chargers and brass candlesticks?! What about brass serving trays and silver flatware? Why on earth are there so many metal options anyway??
Read MoreBirthday Reflections
Today I celebrated my birthday with a funfetti cake and homemade pasta dinner.
Simple and beautiful, and the exact slow down I needed this month. With a bit of chaos swirling around in the middle of a busy season of life and business (which seems to just be always), my birthday has always felt like the personal equivalent of New Year’s Day. A blank page on a year that’s filled with possibilities. Except I’ve always liked it better than actual New Year’s Day because it comes without the hype of competing with everyone else’s resolutions. So I thought I’d share a little more about what I’m looking forward to in this upcoming year both personally and professionally:
Read MoreWedding China Round Up
Registering for wedding china isn't everyone's cup of tea, but if you love setting a beautiful table and want a set of your own to pass down and add to your collection, it's a beautiful way to add an heirloom to your life. I was fortunate enough to inherit some beautiful floral patterns from my grandmothers. Here's a round up of some current pieces I love:
Read MoreHey Abby? // How Long Should My Engagement Be?
Hey Abby,
We just got engaged and I already feel behind. Everything I read says my engagement needs to be at least 12 months or more. Is this true?
Oh lady, I feel you on this one. Choosing a wedding date, and thus an engagement length, is likely one of the first hard decisions you and your partner will have to make. At risk of sounding like a broken-record, you really do have to make the choice that’s best for you and try as much as you can to ignore all the outside chatter happening around you right now.
Here are three really practical things to think about as you’re considering how long of an engagement is right for you:
Fall Favorites
Fall is my most favorite season of the year, and I couldn't resist a little round up of the things I'm loving having around this year. I hope your fall is filled with football tailgates, weddings, pumpkin patches, and long walks in the leaves!
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