$1000 Handmade Wedding Giveaway

Project Wedding and Etsy Wedding Divas have teamed up to offer an amazing prize package to a lucky bride! I am a huge Etsy fan so, I couldn't be happier to share this giveaway with everyone! Adding handmade items to your wedding is a fabulous way to personalize your wedding and have it tailored to fit you both!

This giveaway is easy to enter - "like" Etsy Wedding Divas on Facebook and the leave a post on the Project Wedding contest entry page saying you have done that and what your wedding colors are! Simple. A random winner will be selected on April 11, 2011. Your wedding must be after May 16, 2011 to enable time for your goodies to be delivered! Good luck!

What if it rains on my wedding day?

We all know the saying "April showers bring May flowers" and a question that has been asked over and over "Is it lucky to have rain on my wedding day?" 

In most cultures, the answer is yes! Maybe, it's just because people are looking for the silver lining! If rain is expected on your big day, you can be prepared and get some pretty cool props for fantastic wedding photos!


Hunter Boot Ltd has been making their specialty boots since the 1800's! Better know as "wellies" these boots are made in various colors. You have the Original - which comes in a standard or high gloss finish with multiple color choices like these below:

Also available is the Huntress. The height of this boot is shorter than the Original to prevent the rear of the knee pinching. The calf is also cut more generous. The Huntress is also available in multiple colors but, not as many choices as the Original. If you do not prefer tall boots, Hunter has you covered! The also make their outstanding boots in a Short version!

It wasn't too long before someone came out with specialty wellies. Weddington Boots gives you the option to ad your name in rhinestones or add a pretty ribbon to make these pearl colored boots your wedding shoe:

But, if you are just looking for some funky wellies in amazing print patterns for a little fun under your dress look no further than Wellies By Evercreature! They have the best selection of fun, whimsical patterns!

And if the weather even calls for a chance of showers you must have a wedding umbrella on hand! Even if there isn't a chance of rain an umbrella makes a nice wedding photo prop:

This beautiful photo is by Michele M Waite of Bellingham, WA

I told you about Bella Umbrella last year in this post and since then, the company has grown by leaps and bounds! They have created a niche for themselves as the go-to rental umbrella company and with good reason. Their umbrellas are some of the most beautiful, and now, most photographed for weddings! Umbrella rentals start at $10 for the most basic and go up to $30 for their fancy, decorated umbrellas!

Banner Art

Talking about the two new banners from Lisa Leonard inspired me! I went on a hunt to find other banners that could have many uses for a wedding (and then can be used after!) - I love how they add a personalized aspect to weddings. If you are a crafty, DIY bride you could probably make these but, for me? I would much rather find something that LOOKS like I made it! I am just not good with scissors, sewing, and paper...thankfully, others are! I love the look and feel of having homemade items to personalize your wedding! I also love that these can be used in your home after the wedding! There are so many things you purchase for a wedding that are "one time use" so, anything you can buy for a wedding that has a use AFTER the big day is good for me!  Here are some fun banners I was able to find:

String of Words Alphabet Discs - 12.99

From Mod Cloth - buy here!

This set has many uses! You get 36 thick, sturdy paperboard circles printed with letters reproduced from Victorian wood type and equipped with metal grommets, as well as a ribbon to tie these letters together! Make anything you want....over and over! Perfect price for a banner that you can use at the wedding, reception and then at home!

Love Red Glitter Burlap Banner - 26.00

From Etsy seller Funkyshique 

I have blogged about this Etsy store before....and even hosted a giveaway with her! So, you know I absolutely love her things! (I giveaway things I am in love with and would want for myself! ;) haha). Anyway, I just think her designs are great! They are all handmade and from working with her in the past I can tell you she is SO NICE too!

MR. and MRS. wedding chair hanger signs - 10.00

From Etsy seller CowCountryCreations

Fun Mrs. and Mr. chair banners have a vintage look and are accented with little rhinestone details. The ribbon colors can be changed to match your wedding theme. I thought the price was perfect for two!

New Lisa Leonard Designs

I absolutely adore Lisa Leonard designs so, when I saw an email from her today announcing a new decor line I immediately wanted to share!

 Fairy wands, banners, magnets and bowls

 Adorable to use in engagement sessions, at your wedding and then in your home! Banners are $46 for four hearts, each add'l heart only $9. You get to choose your ribbon color, too!

Perfect for your flower girl right? Fairy wands are $26 and can be personalized with a name or special phrase up to 16 characters 

Act quick to get this special discount (valid until Mar 26th): use coupon decor20 for 20% off your entire order!


Also, I know you will be interested in this....Lisa Leonard is hosting a giveaway right now for an oval wall hanging!!! (love it!)

Hindsight Bride - A Wedding Feature

They say that hindsight is 20/20.  

Images from Visio Photography as seen on Hindsight Bride

It's the reason I spent hours (upon hours) researching real life weddings.  I learned so much from other brides while planning my own wedding.  I had the benefit of their experiences to help shape my own.    Advice from past brides was so incredibly helpful.  

I'm honored to have our special day featured in a wonderful wedding blog, Hindsight Bride.   Christie O, a past bride herself, has an eye for selecting gorgeous weddings, many with a mountain style or inspiration.  

If you've been following along with us here on Vita Nostra, you know that our wedding was set in the beautiful mountain setting of Asheville, North Carolina at the Biltmore.   While not your typical mountain setting, the Biltmore brought an added European elegance and a stunning fall backdrop.   It is a magical location, captured by our amazing photography team at Visio Photography.

I wish I had known about Hindsight Bride while I was planning my wedding.    The site is full of great advice from past brides and all kinds of wedding goodness, all with a mountain twist!

I'd love for you to check out the feature... it is full of my personal hindsight advice and lots of great eye candy!  

Past Brides - What is your best advice/lessons learned for anyone who may be currently planning their wedding?

Pre Wedding Reception Activities

Slightly different with the post wedding activities or pre wedding activities which are more relaxed, planning "Pre Wedding Reception Activities" are a great way to keep your guests amused and entertained while waiting for the reception to actually begin thus it's requires a precision and sensitivity in implementation.


There is no requirement that brides entertain their guests at all. After all, they have already attended your wedding ceremony (which was surely engaging and entertaining, right?) and they will soon get music, food and drink. What more could they want? It turns out, a lot. While the bride and groom are off having pictures taken, the guests are left to their own devices, chatting with other guests and wondering when the buffet will open.

In that light, it's worth at least considering some pre-reception options for keeping wedding guests entertained until the reception begins. Here are a few options, some tradition, some not so, but still fun.


First, you can do the traditional thing and provide guests with drinks and perhaps some light snacks. If the wedding is in the summertime, how about providing lemonade and iced tea? Or if it's the winter, coffee and hot tea or even hot cocoa depending on the style of your wedding. Providing a light snack isn't a bad idea, either, and that can be some appetizer-type food or just nuts, especially if the meal will be heavy.

Now, if you want to stray from tradition, there are many options. Some brides opt for entertaining the guests in the truest sense of the word. Clowns, anyone? How about live music?

If you want to venture into the fun and funky, consult the party planning pages of a local children's or parent's magazine. Here, you can find people who will entertain your children at their birthday parties, but many of them will happily take on wedding jobs. You can hire a clown to make balloon animals for the kids (and adults) in attendance, or to juggle a few things. Some clowns are true entertainers and will happily get the crowd involved by fetching items out of women's purses and juggling them.


Other non-traditional options for entertaining your guests include hiring a band to play music beforehand. If you plan to have classical music at your wedding, you can have a band come and play covers of current pop songs, or you can simply have your hired band arrive a bit early to entertain guests waiting for the full reception to begin.

If there are many children at the wedding, it's not too expensive to hire a children's band to sing and entertain the children for a bit. Then if the kids are a bit bored at the reception, they'll still have the memory of the earlier entertainment with them. In addition, while the children are being entertained, the adults can have a chance to chat and they will surely thank the bride for thinking of them in that way.

Some other options for entertaining your restless crowd before the festivities begin are to include them in the reception before it begins. This is a great time to ask people to sign the guest book and write something meaningful, since they will have more time than they would usually have as they file into the reception hall.

If the reception and the wedding ceremony take place in the same location, but the bride and groom are off having pictures taken, it may not seem as if there's this dilemma of how to keep the guests entertained, but there in fact, is.

In this case, you can have servers circulate with appetizer trays or you can do something more elaborate, such as some of the suggestions above. One popular option doesn't involve entertaining the guests at all. Say the wedding is being held at a historic house or mansion. During the lull before the reception, guests can be given a tour of the property. If the wedding and reception are both being held at the couple's new home, a tour of the property might be in order (assuming the guest list is fairly small).

Finally, you have known at least one little details which need to worry about when planning a wedding and it might be get forgotten. So, if you plan "Pre Wedding Reception Activities" for your guests, It would be better if you invite a relative or friend who has sensitivity and meticulous from now and "be a wedding planner" to keep all guest entertained before your wedding reception "officially" begins.

Planning Outdoor Wedding Reception Activities

Planning wedding activities for your outdoor wedding reception is fun and easy. Why? Because, if you are planning your wedding reception out of doors or just planning a backyard wedding, that will opens the door for many activities that would be hard to pull off indoors. You can plan games and activities based on the outdoor theme and carry that theme indoors if part of the reception is inside as well.

Depending on where the reception will be held, you can plan many activities based on the setting. Whether it is the park or in the private ranch, there are a myriad of wedding activities you can plan including get an idea of the wedding planning website.

Let's start with some basics based on popular wedding locations. One fun game for a winery wedding is a blindfolded wine tasting game. If the bride and groom are wine drinkers, this might not a game the bride and groom should be a part of, but instead guests and wedding party members. Blindfold perhaps a half dozen volunteers and have them do a blind taste test (provide something to clean the palate between sips). The volunteers should guess which wine is the pinot noir, which is the Cabernet, and so on. A bottle of wine is the obvious prize for the winner of this game.

Say you are having a reception at a country club on a golf course. It's possible your theme will include golf elements, so why not include golf in some reception activities or games? You certainly could head to the golf course for a "hole in one" contest, or have a driving contest to see which guest has the best stroke. As a simple, "Who gets the centerpiece game", you could have people guess how many golf balls there are in the floral centerpiece (which could decorate a plain large glass vase filled with flowers). Similarly, there could be a large vase or other clear container filled with golf balls at the reception somewhere and guests could guess how many golf balls are in the vase.

A silly game could be made on the dance floor by asking everyone to include their best golf swing into their dancing for one particular song.

Now, if your reception and ceremony are both to be held outdoors and guests will be milling outdoors, think about games or activities that can take place outdoors and still keep to your level of formality or informality. You also can get an idea of the wedding planning website. For example, if the reception is being held at a park, perhaps guests might enjoy a "walk down memory lane". Prior to the reception, someone can use potted plants or arbors to create a little private lane, which guests can walk through. Along the path, guests will find pictures of the bride and groom at various stages in their lives. There should be a place for guests to record their thoughts and memories along the way as well.

If you are "planning a backyard wedding" and your wedding and reception are fairly casual, you can always tell guests ahead of time to prepare for a ball game or some other fun outdoor activity. Women can bring a pair of sneakers. Just imagine the fun photos you'll get out of a rousing game of football or baseball played by women in dresses and sneakers and men in suits and sneakers!

You can provide a challenge activity involving barefoot dancing in the grass or a Frisbee toss in the backyard. Is there a pool in the yard where the reception will be held? Why not have a swimming activity for after the whole of the reception is done?

Finally, by those backyard wedding games and outdoor reception activities above plus search on internet for "wedding planning website", you will know more about how to plan and prepare outdoor wedding reception activities for your special day and then you can also "make your own wedding website" to share your experience.

Planning Wedding Reception Activities for Kids

Having children at a wedding sometimes poses a myriad of problems. However, not all brides and grooms want to exclude children from their wedding. Many are happy to welcome children into their wedding both as members of the wedding party and as guests.

Do you leave the children to their own devices and hope they behave and don't get in the way? Do you provide a room with childcare so they are "present" but not too much under foot? Perhaps the best solution is a simple mix of both, with a smattering of fun built in.

First of all, if children are invited to the wedding, take into consideration the ages of the children. Babies will have to stay with mom and/or dad, for a variety of reasons. So, planning wedding activities to have all the children in another room might not be feasible. But if the children are toddlers up to about age 12, you can provide a separate room for them with childcare and a make a number of activities available to them.

If the children will be in a separate room at the reception, you can provide a coloring table, perhaps a TV with an appropriate movie ready to roll, and some board games. That could probably be enough for the duration of the wedding reception. Be aware of a few things: there should be a ratio of at least 1 adult for every 5 children if the children are toddlers, or 1 adult to every 10 children if the kids are older. Don't expect the kids to take up the activities on their own, but rather tell the childcare provider to get the kids involved in the activities by doing them him or herself.

What if the children will be part of the reception festivities? What activities can be geared specifically to children at the reception? There are plenty of things you can do, really. You can certainly plan a coloring table at the back of the reception hall or room. There, you can provide loads of paper, coloring books, markers and crayons. Paints are not recommended, for obvious reasons, and moms will thank you if you remember to supply the kids with washable markers and crayons only.

The art table can be more than just coloring, however. Buy a huge bag of pipe cleaners. Kids can amuse themselves for long periods of time, making animals, odd figures and the like. Make sure you have at least 20 or more pipe cleaners for each child, however, as children can go through these quickly. Think about "clean" clay, the new products that don't stick to anything and don't leave a trace on furniture. With a few different colors, kids can create a variety of figures, faces or forms.

Many brides like to plan more formally for their small guests. There are several options if this is the route you want to take. One popular option is to have paid entertainment on hand just for the children. This can take place in a separate room or toward the back of the reception room or hall if it's large and the guest list is big. You can hire a clown or a balloon artist. You can have someone braid the children's hair and provide temporary tattoos. If there is a separate room available, you can even hire a children's musician to come and entertain the kids. The options are endless.

If no plans are made for the kids, but they arrive at the wedding expecting entertainment, you'll have to make some plans. One option is a "child only" dance, which allows only the children on the dance floor. This is not only cute to watch, and could be entertaining as well, but it will bring a smile to the face of every grandma and grandpa present.

Prince William's Cousin Zara Phillips Engaged

Prince William could soon be hearing wedding bells -- and this time they won't be his own. Zara Phillips, the cousin to the Prince, has announced her engagement after a sever year romance to rugby player Mike Tindall, reports the Daily Mail.

The couple first fell for each other after meeting in a Sydney bar during the 2003 Rugby World Cup, and have been living together in Gloucestershire for several years. Mike proposed at home on Monday evening with what seems to be about a 2 carat brilliant cut diamond set on a double band of pave diamonds.

Though they haven't officially set a date yet, sources say they will tie the knot next year -- meaning there could be two royal weddings in one year. In a statement released yesterday afternoon, Zara said, "I was really shocked when Mike proposed but I am very happy." Mike added, "I am delighted that Zara has agreed to marry me. We are both very excited about the next stage of our lives together."

Zara, an international event rider, is not a Princess and does not take the title Her Royal Highness because her mother decided she wanted her children to have more normal lives. she is not required to perform royal duties and instead makes her own money and keeps a lower profile overall. Just in case you're having trouble keeping it all straight: Zara is the daughter of Princess Anne, and therefore granddaughter to Queen Elizabeth (which means her maternal uncle is Prince Charles, making William and Harry are her first cousins).

A spokesperson for Buckingham Palace released a statement Tuesday, saying, "The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh are delighted."

Engagement Ring by Reese Witherspoon

Reese Witherspoon's new fiance, Jim Toth, didn't spare a thing when it came to picking out the right engagement ring for his bride-to-be.

The unique ring is a 4-carat Ashoka cut diamond, reports People.com. The diamond is set on a pave diamond-and-platinum band, giving the ring an elegant, but retro feel (and totally following one of the engagement ring trends we've mentioned before). The Ashoka cut, which has 62 facets, is especially rare, with less than 10% of rough diamonds cut in this shape in each year.

The Oscar-winning actress quietly began dating Jim, 40, last January and the two quickly became serious about one another, reports People.com. Insiders also revealed that Jim had bonded with Reese's kids, Ava, 11, and Deacon, 7, who she had with her ex-husband, Ryan Phillipe. Reese split from Ryan in 2006 after seven years of marriage.

Wedding Details Valerie Bertinelli's

As we reported earlier, Valerie Bertinelli married her longtime boyfriend, Tom Vitale, on New Year's Day in a romantic seaside ceremony at her Malibu home. And now, we've got all the details!

The bride wore blue! That's right, Valerie donned a custom silk chiffon blue gown by David Meister and shoes by Jimmy Choo, reports People.com. She carried a large white bouquet, while the groom donned a more traditional black tux with a white shirt and vest for the ceremony. The magazine also confirms that Eddie Van Halen, plus former co-stars Mackenzie Philips and Pat "Schneider" Harrington were among the guests.

"I could have spent the rest of my life with Tom and not be married, but I wanted to call him 'my husband'," Valerie, 50, who stars in Hot in Cleveland tells People. "I really wanted to share how I feel about Tom with the people I love."

Go to a Wedding, Kate and Wills

The royal couple was seen out and about over the weekend, attending the wedding of Prince William's close friends, Harry Aubrey-Fletcher and Louise Stourton. William acted as an usher for the wedding that took place inside Aldborough Parish Church, reports the Daily Mail.

The reception was held later at Castle Allerton. The two stayed overnight before heading home to celebrate Kate's birthday, Monday. Kate looked dashing in a knee-length black velvet coat with diamante label from the London designer, Libelula, reports the Telegraph. The coat revealed a sheer and plunging neckline of the dress beneath.

And, just in case you can't get enough of the royal wedding, here the Telegraph offers you a tour of the processional route in just 42 seconds (watch it, so fun!).

Images via JustJared and the Daily Mail.

Wedding Planning with Sara Rue

The Jenny Craig spokesperson, who is engaged to Kevin Price, a teacher, says that "It's going really well all of a sudden." This could be in part because she's hired amazing wedding and event planner, Rachel Hollis from Chic Events to help her out.

She's been engaged since August 2009, but Shedding for the Wedding host Sara Rue is only now getting around to wedding planning, reports People.com.

The host, who's show premieres on Feb. 23, said she's hoping for a wedding that is "eclectic yet elegant" with an "intimate reception. What she doesn't want? Nothing "ostentatious and over-the-top, the star tells People.com.

No word yet on when the actual wedding date will be.

Fun Wedding Ideas with Music Activities

Music is as much a component of a good wedding reception as food and drink. Energy, enthusiasm and fun are all blended together in the celebration with the wedding music. You can have a wedding without music, but it's likely it will seem a little quiet and dull. In the olden days the relatives and friends of the hosts used to create music and sing various songs.

In today’s modern wedding professional "wedding music performers" are hired. But the magic of wedding music still remains the same for the olden and new days. So whether you have a full live band, a string quartet, a DJ spinning tunes or recorded music from a boom box, it should be included.

But music's not just for dancing. There are a myriad of activities you can plan around the music that will add an element of fun to your wedding.

One popular idea is to play musical chairs. Sure, this is a fun kid's game and you don't want to insult your guests in any way, but you can have some fun for your wedding with this version of musical chairs. The chairs can be just about anything, from chairs lined up from the food tables, to the floor, if you think your guests might be open to sitting on the floor (and then having to get up and down again). One fun option is to use the men as the chairs - they kneel on the floor, with one knee on the floor and the other bent. The women sit lightly on the men's' knees as they are playing musical chairs. When either the man or woman falls down, that couple is out, until one couple is left.

Some brides and grooms like to play musical chairs in order to give away the table centerpiece, which many guests like to take home. Instead of assigning a number and awarding the centerpiece to the person in possession of that number, you have each table play musical chairs until the person left standing is the one that gets to take home the centerpiece.

How about a rousing game of "name that tune"? This is a game that's best for a smaller, intimate wedding where everyone knows the bride and groom well. Prior to the wedding, whoever is planning the wedding should get a list of favorite songs of both the bride and groom. Create a wedding CD of those songs, and then create a game of "name that tune". Guests can be divided into teams and then be played just a small snippet of each wedding song.

After guests hear that first snippet, they can then "bid" on how quickly they can name the tune. So one group might say they can name the tune in 10 seconds, while the other group might say 5 seconds. Once one group has bowed out, the other group will then have to "name that tune". This is a fun game that gets everyone involved and which the bride and groom are particularly delighted by.

Depending on the style of the wedding, there are many fun games you can play to get the bride and groom out on the dance floor. Now, if this is a very large and very elegant wedding, this option might not work since there is certain decorum to maintain, but for a casual, fun and family-centered in the "wedding reception", some of these wedding games on dance floor can be fun.

If guests want to "call out" the wedding couple onto the dance floor, they can be asked to get out on the dance floor themselves first and hula hoop or perform their own version of a break dance. Much in the way guests sometimes have to "perform" to get the couple the kiss this is another way to get the guests involved and having fun with the wedding music in order to create a fun wedding reception and also unforgetable wedding memories for the bride and groom.