WEDDING BLOG

Wedding Ideas from Matthew Robbins’ Inspired Weddings Book

May 30, 2012 | editorial team

Matthew Robbins is a name synonymous with beautiful events and thoughtful details, but when I think of Matthew’s work, the first thing that comes to mind is the word INVENTIVE! The NYC designer, who is a frequent contributor to Martha Stewart Weddings and numerous other wedding and style publications, has just released his first book – and it’s filled with all of those creative ideas he is known for. The stunning book, Matthew Robbins’ Inspired Weddings, shows how any object that’s special to you can be used as the inspiration for your wedding decor – a concept that we love! Today we’re super lucky to get to share an excerpt in which Matthew uses treasured old schoolhouse maps to create a drop-dead gorgeous wedding color palette and decor design concept for a modern wedding with a pretty vintage touch.

Excerpt from Matthew Robbins’ Inspired Weddings: Designing Your Big Day with Favorite Objects and Family Treasures:

Why a Schoolhouse Map? When I was an art student in San Francisco, nearly every penny I had went into my art; I was always searching for cool objects to inspire me. Inside one of my favorite shops, I discovered these large schoolhouse maps, and, though I couldn’t afford them at the time, I knew I had to have them. I decided to offer the friendly shop owner some of my artwork as a trade for the maps and, to my absolute delight, she agreed. I’ve kept them stored away forever, knowing that some day I would pull them out for something really special.

Maps instantly conjure up thoughts of travel, enticing us with all the wonderful destinations the world has to offer. I enjoy staring at them, tracing my finger from here to there, wondering when I’ll have the opportunity to explore all the places I long to visit. The idea of a treasure map intrigues me as well – it holds the possibility that something wonderful is out there waiting for you, if only you can locate the big X that marks the spot. I tapped into this inspiration by featuring lots of silvery and glinting pieces that feels as if they might have just been discovered inside some sunken, newly salvaged treasure chest.

What About the Palette? I love the colors used in these fantastic old maps: the pale pinks, creams, greens and yellows, and those wide expanses of watery blue that come together to create this beautiful, vintage palette. The black graphic detailing is inspiring as well.

Who Is the Client? This inspiration is perfect for the couple that loves classic details, but wants to avoid a stuffy, formal event. I can’t help but imagine a bride who wants to accomodate her mother’s wish to host the event at the local yacht club, yet is trying to infuse the space with her own sense of romance and effortless style.

When and Where? A slightly more Victorian venue would be lovely with an inspiration like this, maybe the local country club, or perhaps the nearest botanical garden. I can also picture and map-infused wedding in an elegant white tent by the water, be it a beach, a river, or a beautiful lake. I definitely envision an event like this taking place in the spring or summer.

My Focus: I’m drawn to how old world and rustic and yet chic and modern maps can be. I show here how to incorporate all of these styles. You can blend romantic decor classics, like vintage silver and cherry blossoms, with a more casual, contemporary aesthetic, ending up with the best of both worlds.

Check out Matthew’s stunning new book for page after page of beautiful and creative wedding inspiration just like this, and visit our Wedding Inspiration Gallery for real wedding photos and ideas of all kinds!

Urban, Spanish-Inspired Wedding at Sodo Park, Seattle – Karen and Jorge

May 30, 2012 | editorial team

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Blending two cultures seamlessly, Karen and Jorge fused their very different backgrounds into a beautifully cohesive wedding at Sodo Park, Seattle. Creative decor details, fun cultural traditions, and a fantastic toast full of love and support made this urban, Spanish-inspired wedding unforgettable!

The Couple: Karen and Jorge

The Wedding: 3.24.12 – Sodo Park – Seattle, WA

What were the top three priorities for you in planning your wedding? Food, drinks and atmosphere. We focused a lot on the food. Jorge is from Spain and we love the simplicity of Spanish food. Our caterer, Herban Feast, even used one of Jorges recipes for one of the appetizers and found an Iberico ham. It was a hit at our wedding, particularly when the Spanish family had to show the meat cutter how to cut the ham correctly! As for drinks, there was no way we could have a wedding without unlimited beverage options! Also, we wanted our wedding to give our families the opportunity to connect and talk. I have friends from all over and many of them had not met each other. Even our families come from different parts of the world, so giving them the chance to interact was very important to us. We had a buffet to make the serving simple, and to cut down on the “sit down” structure and focus on interacting with other people.

What wedding traditions or cultural traditions did you incorporated into your wedding and what did they mean to you? We did one that was a bit different. In Spain, people often get married when they are younger and need money. Traditionally, they cut the grooms tie and the brides garter belt into pieces and sell them. Money is collected in an empty wine bottle. Since the neck is so narrow, you can only put in dollar bills. We got $100 for a triangle section of his tie!

What was your biggest wedding planning success? Our wedding invitations and cake topper. I loved the process! I didnt want a typical wedding invitation and thought of a comic strip book theme. We had about four pages that contained cartoons, which were drawn by Jorge, of the story of how we met to the point where we got engaged. We both made our cake topper, and it matched the cartoon theme. I’m not artistic but this was the first time I felt creative!

One of the couple’s favorite moments of the day was the sweet toast that Jorge’s brother, Fernando, put together for them. He involved all of the guests in the surprise, and shared the details with us. From Fernando – Jorge asked me to make a toast and I wanted to do something special for them. I decided to show photos that I got from their families as I was giving my speech, and prepared a video showing congratulations messages from their family and friends. This took more more than 2 months and 250 emails back and forth, contacting family and friends in Spain, Thailand and the US! I also wanted to create an atmosphere of love around them, involving everybody. After the video, I had the wedding party stand in front and lip sync “All You Need is Love” from the The Beatles, while the rest of the guests waved red hearts that we had secretly distributed a few minutes before the wedding. Every table received a pack of hearts with the instruction to waving them at the chorus of the song that would be played later. They even didnt know what was to happen! Then, as a finish, we opened six streamers of hearts and surrounded the couple with them. They were absolutely surrounded by love from all angles! I think they enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed preparing it.

The Wedding Team:

The Photographer: Benj Haisch
Event Planner: Alison Lum
Ceremony/Reception Venue: Sodo Park
Catering: Herban Feast
Florist: Flora Noelle
Wedding Cake: Karen Kros – Ba-Bar
Wedding Dress: Alice + Olivia
Bridesmaids’ Apparel and Accessories: Banana Republic
Men’s Apparel and Accessories: Groom – Mario’s, Groomsmen – Tuxedo Club
Hair and Make-up: Ann Nguyen – Le Salon Rouge
DJ: Chris Lum
Favors: Handwoven satchels filled with candy from Thailand
Wedding Rings: Groom – Turgeon Raine, Bride – Cathy Waterman

Thank you so much Karen and Jorge! What great memories and moments!

Planning a wedding? Check out all the incredible wedding planning experts on our World’s Best Planners & Designers Hotlist.

Woodland Winter Wedding in Lake Tahoe, California – Scott Corridan and Viera Photographics

May 29, 2012 | editorial team

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Although Memorial Day weekend just kicked off the summer fun, I couldn’t resist sharing this fabulously stylish and creative woodland winter wedding in Lake Tahoe, California, since many of you out there are probably planning winter weddings as we speak! Groom Karl imagined a campfire-style wedding in the middle of the forest, while Christina envisioned something a bit more polished, so they looked to wedding planner Scott Corridan to create a chic event that suited both of their personalities. I fell head over heels in love with the hot cocoa, roasted chestnuts winter wedding fashion and modern woodland decor in these wedding photos by Viera Photographics!

The Couple: Christina and Karl

The Wedding: 1.29.11 – Northstar – Lake Tahoe, CA

What three adjectives best describe your wedding day? It was a snowy woodland adventure!

Was there a decor theme that ran through your wedding? What was the inspiration for that particular idea and how did it reflect you as a couple? The theme sprang from Karls idea of making our wedding feel like a hunting lodge in the forest. I was hoping for something a bit more polished and elegant. Ultimately, we both wanted a small winter wedding, where we could fit everyone in a small room together at just a few tables. Scott managed to bring these ideas together brilliantly. It felt like a chic woodland event.

What were some of the different ways you used decor elements to create the beautiful, cohesive event you were envisioning? For the ceremony, we relied on the natural setting of a snowy aspen grove with a creek running behind it on the Northstar golf course. For the reception, having a lot of flowers at a winter wedding did not make sense. So, Scott focused on bringing the reception alive with linens, tablescapes and candles. The linens were an assortment of bold black and white graphic prints. The tables were topped with lots of candles and interesting objects like, sculptures, antlers, etc. We had faux busts of animals suspended from the ceiling and twinkly lights everywhere.

Where did you choose to hold your wedding, and how did the location influence your decor decisions? We made the crazy decision to have our wedding outside … in the middle of winter … in Tahoe. Given that, we had to figure out a way to make things both cozy and elegant. As people arrived to the ceremony, they were greeted with hot cocoa, coffee, Baileys and roasted chestnuts. To keep the feel of the location natural, we interspersed chairs with wooden stumps for people to sit on and had others stand. Thus, when I walked down the aisle, it felt like I had just happened upon a magical gathering in a snowy aspen stand. It was beautiful.

Looking back, do you have a favorite project or successful decor idea from your wedding? Tell us what you loved about it! I outsourced the projects and decor. I was far from a DIY bride! So, I was stunned to see how beautifully all our zany ideas came together. The ceremony site itself, on a snowy slope with a creek running behind it and surrounded by aspens was stunning. I will never forget turning around after our log-sawing moment (a German tradition in which the newly-married couple saws through a log together to show how well they will work through problems in life together) and seeing almost everyone we love gathered around us in that beautiful spot.