Winter Weddings

Okay, I admit it...I am a closet winter wedding geek. For anyone who knows me, they hear me constantly complaining about the snow and cold but more likely they'll hear me scheming to get to the warm waters of the Caribbean or Mexico.

However when I stop and think about it, winter can be a beautiful time of year all courtesy of Mother Nature. I read that forecasters are predicting a snowier than usual winter, which means driving headaches and parking angst. But hey, I'm a "glass is half full" kind of gal so I'm choosing to put a positive spin on this.

I had the great pleasure to design and pull together a fabulous winter wedding for Ashley and Shea this year and we used a lot of silver and gold. But the color palates can vary from silver and blue, to all white tone on tone, to red and green during the Christmas season. Actually there's almost no colors that won't work for a winter wedding...except black and orange maybe.

Here are some ideas and photos of elegant yet simple decor for your winter wedding. Check out my previous post on ice lanterns. They are eco-friendly and economic and make a stunning impact with little effort.

I'll be posting some of the huge advantages to a winter wedding over the next few days so stay warm and enjoy the holidays.

Cool Lighting for Winter Weddings

When I say "cool" you have no idea I really mean "cold" lighting ideas for winter weddings. We created these ice lanterns for Ashley & Shea's January wedding at the Landmark Center in St. Paul. They were very easy and for just a few cents for candles were also very cost-effective. Here are other examples of ice lanterns that could easily be adapted to your winter wedding motif.

One tip however, it's best to freeze the water in a flat level portion of your freezer rather than depend on the outdoor temperatures to do the freezing for you. Unless we're in the middle of an arctic deep freeze, make two lanterns at a time and use the steady temperature of your own freezer to consistently obtain the most uniform shape. They can be stored outside once they have been frozen to perfection.

Experiment with food coloring, colored pillar candles or as the water freezes, add touches of ribbon, garland, flowers, berries or evergreens...the results are amazing.