Black & White Wedding

I was honored to attend my brother's wedding this past weekend and it was awesome!  He married the love of his life and the "Happily Ever After" theme was quite fitting.

ENTRY AREA: 

The guests arrived and we had a table set up in the entry area of the yard.  The table served a few purposes - gift table, water station, and also sign-in area.  I didn't get a picture since I was the one greeting everyone.

This was the sign that we had attached to a folding easel that I painted white:

Here's what we put on the table:

- A glass water dispenser filled with water, lemon slices and strawberry slices (and clear cups on the side).  Surprisingly almost everyone wanted water as they entered.

- A picture of the bride and groom.

- A tall, antique looking lantern to put cards in.

- An area to place the gifts.

- A vase to sign (instead of a guest book).

- A basket full of wedding keepsake fans (framed with white cardstock and attached to a wooden handle; people loved them and used them).

Front of fan

Back of fan

WEDDING CEREMONY AREA:

They were married next to the pool in SoCal and there was a beautiful ocean view from the backyard of my aunt and uncle's home.  They used a simple metal arch and added flowers and off-white, sheer fabric to it to make it pretty.  We used white pipe cleaners to attach all the froofy stuff (is that even a word?).  The put urns filled with ferns at the bottom of the arches to secure the structure since there was a breeze.

TABLE SEATING SIGNS:

We had the table seating signs posted between the ceremony area and the reception area.  I designed these signs on the computer and printed them at Costco as 16" x 20" pictures.  I put them in frames that I spray painted white so they looked like chalkboards.  Believe it or not, people thought they were real chalkboards and were quite impressed. I 'fessed up that they were easy to make and I didn't have those awesome penmanship skills. You can get the chalkboard fonts for free on THIS WEBSITE.  You can also find free chalkboard backgrounds on Google.  I will do another post about how to make the signs.  (Note: names on the seating charts are fictional in case you were wondering ha ha).

BAR & APPETIZER AREAS:

We used my aunt's existing pool furniture to arrange a little area to hang out at near the bar.  It was a nice place for people to relax if they needed some space away from the crowd.

We had some fun photo props out in case people wanted to take pictures while they waited.  The wedding planner said sometimes she provides a photo booth area but we had a more casual approach and people could do their own thing.

Appetizers were served on a banquet table.  They served pulled pork, rolls, veggies and fruits.  There was also a cheese and cracker tray with fruit over by the lounge area.

Here are some close up pictures.  For those who struggle to make fruits or veggie platters look nice, you can look at these and get some ideas.

SERVING AREA:

We had the serving tables shaped like an "L" and a chalkboard style menu sign at the front of where the serving line would start.  My brother's friends did all the cooking (they are HUGE BBQ fans) and it was truly delicious and plentiful.

DINING AREA:

My sister-in-law found good deals on the glass plates, glasses and silverware so she bought them instead of renting.  I think she shopped at the dollar store and IKEA.  She's one smart cookie!

We made chalkboard style table numbers and put them in glass frames on the table.  Everyone loved how the chalkboard theme ran throughout the whole wedding (including the wedding announcement that is not pictured).  You can't really see it but there are tall glass things in the middle of each table and a fancy electric candle inside that we used at night.  There are also little battery-operated candles around the table.  They added white rose petals spread around the table at the last minute so they wouldn't blow away.

We had nine table with about 10 people per table.  I believe my aunt made a lot of the black table toppers out of black sheets which is a frugal idea, plus it looked great.  They rented all the tables and chairs and borrowed the white tablecloths.  What you can't see is all the lights on the trees and walls. Totally beautiful even if it did take my relatives about 10 hours to put them all up.

BRIDE & GROOM TABLE:

Aren't they such a cute couple!  We hung that sign on the tree as a whim but it sure looked great in this picture.  They had another arch with lights behind their table.

 MUSIC & DANCING:

This DJ did a great job.  He does lots of events in Orange County and if you would like his contact info, I can get it for you if you email me.  We had a dancing area near the food serving zone.  Not huge but it met our needs.  I'd post a picture of my brother dancing but then he might kill me so I won't.

My sister-in-law saw this concept on Pinterest so I copied the theme and made a sign.  She bought the flip flops at the dollar store and people loved them.  She tied each pair together with black ribbon.

DESSERT BAR:

The candy bar was well-received.  They had cupcakes placed on tiered platters (I'd bought the platters at Costco a while back).  The glass jars all held different candies.  The glass cake platters held lemon cakes and mini-brownies from Costco.  They put candles in the white tins from IKEA and it looked great at night. You can't tell but there are white Christmas lights underneath the white tablecloth so the table was lit up at night.  It looked quite fancy. Unfortunately the dessert table ended up crashing down at the end of the wedding after most of the guests had left.  We suspect one of the legs wasn't locked in completely.  We'd cleared about half the stuff off the table but some of the jars were crushed and we lost the extra treats.  Thank goodness that didn't happen DURING the party!

 My brother doesn't eat sugar or white flour so they made a watermelon wedding cake instead and put a topper on that.  It was perfect for them.

Overall, this was an awesome wedding if I do say so myself.  Susan was the wedding planner and she did a fantastic job and I learned a lot from her.  I know my brother and his wife are grateful to her and all the others who helped out.