cheap wedding inspiration

{Wedding Inspiration} Foodie Tips for a Brunch Wedding

One of my favorite summer activities is watching the huzface cook up a frittata, sipping on a mimosa and enjoying the summer sun and the company around me. There are few things that make me feel more glamorous. So I figured, if this makes me feel all “I can be amazing and light and airy and graceful and comfortable and free,” why not translate it into a wedding? The plus side: Brunches can be done on the super cheap, whether it’s actually at brunch time (which saves you money on the whole Saturday night deal) or it can be held at night and be a whimsical escape into morning loveliness.

Whether you decide to have your brunch-themed wedding at the standard brunch time or shift it into the evening for a quirky twist, there’s some amazing, brunch-tastic wedding inspiration out there.

I perused my own (and, let’s admit it, EVERYONE’S) Pinterest feed and came up with some pretty snazzy ideas.

Via Pinterest via Bleu Soiree

OBVIOUSLY, since it’s a brunch, you’ll need mimosas. No brunch is complete without.

But why not also do a bloody mary bar? Save on bartending costs (if your venue will allow) and buy bulk bottles of vodka, big old jugs of tomato juice and stock up on some Tabasco sauce. Arrange with platters of celery, pickled asparagus, limes, lemons and whatever else you deem necessary and let the guests mix up their red bevs to their own desire.

Since you have all that tomato juice, why not get some cheap beer (or a keg?) and do red beer? Heck, you also have some orange juice, so brass monkeys (equal part beer and OJ) could also be on the menu.

But what about noms? Well for brunch, quiche and fritattas are the smack-you-in-the-face answer. Some of my personal favesies recipes come from Epicurious.com. And they’re great because you can make them a couple of days ahead of time. Get your whole brigade to chip in and you could feed ALL THE PEOPLE!

Via Pinterest via The Family Kitchen

But, um, you’re going to have some DUDES at your shindig. Chances are you’ll need MEAT. So … how about some bacon cups? These would need to be made soon before consumption, but I can tell you from experience: Soooo goooood.

Once I started rolling with the idea of personal servings, the options became endless.

A muffin bar would give your guests a plethora of options. Put them in nifty cupcake wrappers, and advertise the options with sweet little signs.

Take any of your favorite foods and make it mini! Little French toast corners served in a cup with maple syrup. Same goes with pancakes and waffles. Stick a toothpick in ‘em and eat up!

Speaking of France, you could set up a crepe station. Have a stack of crepes and spread out an array of fillings — onion, bacon, berries, you name it. Make sure you have a canister of powdered sugar to top it all off!

Of course you never want to leave out sausage. It’s a breakfast and brunch staple. Enter pigs in a blanket: Easy, cheap, and always a favorite.

For the more health-conscious, fill small mason jars with fruit, yogurt and granola for an individual parfait. Decorate the jars and they can double as wedding favors.

Via Pinterest via Reluctant Entertainer

To get more ideas and inspiration, feel free to check out my Pinterest board.

What theme ideas do you have in mind? Would you be down for doing a brunch wedding?

xoxo

-Christen

{Real Bride: Katie} “Are You Getting Nervous?!” My 10 Different Types Of Wedding Jitters

Now that we are only one week away from the big day, it seems people have been asking me the same two questions almost everytime the subject of our wedding comes up. The first question is inevitably, “Are you getting excited?” Well, duh….I think we’d have kind of a problem if I were approaching my wedding day with a feeling of dread instead of excitement. Then the follow up question, is almost always “Are you getting nervous?” Usually I just tell people that, no, actually I’m cool as a cucumber, but in fact I am a little nervous. 

If you’re just starting to think about your dream wedding, you probably think I’ve lost my mind. I admit, I totally watched wedding shows back in the day and thought “what’s there to be nervous about?” However, if you think about the minor jitters that you get whenever you throw a little cocktail party for your friends, multiply that feeling by 100 and then throw in some public speaking, lots of crying relatives, and a major life change….you might start to understand how it could be a little nervewracking. For example, here’s a little glimpse of all the random things that have been circling my brain lately:

1. What if Mr. Officer has a Mr. Big style bout of last minute cold feet?

2. What if I’m making a weird face in all the pictures? What if I have a double chin in all the pictures?

*Please don’t let me look like this in all of the pictures*

3. What if I’m so worried about worrying that I forget to enjoy the day?

4. What if I can’t get used to my new last name, and keep writing the old one by accident?

5. What if people have a terrible time at the reception, but are too polite to tell me that it sucks?

6. What if our first dance is lame, and we end up looking like two sixth graders at a middle school dance?

7. What if I start crying during the ceremony because I see other people crying and then I can’t stop?

8. What happens if I can’t walk like a normal person in the heavy wedding dress and I trip going down the aisle?

9. What if Mr. Officer and I end up getting a divorce after 25 years of marriage? Will I have to use some sort of fifty+ dating website, or will we have moved on by then to futuristic fifty+ dating holograms?

10. What if I can’t sleep the night before the wedding and I spend the entire day in an exhausted haze?

So there you go, that’s just a little peek at how my mind works. Luckily for me, Mr. Officer immediately got to work on talking me down off the ledge. For the record he is not experiencing any cold feet, and he doesn’t care if our guests have a terrible time, because it’s our wedding and it’s going to be awesome. Oh and also, he told me that if it seems like I’m making a weird face, he’ll make an even weirder face so that people won’t notice my weird face. Ladies and gentlemen, that’s love! You know, sometimes there’s something to be said for having a partner that can tell you when your being unreasonable. So now that I’m back to being me (a.k.a. a relaxed, non-stressball), so here’s my list of things that I am most excited about leading up to the big day:

1. Seeing all of our friends and relatives, all in one place at the same time. Our parents haven’t had a chance to meet yet, so we’re really excited for everyone to meet each other.

2. Wearing my awesome dress, because dude, it’s pretty amazing!

3. The fact that my dress has already been taken in twice (thank you basement elliptical machine and Netflix).

4. Spending the week before the wedding at my parents’ house in Pennsylvania. Side note: one of the best, and most unexpected, side effects of getting married is that you end up spending a lot more time talking to and visiting with friends and family during wedding planning. Maybe I’m just a hermit, but I’m so thankful for all the time that I’ve been “forced” to spend with my parents, soon to be in-laws, and bridesmaids during our engagement.

5. Our awesome band.

6. Burger sliders during the cocktail reception.

7. Raiding the candy buffet after I’ve worked up a fierce appetite on the dance floor.

8. The strawberry-basil-vodka lemonade that I’ll inevitably spill on myself at some point. Are you noticing a food theme here?

9. Making fun of the outdated animatronics on the Carousel of Progress during our honeymoon.

10. Spending the rest of my life with my own, personal Prince Charming!