Planning a wedding entails a lot more than just shopping for wedding dresses and picking out centerpieces. At Branches Catering, we know brides work very hard in the months prior to their wedding to in tip top shape! Here are some simple tips from eleGALA.com on how to get your body, skin and diet right where they need to be!

Source: eleGALA.com

It’s your wedding day, and it’s your day to shine. Make the most of it, and start preparing a healthy bridal beauty routine now.

With today’s busy lifestyles, women often fail to make time for their personal health and well-being. Throw planning a wedding into the mix, and we have even less time. But a time crunch is no excuse to let your health and beauty routine slide. Avoid pre-wedding burnout and maintain optimal health and beauty when you incorporate these personal wellness components into your busy lifestyle.

Pre-Wedding Exercise Routine

Finding time to exercise can seem easier said than done when your day is full of wedding planning tasks. Don’t get bogged down by this excuse – for it’s just that: an excuse. Anyone can squeeze 20 minutes of vigorous activity into their day – yes, you! Even if it’s just some lunges in your bedroom in the morning or a brisk walk during your lunch hour, make exercise a priority in your life – akin to showering or eating. It simply must be done.

If these words don’t motivate you, or you find yourself in a workout rut, consider a personal trainer. A trainer may seem indulgent at a time when you’re hoarding pennies to pay for those high-end invitations you’ve set your sights on, but it will be money well spent. A trainer will develop an exercise routine especially for you and will work with you to ensure you train safely and obtain results. Although trainers can be pricey, most will teach you routines that you can do alone. Pop for five or six sessions, then take the lessons learned on your own.

Pre-Wedding Skin-Care Routine

Beautiful skin is not achieved overnight. If you are feeling less than radiant, do something about it now. Assess your beauty products; make sure you are using quality skin products that are right for your skin type. Book an appointment for a facial and consult your cosmetologist for advice and tips to get your skin in shape for the wedding. If your budget and calendar can afford it, try to get a facial at least every quarter leading up to your wedding.

Pre-Wedding Nutrition

Yes, we’ve all heard it a million times…groan. But you simply cannot expect to look and feel fabulous if you don’t properly nourish your body. It’s time to evaluate your eating habits. Diet is not the key word here. “Diet” alludes to restriction and deprivation. You don’t necessarily need to deprive yourself to lead a healthy lifestyle.

Just be aware of what you eat, and try to include as many healthy foods in your diet as you can. Read up on various foods and what nutrients they provide, but don’t force yourself to eat things you don’t like just because they are healthy. There should be enough healthy foods that you like that you can include in your daily diet.

Above all else, don’t go hungry! Hunger slows your metabolism and leads to unhealthy binges later. Banning specific food groups or food items is unnecessary; just try not to allow your calorie intake for the day exceed 2,000 (standard for a normally active woman). It’s as simple as that. So don’t fret if you indulge in a morning doughnut; just try to eat a healthy balance for the rest of the day.

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Planning a cocktail party or wedding? Get inspired! This Pretty in Peach Inspiration Board from Snippet & Ink displays a variety of ideas from invitation to cocktails to floral arrangements! If you are planning a wedding for the summer, you might come across something you like! As always, Branches Catering loves assisting with the planning process!

Source: Snippet & Ink

Mood: charming elegance
Palette: seashell pink and white

The Idea:  Food is one of the biggest places to save in a wedding budget, which is why these inspiration boards have largely focused on alternatives to traditional sit-down dinners. Today’s board presents the idea of cocktails and hors d’oeuvres as an elegant way to make nice with your wallet.

The Paper:  Though I think formal invitations are appropriate and appreciated, digital save-the-dates are perfectly acceptable and a great way to save money. Paperless Post offers a number of charming designs, some of which are even free (their pricing system seems unnecessarily confusing to me, but bottom line is: they have attractive, customizable options at affordable rates).

The Fashion:  “Bridal alternative” is basically a term for a white dress that doesn’t cost as much as most wedding gowns, and lots of department stores carry them. All I know is, it’s a great option if you’re willing to think outside the box when it comes to traditional wedding wear, like with this adorable Kate Spade dress for $468. Bella Bridesmaid is another great place to look for less expensive bridal gowns. This gives you a little wiggle room for fun accessories like a chic foldover clutch from Claire Vivier for $156 (that you can definitely use again!).

The Decor:  Candles are a beautiful way to light a room, and they can be significantly cheaper than flowers. If your venue allows, decorate the room with glass candleholders from CB2 for a modern look – the one pictured here is only $20, and can double as a gift for your bridal party.

The Flowers:  When Ryan and I had our civil ceremony at City Hall the day before our church wedding, my cousin’s partner brought me a beautiful bunch of white tulips to carry that she had picked up at the grocery store that morning. If a professionally designed bouquet isn’t a priority for you, opting for whatever’s in season (and available at your local market) and tying it together yourself is one way to help out your budget (this is especially true if you have lots of bridesmaid who will also be carrying flowers). Let pocket squares take the place of boutonnieres, and double as groomsmen gifts – you can find some for under $20, or if you’re the crafty type, you can make them yourself with a favorite fabric.

The Food:  As with a dessert reception, as long as your guests know what to expect, and the reception is held in between meal times, it’s perfectly okay to serve passed hors d’oeuvres instead of a full meal. Small bites are also a way to include more expensive ingredients that might be cost prohibitive in an entree, such as scallops or truffles. If your caterer and/or venue allows you to BYOB, find out if you’ll be able to return unopened bottles to the store – why pay for what people don’t drink!

Other Details:  As I’ve said before, I’m a big fan of easy DIY projects. The drink stirrers in this board are made by simply folding a piece of washi tape over a wooden skewer to create a cute little flag. Easy peasy! Make enough to adorn all drinks, or just a signature cocktail.

Click here for the full article and links to all of these great items.

If you’re not into floral centerpieces or would just like to do something different for your wedding, we suggest you consider the ideas below! At Branches Catering, we know that every small detail is hugely important to you when planning your wedding. Every couple deserves a wedding catered to their personal tastes so read these suggestions from eleGALA.com for some not-so-floral centerpieces!

Source: eleGala.com

So you’re not a froofy-floral-arrangement girl – that doesn’t mean you can’t still have unique wedding decorations that wow.

Think outside the proverbial wedding-flower box with this list of blossom-free wedding decoration ideas:

Creative Ideas for Wedding Décor

Frame It

Use interesting and ornate frames throughout your wedding décor. They can be found inexpensively at flea markets and spray painted to match your wedding colors. Or you can purchase a pre-painted bundle of frames from an Etsy shop, like The Shabby Shak.

Play with Paper

Add some color with fun paper poms from BHLDN. The poms looks amazing when strung high in the tent or hung all together among twinkle lights. Colorful pinwheels are fun and playful, while paper crane garland can be a beautiful and unexpected addition to your décor.

Fun with Fabric

Simple strips of patterned or floral fabrics can be used to tie things together, while simple ribbons can jazz up any space or tablescape, like in this shoot on Ruffled. In addition, DIY fabric pennant flags that match your color scheme are super fun to hang throughout your venue or tent.

The Food Pyramid

Fill cylindrical glass vases with fruits and vegetables reflecting your colors. Lemons and limes have been done, so try for a unique, more contemporary look with texture-rich earthy vegetables like asparagus, cabbage, or artichokes. If citrus suits your color scheme and you’re using flowers, slice the lemons or limes and place them in the jar surrounding the stems.

A Library Look

Stacks of books intricately piled can work in a number of different ways. For sophisticates, choose antique leather-bounds and vintage classics. For a more fun approach, use books with bright spines and kitschy titles. Or, tie it to your wedding location – if beach-side, go with maritime classics like Moby Dick and The Old Man and the Sea.

Au Natural

Consult Mother Nature for inspiration, and bring the outdoors in. Natural objects like leaves, pinecones, and even twigs can add an organic aesthetic to your reception décor. Place them in rustic containers, or dip them in a gold or silver paint and scatter amongst pillar candles. This idea will nicely complement a fall wedding theme.

Cover It

Glass cloches and pedestals can take a tablescape from average to amazing. Place small potted plants under the glass covers or top the pedestal with colorful fruit and place the cover over the delicious cluster. Our favorite? Go green with the mossy terrarium look by filling jars, pedestals, and cloches with lush, live moss and lichen.

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At Branches Catering, we know how important your wedding day is to you! That is why we love to help by offering tips and ideas to assist with your wedding planning. Here are some great ideas from eleGALA.com about how to use floral arrangements and decorations to set your wedding apart from the rest!

Source: eleGALA.com

These unique and modern ideas for wedding flowers and decorations are sure to inspire your own creations.

Your wedding flowers offer ample opportunity to stretch your creative muscles and add a bit of originality to your wedding day, so don’t be afraid to design a floral scheme that bucks tradition. This list of our favorite ideas for bridal bouquets, centerpieces, colors, and other decorations is a great place to start designing a memorable decor scheme.

Play with Shape

Arrangements with a just-picked, unstructured look are replacing the tightly bound bouquet and centerpiece shapes of previous seasons. Ensure a modern, not messy, look by choosing the right flowers. Hearty blooms like roses, orchids, and amaranthus work well in looser arrangements because of the sleek shape of the individual blooms. Seeded eucalyptus will add texture without looking messy. Also consider incorporating non-floral elements like feathers, wheat, berries, and crystals to add interest and depth.

Think Pink

Believe it or not, pink is back. From bright, honeysuckle, and coral shades to classic, sophisticated blush tones, we can expect to see both in the 2011 wedding color palette. Many brides are daring to think beyond basic hot pink by incorporating the softer shades into their floral schemes with garden roses, peonies, and even mini-carnations, which offer great texture. Avoid chocolate brown (so last year!), and instead pair your brighter coral pink with tangerine and lemon yellow, while warm grays and gentle golds will complement the softer, rosey, champagne pink.

Look Beyond the Vase

Options abound beyond the basic floral vase for holding your flowers. Consider instead mixing and matching clusters of unique containers like old bottles, mason jars, vintage tins, pitchers, or milk glass to add interest and reflect your wedding theme. Some ideas: Fill watering cans with wild flowers for a garden fete, or cluster old apothecary jars with just one or two blooms in each each.

Lighten Up

Candles, always a popular choice for centerpieces, are becoming even more popular as a budget and eco-friendly enhancement to traditional floral centerpieces. Ample candlelight lends the day a romantic, organic feel, while the natural resource saves electricity and drapes the setting with an intimate glow. A large cluster of votives in the center of the table will set things aglow. Using long, rectangular tables? Fill the entire center of the table with votives, in rows, pressed tight together.

Go Green

Going green is easy when it comes to wedding flowers. Consult Mother Nature for inspiration and bring the outdoors in. Natural objects like stones, antlers, even twigs can add an organic aesthetic to your reception décor. Place in rustic containers or place amongst pillar candles for added ambiance.

Make It Personal

Further seeking to personalize their weddings, brides are using their wedding flowers to call out specific interests by incorporating unique items into bouquets and centerpieces and creating a conversation piece for guests. For instance: Bookworms can use use intricately piled leather-bound books in place of floral centerpieces, and wine lovers can use wine bottles and decanters as centerpiece holders.

Tie it Together

The hand-tied bouquet continues its reign as the most popular bouquet style as brides opt for a tailored and natural look to their wedding flowers. A fresh bunch of flowers gathered and wrapped in a wide satin ribbon or lace presents the look of simple elegance, but brides wishing to up the glam of this otherwise simple look can embellish the bouquet with brooches, pins, and crystal picks.

A Single Bloom

Using a single type of bloom is a simple, elegant, and interesting approach. The texture of one type of flower can make for incredible, consistent texture. Peonies, garden roses, ranunculus, and mums are a timeless choice for this technique, while mini-carnations and dahlias are unexpected but fun. Tulips and daffodils are stunning in spring, and lisianthus looks amazing alone because of the multiple blooms and buds on each stem.

Lose the Corsage

Modern brides are forgoing corsages and instead having the moms carry nosegays down the aisle. Besides the fact that corsages tend to conjure up memories of proms gone bad, there’s practical reason for this trend because it saves the dress – often made from fragile fabric – from pulling and tearing from the weight of the corsage.

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Branches Catering wants to help you plan your wedding on a budget! We know that wedding planning can be timely and expensive, but we want to help you make the process efficient and cost-effective. Here are some ideas from project wedding for creating beautiful, memorable centerpieces without breaking the bank.

Source: project wedding

Don’t let the stunning details of your wedding break the bank. Get these elegant centerpieces without spending a fortune. (expert advice)

No doubt that in planning your wedding, you’ve spent a bundle on a sumptuous feast, a great band, and the honeymoon of your dreams. And though you want your wedding photos to look like those in magazines, you’re probably also looking for ways to save money without sacrificing good taste (and without anyone noticing). Is that even possible? Absolutely! Spend your money where it counts most (like on your gown!). The savings will come in handy when you put together your own simple yet elegant centerpieces.

The best centerpieces are those that draw the eye to the beauty of the entire table. When arranging your table displays, remember that size matters! Your centerpiece shouldn’t be too obvious or overpower the place settings. Think of it as putting together an outfit. For the best results, everything on your table should complement everything else. (Tip: Decorate using an odd number of items.)

Here are some great ideas for glamorous, low-cost table decorations. Before making your decision, consider the style of your reception, the time of day or night, the season, and the mood you wish to set.

Theme Wedding

If your wedding has a theme, it can be lots of fun to use items associated with it for your centerpiece. For example, if you are getting married at the beach, you can fill a big, round fishbowl halfway with sand and beautiful shells. If your reception is close to the winter holidays, you may like a big, white bowl filled with silver and/or gold ornaments. And if your wedding is on New Year’s Eve, a container of sparkly wands, pinwheels, noisemakers, and festive blowouts will allow your guests to ring in your new life and the New Year when the time is right!

Sentimental Savvy

For a personal touch (and to make your folks cry), think nostalgia! Choose two medium-sized silver or gold picture frames for each table. Put a picture of you when you were a child in one and a picture of your new husband as a child in the other. Next, set up the frames facing away from one another, and then behind the frames and around the bottom, place greens, sparkly garlands, loose ribbon, or a topiary to hide the backs of the frames and to complete this sweet ensemble. You may also arrange 3-5 frames in a cluster and then fill them with your favorite family photos. This will encourage your guests to mingle as they walk around to view all the pictures!

Edible Centerpieces

Here’s a choice that will also tease your guests and make them drool! Fill a clear decanter with assorted candies or chocolates wrapped in silver or gold (or your favorite colored) paper. As the night progresses, your guests will enjoy the design and can snack on this centerpiece as temptation becomes too much to bear!

Another new choice in centerpieces is cupcakes! Simply use a small cake tier, place it in the center of the table, and fill each level with cupcakes topped with your choice of white or colored frosting and sprinkled with sparkling sugar. Maybe the baker in your family will offer to make them as a wedding gift to you. This simple and delicious idea will be a big hit with your guests. I mean, who doesn’t like cupcakes?!

The Natural Look

In keeping with a more natural or “green” scheme, wildflowers are a great choice. Simply gather bunches of dried flowers and various stems and leaves, and then hang them over the edges of wide baskets or arrange them in odd-shaped jars, old water pitchers, or kettles. To add some shimmer, try spraying silver or gold spray paint on some of the branches or leaves (or pinecones, if in season).

Citrus is also a nice organic choice. Just fill a large, clear bowl with one type of fruit (usually lemons, limes, or oranges) and coordinate your place cards, china, or glassware in the same color as your fruit selection. To add a little more detail to this clever choice, wrap each lemon, lime, or orange with the same color ribbon, tying a small, tight bow on each.

You can also arrange a single fruit choice in tall, square, or cylindrical clear glass vases. For an extra boost, insert some long-stemmed greens or flowers in the center.

Another way of displaying your fruit choice is by slicing it up!  Fill tall, clear vases with lots of quarter-inch slices of lemons or limes, add water, and you’re done! This look can be changed up by using shorter vases and topping off each with a fresh flower. This option not only looks sophisticated, but it gives off a great aroma!

Fresh-Cut Flowers

Although a little more expensive, the simplest and most elegant décor usually involves fresh-cut flowers. The best thing about flowers is that there are so many types, sizes, and colors, and there are just as many ways to display your favorite ones. For example, you may choose yellow roses for your spring wedding, lilies for a black-and-white evening affair, or daisies for a relaxed afternoon soiree.

A single red rose standing alone in a tall, clear vase surrounded by a handful of rose petals around the base is the statement of the uncomplicated and sophisticated bride. Change the rose to a gardenia for a less formal look, or replace the vases with old, water-filled champagne bottles to add antique charm.

For a more creative and romantic look, circle 5-10 flowered teacups and saucers in the center of your table. Then fill each teacup with water and add your choice of flower to sit on top. In the center of the grouping, simply add a small vase full of the same flower, and fin! A great way to get your family more involved (if you dare) is to ask aunts, cousins, and grandparents to lend you their china teacups. The variety of patterns will provide much to talk about!

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