Wedding Supplies Expert

Beach weddings are increasing in popularity due to their informal and unrivalled romantic setting. Being surrounded by family and friends against the backdrop of the ocean really creates a fairly tale wedding. The atmosphere is dreamy for you to exchange vows with the soft sand beneath your feet and the gentle sea breeze cooling you down. The waves and sand twinkling in the late afternoon sunlight softens the ceremony ready for the “I do’s”.

The cost of a beach wedding is also a lot lower than a traditional ceremony as you have the beautiful free scenery as a backdrop. You will also probably have fewer guests to worry about but you can still enjoy shopping for the beach wedding supplies that will make your day special. You will be amazed at just how many themed accessories there actually are and with the scaled down costs you can let loose a bit more and buy more varied items.

Beach weddings may be less formal but they still need planning and many of the usual wedding supplies need to be slightly different. This complete guide to beach wedding supplies should give you pointers on everything you need to think about to achieve that special beachy feel.

Beach Wedding Stationery

First of all you need to tell your guests that you are planning a wedding by the sea. They may have to travel a fair distance to attend so they will need to know well ahead of time. Use a beach theme wedding invitation to get the mood going early on – something with a gold shimmer effect will do the trick nicely.

Beach Wedding Attire

Wedding gowns to wear at beach weddings need to be a lot simpler and more informal than the huge, meringue style affair with long train you could get away with indoors. You need a light weight material, preferably very floaty that will look elegant and stunning when combined with a few flowers in your hair. Do not over accessorize or you will end up mixing your messages by combining a more formal dress with an informal theme.

Photo by johnunrue007.

Once you have the dress picked out you need to consider whether you will want to stay in this for the after party or whether you will want to slip into something a bit more comfortable. A set of matching spaghetti strap tank tops printed with Bride, Bridesmaid and Flower Girl would be perfect for these members of the wedding party.

Beach Wedding Shoes

Consider your wedding shoes carefully as you do not want ones that will sink into the sand when you walk. Special beach wedding flip flops are ideal or for something dressier consider barefoot bridal sandals. These bottom-less, beaded foot jewels are in fact a strap of beads that run from toe to ankle and make your feet twinkle with elegance. They are comfortable for your walk down the aisle and for dancing the night away and will complete your beach wedding look.

Beach Wedding Podium

Some beach wedding venues have specially designated areas with pergolas or the like where their weddings take place. If you are marrying on a beach that is not set up with such a facility you will probably want to create a temporary area to define the wedding party boundaries. A simple wooden frame can be used and decorated with shimmering fabrics and boards can be placed on the sand to provide temporary seating. Just make sure these temporary structures are sturdy enough should strong sea winds decide to join your party. And do not forget to find out about the tide so that you can position your setting out of its way.

Photo by Andrea Peverali.

Beach Wedding Decorations

By choosing a beach wedding you are choosing to use nature as a main decoration. The array of beautiful scenery means that you can cut back on other decorations as otherwise you will overdo the whole effect. For a captivating beach theme stick with ocean type colors of blues, greens and yellows for the flower and fabric accessories that you do use.

You could adorn the podium with a few simple flower arrangements and consider using Hawaiian leis or flower chains. These could be worn by the bridal party as well as given to guests as they arrive to make everyone feel included in this intimate affair.

Other decorations with the beach theme include shells which are very versatile; parasols which can be practical for shading guests, food or drinks; starfish which can be used to adorn almost everything; and table lanterns which will add soft, whimsical lighting as the sun drops from the horizon.

Beach Wedding Accessories

There are many opportunities to accessorize your wedding with beach themed items. Flower girls could throw their flower petals walking down the aisle with baskets made in the style of a bucket and spade type pail or half coconuts on strings.

You can also find beach wedding sets of the standard wedding supplies all decorated with starfish, or seashells, pearls and diamond dust. These include the unity candle, ring bearer pillow, guest book and pen, toasting flutes and cake serving sets. This is an easy way to show your guests the attention to detail you have put in.

Beach Wedding Breakfast

What food to offer at a beach wedding reception can be the biggest headache of the whole affair? Try and find a caterer that specializes in these sorts of venues but you are unlikely to be able to have a five course sit down meal. Moderate your expectations early on – finger food or a barbeque will probably be your best option. And when you are planning your beach wedding venue, make sure there are toilets and washrooms close by.

Beach Wedding Centerpieces

Whether you have a simple sit down meal or casual finger food dining, your wedding reception tables will need some beach themed centerpieces. There are an infinite number of wedding centerpieces to choose from that use flowers and candles or fruit, coffee beans and peacock feathers for the more adventurous, and beach themed centerpieces are not much more restricted. As with everything in a beach themed wedding, keeping it simple will work best. Consider tea light holders in the shape of white lighthouses or wooden trays painted in pastel colors, filled with sand, shells and candles. Hurricane vases are another good idea being both practical for a possibly windy beach but also very in theme with their sand and candle. You could even put some starfish accessories inside to add to the interest.

Photo by downing.amanda.

Beach Wedding Cake Toppers

The wedding cake is such an integral part of the wedding day that you should not forget a beach themed wedding topper to complete the celebrations. Consider a design that uses real shells, chocolate seashells, palm trees or starfish.

Photo by clevercupcakes.

Beach Wedding Favors

The usual way to thank your friends and family for coming possibly a very long way to celebrate your special day is with the perfect wedding favor. As your day is all about the beach, the perfect way to remind your guests of the day is with a beach wedding favor. Why not consider beach pails, cocktail drink mixes, palm tree cookie cutters, edible marbled chocolate starfish or any number of other themed favors?

As you can see, choosing a beach wedding should not cause you any problems when it comes to finding and choosing your wedding supplies. In fact, on the contrary it should make things easier and cheaper. Keep everything simple and enjoy the most romantic day you will ever spend at the beach.

What is it?

Wedding confetti generally refers to the small bits of colored paper that are thrown at and over the happy couple after their ceremony has taken place.
As weddings have become bigger and bigger business, the variety of confetti that you can get has increased accordingly. It ranges in the size, shape and material used.

Wedding confetti ideas include designs featuring bride and groom shapes in white, silver and gold, hearts in any number of colors, words ranging from ‘Just Married’ to ‘Congrats’, pretty doves and embossed bells.

You can even order personalized wedding confetti to add a unique touch to your wedding. Or why not mix and match some standard colors to better portray your wedding theme – perhaps bright orange and pink for a beach wedding?

As well as tissue paper, some confetti is made from PVC, meaning it can be fluorescent or metallic. Also for a more elegant variety frozen and air dried flower petals are sometimes used. The tissue variety is usually biodegradable, made from recycled materials and is fire resistant. The flower petals also make for beautiful and biodegradable wedding confetti.

Biodegradable wedding confetti

If you will be having a lot of confetti thrown outdoors at your wedding, it is best to find biodegradable wedding confetti. This is usually made from a material that dissolves in water so can be washed away easily. This will make the manager of your wedding venue much happier and will ensure that any animal life in the area does not try and eat the leftovers. Some venues will not in fact allow anything other than eco friendly wedding confetti so it is worth checking. These days most tissue paper confetti is biodegradable and is available in many colors, shapes and sizes or you can opt for the more elegant flower petal confetti. You can also combine flower buds such as lavender in with your paper confetti to add a subtle scent when thrown.

Personalized wedding confetti

If you want to add a personal touch to your wedding, why not consider personalized wedding confetti. Bags of 1000+ pieces of confetti can be purchased for around $25. As part of the customization you get to choose your confetti’s shape, message (including font), and color. Just make sure you order it early as it will take a few weeks to arrive.

Packaging options

You can fill cones, envelopes or bags with confetti. If you then arrange them in a large basket at the church with a little note telling the guests when to throw them, everyone will know what they are doing, and your photographer will be able to capture the moment.

How is it thrown?

Confetti can be thrown by hand by your guests from little bags or cones or you can also buy wedding confetti poppers that allow one shot of confetti to be sent 35-40′. Poppers are usually spring loaded and can be used indoors or outside. They do not use fireworks or explosives to shoot the confetti so there are no loud bangs.

For a larger scale affair you can hire confetti cannons or blowers. Confetti cannons add a bit of excitement by delivering a lot of confetti very quickly so are best used at high impact moments such as the first dance or first kiss. Confetti blowers on the other hand shower the happy couple with a continual stream of confetti.

How long it will stay in the air is a consideration when deciding on the material of your confetti. Perhaps you want your photographs to show the confetti mid air rather than all over the floor. If so, you should choose the tissue paper variety as this is the lightest and will float rather than fall down.

What quantities can it be bought in?

You will find confetti available by the scoop, by the cup, in half ounces, or bulk bags (typically found in pounds). You want to plan on having 1-3 heaped tablespoons for each guest and half ounce packets would be perfect to decorate 1-2 tables. Prices range from $0.89 for a scoop to $2.95 for half an ounce, although bulk bags will be more cost effective. You should consider buying confetti in bulk if you want to decorate the walkway with it or use it to make confetti wedding favors, invitations or thank you cards. It is not usually bought this way for guests to use unless you plan on decanting it into cones, envelopes or bags to give out to guests. Wedding confetti poppers are also available by the box – a box of 12 costing around $12.

Want to make your own?

If you are on a budget, cheap wedding confetti can be made easily at home. You can either use scissors to ’shred’ paper into thin strips or shapes or you could use your home or office paper shredder. Another option is to use the ‘punched’ circles that are collected by your hole punch.

Integrate confetti with your wedding decorations

Wedding confetti for tables can be a cheap material to use as part of your wedding decorations. It is very relevant being so associated with weddings so can make the ideal accompaniment to wedding centerpieces or other areas. It will help soften the look of any room and will add a touch of color in a subtle but elegant way.

Because you can buy confetti in any shape, size and color that you want, you are sure to be able to match it with your wedding centerpieces. By using wedding table confetti you will soften and beautify any display. Just be careful with the type of material used in the confetti:

Tissue paper looks delicate but will blow away if outside or near a window and will spoil if it gets wet.

Metallic paper looks eye catching but will again blow away if near a wind.

Plastic confetti with a metallic or pearlescent sheen is waterproof and more weighty so is often a good option.

Diamond confetti is perhaps the most elegant with its sparkly, shimmery appearance, so it is no wonder it is becoming more and more popular. Don’t worry about the price, the ‘diamonds’ are actually acrylic so they cost around $7 for 2000. They add extra interest being three dimensional and come in sizes from a third of a carat upwards; they are even shaped like real diamonds.

There is a wide range of colors available and they are easily scattered around a table display. They can also be used within displays rather than as a surrounding effect. Why not use them in the bottom of glass vases to anchor flower stems, or just fill different sized and shaped glass containers and arrange on mirrored tiles? Or how about sticking them onto tree branches which are arranged in tall vases for an exciting but relatively inexpensive fall or winter wedding centerpiece?

They can also be used to tie all of the decorations together, by using them as part of the wedding centerpieces as well as on the cake or presents tables. Why not continue the theme even further by adorning your wedding stationery and wedding favors with these little gems?

You should now be ready to make some decisions regarding your wedding confetti. Deciding on which material to use and how much to buy is crucial. You should also consider how to use your confetti as part of your overall decorating theme for a cheap accent piece that will tie everything together.

You’ve decided not to go with a classic bride and groom cake topper for your wedding — maybe it’s just too bland for you, or you enjoy breaking away from the norm. Although there are lots of topper options out there, some are just too silly for a dignified wedding. If you want a centerpiece that will bring gasps of “how elegant!” from your guests, look into monogram cake toppers as the perfect option to top off your wedding cake.

The clear option for content for your cake topper is to use the initial of what will soon be the bride and groom’s shared last name. However, if you’re more partial to your own initial, or you want more than one on top, you can go with multiple letters.

When picking your cake topper, be sure to consult with whoever is creating your wedding cake to be sure the color you’ve chosen won’t contrast with the way they plan to decorate. Neutral colors that will go with just about any decorating scheme are silver, white, and black; gold and brown also go with most other colors. If you can, coordinate with the cake-maker to pick your topper, so they will have it ahead of time and can put it on themselves.

You can choose to have your monogram cake topper inlaid with shiny rhinestones and crystals. This adds extra sparkle to your topper, but may also cost you a bit more money.

Monogram wedding cake toppers come in every font imaginable. Elegance suggests a swirly, curvy font, something akin to cursive. But if that’s too snooty for your tastes, you can pick less formal lettering that will speak to your personality and preference.

Monogrammed cake toppers tend to run between $10 and $150, so there is one for every type of budget. Choose wisely, and you may be able to use it on your anniversary cake too!