Lighting

Okay.  I know I said I'd be coming back full force and that definitely didn't happen.  I apologize.  You know how it is.  Life just gets in the way. 

Anywho, a ton of people have asked about lighting.  Did I only use the paper lanterns for lighting?  No.  I also used string lights around the perimeter of the tent.  I used these from 1000Bulbs.com.  Then I bought C9 bulbs for them separately (but also from 1000Bulbs.com).  They don't have the connectors on the ends but my dad set them up so that they would be able to connect to each other (it's nice to have a handy papa!).  

I used the 12 inch spacing, but honestly, I think I could've gotten away with the lights spaced further apart (like 18 or 24 inches apart).  It was just a wee bit brighter than I wanted.  The point is, I don't think you should only use the paper lanterns for light (unless you are going to use much brighter lights in them than I did).  

This is how the tent looked with just the lights in the paper lanterns.  It looked a little brighter than this -- the pictures don't really do it justice.  However, it definitely wouldn't be bright enough for the reception.  Just a reminder, I used one to two led tea-lights in each paper lantern. 

And this is what it looked like with the lights around the perimeter (you can see them along the edge of the tent above everyone's heads).  Again, I wish I would have used less lights, but I was originally worried that it would be way too dark in the tent.  Lighting is definitely one of the tricky parts of the whole thing!  Let me know if you have any more questions about lighting!

Vendor Review: JadeTime.com

I mentioned before that I bought our paper lanterns from JadeTime.com.  They were the cheapest place that I could find.  They have excellent prices!  

When the lanterns arrived, they looked great.  They were packed well and all of them seemed to be in good condition. 

When it finally came time to set them up in the tent, I was not disappointed.  The paper lanterns went together well and stayed put.  I was pleased with the colors as well.  

And, despite the crazy humidity (and rain), the paper lanterns held up well.  We actually broke them down and reused them at the Indiana reception (they were a little stretched out from the humidity, but they still worked well).  

Oh, and I received the order within a few days of ordering.  So, I was pleased with everything about this company!  I'm fairly certain that the coupon code I used is expired, but you can usually find one on their Facebook page.  And, right now they have a deal going on:  $10 off $100 order.  

They turned out beautiful.  They were the perfect decoration for the tent.  :)  So, I give JadeTime.com 5 out of 5 stars.  I would definitely recommend them to anyone in the market for paper lanterns!  Oh, and they also sell fans, parasols, placecard holders, and health balls/massage tools.  Give them a try!  :)

Our Indiana Reception

Since the wedding was in Pennsylvania, most of my family couldn't make it.  So, we also did a reception in Indiana.  I don't think I posted this on my blog, but this is the invitation that was sent out for that:

Well, not exactly.  I obviously blacked out some information so that you can't go stalk my parents!  :)

The reception went really well.  It was calm, which was exactly what we wanted.  My dad roasted a hog and we had salads and sides and such.  And my mom ordered some sheet cakes from a local bakery.  Everything was delicious.  And we got to see a lot of my family and friends from Indiana (and Philip got to meet most of them for the first time!).  There weren't really set times, so people just came and went throughout the day.  It was nice that way because we could spend a little time with people before they'd leave and then new people would come in and we'd spend time with them before they left.  And so on. 

I don't have a whole lot of photos from that day.  I think we mostly forgot about photography and just had fun.  But, here are some photos that we did manage to snag.

Mom set up some of the pics that she had taken of the ceremony and reception and displayed them here.  There are also some leftover vanilla favors up there.  And our photo frame card box.  :)

This cake was far less expensive than the wedding cake, but somehow they were able to decorate it better -- smooth, not half-assed, doesn't look like it was done in 5 minutes before the delivery... I'm not even a big fan of frosting flowers, but the cake is pretty.  :)

This one makes me laugh because it could have been awkward.  Philip and I are sitting at a table with my high school sweetheart's parents and grandparents.  ;)

It was an absolutely beautiful fall day.  :)

Yeah, great photo right?!  I mostly just wanted to show what I was wearing that day!

My dad and his brother playing horseshoes.  :)

Technically, this was after the reception had ended, but Philip is just too cute for me not to post this.  ;)

Those paper lanterns and string lights (along with the rest of the decor) got used again at the Indiana reception.  We wanted it to look as close to the Pennsylvania reception as possible.  Mom and Dad even bought a tent (they'll get plenty of use out of it for future parties!). 

And, there you have it.  There wasn't any drama.  It wasn't formal (or even semi-formal).  It wasn't over the top.  But, it was wonderful.  

The Details: Random Bits

I've got a bunch of other random photos that don't really fit anywhere else.  So, I'm just going to pile them up in this post.  ;)  Enjoy!

The flowers turned out really well.  We put a few stems of Baby's Breath in a mason jar and put two on each table.  I just put a simple ivory ribbon around each mason jar.  The bouquets were just wrapped in ivory ribbon and I put a series of pearl tipped pins in a line down the stems.

We had some extra paper lanterns so we just placed them on tables around the room.  The ones pictured are on the gift table.  

This is a close-up of the DIY I Spy photo scavenger hunt pages that I made.  They were wrapped in the napkins which were placed on the center of the plates at each place setting.  The vanilla sugar favor was then placed on top of that.  

This is just one of the candles from the centerpiece before it was lit.  You can see the books and luminary in the background. 

And, these are from the cake table.  The forks were all lined up so beautifully.  It's difficult to tell, but the forks are actually plastic-ware, not real silverware!  I was so pleased with that purchase (more on that when I do vendor reviews)!  The cake serving set is really nice.  I'm glad I splurged a little on it.  I may eventually have them engraved.  Maybe.  ;)

Anyway, I think that's about all the detail shots I'm going to do.  Next up, (finally) the girls get glamorous!

Photos courtesy of Howie Hartman of Double H Media.

Miss something?  Catch up here:
We arrive in Pennsylvania

We begin setting up

We stock the bar (and skip a rehearsal)

We have dinner and play games at our "Rehearsal" Dinner

We eat R2D2 and open presents at our "Rehearsal" Dinner

We bask in the glow of our paper lantern triumph

We finish setting up the tent
Wedding Day Details: The Favors
Wedding Day Details: The Set-Up 
Wedding Day Details: The Rings

Wedding Day Details: The Chair Signs

The Details: The Set-up

A lot of brides describe their wedding day as perfect.  I am not one of those brides.  Lots of stuff went wrong.  However, one of the things that I would describe as perfect is the set-up of our tent.  It was exactly as I imagined it would be.  It was beautiful and everything I had hoped for.  

First, some photos of the tent set-up with the paper lanterns:

And now some close-ups of the centerpieces and table settings:

I loved it all: the paper lanterns, the books, the table settings, the candles, the photo frame table number luminaries, the burlap, the babies' breath.  It's all exactly what I wanted.  At least something turned out exactly as I had imagined it would!  :)

Photos courtesy of Howie Hartman of Double H Media.

Miss something?  Catch up here:
We arrive in Pennsylvania

We begin setting up

We stock the bar (and skip a rehearsal)

We have dinner and play games at our "Rehearsal" Dinner

We eat R2D2 and open presents at our "Rehearsal" Dinner

We bask in the glow of our paper lantern triumph

We finish setting up the tent
Wedding Day Details: The Favors

The Big Day Arrives!

I woke up bright and early the next day.  I had a ton of stuff left to get done.  I finished up with the paper lanterns, organized the favor table, and made a plan.  Then I went back inside to wake Philip up.  I needed someone to help me move tables!

We got the tables set up and finished up some other stuff.  Then, my mom and dad arrived to help.  We got the tablecloths put on the tables.  Then the burlap table runners that I made went on top.  Then we put out the centerpieces.  After that, we set the tables with the plates and forks.  After some creative planning, we figured out how to fold the napkins so that we could put in the I Spy photo scavenger hunt pages I made.  Then we put the vanilla sugar favors at each place setting and the tables were complete!  It took quite a while to get set up, but at least my dad went to get us all donuts.  :)

The homemade vanilla favors and the card box on the gift table. 

Our beautiful set-up.  :)

The table settings. 

Putting on the finishing touches.

The cake table just waiting for the cake!

Once the tent was all set up, I started working on the bouquets.  I bought a bunch of baby's breath from Sam's Club (it was delivered on Thursday).  Some of it was in the mason jars on the tables, some was for the pew cones, some was for the flower girl basket, and some was for the bouquets and boutonnieres.  Unfortunately, by the time I started putting the bouquets together, I didn't have much time left before it was time to start getting ready.  So, the I didn't get around to making the boutonnieres.  The boys were devastated of course (Me: I didn't have time to make the boutonnieres; Philip: What's a boutonniere?  LOL).  

One of the bouquets with our DIY photo box and some paper lanterns.

After everything was done, I was running a little behind.  Howie from Double H Photography had just arrived.  I left him with our rings to get some detail shots and went in to get a quick shower before he started taking our "getting ready" shots.  

Next up, the ladies get glamorous!

Photos courtesy of my mom and Philip's mom.

Miss something?  Catch up here:
We arrive in Pennsylvania

We begin setting up

We stock the bar (and skip a rehearsal)

We have dinner and play games at our "Rehearsal" Dinner

We eat R2D2 and open presents at our "Rehearsal" Dinner

We bask in the glow of our paper lantern triumph

I almost forgot!

When we got home from the Rehearsal Dinner, we stopped outside to see the tent.  Remember, we spent all day working on the darn paper lanterns.  We used led tealights to light them.  And, in that moment, I knew that all of the work we put in was absolutely worth it.  

Behold the fruits of our labor!

Isn't that glow just beautiful??  I love it!  I'm pretty proud of our fantastic work!  Next up, the finishing touches!

Photos courtesy of my mom.

Miss something?  Catch up here:
We arrive in Pennsylvania

We begin setting up

We stock the bar (and skip a rehearsal)

We have dinner and play games at our "Rehearsal" Dinner

We eat R2D2 and open presents at our "Rehearsal" Dinner