Flowers & Plants - How to Have a Beautiful Wedding on a Tight Budget
Let Nature Help You!

The costs mount up fast when you’re planning a wedding.  These days most people are scaling back costs, but not dreams! Dreams can be adapted to a tighter budget by letting the beauty and bounty of Mother Nature help you curate a wedding and reception venue with color and creativity. Making flowers and plants your primary elements doesn’t mean your florist bill has to be huge.  It will take a little work and planning, and perhaps yard sale hunting for pots, vases. and containers, but the possibilities are unlimited if you’re willing to do the work. 

If your wedding and reception are in the distant future, you can begin now by planting seeds or starter plants inside your home so that by the time the wedding arrives you’ll have some of the flowers or plants you want.  Don’t have a green thumb, time, or inclination to do that?  Then get to know the nature around you, in neighbors’ yards, parks, or any natural place. Look deeper to see what you love. Let people know your plans. You would be surprised at how gardeners you barely know would love to contribute plants and flowers to your wedding effort. It doesn’t have to be color coordinated and matched. In these pandemic times, we all have to stretch our imaginations and think outside the wedding magazines.  The great thing about learning about flowers and plants as you create the elements of your wedding is that you’ll be able to brighten the life and home you’re creating with your new spouse.

Enjoy this nature photography we’ve accumulated over the years. Daniel’s photography of nature in natural light is glorious.

What Love Looks Like in Cleveland!

Perhaps you’ve never heard that Cleveland is for lovers. Yet, it’s so true! Love flourishes in many ways in northeast Ohio – love of our great city, great lake, great sky, great food, great culture, great nature, great values, and great people. Most of all, it’s the land of lovers where couples in love create deep roots and build meaningful lives. What’s your story of love in Cleveland?

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Is an expensive wedding dress necessary?

Should you spend money on a white or ivory wedding gown in these financially challenging times?

Keep in mind that the concept of lavish wedding gowns developed not from tradition, but from a wedding industry that created the idea that every woman should look like a princess on her wedding day.  The actual tradition of wearing white originated in Great Britain when Queen Victoria married Prince Albert in 1840.  It was scandalous because until then, white was only for mourning.  Somewhere along the line, black became the color of mourning. The idea of white caught on for wedding dresses after Victoria and extends to this day.  Then came ivory (probably because some women felt disingenuous wearing white which stood for virginity when they were not virgins!).

In truth, there have been millions and millions of brides over time who have married in their best dress, regardless of color or length. When the United States was poised to enter the war in Europe in 1941, thousands of women in love married hastily in suits and dresses with padded shoulders and A-line skirts.

So, in these pandemic times, if your budget is limited, know that creating a wedding dress (or pants!) in your personal style is more important than adhering to either the tradition set by an English queen or the wedding industry.