A[Bride]in Sane

I think we can all agree that Bowie's most recognizable alter ego is Aladdin Sane (A Lad Insane, get it?). Because I am the Bowie Bride and am certainly no stranger to being overwhelmed by insanity (wedding related, or otherwise), I thought I'd introduce a new series to the blog called "A[Bride]in Sane." The series will feature advice and planning ideas that have kept me SANE during the times I thought I was gonna lose it.

So here we go.

A[Bride]in Sane:

Inspiration Board Edition

I have sooooo many ideas for the look of this wedding, I feel like my head is gonna explode. I mentioned we weren't particularly tied down to 2 or 3 specific colors, which is all good and everything, BUT when it came time to actually START crafting centerpieces and decor, I found myself at a bit of a loss trying to narrow down my vision. I like too many friggin' things! So something had to change. The first thing I did was STOP looking at pictures of real weddings. Real Weddings are great things to look at for initial inspiration, of course - I mean, my God, without Oncewed, Green Wedding Shoes, and Rock n Roll Bride, I don't know where this wedding would be! But once you and your partner have to start making decisions on the decor for your own wedding, you will most-likely find yourself overwhelmed by everyone else's ideas and inspiration - "I really like this, But I LOVE that, No, wait, I like that, but it won't go with that color!" BLAH BLAH BLAH. Don't do it to yourselves, brides! Stop looking! You WILL end up A[Bride]in Sane. You have been warned...

Then, the next step is to take all the inspiration from blogland and make an inspiration board of your own - whch is basically a series of images that will inspire the look and feel of your wedding. I got reeeeaaaally tired of trying to make an inspiration board on the computer. The pictures didn't fit together, they looked all stretchy and distorted, and none of my boards turned out the way I wanted. Actually, they pretty much looked like sh-t. And since I do not want my wedding to be inspired solely by 'sh-t,' I came up with another way to collect all my inspiration - the old-fashioned way - a Kindergarten Collage, bi-otches. Thasss right, playas. I literally went old school on this one.

Yesterday, I spent all day, scissors in hand, glue stick in the other, cutting pics out of magazines and piecing them together on large cardstock paper. And let me tell you, kids. Mama has never been more sure (or more excited) about how this wedding will look than right now. I am IN LOVE with the look of our wedding. So here it is. Our wedding inspiration board:

Funky Rustic Vintage meets Parisian Pastel Elegance

I feel like this collage represents everything I want the wedding to look like. Lots of pale pinks, sea greens, light blues - mixed with black, silver, bronze, off-white, and a hint of emerald green. Sure it's a lot of color, but I'm diggin' on the look of it hardcore. And any time I feel confused about what colors to use or what crafts to buy, I can just refer to this trusty Kindergarten Collage for inspiration, and I'm solid. Solid GOLD.

And the boards don't have to stop at the overall look of the wedding. I am going to make inspiration boards for my hair, my make-up, the wedding party's attire, Mike's attire, etc., etc. I NEED visual references for all this stuff, otherwise I feel the vision will be lost or I'll go INSANE trying to remember every detail. I'll be sure to share the other boards when I'm done! I'm off to clip more magazine images! Happy board crafting, everyone!