The Little Things

My favorite finds in creative trends and unique inspirations, when it comes to weddings, are the "little things." The places where you see the personality of the couple gleaming and smirking through out, whether it be in the little note cards or the presence of certain sayings scribbled throughout out the reception site. It truly is the little things that will set your wedding a part.

I tend to lean towards the thought, "the older the better, the newer the fewer." Things that are old and have a history are more interesting to me than brand spankin' new gizmos. Whether it be old books, hardware, fabrics or textures...if it has had time to collect an inch of dust, bring-it-on baby!

Loving old books and music the way I do, I had an idea to go out and buy some old hymnals from the used book store. You can pick one up for a couple of bucks and the creative uses that you can pull from them are endless! You've got the yellowed paper and the worn edges of the paper...mmmmMMMMmmmmmm good!

I kept the cones and now use them to decorate my house. The hymnals themselves, at least two of them, are nailed open up on the wall, in my living room, both inside an old emptyt frame. (It looks really cool!) Also, I used more of the old paper left over from the wedding to make all my Christmas tree decorations! How many uses is that? And for 2 bucks and truck loads of memories? Yeah.

We tore the pages out and with tape in hand we rolled them into cones. (Don't worry, we weren't being sacrilegious. Although for a second it felt a little awkward.) We used them in baskets, mason jars, on the tables, everywhere. One of my friends even made two little origami cranes out of the hymnal paper and stuck them in an old bird cage I had brought. How cool is that?

Almost ALL the decorations were from my collection of thrift store finds and antique treasures that I had found from Dallas, Texas to Jerusalem, Israel.
I've seen people use old paper in so many different ways in wedding receptions and the like!

Old keys are something that are very meaningful to us, along with old records (which I collect) and antique instruments. (Sam and I are both musicians.)

These are keys that I bought in Jerusalem from some Bedouin friends of mine who own a shop in the old city. (It was the same trip where Sam proposed to me. )

This is the trumpet that I purchased on the same trip at an antique/junk shop in Jerusalem. It was the first thing that I bought for our new house. Sam and I talked about having a room in our dream home one day, where we incorporate old various instruments for lighting, tables, art etc...this is the first of many.

I think the way to have a "unique wedding" isn't to have that main objective of having a "unique wedding" be your goal. To truly experience a different kind of wedding and make it your own, you have to pull from yourself, what you love, what defines you and your man and let THAT inspire you. You guys are unique, unlike any other couple in some form or fashion. Incorporate you story: a saying, a gesture, an image that represents your love for each other. Maybe even some special secret "love thing" known only to the two of you. Then, your wedding will be like no other! :)

This old dinner booth I'm siting on was one of many treasures hidden away under junk and dust in the barn. We pulled them out, cleaned them off and used them everywhere for seating!

:)