Style Your Core Memories
Last week I talked about my general philosophy on styling your wedding, the main point of which is: try to shift your focus from what you feel your wedding is supposed to be, to what you really want it to be. The more you can stay rooted in that perspective, the more your wedding will reflect you and your partner’s relationship with honesty and heart.
A great way to lean into this is to collect styling elements from core memories you share with your person.
We're going to start with some prompts to help you get into the feelings of those core memories. There’s no wrong way to approach these questions. They’re meant to be a tool to help get you thinking and help you put your feelings into words that can be translated into design.
Then, I’ll tell you about my clients, Brooke & Jack, and how they incorporated core memories into their wedding design.
Custom items designed by Shimmer & Stain, photography by Caitlin O’Reilly.
Let’s start with some prompts:
When you think about your love story from where it started to now, what songs, movies, books, trips, restaurants, meals, etc. come to mind?
What do you love about the memories these things evoke?
Are there colors, scents, tastes, fabrics, feelings, a mood or a vibe that these things bring to mind? Was there a moment you shared where the light was just right, or the stars were shining, or your favorite song came on a playlist? Were you driving down the road together in an old truck with the windows rolled down and the radio turned up loud? Did your partner sweep your hair out of your eyes and kiss you under the moonlight? Do you remember the shirt they were wearing and how they smelled? Any little moment that matters to you is a big deal to understanding the feelings that will help you tell your story. The sappier the better ;)
Do you have a collection of photos, postcards, mementos, or other items that represent these memories? If so, are there colors, fonts, or feelings from any of these items that feel inspiring? Gather some of these items together and see what you can mix and match.
How do these memories, scents, fabrics, mementos, etc. relate to your personal style as a couple? What can they tell you about the things that feel important to include (and exclude) on your wedding day?
When you consider that styling your wedding day is really a way to invite your guests into a visual representation of your love story, you can begin to make decisions around what matters most, what to prioritize, and what to cut. It can ultimately help streamline your decision making, manage your budget, and design a wedding that feels true to you, which is the most important thing.
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Brooke & Jack met in college when they were assigned to the same floor of the dorms at UPenn. They also share the same birthday, and both ended up living in San Francisco after college. They always felt an invisible thread of fate brought them together, and we wanted their custom items to reflect that feeling, along with a sense of place, a colorful, yet classic design, and elements of their shared experiences together. We worked with Shimmer & Stain, a beloved local design house that I love working with whenever possible, to create an invitation suite, seating chart wall, and custom printed items.
Their invitation suite had a custom watercolor of the venue, and their seating chart wall highlighted some of their favorite places and memories together. The custom menus mirrored their invitation suite and reflected the colorful design of their florals. It all came together beautifully on wedding day.
Viansa winery provided a gorgeous backdrop for their wedding and Shimmer & Stain created a watercolor design of the venue and colorful floral motif for the invitation suite
Classic furniture and colorful floral design brought the ceremony together beautifully
The custom (light up!) seating chart included watercolor images from important places they love and made note of they way fate brought them together
Printed items, such as menus and table numbers reflected the overall design
For those of you DIYing your wedding styling, I have just the thing for you! I created a self-guided course called How To Style Your Wedding that walks you through design, budgeting, rentals, floor plans, and so much more. It’s a complete guide so you can design a beautiful wedding day at your own pace - no designer needed. I can’t wait to see what you create!
Also - tell me about some of your core memories and items you’ve gathered for inspiration! I can’t wait to hear about all of it.
Till next week,
Jen