Every day is pretty darn fabulous here on SMP, but this Monday just so happens to be EXTRA special. Yep, if you can believe it, we are about to kick things up a notch with the oh-so-talented and amazing Matthew Robbins, aka the guru of all things wedding design and planning, who has literally written the book on styling a flawless wedding, Matthew Robbins’ Inspired Weddings. And if that weren’t enough to completely brighten your work day… he’s giving one very lucky SMP reader a copy! And the excitement doesn’t stop there, because he is also bringing his expertise straight to the pages of SMP with his list of “Ten Tips for an Inspired Wedding.”
1. Keep things personal. Look for inspiration from your own world. What do you collect, wear, eat? Where do you travel? How do you decorate? These are all sources of inspiration for finding your voice and vision for your event.
2. Remember to edit, edit and edit again! Simplifying your initial ideas and inspiration will lead to a more beautiful, cohesive vision.
3. Don’t allow style trends to determine the design details of your wedding. Being current is great but timeless is even more important. You want to enjoy your wedding photos for years to come so don’t ruin things by getting too caught up in overly trendy ideas.
4. Take in all of the advice and opinions that will come your way but stay true to your original vision.
5. Find a good point of inspiration and expand from there. Take a favorite object and break down the design details. Allow this to dictate a color palette, a mood or an overall vision.
6. Focus on a mood or an overall impression rather than a theme or anything too specific. You can tell a story without making things obvious or overdone.
7. Remember you will never find an image of exactly what you are looking for in your own wedding decor. I see so many brides and grooms perplexed by not discovering any images of what they want for their event and I always suggest they should stop worrying about it! You will never find that perfect image! You want something unique and truly your own so consider the images and ideas as inspiration rather than literal interpretations of your own design plans.
8. Allow the seasons to inspire your ideas. This will infuse your wedding with a sense of time and place without framing it with anything too specific.
9. Go hunting and gathering for inspiration in museums, art galleries, boutiques, antique stores, eclectic neighborhoods and every place you travel! Remember to take photos of anything you find inspiring. You never know when a great pattern on a dress or a beautiful chair in a furniture showroom might inspire an entire design plan!
10. Take a deep breath and instead of thinking of your wedding day as the singular most important style statement of your life consider it to be the best dinner party you have ever hosted! If you remove the pressure and the stress of feeling like you have to say everything with your wedding just try saying one or two things elegantly and with a sense of personal style!
So, here’s where it gets even more awesome. Matthew Robbins has generously sent along one copy of his AMAZING book, Matthew Robbins’ Inspired Weddings, to give to one very lucky reader. So very, very exciting.
To Enter: Enter by leaving the comment below: I heart Matthew Robbins! (Because we SO do!)
To Win: The winner, chosen completely at random using a number generator, will be announced right here on SMP this Friday, February 17th.
A VERY BIG thank to Matthew Robbins for seriously brightening our Monday. Good luck, SMPers! xoxo
