This wedding is filled with so many simple and sweet touches that are important to the bride and groom and also happen to be super stylish and environmentally friendly as well. They used recycled glass jars, succulents instead of flowers that also doubled as favors, and even had some fun appetizers that they dubbed, “his, hers and ours.” Oh, and they had a super cool guest book too! Jennifer Lindberg Weddings captured all the goodness and there’s way more just waiting to inspire you in the gallery, just click right here.
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From the bride… We wanted to have an intimate wedding full of personal touches. My husband and I are both in the field of architecture, so design is very important to us. Although this often means having expensive taste, we both believe in living within our means, and budgeting is also important to us. Our wedding was no exception — we were driven to use everyday materials in thoughtful and clever ways that would not only save us money, but also showcase our personality. We live in New Orleans, and unfortunately there is no glass recycling. I had been collecting a few jars before our engagement because I didn’t want them ending up in a landfill. The wedding was the perfect opportunity to put them to use. I also enlisted a few friends and family to fill out my collection. We grouped the various sizes and shapes and added candles to make simple, and surprisingly beautiful, centerpieces. No two tables were alike! I also hate seeing flowers thrown away after weddings, so rather than use floral arrangements, we opted for individual plants that guests could take home as favors. Getting married at the Wildflower Center meant that we couldn’t compete with the natural beauty of the flowers already there, so we went with succulent plants. They are unusual and relate to the Southwest, so I thought it added nice, rustic charm. We put the succulents in simple silver buckets so that the candle light from the jars would reflect off of them in interesting ways. We designed our own save-the-date cards and printed them from home. My husband has a huge extended family so I figured putting our faces on the cards might help the recipients recognize us! I also made our cake topper out of wooden balls from a craft store and a peanut can.
My husband’s family is from Louisiana, while I was raised in Texas and am also of Taiwanese heritage. We met during college in Austin, so the city has always had a special place in our hearts. We wanted to express this to our guests and had the opportunity to do so with our appetizers. Called “His, Hers, and Ours,” we featured meat-filled pockets (which seems to be a universal food typology) done in three ways. “His” were crawfish beignets (representing Louisiana); “Hers” were asian dumplings (representing my heritage); and “Ours” were pork empanadas (signifying Austin). I found a lady who made handmade lollipops, and she had a Texas-shaped mold — this made the perfect homage to the place we love.
If I could give any advice to brides, it would be to focus on a couple of areas that you really care about, and let everything else go. There isn’t enough time (or money) to worry about every little item, and in the end, people will only remember the things you spent time and energy to make spectacular. Focus on injecting personal touches — it really makes for a memorable experience.
Wedding Photography: Jennifer Lindberg Weddings / Wedding Ceremony: St. Paul Lutheran Church in Austin, Texas / Wedding Reception: Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center in Austin, Texas / Caterer: Austin Catering / DJ: Greenbelt DJ / Wedding Cake: Michelle’s Patisserie / Bouquets + Boutonnieres: Central Market / Lollipop Favors: Ju-C Suckers / Potted Succulent Favors: IKEA / Wedding Dress: Jasmine Bridal / Bride’s Shoes: Target / Bridesmaids’ Dresses: Priscilla of Boston “Vineyard Collection” / Bridesmaids’ Shoes: Shoe-Nami in New Orleans, Louisiana (504-895-1717) / Bridesmaids’ Bracelets: Anthropologie / Groom’s Suit: JoS. A. Bank