A garden wedding. This one took place in a family "backyard", 3 or so acres, more resembling a park, beautiful, lush, green, private. The bride asked for flowers with a garden-y feel. As though they could have been cut from that garden. A palette that spoke to summer colors. There was one bridesmaid was the step-daughter-to-be. The only specific bride request was about her bouquet. Something a bit cascading. With a few calla lilies. And vine. The Reception: poolside. The lanterns were moved from the ceremony to tables. They made for a graceful transition from afternoon ceremony to evening reception, with toasts and dancing. All on a perfect August day.

Lovely when the look of the wedding, flowers, decor, linens, all take their cue from the wedding site.

Lanterns repurposed from ceremony to reception

Wedding arches are never going out of favor. Never. A beautiful arch is the classic solution to creating the ambiance for the ceremony. It draws the eye to the couple and almost draws a circle around them. Hey, right here, it almost says. Reels in the viewer even in the most amazing setting.

Creating the perfectly-coifed arch reflecting the couple's artistic vision is the challenge at at hand. There is an oh-so sparsely flowered approach, letting the arch itself shine. And the vine and greened arch, covered in a way that suggests its been growing there for years. The ones that make us wedding florists drool, the ones smothered in roses and vines, like something out of The Secret Garden. Arches have been fashioned out of downed birch trees, random branches, driftwood, wrought iron, a wooden garden trellis, an existing pergola or gazebo, and even copper tubing like the one below. Arches can be personalized even more by draping. What's to say you can't use a vibrant color instead of the usual white drape? With a chandelier dropped behind? Check out these fabulous arches. Yep, It's grown up fairy tale stuff.