Originally used in laboratories, bell jars were used to create a vacuum. Now, they’re used to create stylish centerpieces and focal points in wedding decor. Bell jars, or cloches, were also used to protect young plants. When incorporated into decorating they help highlight whatever items they’re covering.

I love the look of cakes or desserts under bell jars. Even a small and simple cake can look grand and special when under a bell jar.

Smaller bell jars can be used for place cards or to further decorate each plate. This would be a great idea to use just for the head table too.

Incorporating bell jars into your centerpieces is a great way to make simpler floral arrangements look more unique and special. Bell jars help their contents to look like something specialized and to be further studied, like these ferns and floral arrangements.

Buffet tables are a great area to use bell jars; it varies the heights of the items and makes the table look even more pulled together and as though the items were from a specialty shop.

Both vintage and new bell jars share the same look so they can be found in lots of different places. Home good stores often carry them for displaying items, thrift stores may have some vintage ones and etsy and ebay are always good places to look online. The look of bell jars add a sophistication by showcasing whatever items they’re encasing, making that item even more unique.

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Rebekah owns the even design company A & B Creative. Read Rebekah’s blog.

Acorns are a perfect for autumn weddings. Whether you use them in bulk as bases for your candles and flowers in vases, accents in boutonierres and bouquets or just as little pops of the season around your reception, they’re affordable (can’t beat free!) and sure to be appreciated by your guests.

Check out these unique floating acorn candles. These little candles will burn 40-90 minutes each!

Incorporating acorns into your bouquet and/ or boutonnieres is a subtle way to tie in the season while still remaining stylish.

You could even make an acorn pomander for your flower girl to carry instead of flowers and match the ribbon to the other colors you’re using.

Simple centerpieces that incorporate acorns could be branches with the acorns still attached, or a branch with acorns hanging from them like ornaments. Both looks are simple and rustic and could be used by themselves or with flowers added in as well.

Acorns also look great in bulk. If you could collect enough of them they’re beautiful as filler for flowers or candles. You could also attach several together to make a unique napkin ring.

Single acorns can also make an impact. Using an acorn to accent the menu, or to attach your place card to, are both simple and classic.

If you’re looking for a less traditional way to use acorns you could add felt or paper leaves and hang them on a line like this person did. This would be a great idea for hanging the escort cards as well.

Another pretty idea is painting the inside of the acorn caps, they used fun metallic hues, but you could use whatever colors you wanted. These would be neat sprinkled around the dessert table, or even being inside a small bowl or nest that held the wedding rings!

If you want to carry your adoration of acorns over to the food you could offer bright marzipan or other candy acorns. Or, you could make this sweet acorn chocolate DIY.

Acorns are a great accent and addition to any autumnal affair! How do you like them best: filler, al natural on the branch, accents for place cards or as a sweet treat?

Photo One: Green Baboon Designs; Photo Two:hudsonphotos.com; Photo Three: marthastewartweddings.com; Photo Four: makeandtakes.com; Photos Five and Six: bhg.com; Photo Seven: potterybarn.com; Photo Eight: bhg.com; Photo Nine: stylemepretty.com; Photo Ten: etsy.com; Photo Eleven: simplypix.tumblr.com; Photo Twelve homemadeserenity.blogspot.com; Photo Thirteen: marthastewartweddings.com; Photo Fourteen: enchanteddreamweddings.com

Rebekah owns the event design company A & B Creative. Read Rebekah’s blog.

Fall is one of my favorite seasons. The crisp air makes you want to be close with friends and family, eat some comfort food, and especially to enjoy an intimate event like a wedding. The best autumn centerpieces really bring the season to light with natural elements, colors and evoke all of the emotions of fall.

Using seasonal fruit cuts down on floral costs as you will need less flowers (if you choose to use them at all). Using seasonal fruits or vegetables also really helps to carry the season into your decor.

Just as with seasonal fruit, seasonal vegetables (especially gourds) need little accenting and their wide variety of colors allow them to be simply arranged among candles or flowers along with other natural elements for striking (and extremely simple DIY-able) arrangements.

Other natural elements that you can add are pieces like logs incorporated with your flowers, or gourds, manzanita branches or even colorful leaves on branches like maples.

If you feel like you really just want beautiful flowers in your favorite fall palette, that’s of course an option as well. Dahlias, lamb’s ears and roses all look great and come in a variety of colors to evoke fall.

Fall is perfect for versatility in regards to your themes and colors. Rustic is very easy, as are rich, lush colors, or neutrals. Incorporating elements from nature will help to establish the season and feel of autumn. Happy planning!

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Rebekah is a DIY obsessed, wedding and event styling wizard who loves hunting her bay area  homeland for clever craft ideas, vintage gems, bargain buys, new pieces for her vintage rental line and  blogging inspiration. She and her husband live and write in Oakland and enjoy splitting their time  between California and their native Oregon planning weddings. Read her blog.

Pumpkins, squash and gourds all make affordable and stylish decor for autumn weddings. The best part of all? Decorating with them doesn’t have to make your wedding look like a hoedown! There are lots of ways to carry this look over into modern weddings with style.

An interesting favor idea and reception area is a stylish and modern pumpkin patch like this couple created.

This silhouette pumpkin is gorgeous and making two of them, one for the bride and one for the groom, would be a great way to incorporate vintage, modern and autumn styles into your wedding.

Very small pumpkins are perfect for place cards. You can add names with stencils, spray paint them silver for a more sophisticated look or leave them as they are to add to a rustic autumn theme.

Another original use for gourds is to hallow them out and use them as an alternative to vases. I like the use of the white gourd, as opposed to the more typical orange, and the butternut squashes with dahlias are stunning!

Simply grouping a variety of them together is another way to add visual interest to an area or table that doesn’t have much on it.

If you’re feeling crafty and want to create another look with the gourds, you could carve them in an eyelet design, galvanize them with thumbtacks,  add glitter and carve them to be candles, or paint or Mod-podge a pattern onto them. There are so many creative ideas that look really stylish.

I always love the idea of bringing the outdoors in, and using natural items like pumpkins can add an organic element to an indoor space or a great welcome from the outside into an indoor wedding venue. If you’re getting married around Halloween, pumpkins and other gourds will be affordable and easy to find.

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The bounty of autumn’s harvest yields almost endless inspiration for DIY wedding favors, especially edible ones!

If your guests have been in the festive spirit through the season they might feel a bit blasé about fall classics like candy apples and pumpkin pie by the time your wedding rolls around. So, why not surprise them with an intriguing twist on the season’s flavors?

How about a homemade pumpkin seed granola? You can make a sweet, salty, or spicy variety — pumpkin seeds are so flexible that you can flavor them any way you like. Serve it snack-bar style with takeout containers, or present filled granola favor boxes ready for your guests to grab on the way out.

If your autumn won’t be complete until you’ve dipped a fruit in caramel, why not try something different and make favors of caramel dipped pears? You can add a little sparkle to the caramel with coarse sugar or fleur de sel. Set them in cupcake liners or nestle them in parchment to keep them tidy during the reception.

Cider donuts are a sweet autumn treat, and there are so many variations on the recipe, from the classic fried donut to whole-grain baked treats. Use a heart-shaped mini cookie cutter to cut out the donut holes, bake or fry the donuts, then wrap them in glassine for a sweet, romantic look.

Popcorn balls don’t have to be homely! In fact, they can dress up very nicely as wedding favors. You can drizzle them with chocolate and nuts and wrap them in cellophane and piece of ribbon to gussy them up for the occasion.

If you’ve exhausted your sweet tooth just looking at these favors, don’t forget you can go savory! For a more nourishing edible favor, treat your guests to some comfort food with a bean soup mix. You can present the dry ingredients and a recipe card in a food-safe plastic bag, or seal it into a mason jar for tidy transport.

Photo One: Oprah.com, Photo Two: Fresh New England, Group Photo Three: Our Best Bites & Hooray Blog, Photo Four: Adventures of a Phat Southern Cook, Photo Five: Jen Lynne Photography

Marie runs the wedding favors blog Favor Craver.

Crocheting is a kind of needlework done by interlocking looped stitches with a hooked needle. It also makes unique and personal touches to wedding style and decor.

Wedding dresses can take a less traditional spin when made with crochet details. I love the short dresses, which could be great for either a less formal bohemian type of wedding or for the rehearsal dinner. I am especially enamored with the green wedding dres with white crochet detailed overlay (shown below), which is like nothing else I’ve seen before!

In addition to wedding dresses you could also incorporate crochet details into your day-of attire with this cute crochet garter or a crochet headband.

These crochet purses are also adorable, great bridesmaids gift ideas!

I love the idea of making a ring pillow out of something crocheted too, either of these would look great.

Making your place cards with a crochet detail is so different and would be something your guests would actually keep after the wedding as well! Can’t you imagine these leaves with gold calligraphy for the guests names? Crocheted rocks with the guests names attached on cute tags would be amazing too.

Crochet tablecloths are classic and would lend themselves well to a vintage inspired wedding for a feminine touch to a drink table or dessert table.

If you want to pick up another new skill in your planning process, you could teach yourself how to crochet, or call on a friend or family member who already knows how. Dn’t forget to check Etsy for any specific crochet items you might be seeking!

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Rebekah is a DIY obsessed, wedding and event design wizard who loves hunting her bay area  homeland for clever craft ideas, vintage gems, bargain buys, new pieces for her vintage rental line  and blogging inspiration. She and her husband live and write in Oakland. Read her blog.

Groupings of mixed bottles are a great way to make a visual impact in your wedding decor. Collections of bottles can fit your theme easily as well: you can pick the bottles to match your wedding colors or  make a collection of vintage bottles to fit a rustic theme. Bottles can also be hung to accent areas where there isn’t enough table space.

Hanging bottles with a single bloom have a clean and modern look that can be altered by using all of the same flowers, or mixing varieties and colors for a more bohemian look.

Another way to display a mixture of bottles is in a drawer or on top of a vintage desk or dresser. The bottles can either be mixed and matched, or be all the same style. You can also vary the style with the piece of furniture you display them from, as well as the variety of flowers you choose.

A collection of bottles can also be used as escort cards, with or without flowers.

Another way to group your bottles can be by color; this grouping makes so much of an impact that using flowers isn’t totally necessary.

A mixture of various sized bottles can also of course be used as centerpieces. The centerpiece will seem the most interesting if the heights and shapes of the bottles vary like the examples below.

If you like the look of bottles as decor and want to use them for your big day, remember to start stocking up ahead of time! You can ask your family and friends to start selecting specific types and colors for you to help speed the process as well. Searching flea markets, thrift stores and your local Goodwill is a great way to start gathering vintage bottle collections.

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Rebekah is a DIY obsessed, wedding and event design wizard who loves hunting her bay area  homeland for clever craft ideas, vintage gems, bargain buys, new pieces for her vintage rental line  and  blogging inspiration. She and her husband live and write in Oakland. Read her blog.

When it comes to wedding flowers, simple is in. Using a single flower in a vase or  grouping similar flowers casually together is the latest look in rustic chic wedding decor.

These wedding flowers are all in the same color spectrum (variations of white and purple, respectively) and in similar vases, but only one type of flower per vase. It’s a look that makes an impact without having to be a grand floral arrangement.

Check out these gorgeous David Austen roses!

I love the table number flag with this gorgeous bloom!

These groupings are all different in that their flowers are different, their colors are different and their vases are different. But they all make sense because of the common thread that pulls them together: there is only one type of flower in each various vessel and they all have their very own little vase to themselves.

Another way to execute this look is by only having one flower per vase but mixing both the variety of flowers and the vessels as well.

Last in this little bud love session is using the exact same flowers and vases with only one flower per vase. This is a sophisticated look that can be done simple with only a few vases, or for even more of an impact can be done with a mass of vases all grouped together.

All of these looks are perfect for both saving money AND an easy DIY project! They’re all gorgeous and take very little time to put together and can range from looking sweet and country to rich and sophisticated. What’s your favorite style?

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Rebekah is a DIY obsessed, wedding and event styling wizard who loves hunting her bay area  homeland for clever craft ideas, vintage gems, bargain buys, new pieces for her vintage rental line  and blogging inspiration. She and her husband live and write in Oakland. Read her blog.

I’ll admit that, in the past, floating centerpieces haven’t been the most sophisticated wedding detail. However, now there are fun modern ways to display them and various “floating” methods that bring the trend into the twenty-first century.

I really love simple single floating blooms in shallow bowls. They’re both inexpensive and sophisticated, my favorite combination!

Floating flowers in buckets is another creative idea that would be great for aisle detailing for an added vintage or rustic element.

If you have a pool or pond at your venue floating flowers in them is a dreamy addition that is a great (and easy!) finishing touch instead of  just leaving the pool or pond untouched.

Tall vessels are another way to display floating flowers in centerpieces. Using simple clear vases you can weight the vases with sand or stones and wedge the base of the stems in the bottom so that they give the look of being suspended. Another clever idea is stacking varying sized clear bowls and floating flowers within them.

Floating flowers allow you to use less flowers because the vessels become part of the centerpiece, which in turn saves money. When thinking about a floral design for floating flowers remember that using the same type of flower per vessel will look the most clean and modern. Also, get creative! If you’re floating blooms in bowls pick out fun bowls, use an eclectic mix of vintage, or all one color but different shapes and sizes with the same variety of flower. Most importantly this is a trend to have fun with!

Photo One: cathyhecknursery.com; Photo Two: flickr.com/photos/pranaynand; Photo Three: bloomsterverstad.blogspot.com; Photo Four: yourcozyhome.blogspot.com; Photo Five: projectwedding.com; Photo Six: iloveswmag.com; Photo Seven: catchamonster.tumblr.com; Photo Eight: elizabethannedesigns.com; Photo Nine: stylemepretty.com; Photo Ten: stylemepretty.com

Rebekah is a DIY obsessed, wedding and event design wizard who loves hunting her bay area  homeland for clever craft ideas, vintage gems, bargain buys, new pieces for her vintage rental line  and blogging inspiration. She and her husband live and write in Oakland. Read her blog.

Choosing the appetizers for your wedding can seem overwhelming because there are so many options. Thankfully, as with any wedding related item, you can express your wedding vision through your food choices. Whether that means that you crave cleverly presented comfort food, fresh or seasonal fruits and veggies for your summer wedding, chic sweets for your modern affair; or you just want all your favorite foods in mini form – whatever your motivation is, this is your inspiration.

Comfort food appetizers such as  sophisticated grilled cheese and tomato soup, mac and cheese bites, pizza cups, and colorful soups are perfect for a fall or winter wedding.

Having a summer wedding? What about simple veggie cups with ranch, grapecicles, adorable olive penguins, corn on the cob on a stick and caprese salad on a pick?

Looking for sweet ideas? Cinnamon twists, lime cups with watermelon sherbet and cheesecake in a cup!

Check out this gorgeous orzo salad served in a jar!

I don’t know about you, but I am salivating and debating starting a new diet craze in which I only eat appetizers.

What are some clever appetizer ideas you’ve thought of using for your wedding? Do you think you would make them yourself or hire caterers?

Photo One: withstyle.me; Photo Two: whatweareeating.com; Photo Three: Seasaltwithfood.com; Photo Four: MarthaStewartWeddings.com; Photo Five: simplebites.net; Photo Six: accidentalhostess.com; Photo Seven: IntimateWeddings.com/blog; Photo Eight: cookingwithmykid.com; Photo Nine: eatdrinkpretty.blogspot.com; Photo Ten: picky-palate.com; Photo: Eleven: valsocal.blogspot.com; Photo Twelve: mybakingaddiction.com; Photo Thirteen: foodformyfamily.com; Photos Fourteen and Fifteen: travelsinheels.blogspot.com; Photo Sixteen: kelseysappleaday.blogspot.com