Inspiration Archive

Personalizing your wedding can be a daunting task. There are SO many options out there (I’m looking at you, Pinterest). I’ve shared some of my top tips below to jazz up your wedding from basic to oh-so-you. You’ll see that the overarching theme in all of my tips focus on one major thing: your relationship. Showing your personality translates best when it’s done in an authentic way.

Family Traditions:  This is a GREAT place to start when it comes to personalizing your big day. Chat with your parents and close family members about your family traditions. Perhaps all the women in your family have worn a certain piece of jewelry. Maybe you can share your favorite recipe with the caterer to incorporate into cocktail hour. The options are endless!

Don’t Be Trendy (Unless It Makes Sense): If you have never touched a mason jar in your life, you probably shouldn’t incorporate them into your place settings. Now, if you grew up canning veggies with your grandmother, then mason jars have a special place in your heart and make total sense for your design. Think through WHY you like what you like and translate it into something that fits with your personality.

Food + Beverage:  Sit down with your betrothed and make a list of all the significant meals you have had together. Think first date, engagement, your favorite Friday night spot, etc.  For example, if you eat burgers and fries every Friday night, then you should deffffnitley have sliders and pomme frites as your late night snack.  If you toasted your engagement with a bottle of your favorite prosecco, then incorporate some bubbles into your bar menu. This list will start to guide you in the right direction and showcase your personality and relationship.

Splurge a Little: I know it is tempting but you don’t HAVE to use all of the items your venue or caterer provides just because they are complimentary. Consider investing in vintage glassware, a textured linen, an upgraded chair.. anything to make your wedding look different than the other 50+ weddings taking place at your venue on any given year.  These small touches will make a world of difference and trust me, your guests will notice.

Music: Quite possibly the easiest way to give your wedding a bit of personality! If you aren’t restricted by your venue (sorry, church ladies), you can have SO much fun with your ceremony music. Youtube is a great research tool. You can typically find instrumental versions of your favorite tunes if you do a little digging.  I also highly recommend checking out artists like Vitamin String Quartet. They cover everything from George Strait to Guns ‘N Roses and everything in between.

Any other tips you can add? How did you incorporate YOUR personality into your own wedding? Share in the comments below!

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Leigh Pearce is the owner and creative director of Leigh Pearce Events, a boutique wedding planning and design company specializing in luxury weddings and highly personalized events. LPE is based in Greensboro, NC, and serves all of North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, and destinations beyond with impeccable and exclusive wedding experiences. Connect with Leigh today at 336-552-5645 or leigh@leighpearceevents about your special event. 

First, let me preface this post by saying…..

If you are attending a wedding as a guest, please please please get the couple something off of their registry or send them a monetary gift. You think a handmade scrapbook sounds like a great idea, but trust me. The couple would much rather have the china they registered for or some extra cash to spend on the house they just bought.

One of the most popular questions that clients or parents asks me is this:

“What should I get my significant other/parent/daughter/son as a wedding present?
I want it to be unique and special.”

Seems like a tall order but I have the *perfect* solution to this quandary.

The perfect wedding gift is … drum roll please … artwork!

A commissioned piece of art is truly something special and unique. It becomes an instant heirloom and holds a great deal of sentimental value. All great things when it comes to wedding presents. I’ve rounded up some of my favorite wedding artists and ideas so you can gift the special person in your life with the *perfect* wedding gift!

1. Bouquet:  Lauren Skunta is my wedding design crush. She creates the most amazing custom installations for weddings across the nation and recently has added bouquet artwork to her repertoire. She offers custom sketches and paintings of wedding bouquets that are to die for. You could gift the bride-to-be with a beautiful card to let her know that post-wedding, a commissioned painting of her blooms will be headed her way.

Check out Lauren’s work here.

2. Venue: I took my own advice on this one! For my own wedding, I commissioned a watercolor of our venue from sweet Laurie Duncan of Carolina Delight. I had two high quality prints made for my mom and Bryan’s parents and have the original on display in our home. I was so pleased with the result!

Check out Laurie’s work here.

3. The Couple: An art piece doesn’t have to be what is traditionally done – painting, sketch, etc. Depending on your style, a cool custom graphic design may be just what you are looking for. I love Miss Design Berry for this. They create the most amazing custom prints, guest books, you name it. I have even commissioned a custom snap chat filter from them!

Check out Miss Design Berry’s work here.

4. Vows: This one is on my wish list. Jessica Peddicord is the most amazing watercolor artist and can seriously do an.yyy.thinggg. In addition to offering custom invitations and work, she creates the beautiful watercolor vows you see here. These would also make the *perfect* first anniversary gift (hint, hint husband of mine: year one is paper!).

Check out Jessica’s work here.

(Photo by Callie of Nancy Ray Photography)

5. Live Artist: Hiring a live artist to paint a scene from your wedding, on site, would be SO fun. Not only do you reap the benefits of receiving a beautiful piece of art to place in your home, but you also offer something interesting and different for your guests to observe during the ceremony or reception. Southern couples, one of my favorite artists for hire is Ben with Wed On Canvas. I love his style and, bonus, he can also make your painting into beautiful note cards and prints if you want to share the love!

Check out Ben’s work here.

So, what do you think? Do you agree that artwork is the *perfect* wedding gift? I would love to hear some of your favorite ideas too. Share in the comments below!

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Leigh Pearce is the owner and creative director of Leigh Pearce Events, a boutique planning and design company specializing in luxury weddings and highly personalized events. LPE is based in Greensboro, NC, and serves all of North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, and destinations beyond with impeccable and exclusive wedding experiences. Connect with Leigh today at 336-552-5645 or leigh@leighpearceevents about your special event. 

The holidays are my favorite time of year (other than summertime at the beach, of course). I love the fellowship, the hospitality, and the cheerful decorations the holidays bring. But most of all, I love giving gifts. If you have any newly engaged friends and family in your life, these are my go to gifts ..  you truly can’t go wrong with one of these (or all if you are feeling extra generous!).

Mrs. Box: Fact – every gal with an Instagram account has swooned over one of these boxes at one time or another. I love that you can choose the perfect color and monogram accent to personalize this gift. The other wonderful thing about these beautiful boxes are that you are truly giving an heirloom. It will be photographed on wedding day, hold her ring for years to come, and possibly handed down to future generations.

Veuve Clicquot Brut: When in doubt, give champagne. Christmas, birthdays, job promotion, engagement, or just because it’s Tuesday, it is always time for a glass of bubbles. Help your friends celebrate their new life milestone in style with this luxurious bottle of bubbly.

Southern Weddings Ultimate Bride Bundle: This bundle of joy .. well not that kind of bundle .. is sure to start the bride in your life with all the things she’ll need to plan and celebrate a meaningful engagement, wedding day, and marriage. This bride bundle includes some of my favorite SW items like the Southern Weddings Planner and Marriage Certificate (in the most beautiful gold foil). P.S. This is on sale right now until 11/28!!

Rewined Candle: These candles are my addiction. These Charleston made candles are the perfect gift for any guy or gal. My favorite scent is Champagne .. are you surprised? I also love the new Blanc collection. The Rosé and Chenin Blanc smell like heaven!

BHLDN Champagne Flutes:  Yay for these festive flutes! They are the perfect accompaniment to a bottle of of bubbles or simply wrapped with a bow on their own. I love that these flutes don’t feel overly feminine and would be the perfect gift for any couple.

Kate Spade Silk Square: A modern day Audrey Hepburn would, without a doubt, have this silk square tied around her handbag or knotted in her hair while cruising down the highway. I love the chic black and white touch and I’m confident your newly engaged gal pal would too.

This shoot was SO fun! I loved collaborating with some of my favorite creative partners and bringing this elegant, industrial shoot to life. And let me tell you, the odds were against us that week. Snow, ice, missing Fedex trucks .. you name it. But I could not be more pleased with the way everything came together. Thanks Every Last Detail for sharing our work! You can see the feature here. Happy Tuesday friends!

Styling + Design: Leigh Pearce Weddings | Photography: Whitebox Photography | Floral Design: Green Bee Floral Designs | Hair + Makeup: Carla White | Rentals: Happy Rentz | Venue: Revolution Mill | Gown: Simply Bridal

  Anna Paschal Photography

 You’re a bride and you’ve got this wedding planning thing down. You have made a color coded guest list, created a itemized spread sheet for your budget, booked some awesome vendors, and worked through a lot of day-of logistics.  You are one organized wedding planning machine.  But there is one element that you just can’t wrap your brain around: design.  You don’t know how to pick a linen or discuss your centerpieces.  All the resources out there seem overwhelming so you avoid the situation.  Well, avoid no more.  I’ve got five easy tips to help find YOUR wedding inspiration:

1. Wedding Blogs: In my opinion, blogs are hands down the best resource for wedding inspiration.  Don’t know where to begin? Start with some of my other favorites: Style Me Pretty or Every Last Detail.  Not only will you find some design inspiration, but also great wedding advice from vendors and brides alike.

2. Bridal Magazines:  I think the first thing most newly engaged gals do (other than scream with joy and call their mamas) is buy bridal magazines.  I keep a healthy stock in the office and love to pull one during a consult to get a feel for a bride’s style.  Some of my favorite wedding mags are: Martha Stewart Weddings, The Knot, and Southern Weddings.

3. Pinterest: Pinterest is a fantastic resource! All those wedding blogs I just mentioned? Did you think, “How the heck should I remember, organize, and/or save what I like from these sites?” Fear no more.. that’s what Pinterest is for!  Read up on how it works here and then follow me!

4. Everyday Life: Don’t have time for the internet or magazines?  Look around you for easy inspiration!  By looking at your closet, your favorites stores, and your home, you’ll get a sense of what you already like.. even if you didn’t realize it before.  If your house is full of vintage accents, work with that!  If you think your two best friends (and bridesmaids) look great in pink, roll with it.  Sometimes the answers to your design dilemma are right in front of you.

5. People: Make a list all about YOU.. food you love, favorite movies and music, nicknames, habits, your job.. anything you can think of.  Next, have your fiance do the same thing.  Trade off and read each others answers for a good laugh then do the same project again.. but as a couple.  You’ll see that y’all drink Cheerwine with every meal.  Translate that into glass bottles of your favorite Southern soda in welcome bags or as favors.  Y’all love a particular sports team?  Use jerseys as photo booth props.  The possibilities are endless.

I hope these tips are helpful to find your wedding inspiration!  Are there any resources that you find particularly helpful when finding your inspiration? 

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About Leigh Pearce Weddings: Leigh Pearce Weddings is a full service wedding planning and design company. We are committed to providing thoughtful planning services, timeless designs, and unparalleled coordination experiences. Our clients value timeless events, Southern hospitality, and creating memorable experiences to last a lifetime.  We work with a select number of clients every year in order to focus on giving an exceptional experience from I will to I do. Your planning process and wedding day are treated with the utmost care, attention to detail, and personal touches. It is our goal to exceed your expectations in every way. We are based in Greensboro, North Carolina and are available for travel throughout the Southeast. Some of our favorite destinations are Asheville, Charlotte, Charleston, Chapel Hill, Durham, High Point, Raleigh, Richmond, Wilmington, Winston-Salem, and the Outer Banks.