Choosing a Wedding Theme

When planning your wedding it's easier to start with choosing a theme. You and your partner should think about what both of you want and how you want your wedding to be. Maybe you can start with your common interests, hobbies or your love story. You can also explore some wedding theme ideas that would match to what you both want or create your own wedding theme. It would also be so romantic, fun and special when you both can come up with your own original theme.

Here are some wedding themes that you might want to have or you might get some ideas from here and mix it with your own.

Romantic Wedding Theme

Candles everywhere, soft lights, champagne, rose petals thrown on the ground, all colors soft and pretty, flowers have soft and delicate colors too, nice ambiance, fine music - this is what a romantic wedding theme entails. Roses are ideal flowers for this theme coupled with other flowers that have soft colors. You can play around with different shades of red or pink. There should be nothing too overpowering at a romantic wedding theme ceremony. Nothing too bright or bold - just soft, beautiful colors and decorations. A romantic wedding theme is soft and delicate with lots of special added touches throughout the reception hall.

Beach Wedding Theme

A beach wedding is beautiful, romantic and picturesque. The lovely colors of sunsets dipping below the horizon; the dawning rays that gorgeously glint over the water as the sun rises, they all create their own beautiful auras, keeping us all mesmerized as we watch. And, the feeling of freedom in the open with wide space above and with the water stretching out before us is simply exhilarating. When planning for this theme, you can focus on tropical, ocean, nautical, nature, seashells, musical and a lot more. This theme is quite relaxed and fun. It can be less expensive too. However, you have to be ready with the elements of nature like rain and strong winds.

Fantasy Wedding Theme

Fantasy weddings doesn't necessarily mean a Cinderella themed wedding as there are many other themes that can be celebrated elegantly. You can have a Mid-Summer Night's Dream theme or sci-fi theme. A theme focused mainly on fairies and elves would be nice too. You may also want to focus on angels or wizards for your theme. There are just so many magical, dreamy and fantasy things you can have for your wedding. You just have to let your imaginations flow and let the excitement lead you to the type of fantasy wedding you want.

Victorian Wedding Theme

An elegant old-fashioned style wedding with everything inspired by the art and beauty of the Victorian era. A garden setting would be nice for this theme as well as an indoor setup. All you have to do is to have so many flowers like roses or carnations all over the place to give that Victorian look. Classical music was the music of choice in Victorian times. You could hire a string quartet or other small musical group to play pieces that were popular during the late nineteenth century. Piano music was all the rage then, too.

Spring Wedding Theme

Spring is a season of renewal, where flowers begin to bloom, leaves pop out on the trees, and birds serenade you with their lovely songs. It's also a season that provides a wealth of beautiful wedding theme options. It can be done in various locations. Those who wish to go outdoors can choose from parks or gardens. Pastel colors are what's most appropriate for spring weddings. Think pale yellows, pinks, purples, blues, and greens. Pair two or more shades together - pink and green or purple and yellow for example, to create a color wedding theme.

Summer Wedding Theme

Summer weddings are like sunshine on a cloudy day. Everything is happy and upbeat at a summer wedding. Summer wedding ideas may include outdoor weddings and weddings held in tents. Another one of the wonderful summer wedding ideas is to hold the wedding ceremony and reception at a cabin by a lake. There are some wonderful summer wedding ideas like having a garden wedding or holding the wedding in a park, with lush gardens and greens in the background for wonderful picture taking. Also, this is the time of year when a huge variety of flowers are available. The most popular choices include roses, daisies, foxglove, hyacinth, bachelor buttons, geraniums, hollyhock, tiger lilies, poppies, carnations, sunflowers, calla lilies, and pansies.

Fall/Autumn Wedding Theme

Fall/Autumn weddings will most often feature the colors of the season, such as light greens, faded yellows, burnt oranges, burgundy reds, and chocolate browns. In fact, pairing these colors (as well as blue, pink, terra cotta, ivory, plum, and white) with various shades of brown can make a stunning and elegant wedding theme combination. This theme can be casual yet elegant set in a beautiful old barn. You might also look at an apple orchard, a vineyard, or any place that will have a view of fall foliage. If you live in a climate where the leaves don’t change, look for a venue with lots of rich dark wood and warmth such as a gentleman’s club or university club.

Winter Wedding Theme

Delicate snowflakes and sparkling ice crystals can usually be found within most winter wedding ideas. With a bit of creative imagination, your winter wedding theme can truly become a glamorous and magical wonderland. Winter weddings use ices and snows in their innovative bests, the best idea to use them is to have imaginative ice sculptures of various sizes and colors placed all around the party. Ice sculptures give the place the authentic look besides being points of attractions. For an even more dramatic affect on decorations, tack ribbon streams of midnight blue tulle netting or gossamer from the center of the ceiling out to the corners of the room, then drape twinkle lights within the material.

The above mentioned themes are just some of the many themes being used by couples nowadays for their wedding. The internet is the best place to browse more information on this so take time to make a research on the many ideas you can have for your wedding.

The process of choosing your theme in itself is a whole lot fun that you both should enjoy. Don't go by what's hot nowadays, choose what you really want and how you imagined your wedding would be no matter how traditional or avant-garde it is. Whatever your choice will be, definitely it will be just perfect for your big day as it is something you really want. Once you put your heart into something, all else will just flow beautifully.

How to Buy a Diamond Engagement Ring

So you're about to pop the question and you're now busy looking for that perfect ring for her. It would be ideal to get something that matches her personality and of course, something that gives value for your money. Some prefer to buy smaller ones but with a very good quality while others prefer buying bigger ones without giving much emphasis on quality.

When looking for a diamond ring, remember the 4 Cs of diamonds namely: Cut, Color, Clarity and Carat.

Cut refers to the proportions, symmetry and finish of a polished diamond. To get from the raw diamond to the cut gemstone requires the skilled hand of a master cutter. The better the cut proportions, the better the diamond handles light to create sparkle. Cut is the single most important factor affecting a diamond's sparkle, brilliance and visual fire. Good cutting is what brings fire to the ice.

Color is another important factor in determining its value. Ideally, a diamond should have no colour at all, like a drop of spring water. Increasing degrees of body colour are measured on a scale ranging from no colour at all (D) to deeply coloured (Z). For white/colourless diamonds, the top colours: D (the Best Blue white), E (exceptional white), F (Very very white),G (rare white), H (white) and I (slightly offwhite) are all considered "white" when set in a ring and are hard to tell apart to the untrained eye: e.g. an E is hard to tell from a D, an F is hard to tell from an E, though the difference between say a D and an H may be more discernible when the diamonds are compared loose.

Clarity is determined by the internal characteristics called "inclusions" and surface features called "blemishes". Diamonds are mostly pure carbon, however, during crystallization other minerals nearby, or even other bits of carbon forming more quickly may have become trapped within the cooling mass. Clarity is measured on a scale ranging from pure (flawless which is I.F meaning internally flawless) to heavily included (I-3).

Carat is the weight of the diamond. It is the unit of weight for all gemstones. One carat is subdivided into 100 "points". Therefore a diamond measuring 75 points is 3/4 carat in weight, or 0.75ct. So, the bigger the size of the diamond, the bigger the carat.

So when getting that special ring, it is important to check these qualities in the diamond so you will have an idea of its value. Consider your budget too and don't overspend on it as there are other things you need to put your money on, like wedding expenses.. Something beautiful to the naked eye and as long as it has good sparkle and color without obvious inclusions should be just wonderful.

Now, after knowing the 4 Cs, you better know her ring size. There are different ways of getting her ring size, you may ask her sister or her bestfriend about it but just ask them to keep it a secret first since you want to surprise her. Then start planning for that special moment - when you pop the question!

Law of Attraction Quotes

Lately I've been reading a book on Law of Attraction and I'm trying to apply it in my daily life. I am just starting small though. I admit, it really works. It's just a matter of focusing your thought on what you really want and be confident that you will have it. Of course, being grateful also plays a major role as it's an affirmation of you having what you really want.

Here are some interesting quotes people who have mastered the Law of Attraction:

"The difference between feeling hopeful and feeling fearful is the difference between success and failure."

"In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity."

"Decide what you want, give your attention in it in a way that feels good, and follow your inner guidance."

"Trust - expecting the best to happen, believing in your ability to create what you want, and knowing you deserve to have it - can be demonstrated in many ways. It is demonstrated by believing in something even when the outer world seems to reflect something else."

"It is the nature of thought to find its way into action."

"One new perception, one fresh thought, one act of surrender, one leap of faith can change your life forever."

"Dreams are powerful reflections of your actual growth potential."

"Faith is putting all your eggs in God's basket, then counting your blessings before they hatch."

In my next posts I will share more about the Law of Attraction and my own experience with it too.