GORGEOUS WEDDING SHOOT INSPIRED BY DIA DE LOS MUERTOS

I hope you all had a great Halloween! If you recognize Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) you might still be celebrating. The Mexican holiday, which officially ends today, inspired this gorgeous photo shoot from North Carolina's Wild Love Grows. I love the combination of colorful soft flowers with the prickly cacti; the deep jewel tones and the white lace. Feast your eyes on all the lovely details!

Event Venue: Rural Hill // Apparel: Peninsula Cleaners // Dress Store: The Lily Rose Boutique // Equipment Rentals: Evermore - Classic and Vintage Rentals // Invitation Designer: Charming Chestnuts // Linens and Coverings: Cooke Rentals // Musicians: Musically Yours // Beauty: Megan Oliveri Beauty // Beauty: Adrian D. Howe, Beauty Sophisticate Makeup Artistry // Floral Designer: Herr Fresh Flowers // Bakery: Three Tiers For Cake // Design and Decor: Wild Daisy Events // Event Designer: Wild Daisy Events // Photographer: Wild Love Grows//

Submitted via Two Bright Lights

HALLOWEEN PARTY WEEKEND

Did you go to any Halloween parties this past weekend? Private or public parties were going on all over. What did you dress up as? My husband and I went to a house party as Red Riding Hood and the Big Bad Wolf. Lots of fun. It was the first time we got dressed up for Halloween before the kids!

I did a better job getting photos of the costumes than the party decor.

How cute are these cake pops??

Yup, even adults play the mummy game!

Enjoy these last few Halloween days!

GOOGLY EYE HALLOWEEN TABLE

Happy Halloween everyone! Halloween seems to be one of those holidays that you're either really into, or you just put in enough effort to get by–there's no in-between. I happen to love Halloween. So much fun dressing up. My husband was out of town this past weekend so a girlfriend and I went to a party dressed as Thelma and Louise. I admit I didn't feel like my outfit was costume-y enough, but we had a great time.

Now how much fun is this Halloween table submitted by Arizona's Julius Photography? It features a spooky tree, moss and traditional orange pumpkins. But, the googly eyes totally make it for me. It's amazing how one strong element can set the stage for your decor. Best of all, this is a table that works for adults and kids combined.  Enjoy the details -- and the remainder of your Halloween!

Photographer:   Julius Photography // Event Planner: Meant2Be Events // Invitation Designer: Be In Love Designs: Wedding & Event Stationary // Design and Decor: Chasing Bliss Design // Equipment Rentals: Cre8ive Events//

Submitted via Two Bright Lights

GORGEOUS GRAVEYARD HALLOWEEN TABLE

Would you be thrilled or chilled to sit at this beautiful Halloween table photographed by Arizona's Julius Photography? Elements of pewter and purple really bring this table to a haunting level. My favorite touch is the bony hand holding the menu. Love that! Even the simple touch of the spider on the glass emits chills. Make sure to check out the vendors who participated in this photo shoot down below.

Photographer:   Julius Photography // Event Planner: Meant2Be Events // Invitation Designer: Be In Love Designs: Wedding & Event Stationary // Design and Decor: Chasing Bliss Design // Equipment Rentals: Cre8ive Events//

Submitted via Two Bright Lights

GOTHIC HALLOWEEN DINNER PARTY INSPIRATION

Ornate desserts, a red and black color palette against a forest set the stage for this offbeat, gothic Halloween inspired wedding shoot photographed by Arizona's Love Affair Photography. Each of the details can be easily used for an elegant Halloween dinner party. A few of the details can even be made, like the red and black styrofoam balls on paper straws.  It's glamorously gothic!

Photographer:   Love Affair Photography // Second Shooter: Erica Second Shooting for Love Affair Photography // Hair Stylist: Beauty Creations by Cristina // Bakery: Bite Me Delectables // Invitation Designer: Danielle Seals Events // Calligrapher: Letters by Jennifer //

Submitted via Two Bright Lights

OUR HARRY POTTER PARTY: QUIDDITCH GAME

My husband gave me a hard time about getting this game set up for the party - he thought I was going a bit overboard - but it ended up literally costing less than $20 to make and took no longer than 30 minutes to set up. It ended up being a favorite activity at the party so it was totally worth it!

How we made our Quidditch game:

We compromised a bit. Instead of putting hoops at both ends of our field, we only put hoops in the middle of our backyard. We were afraid that if we put hoops near the fence, balls would constantly be going into our neighbors' yards, so we concentrated the game in the middle.

My husband purchased 3 long pieces of pine wood from Lowe's at $1 each. He shaved points at the end of each one to make it easier to get them into the ground. I purchased kid size (smaller than the usual size) hula hoops ($1 each) at Dollar Tree. My husband then drilled the hoops into each wood stake. We enforced it a bit with some clear packing tape. You can't really tell from this photo, but the middle one was higher/taller than the other two hoops.

Additionally, each girl got a broom to play with. I purchased $1 dowels from Hobby Lobby. I collected sticks from our neighborhood and hot glued them onto each dowel. I finished them off with a piece of ribbon I had.

We used a foam ball we found at Walmart as the "quaffle" and we happen to have a yellow golf ball that we used as the "snitch."

To play we used Flax & Twine's set of rules for the game here.

The girls really enjoyed it--even getting a bit competitive!

Make sure to check out the other posts about our Harry Potter party here, here and here.

NO-SEW PUFFY PUMPKINS

How cute are these? I wish I had spotted these sooner! And because they're no-sew they look easy enough to make with the kids.  I bet you can make a santa or snowman version of these for Christmas. Find the full tutorial over at Little Miss Celebration.

PAPER LANTERN SKULLS

If you're still looking to make some not-so-scary decorations for Halloween, here's a great idea from Julep. Use paper lanterns in any size with black tissue paper to create these light-up skulls. Great to adorn a mantle or front door on Halloween night. Find the full instructions here.

PRINTABLE FANG TREAT BAGS

If you follow me on Facebook or Twitter you know I love me some free printables! And there have been some great ones for Halloween. This one from Curbly is one of my favorites. Find the free printable and directions here.

HALLOWEEN THEMED STYLED WEDDING

With the help of some very talented vendors, Chicago photographer Metts Photo, took inspiration from Halloween and Mexico's Day of the Dead to create a unique take for a wedding for October and November newlyweds. The results are stunning! I am in awe of the backdrop they created with paper flowers, skulls and black lace. Look carefully and you'll notice the bride is first in red, then in white. The calligraphy used on the invites is also the perfect complement to the theme. Thank you Metts Photo for sharing this glamorous wedding shoot with us!

Photographer:   Metts Photo//Bakery: Artemios Bakery//Ring Designer: Bryn Mawr Jewelry Company//Cinema and Video: Chelsea Bliefernicht//Equipment Rentals: Classic Party Rentals//Heirlooms and extras:Copper & Caviar//Dress Store: Dame Couture//Event Planner: Dare to Dream Weddings, LLC//Cake Designer: Emily Wheeler Custom Cakes//Other:Exquisitely STRIKEING//Makeup Artist: Joanna B Artistry//Calligrapher: Maura Phyllis//Floral Designer: May Floral//Etsy Designer: Once upon a time tutus//Invitation Designer: Pink Elephant Events//Jewelry: Rent The Runway//Makeup Artist:Shannon Rodriguez //Hair Stylist: Style on Site//Reception Venue:Venue One//

Submitted via Two Bright Lights