Check out my latest photo inspiration board (I told you, there will be oh so many more to come now) in, you guessed it, red, white and blue! A Fourth of July wedding sounds so laid back and fun. An outdoor ceremony, barbecue style reception and dancing underneath the fireworks – sounds like a great way to spend America’s birthday to me.

And a Fourth of July wedding doesn’t mean you need to dive straight into the tacky and predictable holiday décor. Simply picking out major elements in solid shades of red and blue can be enough homage to Uncle Sam if you’re getting married that day. If you want to fully embrace the holiday in your theme, try putting mini flag toothpicks in your reception food, creating a tower of red, white and blue cupcakes, and creating some do-it-yourself star garlands to decorate your wedding venue.

Hope you enjoyed the long weekend!

The Bride: Simi, 26, Law Student

The Groom: Prakash, 27, Grad Student

The Location: Bensalem, Pennsylvania

Wedding Theme: Fall

Wedding Colors: Olives, deep red, rust, brown, and tan

What made this wedding modern: Simi and Prakash had a fall wedding with an outdoor ceremony that they celebrated with a large group of family and friends.  They incorporated both hindu and american traditions into their wedding - for instance, during the ceremony Prakash wore traditional hindu garb, but then changed into a chic black suit for the reception.

Where they splurged: Simi and Prakash’s biggest splurge was the food.  The reception hall had an american caterer that they were required to order from, but it was important to them to have indian food for everyone too.  They ended up getting twice as many orders of food as there were guests!  Simi said “A little gluttonous?  Yes.  But it was the only way we could get what we wanted! ”

Where they saved: Because Simi and Prakash had an outdoor wedding while the fall foliage was in full swing, it was already gorgeous outside and they didn’t have to spend much money on flowers.  With the money saved they bought bright fabrics for the mandap (the structure they were married under) and also placed some around the ceremony and reception site.  The lesson here - an outdoor wedding during a gorgeous time of year can save you big bucks in the decorations department!

A view of the mandap from the aisle

The best part of the wedding:

“My favorite part of the wedding was when I was brought in to the ceremony on a doli (a decorated wooden plank), carried by my cousins.  Everyone was so excited, shouting and teasing Prakash and I because it’s supposed to be the first time we “see” each other, as evidenced by the curtain that was held up between us.  The vibe was just indescribable, and I felt like such a queen being carried like that!” (see the picture below!)

Looking back, what they would have changed:

Because of school, Simi and Prakash ended up going on their honeymoon during their winter break, which was 2 months after the wedding.  “Our honeymoon was great, but we really needed some time right after the wedding to relax.  It was so difficult to resume life as usual after such a big event.  If we could go back, we would have taken a few days off following our wedding and stayed at a B&B nearby just to unwind, enjoy each other’s company without all the hassles of life, and let it sink it that we just got married!!”

Simi being carried down the aisle on a lavishly decorated doli to see Prakash for the "first time" :)

Simi hugging the groom's brother. Prakash is in the background waiting for his beautiful bride!

Her Advice:

“Don’t get too stressed out on the days leading up to the wedding day.  On the day of the wedding, you’re not going to care who is sitting where, whether the guests were served at 6 pm or 6:20 pm, or if you are going to remember all the steps to your first dance.  All that you’re going to care about is that you just got married and all your loved ones are there with you blessing you with their good thoughts and best wishes.“

A mix of seasonal flowers were placed on each table.

A stunning portrait of the bride and groom!

Dancing the night away!

Submit you own wedding to the guide…

The Bride: Amber, 26, Materials Engineer

The Groom: Matt, 27, Materials Scientist

Wedding Theme: 1920’s Gangster!

Wedding Colors: Black, White, and Red

Budget: $10-15k

What made this wedding modern: Amber loves themes and for the longest time she desperately wanted to wear a fedora hat in her wedding.  This obsession naturally grew into what she called “Project Gangsta” - her vision of a 1920’s gangster themed wedding in black, white, and red, complete with fedora hats, pinstripes, and toy guns!

Where they saved: Due to their small wedding party, Matt and Amber opted not to have a rehearsal dinner and instead spent the evening with out of town guests at a local amusement park - Kennywood Park.  Talk about a fun rehearsal!  They also decided to get married on a Sunday because it saved them $4/person in food, drink, and cake costs.  The maid of honor’s dress was $30 at Macy’s and their photographer was an acquaintance who only charged $1000 for the entire day.

Where they splurged: Amber’s biggest splurge was her dress at $600, which was handmade and based off a design she sketched up herself.  The splurge was well worth it because she got to wear the dress of her dreams, literally.

The bride and groom in their fedora hats!

Believe it or not Amber's flowers are silk! Feathers were worked into the bouquet to create something that Amber loved since she is not a flower person. She was blown away by the final results! P.S. Check out that sexy garter!

The guys wore pinstriped suits and spectator shoes, while the maid of honor wore a red Marilyn Monroe “Seven Year Itch” style dress.

The best part of the wedding:

Amber said that taking photographs at Carnegie Mellon University (where they met each other as engineering majors) and the cake ceremony were definitely the best parts of the wedding. “For the longest time Matt had said he was going to shove cake in my face.  So I came prepared.  I had a lab coat and safety goggles underneath the table that I put on before he fed it to me.  Once I put it on, I had the DJ play “Hit Me with Your Best Shot.”  Everyone got a good laugh out of that.”

Looking back, what they would have changed:

“Honestly, nothing… I loved every minute of it.  The only downside was that the venue was not willing for us to stay any later than our allotted time.  It is understandable, but looking back, I wish the night could’ve lasted longer.  We still had a lot of people out on the dance floor ready to party long into the night.”

Her Advice:

“Don’t get hung up on tradition.  When I told people my wedding ideas of having a non-traditional wedding, I got some comments.  But weddings should ultimately be about pleasing you….not family or friends.”

Amber all decked out in her lab coat and goggles, facing the fabled cake smash!

*****POST UPDATE*****

There was a question about Amber’s wedding invitations - I had a chance to ask here and here is what she said:

“I had them made at Party City.  I picked a really simple tri-fold invite in red and had our names on the front in a circle with dots around it in black….very art deco.  On the inside, since we sent our invites out super early, I had an “Old Time” picture Matt and I took at the beach where he was dressed as a gangster and I was dressed in a flapper costume that sort of acted as the “Save the Date” card (see below).  It had the hotel info on it so people could leave it on their fridge if they wanted to book a room.”

The insert used for the wedding invitation

“Based on the invite design, I made all my table cards and seating chart have a similar art deco design.  Each table was named after some Gangster-esque item.  Below the name, I gave a little background on the item.  For example, the head table was the “Bonnie and Clyde” table.  I also had table names such as Eliot Ness, Nickelodeon, Flappers, Tommy Gun, Spats & Spectators, etc.”

Awesome ideas!!! I hope this offers some extra inspiration for anybody planning their own “Gangster” wedding!

Submit your own wedding!