the tables...

...the tables all set to go...

I literally had dreams (multiple dreams) about how our wedding tables would look...I really wanted to convey a peaceful, whimsical, simple feeling to our outdoor-idaho-homemade-rustic-wedding. We rented 8' long banquet tables...and put them side to side to make five 16' long tables for our 75 guests. Then we rented the cheapest chairs possible... white plastic. We love wood, glass, ceramic, cotton, shells... all pure, natural elements...so I have a thing with plastic... not a big fan of it. It goes back to my montessori teaching days. But alas, wood chairs were outrageously priced! So it was not perfect, but it was just ok. You may have read about my table cloth situation from earlier... but it turned out just great- very outdoorsy. Natural colored canvas table cloth/painting drop cloths, that hit the ground and then some. Then I cut 24' long white muslin table runners, and ironed them. I wanted to hem them... but it just took too long, and it was too overwhelming so late in the game. And this was one of those details where you know you will be the one to notice the small details (it turned out to be valid also). We had all of the antique clear mason jars with flowers, little mason jars for water, and wine bottles we had collected and removed all the stickers on to put drinking water with sliced lemons in it for our guests to help themselves to.

...my friends Stephanie and Bryna doing an awesome job setting up the tables...

...me trying to describe "the look" I wanted...

...everyone, minus Colby the big yellow guy, working so hard to fold napkins with the silverware...

...drinking jars, with the wine bottles...

We had cute napkins and our off-white plates, and little antique aluminum jello molds for the tea light candles to sit in. I loved the "idea" of having the tea lights in the jello molds to cast light on the table in little cute scallops and ridges.... yeah. That didn't work out. All of our table mock-ups and trials... we forgot about the possibility for wind. Even most of the mason jars hanging with wire from the log fence wouldn't hold a flame to the wind. It was sad. We also made adorable wood floating candles for the pond... not so. It wasn't so incredibly windy that things were blowing over, but the candles were still affected. So my wonderful friends knew how much whimsical lighting meant to me and literally ran around trying to re-light candles and improvise with taller mason jars... they were awesome. I didn't even have to ask for their help.

...alternating amy butler pattern napkins on the plates...

So the napkins... this is one thing I really loved and it brought in my amy butler prints that I love in life and the inspiration throughout the wedding. As you may know from other posts we had an amy butler print fabric on the invite...so I did the same thing for the napkins. I just cut them though with pinking sheers-olfa cutter. 12"x12" zig zag cut fabric. I chose about 9 fabrics that I loved that were turquoise and greens- some amy butler fun ones...but that gets pricey, so then I bought some coordinating light greens and teal ones that were our colors. Then cut them, starched and pressed them...then rolled them up with twine and our rental silverware. I wanted to hem them at first...but gosh...I sew and I HATE hemming. Plus with all the wedding projects-that just got moved down on the list. Also my mother-in-law who sewed my dress, who is a quilter, offered to take all of the napkins and make a quilt for us- the double ring design. It will be a fantastic way to remember our wedding day...and really the exciting year leading up to it.

...me, admiring the finished product with so many smiling loved ones around me...

...dinner time...
[all photos from rob hart, kenny anderson, and kevin apparetti]