Now that Indian Summer is nearly over, it’s time to turn our thoughts to the next few months, when snowflakes and wind chills settle in.

It’s inarguable; a wedding in the winter months might be the most beautiful time of year to do so. Soft blankets of snow outside emanate feelings of stillness, serenity, and breathtaking scenery—a unique atmosphere one might be hard-pressed to replicate in any other season. However, along with the beauty of winter comes the chill of this sometimes harsh season. Don’t let the single digits keep you from looking beautiful on your wedding day, but turn to fun winter cover-ups and accessories to complete your winter wonderland look.

Cloak—Yes, a cloak. For those especially chilly weddings, a long satin or velvet cloak can look stunning. If perhaps you are having your ceremony outside, or in a colder place like a dome or courtyard, a cloak can easily complement your dress while keeping you nice and toasty. Cloaks can always be found in white, but often come in different colors as well, to accent your wedding theme. You can also find cape-like cloaks with an accompanying hood, which can look striking and romantic in outdoor photos.

Shrug—If you’re looking for a cover-up that will keep you comfortable, but for the entire duration—ceremony, pictures, and dance—of your wedding day, look to a shrug or wrap as an accessory to your dress. Wraps come in a variety of lengths, cuts, and styles to balance your style, not overpower it. Shrugs are great for strapless wedding dresses, while wraps work well with backless and halter dresses. You can find them with fur, satin, velour, and silk, all great, heavy, winter-appropriate fabrics and materials that are functional but keep you looking stylish.

Hats & Gloves—Certain accessories, if used correctly, can add another layer of warmth to your wedding day while avoiding the all-bundled-up look. Fur trimmed and silk lined hats are a chic way to keep your head and ears comfortable. Wool hats are another option, depending on your style, or you could turn to berets or scarves as well. Gloves and muffs are another elegant way to spice up your gown and make sure your hands stay warm. A versatile accessory, gloves can be almost any color, any length, and work especially well in fabrics like cashmere or even leather.

Don’t throw style to the wayside when shopping for winter wedding dress! You can stay sensible and chic with a few well-placed cover-ups or accessories.

First of all, you can use it in a million ways in your invitation suite and paper products for the wedding day – from taping your invitation envelopes shut, to wrapping a band around the top of your official invite, to create texture and visual interest.

The same could be done to your menus, or along the bottom or top (or both) of escort cards to tie together the suite.  I love having it along the spine of the ceremony program, and even wrapped around the handle of the flower girl’s basket!

Hopefully we regular gals don’t have to do a lot of expensive shopping to get the same effect, and for you brides out there who are into color – why not mix and match your accessories that day?  Colorful shoes are already the in thing…why not make an additional splash of color with your purse too?

Some fun combos, all from gojane.

A Sweet Button Flower

Felt Head Band

Vintage Felt Rose Bouquet

Felted Guest Book

While jewelry is not always on everyone’s hit list for indulging, I was cruising online and discovered that Tiffany’s has a lovely little spot for items $250 and under.  Of course you can spend well over that…but for most people, this price point is doable without breaking the bank, and yet still comes with that glamorous teal bag and box, tied with the luxurious white satin ribbon and you’ll smile whenever you look at it.  And save the bag.  :)

Regardless, these fabulous pieces are all available for viewing at  Tiffany’s website.  Enjoy and Indulge!

As an avid collector of luxurious ribbon, I had to share some of my favorite new finds:

The Ribbon Retreat has gorgeous double faced satin, which is the best option, I feel, for satin.  Plus, their array of colors is awesome.

Velvet Ribbon from The Ribbon Jar is perfect for winter gifts and weddings.

And the pretty Rosette Trim from All About Ribbon is so elegantly fun that I just have to find a use for it!

Hope you find even more uses for ribbon!

Usually, the only reason to give everyone the exact same thing is if, perhaps, you want them to wear it on the wedding day (a strand of pearls to match their gowns, say) so they all look the same.  Or, if you know they will all compare and you don’t want them to discover you splurged on some and not on others.  Or perhaps if all your ‘maids are family and you don’t want to play favorites in any way.  This type of gift lacks total personality, but is probably the easiest to do in the end.

I love these faux pearls from Old Navy (great price too), these hot pink leather passport covers on Amazon, the fabulous diamond stud earrings from Walmart of all places, and a spa certificate is something you can’t go wrong with (try the Pfister Wellspa & Janice Salon or GLOW).

If you opt to do something similar for each girl, but want to try and fit their personalities a bit more, I generally like an idea such as getting them all a necklace of around the same value, but perhaps with a twist to match them – who wears white gold instead of yellow gold?  Perhaps the design will be more traditional for one, and modern for the other.  This is a nice touch if you have a situation similar to the first discussed above, but you want to go that extra step and make it special for each.

Birthstone jewelry (like the ones from Zales) is a very sweet way to show each bridesmaid that you care, whereas cute Coach wristlets that are in different colors but the same style is a posh touch.  If you’re all into a certain cult movie or tv show, getting everyone something kitchy from your shared hobby is super fun, or even a packet of movie tickets for their local theaters is something usable and memorable.

And lastly, if you revert to taking your time finding something special and unique for each girl, you can do so in one of two ways – spend the same amount of money for each, if that means one girl gets an expensive watch that she’s been craving and another gets a pile of smaller less expensive items that you know she’ll dig, then so be it.  Or, don’t worry about the price tag, knowing each of your gals will be so in love with their item you chose for them that they won’t bother to compare (and honestly, they won’t unless you make it totally obvious who got the pricey stash).  This is a wonderful thing to do, and if you have the time to hunt for each, do it – because you want them to remember your wedding day every time they  look at their gift, and smile with all the fond memories.

For your writer friends, gorgeous stationary or beautifully bound notebooks are a must.  Or if you have a friend who loves her purses, a membership at Bag Borrow or Steal is perfect.  A bridesmaid who can’t get enough of her champagne could get a case of something extravagant, and your music loving best pal could get much coveted concert tickets.  This is where it can get so fun for you – and them!

Seeing as my favorite part of every meal is inarguably dessert, it’s a wonder the infamous dessert of the wedding meal has escaped my examination until now. Along with many other traditional of the ages, the symbolic wedding cake has given way to a sundry of innovative and unique substitutes for the sweet tooth. While cakes are still highly popular, here are a few other ways to treat your guests to a delicious evening, all while keeping tradition and style intact.

The first and most tame of the bunch: cupcakes! Cupcakes have exploded in popularity over the past few years because they are so fun and easy to work with. Cupcakes can still be made in different flavors that resemble cake (like red velvet and double chocolate) but have the versatility of single servings. The individuality of cupcakes allows guests to choose their own flavor, or to take one or two more in they are in need of an extra dose of sugar. Cupcakes are traditionally organized on a tiered stand for display. Occasionally, a small cake will be placed on the top tier so the bride and groom can still do the ceremonial cutting. Donuts are a similar option and can have the same benefits as cupcakes, too.

Another fun, and very unique, alternative to traditional wedding cake is the cake of cheese. This really isn’t a cake at all, but instead an impeccably crafted design of different types, sizes, and colors of cheese arranged to resemble a wedding cake, and served with crackers. Sometimes different fruits and grapes adorn the cheese-themed cake to add more color and interest. This is a slightly healthier substitute for butter cream frosting and still can be cut by the bride and groom, but can be an interesting twist for the non-traditional couple.

If staying toward chocolate and sugary goodness is more your fancy, the chocolate fountain will not fail you. Provide your guests with an abundance of fruits, marshmallows, graham crackers, pretzels, cookies, and candies to tantalize all their taste buds. A great dessert treat, the chocolate fountain is a lot of fun and can be particularly entertaining. If you love the idea of a fountain but were still set on having a wedding cake, a fountain can be used as a great late-night treat for your guests during dancing.

Hopefully, your wedding dessert will be among the best your guests have ever tasted, so pick a sweet treat that everyone will enjoy!

While it is the general trend that traditional is out, and uniquely modern is in, who’s to say that a twist on the traditional couldn’t work? Wedding cakes have taken on a chic, clean, and crisp look with few non-edible adornments, but it is possible to dress up your cake with a topper that isn’t characteristic of the ‘70s. In fact, there are tons of cute—and stylish!—decorative ornaments to put atop your cake that are as far from traditional as a red wedding dress.

Sitting upon the top tier of a wedding cake thirty years ago was typically some form of a man and a woman, and it wasn’t unusual for them to be of the Precious Moments variety. While that trend has invariably passed, there are some chic statues of couples that are more appealing and classic, and make for great keepsakes post-wedding. Silhouettes are especially lovely because of their simplicity.

Initials and monograms are also among the acceptable forms of decorative cake toppers, and can display a very mature and streamlined finale to your cake. These would also be nice mementos that could be kept atop fireplace mantels or nightstands in your new home.

If you’re still looking for something to add to your cake but aren’t sure how you feel about physical statues, flowers are a great way to spice up the look of your cake. While fake (and edible!) flowers are can be whatever color, style, or size you prefer, real flower bouquets also look beautiful, timeless, and colorful over a mountain of white.

Finally, comedic toppers have also become popular for couples with a wild sense of humor. Toppers of this style tend to feature the man and woman engaging in a non-traditional pose, like sitting, jumping, or specific to an activity or hobby, like skiing or singing. These figurines are typically best used for laid back couples who are looking to jazz up their cake and have fun with it at the same time.

If your cake is stunning in its simplicity, you still might want to think of adding some pizzazz to the top! Cake toppers can reflect you and your fiancés interests, styles, or funky sides and make your cake all the more interesting to look at (plus, the pictures down the road will be beautiful!).

Although spring and summer bouquets can sometimes boast a larger variety of flower choices, many tend to be of the pastel, delicate, and whimsical variety in soft pinks, light lilacs, and bright summer hues. Fall is the time to burst out your inner bold and go all out with a romantic, succulent bunch of flowers that will leave your wedding guests breathless!

Roses are popular in any season, but their color makes them a hot commodity especially in fall! Their great versatility comes from a slew of hues to choose from, chocolate brown, coral orange, burnt orange, burgundy, deep yellow…the variety is endless and perfectly suited to your rich palette. Use a darker tone for a more exotic design, or stick with creamy shades to soften the look around the edges.

Calla lilies are also among the fall favorites. Their shape alone is sensuous and inviting, while maintaining the flirt only a flower can exude. Callas are a great size, too, so that three or four to a bouquet is plenty. Thus, make the color count! If the rest of your bouquet is shades of red, choose cream or yellow to offset monotony. Or, stray instead to the slightly more unique, and use large daisies or sunflowers—both great autumn flowers.

Fall is a great time to utilize other pieces in your bridal bouquet as well—don’t be afraid to get a little crazy and original! Keep your pretty posy in the flora department by adding sprigs of vines, bittersweet berries, or stems of ryegrass. They will only add depth and interest to your already blossoming bouquet. Get woodsy and creative with natural lichen, twigs, or seed pods added to the mix.

Additionally, don’t be afraid to bring some man-made objects to dress up that darling arrangement. Luminous ribbons and copper wire will really make your bouquet unique, and is fitting with the rest of your fall palette. A fall wedding bouquet is fun because the waterfall of elegant colors you have to choose from, so be daring!