Bashert Weddings: 2026

Wednesday, April 22, 2026

3 Eco-Friendly Wedding Tips to Celebrate Earth Day

Earth Day is the perfect reminder that even life’s most joyful celebrations can be thoughtful toward the planet. Weddings, while beautiful, can also create a surprising amount of waste. With a few intentional choices, your big day can be both stunning and sustainable.

Here are three meaningful ways to make your wedding more eco-friendly without sacrificing style or experience:

1. Reduce Unnecessary Waste

One of the simplest ways to create a more sustainable wedding is to cut back on single use paper items.

Consider minimizing paper goods like printed programs, individual menus, and place cards, which get left behind and thrown away.

Instead, opt for signage on mirrors or chalkboards that can potentially be re-used as decor for your home.

Not only does this reduce waste, but it also saves money in the budget to focus on more impactful wedding elements.

2. Repurpose Your Flower Centerpieces

Florals are a highlight of any wedding, creating the vibe and ambiance for the event. But they don’t have to be single-use.

Give your arrangements a second life by:

Moving ceremony flowers to the reception space
Offering centerpieces to guests at the end of the night
Donating arrangements to local hospitals, nursing homes, or shelters

This small step spreads the joy your flowers bring while preventing unnecessary waste. Beautiful today, meaningful tomorrow.

3. Recycle What You Can

Recycling at weddings is often overlooked, but it can make a difference.

Work with your venue and caterer to ensure:

Cans and bottles from the bar are properly sorted and disposed of for recycling
Paper goods like leftover programs or signage are collected and recycled

Small actions really do create a big impact.

A Final Thought 🌎

Reduce, Re-Use, Recycle applies even to weddings! Every choice you make can help protect our planet while still creating a wedding day that's personal and unforgettable.

This Earth Day, remember: you don’t have to compromise beauty to be sustainable. With a little extra thought, you can celebrate your love while caring for the world you’re building your future in.

Let’s Plan Something Beautiful (and Sustainable) 💚

If you’re dreaming of a wedding that’s as kind to the planet as it is beautiful, we’d love to help. From eco-conscious vendor recommendations to thoughtful design choices, we can guide you every step of the way.

Reach out to us to start planning your sustainable wedding today.

Camille Victoria Weddings LLC

https://www.camillevictoriaweddings.com/contact-us.html

Thursday, March 5, 2026

3 Things that ACTUALLY Reduce Wedding Day Stress

As a Chicago Wedding Planner for the past 16 years, I've seen A LOT of what can happen at weddings. Everyone wants a stress-free and fun wedding day. Over the years, it has become clear what couples can do in advance to make that goal a reality.

Here are 3 things that will actually reduce wedding day stress:

1. Decisions Made Early

Last minute choices = Last minute stress

Ideally, all vendors should be booked, wedding participants notified, timeline locked in and setup details planned by 3 weeks before the wedding.

Even a small change made suddenly can invite disruption. We had a wedding many years ago where on the day of the wedding, mere minutes before the ceremony was to begin, the family decided to change what had been practiced at the rehearsal and have the Father of the Bride walk a grandparent down the aisle. A seemingly small change, but that meant that the dad would need to circle back and get back in line to walk the Bride down the aisle. Instead of dropping off the grandparent at the seat and then walking back up a side aisle to get back in line with his daughter, he decided to weave through some back hallways so he wouldn't be seen and ended up getting lost in the maze. We were ready to cue the bride's entry, but her dad had gone missing! That all happened because of a last minute decision that differed from what had been planned and practice.

Even the smallest details should be decided upon in advance.

2. A Realistic Timeline

While a wedding day is long, from early morning hair and makeup to the last celebratory midnight song of the reception, it always feels like it flies by to the couple. So, a wedding day timeline is crucial. A packed timeline can look efficient on paper, but it's one of the biggest stress triggers on wedding day.

Buffer time = Calm energy

Think through logistics like transportation and especially photo timing. It can be tempting to jump on all of the trends, like taking not just a first look with your spouse-to-be, but also a first look with your bridesmaids and then one with your dad too. Then, add in sunset photos, and don't forget that goofy reception photo with your high school friends and then your college friends. But also factor in some time for the surprise outfit change. You can probably see where this is going. On the day-of, making each of these photo-ops and trending moments happen often means pulling the couple away from the festivities.

Having constant photo-ops and to-dos to check off can make for a rushed day and prevent the couple from really feeling present.

When nothing feel rushed, everything feels better.

Pro Tip: Plan 10 minutes of alone time with your new spouse after the ceremony to enjoy some hors d'oeuvres and catch your breath. It will help you soak in the moment.

3. Someone Else Handling the Details

If you or your family are setting up items, answering questions, and solving problems, then you're not fully present and savoring the moment.

A LOT happens behind-the-scenes. I could write an entire book about our experiences handling unexpected moments and solving problems at weddings. Most often small issues crop up, like a broken strap on a bridesmaid dress or the wrong number of place settings at a table. But we've also dealt with larger issues, like the florist delivering the wrong flowers or the DJ's equipment malfunctioning.

Hire a day-of-coordinator to run the show!

Your only job on wedding day should be to:

Look Fabulous

Relax

Enjoy the Day

Make calm a priority on your wedding day!

In need of wedding planning help in the Chicago area? Contact us for a complimentary consultation.

Monday, February 16, 2026

Molly & Kenny: A Sweet Spring Wedding at Columbus Park Refectory

As the first hints of spring have arrived in Chicago, I found myself reminiscing about Molly and Kenny’s beautiful and heartfelt wedding at Columbus Park Refectory. Tucked away like a true hidden gem, this historic venue is full of charm with a brick and stone exterior and sweeping grounds that come alive when winter finally gives way to green.

Spring at the Refectory feels almost poetic. Soft light filters through and the entire space carries a quiet romance that perfectly matched Molly and Kenny’s vision. They embraced their wedding planning in a way that felt natural and effortless, nothing overdone, nothing forced, just thoughtful details woven throughout the day.

What made their celebration so special was how deeply personal it felt. Molly and Kenny chose meaningful touches that reflected who they are, allowing their personalities and love to shine, proof that you don’t need excess to create something unforgettable.

It was the kind of spring wedding that feels both fresh and timeless, where sweet moments unfold against a backdrop rich with history, and where two people begin their next chapter surrounded by beauty, warmth and the people who know them best.

Check out the fabulous photos from one of our fave photographers, Henington Studios.