This is a lovely idea for adding a romantic and sophisticated touch to your reception: a bucket full of ice cubes filled with real rose petals.

Detailed instructions on how to make these seriously special chillers can be found on the Jonathan Fong Style blog. They're an absolute doddle to make, but do try and avoid buying roses that are covered in pesticides, as these will not enhance the taste of your champagne! Try and buy organic roses - or even better - pick them from your garden.

[Via Crafty Crafty]

Related: DIY ambient lighting for your romantic meal

It's been a real treat sifting through all the bridal blogs out there, and a few have quickly become favorites. Here's some must reads for your Friday time-suckage.

Wonder about the rules for wearing gloves? Here's a modern primer with some useful tips. [From "I Will" to "I do"]

Worried about it snowing on your big day? Stop worrying and start hoping when you see this winter wedding. [Rock 'n Roll Bride]

Ribbons and ribbons of ... ribbon. A be-all, end-all list of ribbon resources for this must-have-for-everything-and-everywhere wedding accessory. [DIY Bride]

[Bouquet with ribbon above is my bouquet from my friend Jen's wedding!]

Isn't this just a wonderful idea? The tiny lampshades sit on your wine glasses, transforming them into nightlights to give a gentle and romantic glow. If you're planning on a spring and summer wedding with an outdoor element, I can see these working particularly well - but they can be used indoors, too. Why not use them to create mood lighting during your ceremony, then remove the candles to return the glasses to their usual function once the celebrations begin?

You can buy an assorted pack of three shades for €12 at Charles & Marie, but if you want a large number, making your own may be more cost-effective. There's a pattern available here that shows you how.

[Via Casa Sugar]

Related: Light up your evening reception with Fairwind's colourful tea lights

This memo board is meant for the home but wouldn't it look great at the entrance to a marquee or at a vintage style wedding? It could be used as something to hold place cards rather than having them laid out on the table or maybe you could have a polaroid camera and ask guests to leave snapshots between its wires? £8 at BHS.

Related: More decorative ideas for your wedding reception

One of the great things about the recession (please bear with me) is that it's forcing many people to look beyond the obvious places when they want a bit of luxury. And if you're planning a wedding, this can only be a good thing - after all, who wants their wedding day to be a carbon copy of everybody else's celebration?

Art of Ceremony recognise that uniqueness and low cost are top of most couples' priorities at the moment and have some effective but cheap ideas. My favourite is this simple tree-dressing idea. Check out the site for more!

Related: New wedding reception themes by Confetti | More creative place setting ideas

Confetti are showing off four new wedding themes ready for you to style your own reception party. My personal favourite is the Enchanted Garden with a sage green and white palette paired with pretty table ornaments like little birdcages stuffed with soft peach roses. They even have favour boxes and a table planner for the final finishing touches. Prices run from around £1-£20 depending on the item and the ideas are all very easy to customise.

Other themes include the pink vintage style Heartfelt Moments, a stylish purple and white Purple Reign and elegant monochrome look Back to Black.

Related: Floral cupcakes centrepiece I Diamond place card holder from The Last Detail I More table decoration ideas

Place card holders are an easy way to inject some wit into your table decor. These glass place card holders are faceted to look like a diamond which would perfectly with an elegant or jewels theme or just as a tongue in cheek reference to your own rock. They're £12.50 for six from the Elegantly entertaining range at The Last Detail.

Related: Use a fork to create a place setting holder I More creative place setting ideas I More table decorations

Instead of buying yet another item to add to the assortment of tableware at your reception, you could just utilise something that's already there. This idea is so simple. Get a square of card, write on your guests names and thread through the tines (I never knew there was a proper word for 'prong'). Space saving and budget friendly - what's not to love about this idea?! [via Apartment Therapy]

Related: Christmas bauble place card holder I Autumn leaf place card holders from MyWeddingFavors I Ceramic place card tiles

We've featured Hello Kitty gowns and accessories on Bridalwave before, but I think this is the first Hello Kitty bouquet I've seen. Now I love Hello Kitty as much as the next person (assuming the next person isn't someone who'd wear a Hello Kitty wedding gown), but I just don't see it being appropriate for your wedding day.

I'm sorry to keep going on about place settings, but when I find really creative ideas, I can't help sharing them!

This one - basically a name stuck to a pear - is easy and environmentally friendly, but really charming, don't you think? I doesn't have to be a pear, any soft-skinned fruit that stands up (or doesn't - banana, anyone?) would work.

It took me a couple of minutes to work out exactly what was going on here - you'll have to excuse me, I'm pregnant and my brain has gone soft - calling them "cupcakes" confused me. They're not actually edible, what they are are floral arrangements made to look like cupcakes and set out on a cupcake stand. Now that I've established that ... aren't they gorgeous?!

I know this ceramic memo board and place card tiles are plain, but as soon as I saw them, I imagined they could be just what someone has been looking for! They come in a set of one board and six reusable place card tiles, all of which come with their own wipe-off markers and would be ideal for wedding rehearsal dinner table settings.

I don't think that the range of hearts available from Carol Cummins have any set task other than to be entirely decorative but here's what I would do with these pretty polka dot hearts. I'd get matching tags (make your own?) and write or print the guest's name then hang them on the back of chairs. Later on guests can take them home and use them as door hangers - the hearts are £5.50 each from the Autumn/Winter collection.

Related: Heart sparklers from Confetti I Cox & Cox heart table top candles at Not On The Highstreet I Scented heart favours

Real florals at a wedding always look great, but sometimes they're just not practical. Whether you're looking for something out of the ordinary that just can't be achieved with the real thing, or even if your groom suffers from hayfever, Silk Bouquets' artificial buttonholes are fab.

This calla lily and iris petal buttonhole is made from silk and looks fantastic. A truly unique combination of florals for a wedding, this will make a really contemporary buttonhole for the groom or any of your guests. Check out the variety of handmade styles at the website.

Related: Rebel Rebel buttonholes for grooms | Fake It Flowers | More groom style

I tore this out of a magazine a little while ago and put it in a safe place... which I then forgot. Tidying up today, I found it again. Hurrah! It's from Martha Stewart Living magazine and I think it's rather lovely. Read the simple instructions over the cut.