For an intimate wedding, a multi-tiered cake isn’t always necessary. A single-layer cake can still be eye-catching and also a way to cut down on your budget! If you, a friend, or family member are keen bakers this is also an opportunity for you to make your own cake. We’ve selected 10 single layer cakes for you to peruse.

1. In Gold 

You will not be missing those extra tiers when you have this polished beauty. The gold icing is a perfect way to make your cake a showstopper.

2. Bunny Love 

If you’re looking to add a wedding custom to your non-traditional cake, then go for a bride and groom cake topper. With a twist of course…

3. Glass Cloche

These glass cloche covers are so beautiful when placed over a mini cake with a floral decoration. Plus, how cute are the tiny easels!

4. Cake Table

Single-layer cake are just waiting to be joined by their partners in crime. Give your guests a choice by having a table of different flavored cakes. You can never have enough cake.

5. Standing Tall

When you’re only having one tier feel free to add more layers to the cake to increase height. You can play around with different flavored cakes or frosting inside too!

6. Classic Pairing

If you’re having a formal and classic theme you can still opt for a single-layer cake. Red roses and pearl dragees are lovely decorations that will stay within the look of your wedding.

7. Coral and Aqua 

This is a winning color combination, and works even better when it comes in edible form. The extra detail of the gold glitter adds a little glamor.

8. Pink Peonies

A small cake with a pile of pink peonies looks rather regal when placed on an antique silver tray.

9. Lace Overlay 

This delicate pink cake is elevated by the addition of an intricate lace overlay and single flower. A wonderful idea if you are having several single-layer cakes or a vintage inspired garden party for your reception.

10. Rustic Buttercream 

The frosting on the cake has a rustic effect when combined with the fresh flowers. The buttercream technique is also a great way to frost the cake if you fancy doing it yourself. Especially, if you’re not a master baker.

Photo one: jlaynephotography.com; Photo two: theknot.com; Photo three: ruffledblog.com; Photo four: blissweddingsandevents.com; Photo five: greylikesweddings.com; Photo six: mohaphoto.com; Photo seven: hudsonnicholsphotography.com; Photo eight: polkadotbride.com; Photo nine: sweetstyleblog.com; Photo ten: pinterest.com

Lavender is lovely and feminine without being overly sweet and girly, and pairs so well with other colors, it’s hard not to want to incorporate it into your wedding day. If you need more convincing, these 5 foggy lavender color palettes are so darn pretty, we guarantee they’ll set your heart aflutter.

You might be tempted to pair lavender with other light pastel shades, but we love how beautifully the pale lavender and dark blue contrast and play off each other in this color scheme.

Who says lavender is only for spring? Four very different shades of purple make this color palette an interesting and unique choice for a fall or winter wedding.

Of course, if you are having a spring wedding, lavender is an easy and excellent color choice. We love pairing it with mint green and grey for a classic and sophisticated look.

This soft pastel palette is another classic color scheme for spring. If you’re looking for something sweet and feminine, this one’s for you.

For a spring or summer color scheme with a little more punch, add pops of pinky peach and golden yellow to give your palette a warm edge and balance out the cool lavender tones.

Photo one: frolic-blog.com; Photo two: fabmood.com; Photo three: ennui.blogg.se; Photo four: 100layercake.com; Photo five: stylemepretty.com

Looking for awesome favors/escort cards for your Holiday wedding? These DIY Candy Sleighs are easy to make, and you can have them ready to go weeks before your big day.

We splurged on Lindt Chocolate Santas; most of the ‘presents’ on the sleigh are also Lindt chocolates. We used Reese’s Pieces and Junior Mints to create the sleigh.

You will need: (Adapted from Betty Crocker)

• Box of Junior Mints (You can use other types of chocolates, just make sure they are in a box. Also, you will need two different sizes. The larger box (in this case, the Junior Mints) will go on the bottom.)
• Box of Reeses Pieces
• Chocolate Santa
• Four or five square pieces of chocolate that resemble presents
• Two Candy Canes
• Baker’s Twine
• Card Stock
• Wrapping Paper
• Hole Punch
• Glue Gun
• Scissors
• Scotch Tape

Not too many couples wish for snow on their wedding day, but for snowboard lovers Tracy and Matt, that’s precisely what they wished for. They made their dream a reality this past September when they took a helicopter ride up into New Zealand’s Southern Alps to exchange their vows at Chest Peak. Their photographer Susannah Blatchford tagged along for the ride – along with the officiant and videographer – to capture the couple as they said their I Do’s, played in the snow, and celebrated with champagne.

Tracy, 37 & Matt, 35

Chest Peak, Southern Alps, Canterbury South Island NZ

Wedding Date: September 10, 2014

Number of Guests: No guests. We eloped and traveled via helicopter with two photographers, a film maker, and our celebrant. We have a planned reception up in Matakana, Auckland on November 8th with 65 guests attending.

Wedding Cost: $4,000 for the elopement (the reception and honeymoon is $25,0000)

Wedding Ceremony Location: In the snow! Right on Chest Peak.

Wedding Reception Location: To be at Matakana in early November.

Why did you have a intimate wedding?

It was our dream to elope up in the mountains in the snow as this is a huge part of our life together. We love snowboarding and we also love the Southern Alps. We figured at the end of the day, though we love our family and friends, we wanted to have this memory for us; and being in the Alps in the snow was the memory we wanted.

What are some of the challenges that you faced planning an intimate wedding? 

Goodness, where do I start? First, Matt works in Australia on a 7 on, 7 off roster so we had to have a helicopter, celebrant, and photographer on standby for 6 weeks while we waited for good weather, Matt to be home, and for everyone to be available.

Was it difficult to pare down the guest list? 

For our reception we knew we only wanted close friends and our families, not our entire Facebook friends list! We also have an intimate location, a private residence, and we were only allowed to select about 70 guests in total. We decided 65 would be best so it was more comfortable.

Did you have any ‘issues’ with the small guest list from friends and family? If so, how did you address them?

As we could only choose 33 people each, we decided to invite only friends and no partners of friends we didn’t know or hadn’t met, purely to keep numbers down so we could have the people there we really want to celebrate with. We also only invited children that had traveled from overseas or close family children.

What were the highlights of the ceremony?

For me personally, it was the moment we were given the go ahead and we were in the helicopter going over the farm heading toward the huge snowy mountains and it suddenly hit me that we were getting married up there! It was an awesome feeling.

What were the highlights of the reception?

We haven’t had it yet, but so far it’s having all the people we love the most, excited to attend.

What was the best thing about having an intimate wedding?

Doing it our way! And with eloping there wasn’t any stress or tears; we just laughed the entire time and had fun! This is how we wanted our wedding ceremony – no stress or nerves or tears. It was perfect.

Vendors:

Helicopter: Garden City Helicopters Christchurch

Groom’s Tuxedo: Wilkins Suit Hire

Photography: Susannah Blatchford Photography

Officiant: Brent Mitchell

As today’s couple, Lauren and Patrick, know all too well, sometimes you don’t choose to have an intimate wedding; sometimes it chooses you.

The couple were planning a wedding extravaganza before a job related move forced them to downsize their plans and opt for a 10 guest “staged elopement” instead. While they may have slashed the guest list, they certainly didn’t skimp on the details, making for one of the chicest elopements we’ve ever seen!

A huge thank you to Tommy and Connie of The Great Romance for photographing and sharing their big day with us.

Lauren, 30 & Patrick, 35

Culver City, CA

Wedding Date: August 23, 2014

Number of Guests: 10

Wedding Cost: $3,000

Wedding Ceremony Location: The Culver Hotel

Wedding Reception Location: The Culver Hotel

Why did you have an intimate wedding?

We moved to the East Coast for jobs rather suddenly last year so we had to put off having the extravaganza we were planning back east, but then we decided we didn’t want to wait so we planned a “staged elopement” with just our immediate families and a few close friends.

What are some of the challenges that you faced planning an intimate wedding?

Telling family members was a challenge.

Was it difficult to pare down the guest list?

No, the parameters didn’t leave much wiggle room, which was good.

Did you have any ‘issues’ with the small guest list from friends and family? If so, how did you address them?

Communicating A LOT, and sending lots of pictures through the entire process so that we still felt connected.

What were the highlights of the ceremony?

The Irish music played by a violinist and cellist, our officiant’s extremely eloquent and beautiful wedding speech, and my parents sitting in the front row holding hands.

What were the highlights of the reception?

Getting to have LA friends come to the hotel bar for an after party.

What was the best thing about having an intimate wedding?

It was so special and we got to spend quality time and have conversations with everyone.

What advice do you have for couples who are considering an intimate wedding?

Do what’s in your heart. If you’re going to regret not having a big she-bang, be honest with yourself; and if you prefer to keep it small, people are most likely going to understand and be incredibly supportive of your decision!

Vendors:

Venue: The Culver Hotel

Photography: The Great Romance

Florals: Fleur De Rye

Desserts: Susie Cakes