September Moodboard: Wedding Season
Fresh Starts And New Beginnings

September sits in an interesting place. Technically summer, but already looking toward fall. And it’s always been my season of fresh starts and new beginnings.

My monthly moodboards are a loose collection of “what’s catching my attention lately” — food, fashion, fun, fitness, and whatever else lines up with the month’s theme.

For as long as I can remember, September has carried a sense of starting fresh. Back in my day (as we baby boomers like to say), the month was notable due to the beginning of a new school year, the Jewish High Holidays, the first hints of a new season of clothing, and the anticipation of my October birthday. Then, 35 years ago, we added another ‘new beginning’ to the month when we got married in September.

Of course, we aren’t the only ones we know who have chosen September for their nuptials. Two years ago, our calendar was packed with back-to-back-to-back celebrations, which I shared in September: A Month Of Weddings.

Recently, my husband and I watched the unedited videotapes from our wedding, something we hadn’t done in years. What a delight that turned out to be. We were reminded of what a great party it was, caught little moments we had forgotten, and spent some time again with people who are no longer with us. It’s exactly why we’ve encouraged our current bride and groom to hire a videographer for their wedding.

Watching it all again also had me thinking about how different wedding planning was 35 years ago. How did we ever manage without Pinterest, Instagram, and TikTok to guide us? I guess we mostly relied on Bride and Modern Bride magazines, along with wedding features in other women’s lifestyle publications. There were also the opinions of others, welcomed or not. Somehow, we figured it out.

And for the most part, I think we figured it out pretty well. We still like the colors, the flowers, the cake, and the overall look of the day. No doubt, a contemporary wedding with the same general aesthetics would look different, but I’m not looking back at our choices and wondering, “What were we thinking?”

There is one choice, however, that I would make differently today: my dress.

Even at the time, I knew I was acquiescing to a style that was more what my mother wanted than what I would have chosen for myself. It wasn’t awful, but given the choice again, I’d likely have gone in a different direction. So it was especially thrilling, all these years later, to be invited along when my son’s fiancée went shopping for her own wedding dress.

Being part of the bridal dress shopping crew gave me a front-row seat to an experience that felt both familiar and very different from my own. There are certainly more places to look for inspiration now, and probably more styles to sort through before ever stepping into a bridal salon. But once we were there, the process seemed much the same: meet with the stylist, try on dresses, see how they looked and felt, pay attention to the bride’s reaction, and have tissues on hand.

the first one

a cape is a fun idea

so much lace

loving a ball gown

architectural statement

What did feel different was the emphasis on the bride’s own taste. I was invited along on two different shopping trips and visited three stores in all. The dress she ultimately chose is not any of those shown above. She made her “yes to the dress” choice later, after another outing with her sisters at yet another store, so I have not yet seen it. In a way, that makes the whole thing more fun. I got to be part of the search without knowing exactly where it ended.

Of course, the dress is only one piece of the picture. The colors, flowers, tables, cake, and all of those other little decisions work together to create the overall look. Once that aesthetic starts taking shape, it influences plenty of other choices too, including what the bridal party will wear and, more specifically, the mothers of the bride and groom.

Our bride and groom have decided on a simple color palette: shades of green that reflect the outdoor landscape against a backdrop of white and black. The late-afternoon ceremony will be held on an outdoor garden terrace, followed by an evening reception in a modern Mediterranean-style ballroom. Daytime weather should be predictably sunny and in the mid-70s.

The dress code is ‘formal,’ which, to me, means a long dress but with more flexibility than black tie. Beyond that, the bride has left individual choices up to me and the others in the bridal party.

After mostly striking out during in-store shopping for my dress, I turned to looking online. Below are some of the ones I considered and/or ordered to try on (images are from macys.com). The dress I selected is among these, but you’ll have to wait a little while for that reveal.

One thing that seems very different now from 30+ years ago is just how much freedom couples have to make a wedding feel entirely their own. There are fewer hard-and-fast rules and societal expectations about what colors, flowers, decor, or even traditions are “supposed” to look like. Even our black-and-white palette was a bit of a rule-breaker back in 1991.

That freedom can be exciting, but I imagine it can also come with a little (or a lot of) pressure. When inspiration is everywhere, it can start to feel as though every detail needs to be personal, original, beautiful, meaningful, and camera-ready all at once.

Still, I like seeing how couples take familiar elements and make them feel more individual. A classic white cake might become sculptural, flowers can be loose and garden-like instead of formal, table settings can lean minimal or dramatic, and even the ceremony itself can reflect the personalities of the people getting married.

Photo by Jennifer Kalenberg on Unsplash

Photo by Soulseeker – Creative Photography on Unsplash

Photo by Jose Marroquin on Unsplash

Photo by Maurizio Perruolo on Unsplash

Photo by Matthew on Unsplash

Photo by Silvia Mara on Unsplash

Photo by nikki gibson on Unsplash

Of course, September isn’t only about weddings. That may be this month’s main theme, but there are still plenty of other things catching my attention right now. The change in seasons, what I’ll be wearing, what I’m looking forward to, and whatever else has found its way onto my radar all belong here too.

Top left – I’ve been leaning into a specific vein of athleisure lately: track pants with no intention of running. Leopard print pants with a stripe? Yes, please.
Top right – Feeling a pull towards preppy details lately as well, which explains this striped beauty’s recent acquisition.
Bottom left – Recently saw a similar jacket for $798 (what?!) on someone else’s moodboard; mine was $14 on clearance at Ross.
Bottom right – Decided it was time to get myself a stainless steel reusable water bottle, so I dropped a significant hint with my loved ones that this specific one would be a good gift for my birthday.

And that pretty much sums up what’s catching my attention this month: a little nostalgia, a little style, a few things I’m looking forward to, and quite a bit of wedding talk.

Understandably, “wedding season” felt like a fitting theme this time around, especially in a month that already seems to come with its own reset button.

What’s making it onto your September moodboard?

Stay well and let’s keep in touch! Subscribe, follow, friend, pin … all options are available. I look forward to hearing from you soon.

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