most every girl has done at least a little bit of daydreaming about her wedding. chances that you have the entire thing visualized are pretty slim though, especially if that plan formed before the mister came along. there is the gentleman to consider, after all. at least in a token effort.

these days, my favorite weddings are the highly personalized ones. all trends point away from just picking two colors and a silver accent and calling that a design. i love looking at a few pictures couples bring me and feeling like i know about their interests and style. but how does one begin to define their style? here’s an easy way to help organize your wedding ideas.

1. list your whatever wedding dreams you might have, from the broad to the narrow. they don’t have to match, it’s ok to put “black-tie cocktail reception” on the same page as “clothes pin escort cards.”

2. take a look at what brings you joy in life. are you and your mate outdoorsy? do you travel all over? is your house piled high with books? do you spend a lot of time playing katamari? consider any family and cultural traditions that mean a lot to you too–it doesn’t even have to be wedding-related.

3. clip and save. every day we’re inundated with images, ideas, and other media that resonate with us. once we say yes and become engaged, it’s also a lot of fun to seek these things out on the web and in print. keep track of it all by ripping out magazine photos and articles or managing your online finds via your bookmarks or a social catalog like pinterest.

an inspiration board that served as a starting point for last october’s black and white wedding

4. with your fiance, go back over your lists and the little inspiration tidbits you’ve gathered and look for a common theme. edit away things that diverge too much from this theme. ta-da! now your wedding style has a direction!

5. bring your vision to me and i’ll translate it into flowers.

another popular and helpful tool for visualizing your style is the inspiration board. these little collages easily convey a mood and communicate that to the viewers, and can be very powerful in that regard. they’re easy to come across online these days at just about any wedding blog, but my favorites are by annie at marry you me. make your own using the great tool available from style me pretty (make an account and the option to create your own boards will appear), or just browse the hundreds made by other users.

how have you come by your wedding’s mood and style? what did you come up with?