Summer Wedding Signature Cocktail Ideas

If you love these Summer Wedding Signature Cocktail recipes, be sure to Yum them here: Yum

Are you planning your summer wedding? If you are, and you're trying to cut down on the bar tab, you're in the right place.

As with every season, we've put together a list of wedding signature cocktail ideas. By choosing to serve one of these easy wedding cocktails instead of a full open bar, you can potentially save a ton of money.

Summer Wedding Signature Cocktail Ideas

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Signature cocktails are a really fun touch to add to your wedding.

You can definitely personalize your wedding by adding signature cocktails to the menu. Pick a drink that you really like or that goes with your name/personality (like Cathy's Cosmo or Mike's Moscow Mule).

If you solely have signature cocktails on your bar menu, you'll could save on your bar tab. The venue will only have to stock certain items and can charge you accordingly. Plus, if you don't use top shelf liquor, that means you don't have to pay for top shelf liquor.

And, if you're planning on making your own drinks and having a backyard reception, signature cocktails make a lot more sense. You can just make gigantic pitchers of the drinks and set them up so your guests can serve themselves. That way, no one has to play bartender and mix up drinks all night long.

When you're thinking about summer wedding reception cocktails, you want to go with drinks that are light and fruity. You can save anything dark and heavy for winter. But right now, with fruit in season, you want to add that flavor to your drinks.

Sangria

Sangria is one of those summertime recipes that are a big hit. You can put in a bunch of different liquors, but we were at a restaurant once that suggested Licor 43 (which you can find at your local liquor store), and Pete's been making it that way ever since.

• 1 bottle white wine
• 1/2 cup Licor 43
• 1.5 cup white grape juice
• Fruit of your choice, sliced and diced
• 2 sprigs mint

Halfway fill a glass pitcher with ice. Add the fruit. Pour in the white wine, juice, and liquor. Stir. Top with mint.

Piña Colada 

Who doesn't like piña coladas and getting caught in the rain? Okay. Me. I'll admit it. But that's only because I'm allergic to pineapple and I don't drink alcohol. But the caught in the rain part, oh, it's so super romantic, isn't it? And, as much as Alanis Morissette would say rain on your wedding day is ironic, I still think a piña colada is a great wedding drink.

• 1.5 cups ice
• 1.5 cup frozen diced pineapple, frozen
• 2 ounces pineapple juice
• 2 ounces cream of coconut
• 1.5 ounces white rum 
• 1 ounce dark rum
• Pineapple slices for garnish

Blend everything (except the pineapple slices). Pour into a glass. Garnish with pineapple slices.

Mojito

Mojitos just sounds like summer, don't they? Plus, what's great is that even though the recipe below is traditional, you can add fruit and totally change a mojito. Think strawberry mojito, mango mojito, passion fruit ... whatever works best for your wedding.

• 1.5 ounces club soda
• 1 ounce lime juice
• 1 ounce simple syrup (equal parts sugar and water, heated and combined)
• 2 ounce white rum
• Mint leaves

Put the mint, lime juice, and simple syrup in a cocktail shaker and muddle (to open the flavor of the mint). Add the rum, some ice, and shake. Strain into a glass filled with ice and top with the club soda.

More Seasonal Wedding Signature Cocktails:

If you stumbled on this post because you're planning a wedding and looking for signature cocktail ideas, but you're not planning a summer wedding, don't worry. We have ideas for other seasons as well. Check those out below:

• Spring Wedding Signature Drinks
• Fall Wedding Signature Drinks
• Winter Wedding Signature Drinks

More Summer Wedding Ideas:

If you're planning a summer wedding and need some more ideas to help you plan, you're in luck. We have a ton of posts that can help:

• Summer Wedding Escort Card Ideas
• Beach Wedding Invitation Ideas
• DIY Wedding Sunscreen Bar
• Beach Wedding Favor Idea

BRIDAL BABBLE: Which of these summer wedding signature cocktail ideas is your favorite?

Fiesta Wedding Inspiration Board

I love wedding inspiration boards. They're super fun to put together and such a great way to find and collect ideas. Four years ago (how time flies!), Lydia tweeted me and asked for ideas for her Tex/Mex/Fiesta wedding theme, so of course, I had to put together a Fiesta Wedding inspiration board. And with being Cinco de Mayo around the corner, it only felt right to break out this post from the vault.

Fiesta Wedding Inspiration Board

The more I worked on it, the more I realized just how incredibly fun a fiesta wedding would be. The essence of a fiesta wedding is bright and bold colors. Think lots of hot pink, Tiffany blue, and yellow. The brighter, the better.

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Kick things off with bright, bold fiesta wedding invitations. For a fiesta wedding, you can't start with a dull invitation. From the very beginning, you want your guests to know they're in for a party.

The invitations above are no longer available, but you can check out these Fiesta Invitations from Minted. I like them a lot because there is a lot of detail to them. Even more, you can change the colors on it to your custom colors to personalize them.

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I absolutely love the flowers you can choose for a fiesta wedding. Flowers look amazing in wedding photos if they have a pop to them. Bright, bold colors can give you that pop.

But, you can carry that past the actual flowers. Instead of a white or ivory piece of ribbon on your stems, you can go with something like turquoise tulle.

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I imagine a fiesta wedding has to be held outdoors. You're not having this wedding in the dead of winter when your guests are confined to a ballroom. It's outdoors in a courtyard of some sort. It's in a warm month and your guests may get hot during the ceremony.

So bright, multi-colored programs printed as fans ... perfect.

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If you're having a fiesta wedding, it should be loud. With loud colors, you're not going to have a super quiet ceremony. It just doesn't mesh. So I'm definitely a huge supporter of maracas. Add a note to them to ask your guests to shake them during the kiss. Or have them rattle you down the aisle after the ceremony.  You can pick up some hand painted wooden maracas, but those will get pricey. Personally, I vote for some plastic maracas. They'll do the trick and won't burn your budget.

Photo credit Photo credit You can definitely have a great time with escort cards that double as favors. You can pick up mini bottles of Patron (which I'm sure your guests will absolutely love) or Tabasco sauce. Amazon sells a case of 500 bottles of Tabasco sauce. I know, it sounds like a lot and you probably won't have 500 guests, but it's actually a lot cheaper than if you buy less. And then you'll have these for your own consumption after the wedding (or just donate them to your venue). Photo credit Photo credit

When your guests get to their seats, there's so much you can do with the tables.

Instead of traditional tablecloths, go with blankets. You can use cacti instead of floral centerpieces (which might save on your flowers budget). You can also decorate with paper flowers, which you can DIY from tissue paper or coffee filters.

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Your menu can be so fun with a fiesta wedding.  Start with your signature cocktails. For a fiesta, you definitely should have sangria. Horchata is a great choice too. They're easy to make and will save money too. It would be really pretty if you served drinks with chevron paper straws too.

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And then there's the meal. You know I'm a huge fan of having an action station -- and a taco bar would be perfect for a fiesta wedding. If you have servers, you could do a quesadilla station too (which are really popular). I would definitely have salsa and guacamole too. And remember those extra Tabasco bottles? Here's a great place for them.

You can start your guests with a plated avocado salad or a Mexican tortilla soup, then have the bars as a buffet dinner. Or have a plated dinner and have the taco bar during cocktail hour. There's a ton of options with your menu.

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Your guests are definitely going to want to be the type of people who have fun, so I would set up a photo booth for them.

If you have one, fill it with maracas (like the ones you used during the ceremony), sombreros, baby guitars, and margarita glasses. Definitely grab a bold fabric for a backdrop and your guests will have a great time.

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And, at the end of the night, you can have churros. I've talked to so many wedding guests who say they love a late night snack when leaving the wedding (it's part of why we had a candy buffet on the way out of our wedding).

Handing out churros in chevron treat bags (which match the chevron straws) just ties everything together. And that's part of what you need with a wedding like this. It can be so big and bold that it takes off and gets out of control. You need themes (like chevron) to tie everything together and bring it back to center.

I absolutely love this these fiesta wedding ideas. If you do too, be sure to check out our fiesta wedding Pinterest board.

BRIDAL BABBLE: What would you add to your fiesta wedding inspiration board?

Outdoor Wedding Tips

We went to see a venue at the beginning of our wedding planing, and I fell in love with it. It was pretty shabby looking from the front, but once you got inside, oh my gosh. You were transported to a beautiful resort. You didn't feel like you were in North Carolina; it felt like some posh resort in Playa del Carmen.

I fell in love immediately.

Pete and I walked to the beach area where a wedding was already set up and I just started imagining our guests out there with the ocean as our backdrop.

We crossed the street (which I was a little bummed about but figured I would just deal) and were greeted by the outdoor dance floor. It was exactly like all the beautiful Pinterest photos I had seen. I just loved it.

Pete and I crossed the street again to go back to the tiki bar by the pool and discuss. We loved it ... but had some concerns. See, with an outdoor wedding, there are a lot of things you need to take into consideration that you don't when you're planning an indoor wedding. But you don't have to think about them. I've already thought about them for you.

Outdoor Wedding Tips

Plan for a hot day.
If you're planning a winter wedding, you're probably not going to have the ceremony outdoors. These types of venues are reserved for the other three seasons. And those other seasons can be hot. Really hot. When I was originally writing this up, it was a regular summer day, and it was nearly 100 degrees. I was sitting at the pool, so once the heat became unbearable, I could jump right in. But your wedding guests won't have that option (although, if I'm being completely honest, two of my bridesmaids jumped in the pool at our wedding. But most wedding guests won't do that).

So for an outdoor wedding, you really have to think about what you'll do on a hot day. For the ceremony, you definitely want to order wedding program fans. If it's hot, your guests will most likely be fanning themselves with anything that's handy, and that will most likely be your program. So plan for them and make your programs with handles.

Also, think about how your guests will stay cool during the reception. Is there an AC unit outdoors? Is there an indoor section of the venue where they can cool off? Is the venue's tent equipped with misters that your guests can walk under? The answer to one of these questions has to be yes. If not, you risk our guests getting heat stroke and needing to go to urgent care -- and no one wants an ambulance showing up to their wedding uninvited.

Plan for a rainy day.
Alanis Morissette was convinced that rain on your wedding day was ironic. But actually, it's just a pain in the neck. If you're planning a beach wedding ceremony ... and it rains, you need a back up plan. Where will you get married if there's a storm? Make sure your venue has a back up plan for a ceremony and reception, in case of bad weather. If the ceremony moves into the reception area, where will your guests go during the breakdown and set up? If the venue doesn't have a back up plan (and some don't), you need to find a different one.

You also have to ask if the venue will cancel your wedding due to bad weather. We went to a venue that had in its contract that any inclement weather or "acts of God," including hurricanes, could void the contract with no refund. So basically, if a tropical storm rolls through, the venue can call your wedding off and you don't get your money back. In that case, you need wedding insurance (yes that's a thing), but you also need a back up plan. Your guests are still planning to come, so you have to give them somewhere to be. If the venue can't help you come up Plan B, this is not the venue for you.

Keep your guests extra hydrated.
An open bar is great at a wedding, but if yours is outdoors, there's a good chance your guests will want water too. So make this something special for them. Have the wait staff hand out small water bottles with personalized labels to guests as soon as they enter the reception hall. Print something cute like, "Welcome to our wedding" on them and your guests will love them. At the end of the night, you can have a table with full-size water bottles with a matching label that says, "Thanks for coming." It's a nice way to say "drink some water" without actually shoving it down their throats.

Also, make sure water is an available beverage choice. I know, it sounds obvious, but when you choose your own caterer, you often need to hand select every item on your menu, and that includes beverages. If you don't ask for water, you might not get it.

Fill the venue with "extras" that your guests may have forgotten.
Some of your guests may not actually realize that your ceremony or reception (or both) is entirely outdoors, so they may not plan accordingly. Help them out. Create a sunscreen bar so they don't go home burned. Pick up cooling wipes (they actually work, believe it or not) and have them near your sunscreen basket. Pick up paper fans (if you don't do the program ones) and have them available.

Stay out of the sun.
You'll be standing for the majority of your wedding ceremony and the last thing you want to do is pass out before the "I Do." But with all the running around you'll be doing pre-wedding, you won't have time to eat or drink, which aids in your lightheaded-ness. Standing in the sun during the ceremony probably isn't a good idea. So don't.

Instead of flowers, hold a really pretty wedding parasol when you walk down the aisle. You can get one in white for you, and your bridesmaids can carry ones that match their dresses. Then, you can hold it open during the ceremony. You'll get more use out of it -- and you'll get a little shade too.

Choose your bridal party's attire appropriately.
With an outdoor venue, you have to worry about your bridal party. If it's an outdoor wedding in summer, don't force your bridesmaids to wear long, heavy gowns. If it's an outdoor wedding in winter, don't ask your girls to wear open toed shoes (because walking through snow with those is not fun).

For the groomsmen, think about just how hot a black tuxedo can get in the sun. Choose a lighter color, like khaki. And maybe do vests instead of a suit jacket. And a lighter shirt will be their friend (because you don't want sweaty pit stains in your photos for the rest of your life).

BRIDAL BABBLE: What other outdoor wedding tips do you have?

Items To Pack For A Summer Wedding

A Bride On A Budget received one of these items for review. All thoughts and opinions belong to A Bride On A Budget.

Do you have a summer wedding coming up? What you need to bring varies a little than any other season. I mean, you're not worried about packing gloves in case your date wants to go outside. But, sunscreen in case your date wants to go outside, you need that. Plus a few essentials that you want to make sure you pack for a summer wedding, lest you want to wake up the next morning feeling like a hungover lobster.

But don't worry. We have you covered. I put together a list of nine items to pack for a summer wedding. And, even better: we are giving away one of them!

Items To Pack For A Summer Wedding

1. Mosquito Repellent Bracelets
2. Light Shawl
3. Flip Flops
4. Water Bottle
5. Cute Hair Clip
6. Sunscreen
7. Blotting Paper
8. Sunglasses

Mosquito Repellent Bracelets

This is the time of year when bugs are out ... and hungry. I feel like I can't sit outside without swatting away a mosquito. And if you get bit, it's so itchy and annoying. You don't want to be annoyed at a wedding, but you also don't want to feel sticky from a spray. So go with mosquito repellent bracelets. Personally, I love them. You can pick them up in a variety of styles and colors, so you can find one to match your dress. You can wear them as an anklet too, in case you don't want it on your wrist.

Purchase here.

Light Shawl

I'm always cold. It could be 100 degrees out, and there's a chance I'll be cold. It's just how I am. I pack a shirt with sleeves every time I go out ... but you can't do that at a wedding. I mean, you can because I have, but you definitely want to go with a light shawl instead. They're more wedding fashion friendly than a zip up.

Purchase here.

Flip Flops

Heels are so cute, but after a lot of dancing, they usually come off. And dancing barefoot isn't the best idea. And, with summer weddings, there's a chance you'll be on a beach and you don't want to wear your nice shoes on sand. So packing flip flops is a huge must for summer weddings.

Purchase here.

Collapsible Water Bottle

When you're at a wedding, there's usually an open bar and you can get water if you're thirsty. But what about pre-reception? It's up to you to hydrate. Packing water in your purse is a smart idea. You can either go with a disposable water bottle so you can throw it away when you're done or a collapsible water bottle. Those will roll up easily and fit in your purse when you're done.

Purchase here.

Cute Hair Clip

Summer weddings can be hot. Really hot. And when it's hot, you probably toss your hair up into a ponytail. It's what I do. But at a wedding, you don't want to ruin your cute curls with a rubber band. Instead, pack a cute hair clip. That way, you can still have styled hair while keeping it off your neck.

Purchase here.

Sunscreen

A big part about summer weddings is the weather. It's great to be able to be outdoors. But ... that means you need to worry about your skin and use sunscreen. I mean, how painful would the morning after be if you're dealing with a hangover and a sunburn.

Purchase here.

Blotting Paper

I love blotting paper. I can't even tell you what a fan I am of them. They're great when you start getting oily. You just blot your face and your skin is done being shiny. What a lifesaver because that shine will show in photos, and that's the last thing you want.

Purchase here.

Sunglasses

Sunglasses are the most important thing on this list. The others might be provided for you at the wedding, but sunglasses are something you need to bring yourself. And you need them during summer weddings, especially if you plan on stepping outdoors. And if the ceremony is outside, you won't be able to see a thing if you're squinting.

Purchase here.

Speaking of sunglasses, Pete and I actually each got a pair from AC Lens recently. I got the Velvet Eyewear Preacher and Pete got the Proof Cosmo Skate. They came in the mail late last week and we've been wearing them daily since.

Both of our sunglasses came with carrying cases, which is great. We both have awful habits of scratching our lenses, so this has kept them completely safe. Plus, they match everything. There hasn't been an outfit where either of us felt our shades were a contrast. Pete loves that his are made from a skate deck and that his are polarized. I'm super happy that my pair has rubber on the arms because they haven't once bothered my ears.

It took us a while to decide what we wanted from AC Lens. The site has so many options (it boasts 699 pairs!). You could pick up a pair and use them in wedding photos (we have a shot of us standing on the beach, reflected in a sunglasses lens), you could pick up a pair for everyone coming to your bachelorette party so you all match, you could get them for your groomsmen as thank you gifts ... if you're throwing a summer wedding, the ideas are pretty endless.

One of you may have to make the difficult choice of which pair you like best because we are teaming up with AC Lens to give away one pair (up to a $200 value). The giveaway starts now and ends at 11:59pm EST on July 20. The winner will have 24 hours to respond to the winning email before another winner is selected. The winner will need to respond with a sunglasses selection, so be sure to have that ready.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Good luck.

A Bride On A Budget is not responsible for prize fulfillment.

Summer Wedding Escort Card Ideas

We were engaged for two days and went out for a celebration dinner. After we placed our order and were waiting for our food, I started talking to Pete about the wedding. I was asking him who he was going to pick for his bridal party.

Then, I was talking about seasons. I said it had to be summer. My mom works at a school and Pete works in the school district, so summer was best for them. I then said it has to be June, even though it's the most expensive month, because it's the coolest summer month here.

If you're planning a summer wedding, this is for you. I put together a list of summer wedding escort card ideas. With summer, there's a ton of fun ways to display your escort cards, so don't miss out on the opportunity to add a pop of theme.

We've had a discussion about this before, but in case you're new here, here's a quick lesson about escort and place cards:

Escort cards are individual cards with the guests names and table number on it. Your guests know the table they're assigned but can sit at any seat at that table. Place cards have an exact seat for the guest, both table and seat. You can have a huge board with table assignments on it then have the place card waiting at the seat. And then, of course, there are table numbers, which are the huge number in the center of the table. Without them, your guests won't know where to sit.

Regardless of if you use escort or place cards, you should definitely alphabetize them. Guests are going to look for their names alphabetically, so make it easier for them. They'll one) spend less time at the welcome table and more time in the reception room and two) spend less time at the welcome table causing a huge hold up behind them.

Summer Wedding Escort Card Ideas

1. Starfish Cards and Sand Dollar Place Cards
2. Oceanfront Flip-Flop Card Holders
3. Seven Seas White Summer Beach Coral Card Holder
4. Hinterland Trading Seashell Card Holders
5. Shimmering Starfish Card Holders
6. Kate Aspen "Nautical" Anchor Card Holders

Starfish Cards and Sand Dollar Place Cards

That's the way ours were set up. The photo above is actually one of our wedding photos. We used a combination of Starfish Cards and Sand Dollar Place Cards from Night Owl Paper Goods. We had them placed in rock sand from the house Pete's family rents in the Outer Banks and had a few starfish added to tie it all together.

Purchase the Starfish Cards here and the Sand Dollar Place Cards here.

Oceanfront Flip-Flop Card Holders

My favorite escort card holders are the Oceanfront Flip-Flop Card Holders. They're really cute. You can stick a card with the guests' names in them then, after the wedding, they can reuse these as photo holders. Personally, I think these would work best if your colors are already in the blue and teal realm. If not, it doesn't really make as much sense for this exact set.

Purchase here.

Seven Seas White Summer Beach Coral Card Holder

For a more neutral pallet, there's the Seven Seas White Summer Beach Coral Card Holder. I actually saw a DIY about making your own coral from sponges and plaster, but I haven't tried it yet to see if it would end up being a Pinterest fail. Until I perfect a DIY, I'm suggested these.

Purchase here.

Hinterland Trading Seashell Card Holders

For something a little more generic, check out the Hinterland Trading Seashell Card Holders. If you have seashells and a table saw, you could probably make these on your own. Or you can just buy them. If you're making everything else for your wedding, though, these definitely look more DIY than your other options, so it would definitely fit your theme.

Purchase here.

Shimmering Starfish Card Holders

On the complete opposite side of DIY is the Shimmering Starfish Card Holders. Your guests will definitely know you didn't make these. But how cute are they to add a little bling to your table?

Purchase here.

Kate Aspen "Nautical" Anchor Card Holders

And, for nautical weddings, which are super popular, there's the Kate Aspen "Nautical" Anchor Card Holders. They look a little weathered, which I think is a nice touch. Maybe they're anchors that have been used (okay, they're not, of course, but it's good coloring choices).

Purchase here.

Of course, whichever you choose, don't forget to pick up the actual cards to write on. Something simple like these Ivory Pearl Placecards works because anything too fancy would take away from your holder. The only exception, of course, is if you did something like mine and didn't use a holder.

BRIDAL BABBLE: I've seen a few other cute options too, like attaching a tag to a cocktail umbrella or starfish. What other summer wedding escort card ideas have you seen?

Planning a summer wedding?
Check out our DIY sunscreen bar.