During a wedding consult last week I was asked, “Where do you come up with all your creative ideas?”

I answered by saying that many of my ideas are based on experience, things I’ve seen used elsewhere, ideas from other clients, and books I have in my personal library.

If you’re looking for inspiration planning for your wedding or special event, here’s a list of recently-published books I refer to. They are worth exploring. If you’ve discovered others, let me know so I can check them out.

Wild Flowers: Projects and Inspirations

Absolutely one of the best books I have on my bookshelf for great, inexpensive ideas that can be incorporated into any type of wedding, party, or special event. I have often used variations of these ideas with clients to help spark their special events and make them more memorable.

Written by two of the most celebrated event planners in the country, Avi Adler and David Stark, this book is my favorite “go to” guide.

Simple Stunning Weddings: Designing and Creating Your Perfect Celebration

This is another great idea book, especially if you are in the beginning stages of your wedding planning. In my experience, too many brides are overwhelmed by details in planning their weddings. They “sweat the small stuff”, and lose sight of the “big picture”.

This book focuses on “the big picture”, the event site itself. Since your venue is the starting point in the planning process, this book presents ways to make it best work for you, using ideas that rely on simplicity, color, and your own personality. And the techniques presented are easy to implement anywhere, regardless of the size of your budget.

Once you understand how to focus in on the “big picture”, the planning process becomes smoother and working with outside vendors easier.

Author and wedding planner Karen Bussen, has also written a follow-up book, Simple Stunning Wedding Flowers. If you like her ideas and style, this book is also worth a look.

To Have & To Hold: Magical Wedding Bouquets

Most wedding bouquet styles are timeless. But as styles and tastes change, most wedding bouquet books look dated.

This book, the second by Avi Adler and David Stark, is a treasure-trove of ideas for creative, contemporary wedding bouquets. I actually purchased this book after several brides brought in their copies to show me the type of bouquet they wanted. Needless to say, I was impressed.

If you need to jump-start the creative process when it comes to choosing bouquets for your wedding, this book will get your juices flowing.

There are a lot of wedding flower books on the market. Most focus on the DIY crowd and saving money. The books I mentioned focus on how to work with professionals and effectively spend the money you’ve budgeted for your wedding flowers. That’s what my clients expect. That’s why I bought them.