Continue reading Wedding Graduate: Madeline’s Lazy (and possibly cheap) Blog-Chic Wedding Posts Tagged ‘Outdoor Weddings’
So I wrote Friday's post in a fit of being unable to keep it inside any longer. Because the secret is, throwing a wedding, even a stylish wedding, is easy. (Wedding planning is not, because it involves facing up to tradition, emotion, faith, aesthetics, family, money, and EXPECTATIONS, just to name a few.) But actually throwing a wedding? S-I-M-P-L-E. But there is so much cash involved (even in the blogging world) in making you think it's hard and involves, you know, signs hand painted onto old plywood and letterpress and monogrammed chocolate and fancy lights and hand-knit whatevers...because if weddings are hard, it keeps you hooked on figuring them out. So. It was time for the real scoop. And, because Team Practical never ceases to amaze me, I came home to this email from Madeline, and oh-my-god she and her husband actually threw the wedding I described, exactly. I love you guys.
Continue reading Wedding Graduate: Madeline’s Lazy (and possibly cheap) Blog-Chic Wedding
Continue reading Wedding Graduate: Madeline’s Lazy (and possibly cheap) Blog-Chic Wedding
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Wordless Wedding: Lyn & Chad
Jun
2011
* Lyn of Another Damn Life * photographs by Christina Richards Weddings * Soundtrack for reading, Magnetic Fields “Love is Like a Bottle of Gin” *
The Info—Venue: Santa Barbara Historical Museum, Santa Barbara, CA. Dress: Saja Wedding, Necklace: Button Soup Jewelry, Shrug & Shawl: Sweet Knitting, Hair Fascinator: Sweet Grass Mill Suit: A no-brand number from a suit outlet in downtown Los Angeles. Photographer: Christina Richards Weddings (APW Sponsor).
Other cool stuff we should know about: Our peanut butter dessert cookies were stamped with the words “KICK ASS” and “HELL YEAH.” Our grand entrance was to Beastie Boys’ “Sabotage” and we heightened the effect by wearing mirrored aviator sunglasses.
One sentence sum up of the wedding vibe: An outdoor celebration of love and community underscored by food, friends, family, fun, and booze.
Favorite thing about the wedding: I was going through these questions on the phone with my husband and when I got to this one, he immediately answered “Marrying the person I love.” Which is an entirely awww-inducing, APW-appropriate response. And here I was trying to think of details. Anyway, my answer: the moment I looked down during the ceremony and saw that our officiant-friend had accessorized his suit with bare feet. That’s the moment when I finally let everything go and thought, okay. Okay. Let’s just sit back and see what happens from here.
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Wordless Wedding: Jacquetta & Shaneequa
Jun
2011
* Jacquetta & Shaneequa * Photographer Kelly Prizel Photography (APW Sponsor) * Soundtrack for reading: Adele “Make You Feel My Love” *
The Info—Dress: J. Crew; Pink Shoes: Chinese Laundry; Suit: Purchased at a hidden gem of a shop in the U Street Corridor of Washington, DC; Ceremony Venue: Woodrow Wilson House garden; Reception: Darlington House; Flowers: Eastern Market farmer’s market, arranged by Jacquetta and her hands-on-wedding planner; Planner: LoveBus Events; Photographer: Kelly Prizel Photography
Other cool stuff we should know about: It snowed the morning of our outdoor ceremony. Our recessional song was Kiss by Prince, our wedding planner was nervous the song was a little too risque…
One sentence sum up of the wedding vibe: An intimate, DIY, family affair that was a little bit hippie a little bit urban and a lot a bit LOVE.
Favorite thing about the wedding: Handmade ceremony programs printed on vintage handkerchiefs (blood sweat and tears, and went like hotcakes as our guests hoarded them). Shaneequa getting to DJ her own reception—setting the tone of the party.
05
Wordless Wedding: Kayce & Matty
Jul
2011
* Kayce (Shiny Pretty Bits) & Matty * Photographer: One Love Photo (Now shooting in Hawaii)* Soundtrack for reading: Explosions in the Sky, “So Long, Lonesome” *
The Info—Venue: Oceanfront Oasis, Hawaii; Dress: Daphne by Melissa Sweet; Suit: The Byard by Paul Smith; Hair Flower: Trulu Couture; Shoes: Pour La Victoire; Photography: One Love Photo (APW Sponsor; Meg’s Photographers, now booking in Hawaii too!)
Other Cool Stuff: Though it eliminated most of the venues we looked at, it was really important to us to have our dog, Bear, there. He walked in with my husband and wore a striped gray bow-tie from American Apparel. Also, we had a gobo made for the pool out of a monogram I had done for our website and stationary. This ended up being our favorite detail of the night and was completely my husband’s idea.
What The Pictures Don’t Tell You: Our wedding was a complete labor of love. Since our budget wasn’t large we had to get creative and look to our community to make things work. We had a lounge-style reception to cut down on the amount of tables we’d have to dress. Our serving ware came from Goodwill and Ross. We shopped for all the food ourselves over the course of the three days leading up to the wedding, and we hired a friend to cater. We served the food on paper plates. My sister in law did everyone’s makeup. Another friend did everyone’s hair. A friend offered to bake our wedding cake using one of my favorite recipes and yet another friend made all of our gorgeous floral arrangements. My husband owns a bar, so our alcohol was donated and the waitstaff and bartenders were our regular staff. Our family graciously did all of the setup and breakdown. If it weren’t for our community we probably would have run off and eloped. I’m glad we didn’t.
Favorite Thing: Our closest friends and family are scattered all around the world. Having them all in one place for a week to celebrate with us was the greatest gift and made all the stress of planning the wedding worth it.
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Wedding Graduates: Holly & Chris, Part 2
Jul
2011
And now, the second part of Holly’s wedding graduate tale. This half takes place in Yosemite, shot by amazing APW photographer Patrick Pike (elopements are his passion). If the first half of Holly’s wedding graduate story is about how weddings our for our families, the second half is about how weddings are also about meeting the deepest needs of our souls. So now we bring you the (breathtaking) Wedding Day Part II.
Planning a wedding when you’re already technically married feels a little strange… After saying our vows on Chris’ grandmother’s farm the Friday before, we were a little uncertain whether we should go ahead and still have some sort of ceremony in Yosemite. We were wearing wedding bands already, but didn’t totally feel married. Then I realized that we’d planned it for months, the flowers were set to be delivered, the photographer and pastor had been paid, a girl was coming to do my hair and makeup, and I’d never worn my wedding gown… As beautiful and meaningful as our backyard ceremony had been, I could hardly remember much of it because it was raining and Chris was shaking so badly and Charlotte was fidgety. We wanted to do something for just the two of us. And so we proceeded…
The days before our ceremony Yosemite’s weather was tempestuous as best. Snow, hail, and rain kept us from hiking as much as we wanted to, but we made the best of it and laughed when we had to learn how to use tire chains on icy mountain roads. I took pictures and giggled the whole time and we later warmed up by a fire.
The morning of our wedding the earth was blanketed in snow. Stepping outside our room it looked like we had stepped into Narnia. I did what I always do and thought “photo-op!”, took my boots and dress, tromped out into eight inches of snow, hung up my dress, and photographed it as the snow melted all over it.
I felt like a bride for the first time when Carole came to do my hair and makeup… Not a stressed-out mom, or a photographer, or anything else… but a bride… The feeling had eluded me for almost a year.
For the first time in as long as I can remember I allowed myself to relax and stop worrying about my daughter and my business and just let someone make me pretty. Continue reading Wedding Graduates: Holly & Chris, Part 2
03
Wordless Wedding: Jennah & Gary
Aug
2011
* Jennah (Speechwriter) & Gary (Software analyst/part-time rock star) * Photographer: Zachary Hunt Photography, TX * Soundtrack for reading: Elvis Costello “Everyday I Write the Book” *
The Info—Ceremony Venue: St. Mary Cathedral, Austin, Texas / Reception Venues: Saengerrunde Hall (inside) and Scholz Garten (outside) / Dress: Nicole Miller / Bride’s shoes: Dolce & Gabana / Bride’s ring: Todd Reed / Headpiece: refashioned from the bride’s maternal grandmother’s / Groom’s suit: eh, who cares / Bride and bridesmaids’ makeup: Kelley Tway of Have Lipstick, Will Travel / Bridesmaids’ earrings: JaqJack / Cakes: designed by the bride and made by Word of Mouth Catering / Paper Goods & Groom’s-Cake Label: Pat Ramseur Design / Photography: Zachary Hunt Photography, TX (APW Sponsor)
Other cool stuff: I’ve made enough Halloween costumes to know not to get too crazy over details—most of the time, if you cover the main ideas, people subconsciously fill in the rest themselves. So I knew as long as we kept everything fun, unpretentious, and clever, we would get the wedding we wanted. The reception was at a biergarten/old-man social hall. Almost all the centerpiece items came from thrift stores. Instead of table numbers (since we didn’t have a seating chart) I typed fascinating facts about Gary and me on index cards. We had barbecue for dinner (although my mom insisted on German potato salad because it was “nicer” than regular potato salad). The groom’s cake was a giant Twinkie. Since my family is from Ohio, my mom made 600 buckeyes (chocolate-covered peanut butter balls endemic to that state) from my grandmother’s recipe for the dessert table. We are a decidedly un-schmoopie couple, so our first dance was Diana Ross’s “Love Hangover;” after 45 seconds of slow-jam steaminess it turns into the sickest disco song ever, whence everyone came to join us. Our friends’ rockabilly-ish band, The Sutcliffes, played. Then Gary’s (Neil Diamond cover) band played, and we danced with a microphone between us as he sang “Heartlight” to me. (Did you know “Heartlight” is about E.T.? It’s true!) Then he surprised me by singing “It’s Too Late to Turn Back Now,” the 70s soul song. (Don’t worry, it’s a lot more romantic than the title suggests.) Oh, and after our (amazing, emotional, Catholic) ceremony we went to my favorite grocery store to take pictures, then we rejoined the wedding party in time to relax and get a betting pool going on the Kentucky Derby.
One sentence sum up of the wedding vibe: A fun, funny, un-fussy Texas throwdown with plenty of family, friends, and our own version of romance.
Favorite thing about the wedding: I was completely entranced when Gary said his vows. His conviction was so clear and powerful that I physically felt his words. Also, that I caught the chicken.
