I’m excited to get to share Lani and Williams simple, joyful, beautiful wedding. This wedding is stylish in a unassuming way, but the part that makes me love it is the looks on everyone’s faces, it’s this blissful mix of joy and peace all mixed up together that makes me so happy. So, Lani, take it away:
Where your wedding was held: Our wedding ceremony was held at my church, St. Andrew’s Anglican in Little Rock, Arkansas. I love the large windows and simple rustic atmosphere.
Our reception was at Camp Aldersgate- I had almost given up on finding a practical place for 200 people when my dad (who is a pediatric cancer doctor) suggested the medical camp. They rent during their off-season to raise extra money for the camps! A perfect fit! It’s the first gold certified LEED (Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design) building in Arkansas. It is a great building with lots of natural daylight, rainwater harvesting, stone from Arkansas, renewable energy resources, insulation from blue jeans and denim shirts, and environmentally conscious furnishings.
What made your wedding creative: We tried to create a wedding that reflected what we wanted in our marriage. William would’ve loved in do the courthouse thing, but realized early on that a wedding was a way to honor his mother and my parents. 
We designed our own stationary. We had friends who designed and created the flowers, table centerpieces and other decorations. My dad had leis flown in from Maui to help celebrate my Hawaiian heritage and as a reminder of my relatives who couldn’t come from the island.
What made your wedding thrifty: We tried to use as few vendors as humanly possible. We saved money by having my dress made by a local seamstress and purchasing the fabric ourselves. We had William’s old guitar professor from college play with his trio at the reception. We had no catering at all. All of the food was made by family and friends who also helped serve and clean up. We also had no florist. A friend purchased our flowers wholesale and made our bouquets and other arrangements. Our groomsmen didn’t wear tuxes. Everyone wore gray pants and white shirt they previously owned and we found coordinating yellow ties. Our bridesmaids didn’t get matching dresses- they just wore a gray dress with gray and yellow accessories so they would coordinate. We made our own save-the-dates, invitations, and programs. For “favors” we handed out wildflower seed packets with our new address on them. All of these little things helped keep our wedding well under budget.
What made your wedding sane: William and I knew we didn’t want 5 hours of dinner and dancing! We wanted a time after our ceremony where we could hang out with our friends and family- not an orchestrated evening of photo ops! Our ceremony was at 2pm which meant our reception was from 3-5pm.
This was the perfect low-stress way to celebrate. We had no toasts, no garter throw, no bouquet throw, no receiving line, no first dance and no send-off. We also decided early on what we cared about (me-my dress, him-the music, our family-flowers and food) and set priorities and didn’t stress about the rest. 
The following morning over breakfast we both concluded that there was nothing to change-we had married our best friend with everyone we love around us! Could not have been any better!
Lani & William’s Practical Arkansas Wedding
