This Young House Real Wedding, II
Today is a first on SMP. We’ve paired up with our favorite home design bloggers at This Young House to feature their very own DIY backyard affair. It’s a little bit home improvement, a little bit wedding inspirations…a LOT of absolutely incredible ideas from this crafty pair.
Since photos (and photobooths) have been a big part of this John and Sherry’s relationship, what better entertainment to bring to the wedding than a photobooth! It was a splurge (at $1200) but for them, it was the perfect touch and ended up making for some pretty killer keepsakes. To encourage guests to leave their photostrips, they transformed their garage door into an oversized magnet board.
And, to take the photo theme one step further, the couple created a clothesline version of a wedding slideshow by stringing twine between 2 garden hooks and using wooden clothespins to clip the story of their lives. The cost was less than 20 bones but it made such a cute impression. To see all of the adorable photos, click right here!
Now, on to the food. Oh the food.
John and Sherry nixed the idea of hiring a caterer for a couple of reasons…one, the price. Obviously. And second, most caterers require a prep area which is something that they just didn’t have! So, instead, they did it all themselves, designing a menu that didn’t require any heat (other than the entrees which were cooked on the grill) and didn’t require more than a single fork. Fresh fruit, shrimp cocktail, rotini salad, lemon pepper potato chips. Kind of an upscale picnic of sorts.
Guests could then order up their own choice of a blue cheese angus burger, sweet apple chicken sausage or a tomato and cheddar veggie burger. The blue cheese burgers were made ahead of time (seriously simple…adding chunky blue cheese dressing to ground beef, then freezing the patties) and the other ingredients were bought in bulk just a few days ahead. For a gourmet touch, they added fresh baked buns and some fancy shmancy toppings.
For dessert..perfect vanilla cupcakes, from the famed Ukrop’s in Richmond, and a fun DIY s’mores station on their homemade firepit. Sounds like perfection to me.
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For all of you that are now completely obsessed with Sherry and John and their unbelievably crafty real wedding, there are so many more details and ideas over at This Young House. From lighting tips to attire, a complete cost breakdown and fun DIY ideas, you’ll learn everything you need to know about throwing your own backyard fete. Plus, it’s wedding week on the cute site, so you’ll get even more info and ideas!
And, if you are a bit house obsessed, like I am, beware. This Young House is one of the greatest sites in the world, chock-a-block full of projects, inspirations and eye candy. It’s actually quite dangerous.
What an amazing blog!! Definitely adding to my link list.
Oh I've always loved this wedding. It instantly made me wish we had a backyard wedding as opposed to a beach wedding!
I am so impressed with every aspect of your creativity. I'm in the process of getting engaged (bf and I are saving for a house and I know he's actively looking for a ring). Both your home renovations and the wedding have given me hope and inspiration that you can have a beautiful home and wedding and not break the bank. I will definitely be using some of your ideas when my big day comes! Thanks for sharing!
I came across John and Sherry's blog about a year ago and loved the pics of their wedding. They're such a creative duo and really showed that diy can be amazingly chic with a small budget. Such a cute, intimate wedding- one of my all-time faves!
Tara
Pacific Wedding Guide
seriously...you guys are my two favorite blogs. why would a girl need anything else? gorgeous eye candy and endless inspiration. smp + tyh should work together more often! love it! thanks for featuring them!
I am so happy to have stumbled upon your blog! And, now, to have discovered Sherry and John's, too, makes it all the more wonderful!
LOVE, LOVE, LOVE!!!
I can tell that both are going to be favorites of mine for many years to come :O)
I love the spontinaity in the photos that come from photo booths. I'm a wedding photographer and am also getting married. I've started bringing interesting fabrics as backgrounds to weddings. It's kind of a cute alternative to the photo booth, and it's great because it doesn't cost anything extra. See what it looks like here:
http://diasphoto.blogspot.com/2009/07/photo-booth-alternative.html
aaaaaaahhhhhhh!!!! I love your wedding! It is so sweet and personal!