When I was venue hunting for my own wedding, the Crane Estate at Castle Hill in Ipswich, Massachusetts just happened to be at the top of my list. It’s this massively gorgeous estate just outside of Boston and if nothing else, promises a total fairytale wedding. Well, I love, love, love what this particular couple did with their estate style wedding…infusing the formality with spunk, charm and fabulous color. Photographed beautifully by Heather Parker, this is one of those weddings where I would have killed to be a guest! Click here to see SO many more details including the most darling table numbers you’ve ever seen in your life.
click here to see all of the fab details!
Andrew and I currently live in Chicago, IL. I grew up outside Boston and Andrew grew up in the Chicago area. We met when we were both in college at Vanderbilt and continued on to live in Charlottesville, Virginia for 3 years while Andrew was in law school. We loved living in the south, but moved up to Chicago to be closer to family. Planning the wedding from half way across the country was difficult but we pulled it off!
I had dreamed about getting married at Castle Hill from when I was a little girl. When Andrew and I first got engaged we were living in Virginia and later in Chicago. I had sent my mom out to check out venues and luckily she loved Castle Hill as much as I did. I have always been drawn to bright summery colors, but Castle Hill is a pretty traditional venue, so we always had to keep in mind melding my bright colors with the look of the venue. We used bright pinks and greens coupled with navy blue to achieve a summery look. Our décor had a subtle nautical theme, with shells and coral prints on our paper and fabrics.
When I first started envisioning what our wedding would look like I knew I wanted to add lots of personal touches and I wanted to make a lot of things myself. Andrew and I tackled many DIY projects together and our families also pitched in to help. I wanted all of our décor to meld with Castle Hill for an “elegant casual seaside” look. I pulled inspiration from a variety of sources and pulled it all together by using coordinated paper products from Anna Griffin and the matching fabrics, also by Anna Griffin.
The biggest project we took on was the escort card pinwheels. We made each pinwheel by hand and they were a huge hit at the wedding. The pinwheels also made an appearance on the cake, those pinwheels were also made out of paper, just mini sized! Our other projects included-paper pomanders to decorate the aisles, pennant banner to decorate the bar and the lawn, drink stirrers, table numbers, menus, programs (which I hand printed with a gocco). We baked over 1000 cookies for a cookie buffet. Our mothers really came through for us and did a lot of sewing, making all of the table overlays, and the chuppah top.
A few days before the wedding as my mom and I were baking our final batches of cookies for favors, my Mom asked how many hours I thought I spent on making everything for the wedding, I couldn’t even take a guess. “Was it worth it?” she asked me. I replied that I would have to let her know after the wedding was over. Looking back I think all the work and details we put into the wedding made the whole evening the special event that it was. Everything that we and our families made was made with love and creativity.
Ceremony + Reception Venue: Crane Estate at Castle Hill, Ispwich, MA / Caterer: Swartz Catering / Officiant: Rabbi Judy Epstein and Father Bill Nesbit / Wedding Photographer: Heather Parker Photography / Wedding Band + Entertainment: The Return / Ceremony Music: Siman Entertainment / Wedding Florist: Bella Floral Design / Wedding Gown: Watters and Watters San Miguel / Bridal Boutique: Aisle Style, Elmhurst, IL / Custom wedding gown hanger: LilaFrances / Brides + Bridesmaid Shoes: Jack Rogers / Bridesmaid Dresses: Priscilla of Boston / Suits: JoS. A. Bank / Ties: Tux and Tulle (Etsy) / Invitations: Blush Design Studio / Day of Coordinator: Jennifer Potter, Dot your I’s / Table squares + overlays: Groom’s mother / Chuppah: BZ Sustainable Style, the Bride’s mother’s company / Brides Clutch: BZ Sustainable Style, the Bride’s mother’s company
Aaahhh! It's my wedding venue. It's my favorite place in the whole world! Love this wedding!
Beautiful wedding! Where did you all get the corn hole board?
Hi, I love those cufflinks! My fiance is searching for some just like those. Do you know where they are from? Thanks!
The day couldn't have been more perfect: the weather, the details, the venue, the glowing newlyweds... I say this time and time again, I'd shoot this wedding 100 times over it was so awesome! Congrats Alexa and Andrew for getting featured. Thank you again for entrusting me to capture the story of your wedding day, it was so much fun!
Love those pinwheels. So cheerful!
It was a gorgeous wedding. Every detail was perfectly planned and executed flawlessly and I was so lucky to be a part of it. A lot of times it's the time and effort that couples put in to make a wedding truly their own that makes it stand out in people's minds and hearts!!! And this is one that all of their guests will remember forever! Congratulations Alexa and Andrew!!!
Loving the custom corn hole game! Any information about how it was made/where you got it would be greatly appreciated!!
I think the hanger is SO cute! Pinwheels? Love them! Her veil is great too! Love the bright pops of color - such a fun and pretty wedding!
I love the Crane Estate! Such a gorgeous venue. Where are the Thank You flags from?
I love Heather Parker’s Phototgraphy. She has such a great style! She is great at capturing a moment. Beautiful
I know many brides who would like to have a custom hanger like that.... where can I find one?
I believe the bride purchased her hanger from http://www.etsy.com/shop/lilafrances
Where'd she get the custom hanger?! Absolutely adorable!
Reading all the comments so far, it's obvious this wedding has such great details. I LOVE that hanger for her dress! :)
Oh I must know where she purchased that beautiful pink picture frame
Thanks for all the kind comments, the corn hole board was purchase unfinished on etsy, we painted it and applied a Vanderbilt decal that we bought on ebay.
The thank you sign was a diy, the letters were cut on a cricut.
Oh please tell me your pup is a wheaten! I've been looking for a seller on Etsy who can do a cute wheaten for our cake topper so we can have include our wheaten, Teddy. Would you mind sharing where you got yours? Too adorable.
Your wedding looks absolutely grand!
Everything about this wedding is beautiful!
I am also hoping to make pinwheel escort cards and have only found templates that use wooden dowels. It looks like the bride used plastic dowels and something other than a map pin to attach the pinwheel. Does anyone know where I could get these.
I just love these details! Congrats on the feature Heather! The photography is stunning!
Where and how did you make the pinwheels???
Such a lovely wedding :)
The colour palette is so beautiful..
This is beautiful. absolutely love it!
Some tips and tricks on men's fashion style will be appreciated too...
What a beautiful wedding... love the details! Can anyone tell me where the frames are from? They are too cute!
really fun looking day and beautifully captured as well.
It was a gorgeous wedding. Every detail was perfectly planned and executed flawlessly and I was so lucky to be a part of it. A lot of times it's the time and effort that couples put in to make a wedding truly their own that makes it stand out in people's minds and hearts!!!
Oh please tell me your pup is a wheaten! I've been looking for a seller on Etsy who can do a cute wheaten for our cake topper so we can have include our wheaten, Teddy. Would you mind sharing where you got yours? Too adorable.
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[...] Style Me Pretty, the internet authority on weddings, has just featured Alexa and Andrew’s Castle Hill wedding! When I first met with the couple, I learned that they were planning to create some oh-so-pretty details for their summery seaside wedding. When I saw everything in person on the wedding day, I was completely blown away at all of the DIY decorations and how perfect everything looked under such an amazing backdrop. They truly tied their personality into their wedding. Alexa and I brainstormed about where her breathtaking wedding should be featured and we decided to reach for Style Me Pretty even though they are one of the most selective. In fact, SMP is the #1 ranked wedding blog in the United States. Alexa chose the Boston area’s most sought after wedding venue, got crafty with some amazingly creative ideas, and got perfect weather which in turn paved the path for some of my best wedding photography to date. I absolutely love when couples pour their personalities into their wedding day details. It is truly an honor to have these images shared with so many brides through the reach that Style Me Pretty offers. [...]
[...] on the Borrowed & Bleu wedding blog. You may remember this wedding from the attention it got on Style Me Pretty. If you would like to see the original blog post of Alexa and Andrew’s lovely seaside [...]