There is something seriously sweet about a hometown wedding, and this next slice of pretty is no exception. With a ranch inspired setting graced with rustic touches, this darling duo exchanged vows in one sentimental ceremony. Adrienne Maples & Ashlee Brewer were behind the lens capturing it all, and you can see the entire day unfold here!
From the beautiful Bride… I was never the girl who dreamed of her wedding day and thought about the dress and the flowers and any of that stuff. I actually suggested maybe doing something small, but it turns out that the man I was marrying was the little boy that dreamed of his wedding day. And I am so glad he was because after it was all said and done it was the best weekend of our lives and I couldn’t imagine doing it any other way!
Hayden and I live in Brazil but we decided to have the wedding in my hometown of Lawrence, Kansas. Hayden grew up near Boston and we had friends and family coming from all over the place, many of which had never been to the Midwest before. Because of this I felt it was important to show the charm of my hometown, we didn’t want to show our guests who were traveling all this way, the inside of a hotel ballroom. We wanted them to see the beauty of Kansas.
The Circle S Ranch provided the perfect location. The ranch is located about 15 minutes outside of Lawrence on hundreds of acres with longhorns and buffalo roaming the pastures. They have a 12 suite Inn where our wedding party stayed for the weekend. Our main objective was to have a blast with our friends and family and get to spend quality time with those we love but don’t get to see so often. Another reason we chose the ranch is we were able to rent the entire place for the weekend so we could do whatever we wanted, as late as we wanted. The band played at the reception until 1am and then we moved the party over to the Inn and had a bonfire, music and late night snacks.
Living so far away was a little tough for the planning. I am a very creative person and I wanted to do as much as I could to add little unique touches to the wedding day. My parents helped a ton and made the personalized mason jars, collected old bottles and jars for flower and candle displays. My mom designed all the programs, invitations and made all the burlap table runners. We had a photo booth instead of a guestbook for people to leave a note with fun photos, we hand wrote all the tags for seating and hung them on an old door, handmade a fabric flower for the flower girl dress, made pinwheels for the wedding cake topper from old vintage maps, lots of little Pinterest-esque things like that.
The day of the wedding was hot, like mid 90s Kansas summer hot. The ceremony was outside in a beautiful grove of trees about 100 yards from the Inn and was to start at 7pm. Around 4:30 a huge thunderstorm came rolling in, which sounds like a disaster but turned out to be a huge blessing in disguise. The rain lasted until about 6:15 and it cooled everything down to a very nice mid 70’s. The staff quickly ran down and wiped off the chairs and everything was ready to go. The guys wore matching blue suits with coral ties and the girls wore a short coral dress of their choice. The ceremony was lovely with a friend of ours singing “somewhere over the rainbow/what a wonderful world” as we walked down the aisle and buffalo were mooing throughout the ceremony.
Immediately after the ceremony while the guests enjoyed cocktails, our photographer scooped us up in a golf cart and took us on quite a rocky and muddy ride up to a pasture where the longhorns were roaming. On the ride up as bugs were flying in my face I was a little unsure if trusting Adrienne (our photographer) was the right move. But as soon as we got up there and saw how gorgeous it was with the animals we had no doubts at all. This was one of the most memorable parts of the day and she got some incredible photos!
The reception was held in the barn and set up with 5 long tables and simple flower arrangements and candles lined up down the center. We wanted the feel to be rustic and romantic but also relaxed nothing over the top. The colors we chose were corals and greens with some twigs, green burlap table runners and white linens. Everyone drank from mason jars which doubled as name tags for meeting others. Dinner was pulled pork with whipped sweet potatoes and we had homemade pies and carrot cake for dessert. The band was set up outside, there were twinkle lights and hanging candles, couches and hay bale seats, all while an old covered wagon served as the outdoor bar. It was just the perfect setting.
The entire weekend was way more than we could have hoped for. Our families and friends all meshed together and had a blast. The fun and dancing went on for hours and Hayden’s sister even got up and sang with the band for a few songs. It was the perfect weekend and we are grateful for everyone who made it so memorable and special for us.
Photography: Adrienne Maples | Floral Design: Maple Lane Designs | Wedding Dress: Emily Hart Bridal | Cake: Bella Roca Designs | Bridesmaids' Dresses: Anthropologie | Bridesmaids' Dresses: J.Crew | Makeup: Jolie Makeup Artistry | Hair: Church Of Evangelical Faith | Entertainment: Kokomo | Groomsmen's Attire: The Tie Bar | Groomsmen's Attire: Zara | Groomsmen's Attire: The Tie Bar | Venue: Circle S Ranch | Photo Booth: Black Ice Booths
