This affair is all about sweet farm style. But underneath all those layers of rustic beauty are so many cool details. For instance, this couple opted for a Thanksgiving Day wedding complete with turkey dinner and in true rustic Idaho fashion, guests were transported from the main house to the barn by horse and carriage. But maybe the best detail of all? All this gorgeous decor and styling was crafted by the Groom! Have a look at all the pretty captured by Amelia Johnson Photography right here in the full gallery.

 

From Amelia Johnson Photography…Mandy and Ruel live in San Francisco but chose a private ranch in the mountains of Preston, Idaho to exchange their vows.  They were married Thanksgiving Day in the barn of Mandy’s Father’s best friend, whose daughter actually first introduced Mandy and Ruel.  The main elements of the wedding that stand out are that the wedding was on Thanksgiving Day (note:  Their first anniversary will not be on Thanksgiving as the date changes), and Ruel single-handedly designed and styled the entire wedding.  As a former set designer for the TV show “The Bachelor” Ruel promised that there would be “lots of roses and candles” for the ceremony.  Ruel designed and assembled all signs, table settings and florals.  He even carved and painted the wooden figurines for the cakes, which were Mandy and Ruel’s favorite recipes, molasses cake and lemon meringue from their favorite spots in San Francisco. Mandy and Ruel wanted their guests, many of whom flew in for the wedding, to experience rustic Idaho.  Guests were transported from the main house to the barn in horse and carriage.  Mandy and Ruel wanted the wedding to be as relaxed and laidback as possible.  For invitations emails were sent to a select group of close friends and family.  A traditional Thanksgiving dinner was served, and guests were encouraged to bring a casual change of clothes to change into for late night love bingo.  

Photography: Amelia Johnson Photography | Venue:  Private Residence | Decor + Styling: Groom, Ruel | Catering: Cafe Sabor | Desserts: Mother of the Bride | Wedding Dress: BHLDN | Shoes: Chie Mihara | Suit: Custom, Giorgio Armani

We love a good wedding but behind all those celebrations are other amazing celebrations like showers and rehearsal dinners that so often get any airtime. Until today.  This rehearsal dinner is laid back yet wholeheartedly elegant (kind of how I want my entire life to look. Think fire pits, a beautiful cabin overlooking the water and family and friends gathered in the backyard for yummy eats. It’s the makings of the perfect Vermont rehearsal dinner and Hendrickson Photography captured it all. Have a look at the full gallery for so much more.

 

From Hendrickson Photography Weddings…This was a casual, yet elegant rehearsal dinner in Cornwall Vermont. The property had firelight walking paths, firepits, a pond with a cabin, a roving bluegrass band, specialty drinks (made from a french liqueur company that Curt owns) and lots of children. There was also a special romantic gift from Curt. He had secretly hired a photographer to capture their engagement in Central Park, NYC. Curt then had large banner prints made and they were hung behind the bar. Anne had no idea and until she showed up to view the setting – it was a great surprise and made a great story for the guests. It was stylish affair, with fly fishing boutonnieres and fall themed floral design. Anne is also a fashion editor in NYC.

Photography: Hendrickson Photography | Venue: Private Residence | Catering: Terra | Chef: Tony DiRiuocco, Terra Banquet Chef | Floral Design: Kristin Benton,  Hollyhocks | Band: Caleb Elder Band

Hendrickson Photography Weddings is a member of our Little Black Book, Love what you see? Take a look at their portfolios.

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To call this wedding pretty is the understatement of the century. It’s more than pretty. Much more. And with one peek into the gallery of Landon Jacob’s photos you’ll see why this winter Charleston affair is a fairytale lover’s dream come to life. Let’s not waste another minute and get the swooning started right here.

 

From the Bride…Stephen and I married here in my hometown of Charleston this past December.  Planning a winter wedding made me a little nervous, but if there’s one thing I love about living in the lowcountry, it’s the mild winters and the fact that “cold” means just above 60!

Stephen’s family is from Maryland so when choosing our ceremony and reception locations, we wanted to make sure to highlight both the historical beauty of the downtown area and the stunning view of the Charleston harbor.  We were married in a small intimate chapel downtown with 120 of our closest friends and family and held the reception across the Cooper River at Harborside East.  We wanted our wedding to be fun and familiar with subtle hints of warm, classic Charleston charm.  Harborside East ended up being the perfect venue for us, and we even got a bonus view of the annual Christmas boat parade! My husband and I pride ourselves on being a green household, so in decorating the reception, we made sure to incorporate as many recycled, upcycled, and DIY details as we could.  Stephen and I spent hours upcycling wine bottles to create warm centerpieces, used over 4,000 recycled corks to give character to our outdoor candle votives, and constructed a cork backdrop we hung behind our cake.  We also used vintage maps collected by my parents over the years to create paper flowers we placed on our cake.  Stephen and I are an active couple- we love running and biking together, so it was so “us” to have a custom tandem bike with our names on it to top our delicious 4 tier cake.

For our wedding colors, I wanted a pastel pallet that didn’t look too “Christmasy.”  The bridesmaids wore long silk chiffon dresses in misty blue and Stephen and his groomsmen wore classic black tuxes.  We recycled the excess material cut from each of my lovely bridesmaids dresses to make the groomsmen’s’ boutonnieres.  Other homemade details throughout the wedding included our bookmark save-the-dates, formal invitations, bridesmaid bouquets, and peppermint bark wedding favors.  It was fun including the entire family in the DIY process and made everything that much more personal for us.  Not to mention, in the end, it saved us a ton of money and kept our budged under $15,000.

Our wedding day went by so quickly and I knew it would, so several times throughout the day, I would take a moment to stop what I was doing, look around, and take everything in.  I can remember everything like it was yesterday.  The love and support shown by everyone was remarkably humbling; it was a fun night for everyone and our friends and family danced the entire time! When Stephen and I look back on our wedding, we can honestly say it was the best day of our lives. It was better than we could have ever imagined.  I think my husband said it best when halfway through our engagement, he said, “The details aren’t that important…I just want to get married!”

Wedding Photography: Landon Jacob Productions | Day of Coordination: Lady in Waiting Events | Floral Design: On a Limb + Horst Floral Shop | Church: St. Luke’s Chapel | Caterer: Cricket & Kyle | Cake: McKenzie’s Bake Shop | DJ: Sinclair Ray with The Music Maker | Makeup: Dannon K. Collard | Wedding Dress: Allure | Shoes: Jen & Kim | Bridesmaid Dresses: Bari Jay | Groom’s Tux: Vera Wang | Flower Girls’ Dresses: PrettyFlowerGirl.com