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From the Bride… Finding the venue was the most challenging part of planning our wedding, but it ultimately set the ball rolling. We started looking around December 2010 before settling on Emu Bottom in late January. The decider for Lionel was the lamb on a spit and I loved its charming, rustic looks. The look and feel we already had in mind was a perfect match for the venue. We started collecting objects of interest, such as a typewriter from eBay and old wooden crates and other knick-knacks that we came across throughout the eight months leading up to the wedding.

We were fortunate to have Lionel’s aunt, Linda, a “hobbyist florist” who did excellent work for the flowers. The results looked like those of a seasoned professional! We wanted to use lots of natives flowers, plants and succulents to go with the whole “Australiana” affair, so we started collecting succulents from friends’ and families’ gardens. Many of the jars used for the flowers were from pasta sauces we consumed over many months of a strict pasta diet leading up to the wedding. Nothing like a good old carbo-load before the big event! We did the wedding stationery ourselves and hand-delivered the invitations over few evening drives across Melbourne. We thought it was a nice gesture, and our guests were delighted to see us knocking on their doorstep to bring the joyous news.

We spent the Thursday and Friday before the wedding with friends and families on-site to fluff and hang the pom poms. It was lots of fun. The preparation did not stop until few hours before the wedding — Lionel was still hammering the memento shots onto the window sills in his wedding suit. Looking back, the wedding was such fun and very much a chilled one. We enjoyed every bit of it. We’re forever thankful to our friends and families who have taken the journey with us along the way. Our wedding was very much a DIY affair, and we’re glad we did it that way. It was a hard work, but as a reward, we had full control on how we wanted it to be. We wouldn’t have it any other way.

Wedding Photography: It’s Beautiful Here / Wedding Venue: Emu Bottom Homestead in Sunbury, Victoria / Flowers: DIY by the Groom’s Aunt / Cheese Tower: Farmgate Cheese / Wedding Car: 1984 Jaguar XJ6 via Always Classic Cars / Decorations: Etsy, Urban Outfitters, BHLDN + eBay / Wedding Stationery: DIY / Wedding Bands: Barbara Michelle Jacobs / Wedding Dress: Carla Zampatti / Wedding Dress Flower Ornaments: BHLDN / Hair + Makeup: Monica Gingold / Groom’s Suit: P.Johnson / Ties: Etsy / Macarons: Brunetti / Cupcakes: Little Cupcakes

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Post tags: Always Classic Cars, Barbara Michelle Jacobs, BHLDN, Brunetti, Carla Zampatti, Ebay, Emu Bottom Homestead, Etsy, Farmgate Cheese, It's Beautiful Here, Little Cupcakes, Monica Gingold, Orange, P.Johnson, Pink, Sunbury, Urban Outfitters, Victoria, Yellow
Post categories: Australia Weddings, Casual Elegance, Victoria

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From the bride… When we got engaged in January, we knew we wanted to get married as soon as practicable. We loved Maine as a location, because although we’re currently living in DC, my roots are in New England, and J has spent every summer in Maine as well as having gone to college there. Most venues were already booked for the summer, and, as I spent the summer studying for and taking the bar exam, we figured a fall wedding was probably our only choice if I was going to maintain some semblance of sanity. We fell in love with both of our venues, our caterer and photographer on a couple of whirlwind weekend planning trips and booked them right away. Many of our decisions had this flavor: yes, we wanted everything to be festive and nice, but we didn’t have a specific vision for any particular element going into the planning, and it made it easier to make choices when there wasn’t a predetermined “just so” that we had to find.

But that’s not to say we didn’t feel invested in pouring energy and effort into the wedding, in part because I love to craft and, in part because we knew it would, in some cases, save us good money. J’s mom and grandma are both seasoned scavengers of tag sales and church rummages and did an amazing job collecting all the mugs, vases, votives, doilies and water pitchers used at the wedding. My sister designed the save-the-dates, invitations, and programs, and J’s sister painted the watercolor design that was on our invitations. We used Vistaprint and Zazzle for printing (a pretty affordable option, I might add) and printed the programs on my inkjet a few nights before the wedding. I focused my crafty energy on designing a rubber stamp for our programs, welcome bags, and thank you notes, and on embroidering the table numbers, although number 16 was stitched two nights before the wedding by a dear friend who took one look at my frazzled state as I ran around making playlists and arranging flowers and took pity on me. (The numbers are on their way to becoming a small quilt for our wall — after we finish the thank-you notes, that is.) We had a pipe dream of baking all the desserts ourselves, but I am so very glad that plan was abandoned early.  I love to bake and am surrounded by bakers, but churning out 20 pies two days before the wedding would have been a disaster. Instead, we made one of the passed appetizers ourselves, a turkey curry puff pastry, we baked two kinds of cookies (espresso chocolate shortbread and Viennese jam thumbprints), and my mother-in-law baked two cakes for the non-pie-lovers. So our baking yens were satisfied and we had delicious pie that magically appeared the day of the wedding. We also did our own flowers and DJ’ed our wedding on a laptop, both of which I will admit caused some stress — J had to finish editing the playlist right after we wrote our vows, in bed, the night before the wedding, because I had passed out in exhaustion — but we loved every song on that playlist and the flowers were beautiful! Last on the list of wedding items imbued with blood, sweat, and tears: the dress. No, I didn’t sew it myself! But I purchased it “new without tags” on eBay, and it unfortunately arrived smelling quite strongly of body odor. After two months of worrying, I decided to wash it in my bathtub– no way was I spending as much money dry cleaning a dress as I had buying it in the first place.  I found instructions that another bride had posted on Weddingbee, scrubbed it with cold water, Tide and a toothbrush, and voila! body odor gone. Best $200 (or whatever insane price I would have been charged) I ever saved.

I can’t recommend all our vendors highly enough — particularly our photographer, caterer, bakery, and jeweler. I almost wish we could do it again just to have an excuse to work with them all some more!

Wedding Photography: Becca Wood Photography / Ceremony: First Universalist Church in Yarmouth, Maine / Reception: The Barn on Walnut Hill in North Yarmouth, Maine / Flowers: DIY by The Couple, Their Friends + Wedding Party via Whole Foods / Event Planning: Sarah Crossman / Food: 111Maine / Wedding Dress: A Used Allure Gown via eBay / Seamstress: Angie Cavallaro / Shoes: Nordstrom / Wedding Bands: Custom by Digby & Iona, Friends of the Couple / Earrings: Borrowed from the Groom’s Mother / Felt Hair Flower: Katie Created / Pies: Two Fat Cats / Bridesmaids’ Dresses: Various / Bridesmaids’ Bags: Zazzle / Groom’s suit: J.Crew / Hair + Makeup: Fabu Salon (207-775-3228) / Rentals: One Stop Party Shop

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Post tags: 111Maine, Allure, Angie Cavallaro, Becca Wood Photography, Digby & Iona, Ebay, Fabu Salon, First Universalist Church, J. Crew, Katie Created, Maine, Nordstrom, North Yarmouth, One Stop Party Shop, Pink, Purple, Sarah Crossman, The Barn on Walnut Hill, Two Fat Cats, Whole Foods, Yarmouth, Yellow, Zazzle
Post categories: Destination Weddings, Vintage Chic

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From John of John Montesi… As a family friend and the photographer of Zac and Alana’s wedding I’m putting in this submission on their behalf. It’s probably a good thing as Alana’s is such beautiful person; she’s probably a little too humble to talk about herself and her wedding. I also need to point out that Alana is quite a creative sort. The wedding ceremony was conducted in an art gallery exhibiting her own work! She also loves photography, hence the reference to Polaroids in the photos. Zac’s not a creative slouch either — he made their wedding cake!

The whole day’s events were held in the Abbotsford Convent precinct. The former Convent of the Good Shepherd is an extraordinary place and is fast becoming an important arts, learning and cultural precinct in Melbourne. Just four kilometres from Melbourne’s CBD, its 11 historic buildings and gardens spread over 6.8 hectares on a sweeping bend in the Yarra River and are surrounded by the Collingwood Children’s Farm and Yarra Bend Park.

After the wedding ceremony in the St. Helier Street Gallery, afternoon tea was served in the adjacent St. Heliers Street Store. After taking the photos around the property, Zac and Alana’s family and closest friends strolled around to the nearby Convent Bakery for the reception. Built in 1901, the magnificent, still-existing, wood masonry ovens played an integral part in the self-sustaining lifestyle of the Sisters of Good Shepherd at the convent. The kitchen wing, which served as a central place for the preparation, cooking and baking of all food for the convent is now a home for bakers, pastry chefs and a couple of old Scotch ovens that are once again baking bread. The main rooms in the bakery are now used as a coffee shop — this is where Zac and Alana’s reception was held.

Wedding Photography: John Montesi / Ceremony: St Heliers Street Gallery at Abbotsford Convent in Melbourne, Victoria / Afternoon Tea: St Heliers Street Store at Abbotsford Convent in Melbourne, Victoria / Ceremony: Convent Bakery at Abbotsford Convent in Melbourne, Victoria / Flowers: Pat of Queen Victoria Market (0412 424016) / Wedding Dress: Demetrios via Raffaele Ciuca / Bride’s Hairpiece + Veil: Deb Edwards of Papillon Blue Bridal / Bridesmaids’ Dresses: Zimmermann / Bride’s + Bridesmaids’ Jewelry: Angelique / Bridesmaids’ Hair Pieces: Myer / Shoes: Myer / Groom’s + Groomsmen’s Suits: Men of Style in Berwick, Victoria (9769 9866) / Wedding Cake: Made by the Groom / Cake Stand: Provincial Home Living / Food: DIY by Bride’s Mother, Groom’s Mother + Groom / Tea Sets at Afternoon Tea: Groom’s Grandmother / Transportation: LeGrand Limousines / Decorations: Ikea, eBay + Spotlight

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Post tags: Abbotsford Convent, Angelique, Australia, Convent Bakery, Deb Edwards, Demetrios, Ebay, Green, Ikea, John Montesi, LeGrand Limousines, Melbourne, Men of Style, Myer, Papillon Blue Bridal, Provincial Home Living, Queen Victoria Market, Raffaele Ciuca, Rust, spotlight, St Haliers Street Store, St Heliers Street Gallery, Victoria, White, Zimmermann
Post categories: Australia Weddings, Casual Elegance, Victoria

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From the bride… Sean and I knew even before we got engaged that we wanted to be married in October. It’s one of the most beautiful months in St. Louis and means a lot to both of us since that’s the month our story started. We had 16 months to plan, so  we took a “first things first” approach and immediately made a list of the top three tasks we wanted to check off our to-do list as soon as possible: venue, date and photographer. We feel like we really lucked out and worked with some of the best vendors available to us by taking this approach! We went for a simple, rustic and crafty feel that fit our venue perfectly. I definitely mean WE when I say it too, as Sean was a huge help throughout all the DIY creations I dreamed up. Sean’s biggest project was the save the date stop-motion video, while mine was our invitations. He spent many, many hours creating a story board, taking over 400 photos, importing them to iMovie and adding music. I spent well over a month sourcing the perfect (cotton) paper, setting up a new printer at home, designing, cutting, gluing, personalizing and hand-addressing over 100 invitations. Most of the decor for the wedding was handmade too. Sean, my mom and I folded, cut and fluffed around 250 crepe paper flowers to make the rings around the lanterns on each table. I wrapped 4-inch craft letters in yarn for our gifts table and used a leftover lantern as our card box. The seating chart was a hand-painted banner that read “find your seat,” and we painted a few pieces of wood to collage frames on that read every guest’s name and table number in alphabetical order. I designed and printed the table numbers to match our invitations, and my bridesmaids helped me cut and glue them. Sean and I cut and glued 200 paper flags that read “Yay” and “Hooray” for guests to wave as we walked down the aisle together. The cake topper was handmade by Brandi of Milk Tea, which I won through a contest on Love and Lavender. Our guestbook was probably one of my favorite details at the reception. I saw a similar example online from a bride who had used wine bottles to gather messages from guests, and I knew something like that would be perfect for our day since our venue was a wine garden. I collected bottles and put labels on them to correspond with the anniversary we’d be opening the bottle. We reused strips of paper from a wedding countdown chain Sean’s cousin had made us as a gift the previous Christmas. Our guests wrote their notes on the strips, rolled them up, and put them in a bottle of their choice. We loved reading the notes from the bottle labeled 10.15.11, and I had to pack away the remainder of the bottles so we’re not tempted to break in to any future anniversary bottles before we’re supposed to!  Finding my gown was easy — I saw it online and knew it would be the one. I chose to switch up tradition a bit and go with “Something new, something old, something black and something gold” in honor of the 100th anniversary of Homecoming at my alma mater, Mizzou, which occurred on our wedding day. My dress and shoes were new, and I wore a vintage brooch to accent my pearl bracelet as something old. I made myself a purse out of gold and black fabric to represent my school’s colors. The pearl bracelet was actually a necklace I borrowed from my mom that used to belong to my grandmother. I did manage to also wear something blue, which was the stone in a Claddaugh ring my parents had given me as a souvenir from their trip to Ireland years ago. Sean and I can’t think of a single thing that we didn’t love about our wedding day. We’re proud to say that we made sure to eat plenty, drink very little, and get a piece of the wedding cake as well! Wedding Photography: Lisa Hessel Photography / Wedding Venue: Wine Country Gardens in Defiance, Missouri / Dress: Watters via Nolte’s Bridal in Kansas City, Missouri / Hairpiece: eBay / Flowers: Les Bouquets / Cake Topper: Milk Tea / Invitation + Program Design: DIY, Bride + Groom / Bride’s + Bridesmaids’ Clutches: DIY, Bride / Save-the-Date Video, Guestbook Wine Bottles, Centerpieces, Boutonniere Favors, Paper Flags, Photobooth Props + Signs: DIY, Bride + Groom / Ceremony Musicians: Groom’s Cousins

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Post tags: Defiance, Do-It-Yourself Inspired, Ebay, Gray, Les Bouquets, Lisa Hessel Photography, Milk Tea, Missouri, Missouri River Valley, Nolte's Bridal, Purple, St. Charles County, Watters, Wine Country Gardens
Post categories: The Blog

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From the bride… There are a few things Kyle and I love most in the world: good friends, family, food, North Carolina and the mountains. We wanted our wedding to be an event that celebrated our love for one another while sharing the things we love best with our closest friends and families. When we drove up the long gravel driveway to the event barn and field at Claxton Farm, the venue search was over before it really began. Hugged by the mountains and secluded from everyday life, this venue was the perfect place to share our wedding with those most important to us.

Our vendors took care of all the big stuff, but we wanted to have a hand in the wedding as well, so we got to work buying, borrowing, and making all the small details for the wedding. The charger plates were purchased second-hand, and I painted them a charcoal gray to match our color scheme. I made all the table numbers, and we printed and stamped the place cards. The favors were home-brewed beer by Kyle and a friend, and we also had fig, peach, and pear preserves that my grandmother made. We also designed and printed all the labels for the beer bottles and jars of preserves. We used the cake knife Kyle’s grandmother offered for us to use that has been used at her family’s weddings for well over 100 years. All the signs were either handmade, borrowed, or written on old windows we found on Craigslist. The guest book was bought from Etsy and we made luminaries to line the pathways with. I even cut all the lace off the bottom of my mother’s wedding dress and had it sewn onto my veil. When Claxton Farm put all our details together with the hard work of our vendors, it was exactly what we had hoped it would be. A combination of old and new, natural and elegant, and we felt it was a step away from the traditionally elegant weddings we had recently been to.

Despite a little rain, the day was perfect. There were no nerves, no worries, just complete and total bliss.  I couldn’t wait to walk down the aisle and see Kyle. Our ceremony was written/assembled 100% by us. The readings were selected to represent our feelings on love and marriage, the overall tone was what we wanted to share with our guests, and we wrote our own vows. There were a few raindrops during the ceremony, but right before the end, the sun peeked out from the clouds. It was one of those perfect moments, the kind of thing you won’t forget. The evening proceeded with dinner, socializing, and finished up with lots of dancing. The team at Claxton Farm stoked up the fire and before we knew it, the night was over and we were off. It’s true what they say about your wedding flying by.

Photographer: Chicago wedding photographer Caroline Ghetes / Venue: Claxton Farm / Makeup: DIY by the bride / Hair: L’eau de Vie / Cake + Dessert: Cakes by Jane / Caterer: M7 Events / Florist: Jessica Gregory of Aria Floral /Officiant: Susie Greene / Ceremony Musician: Blue Ridge Tradition / DJ: Brian O’Toole (919-740-6260) / Wedding Dress: Tara Keely via Victorian Rose Bridal / Veil: Lace from mother’s wedding gown added to a veil from Victorian Rose Bridal / Shoes: Nordstrom / Bridesmaids’ Dresses: Priscilla of Boston / Groom + Groomsmen Suits: Men’s Wearhouse / Groom’s shoes: Zappos / Stationery: Wedding Paper Divas / Save the Dates: NattyMichelle / Transportation: Elite Limousine / Bride’s DIY Resources: Michaels, A.C. Moore, Lowes, Etsy + eBay

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Post tags: A.C. Moore, Aria Floral, Asheville, Blue Ridge Tradition, Brian O'Toole, Cakes by Jane, Caroline Ghetes, Claxton Farm, Ebay, Elite Limousine, Etsy, L'eau de Vie, Lowes, M7 Events, Men's Wearhouse, Michaels, NattyMichelle, Nordstrom, North Carolina, Priscilla of Boston, Susie Greene, Tara Keely, Victorian Rose Bridal, Wedding Paper Divas, Zappos
Post categories: Casual Elegance

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From the Bride…As soon as my husband and I got engaged, we almost eloped because we were so freaked out by the cost and stress of a wedding – we both already work full time and go to school full time, how on earth could we manage a wedding as well? But we soon realized we had to have a celebration for our family and friends, and when the big day came around, we knew we had made the right decision.

When I started wedding planning, I knew I wanted a vintage vibe, but I wanted something a little different from the typical mason jars, twine, and paper straws. As soon as I found my Save the Dates I knew exactly what I wanted – an outdoor garden affair with little, elegant, vintage, details. Even though we were getting married October 1st, I couldn’t get myself to go with classic fall colors. Instead, I went with navy, charcoal, cameo pink and green for more timeless pallet, with silver and pearls as accents.

Early on I fell in love with pearl bouquets, but I knew I wanted flowers for my bouquet since I’m also a biologist and have spent a lot of time studying plants, I can never have enough flowers! At the same time I was having trouble with centerpieces, and although I knew I loved the mixture of milkglass, silver and cut glass I had been collecting, I wanted something that added some “oomph”. Some hot glue, floral foam, wire, paint and a couple thousand pearl beads, buttons and brooches later I (with the help of my mother and MOH) came out with these unique, quirky table numbers similar to brooch bouquets to add to my centerpieces. The vintage bride and grooms came next – when I was looking for our own vintage topper, I couldn’t choose; I bought one, then another, then another… soon I added them into the centerpieces as well.

We also wanted to incorporate some things from my grandparent’s wedding – they also married in October (in 1954). Not only were we able to use their ring pillow, but we displayed their cake topper next to our cake. My grandmother had also worn a tiara, which is unfortunately long lost. While wearing a tiara was a little too dramatic for my taste, instead I got one for my flower girl. I loved having that history with us on our own special day.

I also had the favors double as place cards – since we were outdoors I couldn’t do tented paper cards for fear they would blow away, and this way I didn’t have to also buy card holders. I found these great little vintage-looking honeys – and I added some navy ribbon and textured paper with a “Thank You” stamp on the back, and wrote our guests name on the front . I printed the menus myself on the same textured paper, and used a fancy corner rounder to add lace-like detail to the corners. The reserved signs for the ceremony seating were also made in a similar fashion, with navy paper backing to make the corner detail pop.

I should also probably mention my husband has a Clark Kent complex – but instead of making a typical superman logo groom’s cake, we made it a bust of the groom ripping his tux off to revel the superman logo underneath – we had our baker match his tux colors and our florist make a boutonniere to match his, it was perfect!

Finally, one of my favorite things was having my mom do a custom pastel of our venue. I was able to share it with our guests by using it on our programs, but I also have the original framed in our hallway as a gorgeous piece of art to remind us of our wedding in a slightly more subtle way than plastering our house in our wedding photos.

The day of the wedding was amazing, it made all those hours and late nights of hard work worth every second. I know they say you can’t have a perfect day, but it pretty sure was close.

Wedding Photography: Addison Studios / Ceremony + Reception Location: The Winfield Inn / Floral Design: Last Petal / Wedding Cakes: Pennington’s Cakes / Vintage Cake Toppers: eBay / Custom Venue Pastel: PurpleLizardStudio / Save the Dates: GoGoSnap / Custom Stamp + Logo: OnYourMarkStamps / Photobooth: Max Photography / Cake: Pennington Cakes / Gelato: The Chocolate Cup / Coffee Bar: Kenny’s Coffee / Bride’s Shoes: Badgley Mischka / Wedding Dress: David’s Bridal / Bridesmaid Dresses: Alfred Angelo / Bride’s Make-up: Avery Allen of Austin Wedding Makeup

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Post tags: Addison Studios, Alfred Angelo, Austin Wedding Makeup, Badgley Mischka, David's Bridal, Ebay, Gogosnap, Kenny's Coffee, Last Petal, Max Photography, OnYourMarkStamps, Pennington's Cakes, PurpleLizardStudio, Texas Weddings, The Chocolate Cup, The Winfield Inn, Vintage Chic
Post categories: Texas Weddings

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From Light Love Laughter Photography…Chris is a Southern Gentleman and he found his Georgia “peach” while hanging out with his friends at a special event hosted by Sweetwater Brewing Company. She was “the cute girl in the plaid coat” and she’ll admit that Chris also caught her eye too. Lucky for them they had some mutual friends and were able to meet.

Their wedding was bright and beautiful. They have a group of amazing friends full of personality and energy who were all excited and having a great time celebrating their wedding day.

Beth is one of the sweetest girls I’ve ever met and she wanted to keep things simple yet elegant so the day was about them and not about the extravagant details and decor. Mixing simple yet very pretty floral arrangements with candles and peaches wasn’t only simple and elegant but full of Southern charm.

The dance floor was full beginning to end and these two spent a week relaxing and getting used to their new names, “husband and wife” in the beauty of St. John.

Wedding Photography: Light Love Laughter Photography / Wedding Dress: Bride Beautiful / Rings: Bradley T. Harris / Bride’s Shoes: Tory Burch via eBay / Bridesmaid Dresses: Alfred Angelo / Tuxedos: Savvi Formalwear / Floral Design: Katie Loyd of Boukates / Hair: Jo of Three-13 / Make-up: Kat of Three-13 / Venue: Chastain Horse Park / Caterer: Courtney Lukow of Avenue Catering / DJ: Harrison of Avalanche Entertainment / Wedding Cake: Amy Lampert / Wedding Coordinator: Tammy Johnston of Chastain Horse Park

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Post tags: Alfred Angelo, Amy Lampert, Atlanta, Avalanche Entertainment, Avenue Catering, Boukates, Bradley T. Harris, Bride Beautiful, Chastain Horse Park, Ebay, Georgia Wedding, Light Love Laughter Photography, Savvi Formalwear, Three-13 Salon, Tory Burch
Post categories: Atlanta Weddings, Georgia Weddings, Traditional Elegance

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From the Bride…After a Christmas morning engagement in 2009 (with a diamond passed down through four generations), I fully embraced bride-to-be status.  Planning our wedding became my favorite hobby, and I eagerly checked blogs such as Style Me Pretty everyday.  (Favorite SMP wedding still being this Santa Monica Wedding).  While I would have loved a California wedding, I am a Jersey girl, and thus we began the wedding process by searching our home state for the perfect venue.

After visiting about thirty different not-quite-right venues, we fell for The Stateroom in Long Beach Island.  Finally we found a place that we both loved and could truly envision ourselves celebrating the night away with our closest friends and family!  We pictured a beach style wedding, and LBI fit the bill.  An 18-mile long island along the Atlantic Ocean, LBI is a truly charming Jersey Shore community.  The Stateroom has a Tommy Bahama style area reserved for cocktail hour, while upstairs the elegant ballroom has large windows that offer spectacular views of the bay.  Both Matt and I are Roman Catholic, so we chose to have the ceremony in the nearby church, where Matt’s mom actually worked when she was a newlywed living in Long Beach Island. With parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles, and other couples we admire all with June anniversaries, we chose June 25th as our wedding date.

The inspiration for our wedding was casual seaside elegance, and the fresh mint color of the J.Crew bridesmaids dresses guided the rest of the wedding selection process.  I pictured aqua mason jars and mercury glass vases filled with an assortment of peonies, garden roses, astilbe, lavender, dahlias, and scabiosa.  During our engagement I collected lanterns for the reception tables.  Etsy was amazing for finding many items!  Perfect ties for Matt and the groomsmen, striped straws for our signature cocktails, a personalized wooden sign to greet guests, shells to hold our table numbers, and so much more.  And, whatever I couldn’t find, I made on my own (programs, table numbers, menu, candy bags, etc.)

In the end it was just a beautiful day that really was over too fast.  I spent the morning getting ready with my best friends and was so glad to be with them, chatting, laughing and anticipating all that was to follow.  The ceremony was emotional and meaningful, followed by a fun trolley ride and happy moments taking pictures on the beach with my husband and our bridal party!  We found a perfect blue wall behind Ron Jon Surf Shop on our way to cocktail hour, and some of my favorite shots from the day happened there.  At the reception, toasts from our siblings and college roommates were wonderfully kind and funny.  We danced our first dance as husband and wife to Van Morrison’s “Steal My Heart Away.”

Overall, I think what stands out most is the love Matt and I felt from every single person there celebrating with us.  For months prior, I had considered every detail, but on our wedding day those same details were overshadowed by a tremendous sense of joy.  How lucky I was to be marrying Matt, and to do so surrounded by the most important people in our lives!  We left that night on cloud nine.  I am still filled with an overwhelming feeling of gratitude for our family, friends and wedding vendors who together made it the most amazing day we could have ever asked for.

Wedding Photography: Kate Connolly Photography / Music + Cinematography: Off Beet Productions / Floral Design: Michele Tallent & Co. / Hair + Make-up: Aqua Bleu Salon / Ceremony Location: Saint Francis of Assisi Church / Reception Location: The Stateroom / Invitations: Wedding Paper Divas / Wedding Dress: Melissa Sweet / Bridesmaid Dress: J.Crew / Bridesmaid Necklace: Anthropologie / Groom + Groomsmen Attire: J.Crew / Groom’s Tie: Hand Made by Emy / Groomsmen Tie: Tux & Tulle / Trolley: Trolley Tours / Bridesmaid Robes: Plum Pretty Sugar Loungerie / Wooden Wedding Sign: Craft Mart Texas / Chair Signs: Lil Missy / Seashell Table Number Holders: Gallery360 / Lanterns: Pottery Barn, Target, Ikea + More / Mercury Glass: Pottery Barn, Anthropologie, Target + More / Mason Jars: Etsy + eBay / Programs, Table Numbers, Menu, Candy Bags, Straw tags, Banner, etc.: The Bride

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Post tags: Anthropologie, Aqua Bleu Salon, Craft Mart Texas, Ebay, Etsy, Gallery360, Hand Made by Emy, Ikea, J. Crew, Kate Connolly Photography, Lil Missy, Long Island Wedding, Melissa Sweet, Michele Tallent & Co., Off Beet Productions, Plum Pretty Sugar, Pottery Barn, Saint Francis of Assisi Church, Target, The Stateroom, Trolley Tours, Tux and Tulle, Wedding Paper Divas
Post categories: Casual Elegance, New York Weddings