My husband John and I found each other when we both moved to the Harrisburg area to pursue our careers. It started with a friendship between two adventure seeking teachers and blossomed into an unexpected romance. The journey of our wedding started 50 feet up in air, climbing on a ropes course element called The Catwalk, balancing on a telephone pole, when he got down on one knee and surprised me by asking me to marry him. The proposal was very much like the life we live, full of surprises and excitement.

I knew I wanted our wedding to represent us and be unique, fun, and entertaining for our guests. I wanted it to be an adventure like our relationship, our life, our engagement. We chose to have our wedding at the rolling acres and pristine views of Lauxmont Farm’s Japanese Gardens, because of my love for horses and our love for nature and the outdoors.

The day of our wedding the sun was shining with a slight breeze, complete with blue skies. It was a perfectly painted summer day. Our ceremony took place overlooking a field with horses running and in the distance the Susquehanna River. It truly was a stunning site. We tried to make our ceremony personal with our dear friend as our officiant and instead of a unity candle, since we both love wine, we did a wine ceremony to remember our relationship will only get better with time. Our ceremony was sincere, light hearted, and memorable, full of love and laughter. Cocktail hour was in the Japanese gardens where wine and cheese tasting took place. Here there were wooden fences from which photographs fluttered in the wind and guests mingled at tables adored with collections of vintage books, antique bottles, and delicate flowers. Signature drinks of lip smacking sangria and puckering pink lemonade were enjoyed along with the appetizers.

The reception tent was filled with personal touches. Through our wedding planning I was the designer with the inspirations and my husband was the builder and project manager. I’d venture to say it was all “do it yourself” because it was such a hands-on event, and I tried to put my heart into everything that was selected. We had a memory tent to celebrate our history together and our family’s history. We also had a kid’s tent, equipped with a lollipop centerpiece, homemade coloring books with our photographs, lots of toys, and things to do to keep our young guests entertained while enjoying themselves. John and I are very much kids at heart, so we knew the adults would enjoy this area too. The guests had a great time in our photo booth filled with silly and vintage props. Since I am from the Pittsburgh area, we had a large cookie table, a tradition in which many friends and family bake tons of delicious cookies for the wedding, and then they are displayed beautifully for everyone to enjoy. It was clear one of our guest’s favorite parts of the wedding was when the ice cream truck drove up to the reception tent to help everyone beat the July heat. Nothing brings out the child in someone like an ice cream truck.

Our wedding truly was a labor of love. My maid of honor designed our gorgeous invitations, our good friend officiated us, my husband’s sister painted signs, one of my bridesmaids, great friend, and an incredible stylist did my hair, and my friends and family helped me create numerous decorations, like hundreds of purple origami flowers that friends and family spent endless hours helping us make.. My husband and I had a blast rummaging through tons of antique stores finding the right pieces for our wedding, such as dishes, books, bird cages, bottles, you name it. Even though I was in the hospital for three days before our wedding, all of the little details fell into place perfectly. All our vendors were so wonderful and helpful with our wedding planning experience.

What I found most important about our big day was to step back, breathe, and take it all in. The kids playing with the toy horses, the laughter spilling out of the photo booth, my husband’s 91 year old grandfather in his dapper purple shirt overlooking the view, the ice cream filled smiles, the energy on the dance floor, the candle light glowing from the lanterns in trees. There were things that got broken, giggling when we forgot and stumbled over our vows’, I mean who needs to be taken as a lawfully wedded wife, when you could be a lover for life, as my husband mistakenly said. There was my torn bustle, and mother-son dance that almost didn’t happen, but thanks to all the love from my friends and family, and my wonderful husband, it was a day that in my eyes was perfect.

Photographer: SANDERSON IMAGES / Videographer: Jewelsheam Films, Jeff Wise / Floral Designer: All Things Beautiful / Event Planning & Design: DIY / Invitation Designer: Jessica Sipe / Cake/Desserts: House of Claredon / Wedding Gown Designer: Anjolique / Bridesmaid’s Dress Designer: David’s Bridal / DJ: Mad Hatter Productions / Caterer: Festive Board Catering / Photobooth: Katy Trefry Photography / Venue: Lauxmont Farms

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Post tags: All Things Beauitful, Anjolique, Birds, Books, Bouquets, Chalkboards, Chinese Lanterns, Cookies, David's Bridal, DIY Projects, Do-It-Yourself Inspired, Dove Release, Festive Board Catering, flags,, Flower girls, House of Claredon, Ice Cream, Ice Cream Truck, Jeff Wise, Jessica Sipe, Jewelscheam Films, Katy Trefry Photography, Lauxmont Farms, Mad Hatter Productions, Outdoor Ceremonies, Outdoor Weddings, Ring Bearers, Sanderson Images, Tented Reception, Vintage Chic, Wedding Photography, Whimsical
Post categories: Do-It-Yourself Inspired, Little Black Book Blog

John and I first met in the bleachers overlooking an intramural soccer game, where my floor mates and I were cheering on our “brother floor” during the first few weeks of freshman year at Wheaton College. What followed were two years of college experiences that led us to develop a deep friendship. We had the same friends, were in the same classes, went on the same road trips, and studied at various coffee shops together.

Our dating relationship actually began one spring evening in 2009 as we sat on a bench on the Riverwalk in Naperville enjoying some Red Mango frozen yogurt. About two years later, on February 25, 2011, John asked me to marry him at the same exact place. After dinner at our first date spot, a hole-in-the-wall Senegalese restaurant in Chicago, and after seeing Les Miserables at the Cadillac Palace Theatre, we took a short walk through snow flurries, ending up at “the bench” where our relationship had begun and where so many important conversations had happened. Our favorite frozen yogurt was there waiting for us (Thank you, Chicago weather, it was still very frozen). John got down on his knee and said some wonderful things and asked me to marry him – and the rest is history!

Due to John’s pending Army career, we had limited options when setting a wedding date. We settled on Labor Day weekend of the same year, leaving us about five months to graduate from college and plan a wedding. Because John grew up in Costa Rica, we planned to get married in Delaware, where I grew up.

Spending the summer running around to countless venues and vendors with my mom was a blast! After looking at several beautiful potential wedding sites throughout Delaware and Pennsylvania, we decided it would be most meaningful and special to have our wedding right in the Delaware Valley. Our ceremony and reception venues were both specially chosen. Old Swedes Church, dating from 1699, is a cool, old, stone historic building in downtown Wilmington. It’s not the church my family attends on a regular basis, but it seemed like the perfect place due to my Swedish heritage and its fun setting. We also liked that it was in Wilmington because of our passion for urban culture and development. From there, our guests drove about fifteen minutes to Wilmington Country Club in Greenville, the site of my parents’ reception twenty-eight years earlier.

I’ve never been a fan of bright colors because I change my mind so easily, so our goal was to create an elegant evening by choosing more neutral and classic colors with a few unique elements that would add some modern flair. John and his groomsmen who are also in the military wore their army service uniforms and capped off the ceremony with the saber arch. The rest of the groomsmen wore traditional black tuxes, and the bridesmaids wore long grey dresses from Priscilla of Boston that were flattering on everyone.

Our flowers were natural whites and greens; mine were primarily whites while the girls’ had more greens. The simple yet sophisticated centerpieces of dendrobium orchids and willow branches, set off by beautiful grey linens and enhanced with hanging votives, added a wow-factor upon entering the ballroom.

My long-time friend and bridesmaid who studied design in college spent many long days and nights over the summer helping us with the fun diy elements. She created a monogram for John and me that was at the top of our menus, sewed pennant flags made out of various grey fabrics that were strung around the country club, and designed chalkboard menus for the bars, and we worked together to create our eight foot tall seating boards. A family friend sewed a unique ring bearer pillow, we displayed family wedding photos for a personal touch, we assembled our programs ourselves with the help of some friends, and we made our table numbers out of slate tiles from Home Depot with green ribbon tied around them.

One of our desires for the evening was that people would have lots of fun celebrating one of the most important days of our lives with us, and also that there would be opportunities for guests to catch up and talk and enjoy each other. Wilmington Country Club was the perfect place to accomplish this because it allowed for fabulous dancing and entertainment by the Vincent James Band in the ballroom while the candlelit patio, which was still open to the ballroom, provided a quieter setting for relaxing conversation.

We added some special touches with a dessert bar (cake was served as dessert, but John and I aren’t big cake people, so the dessert bar on the patio featured some of our favorites like peanut butter truffles and mini apple pies). I am known for my love for coffee, so we also splurged to hire a barista for the night; she set up on the patio as well and created custom espresso drinks for our guests.

John and I have never wanted to be doing so many different things at the same time! There just weren’t enough hours in the evening to spend sufficient time dancing with friends, catching up with two hundred of the most influential people in our lives, sipping coffee on the patio, and enjoying our favorite foods. Everything came together so much more beautifully and perfectly than we could have hoped, and fun, special moments from the day continue to be topics of conversation. We are now living in Hawaii where John is stationed, and we are enjoying exploring all that Oahu has to offer. We are loving life as a Mr. and Mrs. and can’t wait to see what the coming years will hold!

Flowers: Belak Flowers / Cake: Liberty Lane Bake Shoppe / Photography: mk Photography / Videography: AOV Productions / Invitations: Apropos / Hair & Makeup: Salon by Dominic / Ceremony: Old Swedes Church / Reception: Wilmington Country Club / Dress: Janell Berté from The Wedding Shoppe / Sash: Jennifer’s Bridal / Monogram, Chalkboard Menus, Pennant Flags & Seating Boards: DIY by Bride & Karen Demaio

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Post tags: AOV Productions, Apropos, Army Weddings, Belak Flowers, Color Palette Green, Delaware, DIY Projects, DIY Wedding Decor, Do-It-Yourself Inspired, Flower girls, Janell Berte, Jennifer's Bridal, Karen Demaio, Liberty Lane Bake Shoppe, Military Weddings, MK Photography, Neutral Color Palette, Old Swedes Church, Ring Bearers, Salon by Dominic, The Wedding Shoppe, Traditional Elegance, Wilmington, Wilmington Country Club
Post categories: Little Black Book Blog

Being from Australia, James from England, and living in New York, it was important to us to have our wedding at a place that was accessible for all of our friends and family. Our only requirement for our wedding was that we wanted to get married in a vineyard. With its proximity to the San Francisco International Airport, we went to Napa and Sonoma for a few days and fell in love with Sonoma. The vineyards are amazing but the whole atmosphere in the town square was just something that immediately felt right. We visited a number of vineyards and decided on one… which unfortunately fell through a month after we returned to New York. We then took a gamble on Gundlach Bundschu – site unseen – with encouragement from our amazing wedding planner, Stephanie Cole.

When we returned to Sonoma we couldn’t have dreamt of this place being any better. Walking through the wine cave to the vineyard overlook with the glorious sunshine was just magical. We had a cellist, Michael Fesckes, play for us before the ceremony and during our cocktail hour where our guests enjoyed local sparkling wine and a number of delicious passed appetizers prepared by Park Avenue Catering.

We then transported our guests to the timeless and rustic tasting room at Buena Vista Carneros, just a short bus ride away where we dined on cod and lamb and enjoyed the fabulous Buena Vista wines before dancing the night away.

There is not one thing I would change about our day. Looking at all the memorable photos wonderful Megan Reeves took for us and even writing about it now brings a huge smile to my face.

Wedding Coordinator: Stephanie Cole of A Dream Wedding / Hair & Makeup: Grazia Salon & Wendy Walter / Florist: Sally Blue of Sonoma Flowers / Caterer: Park Avenue Catering / Rentals: Wine Country Party & Events / Ceremony Venue: Gundlach Bundschu / Reception Venue: Buena Vista Carneros / Cellist: Michael Fecskes / Band: All Star Jukebox / Photography: Megan Reeves Photography / Second Shooter: Jen Philips / Shoes: Badgley Mishka / Wedding Dress: Galina / Dance Dress: Vintage / Bridesmaids Dresses: Light in the Box

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Post tags: A Dream Wedding, All Star Jukebox, Badgley Mishka, Buena Vista Carneros, Buena Vista Winery, Carneros, Casual Elegance, Color Palette Yellow, David's Bridal, Flower girls, Galina, Grazia Salon, Gundlach Bundschu, Jen Philips, Light in the Box, Megan Reeves Photography, Michael Fecskes, Outdoor Ceremonies, Outdoor Weddings, Park Avenue Catering, Sonoma Flowers, Vineyard Weddings, Wedding Planners & Designer, Windy Walter, Wine Country Party & Events, Winery
Post categories: Casual Elegance, Little Black Book Blog

Eliza and Anthony started dating in April, 2008 following an introduction by Eliza’s brother-in-law, Chip, who attended Princeton University and played lacrosse with Anthony. It seemed like just an introduction, but it was so much more. Eliza had just moved from Philadelphia to New York City in pursuit of her career as a nurse, but little did she know she would also find her future husband. Three years later, Anthony proposed under the Tree in Rockefeller Center following The Christmas Spectacular.

It was never a question where Eliza and Anthony wanted to have their wedding. Eliza’s Family has been going to Nantucket for over 40 years and Eliza has been there every year since her birth. To her, it is a family place, full of memories and tradition. When she was younger, she would put on rope bracelet the day she arrived on island and keep it on until it the end of summer. The bracelet always ended up worn with memories of her summer. She wanted to share these memories and create new ones with her family and friends, with her and Anthony’s special day as a centerpiece.

Fall has always been Eliza and Anthony’s favorite time on Nantucket; the colors of the island are still vivid from the summer sun and the ocean is still warm. Since they started dating they have visited the Island mid or late September, avoiding the summer crowds, having the beaches virtually to themselves, and lighting a fire when the sun went down. They were sure October was the perfect time for a wedding, and it turned out they were right. It was 65 degrees and sunny on their special day. It was simply magical.

It was important to Eliza and Anthony that their wedding not only represent them as a couple, but also the beauty and tradition of the island. From the moments guests arrived, they were greeted with bags filled with traditions of the Island; good luck pennies to throw off the departing ferry towards Brant Point and a small box of chocolate covered cranberries, a tribute to Nantucket’s October Cranberry Festival. And what better venue than the Great Harbor Yacht Club! A homage to the nautical traditions of the Island.

The bridesmaids looked beautiful, with their scallop shell necklaces, starfish earrings, and traditional Nantucket rope bracelets from Eliza’s Childhood. The colors of the bridesmaids dresses was pewter, a tribute to Nantucket, or the “The Gray Lady”, as it is known to those who visit her often. The maid of honor’s dress was dark red, representative of the cranberries that are a fall staple of the Island.

Guests were greeted with a ‘Sea Breeze’ upon arrival to the reception, a tribute to Eliza’s Granny Titi. It was her favorite drink.

Local artist, Jeanne van Etten, also known as the “Nantucket Mermaid,” created mermaid and pirate themed escort cards for each guest. The cards were of course used to direct guests to their table, but were also designed as postcards with personalized E & A postage attached. A detail thought of by the bride to enable each guest to write the newlyweds their best wishes and place them in the mail. Returning from their honeymoon, the couple was greeted with some spirited memories from a memorable night.

Floral Design: Soiree Floral / Venue: Great Harbor Yacht Club / Church: First Congregational Church / Photography: Cary Hazlegrove Photography / Day of Planner: Jimmy Jaskic / Bridal Car: Hyland Drivers / Caterer: Simply with Style / Paper Goods: Jeanne van Etten / Photobooth: Nantucket Photobooth / Dress: Matthew Christopher / Shoes: Badgley Mischka / Hair: RJ Miller / Makeup: Elizabeth Wiggins, Beauty by the Sea / Tuxedos: Brooks Bothers, Golden Fleece Morning Coat / Bridesmaid’s Dresses: Priscilla of Boston / Band: Sultans of Swing

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Post tags: Badgley Mischka, Beauty by the Sea, Bouquets, boutonnieres, Brooks Brothers, Cary Hazlegrove Photography, Casual Elegance, Centerpieces, Color Palette Grey, Cranberries, Cranberry, Fall Weddings, First Congregational Church, Flower girls, Great Harbor Yacht Club, Hyland Drivers, Jeanne can Etten, Jimmy Jaskic, Massachusetts, Massachusetts Weddings, Matthew Christopher, Nantucket, Nantucket Mermaid, Nantucket Photobooth, Priscilla of Boston, RJ Miller, Simply with Style, Soiree Floral, Sultans of Swing, Wedding Flowers
Post categories: Casual Elegance, Little Black Book Blog

Click here for the FULL wedding!

From Shannon of Shannon Leahy Events… For this event, we were inspired by a color palette of turquoise and gold. The bride had elegant taste and loved sparkle so we incorporated metallic, sparkle and sequins in subtle ways that really made the decor pop. The bride handmade all the paper flowers that were on her wedding arch with glitter paper from a kit from Paper Source. We had gold glitter in baskets, which the flower girls tossed as they walked down the aisle, and gold Grecian headbands for each of the bridesmaids. Even the bride’s bouquet had little berries spray-painted gold. Atelier Joya handmade all the gold pear place card holders on the dinner tables and the gold leaf wreath on the front door. The escort card display was set in sparkly gold beads in vintage glass trays to create a darling entry display, and this table was later turned over as a favor table with handmade soaps wrapped in glitter paper. The bride owns a bath shop in Pacific Heights, so gorgeous hand-milled French soap seemed especially appropriate for the favors. The bride also made the ring bearer pillow, which also fit with the color palette.

One of my favorite details was the custom DJ booth for the dancing portion of the evening. The bride is a wonderful painter, and we took a high resolution photograph of one of her abstract paintings and turned it into the light-up facade for the DJ booth. Often this detail is reserved for logos for corporate functions, but I thought it was really fun how it made the event feel personal (and served as a great backdrop for toasts).

An interesting piece of inspiration was how this wedding was structured. The bride invited about 50 guests — close family and her bridal party — to the ceremony and dinner portion of the evening. After dinner, everyone headed outside for a group photo while we cleaned the dinner tables and prepared for another 150 guests to join the bridal party for a rockin’ party. We had a taco station, a noodle bar, an ice cream sundae bar (with sugared mint leaves, among other things!), some great specialty cocktails, a photo booth and fabulous tunes by DJ Goyo along with layers of heavy passed hors d’oeuvres. It was such a fun way to have an intimate wedding but still have everyone join in the celebration and worked particularly well since the majority of their guests were local.

Wedding Photography: Sasha Gulish Photography / Wedding Flowers: Atelier Joya / Event Planning + Design: Shannon Leahy Events / Wedding Venue: General’s Residence in San Francisco, California / Catering: Living Room Events / Desserts: The Whole Cake / DJ: DJ Goyo / Paper Flowers: DIY by the Bride / Paper Flower Materials: Paper Source / Wedding Gown: Kali Lambson-Bloom of Dark Gardens / Headbands: Atelier Joya / Flower Girl Dresses: Custom, Wee Scotty / Soap Wedding Favors: Bath Sense, Owned by the Bride / Bridesmaid Dresses: Various Designers / Linens: La Tavola

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Post tags: Atelier Joya, California, DJ Goyo, Flower girls, Fort Mason General's Residence, Gold, lily, Living Room Events, Lucite Boxes, moped, Paper Source, San Francisco, Sasha Gulish Photography, Shannon Leahy Events, Succulent, The Whole Cake, Tiffany blue, Turquoise
Post categories: The Blog, Traditional Elegance

Jon and I wanted a vintage/rustic theme that was elegant and warm. I found vintage plates, wine and champagne glasses that made the tables look so elegant and unique. Our colors were a product of the groom – navy and chartreuse – were the first colors he suggested and it sounded perfect. The colors looked so beautiful with the outdoor setting. The Bridesmaids got instructions to wear anything Navy and the Groomsmen got gifts of green check shirts and green ties that Jon picked out to pair with their favorite navy suite. It looks wonderful that everyone still was able to incorporate their own style. The good thing about planning a wedding in three months is once you make a decision – you have to love the decision move on and not think of 100 other options – it was a great experience!

We bought a lake house and lake front property up north Michigan as an investment and a place to go when we visit our families. My parents and grandparents also have lake houses there. All venues, destinations and ideas flew through my mind for a week – finally we decided that there would be no place as memorable than getting married at the lake house that we have together. We got engaged June 24th, 2011 – Once we picked the venue – we decided to not waste a second and get married this summer. So we looked at our calendars and picked a date – September 24th, 2011 – exactly three months after our engagement;.

We had our dads marry us! My dad got ordained to make the marriage official and it was the most beautiful and meaningful ceremony. It means so much when we look at the pictures and see our dads – who we both look up to and love so much reading our vows and my dad pronouncing us to our friends and family for the first time. We had our mothers be our ring bearers – they have always been there to provide advice, love and trust – it made perfect sense. Finally instead of cutting a cake – we decided to do an art project that everyone at the wedding took part in. Everyone left their mark in some sort of circle with blues and chartreuse. At the end of the night – Jon and I also put our own marks on the painting. It will hang in our lake house forever and always remind us of our wedding and everyone there.

I have so many wonderful memories from the day! I tried to always take deep breaths and enjoy the entire day. I loved seeing Jon for the first time when we were taking pictures – it was so relaxed and fun. Then the time I spent with my dad before I walked down the aisle – we practiced what we were going to say and just really made sure we were in the moment. When I started walking down the aisle – everyone told me that the clouds parted and it beamed sunlight – I could not tell because I was so overwhelmed but everyone said they had goosebumps as soon as the sun came out. I loved walking down the aisle looking at everyone – I wanted to stop and say hello and hug everyone! And finally when I was standing at the alter – I looked out into all of our family and friends and really took it all in – when else is everyone you love going to be together for a celebration? It was really intense.

Photographer: Kelly Sweet Photography / Cinematography: Jason Walen of Bigfoot Films / Floral Designer: M&M Special Events & Design / Event Planning & Design: M&M Special Events & Design / Cake & Desserts: Desserts by Tina / Wedding Gown Designer: Modern Trousseau / Bridal Shoes: Badgley Mischka / Bridal bouquet: Noaki Jewlery and Bouquets / Vintage Handkerchief & Saint Vintage earrings: Maxwells / Band: Ani

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Post tags: Ani, Badgley Mischka, Bigfoot Films, Broach Bouquet, Casual Elegance, Color Palette Green Navy, Desserts by Tina, DIY Projects, Do-It-Yourself Inspired, Etsy, Flower girls, Gladwin, Kelly Sweet Photography, Lakes, lakeside, M&M Special Events & Design, Maxwells, Michigan, Mismatched Bridesmaids, Modern Trousseau, Noaki Jewelry, Noaki Jewelry and Bouquets, Outdoor Ceremonies, Outdoor Weddings, Ring Bearers, Summer Weddings, Tina Marie Desserts, Water, Waterside, Wedding Photography, Weddings at Home, White Flowers
Post categories: Casual Elegance, Little Black Book Blog

We met for the first time on a coffee date on my birthday at Pazzo. We hit it off immediately. I liked him so much I cancelled my own birthday party that night so that I could have dinner with him. When deciding on a venue for our wedding, we could only think of the having our wedding at the place we met. When Mark proposed, we drove through 8 hours of snow & traffic to Seattle, where he proposed to me on the morning of my birthday.

I found a picture in an old magazine I bought at a library sale that showed old rusted out cheese graters being used as luminaries, and I fell in love with the idea. I thought it would be a nice way to subtly incorporate my love for cheese and all things food without making our wedding look like a Star Trek wedding, but with food.

Since we were having the reception and dinner in a very intimate wine cellar, we wanted to have the ceremony in an opposite environment – an open air rooftop with the sounds and sights of the city. Nothing says festive like café lights, so we strung lights at both venues, and those tied the places together and were used as a motif in the invitations.

We are kinda bookish people, without being grossly annoying about it, but we did feel the need to pay homage to our first date at a bookstore. We collected some of our favorite books and my old Olivetti Typewriter to dress up our guest table. We kept it relaxed and earthy by using birch accents in the table décor and a birch limb as the anchor for the paper flower curtain altar piece which Kim designed, and my mother and I helped craft.

We didn’t include anything in this wedding that didn’t have personal meaning to us. We didn’t do anything because you are “supposed” to do it. I walked down the aisle to “Never Tear Us Apart” by INXS. My bouquet was wrapped in the very same ribbon that I used to wrap a birthday gift I gave to Mark on our first date. We had pictures of our two cats, Loki and Applejack, in their tuxedos, along with a piece of lace the bride bought in Belgium in 1997 to use in her wedding, on our guest table. We used a reading from the Velveteen Rabbit that had special meaning to the bride, and a poem the groom wrote as the bulk of our ceremony, both read by the bride’s sisters. I wore a pearl necklace with an opal stone that was an heirloom from my paternal grandmother, and a diamond ring that belonged to my late maternal grandmother. We had a tree stump engraved with M+M inside a heart, which is how the bride signs her napkin letters she puts in the groom’s lunch.

We tied our wedding rings to a small brass bell with the aforementioned ribbon. Mark and I purchased this bell months before our wedding on a trip to Astoria. Leading up to the wedding, Mark and I would ring that bell if something good happened…if he solved a problem at work, or if I made a ridiculous peach cobbler or if we wanted to tell the other one we loved them from a different room. The bell’s ringing became a sound we associated with good and happy things, so we would both know, that when my youngest niece was walking down the aisle and ringing the heck out of that bell, that all good things were about to happen. He could hear the bell from the altar, and I could hear it from the stairwell to the rooftop and we would both know that we were about to be the happiest we’ve ever been. 

Wedding Consultant: Kim Foren, Geranium Lake Flowers & Nadia Ly, Creations by Ly / Flowers: Geranium Lake Flowers / Reception Site: The Wine Cellar at Hotel Vintage Plaza | Pazzo Ristaurante / Ceremony: DeSoto Rooftop Terrace / Rings and Jewelry: Family heirlooms and Lucia Jewelers / Wedding Gown: David’s Bridal / Veil & Accessories: David’s Bridal / Shoes: David’s Bridal / Formal Wear: Men’s Wearhouse / Cake: Papa Haydn / Caterer: The Art of Catering & Pazzo Ristaurante / Photographer: Erica Ann Photography & Fine Art / Music & Entertainment: Baby Ketten Karaoke / Makeup: Janine Salzman / Officiant: Rev. Robert Griffin

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Post tags: Baby Ketten Karaoke, Birch, Bouquets, Centerpieces, Creations by Ly, David's Bridal, DeSoto Rooftop Terrace, Do-It-Yourself Inspired, Erica Ann Photography & Fine Art, Erica Ann Photography & Fine Arts, Flower girls, Geranium Lake Flowers, Hotel Vintage Plaza, Janine Salzman, Lucia Jewelers, Men's Wearhouse, Oregon, Papa Hayden, Pazza Ristaurante, Portland, Quirky, Rev. Robert Griffin, Roses, The Art of Catering, unique, Wedding Flowers
Post categories: Little Black Book Blog

Click here to see the full image gallery!

From Geranium Lake Flowers … Love, love, love this wedding palette of kumquat and steel for this destination wedding.  Claire and her handsome groom Jeff are from Seattle and chose the gorgeous Garden Vineyards estate for their summer nuptials.  One of the fun things about working on this wedding was that it was primarily planned by Claire’s mom!  She traveled back and forth from Seattle to Portland to conceptualize everything from  her bouquet to the well wishes chuppah.  Darling!

Photography: Rebekah Johnson Photography / Photo Booth: Portland Photobooth / Flowers: Geranium Lake Flowers / Event Planning: Kara Markovich, Ella Events / Ceremony & Reception Venue: Garden Vineyards / Dress: Carolina Herrera / Hair: Evolution Hair Design – Mark Putnam / Makeup: Kymm Ernst / Music: Effesenden Music

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Post tags: Autumn Weddings, Bouquets, Bout, Carolina Herrera, Casual Elegance, Centerpieces, Chuppah, Color Palette Green Orange Grey, Effesenden Music, Ella Events, Evolution Hair Design, Fall Weddings, Flower girls, Garden Vineyards, Geranium Lake Flowers, Hillsboro, Kymm Ernst, Mark Putnam, Oregon, Outdoor Ceremony, Outdoor Wedding, Portland Photobooth, Rebekah Johnson Photography, Ring Bearers, Vineyard Weddings, Wedding Flowers
Post categories: Casual Elegance, Little Black Book Blog