Maryland DIY Wedding from Sarah Culver Photography

I’ll admit it.  I am a wedding crier.  Yep, it’s true… drop-dead gorgeous florals, beautiful locations, sweet, sweet love stories – give me a wedding to swoon over and I’ll cry every.single.time.  So, when I first laid my eyes on this stunning Maryland soiree, I was MORE than prepared to shed a few tears.  But, when I landed on the breathtaking First Look, well.  I cried like never before.  Because this is a moment that is so completely full of emotion, it’s impossible NOT to fall head over heels.  And the rest of this glorious day captured ever-so perfectly by Sarah Culver Photography?  Simply amazing. See it all here.

From the Bride… When I approached the planning of our wedding, I knew I didn’t want to have “colors” or a strict theme to adhere to, but I wanted to tie in elements that were summery, warm and a mixture of all of my favorite things. At the time, if you had looked at my closet, you would have found a plethora of creamy pink and warm white items, and with my love of all things rustic and unfinished, I had a direction for our day. We found our venue the day before we got engaged when we were invited to model for a styled shoot for a local wedding blog. I instantly fell in love with the high ceilings and stone walls, and I knew the rolling hills would be a beautiful backdrop for a wedding.

So much of this wedding was a labor of love! All of the details were either made by me or my sister (and Aaron too!), while all of the vases were collected months prior to the wedding by various family members. The most time consuming part was that Aaron and I designed all of the paper goods for the day (including the invitations, programs, menus, name cards and guest book). We got inspired in our design from shops on Etsy and invitations on Pinterest. Although it was stressful to design, cut and paste all of our invitations, it was worth it when we saw the result. The way I kept positive throughout the process was reminding myself that these were my WEDDING invitations. It was so amazing to me that I was doing this so I could get MARRIED. That alone was the most encouraging part of our wedding planning for me. Another important aspect for us was good food. We got married on a working farm and got to custom-design our menu with the chef. My favorite part was the macaroni and cheese bar with three different types offered. Also, some of the produce for the meal was picked from the farm that day! I made sure to take time to eat the food, and I absolutely loved it. I wasn’t anticipating to have much of an appetite, but it turned out that it was Aaron who didn’t feel hungry. I practically cleared my plate it was so good!

My absolute favorite part of the day was walking down the aisle. The emotions I felt in that moment will probably never be replicated as I held my dad’s arm and walked into the arms of my groom. Aaron looked like he was going to burst out of his skin as I approached. We had already seen each other during a first look and pre-ceremony portraits, but it didn’t lessen that moment at all. That will always be such a sweet memory for me.

Wedding Photography: Sarah Culver Photography /  Wedding Venue: Richardson Farms in White Marsh, Maryland / Floral Design: Linda Monatori of Fine Floral Designs / Decorations: DIY + Thrift Stores / Wedding Cakes: Yia Yia’s Bakery / DJ: Scott West of Soundwaves DJs / Wedding Dress: David’s Bridal (Altered Sleeves + Sash) / Hair: Regis Salon / Makeup: Nicole Palermo / Men’s Suits: Indochino