Where oh where do I begin with this Toronto wedding? I think I will start with the style – because it’s a style so perfectly in tune with this couple that it trickles down into everything they touch. The Bride, who also happens to be a talented graphic designer, had a hand in all the pretty paper goods and even though they didn’t plan on having a DIY wedding, they just couldn’t help put their touch on every little detail. And boy am I glad they did. Sara Wilde Photography beautifully captured every stylish moment, and you can see it all right here.
From the Bride…Adam and I wanted a modern wedding unique to who we are – our main requisite was that it had to be a night time party downtown. We collect vinyl and on our first date we went to our favourite record store, Rotate This, who were thrilled when we asked to register there six years after our first date!
We didn’t have a bridal party, and we didn’t plan for a DIY wedding but we managed almost everything with the generous help of friends and resources. I’m a graphic designer, so I designed the stationery suite and I had custom rubber stamps made for our envelopes and goodie bags (the design will also become a small tattoo over Adam’s heart in the near future). My family saved empty wine bottles over the course of our engagement, which we spray painted with chalkboard paint for our table numbers/vases. I really loved the hair styling from the Chanel S/S ’12 show, so my mom glued pearls onto bobby pins for my hair. Friends volunteered to DJ and make our cake/cupcakes, while Adam’s company helped with the A/V. My friend Sara Wilde did our photography, and it was so great to have a loving friendly face be the one to capture all our moments.
We worked with vendors for the rest – catering, florals, wedding bands. I collected terrarium vessels and Lisa’s team at Sweet Woodruff did such stunning work by mixing florals with leafy greens and textures…there were definitely battles over the florals at the end of the night! For our wedding bands I wanted something special and I sought out a goldsmith, Elana at Kvell, who does the most incredible custom work.
My main criteria when it came to dresses was that I wanted a non-wedding dress, and I fell for a polka-dotted Rodarte gown at an end-of-season sale – it was formal enough for a wedding, but totally me stylistically. The dress was made by hand, and less than 100 of it exist in the world – I think the sales people may have been more excited about it than I was! I also wore a traditional Vietnamese dress with the same head dress that my mother wore when she married my father to represent my heritage.
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Photography: Sara Wilde Photography | Floral Design: Sweet Woodruff | Ceremony + Reception Location: Steam Whistle Brewery | Invitations: The Bride, Kristine Do | Cake & Cupcakes: Homemade by our friend Mandy | A/V: Midnite Hour Productions + Pandor | Wedding Bands: Kvell & Co | Makeup: Natalie Blouin | Hair: Rachelle White Wind | Wedding Dress: Rodarte / Traditional Vietnamese Dress Custom Made | Shoes: Nicholas Kirkwood for Erdem