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Romantic Vintage Barn Wedding in Portland Oregon

From Stephanie Kaloi Photography…Haley and Josh had a seriously gorgeous and small(ish!) wedding at the North Star Ballroom in Portland, Oregon. I’m kind of obsessed with these guys — besides the venue and the photography, everything was completely homemade by the couple and their friends and family. They wrapped yarn around hearts and hung them up, pulled vases and glasses from thrift stores and family collections, and did one another’s hair and make-up. Haley’s brother sang “Bloom” by The Paper Kites as she walked up the aisle (and everything cried), and her aunt made all of the amaaaaazing pie that was served. Haley and Josh are truly lucky to have such a tight knit group around them — and it also made for pretty hilarious photos (especially on the groom’s side!).

The wedding was inside, which is super smart for this time of year in Portland (rain!) but also just a really Portland thing — our city is filled with so many amazing, unique venues, and this is one of them. The North Star Ballroom is filled with classic Portland charm, and Haley and Josh’s wedding set this vibe off juuuuust right. Even though they’re from Bend, these two are emblematic of what’s great about Portland (and really, Oregon in general): it’s modern, fun, and definitely it’s own thing — like the two of them.

They also had a really cool unity ceremony — instead of using sand or candles, they used paint! Haley and pink paint and Josh had gray paint (to go with the colors of the day) and they poured their paint on a canvas at the same time. It was awesome! I haven’t seen a unity ceremony like that in the 6 years I’ve been shooting. :) Another first: Josh completely lost it and cried during the first look! I’ve definitely worked with emotional grooms before, but I’ve never had one full on cry during the first look. It was the sweetest thing!

I also love how these guys weren’t afraid to just totally be themselves. Haley has part of her head shaved, and everyone was super concerned about it showing on her wedding day. She intentionally styled her hair so that it would — and it looked amazing! Little things like this paired with their more traditional attire were just the best.

Photography: Stephanie Kaloi Photography | Flowers: Avery-Christine Golson | Venue: North Star Ballroom | Catering And Desserts: Avery-Christine Golson | Hair And Make-up: Avery-Christine Golson

I wish I could bottle this wedding up somehow, and bring it with me wherever I go. It’s just the perfect amount of darling and stylish with a whole lot of gorgeous sprinkled on top, which has enviably makes me one seriously happy blogger. Eryn Kesler was behind the lens to make sure every moment was captured in the loveliest of ways, so this gallery? You can’t miss it.

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Elegant Oregon Wine Country Wedding

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Rustic Weddings

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Romantic Vintage

From the Bride…After my husband Greg proposed, I was not sure what type of wedding I wanted, but since I am a country girl I knew it had to include a barn. We visited several different venues around the Portland area before deciding on McMenamins Cornelius Pass Roadhouse. The octagonal barn and historic farmhouse was the perfect setting for my dream wedding. I spent months looking at Pinterest and Etsy for design inspiration and DIY ideas until eventually my “vintage farm” theme was born. Greg and I wanted our guests to feel like they were stepping back in time, but we also wanted to include fun touches like our mustache and lips lollipop favors. I went to garage sales and flea markets nearly every weekend over the summer collecting antiques and found great furniture pieces at several local rental companies. The ceremony was originally set to be outside that day, but in true Oregon fashion it rained in the morning and most of the afternoon so we moved the ceremony inside of the barn with our guests seated around us. Looking back I am really glad we made that decision, it made the setting feel more romantic and intimate. I have many great memories from my wedding, but one of the best moments was my father-in-law driving me to our venue in his 1950 Buick and allowing us to take pictures with it in front of the farmhouse. It added the perfect touch to our vintage style wedding!

When both laughter and sniffles can be heard at a wedding ceremony, you know it was good. And this wedding? Oh, it was good. With design and coordination from La Boheme Events, those moments of happiness were surrounded by the brightest details that made the whole day come to life. See it all right here in the gallery from Altura Studio!

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Spring Weddings

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Mint & Gold Portland Winter Wedding

From Altura Studio… What struck me most about Lauren and Jason’s wedding on the last weekend of August was how happy everyone was. There was something in the air that put smiles on everyone’s faces. Grins all around. Nothing could break the bubbly spell that settled over the day as everybody prepared for the wedding. Not one teeny tiny bit of stress. The bridesmaids and groomsmen seemed to have a great time and I know for certain that all the parents were delighted all day.

I don’t need to say how lovely everyone and everything looked. Pick any photo of Lauren and you’ll see her shine with happiness and excitement. Her drop-waisted, low-back dress was the only one of it’s kind I saw all season. Jason? One classy dude. The pics of Jason and Lauren meeting up for the first time are among my very favorites of the day.

Under a natural canopy of vines, a curtain of satin ribbons, hung with copper bells was a colorful backdrop for their ceremony. Jason’s father was the officiant, who at time, was both funny and sentimental. Laughter and sniffles could both heard during the ceremony. Guests where given small polished stones as they were seated at the ceremony. Guests blessed each stone with a special wish for the couple as Lauren and Jason said their vows. The blessed stones were collected and presented to the couple in a lovely basket which will have a special place in their new home together.

Afterwards, the couple celebrated with a farm-to-table style meal prepared by the groovy guys and gals at Farm to Fork. Ikat linens in blue and white complemented the colorful arrangements of blue hydrangea, and a rainbow of dahlias. The farm-to-table menu was accompanied by the venue’s local wines.

The color palette in this wedding just makes me smile. Mint and gold? It’s just a lovely combo. But the couple at the center of this stylish fête is even lovelier. Their big day sparkles from the first picture captured by Sweetlife Photography to the very last, and you can see every picture perfect moment here.

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Winter Weddings

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Blush + Gold Ballroom Wedding

From the Bride…Brad and Jenna met at the University of Oregon when Brad had returned from a year of studying abroad in South America to his new job at Jenna’s sorority house as the “house boy.” They came to know each other better and better, day by day, and as a winter formal house dance grew near, Jenna decided to pull a quick prank on Brad and ask him to be her date to the dance by writing in ketchup, “Will you go to Ivy Ball with me?” on the white dinner plates that Brad later had to wash…

After a few years of college, post college life in Portland, Oregon, and an adventurous move to San Francisco, Brad got up the nerve to propose ocean side at Manresa Beach in Santa Cruz. They shared the news with their family and friends and soon after the elaborate wedding festivities and a year of planning began.

They decided to have an elegant winter wedding up in Jenna’s beloved home state of Oregon. The couple fell in love with the industrial, yet warm atmosphere of the Leftbank Annex in Portland. The décor was themed mint and gold with lots of shimmering candlelight that played beautifully with the contrast of the brick and steel atmosphere. The bride wore a crystal lace drop waist gown by designer Romona Kevez, while the bridesmaids wore floor length mint chiffon dresses by Joanna August, and the men looked timeless in their classic black and white Vera Wang tuxes.

The couple walked down the aisle to an acoustic rendition of Bruno Mars’ “Marry You” played by a close family friend, whose father served as the officiant. The ceremony was funny, sweet, and very genuine highlighted by the amount of happy tears flowing from the 230 guests that attended. After the ceremony, the guests filed downstairs for a cocktail hour and upon returning upstairs for dinner, speeches and cake, were all happily entertained with a surprise rendition of Usher’s “Confessions” reworked to simply say: “we love Jenna more than you”, performed by the two hilarious brothers of the groom. The Portland craft beer and California wine flowed freely as everyone celebrated the newlyweds. It was a full dance floor and lots of love and laughter that wrapped up the rest of what the bride and groom describe as: “The best night EVER!”

Ballroom weddings make me happy. Maybe it’s the Cinderella-esque atmosphere and gorgeous traditional details that send my heart into a flurry… or maybe it’s just because they are so darn pretty. My guess? It’s all of the above. And when you feast your eyes on this gorgeous day from Blum Design In Flowers and Tara Francis Photography, you’ll see exactly what I mean. Join me in the gallery for more.

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Winter Weddings

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Urban Orchard Inspiration Shoot

From the Bride… The Elysian Ballroom was one of the first ballrooms we saw and went to look at. We fell in love with it and looked at a few more, but none could compare. It was decorated perfectly and was exactly what I expected my wedding to look like. Most important were the chiavari chairs. All of the decorations you saw were done by Mike and his wonderful team from the Elysian.

We lucked out on my shoes, because my mother-in-law found them at DSW, but they were the last ones and happened to be in my size. When Spenser called, they were out of stock, but miraculously got one back in stock a week later.

My wedding dress was the first one I tried on and my sister actually picked it out for me. I wasn’t sure if I liked it and kept looking, but none compared to mine. I eventually went back and tried it on and fell in love with it. Each time I tried it on I loved it more and more. I loved the fact that it was both white and ivory.

I wanted a formal look for my bridesmaid dresses, so I wanted a long sleeve look and a blush color. When we went to Nordstrom’s to look for dresses, these caught my eye immediately and were exactly what I was looking for.

The groomsmen were left up to my husband. He chose a more modern tux style that were trim fitting. He loves paisely so he picked the paisely tie and vest combination. And he thought it would be a good idea to have the ivory shirt for all the groomsmen with a black vest and tie and he would have the ivory shirt, tie and vest. It was a last minute decision while they were picking up their tuxes that they decided to do the wild socks for every guy in the wedding party, including the dads.

The wine was from Spenser’s dad’s good friend, Kirk Reuter, who owns his own winery in California called Ard Aven Winery. They brought two kinds of red, a syrah and a barbera. They also designed their own label from one of our engagement photos. From making to bottling to labeling, the wine was created for our wedding.

We used six bottles with a gold sharpie as our guest book. Guests used the pens to sign and write us a message wherever there was space on the bottles. Spenser used one of our engagement photographs to make the guestbook table sign from Vistaprint and bought the stand from Micheals.

One thing we added, that was actually an idea from out pastor, was the love box during the ceremony. Engraved on the box was our names and wedding date. Inside the box were notes we wrote to each other expressing our love, two glasses for wine (that say, “I do” and “I do too”) and a bottle of wine. There is a key that locks the box and the story behind it is you open the box if you are having a terrible fight, pour some wine, and read each other the notes. If you make it to your year anniversary then you open the box, pour the wine, read the notes, and write each other new ones for the year.

Jordan from Blum did all of the wonderful work on the flowers. She just looked at pictures I had on my Pinterest and took notes in a short meeting to come up with everything. She did a wonderful job.

Our DJ, John Ross was a referral from my sister. But we had also heard him and grabbed a CD from the Portland Bridal Show. Spenser took the time to listen and pick out all the songs.

Our party favors were XS energy drinks. We ordered tags from Vistaprint, hole punched the corner, and attached them with ribbon in bows.

The cake was from Wrightberry’s and was also done based on a short meeting to describe the color scheme. We took in a few pictures from Pinterest and she also had a few of her own ideas. The best part was getting to choose the flavors. It was a 4-tier cake. The bottom tier was german chocolate. The next was salted caramel. Followed by marionberry. And the top (which we got to take home!) was Reese’s Peanut Butter.

Show me a day filled with fall hues, gorgeous blooms from Blum Design In Flowers and a sweets table that includes hot cocoa (my favorite) and I’ll show you a blogger that couldn’t be more pleased. Because when it comes to insanely beautiful wedding inspiration, this crazy cool urban orchard shoot captured by Ashley Forrette is right up my alley. Two words: seriously stunning. See it all here.

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Glamorous Gold Ballroom Wedding in Portland

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Urban Space

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Romantic

From Blum Design In Flowers… Our “Urban Orchard” inspiration shoot took place at Urban Studio which is located in the center of Portland’s Pearl District. Fifteen years ago the Pearl District was a primarily industrial, partially abandoned area. Since then it has undergone a massive revival and is home to many condos, restaurants and boutiques. That combination of downtown chic and industrial made for a wonderful and completely blank slate for our imaginations to play with. The area also hosts a lot of hidden spots that are fantastic for portraits that our photographer, Ashley Forrette, was sure to utilize.

For the shoot we wanted to create a look that was classic and elegant while still maintaining a really warm, inviting and fun feel. We chose the colors of plum, apple red, peach and green as they’re both rich and a little whimsical.

In recent years Portland has developed a wonderful sense of locavore pride. So we wanted to make the most of what our area has to offer not only to show clients how to share it with guests in a slightly new way. Apples, wheat, herbs, and, of course, roses (in reference to Portland’s nickname, The City of Roses) were featured in the table centerpiece and personal flowers as a fairly subtle reference to area’s farming industry. We also created a dessert buffet that featured warm drinks in addition to the cake. Fresh pressed hot cider and hot cocoa with all of the fixings made a sweet accent to the table and also warm guests up. Last but not least, a smores pit made out of a repurposed wine barrel added a really fun photo op and sweet treat at the end of the shoot!

When it comes to ballroom wedding, brides and grooms often have to work with backdrops that don’t fit their wedding day style to perfection. But that is definitely NOT the case with this ballroom celebration. This bride used an already gorg space and added her own dose of style and style and style for days. The result – with photos by Yvonne Wong – is wedding perfection. More right here!

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Classic Weddings Whimsical

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Ballroom Weddings

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From the bride…My husband and I met while I was in grad school at Boston College. We love the history and architecture of Boston and the campus so we knew we wanted a venue with those features. Finding that in Portland, Oregon where we live now was a little challenging but we found the Treasury Ballroom which was formerly the Federal Treasury building. The setting really lends itself to something glamorous and romantic which is completely our style.

My grandmother is Japanese so along with my mother and I, we folded 1000 paper cranes in a blush and gold palette to include in the decor to honor my heritage. The ceremony/head table backdrop that was created with these cranes was so incredible!

I included my new 13-year-old stepdaughter as a bridesmaid and I’ve never been big on matching dresses so it seemed to make the most sense to simply give my ladies a palette and let them find dresses they loved in their own styles. Since no two of us live in the same state I was a little worried about how it would come together but one the big day I thought it looked fantastic!

I’ve always loved flowers and I knew I wanted really amazing arrangements. Kim from Swoon Floral actually understood my loose yet elegant instructions and was great about incorporating the blooms I loved.

The food and wine were our biggest priorities. We paired our wines with the food and brought it in from a few of our favorite local Willamette Valley wineries. My husband was determined to have a champagne tower which really fit in with our theme well. My husband’s a total nerd at heart and I wanted to make sure the wedding was really him as well so I arranged a few surprises including a Star Wars themed groom’s cake, Death Star ice cubes and a Darth Vader helmet for some fun pics!

We wanted really intricate signs so when my mom suggested using the vinyl on mirrors we loved it! She designed and created program, bar and guest book mirrors which are now hanging in our apartment.

Originally our ceremony was supposed to be on the building’s rooftop however we had driving wind and rain so luckily Misty and her team were able to create a stunning space for the ceremony inside the ballroom. Everything came together so perfectly! Best.Day.Ever!

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Maggie Sottero

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Romantic Bridal Hairpiece Shoot

In the world of fab Mondays, this post reigns supreme. It’s ethereal, gorgeous and combines some of our fave designers, the crazy awesome talents of Kacee Geoffroy and Kat Park and a whole world of beautiful hair pieces from Nicky Teo. It’s basically a dream come true for any lover of weddings, accessories and downright pretty (that’s all of you). See it captured by Diana Marie Photography right here.

From Nicky Teo… Nicky Teo bridal hairpieces are delicate, graceful, functional, and romantic. The 2014 collection was inspired by ethereal vines. They are dainty, exquisite, and whimsy which creates a unique one of a kind piece. Even with all the sparkle, there is a simplicity about them. The beauty of the collection is that they are flexible and can be formed to accommodate whatever hairstyle you have. The 2014 collection is so versatile and unique, that no matter how sophisticated or simple your wedding is, there’s one that will suit your personal style.

These Featured Designers are members of our Look Book.
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Classic Black + White Country Club Wedding

If you don’t like big, giant balloons, or cute as can be puppies or black and white stripes, well, I’ve got nothing for you, but I’m guessing there aren’t many of you (if any!) so we’re going to go ahead with this ridiculously beautiful wedding from Bridal Bliss + Ben Pigao, complete with, you guessed it, balloons, a puppy, and so many stripes!

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Valentine’s Day Elopement Inspiration

From the stunning bride… Most brides say, “my wedding day should be the most ____ (insert generic adjective here) day of my life”. When I first sat down with my wedding planner I said, “my wedding day is the only wedding day of my life.” Our inspiration came from who Tyler and I are as a couple: sappy sentimental, country club chic meets charming comedian, gregarious golfer.

Our love bloomed in Sonoma, CA where the lush wine grapes and vineyards set up a perfect backdrop to fall in love. Eight years later; our love was ripe for the picking.

Tyler and I choose a venue where we currently reside in Portland, OR. Waverley Country Club was the home of Tyler’s parents wedding celebration (sentimental and country club chic – check.) Large crystal chandeliers accented gold décor and elegant crown molding ball rooms made for the perfect ambiance. The backdrop of the stately white mansion from 1896 is a prestigious golf course set along the Willamette River (gregarious golfer – check.) Romantic private bedrooms upstairs in the mansion meant the honeymoon suite was walking distance (charming comedian – check) and the extended, private drive into the club made for a grand entrance on its own.

The little details in the wedding were written in our programs for all guests to enjoy. My cousins rang bells to start our ceremony in loving memory of my late Grandmother. As a young girl, she would always tell me that when I got married she would be at the wedding, wearing bells. I drove up in a 1950’s Bentley with my father and descended down the aisle to “Isn’t She Lovely” by Stevie Wonder, the first song we danced to when I was five. I walked alongside my dad in my mother’s original wedding shoes (my something borrowed.) My Lazaro gown’s sash sparkled in the sun as I moved toward my groom; we had it custom made to include my late Aunt’s ten carat blue topaz (my something blue.) My elegant orchid bouquet was wrapped in my grandmother’s handkerchief that had been passed down six generations of weddings (something old.) The ceremony began, as did the happy tears through hand written vows. My wedding band is my Grandmother’s original wedding band from my Grandfather who married in 1953 (something new.) I could hear them tear up behind me as Tyler slipped it onto my finger. The recessional song was “Signed, Sealed, Delivered” by Stevie Wonder – mirroring the processional – resembled the first song that Ty and I danced to together.

After the ceremony, we floated upstairs taking to a private dinner for two; sixty minutes of uninterrupted time to take it all in as a couple. Our guests took to the garden courtyard below where champagne overflowed and small bites kept guests busy, tipsy and mingling. Next came hilarious and thoughtful toasts, dinner and cake cutting. The floral vases on our table scape were found by Tyler and I by milk-glass vase hunting during our 15- month engagement. “Drink Champagne and Dance on the Table” illuminated our dessert display, setting the tone for continuing our celebration. Our first dance was a complete surprise to me. I let Tyler pick out our song and melted when the band started singing and we danced for the first time as a married couple (Huey, Lewis and the News “Doing it All For My Baby”).

The little details exemplified the big details. Our band kept everyone dancing past midnight and for late night snacks the local, but nationally known, VooDoo Doughnut truck treated everyone to something sweet.

Through 3 generations, Tyler and I have witnessed 280 years of beautiful vows that have lasted through life’s challenges. The guest’s smiles, laughter, energy; the dance moves, the happy tears and multiple toasts will always mark the night we committed to carrying on the tradition of life-long marriage for both of our families. We say, cheers to that!

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Wedding Dresses

Monique Lhuillier

Monique Lhuillier Bridal Fall 2015

Monique Lhuillier Bridesmaids Fall 2015

Spring 2016

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On the eve of our favorite day of the year, we knew only super special events could grace the blog – and this elopement inspiration? Well, let’s just say it was made for this time of year. We couldn’t agree more with Brittany Lauren Photography when she says that elopements are the most romantic, and obviously, we couldn’t think of a better way to spend the day than in this gallery!

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Winter Weddings

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Industrial

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Romantic

From the photographer… Inspired by the recent engagement season and the holiday that celebrates love, a couple of us Portland wedding professionals decided to get together and put together a stylish and chic Valentine’s Day Elopement to inspire brides who are romantics at heart because let’s face it, nothing says romance like eloping with just the person you love and your closest loved ones.

We kept with a color scheme of deep red, pinks, and gold to keep things modern and chic. Our bride wore a short dress slightly remnant of Jackie O with a gold belt and deep red floral crown and our groom sported a tux with a shirt decorated with the tiniest of hearts in honor of the holiday to update and liven up his suit.

We wanted to inspire an elopement because we believe they truly focus only on your significant other, romance, and the kind of teenage joy we all get when we’re with the one we love.

Photography: Brittany Lauren Photography | Coordination: Champagne Wedding & Event Coordination | Floral Design: Liz Rusnac Floral Design | Hair And Make Up: Cassandra Kennedy Beauty | Rentals: West Coast Event Productions

Portland Wedding at Jupiter Hotel

Turn Loose The Art is responsible for the big, goofy grin on my face this morning, and it’s all thanks to this uber fabulous wedding they captured at the Jupiter Hotel. It’s overflowing with style and love, making this gallery one smile-inducing place to be today. See even more here.

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Hotels + Resorts Weddings

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Casual

From Turn Loose The Art …Two Portland transplants fall in love with their new city and marry there rather than heading back home. The Jupiter Hotel provided the perfect backdrop for their gay wedding. The hotel’s bamboo fit in perfectly with their green and navy wedding colors, the kitschy atmosphere perfectly accented their reception emceed by a drag queen.

They chose wedding gifts from local Portland artisans, ditched a typical wedding cake in favor of pie. Bryan danced into the wedding ceremony. Really, what’s not to love about this couple?

Portland, Oregon Wedding at Leftbank Annex

Personality packed and filled with style, this stunning Portland wedding at the Leftbank Annex captured by Lauren Brooks Photography and coordinated by Bridal Bliss is one you’ll want to spend time with today. Because it’s layered with love and thoughtful details, starting early with the paper from Press Engaged, making this gallery one inspiring place to be today.

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Portland, Oregon Wedding at The Benson from Brittany Lauren Photography

From Bridal Bliss…What a wonderful experience working with Sarah & Matt. It is refreshing to work with clients that have an idea of what they want, but are open to ideas from the wedding professionals they have hired. We loved the soft, clean palette and the juxtaposition of the exposed brick and raw space. There were so many personal aspects to this wedding, my favorite being the huppa Talit designed by all the guests. From the GORGEOUS wedding gown, to bringing in Portland’s hottest ice cream cart, Salt and Straw to renting gorgeous furniture to create lounge spaces, this wedding was one to remember.

From the Bride…When Matt and I met he was truly East Coast – he had not spent any significant time in the Pacific Northwest or even visited Portland. Portland (and I) quickly grew on him, and when we became engaged he advocated strongly for a Portland wedding. I cherished the opportunity to share Portland with all our friends and family for a weekend, and we both knew a Portland wedding would provide an interesting, relaxed and unique backdrop for our wedding.

From the beginning we knew this was going to be a big wedding. We could not imagine a day without all our friends and family. Despite the size, I wanted the wedding to feel intimate, like the dinner parties I enjoy hosting. Matt, meanwhile, hoped for a big band and fantastic party that lasted all night. Luckily, neither of us had to compromise.

We wanted the wedding to reflect our personalities, both as individuals and as a couple. I love the piano, so as guests entered we had some of our favorite songs playing on the piano, and we also used it for the ceremony. I walked down the aisle to an acoustic version of Adele’s “make you feel my love,” which was also playing when Matt proposed. And we recessed to the Beatles “Good day sunshine,” which set the tone for the rest of the party. To incorporate the love of all our guests, as well as the many East Coasters who couldn’t make the trip, we included a square of cloth in each invitation. In lieu of a guest book at the wedding, our guests were asked to inscribe their memories, hopes and wishes on the square. I sewed the squares together to create the chuppah that was used during our reform Jewish ceremony.

We currently live in Brooklyn but travel frequently to see friends and family scattered around the country. To incorporate all those stops, instead of table numbers we used the airport codes of all our common destinations and layovers (e.g., my dad was at table “SAN” because he’s originally from San Diego). One of Matt’s favorite details ended up being the place cards, which were the names we actually call our friends and family, rather than their formal names (e.g., “Uncle Bobby” instead of Robert). Some of our guests didn’t even look twice; it was natural for them to see their nickname.

One of the things Matt has come to love about Portland is the food. We were both excited to create the local menu, and we had the good fortune of working with James Fowler and the team at Devil’s Food Catering. Initially, we sent them a list of our favorite foods, and they ran from there in designing a menu that perfectly reflected our interests. We both love challah but you never get enough at Jewish weddings, so instead of bread we had loaves of challah at each table. To reflect the warm, intimate wedding I was hoping for, we served dinner family style. The menu also included late-night snacks in case anyone got hungry from all the dancing!

But we couldn’t forget the sweets. Neither Matt nor I like cake very much, so our favorite local ice cream shop, Salt & Straw, offered four flavors from their cart. Everyone on the dance floor soon transitioned to the ice cream line. My father requested that we have a cake, which turned out to be wonderful. We are looking forward to eating the carrot cake layer with homemade toffee filling on our first anniversary. But, when we cut the cake, we only ate the buttercream icing.

A dear friend of the family owns and operates a local winery. We knew we wanted to offer only Oregon wine and beer, and it was a perfect match when he offered to help us out. As a special treat, friends and family joined us for lunch at the winery earlier in the week. I also love creative cocktails, so we offered four unique drinks throughout the night. And at the end of dinner “Matt’s Scotch Bar” opened in an elevated lounge area. We offered some of his old world favorites but also some local selections from up-and-coming Portland distilleries. It was a fun way to add variety to the night and allowed Matt to celebrate with everyone in his own special way.

Our first dance was to Sam Cook’s “You Send Me.” I then danced with my father to Danny Kaye’s “Inch Worm,” a song we often danced to when I was a child, with my feet on his as we circled around the living room. Matt’s mom surprised him with a dance to “My Guy,” which bought tears to all our eyes. Both of our sisters gave beautifully personal speeches; my father very poignantly explained my personality in his toast; and Matt’s parents did a wonderful David Lettermen impersonation listing “the top ten reasons why Sarah and Matt should be married,” which included that they finally learned to correctly pronounce “Oregon” and “Willamette.”

We had expected the crowed to dwindle over the course of the evening, but we were excited to see that the buses returning to the hotel were overcrowded and everyone wanted to continue the celebration in our hotel suite. We woke up the next morning lamenting it was over and wishing we could do it all over again. And now back to writing our thank you notes…

Pink and gold run through the veins of all of us at Style Me Pretty, so when we lay eyes on a wedding like this one from Brittany Lauren Photography, we can’t help but want to stop and stay awhile. Oozing with romance and timeless elegance, every single image sitting in this gallery makes us want to squeal with delight, and they are all sitting pretty right here.

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Ballroom Weddings Hotels + Resorts Weddings

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Portland Wedding from Commonwealth Vintage Rentals + Gabriel Boone Photography

From Brittany Lauren Photography…Anna first laid eyes on Max at All Saints School in September of 1999. Anna was entering the 5th grade, and Max was transferring in as a 6th Grader. Anna was immediately smitten with Max, but it took him a little while longer to reciprocate Anna’s love. They started dating in high school at the age of 16 and fell in love very quickly. Max proposed to Anna under a meteor shower in Eastern Oregon on August 13, 2012. Anna was holding a can of Bud Light when Max dropped to one knee, flashed his million dollar smile and asked her, “Will you marry me?”

The two were married at The Historic Benson Hotel on October 12, 2013. It is one of Portland most oldest and most magnificent hotels! They call it the “residence of the Presidents” because every U.S. President has stayed there. The most important aspect of the wedding was for Anna and Max to stay true to who they are. They didn’t want anything lavish and over the top, but wanted to make sure their day was timeless, classic, and chic! They picked a color palette of black, gold, and blush pink, the bridesmaids wore full length black gowns, and all the men donned tuxedo’s. There was a very subtle 1920s nostalgic feel to the day with a hint of modern glitz and glam added in.

DIY Wax Paper Backdrop

Do you all remember this wedding and the crazy good backdrop that created quite the internet commotion? Stunning and totally DIY if you can believe it. Well we stalked the Bride and her awesomely talented designer friend, Katie M Kulper and begged them to spill the beans on making that beauty. And they soooo delivered. Katie teamed up with Allie Rae Photography and Commonwealth vintage rentals to bring you this DIY Wax Paper Backdrop. So go ahead and pin it, rave about it, add it to your favorites folder and then make it. Your wedding ceremony will thank you.

From Katie M Kulper… What I love about this backdrop is it’s simplicity. The light and airy quality is impactful yet doesn’t take attention away from the bride and groom. With little more than string, ribbon and paper, you can create a backdrop of any size to suit any venue. The cost of materials is minimal and the time it takes can be greatly reduced by getting a few nimble fingered friends together.

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DIY Wax Paper Backdrop

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10+ yards of ribbon
size 10 crochet string
tapestry needle, scissors
1 1/2 boxes of interfolded waxed deli sheets
match stick

Fold waxed paper sheet in half to form a square and cut out circle shape.

Cut circle in half and set aside. Cut crochet string to desired length and tie a slip knot on one end.

Fold half-circle into cone shape by turning the corners in towards each other so that they overlap. Secure cone shape by stitching in and out of where the paper overlaps.

Fill length of string with cones, leaving about a finger’s width of space between each cone.

Prepare the ribbon by trimming a clean angled end. To keep end from fraying and unraveling, lightly singe the ribbon’s edge. Thread the ribbon through the slip knot loops.

Synch down slip knots to hold cone strands in place. Leave about a finger’s width between each strand.

Trim away the tails of the slip knots.

Continue to repeat this process until length of ribbon is full.

Photography: Allie Rae Photography | Backdrop Design: Carol Hung | Vintage Rentals: Common Wealth

When modern and rustic mix and mingle, it’s a beautiful thing. Just take this pretty Portland affair, for example. It’s the old mixed with the new, and gives the classic cookie cutter wedding a major run for its money. And with a bride who happens to be one of the driving forces behind Commonwealth Vintage Rentals, you can count on perfect style moments from start to finish. Watch the day unfold from Gabriel Boone right over here.

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Spring Weddings

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Modern

From the Bride, Commonwealth Vintage Rentals…Braden and I had been to this building on separate occasions and we both were separately convinced that this would be the building that we would have our wedding. So when it came time to pick a venue this building was our one and only choice. We felt so blessed that we were able to book the space around the time we wanted, we were only engaged for 4 months so availability was pretty slim. This venue truly made the look of our wedding. It was such a well lit and unique space that it felt like we barely had to decorate it.

Braden and I used to spend time at Ace Hotel Portland to read, hang out, and spend time with one another. In the lobby there is a huge card file that guests and visitors leave notes, draw pictures, write poetry, confessions, etc. We always made a point to add something when we visited. One of our friends found a note we had wrote at the very beginning of our relationship and that spurred the idea behind our guest sign in. We grabbed Ace Hotel’s note pads and used two Commonwealth card files. We had our guests leave us a note and stick it in the file for us to read later. We loved watching people participate in something that we loved to do when we dated.

My old roommate is a visual designer for Anthropologie. During my time living with her, I loved seeing all sorts of incredible projects that she’d bring home to work on. She’s one of the most creative and inspirational people that I know, and when she offered to make the backdrop for my wedding I couldn’t be more honored. She had a vision for it and over a three week period constructed a backdrop that I couldn’t have been more perfect. I loved the look of the soft white over the rugged, old industrial wall that it hung infront of.

Oddly enough, I actually had no idea what I wanted my dress to look like. My style is very straight-forward and classic, and I knew I wanted my dress to reflect that. This dress was a dress I tried on at the first store that I went to and was picked out by maid-of-honor. I loved everything about it and made about a billion altering appointments just so I could try it on all of the time. One of my closest friends has her own clothing line that includes jewelry and perfume. I always wanted her to design something for my wedding. I had an idea for a hair accessory and she took that vision and created what I wore on my wedding day. She was one of my bridesmaids, but just I loved having a part of her with me as I walked down the aisle.

The tables that were used for the reception were tables that I built with my business, Braden was a big help with that. It was such an incredible gift to get to share our work and Commonwealth’s inventory with so many family and friends who have heard the story of us starting our vintage rental business. My most favorite pieces we used were our mid-century furniture, school desk chairs, and reclaimed wood tables with hairpin legs.

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Wedding Dresses

Jim Hjelm

Fall 2015

Spring 2016 Collection

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Portland Wedding Film from Ambient Sky

This amazing wedding trailer from Ambient Sky holds my absolute favorite one liner ever. “Your forever comes one day at a time.” What an awesome sentiment, right? Only fitting coming from a wedding film so beautiful, I may or may not have needed to reapply my mascara after watching it (okay, I did). What a fantastic start to a Saturday.

[iframe http://player.vimeo.com/video/59834167 601 338]

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Portland Wedding from Bridal Bliss

From the gorgeous bride … I have ridden horses all my life, and it is my passion. KJ took me riding in the mountains in Tahoe and proposed on horseback. It was an amazing moment, and very brave of him because he has not done much riding.

We chose The Nines Hotel, because it is absolutely beautiful and it was large enough to hold our guest list. I fell in love with the venue the first time I saw it. As far as inspiration goes… I am not creative or visual. I told my mom and the coordinator to just make it beautiful. My mom did an amazing job planning the whole event.

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Wedding Dresses

Jenny Lee

Spring 2015

Fall 2014

Fall 2015

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Jim Hjelm

Fall 2015

Spring 2016 Collection

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There are so many ways to make a wedding pop; color being a huge category in that pop scenario (and one of my favorites). It can take a wedding to a whole new level of fresh and modern, just ask this Portland affair designed by Bridal Bliss. Mint, coral, chevron, it’s all there and mingling beautifully. See for yourself with all the images by Bryan Rupp sitting pretty in the full gallery.

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Museum Weddings in Historical Venues

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Modern Whimsical

From the Bride…Because it was a Summer wedding, our goal was to keep it light and fun and fresh, with hints of “us” everywhere. For the ceremony, I had the vision of creating a colorful ribbon back-drop that would serve as the inspiration for the first floor. Thanks to my mom’s countless hours of searching for just the right ribbons, and my step-dads design abilities, we created a ceremony back drop that doubled as our photo-booth back drop. From the ribbons came several “colorful” details. The bridesmaids, with their grey j.crew dresses, wore shoes in the color of their choice. The florist matched the satin ribbon around their bouquet with their shoe color…to me, any little pop of color like that just made the day more fun and unique. The flower girls wore bright colored sparkly shoes, and the ring bearers each wore different colored Vans and bow ties/suspenders. We used the colorful ribbons to drape the cocktail reception tables, rather than any sort of floral pieces.

For the dinner reception area on the second floor, I wanted to have a simple color scheme that played well with the natural light and the summer-time feel. I found different schemes in the shades of coral, mint and grey and thought that it was the perfect combination for YU. We kept the reception area clean, using light grey linens, with bright pops of coral for the floral pieces, and tiffany blue napkins. The lighting team brought in some vintage bulbs that were draped from the high ceilings. We were able to take this old industrial space and match it with old and new pieces.

Our shared love for live music wound up helping to develop a lot of the little details that made the day unique to us. Dinner tables were each named after the concerts we have seen together – with table numbers being album covers. Place cards, made by my step-dad, were small little sketched retro-looking cassettes with the band name (table name). Instead of a formal guest book, we invited guests to sign vinyls of some of the shows we had gone to. Joey e-mailed our favorite concert venue, asking for any of the concert posters from shows we had seen there. They found all 20-something posters, which we used as additional decor in places like the stairwell leading up to the dinner reception. We wanted guests to enjoy our music at the wedding as much as we do when we go to shows, so we included both a classic 70’s band and a modern DJ into our festivities. The Fun Bus and DJ Gemo took turns keeping our guests out on that floor until the very last minute. A must-have was glow sticks…and lots of them! We go to enough shows to know that everyone loves a glow stick around their neck when they dance, so we threw out hundreds throughout the reception.

It was also important for us to incorporate Washington, D.C. and Portland into our wedding day, along with our families and pasts. We had met in D.C. and fallen in love there, and here we were in Portland getting married and celebrating with all of our closest friends and family. Our specialty cocktail was the Gin Ricky, which was recently named Washington’s “Official Cocktail,” with original Oregon beers served like Widmer and Full Sail. We had VooDoo Donuts (a Portland staple) as a late night snack. I found an artist on Etsy who designed a pair of Toms for me to wear after dinner – with each shoe having iconic images of Portland and D.C. painted on. We used my Grandpa’s old 1952 Chevy car to transport the groomsmen in, and an old school bus from my dads old construction business, to transport the bridesmaids in. Joey found different suspenders that represented each groomsmen and their interests, and gave those to the guys as a gift. We gave all the bridesmaids champagne glasses that were made with beads wrapped around the stem that matched their shoes/jewelry color, for toasting.

The wedding was perfect, all the way up until to the last dance with all of our favorite people. It truly represented our love for each other, and our adventurous, lively spirits. One of our favorite parts of the night was when our photographer asked if we wanted to go up onto the roof of the building. Joey had spotted it from Google Earth countless times and was adamant about figuring out a way to get up there during the reception. Thankfully, we had an adventurous photographer who was willing to climb some ladders and get up to the top with us. We were able to watch the sunset from the roof, overlooking Portland. It was the perfect way to capture the unique day that we were in the midst of.

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Portland Wedding from Jessica Hill Photography

I think it’s safe to say I heart everything about this whimsical Portland wedding. Set in the backyard of the bride’s famliy home, this couple opted to skip the stuffy affair for a more relaxed and unpretentious party. Fabulously crafted with a slew of DIY details, the result was a day of unabashed fun. Jessica Hill Photography was there to capture all the cuteness and it’s waiting for you here!

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