Yay for the first wedding feature of 2012! If you don’t love anything else about this wedding, you will fall in love with the bouquet! Seriously, I am dying over these bright, big peony blooms! The whole wedding is vibrant and modern, while still maintaining a timeless elegance.
The groom, Tim, shares all the details:
When we originally sat down to plot out the details of our wedding, we we’re easily discouraged with all the details to plan. Every time we thought we had a decision made on something, we’d realize it didn’t jive well with another aspect of our wedding. It wasn’t until we discovered our vision and inspiration for the overall day, that we were really able to start planning. Our inspiration was incorporating things that we love.
Americana and the Classics: We wanted a classic (yet up-to-date/stylish) flare to the evening. Sarah walked down the aisle to a brass quartet playing, the traditional bridal march (known in pop culture as “Here Comes the Bride”), which ironically, I have yet to hear actually played at another wedding besides our own. Also, we became obsessed with the AMC show “Mad Men” last year because we’ve both always had a affinity for the olden days. As my groomsmen gift (and a gift to myself J), I gave the men a monogrammed tie clip to pay homage to Don Draper style fashion.
Another classic thing we did was: getaway outfits. We found an old picture of my parents from the 1960’s, smiling from ear to ear in their getaway outfits holding a small vintage (new at the time) piece of luggage, and knew we wanted to create that scene for our own grand exit 40 years later.
Disneyland: Going there never gets old, we even did our engagement photos there. Every time we walk down Main Street we feel like kids again. It’s magical and whimsical. Just as Disneyland end each night with fireworks, we ended our special night running through a tunnel of fireworks (sparklers J) in our getaway outfits towards the awaiting limousine.
Royal: Since Sarah was a little girl she’s been in love with Princesses (Disney to be specific). The love of all things royal played out in our wedding with the bold, deep Sangria color of the bridesmaids dresses, the brass quartet during the ceremony, and Sarah’s ring having deep blue sapphires incorporated into her ring.
My older sister Rachel had the acapella men’s group from her college sing “My Love is Like a Red, Red, Rose” at her ceremony when I was in grade school. Years after I attended the same school and joined the same vocal group (all new guys). We sang that same song while I was in college, so it was only fitting to have the song sung at our wedding by the fellas.
To portray our love for traveling, the name cards we’re luggage tags that my sister Heather created. Apart from our guests names on the tags, they also had a table name which we named after destinations that we’ve traveled to and adored. Then to find their table, guests used a large cloth map of the world with the table locations on it. Instead of a table number, each table had a picture of us from the destination the table was named after. Another, DIY project was our conversation starter guestbook. Instead of a traditional guestbook, we created notecards that had phrases to evoke a thought to share with us.
The more clear your overall vision is, the easier it becomes to make decisions about things. Don’t be afraid to make decisions once you’ve committed to your vision. Remember that the day is all about you, so your décor, dress, and details should reflect that. Here’s a great quote from Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland that has stuck with me and reminds me that in order to get somewhere (even if it’s starting to plan your wedding) you need to know where you want to go:
“Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?”
“That depends a good deal on where you want to get to,” said the Cat.
“I don’t much care where–” said Alice.
“Then it doesn’t matter which way you go,” said the Cat.
“–so long as I get SOMEWHERE,” Alice added as an explanation.
“Oh, you’re sure to do that,” said the Cat, “if you only walk long enough.”
Photography | We Heart Photography
Venue | The Grand Tradition Estate
Florist | 1703 Event Studios
Cake | Heidi’s Cakes
Gown | Pronovias
Suits | Calvin Klein
Videographer | Ironside Productions
Entertainment | Select Brass (Cocktail Hour), Music & More (DJ)
Transportation | Diamond Limos, Inc
