Elegance and romance abound in this beautiful Minneapolis mansion wedding captured by Lovisa Photo. With lots of golden candlelight and lush greenery florals, Pantone’s color of the year, Greenery, shines paired with gold. From the invitations to the menus and draping florals, the wreath motif continues throughout creating an effortlessly elegant event the guests are sure to remember!
My constant goal throughout the planning process was to make our wedding an elegant affair without losing the warm air of comfort that any good party needs. I wanted people to feel they were invited to something special from the moment they received their invitation, to their first steps into the Semple Mansion. Fragrant greenery coupled with the glow of gold and copper accents and the dark wood interior of the Mansion created the perfect atmosphere, transporting our guests to another world full of incredible food, plenty of champagne, and sounds of a string quartet echoing throughout the hall.
My wonderful little sister, Theresa, surprised me at my bridal shower with the gift of a handmade veil. She knew I wanted a very simple veil and was loathe to buy one at such exorbitant prices. I was prepared to bite the bullet and buy it myself, but when Theresa told me she would make me one I was absolutely thrilled! She has always been so creative and crafty that it made complete sense that she would fashion the missing piece to my bridal ensemble.
For my something old, borrowed, and blue, I pinned my maternal grandmother’s cameo on the front of my wedding bouquet. Grandma Volpe passed away years ago, but I wish she could have seen me walk down the aisle. She was such a classic icon to me that it seemed appropriate I honor her prominently, yet simply.
As my father and I walked down the aisle, I saw Kyle had tears in his eyes. Kyle never cries. We have been together for 5 years and I have only seen him cry maybe twice, so to see him unafraid to share that raw emotion with me meant the world. During the ceremony we shared Communion, just the two of us, and had my home pastor and his wife bring us the elements and pray over us as we partook. This was particularly significant to me because we weren’t sure if he would be able to make the wedding let alone participate. Pastor Troy inspired me as I renewed my faith in Christ and he baptized me a few years earlier, so his presence was of great importance to me. That short moment is forever etched into my memory.
We received some beautiful words of encouragement from our pastor while we were in the final weeks of planning: details are forgotten, but the spirit of a wedding is not. His philosophy reshaped our entire perspective. My new goal was to ensure that our guests, and us as well, left the venue at the end of the evening feeling utterly enchanted with the entire affair. Nothing should feel panicked or rushed, even if we were behind schedule, and there should be joy in every moment. It is a wedding after all!
We also wanted our guests to feel completely pampered, like our only job for them was to enjoy the festivities. One of our biggest wedding pet-peeves we have is when guests have no idea what they are supposed to do, where to go, or when they somehow end up having to help clear tables or reset chairs. Communication is key, so Kyle and I made sure there was someone to announce location changes, friends to instruct guests where to go, and a simply jubilant MC with a booming voice. Not to mention a wedding planner that could wrangle kittens without breaking a sweat.
A favorite moment is my little brother’s toast. PJ has Down Syndrome, which makes him absolutely perfect beyond belief. He adores music and has a particular love for the cello, so instead of giving a traditional toast, PJ performed a short piece on the cello with his music teacher. He had memorized the entire thing and gave a fantastic rock-and-roll style finish that included him standing up and sawing away at the strings. Our guests gave a standing ovation with and there was hardly a dry eye in the house.
Another favorite moment was our first dance. For two months prior to the wedding, Kyle and I took dance lessons and had our teacher choreograph a number for us. Our song was Nat King Cole’s L-O-V-E and the dance was lovely. The best part was that no one knew! We love surprising each other so we were thrilled to have the opportunity to surprise our guests. Well, the moment arrived and we were nervous to say the least. It was the last item on our wedding itinerary and as we glided (and in all honesty, tripped) our way through it, the stress just melted away. Our guests applauded and cheered us on, then joined us as we collectively danced the night away!
Photography | Lovisa Photo | Venue | Semple Mansion | Coordination | See Jane Plan | Florals | Sadie’s Couture Floral And Event Design | Cake | Farina | Catering | Chowgirls Killer Catering | Invitations | Champagne Press | Rentals | Linen Effects | DJ | Bellagala | Dress | Justin Alexander from Bridal Accents Couture | Hair & Makeup | Casey Pearson Artistry | Bridesmaids’ Dresses | David’s Bridal | Shoes | Badgley Mischka | Jewelry | Nadri | Ring Box | The Mrs. Box
