Posts Tagged ‘spring wedding’
Real Weddings with Larkin and Jason
For our Real Weddings feature, Larkin and Jason have been chosen to share their beautiful spring wedding pictures and the story behind them so we can get a glimpse into their big day. I love the bridal party attire–patterned bridesmaids dresses are all the rage and the groomsmen suits are so hip and retro. Also, don’t forget to check out that gorgeous vintage ring–so unique! I also wore an estate piece for my “something borrowed” so I love that idea, even though for Larkin, it kind of happened on accident! Lovestruck Images (formerly Labor of Love Photography) really captured the fun personalities of this couple, from their cool groomsmen gifts to the whole crowd boogieing to “Sweet Caroline.” Speaking of music, I love their first dance choice to Dave Matthews Band,which should be added to my list for non-traditional music ideas. Another personal touch I loved was how they chose to name their tables, much like I mentioned in my Fabulous Finds for June. And what girl wouldn’t want to end their wedding night with “Time of My Life” from the Dirty Dancing soundtrack! Read on as we hear from the bride herself on the inspiration behind all of these unique and intimate details.
From the bride:
Since the bridesmaids dresses were so colorful we pulled the moss green, gold/yellow, and gray/silver out to be our color scheme.
The church is a historic church in Old Town Alexandria, St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, and my godmother actually got married there too. The kiss with the prayer book was just for fun!
My dress is Watters Brides, Torrean, and I’m obsessed with it. I didn’t want to ever take it off and it is still hanging in our guest room where I can look at it whenever I want. I still need to get it cleaned and preserved. The saddest part is not being able to wear it again so I’m considering possibly altering and dying it into a formal cocktail dress or something. But for now I can’t bring myself to do anything to it! 
The shoes are Paris Hilton and I absolutely love them! My favorite part is the hot pink sole! I’ve actually worn them with another dress to another wedding! All my friends know that I’m obsessed with heels so I had to have something fabulous.
This ring was my great-great-great aunt’s ring, so very vintage. It was given to her by a man as a promise/engagement ring but sadly they never got married; long story. My actual engagement ring was left at the hotel (another long story my brother will never live down) so there aren’t any pictures of it, sadly. But I wore this vintage one on my right hand.
I gave the florist creative freedom, but I’m pretty sure my bouquet was mainly peonies, roses, and maybe some miniature ranunculus.
The bridesmaids dresses are J.Crew. I always knew I wanted a patterned bridesmaids dress and when I saw these I fell in love with them. They are so fun, bright, and more importantly re-wearable!
Both my fiance (now husband) and I knew we didn’t want black tuxes, and when I got the bridesmaids dresses and saw they had gray in them it was perfect for gray tuxes. We also got lucky and found perfect gray suits and black ties for the boys, and so it made sense for Jason to have a black tie and vest, to distinguish him from the groomsmen. There was no way we could have matched any green/yellow with the gray tuxes so we tried to keep it simple.
We had a hard time coming up with bridal party gifts and again, wanted to do something somewhat unique. So, I gave the bridesmaids the gray silk flats that they wore and Jason gave the guys the silver aviators. We loved the idea of wearing the sunglasses in pictures and they added a fun element to everything. In this picture all the girls put on a pair of the guys glasses.
We named every table at the reception after a bar in Blacksburg, Virginia because that is where we met and both went to college (Virginia Tech). Our head table was Hokie House.
We both love unique beer and love trying new micro brews, and we wanted to do something unique for wedding favors. A few years ago we found out about a local brewery, Shenandoah Brewing Company located in Alexandria, that lets you come in and brew your own beer. It’s a really neat process. They keep your beer to ferment and then you go back when it’s ready to bottle and label it. You can create custom labels, too. It was hard keeping it a secret from our family because we needed all the help we could get to bottle and label 9.5 cases! We brewed a Red Ale, and named it “Gibas I Do Brew.”
Our first dance was to Dave Matthews Band, “You and Me,” however everyone in Jason’s family knows that the most important song of the night is “Sweet Caroline,” which you can see in action. Whenever that song comes on everyone goes crazy and it’s so much fun. It has become a family tradition, choreographed dance and all. We ended the night with one of my absolute favorites from Dirty Dancing, “I’ve Had the Time of My Life.” I grew up watching that movie every day after school with my matron of honor, and it was the perfect ending song to the perfect party where we definitely had the times of our lives!!
Thank you Larkin and Jason and Lovestruck Images (formerly Labor of Love Photography) for sharing these beautiful photos and details with our readers!
Real Weddings with Adrienne and John
For our Real Weddings feature, Adrienne and John have been chosen to share their beautiful spring wedding pictures and the story behind them so we can get a glimpse into their big day. I first wanted to use some of their images for a lime green themed Monday’s Montage, but quickly realized I loved too many details for a small collage! The bright green would be perfect if you’re planning a spring, summer or even fall wedding. Read on as we hear from the bride herself on the inspiration behind their unique and intimate details.
From their photographer, Jodi Miller:
“Their wedding was so elegant and stylish, with so many great DIY details and charm. Adrienne was the epitome of classic hollywood beauty…her hair, dress, and accessories were simply stunning! They had so many great vendors involved in their wedding including: the gorgeous florals, by Artistic Florist; the incredible folk band, Heart Gets Monkey, that provided the reception music; Adrienne’s hair by The Studio; hair accessories + clutches from Etsy; and cake by John’s brother, Brian.”
From the bride:
As far as my ring, it is vintage. The solitaire is my grandmother’s engagement diamond, which she later had reset with the other stones around it. I had a band made in white gold to fit around the ring since it is an unusual shape.
Don’t you love this vintage wedding set?
Beautiful ruffle-trimmed flats.
My bouquet consisted of green cymbidium orchids, ivory hydrangea, miniature calla lilies, assorted pods, hypericum berries and fiddlehead ferns (a surprise from the florist!- I had requested a fiddlehead in the groom’s boutonniere). The pomanders hanging from the chair were made from dried hypericum berries. I purchased the balls of berries already assembled and attached the ivory ribbon myself.
Love the punch of that lime green.
The bridesmaid dresses were by David’s Bridal. I gave them a choice of several knee-length dresses in the olivine color, but they all ended up choosing the same dress! I loved the color because I wanted a shade of green that would complement and enhance the natural surroundings of the Cross Keys Vineyard, where we held the wedding. This green was a kind of earthy tone and it blended perfectly.
Simple bridesmaids dresses complete the classic, timeless theme.
The clutches were from a shop on Etsy called Mollusa. I convoed her and described what I wanted based on photos of her work and within six weeks I had the clutches in hand! They were all black but each had a green fabric flower that was slightly different. I thought this would be a great gift for my bridesmaids that they could use again on special occasions.
Fabulous clutches make a great bridesmaid gift!
We wrote a wine ceremony into the ceremony since it was held at a Vineyard. The minister read a prepared section of The Prophet by Kahlil Gabran and we poured white wine from two carafes into a single carafe, then poured each other a glass from the single carafe. It was our symbolization of unity.
What a unique alternative to the unity candle!
The garden arch in the ceremony belonged to the vineyard. Our florist (The Artistic Florist in Harrisonburg, VA) decorated it with various ivory and green blossoms and greenery and did a fantastic job! We also displayed two flowering dogwood saplings which were at the front, on either side of the arch, which we planted after the wedding.
Serene backdrop and love that adorable patterned flower girl dress.
The ring bearer pillow and flower girl pomander were also made by the florist, out of live flowers (kermit mums). Beautiful!
That ring bearer pillow and flower girl ball of buds is are some of my favorite touches!
The overall theme of the event was Spring and all the symbolism it entails, with new life and blossoming all around. This is why I chose green as the central color and wanted an outdoor ceremony. I thought Spring was a perfectly fitting time to begin a new life together with my husband, and I wanted to convey that through the colors, decorations, and favors.
Captured love.
The moss-covered letters were also ordered from Etsy. These came from Happy Hound’s shop. She also sells a lot of neat stuff for dogs but these were so cool and can be stored for a lifetime because the moss is dried.
Okay, these grassy letter might be my favorite detail!
I had seen placecards displayed on grass mats in a magazine, so I purchased mats from a craft store. I wrote the names on the placecards myself with a green pen.
What a cool idea for the name cards to carry out the grassy theme!
The family tree is also an idea I had from seeing other people using manzanita branches to display things. I originally thought I would put the placecards on the branches with framed family photos underneath but decided that would be too chaotic and that hanging photos from the branches instead made perfect sense, making a “Family Tree”. I obtained wedding photos from relatives, mounted them on cardstock, and hung them with green ribbon.
What an awesome way to display your family tree!
In lieu of favors we donated money to two local animal rescue non-profit groups. We had cards at each table with photos of our cat and dog (both rescued strays) with a caption saying “Thank you” and an explanation of our favors. Our centerpieces were non-floral; living, potted hostas that guests could take home and plant.
Farewell!
Thank you Adrienne and John and Jodi Miller Photography for sharing these beautiful images and details with our readers!
Monday’s Montage: Pinks and Grays
One of my new favorite color combinations is pink and gray. I have been loving this soft blush color after recently seeing it all over the runways and in lots of spring fashion lines. I think it looks so beautiful when paired with deeper pinks and purples and against a soft charcoal gray. It’s romantic, and feminine in an understated and delicate way. Adding the grays also gives your wedding a masculine touch, which your groom will love. If you’re planning a wedding for next spring, the lighter blush color would be perfect for a bridesmaid dress, as seen in the top left, or in flowers, as seen in the gorgeous pink peonies in the top right. For a summer or early fall wedding, the deeper pinks and purples would be a great way to warm things up. For a winter wedding, the grays would look wonderful against a snowy backdrop and have a cooler feel. Check out some of our vendors to find the perfect pink and gray color combination for your wedding, no matter what the season!
Credits: Rose chiffon dress by Alvina Valenta , JLMCouture.com (top left); Opal silky taffeta dress by Jim Hjelm Occasions, JLMCouture.com (bottom left); Elle and Tod’s Charlotte wedding, photographs by Kristin Vining (middle column); Pink and gray wedding photographed by Trailbrook Photography (right column).
Let me know what you guys think of this color combination!
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