Sigh,
our wedding... It really was the perfect day. I used to always hear
people say that their wedding was the perfect day, and I was like how
could it actually be the PERFECT day? But now I understand that it really is. Everything
comes together seamlessly one way or another, and the things that don't go as planned go
completely unnoticed. I had no wedding planner, no coordinator, and
everything was still an absolute dream.
When it came to the wedding day, my feelings could not have been more opposite than what I had feared they'd be. I could not have been MORE calm! It was blissful, nothing was rushed or poorly-timed and I am so grateful, it truly helped me enjoy the day. My mom and her friend did most of the work with setting things out at the reception venue so that was a huge help and contributed a lot to my zen mood. The only time I felt a scared was in the few minutes leading up to the processional when it sunk in that everyone I knew and loved was sitting in the church waiting to see me. Eek! But after the ceremony, it was smooth sailing (and having a glass of prosecco in my hand for the rest of the night didn't hurt).
I am SO excited to be sharing photos and the details of our wedding!! This is just a HANDFUL of all the amazing shots our photographers Aubrey and Callie from Wild Heart Films captured from the day, and I plan on sharing many more. I love them so much and they get better every time I look at them. Get your champagne and get ready to swoon.
The
flowers were my very favorite part of the day. I might wrote a whole
separate post on them because GOSH were they beautiful. The bouquets,
boutonnieres, corsages, altar arrangement, and handrail installment were
all done by a woman who lives in my neighborhood and does freelance
floral design out of her home, and I was absolutely speechless when I
saw the work that she did. I'm fully convinced that everything she
touches turns to floral gold, and I'm so glad that we found her. My mom,
MOH, and I made the floral swags for the pew ends at the church, and
all of the table arrangements at the reception. My mom also added the
greenery to the ends of the outdoor railings at the church and the
house, and adorned the mantles at the house. It felt like a good
combination of professional floral design and DIY, and I couldn't be
happier with how everything turned out.
Our reception at the Joshua Wilton House was 100% my vision, and even more beautiful and fun than I imagined. I splurged on food and wanted to have the best wedding food that anyone had ever had, and I think that we achieved that. Everyone raved about the dinner and the mood. I wanted the reception to have the vibe of an elegant dinner party, and it exceeded my expectations.
The staff of the Wilton House are second to none. They went above and beyond to make sure everyone having the best possible time, and no one had to lift a finger. Just one example of their care and attention to detail is that they found out that Kenny doesn't drink, so when we arrived at the house they greeted me with a glass of prosecco and him with a glass of sparkling cider, which was really thoughtful. Another is that when our food arrived, Kenny and I were up talking to people so when we sat back down, the assistant manager asked us if we wanted our food warmed back up in a pan, and he just ended up bringing us out brand new plates right away. The service was second to none.
The other major benefit of having the reception at the Joshua Wilton House was that it was literally right next door to the church (St. Stephens) that we chose to have the ceremony in. The church is not my "home" church, but we opted to have the ceremony there because it was closer to the Wilton House (although my home church is just right down the street and well within walking distance), and about half the size of my home church. We only had about 70 guests at the wedding, so a church with a capacity of 200 was much better than a church suited for 400. Plus, St. Stephens is stunningly beautiful, so we didn't have to sacrifice there.
I will be writing a separate post on my dress and my bridesmaids' dresses because I loved them so so much. My photographers got so many Pinterest-worthy shots that I just have to feature them separately!
The guys rented their tuxes through The Black Tux, but Kenny ended up having to get a few of his final details at a local tux shop. I would definitely recommend The Black Tux for its convenience, especially if you are having a destination wedding or don't have a good tux rental place nearby. It's also extremely nice for groups of groomsmen who don't live near each other so they can't go to the same tux rental shop to guarantee that their suits will match. It also allows the groom to track who has ordered and received their suits, which is really convenient. However, if you're using it, make sure that everyone has all of their bells and whistles (studs, cufflinks, ties, etc.) because Kenny said that it was a little confusing to know whether or not those details were included in each rental.
I am SO SO grateful with how the weather turned out! Since the day we set our wedding date, I was hoping and praying for a day exactly like the day we got. Cool, 65-70 degrees, no rain, and overcast for ideal photo lighting. And that's exactly what we got! Really I would've been happy with anything that wasn't rain, but I'm so glad we perfect fall day too. It was crazy because just two days before the wedding, we had a 95 degree day! The day of our wedding was truly the first fall day of the year, and I feel so lucky that we got such beautiful weather. I won't say I didn't manifest it...
Our DJ was our friend DJ Kenneth, and he was SO much fun! My only regret about the wedding was that it couldn't have lasted longer. We could've kept the party going at least another two hours, everyone was having the best time all thanks to Kenneth! He had the best playlist going, and had even the very oldest guests on their feet dancing.
For
our send-off, Kenny and I were kind of at a loss for what to do. We
didn't want to rent a car service to drive us basically around the block
just for the send-off (Kenny was driving us to the airport that night,
and he was parked just a few blocks away at my parents house), and
neither of our cars are flashy enough for us to have used. My grandad
has a GORGEOUS red 1957 Chevy Bel Air that I would have loved to have
used, but there's a lot of maintenance that goes into taking it out and
he just wasn't up to it. Enter Friendly City Pedicab!
The pedicab is a service that runs downtown to give people rides
locally on a hilariously cute electric-assisted bicycle with a cab
attached to back. It was the perfect solution for our short journey, we
had SO much fun and I could not stop giggling! The girl who was driving
was basically a superhero and carted us all the way up the tall hill
where Kenny's car was.
Vendor Details:
Ceremony: St. Stephens United Church of Christ
Reception: Joshua Wilton House
Catering and cake: Joshua Wilton House
Photographers: Wild Heart Films
Flowers: Freelance florist + my mom, maid of honor, and me!
Paper goods: Minted, and Kenny!
Dress: Rebecca Ingram via Bridal Impressions
Tuxes: The Black Tux, Classic Tuxedos
DJ: DJ Kenneth
Send-off: Friendly City Pedicab
Do you just DIE? I've looked at the photos every day since I got them
back and I'm still not over them. I still plan on sharing many more, so
stay tuned!!
It was the best day EVER and I love reliving it through photos! I will cherish the moments captured forever, and Aubrey is NOT off the hook with us (hey Aubrey if you're reading this, pencil us in for an anniversary shoot next for October 😁). I'm far from done sharing wedding details, so stay tuned for more and let me know if there's anything specific you want to see or know about!
xoxx, Laura
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