REAL WEDDING: Emily + Jace’s Industrial and Natural Wedding

This gorgeous couple was wed on April 17th, 2015 in Ogden, Utah at The Copper Nickel. Emily and Jace have known each other since high school, but it wasn’t until they reconnected through a ski group that their relationship flourished. While Jace was deployed in Afghanistan, Emily, with the help of friends and family, DIYed and planned their entire wedding! Her love for the planning process even prompted her to open her own event planning business. Read below to see all the personal touches that adorned this beautiful Utah wedding.

Personal touches were scattered all throughout their reception space.

Remember when I mentioned the help of friends and family? Over 200 mason jars were collected by the brides grandmother. The bride and her mother decorated then them all for the tables!

How beautiful is this backdrop?! Handmade with wood and covered with faux greenery and moss.

I love how this wedding mixed the industrial feel of the space with natural elements from the outdoors! You can find more natural touches with wooden stumps and branches all around the tablescapes. Foraging for branches was another family affair!

Did you notice that cookie bar from above? How about a milk bar to go along with it. Yes, please! The palate table was also handmade.

]

I love all the handmade signs that were hung around the wedding space.

This wedding was truly a perfect balance of hard and soft elements!

Of course, this wedding wouldn’t be complete without a sparkler send off. You can see that this couple choose to ride off in style on a motorcycle! DIY Bride wishes Emily and Jace all the happiness in the world, and thank you for allowing us to share your story.

Xoxo,

Alex

 

Wedding Planner: Wildflower Weddings and Events / Photographer: Jessica Janae Photography / Event Venue:  The Copper Nickel / Gown :Bridal Corner / Grooms Attire: True Gentleman / Flowers: Jimmy’s Flower Shop / Decor: DIY / Invitations: Beautiful Wedding Announcements / Rentals: All Out Event Rental & Diamond Rental / Makeup: Nicolette FrattoCalligraphy: Sweet N Sandy / Cake: Ashley Fronk / Rings: S.E. Needham /

Real Wedding: Sarah + Matt’s Colorful Chicago Wedding

Today we bring you Sarah + Matt’s colorful Chicago wedding. They got ready in their apartment before walking just a few blocks over to Palmer Square Park to say ‘I do’ in a very relaxed and intimate ceremony with friends and family.

Sarah + Matt didn’t want to spend a lot of money on their wedding, so they used a lot of DIY elements to add color and personality without breaking the bank. Sarah made a ton of colorful tissue paper pom-poms, and they made a huge impact on the stage framing the stage where the band played.

Sarah also made tissue paper flowers for the centerpieces. They put them in wine bottles that the collected throughout the year.

Matt is great at graphic design so he created escort cards. He also created sweet note labels for their succulent favors which were planted in cans collected by the couple.

If you’re noticing a piñata theme, it’s because there was one and it was adorable! They had a huge piñata to give away as a prize for their dance contest.

We love all of their personal touches and think this wedding really captured Matt + Sarah as a couple.

We hope you loved Sarah + Matt’s wedding details as much as we do! Let us know what you’d like to recreate in the comments!

 

Ceremony: Palmer Square Park | Reception: DANK Haus German American Cultural Center | Caterer: Cocina Fusion | Day-of Coordination: Anticipation Events | Photographer: Allison Williams Photography | Bakery: MaddieBird Bakery | Band: Tiny Cover Band | DJ: DJ Merk One | Transportation: Acrosstown Charter | Rehearsal Dinner: Wishbone | Make-up: Nika Vaughan | Hair: Debbie Petrielli |Hotel: Hilton Garden Inn | Officiant: Paris Coffey, St. Christopher’s Episcopal Church 

 

Nicole + John’s Timeless DIY Wedding in SoCal

Boy, oh boy, do I have a beauty to show you lovelies today. From the talent behind Viera Photographics, today’s feature is a very classic and neat DIY wedding that the bride described as “Jonathan Adler meets Great Gatsby”. Nicole + John decided to get hitched in Palm Springs, California since not only does the place suit their sense of style, but also because they wanted to get married by the Father and in the church that Nicole’s late mother was very fond of. Despite the raging SoCal heat of 106F the day of their wedding, Nicole + John planned well for the decorations they were going to use so that nothing is welted.

Enlisting help from her group of friends, Nicole and her girls spent a few get-togethers crafting away. One of the favorite projects that Nicole loved doing for her wedding was the crepe paper flowers project. She opted making these flowers instead of using the real flowers so that these would last a lot longer in the high SoCal summer heat as well as for the ease of packing for travel. She’s even re-purposed some as gift decorations post-wedding!

Since their wedding was on the 13th, Nicole gold-leafed dice on 1 and 3 and mailed a pair with all the invites. She had some leftover so she also used them as decoration around the reception.

In Nicole’s own words about her table runners: “The table runners were stenciled on butcher paper then spray painted in an ombre sea mist to teal. I had a slight panic attack when the smell seemed to take about a week to dissipate, but some Febreeze and time did the trick and they were easy to roll up and transport to the site.” Great tip!

The Adler-inspired clay animals as table decorations? Yep! Handmade by Nicole’s friend Staci. Those were cool!
From Nicole’s gorgeous and timeless wedding gown (and the veil!) to all the special Adler-inspired decorations, Nicole + John’s wedding was as classic as it gets. Thank you to Viera Photographics for the incredibly beautiful photos and sharing them with us here on DIY Bride!

Congratulations to Nicole + John!!!

 

Photographer: Viera Photographics//Wedding Date:09.13.2013//Ceremony Location:Sacred Heart Palm Desert//Hair Stylist:The Light Fantastic Salon Spa//Event Venue:The Parker Palm Springs//Band:The Titan Ups//Event Planner:Vivacious Design and Event Planner//

Submitted via Two Bright Lights

Ashley + Justin’s Elegant Winter Soiree in Philly

We’re kicking off this Monday with a super gorgeous Philadelphia soiree from BG Productions Photography and Videography. This late Fall/early Winter wedding just oozes sophistication and elegance, with help from the presence of the historical venue, The German Society of Pennsylvania. Using main colors black, white, and gold for the palette and lots of lace, Ashley + Justin pulled off one awe-inspiring wedding with gorgeous details!

 

Ashley + Justin incorporated DIY touches where they can. For example, Ashley ordered bulk flowers from
Falls Flowers to put flower arrangements together herself. Ashley’s mom and aunt made amazingly beautiful handmade snowflake ornaments as favors for guests. And I’m in complete awe of how neat and clean their chalkboard signs were.

I love Ashley + Justin’s use of lace as table runners, which show up especially well against the black table cloths. I also love Ashley’s bold choice of using black lace dresses to dress her bridal party, which they all look amazing and romantic. I also just can’t stop adoring over their First Looks with BG Productions Photography and Videography, featuring scenes from all over their favorite spots in Philly (e.g. Race Street Pier, where they got engaged; Painted Bride, which is down the street from their house; and of course their super adorable dog and the Philly skyscrapers as background).

Much congratulations to Ashley + Justin for their beautiful wedding and pulling off this super classy wedding!

 

Photographer: BG Productions Photography and Videography//Wedding Date:11.23.2013//Photo Booth Equipment:BG Productions Photography & Videography//Cake Designer:Classic Cake//Location:Loews Hotel//DJ: No Macarena DJ//Caterer:Blue Monkey Catering//Floral Designer: Falls Flowers//Reception Venue: The German Society of PA//Submitted via Two Bright Lights

Jennie + Jei-Wei’s Intimate Vegas Extravaganza

Fellow DIY Brides + Grooms, be aware! Today is a long and lengthy one because… well, we’re featuring my wedding! When the idea of me writing and publishing about my own semi-DIY wedding came up, I wasn’t entirely sure if I was up for the challenge. It’s just so much easier to marvel over other peoples’ gorgeous weddings and to criticize your own. But Khris mentioned how nice it would be that since I’m the one writing about my own wedding, that I could share with all you lovelies my experience as a DIY bride.

First and foremost, I want to mention that our wedding was a destination wedding. We, along with most of our friends and immediate family (both of our families are from Taiwan, so only our immediate family members live in the US) reside in the southeast United States, so it was a lot of effort and planning to get everyone to Las Vegas. We were engaged close to 1.5 years before our actual wedding, but we had been together for 9 years prior to getting engaged so I pretty much knew some basic stuff I wanted… a Fall wedding, gorgeous venue, delicious wedding food, and my flowers amazingly pink and romantic- a theme that I wanted to carry through everything set in place for the wedding. To get things started, we took a trip out to Vegas exactly one year before our chosen wedding date and interviewed a lot of vendors. I’m so glad we did that because I really needed to feel a connection with the people I worked with and feel at ease that they know my vision.

We definitely could not have pulled off our dream wedding without the constant support from friends and family, especially my amazing bridal party, and of course, my ever-so-patient vendors. Seriously, I don’t remember how many phone calls/e-mails were exchanged with my super talented florist, Catherine of Layers of Lovely, or with my awesome, multi-tasking venue manager + coordinator, Gina of Red Rock Country Club. They always made themselves as available to me as they could, and tried their hardest to stay true to my vision and budget.

Because we totally splurged on our venue + catering and insisted on having both a photographer (Ron Miller Photography) and a videography team (Something New Films), we tried to DIY everything else that we could. *Keep in mind that we had to worry about shipping and the time we would actually have to set up once we’re in Vegas.

We had a super small and intimate guest list of less than 30 people, so my husband and I set out to make our own invitation suite. I love making my own Christmas cards and already am a proud owner of too many craft tools (Cricut, anyone?), and my husband is pretty handy when it comes to doing quick designs on the computer. I wish Ron was able to take photographs of my Save-the-Date and invitation suite so that I can show you, but here’s a fun fact: Our invitation was modeled after Khris’ own Vegas-themed Save-the-Date shaker in her The DIY Bride: 40 Fun Projects for your Ultimate One-of-a-kind Wedding book.

My best friend and maid of honor, Eunice, worked with me to construct the invite and all the tissue paper pom-poms that were hung over the reception area. We kept all the pom-poms flat so that they’ll be easy to ship, and once we got to our hotel in Vegas, we had a fluff up pom-pom party with all the girls.

Our favor is a laser-cut “Double Happiness” box, a traditional Chinese wedding symbol that’s also represented as our cake topper. I filled the box with some of our favorite Chinese candies, and I made my own place cards and attached each on top of the box. The cake topper was originally a metal silver color, so Jei-Wei left about an inch and a half on the bottom untouched and spray-painted the rest with the traditional red wedding color.

For all of our signs, we found a free floral design that we liked online, and Jei-Wei used his photoshop skills to make matching signs for our menus and instructions for the wishing tree and sparklers exit. I decorated our “bride” and “groom” signs with small accents that you can buy from art stores. We used the wishing tree tags as our “guest book” and asked people to write their well wishes and hang them up. I made those tags with kraft cardstocks and used my Cricut machine to cut out the tags. I then decorated one side with stamps using our wedding date and distressed the edges to make them look rustic.

My scrapbook making skills kicked into high gears for my photo garland and sweets table decoration. Since I have two things to keep in mind: cost and ease of shipping; I had to make sure that whatever I made could be easily packed and transported in our luggage. I used lots of coordinating cardstock, accents, and photographs for both projects, and to save cost, Gina was able to provide a bunch of sign holders to hold my scrapbook photo art.

I also made the tags for the bubble send-off after our ceremony. I found some wide washi tape and address labels small enough to fit on the tape to make the tag and attached it onto the bubbles using ribbons and gold tape I also used on our invites.

I wanted to have a pretty cake stand for my small wedding cake. My florist Catherine is a super amazing woman and found one for me a couple of weeks before the wedding. She spray-painted it to pink and added jewels garland all around to glam it up

Since our furry baby, Machi, was going to be our ring bearer (he wore a chinese red pouch attached to his custom-made bow-tie collar), we had to make sure that our venue would accommodate him. Even though having an outdoor ceremony wasn’t on the top of our list, Gina made having Machi there possible for the entire wedding, and all 3 of us love her and the Red Rock Country Club more for it!

I’m pretty proud to say our guests truly had a blast at our wedding. We turned it into a long weekend extravaganza where most of our guests flew in a couple of days before our Friday affair. We were all able to enjoy and spend time together as a group and party before AND after the wedding. We were worried that because we had such a small party that no one would dance, but hello! parents. Yes, my brother and my parents kicked off the dance party with Gangnam Style and Bee Gees. And the dance party continued on during the after party on the party bus we rented.

In the end, I received everything I asked for and more- amazing food (yes, and even today, I still get raves from guests who came to the wedding) and music (Gangnam Style was hot then and DJ Patrick got everyone dancing… my brother and I even shared a brief special stage together!), beautiful pink and romantic flower and decor, and a gorgeous venue and an equally amazing catering manager/coordinator who saved me a ton of headaches. Planning a destination wedding was hard, but when you hire the right people for you, everything will just naturally fall into place.

I want to give a big shout out to my photographer, Ron Miller, and my videography team, Jimi + Sandi of Something New Films, for staying an extra hour or two after the wedding to fulfill our vision of having a Vegas experience by shooting all over the Strip that night. That was one of our favorite highlights of the wedding, and they were just totally awesome! I also want to give another shout out to Gina and her staff at Red Rock Country Club for being complete angels and taking the task of decorating all of our DIY projects off of our hands.

I hope all you lovely fellow DIY brides/grooms were able to find some sort of inspiration from my wedding. I loved sharing it with you and feel free to ask me for more details!

XOXO,
Jennie

See our awesome Highlight Film from the talented Jimi + Sandi of Something New Films: HERE

 

Photographer: Ron Miller Photography//Wedding Date:09.28.2012//Reception Venue: Red Rock Country Club//Videography: Something New Films//Florist: Catherine of Layers of Lovely//Cake: Las Vegas Custom Cakes//DJ: DJ Patrick of Music Solutions//Hair+Makeup: Your Beauty Call//Submitted via Two Bright Lights

Kim + Adam’s Fall Wedding at the Aquarium

For many couples, trying to establish what are the most important criteria for choosing a theme or venue is a headache. That’s not the case for our couple Kim + Adam. Right from the get-go, they knew that they both want to get married at an unique venue; Kim also required that they get married in Boston, and Adam required a venue that made food on-site. Well, with those 3 criteria, they found the New England Aquarium. Katie Slater Photography did an incredible job of capturing this offbeat, romantic, AND non-fish theme wedding at the aquarium.


Kim was determined to make her DIY wedding as romantic as possible with lots of cream, dark orange, champagne and gold hues. To do so, she purchased all her vases for the tables from the Dollar Store and sprayed painted them gold. Kim + Adam then arranged all the flowers themselves. They also created all the bouquets and boutonnieres as well. For their tables, they opted to name the tables with names of the places they have traveled together with postcards and a picture of them at that location. The place cards were postcards to each location that were addressed to the guests. Inside each postcard, they wrote a “thank you” note and why the location is important to them as a couple (how neat!). They also created their own program, where not only do they mentioned and thanked people that were important to them, but also included a few short bulletin points of defining characteristics of each other. This was done so that they can introduce each other to guests that only know one of them.


I love the fireworks and having the ceremony outside on the wharf. And I’m in love with super personalized tables this couple created for their guests. Although the aquarium doesn’t necessarily scream “romantic” by any means, Kim + Adam did a fabulous job of creating a very romantic affair. Thanks so much to Katie Slater Photography for capturing all the picturesque flairs!
Photographer: Katie Slater Photography//Wedding Date: August 31, 2013//Reception Venue: Boston Aquarium//Dress Store: David’s Bridal//Cake Designer: Konditor Meister//Band: Occasional Brass & Strings//Photo Booth Equipment:Red Eye Photobooths//Cinema and Video: Vantage Point Films Wedding & Event Cinematography//

Submitted via Two Bright Lights

Bianca + Rosie’s Peacock Wedding

For Bianca and Rosie’s summer wedding in Washington, DC, they handcrafted most of their items that made their day oh-so-special. The couple’s small, super intimate affair was big on capturing their love for each other, and of course, their DIY talents. Their photographer Holly Graciano did a superb job of catching all the little private moments Bianca and Rosie had throughout the day that really would make anyone smile.

Bianca and Rosie DIY most of the details: The bouquet, boutonnieres, hair pieces, programs, hand-embossed cards, gift bags, “bride” and “wifey” lettering on the robes, and the “love” box that they locked during the ceremony. The box, containing letters written to each other as well as a bottle of wine, is to be open on their first anniversary.

From the photographer:

“They had their emotional first look at The DuPont Circle Hotel, followed by an afternoon ceremony at Chelsea Gardens that was officiated by Tiffany Newman. Because their wedding was such an intimate affair without attendants, we had lots of time for photos at Meridian Hill, before meeting their guests for dinner at Lincoln restaurant.”
Wondering what the finger mustaches were about? They were temporary ‘stache tattoo that everyone wore on their fingers in honor of the real tattoo that Bianca wears on her finger. How cool!
Photographer:  Holly Graciano Photography//Wedding Date: August 24, 2012//Location: Washington, DC, USA//Officiant: Tiffany Newman//Ceremony Site: Chelsea Gardens//Restaurant: Lincoln Restaurant//

Submitted via Two Bright Lights

Kieu + Kevin’s Modern-Boho Canadian Wedding

Each and every couple are what make my job awesome!  They add all the unique and irreplaceable elements that make no wedding equal.  And Kieu + Kevin?  Well, they are certainly no exception!  They have managed to infuse equal parts of tradition and whimsy, modern and minimal, with eclectic boho style and yet remain the stars of this show!  You just know these two are great to be around!  R.A Photography was there to capture this totally amaze wedding where the sum of all the pretty little details glow just as bright as Kieu and Kevin’s smiles.

 

From the photographer:

Almost 90% of the details were done by the bride, groom and their families. Even the DJ was the groom’s friend and is in the bridal party. I loved all the special little details that made this wedding truly unique and special to Kieu and Kevin, especially the instagram photo posters they had hanging around the venue. What made this wedding even more special is that Kieu was 3 months pregnant on that day which made their celebration extra special.

Kieu’s insanely talented aunt is the floral goddess behind the utterly amazing floral crown and bouquets.  She also made the beautiful cake that played off of the Native American dream catcher theme.

Oh! What a dream wedding we have caught here!  Thank you R.A. Photography for sharing this extra special day!  Congratulation Kieu + Kevin!  (If I’m doing my math right, should owe you a double congrats on the birth of your baby!)  Good luck with all that comes your way!

Vendor Information:

Date: April 13, 2013

Location: Toronto, Canada

Photographer: R.A. Photography

Event Venue: Hotel Ocho

Submitted via Two Bright Lights

Shannon + Michael’s Fun Brooklyn Winery Wedding

I’m in a New York state of mind today for obvious reasons.  And after coming off a trip to sight-see at Fashion Week,  I have a larger than usual soft spot, for my hometown and its peeps.  So when I saw Shannon and Michael’s Brooklyn Winery wedding from L&L Style Photography, well I remembered why I love this city so much!  The people!  Full of style, fun, class, cool kicks, and creativity, New York folks are just awesome!  I mean have you ever seen a bride rock a striped cardi with patches better?  So when two cool cats plan a dazzling and stress-free DIY wedding from 2000 miles away that’s full of spontaneous moments,  super style, and tambourines-  I’m pretty sure you’ll find hard to disagree that this this NYC wedding meets the high standard of awesome I’m come to know and love.

 

 

In true NY collabo style, this wedding wonder was achieved with a little help from your friends including a DIY pre-wedding dinner! From the Bride:

Our main goal for our wedding was to have fun! Thankfully, we are blessed to be surrounded by amazing friends and family who were more than willing to help make our wedding the best day ever! My sister-in-law designed our invitations, signage and the stickers for our tambourines and party favors. My mother-in-law printed them. I hauled a huge suitcase full of mason jars and half finished projects across the country. So, instead of a rehearsal dinner, my parents threw us a pizza/last minute prep party with our close friends and family. Each person contributed in everything from making props for the photo booth, putting together our guest book, creating chalkboard signs, hot gluing ribbons on the flower girl basket to hemming my petticoat.

Now if this wedding doesn’t give you peek into the fun-filled and style-soaked community that is New York, I don’t know what will.  From their choice of venue at the Brooklyn Winery(a must visit, BTW)  to the tasty treats both streetside and inside, to the tambourine slammin’, karoake singin’, party filled goodness this gallery from L&L Style Photography has once again turned me into a wedding adulterer. (Uuughh!!  Twice in the same day!  I’d be ashamed if it didn’t feel so good to share them all!)  Well, nevertheless, I can’t thank L&L Style Photography for so brilliantly capturing this truly New York style wedding and sharing it with us.  Congratulations Shannon and Michael!  Happy soon to be first anniversary!

 

Vendor Information:

Date: October 20, 2012
Location: Brooklyn, NY
Photographer: L&L Style Photography
Hair: Krista at Foxy Salon
Makeup: Morgan Gates

Soureia + Johann’s Intimate NY City Hall Wedding

I love when I get to feature weddings from my home state!  And this next wedding is my perfect description of New York City, and weddings combined: simple sophistication.  Soureia + Johann wanted a small, non- flashy wedding.  With the equally edgy and modern eye of Michael Simonitsch Photography, we’re sharing a wedding that’s my kind of everything.  Minimal. Modern. Magnificent. Simple. Elegant.  And while it might not be flashy, it sure is gorgeous.

This awesome duo got married at City Hall with Johann’s musician parents playing in the background.  Soureia created the beautiful birds nest centerpieces used at The Mermaid Inn. And even though Birds of Paradise aren’t typically associated with NYC’s favorite feathered friends, these florals are just divine!

Each of these images from Michael Simonitsch Photography captures the magnificently simple, elegant and overpoweringly beautiful world that is Manhattan.  Soureia + Johann created everything that is New York to me, intimate and grand, elegant and edgy, romantic and oh, gosh!  I have to stop gushing over my new favorite wedding and my always favorite city.  Thanks for sharing this wonderful wedding Michael Simonitsch Photography.  Congratulations Soureia + Johann!

 

Vendor Information:

Date: June 13, 2011

Location: New York, NY

Photographer: Michael Simonitsch Photography

Reception Venue:  The Mermaid Inn

Exit mobile version