We are only 99 days away from becoming husband and wife. 99 days. Husband. Wife. Wedding. OMG!
While we are in the thick of wedding planning, I wanted to take some time out and talk about my inspiration for our big day. I will be sharing more details after the big day- I am soooooo excited to see it come together. I’m a little amazed at the way it’s taking shape already- at the beginning, we thought we would get married in October 2016 at the earliest and I had looked at inspiration for a fall wedding. Then, E got his dream job as a police officer in our hometown, and we decided we didn’t want to wait. We set the date for April 30th, 2016. Which turned out the be a great decision because as of right now, we are attending three other weddings in October.
(April was also better because it’s considered off season, saving us bucketloads of cash.)
From the beginning, I’ve pictured us getting married during a really personal ceremony. The ceremony is the most important part of the day, and we didn’t want someone we don’t know personally performing it. It felt like rent-an-officiant and neither of us were comfortable with that. Lucky for us, our friend Matt is ordained and offered to perform the ceremony for us.
Matt was ordained sitting at a bar we frequent because some friends bet him he couldn’t. Personally, I’m a huge fan of this story, because I love the “why not?” attitude. Matt and Evan have been friends since high school, and since I began dating Evan over three years ago, Matt and I have become friends too. I am so thrilled that a friend will be marrying us. It will give the ceremony the personal touch we were looking for, and I am honored Matt is willing to do that for us.
Neither Evan nor I are religious, so we declined to get married in a church or similar religious hall. We went with an outdoor ceremony- and in case it rains, our venue has an alternate site that is still outdoors but underneath an overhang, so we can be outside no matter what. The truth is, being outside is a spiritual experience anyway, so it was the only way I ever pictured tying the knot.
Our ceremony will be phone and camera free. Matt is going to ask our guests to be present in the moment with us- truly the greatest present they could give us in that moment is their presence, and I want them to know it’s valued.
Our theme is basically springtime. Early on we decided on four buzzwords for the wedding- classy, elegant, bohemian, garden. I am proud to say that it’s all come together honoring those words. We’ll be dancing beneath garden lanterns to tunes spun by our trivia DJ and friend, DJ Cubey.
Evan picked out “our song,” though I am struggling HARD with picking out the rest of the music. The only song I know so far is our processional. Lately I’ve had Spotify on all day hoping something speaks to me and fits in somewhere during the rest of the day. So far I haven’t had any luck, but I did manage to make a “Driving Tunes” playlist. 😉
Follow me on Spotify here! (shameless plug)
Our cake is vintage inspired and has the same floral details as the bouquets and boutonnieres, and it’s going to taste great. Evan is picking out the meat dishes and I the vegetarian option, but we haven’t had that appointment yet. Our meal will be served sit down style, and I really, really hope that thing about the bride and groom not getting to eat is false. I like to eat and I’d like a meal with him to be part of our big day, lol!
We rented a vintage photobooth and can’t wait to see our loved ones’ goofy faces. The photobooth also doubles as our guestbook- guests will be asked to place their picture on a page and sign their names or write a message, whatever they want to do.
My dress… is something whose details will have to come later. 😉
The men are wearing black Vera Wang tuxes from Men’s Wearhouse- my groom is wearing an ivory vest and bowtie, while his best man and groomsmen will be in “mist” vest and bowties to match the bridesmaids mist dresses, also by Vera Wang.
I gave my ladies the choice between two dresses, similar styles but different necklines, and they all chose the same. My maid of honor, my sister Lauren, has an entirely different dress, but in the same color, in the same length, and actually the same neckline as the other girls. They’re going to be beautiful.
The centerpieces are low so guests can talk over them, but still unique and have a ‘wow’ factor- I worked really hard with our florist to accomplish this, and I’m excited to see the final product!
I have such a sense of accomplishment reading over these details. We’ve been planning this shindig since December ’14, when we got engaged, but heavily planning since March ’15, and this whole time I’ve felt frazzled and like I haven’t done enough. Looking back on this list, I’m pretty impressed with myself! I know there’s still so much to do, but I’ve been telling myself for awhile that some people will plan a wedding in only three months. Now, we have three months to go, and look what I already have done!
It’s going to be a really, really fun day.
Stephanie Jean 