This wedding may be all about the romance, but that doesn’t mean that this beautiful couple doesn’t have a sense of humor or know how to celebrate in style. They surprised their wedding party by stopping at a dive bar after the ceremony and before the reception! Now that sounds like fun! Allegro Photography captured all the pretty and fun moments, like the Wedding Crashers quotes hidden throughout the reception. Click here for even more!
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From the Bride… We wanted a venue that felt unique, welcoming and charming in a rustic elegant kind of way. We had originally explored barns and vineyards but when we found Lord Thompson Manor, we realized it would be a lot easier to bring the rustic into that elegant setting than make a rustic barn look elegant, if you know what I mean. :) LTM is such a beautiful backdrop I didn’t want to take away from it by having some over-the-top theme or color scheme, so we stuck to neutrals, leaning towards burlap, white and moss colors, antique-looking elements and, to add a pop of summery color, we found the peach bridesmaids’ dresses and felt that would play nicely into our vision. Birch was another element I knew I wanted. LTM reminds me of the house I grew up in, and we had a ton of birch trees in the yard. I just love the bark and how it looked with the other elements of our planning. Plus, when I found my cake inspiration I was certain it needed to fit in. We were able to use real birch bark (thanks to Jackie) that was soaked and molded into things like the flower girl baskets, the cones that were used to throw petals on us while walking out the church, the CARDS sign on the antique suitcase we used to collect gifts, the flower pots used for center pieces, and then Jackie also placed big pieces of birch trees throughout to bring it home.
We wanted a romantic feel to things, which we achieved through the venue, but also by bringing in tons of candles, the chandeliers in the trees and the MUSIC (huge for us). We felt that really set things apart and made the day much more romantic than it would have been had it been a top 40 cover band. We also did some arts and crafts and made our “pearls of wisdom” bottles for each table with quotes about love. We also wanted to make sure we didn’t lose sight of ourselves and who we are as a couple. We love romance but in our relationship, it always is balanced with a healthy dose of humor, which is why we added in the Wedding Crashers quotes (fun fact: NO ONE but Steve, me and my mom knew those would be hidden throughout the party. It was a nice surprise for guests; Steve hid them Saturday morning after getting ready, and my mom was only looped in to help with printing), the go flip yourself booth and, of course, our other surprise: the stop at the dive bar. The dive bar between ceremony and reception is becoming a family tradition — we did it at my older brother’s wedding and as the second of six kids to get married in my family I’m hoping it keeps up. Again, no one knew we were doing that other than the people who absolutely needed to know.
Wedding Photography: Allegro Photography / Ceremony: Sacred Heart of Jesus Parish in Webster, Massachusetts / Reception: Lord Thompson Manor in Thompson, Connecticut / Floral Design: Lord Thompson Manor / Event Design: The Bride + Lord Thompson Manor / Wedding Invitations: Pickett’s Press / Save-the-Dates: Swiss Cottage Designs / Band: Chris Gillespie / Wedding Dress: Pronovias / Hair + Makeup: Priscilla of Kiss Spa / Groom’s Tuxedo: Custom by Doyle + Mueser