DIY has come a long, long way. Perhaps it’s the new breed of seriously crafty Brides (and Grooms), but wherever the uptick in craftiness is coming from – I am loving every minute of it (and not so secretly envious of their skills). What’s even better is when I have zero idea that anything is DIY until my eyes stop at the description, and then my socks are literally knocked off. Which is just what happened with this wedding captured by Maile Lani Photography. The Bride just happens to be a DIY genius (and the talent behind P.S. Creative) and she had her stylish hand on every little detail, making for one envy-worthy wedding. See so much more here!
From the Bride, Owner of P.S. Creative… Our three main priorities for our wedding were a great venue, great photography and create a big impact on a small budget (the unofficial theme of this wedding was great deals). We achieved all three and more. Race & Religious is a beautiful old New Orleans gem. It captured our style perfectly and we knew it would set the right mood: an intimate celebration that felt like a great party at our own home (if our home were a 200-year-old, eclectic, antebellum showplace).
As a designer and lover of all things beautiful, I set out to create every detail that I could on my own. I created the stationery as a modern nod to the city I have come to love and plan to build a life in. The save-the-date started it all. Using a vintage map of New Orleans I centered in on the intersection of Race & Religious Street where our wedding would take place. I carried the typography and color palette into the rest of the suite, and cut and tied everything up on one very long night in November. I knew I didn’t want one specific color as our theme, so I chose spring hues paired with crisp black and whites. I chose a cheerful Liberty of London floral print paired with a chic black and white pin dot fabric for our bunting and spent two weeks sewing 30 feet to hang from the venue’s amazing architecture. The Parisian ticking striped runners were also sewn by me, as a chic nod to New Orleans’ French origins. I collected vintage milk glass bud vases and chose an online flower retailer that had the perfect shades of raununculus, garden roses and my favorite little billy buttons. On the morning of the wedding, my mother and bridesmaids helped me arrange all the vases and create four lovely bouquets that not only looked fantastic, but also saved us a ton of money. We grouped vases on each table with wooden pillars and mercury glass votives. It was exactly as I imagined: chic, classic and timeless. All the work inspired me to expand my fledgling stationery business, P.S. Creative, in order to assist brides who want a certain level of styling for their wedding day, but may not have the time or expertise to achieve it.
We saved money in a variety of ways. First we chose to keep our wedding small, at around 65 guests. We wanted only our nearest and dearest. We choose to only serve beer and wine, along with two cocktails: a perfect pear and a blood orange old-fashioned, which saved us a ton. We did an elegant buffet of updated New Orleans fare, rather than a sit-down dinner. My dress was a beautiful, Grecian-style gown by Jenny Yoo that I snagged for a steal at an online flash sale site. My wedding ring also saved us a ton. By choosing a white gold and diamond band from the 1940s, we paid a fraction of the cost of a new ring in a similar style, and my super-crafty husband made his ring out of scrap wood. We saved hundreds on music by curating our own iPod playlists that played through the house’s speaker system and hired a great New Orleans brass band for one set after dinner to get everyone on their feet (best decision ever). My bridesmaids wore lovely black cocktail dresses from a local boutique that were half the cost of normal bridesmaids’ dresses, and who wouldn’t want to wear those again!? The DIY elements alone saved us thousands of dollars, and while at times it got a little tense, good planning and time to complete each task kept things moving. It made our wedding feel like it truly belonged to us. By making economic decisions and doing things ourselves, we were able to serve really good quality bar items, nice wine and the good booze. I was able to hire the photographer of my dreams, the amazing Maile Lani, who captured the day in the most beautiful way, so we can enjoy all our hard work forever.
Wedding Photography: Maile Lani Photography / Wedding Venue: Race & Religious in New Orleans, Louisiana / Flowers: FiftyFlowers / Floral Design: Patricia Quinn Stokes of P.S. Creative (The Bride) + The Bride’s Mother & Bridesmaids / Catering: Palate / Wedding Cake + Desserts: Shake Sugary / Wedding Invitations + Event Signage: Patricia Quinn Stokes of P.S. Creative (The Bride) / Band: Young PinStripe Brass Band / Table Runners, Bunting + Tablescape Design: Patricia Quinn Stokes of P.S. Creative (The Bride) / Favors: The Groom, Owner of Leah’s Pralines / Wedding Dress: Jenny Yoo via The Aisle / Hair + Makeup: Cat Vo of Aristocat Salon + Nail Spa / Bridesmaids’ Dresses: Trashy Diva / Men’s Attire: Men’s Wearhouse