I’m calling this sweet day a “woodland fairytale,” but, honestly, Disney’s got nothing on this love fest set against the pure beauty of the Oregon forest. From the pretty pink hues dotting every lovely moment to the gorgeous floral crowns crafted by a friend of the bride to the breathtaking images from Tara Francis Photography. Soak in all of the pretty right here.
From Tara Francis Photography… Alexa and Eric were married outside in the woods at a beautiful venue called Merry Wood Farms which is located just outside of Portland, OR. As a photographer their venue was a dream; so many great details and spots to shoot. Their wedding was very beautiful, rustic and whimsical.
As a wedding photographer you see a lot of the same things. A few unique ideas from Alexa and Eric’s wedding day was the Grandma Flower Ladies. Their grandmas walked down the aisle tossing flower petals. It was so cute and a great way to include them into the ceremony. Alexa had the bottom of her wedding dress taken off and sewn as cap sleeves. The dress was so pretty and fit in well with their whimsical outdoor wedding. I also liked that they included the oversized balloons for not only the wedding party portraits but the family portraits, as well.
After their ceremony, Alexa and Eric shared a quiet moment under the apple tree, enjoying drinks and each other. It gave me another opportunity to shoot some more sweet moments of them together. I loved that Eric loves film as much as I do and was very motivated in having his wedding shot by a film photographer. In true Oregon fashion, even the wine was homemade… by Papa Jim.
From the Bride… Our Wedding day was pure whimsy! It felt like the beauty of our venue mixed with the rustic details simply enhanced the purpose of our day: making a commitment to love and serve each other ’til death do us part. The day came together due to our many gifted friends and family. I was inspired by the beauty of Oregon’s forest that I grew up around and wanted something natural and woodsy for my mountain man husband! We wanted it to feel as though our closest friends and family trekked into the peaceful woods to catch a glimpse of our nuptials. My bridesmaids sat on tree stumps with delicate dollies (thanks grammie!,) guests chairs formed rows giving priority to the curve of the forest, and we stood under a beautiful arbor my Grandpa made for our special day. It was adorned with ferns my Grandma collected, along with the floral styling’s of my precious childhood friend, Shaylee Hughes, who also served as the florist for the girls bouquets and my gorgeous bridal headpiece. The beautiful chalk art welcome sign (along with many other chalk board signs) was a gift of love by one of my bridesmaids Lauren of LaWren Designs. All of the festive banners, the ombre dip-dyed table runners, and lace on the mason jar centerpieces were created by me, the bride, and my mommy! We also had a blast thrifting retro colored glass votives and wood candle holders to shabby chic for centerpieces. My daddy cut the rustic wood rounds for centerpieces.
As I was walking down with my maids to meet Eric for our first look it started lightly raining. It was so peaceful and refreshing and I wouldn’t have changed anything about our special moments we shared before the day got crazy and way fun! Being in the moment and soaking it all in has created many vibrant memories we can think back on. Thankfully though, it stopped raining shortly after our first look and the skies were clear for our day!
After our ceremony we wanted to spend our first moments as husband and wife together. We had friends set up a blanket and two bottles of kombucha for us to enjoy in a hidden apple orchid near the ceremony site! We basked in our newly married bliss and enjoyed some time sitting before we were off to our party. The contentment and joy we felt was beautifully captured by Tara.
The bridesmaids dresses were mostly from Free People, with one being from Billabong, and one was thrifted.
Kim Calcagno, my high school Fashion/marketing teacher, served as my day of coordinator. (Made the day SO care free!)
Girls bouquets, bridal floral headpiece and bouquet, ceremony styling’s were done by my childhood friend Shaylee Hughes.
Photography: Tara Francis Photography | Wedding Dress: Bridal Exclusives | Cake: His Bakery | Invitations: Pretty Little Papers | Bridesmaids' Dresses: Free People | Catering: Koi Fusion | DJ: Groove Machine Mobile DJ | Groom's Attire: Macy's | Wedding Venue: Merry Wood Farm | Chalkboard Art: LaWren Designs | Photo Booth: Oregon Photo Booth Rental Co. | Rentals: Barclay Event Rentals | Wedding Dress Designer: Maggie Sottero