This wedding makes my heart happy. It’s cozy + intimate, laid-back, yet totally elegant and filled with a plethora of DIY details that really speak to this adorable duo and their breathtaking location (grandma’s backyard). From the galvanized pails of hydrangeas to the romantic blue color palette, every moment captured by Cody Hunter is absolute perfection. Head to THE VAULT to soak it all in.
From the Bride… Our wedding focused on family. When we were deciding on a location for our big day, we toyed with getting married in our new city, DC, going back to Florida where we grew up and where our parents still live, and finally Saint Louis, where my mom and her large family grew up and still resides. Once we had the idea of wedding in my grandmother’s backyard, I knew it would be the ultimate spot to make sure all of our family could be there and make the day unforgettable. Once that decision was made (there were tears from my mom and my grandma– and me), we got to work planning for the next 9 months. Without a wedding planner, a venue that we had to turn into a wedding location from the ground up, and a tight budget, there was a lot of hard work and a closeness among and between our families that grew exponentially throughout the year.
We wanted our families to come together as one on a day that everyone would always remember. We didn’t have a “theme” or any particular design vision, but knew we wanted to create an atmosphere of genuineness, love, and simplicity, so we stuck to whites and blues that appeared in the bridesmaids’ dresses, men’s accessories, and table arrangements. We did all the flowers ourselves, my mom made my accessories, and Richard wore cufflinks with maps on them that commemorated where we were engaged and married, Paris and Saint Louis. Two great friends of ours played the mandolin and the ukelele during the ceremony and for our first dance, respectively. My cousin and our officiant home brewed beers special for our wedding.
A list of non-wedding vendors that help create our dream day includes all of the family members that took care of countless jobs the day of the wedding, from the appetizer table to running from the bar to the ice trailer at the front of the house all night to keep our guests’ drinks cold. There are not enough thank you’s in this world to show our appreciation to them and our wedding day would not have been the same without them. It truly was the perfect way to start our lives together.
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Photography: Hunter Ryan Photo | Cake: McArthur's Bakery | Catering: Local Harvest | Venue: At Home | Film Processing: PhotoVision Prints