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Lovely Little Elopement

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Lovely Little Elopement

Devin + Brandon

Lamberville, Michigan
- 06/29/2018
Total wedding budget $6,000
Lovely Little Elopement
Lovely Little Elopement
Lovely Little Elopement
Lovely Little Elopement
Lovely Little Elopement

What was your total budget? Please provide a budget breakdown.

We spent about $6,000 total

  • $1,500 Attire
  • $1,300 Photographer
  • $350 Flowers
  • $600 Officiant
  • $250 Venue
  • $550 Food
  • $200 Dessert
  • $800 Decorations
  • $30 Invitations
  • $300 Jewelry/Wedding bands

We had 10 people at the ceremony and 65 at the reception.

How did you meet?

We met working at TGI Friday’s. Brandon trained me as a server.

What is your proposal story?

Brandon took me back to where we had one of our first dates, at the Maumee River. We were alone and it was perfect.

Tell us about your wedding vision.

We wanted an intimate wedding while still being elegant. The landscaped gardens at Liberty Farms were perfect for that. We had a private ceremony with only our closest family and then a bigger party with everyone the next day. We went for navy blue, white floral and rose gold with hints of blue plaid.

Tell us about your attire choices.

I was originally going to go with a more casual wedding dress but ended up falling in love with the ivory mermaid gown. I am so happy that I did. I liked the idea of having everyone in something a little different and with such a small wedding party it was easy to coordinate. I had our flower girls (2 of which are our daughters) in dusty rose dresses, all different styles. Then the guys were in different suit colors, but all having a blue plaid pocket square. My husband loves plaid and wanted to incorporate it in some way.

What was most important to you two? Was there anything you chose to splurge on or skip?

Our most important thing was our photographer. We knew we didn’t want to skimp on that, because we would be looking at those pictures forever. Morgan (Heck Designs and Photography) was well worth it! Next was a great officiant that we felt comfortable with. Maria was so sweet and easy to work with, she really made our ceremony. Then our clothes. I thought I would be fine with a cheaper, casual look, but ended up really happy that I chose a gown and veil. We skipped a lot of things like favors, boutonnieres, a DJ, seating plans, professional hair, and makeup and just a large wedding in general. We had our ceremony on a Friday to save with venue costs as well. We made sure to include our family, but make sure it stayed about us and our marriage. It felt so special because of that.

What were your favorite parts of the day?

Walking down the aisle. I surprised Brandon with a country song he didn’t ever imagine I would pick. (You Make It Easy by Jason Aldean) I don’t generally like country music, so Brandon thought it was a mistake. He even motioned for the song to be changed because he thought it had to be a mistake. It really brought on the waterworks for us. The whole ceremony, in general, was perfect. There were lots of tears and laughter. Our vows were very personal and we were able to feel so comfortable because it was our closest family there.

Tell us about your wedding flowers.

I ordered bulk flowers from Fifty Flowers; ivory roses and seeded eucalyptus. I arranged them myself. I only needed my bouquet and my matron of honor. I did go to a local floral shop to buy a few pink dahlias and other stems to add some color to my bouquet so it would pop more against my ivory dress.

Tell us about your wedding cake.

Again, we had a small wedding. We decided to have a pie and a cheesecake. We got them from the Kroger bakery section. It was stress-free, fun and delicious.

What did you do for favors?

We skipped favors altogether. I didn’t figure anyone would keep or use anything we gave them for the long run.

Describe any handmade, DIY or personal items.

Together with Heck Designs and Photography, I handmade my invitations. I took watercolor paper and lightly colored every sheet with brown and pink and then took them to a print house to get the text printed on. Then I roughly ripped the edges of the invitations, tied them with waxed string and put them in brown craft envelopes.

I made a “kids only” sign for our reception. It pointed to a kids area with a tent, bubbles, coloring pages, board games, suckers, and a jungle gym.

We made a giant tic tac toe board with wooden letters and a pallet. Painted in our wedding colors.

Did you include any family heirlooms or special traditions?

During the ceremony, before vows, we had a warming of the rings. We had each guest pass around our wedding bands tied together with string. They said a silent prayer, hope or wish for us as a couple/family. Then when they came back to us for exchange they were “warm” with their love and well wishes.

Do you have any advice for couples planning their weddings now?

Have fun. Make sure it’s about celebrating your marriage together and not just about pleasing others.

VENDORS

Photography: Heck Designs and Photography •  Ceremony Venue: Liberty Farms of Lamberville •  Stationery: Heck Designs and Photography •  Wholesale Flowers: FiftyFlowers.com • Officiant: Maria Makes it Official • Rentals: Great Lakes Rental • Linens: Great Lakes Rental • Wedding Dress: Atlas Bridal Shop • Groom’s Attire: Atlas Bridal Shop • Bride’s Shoes: DSW • Bridesmaid Dresses: WINDSOR   • Veil: Amazon • Submitted via: Matchology