From the very beginning, we knew we wanted out wedding to be intimate. My husband likes things simple and didn't want it to be too lavish. I'm extrememly particular and hands-on person who loves beautiful and meaningful things. AND we are both budget-savvy. We did everything for little over $8,000, including the cost of my lovely Vera Wang dress (which was the most expensive investment), so it really pays to be a DIY bride. =)
The result: a pretty, personal, cohesive, and gorgeously understated - "not-too-overdone" - gathering for 50 guests with lots of personalized DIY creations in our wedding color palette of pinks, creams, and purples. Sans wedding planner, it was a creation all of our own.
I designed and made all my wedding invitations.
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| The front of our gatefold wedding invitation. The romantic and graceful swirls paid homage to the the design of the silk organza skirt of my Vera Wang wedding gown; "L" for me and "M" for my husband. |
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| I wanted my wedding invitation to look like a beautiful piece of artwork. Often times, people neglect what the back of their wedding invitation looks like. I love how the "L" and M" are tied together both front and back, by the ribbon and the letter "K," respectively. |
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| I was born in Paris, France, so it shouldn't have been a surprise to anyone that I styled my wedding invations after the classic French fashion. |
I made our ceremony programs using the same type of paper and font as our wedding invitations to keep the stationary theme cohesive throughout.
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| Front cover of wedding ceremony program. |
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| I found this beautiful hymn and had my wedding soloist sing it during the ceremony before my husband and I spoke our wedding vows. |
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| I walked down the aisle to "O Day of Peace" and included part of the first verse in the ceremony program. I worked with a graphic artist to create the motif pictured here. |
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| Our special thank-you message to our guests, along with a verse from "For the Beauty of the Earth," the song to which our grandparents and mothers were escorted down the aisle. |
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| Our dedication to our parents. |
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| The symbol of holy matrimony in Christ |
We exchanged wedding vows in the church in which I grew up. The church only permitted flowers in specially designed vases by the altar, but allowed us to light the aisle with candles and permitted us to hang up specially designed wedding banners for the occasion.
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| Our wedding day had been preceded by a week of rain, and forecast predictions remained dreary. But when I woke up the morning of the wedding, the rain had stopped and the sun was peeking through the clouds! I was delighted! You can see the high pressure winds blowing those rain clouds away, allowing the sun to shine! :) |
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| A quiet moment in the church before the guests arrive. |
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| A beautiful, custom designed wedding banner in our wedding colors. |
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| I love how the light was streaming into the church through the beautiful colored glass! |
I walked down the aisle in a sublime Vera Wang dress that hugged my curves in all the right places. I originally didn't want to wear a veil, but I changed my mind when I tried on one of Vera's gorgeously dreamy and soft 2-tiered, catherdral length veil. I accessorized with 5-inch Vera Wang opened-toed pumps, antique gold earrings from Thailand that I've had since I was 8 years old(something old), a dazzling Swavorski crystal tiara (something new), and a sapphire ring passed on to me by my late grandmother.
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| I'm having a moment with my sister and MoH. The MoH, Bridesmaid, Best Woman, and I all wore matching gold earrings. |
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| Lovely, lovely shoes! |
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| Something old, something new, and something blue! |
My something borrowed was a 65-year-old ring pillow that was first used in my husband's grandparents' wedding in 1948.
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| Something borrowed, with our 24k gold wedding bands. |
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| Our Best Woman, my DH's sister, carried the ring pillow down the aisle, along with this rose and grapevine wreath crafted by my husband. |
I carried a beautifully fragrant, hand-tied, round bouquet that I made myself. My MoH and my Bridesmaid each carried miniature versions of my bouquet, with freesia in place in the lily-in-the-valley. My DH had lily-of-the-valley in his boutonneire, too, while my brother, who stood as a groomsman, sported a pink rose boutonniere. All of the girls in the party wore mismatching champagne colored, Vera Wang dresses and baby's breath in their hair.
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| Who needs a florist? I bought all our wedding flowers on wholesale and made all the arrangements with the help of my family and bridal party. |
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| Bridesmaid bouquet |
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| The Bridal Party |
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| Fun with the veil :) |
After the ceremony, we had an intimate evening dinner reception in the charming "Garden Room" at Zehnder's of Frankenmuth. Though we were not in an actual garden, the textured brick and lovely lattice walls, traditional-style wall mounted garden lamps, and sweet cherub statues gave off the illusion of being in a garden. The size, warmth, and cozy ambience of the room were perfect for an intimate wedding dinner.
I wanted the most classic, cohesive, and romantic look for this occasion. I designed and made our centerpieces to create an impact, yet still allow guests to mingle at tables and see around the room. Each centerpiece was a lush floral arrangement place atop an elegant, tall, fluted glass pedestal. Shorter versions of the arrangements decorated our cake and hor d'oeuvres tables.
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| My husband made this particular arrangement, which we had placed next to our wedding cake. |
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| Tablescape |
White satin chair covers, lavendar napkins, personalized dinner prgrams, and silver charger plates added old-world glamour, shine, and style to the tablescape.
As a finishing touch, we used as many candles as allowed by the venue to give off the dreamy glow of "forever love."
We wanted to treat our guests, and the Garden room setting was very refined. Name cards were placed at each setting, and waiters greeted and escorted our guests to their seats. Guests were served drinks, hor d'oeuvres, and a 5-course meal in combination of tableside, individual, and family-style services.
Our 3-tiered fondant and white butter cream wedding icing cake look simple, but tasted scrumptious! Guests had their choice of two flavors: chocolate chiffon cake with a whipped chocolate filling or vanilla bean cake with a raspberry ganache filling. Cake was served with vanilla bean ice cream.
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| I submitted this simple cake design to Sugar High Bakery. I wanted the cake to match the room. |
Everyone told me it would all be over in an instant, and it's true! I'm so glad I hired both a photographer and videographers to record my special day. 20 years from now, I know I can look back and see how romantic and timeless my wedding was, not how lavish or trendy it was. It was really about celebrating what we had: love, happiness, and hope. :)
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| The bride and groom share a private moment after dinner. |
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Wedding photgraphy: Cassie Schreiner of cassienicole.com and LYK / Wedding Venue: Zehnder's of Frankenmuth Restaurant, Frankenmuth, MI / Cake: Sugar High Bakery of sugarhighllc.com / Wedding Videography: Ianafoto of ianaonline.com / Officiant: Rev. Lang Yang / Wedding invitations, ceremony programs, flowers, table cloths, napkins, charger plates, chair covers, candles and candleholders, place cards: DIY by the Bride and Groom / Glass pedestals: purchased by Bride and Groom from Hobby Lobby / Decor Set-Up: Zehnder's of Frankenmuth and family of Bride and Groom / Bride's dress, veil, and shoes: Vera Wang / Bride's tiara: David's Bridal / Groom's tuxedo: Men's Warehouse / Bridesmaid dresses and shoes: Vera Wang / Bride and Bridesmaids' hair: Erica Farver / Make-up: DIY by Brides and Bridesmaids / Bridesmaids' earrings: courtesy of Mother of the Bride / Ring Pillow: courtesy of Groom's Grandmother / Engagement Ring: Kay Jewelers / Wedding Bands: Kim Nhung Jewelry
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