wedding wonderment
I apologize beforehand for the length of this post… but breaking it up seemed rather awkward! There are lots of photos too, so be sure to click the “read more” link for the entire post!
Our wedding took place November 22, 2008, early afternoon amidst gorgeous late-November weather in a little town in western Northern Virginia. Aside from the cold (I just don’t do well with cold–which is why I’m so thankful I’ve moved south! lol), the wedding turned out far better than I had imagined! It was a blessing to be surrounded by our friends and family, to have a great photographer to document the event, and the generous girls and women from our church who volunteered their time and talents to help pull the day off!
If you remember my earlier posts about this, we had decided to go with a Japanese/retro theme. Something that we could do a lot of Asian elements in the decor, but also play some of our favorite old tunes, and still keep it simple and fun. The best part of the wedding? The fact that we not only made a lot of decorations and favors ourselves, but creatively sourced things and came way under budget. I don’t want to come off as bragging, but we did the wedding for $4,000 (thanks in large part to my mom who is very good at making a budget stretch!)! Which is amazing considering the average D.C. wedding is 8-10 times that figure. Plus, it turned out very us, which is what matters, right?
Here are a few highlights of the day:
My super talented friend Jenny Rose helped me pick out my makeup colors and the scheme (she’s a Mary Kay consultant). It was a treat to have her do mine and get some girl-chatting time in too!
Wearing a vintage kimono as my dressing gown. Not only did it keep me warm (remember: it was in the 30s that day!), but I loved feeling so glamorous and fairytalish!
Slipping into my beautiful dress! My dress is a vintage, early 1960s evening gown that I believe someone made (there are no tags). I picked it up for $30 from a vintage dealer I am friends with. The shoes are also 60s vintage (you might recognize them from this earlier photo shoot I did with Kate), and I found those at the thrift store (for $6) months before I was even engaged! The earrings were from a flea market ($0.50), and I redid them a bit by attaching them to different posts from another pair of earrings (given to me). The necklace I made after spying a similar design online for over $150. I bought the faceted glass beads on Ebay and used some settings and vintage pearls in my stash (for a total of $15). The gloves and bag I already owned, and I just had to buy stockings ($7). So the entire bridal outfit was less than $60!
The cake and topper. You may all remember the story of the topper after I found it on Ebay during the summertime. Since my husband is in the Navy, we’re both into the 1940s, and have done a pose based on this famous photo more than once, it seemed the perfect, personalized addition to the wedding! The cake was also super fun; after doing a lot of research about cake styles and shapes, I decided I wanted something simple and modern. The woman who made my cake was really fantastic–the cake turned out exactly like the sketch (yes, I sketched my cake!) I had shown her months before!
My mother is very talented with flower arrangement, so she generously offered to do the flowers for me herself. Again, I wanted something simple and modern, but a little bit whimsical! We put together a bouquet of red carnations with red roses scattered throughout, shaped into a tight ball (kind of like a topiary tree!). The stems were wrapped with a gorgeous antique gold ribbon and pinned in place with a vintage brooch from my collection. My two bridesmaids (my younger sister and sister-in-law) had smaller white and red versions of my bouquet. I love, love, love how it turned out!
Even though it was cold, the late November light and landscape proved the perfect backdrop to our outdoor portraits. Kate did really well utilizing the countryside around us; the gnarly, bare trees in many of the shots are my favorite elements!
The real, star-struck highlight of the day was driving to the Ritz Carlton to spend the night! Almost a year before, we had been driving back and forth a lot near the hotel, and joked repeatedly that it would be fun to stay there a night or two at some point. So that was a real treat to have it become reality. The room and views were gorgeous, we were waited on by the staff with impeccable service, and the breakfast we had in the restaurant was perhaps the best I have ever had! But, one thing I did discover about even high end hotels: they have bugs too. I spotted a large water beetle in the closet the next morning! Yikes!
To be realistic, there were lots of stresses and hiccups along the way; I definitely got some good lessons in learning to let go and be flexible. But the whole experience was also a delightful adventure in using a small budget to create a fun and magical day for us to celebrate our marriage. I am truly touched and thankful not only for the amazing suggestions that many of you gave me, but all the help and support I received from friends and family. It truly made the day memorable and special! (There are loads more photos here for you to see!)
Many thanks to Kate for providing many of the gorgeous images I used in this post!
Posted on January 29th, 2009 to wedding.
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inspiration week #68 »49 lovely thoughts to “wedding wonderment”
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Janet says:
Oh Casey, it looks like such a gorgeous day.. and you both look so very happy. It’s great to see someone having a wedding on a small budget, your happiness is all that is important on your wedding day, not the amount you spend! (Such amazing photos too!) x
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kerry says:
January 29th, 2009 at 10:10 am
Beautiful! Congratulations. What a gorgeous couple you are
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NoirGirl says:
January 29th, 2009 at 10:10 am
So gorgeous Casey! You look so happy in the photos. You’re so lucky to have such a great supportive family and church. You’ve actually restored my faith in weddings. I’m so happy for you!
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Sal says:
January 29th, 2009 at 10:25 am
Eeeeee! So, ya know, you’re COMPLETELY GORGEOUS for starters. The photos are utterly amazing – Kate did such a great job. And I love all the deeply personal touches. I’ve photographed so many cookie-cutter weddings, I’m always impressed when people make things really unique. Love it all, and HUGE congrats!!!
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Heather says:
January 29th, 2009 at 10:44 am
Such a handsome groom and elegant bride. You two really seem to have had a gorgeous wedding and coming in under budget?!? That is wonderful! I wish you both many years of passion and joy. Congratulations and thank you so much for posting these photos and sharing bits of your day with us.
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Darlene says:
January 29th, 2009 at 11:07 am
It all looks so beautiful! I’m glad it turned out with no wedding disasters. You and your mother should go into the wedding busine$$ to pull this off $o well. Best wishes to you & hubby!
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Darlene says:
January 29th, 2009 at 11:08 am
Oh, almost forgot. I love the picture with you dancing with your father. That is so special.
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Danielle says:
January 29th, 2009 at 11:21 am
ohh, congratulations. its looks like is was such a beautiful and perfect wedding. its so very inspiring.
- d.
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Kathy says:
January 29th, 2009 at 11:24 am
Absolutely beautiful Casey. It looks like everyone had a lovely time. It is so awesome how much you made the wedding very you and for a song (in comparison to typical wedding costs)! I hope I can pull off the same when my day comes.
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Betty Lou says:
January 29th, 2009 at 11:54 am
you’re so beautiful! lovely pics. and i’m so in love with your kimono!
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amy says:
January 29th, 2009 at 12:21 pm
the photos are gorgeous! i love the one of you getting your makeup done. very beautiful. congratulations again!
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anne says:
January 29th, 2009 at 12:46 pm
Such fabulous photographs! It looks like it was a peferctly personal and intimate affair. I love how you made such great things on a small budget. You were a beautiful bride.
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Blaze Danielle says:
January 29th, 2009 at 12:48 pm
Beautiful Casey!!!! I am off to go check out your flickr! I hope you are having a wonderful time nesting and getting your home cozy! Prayers for you and your husband as you start your lives together!
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Lana says:
Casey, everything just looks beautiful! I am entirely too jealous of your pictures. Mine are okay, but nothing like yours. I think small weddings are really the best. Mine came in for something like $3,000.00 and I would do it over again in a heartbeat.
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Joelle says:
Beautiful photos Casey, from what looks like a beautiful day. Congratulations again to you both. You look genuinely happy, both of you.
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sarai says:
so lovely, just like you. Congrats again!
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sulu-design says:
Casey, the wedding really does look so you. Congratulations on pulling off such a personalized, wonderful event for so little money. And these photos… stunning.
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Kelly says:
YOU, HE, and EVERYTHING look SO gorgeous!!! It looks like it turned out totally beautiful. I can’t believe you did it so well on such a budget. That cake topper is so adorable, too!
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anja louise says:
Casey! Everything looks so perfect and sweet. I got lucky with my wedding dress too, only $22 from a vintage shop! Actually, our wedding was kind of nautical-themed too, we kept our outfits a secret from each other but they ended up matching! My dress had a sailor collar and dalas wore a white captain’s suit.
I love your little cake topper, I actually found the original Life magazine with that famous photo in it while thrifting. The light in all your photos looks so lovely. The super cute black & white kissy photo looks like an old photobooth shot. I love it! -
Kitten says:
Oh, so inspiring to look at these pics, I’ll have to check out the flickr ones too…Looks and sounds like you had a wonderful day, I’m really happy for the two of you!
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Fiona says:
Just want to say a massive, massive congratulations. You look absolutely stunning and, more importantly, insanely happy in all of those photos. I really hope you guys have a great happily ever after
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Jen says:
Oh Casey you look so beautiful – glowing!! The pictures are truely beautiful and it sounds like you had the loveliest time, congratulations lovely lady, i look forward to reading more about your adventures
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Mel says:
Wow the wedding looks so lovely! You two are so gorgeous!!! Congratulations and I hope you two will have a wonderful and happy life together!!
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Blaze Danielle says:
Oh and Miss Casey… What is your new name?!
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Mick says:
Congrats, Casey! It looks like such a fantastic day. Your gown was PERFECT. That back! I love it.
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Frankie - Swell Vintage says:
You look incredible! Those photos are brilliant. Congratulations
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oni says:
stunning and inspirational!
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vasiliisa says:
What gorgeous photos! Thanks for sharing, and congrats
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Gillian says:
oh wow congratulations to you both!! it looks like the most wonderfully perfect day and you truly look stunning. You will have many many happy yeart together. The fact that you made the day about so much more than ‘what money can buy’ just makes it all the more special. we are getting married in october this year and have much the same budget so you are an absolute inspiration!
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whimsykid says:
January 30th, 2009 at 12:36 am
That’s so gorgeous– And I love how personal you made it with such a modest budget! I have been to weddings before that have been so extravagant and yet not especially unique in any way. You’re so creative!
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Tanya says:
The wedding sounds like it was beautiful…congratulations! I loved looking at all of the photos.
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Rhiannon says:
Wow! Your husband’s adorable and you look perfectly gorgeous, of course! I can’t believe you got such a perfect wedding dress for $30 . . . . It makes me wonder why people spend hundreds of dollars on brand new dresses when vintage ones are usually so much prettier anyway!
I love the photos, too . . . . the one in front of the white farm house is amazing!
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marjorie says:
Oh hoooray!
It’s ever so lovely to see you back at your wonderful blogling!! Congratulations on your wedding! You are such a beautiful bride and all looks so elegant and magical!! I’m so happy for you both!!:)
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Neil says:
January 30th, 2009 at 10:29 am
Hi Casey, i have been looking forward to this post for a while and was over the moon when it appeared in my google reader, i just jumped over here to take a look at the photos.
What a beautiful wedding you had, i showed them to my girlfriend and she hasnt shut up talking about weddings since. I especially love the lanterns, im going to get those in for my wedding if that ever happens one day
I wish you and your new husband all the luck in the world, loads of happiness and im looking forward to great new things from you on the blog
All the best!!
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Tina C. says:
What a gorgeous wedding. I actually started following your photographer’s blog after you posted about her the first time, she does such gorgeous photography.
You looked so gorgeous, and I love all the personal little touches.
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Theresa says:
wow!!! your wedding looks wonderful, you look stunning as well.
Congratulations -
LauraKitty says:
What a gorgeous wedding! Congratulations! I’m so impressed with how you came under budget- I’m helping my best friend plan her wedding right now and it is so hard!
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faith says:
You two are such a beautiful couple
It looks like you had a blast and I love the simple elegance of your wedding. The photography is stunning too – I love the juxtaposition of the beautiful yet foreboding gothic mansion with its ‘Keep Out’ signs and the pair of you in all your splendour. Stunning!Good luck to the pair of you with your new life together! I hope you’ll be truly blessed.
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Solanah says:
Ohmygosh, too cute!
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Lynda says:
Everything looks beautiful, Casey. You’ve just proved that you don’t have to spend a fortune to have an amazing wedding! Wishing you both blessings and happiness!
xo,
Lynda -
Eyeliah says:
Congratulations, what a fabulous day.
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annie says:
so beautiful
i love the favors and the picture of you two in front of the house. -
Lamirose says:
Hello Casey,
My name is Lamia, I’m Moroccan but I live in France…I just wanted to say : Congratulations for your wedding. I see from your amazing pictures that It was organized with style and a lot of love.
Again, Congratulations -
lsaspacey says:
Oh, congratulations! It all looks so beautiful, you guys did a great job.
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Mademoiselle M. says:
Congratulations my Dear you are just stunning! I wish you a very happy life with your new husband!
xxxxxxxxx
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Lynne says:
February 11th, 2009 at 11:47 am
Oh my! Love your wedding. The shoes, the dress, the vintage brooch pinned into your flowers…everything! Wow.
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On the mend! « Daffodil Happiness says:
February 12th, 2009 at 3:09 pm
[...] is married, has pictures, and is back to blogging! I’m so excited! I missed reading her blog while she was away, [...]
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Frugal Trenches says:
February 14th, 2009 at 3:50 pm
What a wonderful theme & beautiful wedding!
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Heather says:
(Oh my, I just realized I never commented on this! I’m so sorry, Casey.)
It was beautiful. Congratulations, Casey!
Thank you ever so much for taking time to share your comment! Although I try to answer questions, I am not always able to respond to each comment individually. But please know that I appreciate from the bottom of my heart every comment I receive!