You know that nightmare you have where you’ve venue cancels on you? Or your desserts aren’t delivered because the company goes out of business and never mentioned it to you? Or the oven door gets stuck and dinner is over an hour late? Well, those are just some of the many things that didn’t go the way Kate + Greg planned for their wedding. Yep, their venue double booked and canceled on them a week before the wedding – and did I mention it was a destination wedding on the North Shore in Oahu? I can’t even imagine!! And those other things I mentioned – yep, those all happened also. Plus their getaway VW bus never arrived – basically a lot went wrong, but you know what? They were getting married. And they found their true love. And their friends + family all came to Hawaii to celebrate with them and that’s all that really matters, right? Also hiring vendors you CAN trust for your top priroties is a must and those all worked out amazing. Photos by the lovely Sarah Yates, the raddest wedding film by Sharkpig and a nonstop dance party courtesy of The Flashdance. Big congrats to Kate + Greg and thanks for showing us that love is all that really matters. :)
From Kate, My inspiration for the wedding really came from the islands themselves. I fell in love with Hawaii when I first went, and every time Greg and I have visited since (to see my brother who lives there), it just feels like home to us. Of course, we’re beach-lovers at heart, but there’s something else about the way they live that really captivates us. They seem to want less, appreciate more and are always down for a good time. Since Greg and I are all about that, it was important to us that our wedding day wasn’t too fancy and that we really created a warm atmosphere for our guests. We knew that Hawaii would not only be the perfect setting for our day, but a great way to have a more intimate wedding (40 guests) and for our friends and family to experience that aloha spirit. In the end, I tried really hard to stay away from being too over-the-top Hawaii or killing ourselves with projects. The Hawaiian inspiration for me was really more about a simple back-yard wedding.
What song did you walk down the aisle to? Something by The Beatles, played by my brother on guitar
And you guys MUST watch their wedding film by Sharkpig. It’s only two minutes long and it totally reminds me of an old beach blanket film – I just love it and you can really tell they had such a fun wedding! Awesome job Brian!!
Gosh, it is so hard to choose! I love that Greg and I chose to see each other before the ceremony. It took so much pressure off. We got to go for a walk on the beach that morning and after our first look, we got to really soak in each other’s company and what the day meant to us. It was great having so many intimate moments with him. Greg and I also wrote our own vows, and it was one of my favorite things we did. My most vivid memory of our ceremony was reading our vows to one another. They were just so genuine and personal, and I remember feeling incredibly lucky as Greg told me all the ways planned to love me. Then at the reception, I can recall dancing and looking around with Greg in utter joy as we watched all of our favorite people having such a great time and getting down on the dance the floor. Between the lights, the music, the laughter, and the love, it was pure magic.
Don’t forget about what the day is all about. Maybe the venue, the centerpieces or the weather aren’t what you had pictured (all true in our case). Still, you’re surrounded by your closest family and friends, all there to celebrate the love between you and your honey. What could ruin something so beautiful?
I could not have pulled it off without my Mom, who worked so hard to make my vision come to life. Also, hiring the right vendors made all the difference in the world. A lot of the local ones we hired, to save money, fell through (like the VW van that was supposed to be our get-away car and all the chair and table rentals for our beach BBQ). Luckily, I was very picky about the important ones. Hiring Sarah Yates as our photographer, Michael aka “The Flashdance ” as our DJ, and Brian aka “Sharkpig ” as our videographer were the best three decisions I’ve ever made.
vendors
photography: Sarah Yates // venue: Private home // floral design: Pali Florist // wedding dress: Sarah Seven // bridesmaid dresses: skirts from Urban Outfitters ($10! and they chose their own top) // groom suit: Mom made their vests (they wore their own ties & pants) // cinematography: Sharkpig // invitations+ paper goods: all made by bride // cake: pies from Ted’s bakery (a local north shore bakery) // music: The Flashdance
What a gorgeous wedding! Losing major vendors is one of my biggest fears, mainly because our event venue already tried to double-book on us (luckily/unluckily the other couple cancelled). It’s very inspiring to see that something can still turn out so beautiful even when major changes have to be made last-minute! I also love the bride’s look…it’s my first time seeing that dress on a real person and it blows me away how beautiful she looks in it. Hair, makeup, jewelry…everything is perfect! Also…does anyone recognize the bride’s shoes?
Such a cool, sweet, and personal wedding! No one would ever imagine the “back story” you revealed in your intro…the couple just look so happy!
Love the bridemaids’ outfits!! Awesomeness!
Looks like it was a fun wedding!
That is nothing short of infuriating! FOrtunately, it look slike everyone involved just rolled with it, instead of choosing to dwell on the negative. Kudos to you for being such a chill bride! Seriously cool!
I love this wedding! So simple and fun. And oh how I love this Sarah Seven Dress!!
That is hands down, without a doubt, the BEST wedding video I’ve ever seen! I don’t even know these people and I had a teary smile on my face!
Divine! I am in love with the simplicity of this wedding. So refreshing!
I love that she still got her VW vibe with the favor tags!
so wonderful!!! My favorite part of that whole video….the look on the grooms face in the very last frame after they kiss. A wonderfully honest emotion!!
i love that even though so much went wrong, they still rolled with it and remembered what the wedding was supposed to be all about. it turned out beautifully and i love the video :) so sweet.
Backyard weddings are always the best, and I love the video!
So cute!! i love the swing pictures, such a sweet and intimate feel to them
I love gws but never leave comments. But I just love this wedding so much, especially reading the backstory, and absolutely adore the video. I had to comment on what a darling day it must have been! And I’m wondering what was in the burlap…
How lovely! I especially like the groom’s look at the end of the video after his beautiful bride kisses him :)
This wedding looks like so much fun and the bride and groom are just glowing – congratulations.
thanks everyone for all the kind words! kate and greg’s wedding was truly amazing. such a great reminder for me about what weddings are all about- it’s so easy to get caught up in the fanfare, but at the end of the day it’s all about marrying the one you love and celebrating it with the people who matter most! huge thanks to kate and greg for bringing us all to hawaii and having us be a part of their awesome day. and thank you to jen for sharing!
i love her menus! can you share how you made them?
…and love love your sarah seven dress!
Awesome place, great pictures:)
What a lovely wedding! :) Ack, any chance of finding out which venue double booked? I’m from Oahu and was considering a couple of the North Shore venues. I think I can guess which dessert place went out of business.. :/ All in all, glad to see that everything worked out beautifully despite all the mishaps. :)
Can someone help me with a backyard reception venue in Waikiki or Oahu?!?! Really want something on the beach, for about 30 people.
Love this wedding and the video is so cute! Do you have any info on the home that they used? We are looking for a home to host our wedding and that looks exactly perfect :) Thank you!
I second Michele’s comment! This is exactly what I have been looking for our wedding: a destination wedding with a backyard feel! Would so appreciate some help in finding a home that we could host our wedding at
Can you please tell me where you got your shoes! I’ve been searching for a pair exactly like those.
What a dreamy location, love the surfboards!
What a pretty wedding, Hawaii is a great backdrop.
Absolutely stunning!
Turned out great mixing some country twang with some island flavor. perfect!
would love to do a wedding like this one.
Surfboards at the end of the aisle! LOVE IT! So perfect for a laid back Hawaii wedding!
So fresh, vintage and chic! I love your dress and the details of the favors. Thank you for sharing!
This may look like a simple wedding but the level of details and work put into it can be appreciated in these great images.
A friend of mine is looking to get married on the North Shore, I’m trying to find a rental. Did you rent the place where you had your wedding? If you did, would you mind sharing?
Thanks! I love the video by the way.
I live on Oahu and trying to find an affordable house to rent…can you send me info? Loved your casual wedding just what my daughter wants!
LOVE this Hawaii wedding! Must have taken quite a bit of planning to pull this off.
beautiful wedding and very similar to what i have in mind for my own. i am curious if the venue was one for rent? is there any possibility of sharing the location/address? i would love to check it out! mahalo and all the best to you :)
Did anyone find out this venue and if others can rent? I’m struggling to find a North Shore venue that fits our style. This would be perfect!
Hi Alison
Did you end up finding a venue? I’m looking for something similar!
Thanks
Mere
Hi,
This wedding is absolutely beautiful. I also love your wedding video. I was also looking for a venue like this one. If can please share with me where this venue or if it’s available to rent?
Thanks!