Both Amy + Nate’s favorite season is fall, and they knew from even before Nate proposed that they wanted an autumn wedding. And as luck would have it, they ended up getting the most perfect, crisp fall day! Amy wanted their wedding to be a rustic, casual wedding with a lot of DIY details. Her main inspirations were the beautiful colors of autumn leaves, and an old white picket fence to turn into some signage. A bit more about their day from Amy:
We are both very laid-back, casual people and wanted an event at which everyone would just feel comfortable. I think we really made the wedding about the two of us by sticking to what we wanted despite a lot of input from family members and friends to do otherwise. We knew what we wanted and knew it would be amazing once everyone saw the vision we had in mind. We’re so glad we had confidence in our ideas because everyone told us it was the most beautiful wedding they had ever been to, and the best compliment of all was that it was so “us.”
Thanks so much to Jodi Miller Photography for the photos and congrats to Amy + Nate!
For the bridesmaids, I knew I wanted muted fall colors. I let the girls choose any style dress and shoes they wanted in the fabric/designer that I selected, in the hopes they’d like it enough to get another use out of it in the future. I really wanted the colors to represent fall without being too Thanksgiving-y.
Because Nate and his groomsmen all hate wearing suits, I chose khakis for the groom and groomsmen, with a vest for the groom and suspenders for the guys – instead of uncomfortable jackets. This was also a more cost-effective option.
Processional: Canon in D
Recessional: Handel's Hornpipe for water music
First Dance: Moon Song – David Berkeley
The most memorable part of the wedding was when Nate showed the wedding video he had spent months making, that he dedicated to our grandparents. He's a filmmaker and he created the most amazing, funny, and sentimental video that told "our story." We had our bridal party involved in it as well. Our guests loved it! I'm so happy he did this instead of us having a traditional wedding video made, because I think we'll watch this so much more. You can view the video here.
Aside from that, I'd say the memorable part was just seeing our whole vision come together. Yes, there were things that didn't turn out exactly like we thought they would, but overall, it was beautiful and exactly how we want to remember our wedding day. Nate's favorite moments were seeing me for the first time, and having David Berkeley serenade us.
If possible, get a very early start. If you have decided to take on a lot of projects yourself, even though it's enjoyable, it's nice not to feel rushed and to be able to do projects a little at a time. I'm kind of a control freak so I really didn't let anyone help me with the projects I took on (wedding signage, cake topper, table numbers, etc), and it was good to have a year to do it all. Also, try not to be too narrow-minded about what you want. Even though you have a vivid idea of what you want, be open to slight variations and taking a step back to really see how everything is coming together. Despite the fact that my mom doesn't have the same style as me and doubted me every step of the way, she did give me a few good ideas. I wanted to hate all of her ideas because I was so angry with her at times, but in the end I realized she had some good input :)
Don't settle for the basics that your venue or the rental place offers if they don't have what you want. I had envisioned a beautiful floral napkin with the place settings, but it just doesn't exist in rentals anywhere. I brainstormed a bit and was able to find a cheap fabric online and have napkins made, all for the same price as renting napkins would be – plus I could keep these to remind me of the wedding every time we use them, and sell some too. I also wanted to add a little something to the venue's basic linens, so I ordered lace overlays from an online rental company to add a unique touch to the tables. I really wanted the look of farmhouse tables but since they're extra rentals they added more cost, so I settled on just having 2 farmhouse tables pushed together for the bridal party table. It was perfect and made that table stand out!
Also, a day-of coordinator is a GREAT investment. It just takes all the stress away about the day going smoothly. Any time there was the slightest issue I just called her over and she took care of it! That being said, things will go wrong. The pillow that I handmade for our ringbearer went missing right before we were walking down the aisle. Thank goodness our coordinator had a backup pillow, although it didn't go with our decor at all - but I tried to just take a breath and let it go :)
photography: Jodi Miller Photography // venue: John J. Audubon Center at Mill Grove Audubon, Pennsylvania // event design: bride and Moda Botanica // day-of coordinator: Gina Sole // floral design: Moda Botanica // wedding dress: Jim Hjelm // shoes: Stewart Weitzman // bridesmaid dresses: Bill Levkoff // hair: Lindsey of Jean Madeline Salon // groom suit: Orvis vest, The Tie Bar bowtie // groomsmen: The Tie Bar ties, Holdup Suspender Company // invitations: Momental Designs // paper goods: table numbers and programs by bride, placecards custom // catering + cake: Jeffrey Miller Catering // ceremony music: Philadelphia String Quartet // reception music: David Berkeley // dj: Party Master Entertainment // favors: Carman Brook Farm Maple Syrup & ribbon/tag by bride // cake stand: DJM Woodworks // directional signage & other signs, flowergirl sign, cake topper, fabric bunting, lounge pillows: DIY by bride
These are sooooooo beautiful!!!!!
i love EVERYTHING about this! it reminds me a bit of the colors at my wedding, except that we incorporated a lot of demin blue, as well. they did a great job of reflecting fall colors without conjuring up halloween/thanksgiving themes.
What amazing wedding photos! I really love these types of rustic weddings.
Lovely to see this wedding come together and so beautifully! Loved working with Amy on her custom invitations! XO
Absolutely stunning wedding. Love the autumn colour palette and lush blooms!
Beautiful wedding! Love the colours and details.
Everything about this wedding is so lovely :) Our wedding is next April & our mail goal is to make it so “us” …all of your hard work definitely paid off when that is the general consensus. Amy: I too am wanting my napkins to be colorful & have found that vendors only carry white. Who did you find to make yours & what type of material was your fabric?
Thanks so much & congratulations!!
Hi Lauren! Thank you so much :)
I found the fabric on FabricGuru.com. It was a Cotton Jacquard Drapery Fabric. The back side of the fabric was white (with the pattern showing through), but this didn’t bother me at all. Just be aware that the pattern will only be on one side if you do this. When folded or put in napkin rings, you can’t even tell. Partiesandmore.com made the napkins! They were really great to work with. I hope this helps :)
Thank you for sharing, Amy!! :) Who would have thought that colorful & fun linens were so impossible to find — potential market?! I think so!
haha, I’ll totally go into business with you!!! :)
Thank you so much for featuring this wedding Jen! Love this couple and all of their sweet touches.
Adore everything about this!! Gorgeous!!
So beautiful! I had to create a new pin board for this wedding.
I love this wedding! It’s so beautifully autumn themed without being over the top or Thanksgiving. Kudos on the styling!!
Thank you so much for featuring our wedding!!!
Such a beautiful wedding – such a beautiful couple! I wish you all the happiness and love in your years ahead. Carina
Your dress is stunning, are you by any chance selling it?!?
I’m not, I’m sorry :( It was a seriously stressful experience to my sleeves custom made to my specifications (you can read the story on my blog). I think for that reason alone, I can’t quite part with it, hehe. Also, I’m pretty sentimental!
Wow, what an incredible event! Every detail is perfect…and captured so well!!!
really nice color pallete, the table settings really shine in the photos.
Nothing about this was short of beautiful. The color schemes, the scenery, the bouquet and the rings. Well of course, the bride and her new husband too! The details of the reception are my favorite by far. The added detail of mini lights to the mixture of greenery is spectacular. Christmas Lights Etc provides beautiful light strings similar to these that we used for our wedding reception. I always think soft lights and weddings go hand in hand! Congrats to the beautiful couple!!
Wow great colours – looked like an amazing day :)
Beautiful!
Much I enjoyed reading your blog.
what a cute wedding, I wonder who the mouse and the frog represent on the cake?