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Sara + Carlos planned their Sydney wedding in 6 weeks! Yes, it can be done. :) They both love the outdoors and really wanted an eco-friendly wedding –  a casual, fun affair with their closest family + friends. I think after looking at the lovely photos by Lara Hotz you’ll see they did just that. Congrats to Sara + Carlos!

What song did you walk down the aisle to? She by Elvis Costello. Your exit song? Home By Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros

Most memorable moment of your wedding day? Probably the fact that absolutely everyone at the reception, including the restaurant manager and bar staff, cried when the speech from the Groom’s mother (who couldn’t be at the wedding) was read out. Also riding off into the sunset on our bikes after the ceremony!

Any advice for those planning now? We planned this whole wedding in 6 weeks (while doing 4 finals papers for university and working 2 days a week) and although it was stressful at times, a short time-frame meant quick decisions. This meant that we didn’t sweat the small stuff, didn’t get caught up in every tiny detail, had help from friends and family and therefore were really able to just let go a little and leave the success of the day to fate! It also meant we were excited for the whole time leading up and didn’t have to send days wishing that time would hurry up and bring us to the big day!

We had a strict “eco” policy. We didn’t want the green aspect of our wedding to just be token, we wanted it to be really green so we re-used decorations from another friends wedding, scoured the streets on “throw out” day to find the picnic baskets, didn’t have any favors (that we think often just get thrown away), hand made our own chuppah out of my grandmothers vintage fabric, had native flowers and all local, organic, vegetarian food and line caught sustainable fish as well as organic biodynamic wine and beer! Our wedding is also testament to the fact that you can have a really cool, great wedding on teeny budget!

vendors
photography: Lara Hotz Photography // venue: Centennial Park, Sydney and then The Commons Local Eating House, Darlinghurst Sydney // floral design: Ria Floral // wedding dress: Review (bought from Myers in Sydney) // hairpieces: Mignonne Handmade, found here on Green Wedding Shoes // shoes: Zomp Shoes, Paddington, Sydney // bridesmaid dresses: Alannah Hill // groom suit: His brother-in-laws old pants + shirt! // invitations+ paper goods: made by bride and groom – all online // catering: The Commons Local Eating House // cake: made by Mother of the bride

Mignonne Handmade is a featured vendor of Green Wedding Shoes, check out Mignonne Handmade’s vendor profile to see more of their work or discover other GWS recommended vendors for your wedding day in our Vendor Guide.

I think this is one of the most fun weddings I’ve seen – every detail was perfectly planned and the entire day was nonstop fun! Rebecca + Derek had their wedding ceremony at the Los Angeles California Temple and followed it with a bike brigade across LA! They biked to a park where a picnic was waiting for them along with Diddy Riese ice cream sandwiches. Then they walked through the botanical gardens at UCLA for toasts under a rainbow of streamers and ended the night with a reception at the Stagecoach Inn Museum along with the cutest mini golf course chronicling their relationship. Such an amazing fun day! Thanks so much to photographer Rachel Thurston for letting me share this wedding and big congrats to Rebecca + Derek for having a wedding that was truly one-of-a-kind!

I ADORE Rebecca’s vintage 1950s gown she found at Timeless Vixen. She paired it with a yellow belt from Club Monaco along with a vintage headpiece and gold peep-toe slingbacks from J.Renee. The necklace is her grandmother’s and her brooch bouquet was made by herself from her collection of vintage enamel-flower brooches.

The invitation informed guests to “dress to impress, but to wear comfortable clothing” that they could move in. They were also told to bring sunscreen and sunglasses, and that lunch would be served. When the guests gathered near the church following the ceremony, they were surprised with bicycles and helmets (rented from Perry’s) in the parking lot. How incredibly fun is that??!! Guests followed the newlyweds through Santa Monica to Westwood Park for a picnic.

After lunch, the group rode to Diddy Riese (if you live in LA you know this place – the super yummy ice cream sandwich shop in Westwood) for  dessert. Each guest received a coupon for 1 ice cream sandwich – such a fun idea!

The ride ended at Mathias Botanical Gardens in a small clearing. There Jordan Ferney, the day’s coordinator + friend of the couple, had set up a rainbow backdrop made from strips of plastic tablecloths. Glasses of sparkling cider awaited guests. “It was a pretty magical sight when everyone entered this little clearing with drinks all set up and ready to toast,” Rebecca recalled.

Derek’s brothers, a bridesmaid and two pairs of mutual friends gave toasts in honor of the couple. Rebecca + Derek had encouraged them to make their toasts more like presentations, so one included charts and graphs as visual aids, another included a bag of goodies to be used on various destinations on their Italian honeymoon, and the final performance was a musical number. What a super fun idea!!

Later in the evening, Rebecca + Derek hosted an open house for 200 of their friends + family at the Stagecoach Inn Museum in Rebecca’s hometown. Rebecca + Derek aren’t huge dancers, so they wanted to do something different. They came up with a mini golf course that told their story in a fun way for guests. Rebecca’s father build the course including the golf clubs! I also love the personalized golf balls they had made.

Cindy Ferguson, the couple’s friend, designed the retro-patterned invitation suite, created to look like a book. When you opened it up, a library card holder contained Rebecca and Derek’s engagement photo and special invitations to the day’s events. Jordan Ferney of Oh Happy Day! letterpressed the pieces and a group of friends helped assemble the components.

What a fun magical day! Their wedding was also featured on the Martha Stewart Blog, so be sure to check that out to read even more about their day.

Vendors:
Photography: Rachel Thurston //  Wedding Coordinator: Jordan Ferney
Wedding Dress: Vintage 1950s gown found at Timeless Vixen //  Shoes: J.Renee
Groom’s Suit: Custom-made during a visit to Hong Kong.
Invitations: Designed by Cindy Ferguson, letterpressed by Jordan Ferney
Picnic Lunch: Sandwiches + sides from La Bottega Marino //  Balloon Arch: Party Land WLA
Reception Catering: Pierre’s Catering Company //  Custom Cookies: FrankenCutters

I just adore everything about this wedding! You can really tell that Briana + Tom’s friends and family care so much about them and loved helping out however they could to help them throw their perfect wedding. Thanks so much to Priscila Valentina for letting me share her gorgeous photos with you guys today!

From Briana, “Most of the inspiration for the day came from my love for succulents and the beauty of the church that we were married in. The church was built in the late 1920s and is in the middle of a very small and quaint neighborhood. The brick walls, stained glass windows, and the giant tree in the courtyard are some of the simple beauties that we highlighted. The bridesmaids dresses mirrored the wine color found throughout the church (in the stained-glass windows, carpet, and church decor). We  made almost every decision together.

We both knew we wanted to get married in our church and write our own vows, most of the other decisions took some time to work out. We are both artists and love creating, but we were also tight on time and money. So we came up with the ideas and most of our friends + family offered their talents and time to help make things happen. Although the process of planning was time consuming and difficult at times, our wedding was absolutely amazing, so fun and so full of love.”

Love the girls’ tights!! And of course, boys will be boys…

Love how they did their first look!

I walked down the aisle to a covered and altered live version of the song “hoppipolla” by Sigur Ros, played by Tiger Tank Euphoria.

Most memorable moment of your wedding day? The most memorable meaningful moment was saying our handwritten vows to each other. The most memorable funny moment was the best man singing “Hold the line” by Toto during his best man speech with a full band (all groomsmen).

We kept it pretty simple, lots of hanging lights, some paper lanterns and some tulle. The centerpieces were different size glass containers with succulents planted inside, which at the end of the night were given away for a small donation to the bride and groom. I had started a succulent garden at my mother-in-law’s house about 3 months before the wedding and asked everyone I knew to donate clippings that I could grow, and by the time we planted them in the centerpieces we had more than enough.

Another inspirational aspect of the wedding was the amount of help and generosity of our family and friends; it was the people who were involved that made our wedding so beautiful. All the music (ceremony and reception) was played live by our friends who are amazing musicians and we had a wonderful jazz session during the reception. My bridesmaids and my husband’s aunt helped me immensely with creating all the floral arrangements and decorations. My maid-of-honor took the reins in decorating our tandem bike which we road off on at the end of the night. The day before the wedding all of our family and bridal party worked an 8 hour day to completely set up the church and reception hall, everything was done from hanging lights, setting up tables and chairs, getting the PA ready, to folding each napkin perfectly. Our friends and family also ran the wedding and reception! We had friends making food, serving food, and at the end of the long day and night it was our family and friends who had to clean up. There is nothing more touching than when the love of others is so obviously and freely given.

Any advice for those planning now?
Remember that the wedding is about you, the bride and groom, and not about everyone else. Do what you think is best and try to get help when you need it. Involve your friends and family with the planning and let them use their talents to bless you. Weddings can be very expensive, but they don’t have to be, try to be resourceful. Keep things simple and on the day of the wedding enjoy each activity, soak it all in and take lots of mental pictures.

Vendors
Photography: Priscila Valentina //  Venue: All Saints Church (Long Beach, CA)
Hair and Makeup: Viktoria Erickson at JN Couture Salon  //  Shoes: Found at a second hand store.
Hairpieces: The veil was borrowed and the hairpiece was handmade by the bride.
Groom Attire: jacket: h&m; vest: express; undershirt + ascot: umbertos; pants: nordstrom; shoes: bedstu
Floral Design: Bride, Briana Maxson //  Invitation: Hailey Sivadge and Groom
Cake: Pastries by Jacquelynn  //  Music: Tiger Tank Euphoria, and some friends
Catering: Kpasta (Long Beach, CA)  //  Wedding Dress: Davids Bridal