Olivia + Alex drew inspiration from the 1960’s Gothic Psychedelic Disco for their wedding and we are literally obsessed! This couple had no trouble bending some of the traditional wedding rules so that they could make their big day completely their own and we are so excited to share all the details.
Bride Olivia took charge of the event design and paired with Premier Planning Services to bring her visions to life. She graciously shared with us what inspired the unique elements that were sprinkled throughout her and her husbands wedding day:
“I have always been drawn to bright colors, so pastel rainbow was the general color palette. I have also been obsessed with the 1960’s since I was a little kid listening to the Mama’s and the Papa’s. We had flowers of every color, black candles, some good emo-ish music (our first dance was to the song ‘I Found a Reason’ by the Velvet Underground). Our florist, Genevive of Apricot Floral Design, absolutely slayed, and I died for the pastel babies breath hanging with the 36 disco balls that Chance Production provided. It was absolutely ridiculous and I still can’t believe our wedding was our wedding!”
Photographer India Earl was there to capture every single moment. The bride couldn’t pick just one favorite memory, so instead highlighted some of her favorite moments that took place throughout the day. Let’s get into them!
All The Little Things
For our rehearsal dinner, we invited all of our guests. We had an open mic night and people shared the most amazing stories. We cried and laughed and I was terrified with the open mic, but it was one of the most special memories and set the tone for the rest of the weekend.
Our families both made little videos for each of us, we watched them and then settled in for the night with a showing of Moonrise Kingdom. We ended up taking the boats out later for a moonlight paddle and had so much fun on the lake.
A make-your-own flower crown station? Yes please!
“The morning of our wedding we held a 7:00am AA meeting. To be there with Alex and our friends, my sponsor and our officiant, Katie, getting grounded in love and our higher powers, and taking time to center ourselves in the day was honestly one of the most meaningful memories to me and I’m so happy we did it. My Dad also came to listen and support me, and that meant so much.”
This gorgeous floral-detailed gown is by Galia Lahav and we can hardly wait for you to see its’ beauty! Bride Olivia shared that her sponsor, Lauren, was there to zip her into her wedding gown and offer any support she may have needed:
“It was a super hectic morning of getting ready, and she was there being my calm in the storm.”
The First Look of Forever
This adorable first look brought out all the emotions!
“Seeing Alex for the first time, we did a first look and he turned around with tears just pouring down his face. I felt so loved in that moment, getting to see him and knowing that we were absolutely in the right place at the right time, going to commit our lives to each other in the most peaceful place with the most loving people in the world all around us.”
Can every bridal party have a furry friend involved?!
Another memorable moment for Olivia took place with her father just as they were about to make their procession:
“My Dad leaned over and whispered ‘you are so beloved’ right before he walked me down the aisle.”
Becoming One
“For the ceremony, I envisioned the nest at Camp Wandawega being transformed into a cloud, and again, Genevive [florist], made it beyond what I hoped it could look like. Everything was white and ethereal, I walked down the aisle and was so overwhelmed seeing how beautiful the forest looked, and then Alex and my dear friend Katie who married us, waiting for me at the end of the aisle. It was heaven sent.”
“Our ceremony was lovingly written by one of my closest friends, Katie. She is a beautiful writer and understands our conception of what and who God is to us. She wrote a ceremony that had the entire crowd in tears. Listening to her read her words and looking out at the crowd and then across at Alex was so surreal and overwhelming in the best way.”
“Alex’s vows were incredibly heartfelt. I think what made our wedding so special was the true feeling it was divine guidance and that came through in his words to me. I was so grateful to get to hear them and to be the recipient of his love and the dedication of his life to me.”
The Bridal Party
Loving the groom’s light blue suit! Such a statement!
Just adore these flower girl dresses and floral crowns!
Time to Celebrate
A cozy reception space with a charcuterie board to snack on seems like an essential!
We can’t decide which we love more: the hanging baby’s breath or the abundance of disco balls!
While the overall color palette remained bright and airy, tying in the black candles with the black chairs gave this reception a cool and moodier vibe. We love the color combo!
“We each had two maids of honor (my sisters)/best men, and to say the speeches crushed our souls in the deepest and most loving sense is an understatement. I can’t tell you how many people reached out to say they were in tears throughout every speech and I was literally a puddle on the ground.”
The reception of our dreams! We just KNOW these guests are going to have a ball on this checkered dance floor!
“My Mom and little sister baked our wedding cake the morning of the wedding. They poured so much love into that cake it and showed, it was like eating a piece of a strawberry lined cloud. It is so special knowing they made our cake and a memory I will hold close to my heart forever.”
It’s time to party! The newlyweds shared how special their reception/cocktail hour was to them:
“Our DJ, Sam from Sound by Design, slayed the music. It was all oldies and matched with the psychedelic colors and vibe, it truly felt like another world. My aunt actually called me a couple of weeks after and said she felt like we were all at a commune of love and happiness for the weekend and I totally agreed. Especially when we were all post-ceremony blissed out and the sun was glittering on the water, and the flowers were so gorgeous growing up off the table and pouring in from the ceiling of the tent. It was so unreal.”
“We put together a huge playlist to send to our DJ to capture the vibe of what we wanted. I told him we would not dance to anything that’s typically played at weddings, and he absolutely understood the assignment. The music was insane and the dance floor was absolutely packed the entire night. I have literally never had so much fun or danced so hard! I think everyone had the best time and one of my friends has told me, “I have never felt more free than when we were all dancing so hard at our disco.”
Whisked Away at Sunset
This bride is absolutely gorgeous! We are loving these detail shots they were able to capture with their photographer at sunset.
The groom was dressed in King Brothers Clothiers and looked quite dapper!
These two couldn’t be more in love!
“After the dance party, everyone stripped down and changed into swim suits spur of the moment, and we all went and dove off the dock into the lake under the full blue moon! It was totally unplanned and so awesome. Our dog actually jumped in after us and I had to swim him back to shore. Water always makes me think about rebirth, and I floated on my back and thought about being reborn into being a wife, as well as all of the rebirth that had to happen to get us to the place where we were. I planned our ceremony date around the moon cycle because it’s supposed to be good luck to get married on a full moon, and felt it was extra magical that it was the second full moon in a month, making it a blue moon. I resonate with that idea of “once in a blue moon” when I think about our love, and also when I think about our wedding. It was otherworldly.”
“After the lake, there was a massive bonfire that the Wandawega staff lit with a blowtorch, it was WILD. We had this gigantic fire that lasted until we went to bed at 4am, and was still burning when we checked out the next day. We had s’mores and cotton candy, and it was the perfect way to end the night. We stayed up way too late connecting with old friends and basking in our day under the moonlight.”
A huge congrats to the happy couple! May the rest of your lives be full of love, laughter, and bliss.
photography: India Earl // venue name: Camp Wandawega, Elkhorn, Wisconsin, United States // event design: The Bride, Olivia // planning: Premier Planning Services // florals: Apricot Floral Design // wedding dress: Galia Lahav // wedding dress boutique: Annika Bridal Boutique // hairpiece: Galia Lahav // hair stylist: Sogna Divita Salon // videography: Raven Rose Films // paper goods: Letter Perfect // catering: Hidden Kitchen MKE // furniture rentals: Relics Rentals // specialty rentals: Chance Productions // music: Sound by Design // Rentals: Milestone
The wedding dress is breathtaking.