Kelsey + Kagan were married at a lovely little church in Maryland followed by a super fun reception at a local community hall. Kelsey is a manager at Anthropologie, so it’s no surprise that she completely transformed the space with tons of rad, handmade details. Kagan pitched in big time as well, building all the planters for reception + helping Kelsey craft things like the giant gold heart that hung behind the head table. According to the lovely bride, Everything was made by our hands – and in the end, our wedding felt like a celebration tailor-made just for us.
And you would never know it, but their pre-wedding portraits took place in front of an abandoned insane asylum! Sometimes the places you’d least expect can make a really cool backdrop for your photos.
Big thanks to Sarah Culver for the lovely photos + congratulations Kelsey + Kagan!
Kelsey + Kagan created such a fun environment for their reception. I just love it!
And I’m obsessed with these adorable gold-painted animal cake toppers! (And they’re a super easy DIY, similar to this post we shared recently!)
Hands down, it was sawing a log with my new husband. Just after our engagement, Kagan had said that the only thing he wanted for our wedding was to saw a log together, a German wedding tradition. Now, this didn't exactly match up with all of my picturesque Pinboards, but I hestitantly agreed, hoping he'd forget about it. He didn't, and I am so glad! It was a good reminder that weddings can be beautiful but also fun, silly even.
Prioritize!! Allocate your expenses early on - especially if you're on a budget! I placed photography at the top of my list, followed closely by food and music, with things like wedding cake (we don't even like cake) and my dress (I got lucky - my dream dress wound up being $500) at the bottom. It also made things much easier when I prioritized my time - the things that were most important we tackled early on; this made it much easier to let go of anything that was unfinished or "imperfect" once the rehearsal rolled around (I gave myself a cut-off, and you should too!)
photography: Sarah Culver // venue name: Ceremony at St. Paul's Anglican Church, Reception at Historic Baldwin Hall, Millersville, Maryland // wedding dress: Vera Wang White // hairpiece: Flowers by Eden // bride's shoes: Seychelles "I do" // bridesmaid dresses: Thrifted, Asos and H&M // groom attire: Vera Wang Black // paper goods: Bride, chevron runners from Paper Source // catering: The Main Ingredient // cake: Wegmans Ultimate White Cake // music: Mixing Maryland // floral design: Flowers by Eden // cake topper: Sian Keegan
beautiful wedding!! xox
Gorgeous wedding. Definitely had that anthropologie touch. She is so brave to have had her photos taken in front of an insane asylum but it looks like she had nothing to fear!
I wish I were German so I’d have a reason to saw a log at my wedding!!
love your heart backdrop! where can i get it/or any tips on how to make it?
i followed studioDIY’s tutorial! http://www.studiodiy.com/2013/01/29/diy-gold-heart-pinata/
Oh my goodness, the heart piñata looks SO great!!! Yay! And such a gorgeous wedding!
thankyou! :)
Love that chevron table scape – and the bride’s dress is GORGEOUS!
So many stunning elements! And everything is so unique! I love all the different bridesmaid dresses!!! Congrats to the gorgeous couple! :)
It’s so nice to see that not only the American traditions came over the ocean to Germany but the German traditions also find their way to America. Very beautiful and it seems as you had a lot of fun on this wonderful day!
Just ran across this wedding on Pinterest and too funny because I meet the bride at anthropology only a few short days before her wedding. We discovered that we were both getting married at the same church only a month apart. She was so beautiful I had no doubt she’d be a stunning bride and so fun to see the pictures. My own wedding with pics from the same chapel, yes, right across from an old crazy hospital (!), are on Style Me Pretty, Maryland.
Love Green Wedding Shoes and I looked/ pinned a lot from your site too for our wedding.