Mandy and Chris wanted their New Jersey wedding to be a reflection of the things they love, and so lace and home-brewed beer it was! The ceremony was held at a chapel in Allaire Park, officiated by their tattoo artist friend, the reception was at The Mill in Spring Lake.
“We tried really hard to incorporate things we love and we knew everyone else would love”, began the bride. “We didn’t spend money on things to make it overly ‘showy’. We wanted to keep it fun for everyone but throw in a lot of things we love. Such as Chris’ homebrews, Uncle Doods doughnuts, and some fun music. We also had our favorite local brewery’s session beer available (we paid for it and brought it to the venue ourselves… Boat beer from carton brewing!)”
“We brought the black lace into the reception and we ordered table runners from etsy. The ribbon that we wrapped around mason jars and milk jugs came from my husband’s grandfather. They were 80 year old jars he had collected and we used them as our centerpieces and filled them with barley (a main ingredient to beer) and put candles in them. Our cake also had the lace around it to bring everything together… which also doubled as my garter because I forgot to put it on when I got dressed so I had to think quick when I was told it was time for garter toss!”
“Our favors were 22 oz bombers of a variety of 3 beers Chris brewed himself over the past year”. she continued. “They included a Scottish, Amber and Pale ale. We had labels made that had our engagement photos on them. They were a hit. He really enjoys brewing beer and even has since then started farming his own hops!”
“Our wedding was in winter and that saved us a ton of money”, she explained. “We both don’t mind cold weather and actually were hoping for snow on our wedding day (which we didn’t get but I wouldn’t change the day for a thing ). We also didn’t get floral centerpieces, figured it’s a waste and the jars were a great way to remember Chris’s grandfather. Also I opted out of having a car or limo bring myself and father to the chapel. He drove us himself which was a great way to have last minute pep talks and whiskey shots! We had a party bus for the bridal party which we all jumped into on the way to the reception.”
“Our advice to other couples getting married would be to decide on what aspects are important to you and splurge on them!” she concluded. “The day is about celebrating yourselves and your love so incorporate whatever parts of yourselves that you feel people will enjoy! Also on the day, just try and relax. You’re surrounded by the most important people in your life (hopefully) and if things go wrong or not as expected you’re going to laugh about them In a few days anyway. The day is about having fun, so do that!”
