Jake and Emily were married at Isola Farms in Florida. They wanted their wedding to “make our love a tangible thing people could see and feel”.
The ceremony was held outside, and was both of their favourite parts of the day. “Our ceremony was beyond perfect”, said Emily. “Nestled in between two giant oak trees with chandeliers hanging above our flowered cross, it was more beautiful than I could have ever dreamed of. Jake was so perfect standing there trying hard not to cry. Our vows were hand-written in books that we both used for wedding planning. I cannot describe the feelings, other than to say it was so much better than I had hoped for.”
The couple did nearly all the décor themselves. “A very, VERY large portion of our décor was DIY”, she continued. “If it was not done by me it was done by a close family friend or relative. Everything from our chalkboard signs to our photo booth. We thought, what better way to show our love then to make everything hand-written? We even had hand-written notes for each guest on their seat at the reception.”
“The best part for me was getting to spend time with my family, planning”, she explained. “My big sister, and maid of honour, was also my wedding planner. She owns her own wedding planning business in Charlotte, North Carolina, called Beautiful Day Wedding Coordination. She was a massive help, especially when it came to logistics. The time I got to spend with my
mother, every Saturday, running from store to store, hot glue flying everywhere and too many dress appointments to count, that is priceless to me and I will never forget those days.”
“The only big thing I would have done differently would have been to start the DIY earlier”, she laughed. “Also, I know I speak for both my husband and myself when I saw I wish we could have spent more time with our guests at the reception. We of course went and spoke with each guest individually, but we were under time constraints. So not every guest got our full attention.”
“My favourite question to read on wedding blogs when I was planning was ‘Do you have any advice for future brides and grooms?’,” she concluded. “Mine would be that this day that you are planning is one of the biggest days of your, your families, your friends and even some of your guests lives. Make it really special. Even if you are not the DIY type, try and add special touches to the day. Do something for your guests that shows your appreciation for all they have done for you, even if that’s just show up.”
“And most importantly, you are getting MARRIED TO YOUR BEST FRIEND! How exciting is that! The reason you are here, the reason you stressed, the reason you cried and spent a whole lotta money is standing right in front of you! Make sure you make that person feel like he or she is the MOST important thing to you today, not that your bridesmaid cut her hair, or that your cake doesn’t look like the picture. It’s all about love! Wahoo for marriage!”
