I love today’s engagement shoot for all kinds of different reasons then I normally do.  There is nothing frilly, nothing overtly girly, or too styled, nothing that forces you to see our couple in any other light then who they truly are.  I am able to look at these pictures & get a pretty phenomenal sense of how they are as a couple.  Isn’t that truly the point anyway, to genuinely reflect who you are?  I adore this couple & its probably no surprising that my favorite photos are those where they are emulating the album covers!

*All Photographs by heidi-o-photo

I’ve often considered the very thing that our lovely couple today courageously did!  Marisa Alvarez & Cory Mitchell, unable to find the perfect venue for their wedding, took to the roads to see what life would bring their way.  Low & behold they spied a stunning property that struct a cord in both their hearts.   The catch?   It was a private residence!  They figured hey, why not, you simply never know!  They drove in, introduced themselves, asking the homeowners if they wouldn’t mind allowing them to have their wedding there.  As it were, the stars were aligned & the generous homeowners said yes!  Taking a cue from the stunning property, Marisa included small birdhouses, sheet music wrapped candles, pops of robin’s egg blue & pink, galvanized tubs and so much more, making her dream day come true.

Vendor Love

Caterer: Sweet Lumpy’s BBQ
Reception Venue: Panderosa Ranch
DJ: Elite Music Works
Officiant: Vows from the Heart
Bakery: Truly Madly Sweetly
Photographer: heidi-o-photo

Today’s couple is too simply too cute!  Ann Ahrens & John Teigland met early in life & havent let go of one another for a moment!  When the time came to bring their wedding together, Ann, along with a small army of close friends & family rolled up their sleeves & went to task!  Essentially every aspect of this wedding has been personally touched, worked on, created & so much more!  From the heirloom brooch bouquet to signage, chalkboards galore, fabric bouquets, even the men’s gorgeous boutonnieres!  This wedding is a DIY’ers dream!

“It’s hard to say what our theme is because it was a little bit of DIY, rustic, vintage, and simple. We really wanted theoverall feel to be a reflection of us as a couple. Therefore, we wanted it to be very relaxed, laid back, and simple. Our goal was to make sure that everyone felt comfortable and had a great time! Going along with a relaxed feel, I loved the way the ceremony was set up, how everyone was spread out under umbrellas in Adirondack chairs. All of the simple details and special touches were fun and meaningful. My family, friends, and I made almost all of the decorations so it was fun to see it all come together. Having so much help from the people that mean so much to us made our wedding so much more special.”

“My husband and I are currently finishing college in Winona, Minnesota. We are both majoring in education and minoring in coaching. John has two more years playing quarterback for the Winona State football team. You could say that our love for sports brought us together. We met as freshmen at the University of Nebraska at Omaha (UNO) while I was playing volleyball and John was playing football the very first week of practice and dated for three years.  UNO moved up to Division 1 last spring and dropped their football program, leaving John without a place to play.  Winona State contacted him & he ended up loving the coaching staff and team so that is how we ended up in Winona. The first week we moved to Winona, John proposed!  Since then, our relationship has grown and strengthened. Our foundation is built on Chirst and we pray that His light shines through us so that we may have a postive impact on those around us. We are excited to see what God has planned for us!”

“My bouquet was from our great grandmothers, grandmothers, and mothers brooches. The bridesmaids and I all got together and everyone made their own custom fabric bouquet so every one was different. We also made the groomsmen boutonnieres.”

“We knew it was the venue and location we wanted because of the opportunity to have the ceremony outside in such a beautiful place. Summerset just seemed so peaceful, simple, and welcoming. It was the perfect place for our style!”

“My grandmother painted every chalk mason jar that the guests drank out of and the guest took them home as favors.  My aunt and uncle made all of the cupcakes and our cake.  The knife that we used to cut our cake has been in my mother’s family for many many generations.  All of the antique doors (that we used) were from a farm in Nebraska where I am from.

*SBW Note: Brilliant idea for displaying your cupcakes!  Utilizing an old door with window panes, cute areas are naturally available to you, to layout your cupcake buffet!

“With help from my grandmother, I made our thumbprint guestbook tree, and my sisters made all of the signs. All of the love and time that was put into all of our DIY projects really made our special day unique and a true reflection of us!”

“I honestly loved every moment in our wedding! Our ceremony was so much more intimate, personal, and meaningful then I ever could have imagined. We had our great friend and Christian mentor (Michael Martin) marry us, so it meant so much that someone that knew us so well was able to make our ceremony so personal and allow us to feel so relaxed. We felt so blessed that we were surrounded by so much love from our family and friends on our wedding day! ”

Vendor Love

Ceremony & Reception Venue: Summerset Winery
Wedding Dress Designer: Galina by David’s Bridal
Bridesmaid Dress Designer: ModCloth
Hair Stylist: Salon Bliss
Makeup Artist: Brittany Hanssen
Groom’s Suit Designer: Halberstadt’s
Caterer: Hickory Park Catering
Baker: No Leftover Bakers
Photographer: Aly Carroll Photography

Courtney Brady & Steven Johnston got married in the back yard of their home in what was a sweetly intimate, charming setting with close friends and family. Courtney spent the previous months personally landscaping her yard to accommodate the wedding ended up featuring four windows buried under the grass and bushes that she found while landscaping the garden!  Ever cleverly so, she decided to clean them up and used them as a place for their guests to write messages during the wedding, later hanging them in her house. (*PS-Such a lovely idea!!)  The wedding had a very rustic, french feel featuring large wooden tables with burlap table runners. The lighting was soft and very romantic utilizing mainly candles and light strings.  The couple’s gracious neighbors not only helped them out with parking, they allowed them to take advantage of their own stunning grounds, giving the couple some very dynamic backdrops for their gorgeous portraits!  What a stunning way to do a home wedding!  Kudos guys!

Vendor Love

Caterer: Cafe Catering
Floral Designer: Charleston Flower Market
Cake Designer: Cupcake
Equipment Rentals: EVENT DRS
Photographer: Diana Deaver Weddings

First & foremost, I have serious case of floral envy going with this wedding, I mean, coooome on!  I love the idea of bridesmaid dresses being mix matched in the first place, toss in mix matched succulent filled bouquets & I am going to stop dead in my tracks!  I am dripping with envy kids!  I loooove these bouquets!  The Cutting Garden at Flora Grubb Gardens, your a quick new fave of mine, come hell or high water, we are some how doing something together down the road, but I digress!  This wedding is adorable on so many levels from the bridal booties (which I love) to the ceremony location.  The simplicity of the venue, coupled with the few perfectly hung light strands, this day time wedding is elevated to a level that even the most sophisticated of hipsters will find themselves swooning over…despite themselves!  Enjoy this gorgeous wedding and be sure to leave this couple some love!

Vendor Love

Floral Designer:  The Cutting Garden at Flora Grubb Gardens
Cake Designer: Miette Patisserie and Confiserie
Makeup Artist:  Makeup by Julie Dy
Wedding Planner:  Rebecca Pfiffner of be hitched, Event Planning & Design
Other:  Marin Headlands Center for the Arts
Fashion Designer:  Vintage Joy
Photographer:  Lydia Chen Fotography