What could be more intimate then hosting your wedding at a family friend’s gorgeous place?  Arla McDonald & Ben Linwood had the good fortune of having such wonderful friends which allowed them to celebrate their wedding in the lawn of their house while the reception took place in a newly erected barn on the property! Arla put hours into the little details to make everything exactly what she wanted, really going to task on all her DIY projects.  Taking a cue from the rustic vintage theme, old crates, a vintage car, rustic florals & mason jars wrapped in burlap & lace were used to style the day.  Our favorite decor piece however, is a vintage old school wooden desk in the lawn!  What a sweet rustic wedding with plenty for future brides to be to get inspiration from!

What Storyboard Likes…

The DIY Attitude- I myself, being a DIY bride, have a real soft spot for other fellow brides that want a certain elevated look to their weddings & aren’t afraid to roll up their sleeves to get it.  Want to know the big secret as to why some DIY’s fail when others succeed with flying colors?  Its in the attention to detail.  Seriously, if your not naturally a picky, almost anal driven to perfection type person, your going to end up frustrated with what looks to be sloppy version of your inspiration picture.  If your not naturally this way, but still really want to make a few things, I suggest limiting the amount of projects you set yourself up for & give yourself plenty of time to have another go at it when needed.  The best part of DIY is being able to stand back in the end & be proud that yeah, you created that!  Speaking of the which, I am loooooving the Just Married Burlap bunting! Well done girl!!

Burlap & Lace- Burlap & Lace are like the yin & yang of rustic weddings.  These 2 dueling textures go together like  peanut butter & jam!  The detailed holes in lace compliment the tight knit woven twine that creates burlap.  The harmony is achieved as the two patterns are both easy on the eye, neither one truly competing to be the star.  Its like reading with the TV on… well for those that can anyway!

The Bouquets- Correct me if I am wrong, but the main flower in our ladies bouquets are Dahlias in  both cream & soft pink.  The choice of using Dahlias for this wedding is perfection, why is that exactly?  Simply put, the petals on the Dahlia work in complete harmony with the rustic feel to the wedding.  While the petals are indeed oblong, the natural twists & imperfections to them compliment the rustic shabby chic feel.  The clever florist filled in the bouquets with stems that give a wildflower touch, really picking up on the country vibe, while each bouquet was wrapped in lace, driving home all the right touches!

Vendor Love

Caterer: Sugar Mountain Catering
Event Planner: True Devotion Wedding and Event Planning
Floral Designer: Design by Lili
Invitation Designer: Chiffon Photography and Design
Cake Designer: HappyCakes
Equipment Rentals: Classic Party Rentals, Eventwest Rentals
Photographer: Chiffon Photography

When it came time for Claire Inskeep & Joe Saphire to plan their perfect wedding day,  a lake side wedding in the gorgeous New England fall was the perfect setting.  Wanting something  more unique, and true to their style, our couple opted for a lake side wedding where our bride arrived on a canoe!  This Vermont gem featured burlap runners, pine needle aisle, & dried herb escort cards just to name a few of the key elements that came together to highlight this gorgeous organic delight of a wedding day!

What Storyboard Likes…

The Transportation- How can you not love a bride that foregoes conventional transportation for a self manned canoe that lands softly to shore!  We love how our couple truly embraced all aspects that is the stunning Vermont wilderness, injecting a sense of calm as our bride gliding along the water!

The Food- I know know, you dont see any food in the feature, so hum whaa?  Its OK, I am completely playing favorites here and I am good with that!  Catering by Dale was actually our carter for our wedding, so naturally, we’re prone to shout her praises when we can!!  Dale is a delight to work with, her staff amazing & the best part….?  THE FOOD!  Dale’s food is absolutely scrumptious & I am sure that Claire & Joe think so too!

The Flare- We love everything about our bride & groom’s style from the bride’s sleek fitting Nicole Miller wedding dress to our groom’s suit of choice, which by our eye, has a nice natural tweed to it which compliments the natural surroundings…beautifully!  As if the style of our bride & groom wasnt enough, we are madly in love with their floral choices, truly capturing that Vermont wild flower feel in each uniquely different bridesmaid bouquet!

Vendor Love

Caterer: Catering by Dale
Floral Designer: Artistic Gardens, Blooms By The Box
Wedding Dress: Nicole Miller
Bridesmaid Dresses: J. Crew
DJ: Peak Entertainment
Photographer: Ampersand Wedding Photography

When a wedding is a group effort, it truly is that much more special to the couple.  Such is the case for Tanya Gutierrez Vazquez & Eli Vazquez, whose family members & friends all came together to make their wedding day as customized & true to who they are as a couple as could be.  Having a natural vintage hipster vibe, our gorgeous couple embraced this very feel from everything from their choices in fashion, transportation, to the lovely Hoosier Grove Barn where our couple was married.  Both sides of the families helped, making the dinner & desserts, while friends pitched in with the music.  Tanya & Eli’s local pastor officiated the wedding, while friends & family gifted Tanya with various brooches which she combined into her hand made brooch bouquet.  Our sweet couple let who they are lead them & did not deviate, leading to a gorgeous wedding day celebrating exactly who they are as a couple!

What Storyboard Likes…

The Emotions- The emotions are an unsung hero in this wedding feature.  The love & joy that Tanya & Eli hold  for one another is so evident it practically jumps off the page at you!  We love the multiple pictures where Eli looks as if he could not wait one more second to kiss his sweet bride, while she has that certain gleam in her eye when almost bashfully at times looking back at Eli.  Their emotions are a standout start to me & I love how much I as the viewer get caught up in it!

The Groomsmen- Whether these guys are naturally hams {we’re prone to think so!} or just doing an ace job of playing the part, these boys came to play when it came to picture  time!  We love a good bridal party who isn’t afraid to really make the portrait session something memorable, taking the opportunity to hoist up the groom on their shoulders, hold our groom back wide eyed, even jump a bit for joy.  We give big props to the boys, you brought it!

The Fashion- From start to finish our vintage hipster couple covered all the bases & we couldn’t be bigger fans of the outcome!  We love everything about gorgeous Tanya’s fashion choices from her pill box hat birdcage veil, to the the perfectly fitted lace dress.  We must say though, our favorite touch just might be the bracelet heavy arm party she’s rocking, though the ”Toms” altered owl shoes are pretty hot!  Eli’s simple easy going suspender chino look is an old school classic & we love that the groomsmen paired perfectly, while the bridesmaids were dressed in easy breezy mix matched summer yellows.  Each area of fashion was allowed to be unique, while smartly chosen themes tied it all together.  We looooove it!

Vendor Love

Venue: Hoosier Grove Barn
Photographer: Estanislao Photography

Wanting a wedding that was classic at heart, yet complimented with vintage touches, Jill Davis & Grayson Canada put together an elegant affair that was earmarked with soft purples, bridesmaids in mix matched dresses, rustic retro touches & a grand traditional church wedding.  It was an emotional day for both the bride & groom, with Grayson weeping when he finally saw his stunning bride!

Vendor Love

Caterer:  Dagar’s Catering
Cake Designer:  Classy Cakes
Event Venue:  Memory Lane Event Center
Photographer:  2now1 Photography

I love Saki Bombing.  It’s fun.  It’s loud.  It’s out of control.  So I said to myself “Self, what could be a better way to ask your best gal pals to be your bridesmaids than over 1,2 or a dozen saki bombs?!? I had a whole plan – I ordered these sick “Bridesmaid” shot glasses online, and made a reservation at Homora (My fav Japanese eatery) making plans with each of the girls to meet on Thursday night at 8:30PM sharp.  I extended an invitation to the ladies one by one as opposed to a batch group email that we chicks love far too much.  At about 7:30 I brought the shot glasses to the restaurant and gave detailed instructions to the head waiter about what I wanted to go down when the girls got there.  He for sure thought a screw or two was loose – and was probably right. Anyway, as soon as everyone was seated I had instructed the waiter to bring over a tray with my shot glasses on it, filled ever so heavily handedly with SAKEEE.  He handed them out to all the ladies, and I asked that they be my bridesmaids.  The night went on with a little eating, a lot of drinking and probably far more screaming than our neighboring diners had bargained for.  Whoops! – all restaurant etiquette goes right out the window when sake bombs occur.  The night went a little fuzzy after that…

The Bridesmaids

So what’s the next step you may ask?  Bridesmaid dresses of course!  All the ladies have fabulous style, but are all so different!

I could go the same color scheme route with differing styles – oooor same dress on all the ladies with a funky shoe.  Hmm…. I could go a bit more casual with a skirt and statement accessories – orrrr I could glam it up to the ninth degree!!  I could go on forever but will spare you – you’re welcome.   I love the idea of being classic, yet not so cookie cutter at the same time.  I have seen some beautiful looks in my online travels.  Watcha thinkin?