Planning a Wedding in Rome? You’ll LOVE This Radiant Wedding at Norwegian Embassy in Rome
An Intimate DIY Wedding Filled With Laughter
Man oh man do I love everything about this wedding! From the relaxed bride doing yoga in the morning (true story!) to the homegrown flowers from the groom’s fathers garden down to the DIY bouquets created by the groom’s mother! One thing is for certain with this wedding, it was a team effort of family and friends coming together, filled with laughter, magical moments and a whole lot of dancing!
“Our wedding took place at Becker Farms in Gasport, NY (closest metropoloitan areas include Buffalo and Rochester, NY). We were married September 7th, 2014.
When we started our wedding planning based on two principals: we didn’t want our wedding day to be a big production, and we wanted to plan with our guests’ needs in mind. Planning a wedding is definitely a whirlwind; something that can’t be described until one actually goes through it. At the same time, I’m here to tell you that the outcome is so worth it.
One huge part of a wedding budget is the attire. It was important to us as a couple to find outfits that were the right price and hit all the style points we were looking for. The groom picked out my dress while we were browsing in our local Anthropologie over the holiday. It was simple, it was pretty, and I could wear it again. Sold.
We didn’t find the groom’s attire until just weeks before the weeding. Ultimately we checked out what ASOS had to offer, and Groom found a full suit for an incredible price.
The day of the wedding we had arrangements to get ready at the Groom’s parents house. I sipped a latte as I stretched on a yoga mat outside. The warm morning sun on my face….mostly being disrupted by our dog who was dying to be outside with me. My bridal party, and our mother’s were concerned about how calm I was. I definitely recommended taking a yoga class the day of or day prior! I was so centered while getting ready. I was too focused on everyone else looking their best to worry about myself. Groom and I were also accidently passing each other while getting ready, as we all got ready in one place. We made light of the situation, and we had to stage our first look, but it was so special non-the-less. One of my favorite parts of the day was the drive to our venue. The Groom and I drove together, and had a sing-along to one of our favorite bands to get out some nerves.
Upon our arrival, we still had décor to set up, and I was trying to lasso everyone together to the correct places, on-lookers must have been baffled seeing a bride running around out in the open! We had some last minute problems with our DIY photo booth, and we were running short on time to take group photos with our photographer. But we found a great spot, in front of a huge wall of crates bearing our venue’s name. Now, this was pre-ceremony. And poor Groom had quite the nerves. One of the best photos that was captured post-toot, during a moment of silence. The expressions on everyone’s faces are so genuine; I still chuckle when I see that photo.
During the ceremony, we had our parents and bridal party walk out to an instrumental version of “Skinny Love” by Bon Iver. Groom and I chose a cover by Ingrid Michaelson “Can’t Help Falling in Love with You”. Once again, Groom was so nervous we rushed to the alter! When he said he vows, it all made sense why he was nervous. He spoke for about 3 minutes, and recited them without any visual aids. Days before and day of the wedding I was convinced that I would feel moved, but I wouldn’t cry. Well, there is photo evidence of a river streaming down my face. A good friend of mine passed up a hello kitty tissue. We had a reading by one of the groomsmen by Taylor Mali “ Falling in Love is Like Owning a Dog”. After sealing the deal with a kiss and a high-five, we danced down the aisle to “You Make My Dreams Come True” by Hall and Oats. Our friends and family commented that it was the most they had ever laughed and cried during a ceremony.
For our entrances to our reception, we had our parents and bridal party come out jamming with blow up guitars to Weezer’s “Best Friend” which was a blast. We went right into cake cutting and had another song by Ingrid Michaelson “You and I”. Our photos make it seem like cake cutting was a science; we had no idea what we were doing! But by the end, we had the entire room clapping in sync as we marched over to our Mr. + Mrs. Table. Before dinner my parents were proud and delighted to play a video that they made for us, photos chronicling our years spent together played to a tune by the Goo Goo Dolls “Come to Me”.
Once our friends and family had their meals, we had our Mother – Son, Father – Daughter dances together. There was a point in the dance that I really was able to take everything in, spending this time with my dad. From there we went into our First Dance to a song called “Pistol” by Dustin Kensrue – the lead singer of Groom’s favorite band Thrice. We transitioned right into a song by Paramore “Still into You”. We created a little Facebook event for this section because our goal was to get as many people out on the dance floor as possible. At each part of the chorus, we signaled for a table to come out. This proved to be a great way to get people to stay dancing with us; I danced for an hour straight without anything to drink! Meanwhile, for those who don’t like to dance we had a bonfire going, which was well enjoyed.
The final photo of the night meant a lot to me to capture, and our photographer was so amazing and corporative of this experimental shot. I actually get very sad when I realize that our wedding day is over. That’s how much I enjoyed it! I think the best advice that I can give to a couple nearing their wedding day is to really immerse yourself in the moment, and take in the sights, sounds and laughs because it is truly a magical thing to be married. ”
SUPER SUPPLIERS:
Photography: Nicole Mason // DJ was local: DJ Jammin’ James // Groom suit: ASOS // Bride’s dress: Anthropologie // Necklace and bracelet: Anna Grace boutique (buffalo, NY) // Centerpieces and all decor was all thrifted and handmade (some supplies bought at Joanne fabrics) // All flowers: Groom’s father’s garden // Cake & Venue: Becker farms // Cake topper: Etsy // Bouquets: Groom’s mother //
A beautiful wedding, we love the colour scheme and the bouquets that you can keep forever.