Real Wedding: Dylan + Brian

Meeting at the Whitman County Jail is not the place where you tell people you met your future spouse, but for Dylan + Brian that was exactly the case. No they weren't the criminals, they just happened to be working there.

At the time, Dylan was in school in New York and Brian was in Colfax, but after their short time together they decided to continue their relationship and not let the distance get in the way. Their romance continued to blossom and culminated with their wedding at the Seattle Yacht Club shortly after Dylan graduated from grad school. 

This wedding was all about family, starting with the decision to get married at the Seattle Yacht Club. Basically growing up at Club and having her grandfather who served as a former Commodore, it was an easy decision to get married on the lawn right on the water overlooking Lake Washington. Next came the blending together of two families, as Dylan joined her new husband along with his two daughters. It was such a beautiful and touching moment with tears all around as her new step daughters welcomed Dylan into their fold.

So many things we loved about this wedding, from the step and repeat background (mug shot lineup), which was the perfect way this couple incorporated their love story and provided for a lot of laughs and some great photos and memories. Speaking of photos, we couldn't stop laughing at one point in their ceremony when the bride and groom took the time to capture the moment themselves by taking selfies.  Another favorite part of the wedding was having Smoosh at their wedding. Smoosh is an ice cream sandwich vendor with a cute cart and such delicious ice cream and cookies. We couldn't help ourselves and of course had to sample everything.

We want to wish Dylan and Brian and their daughters all the happiness in the world and we can't wait to see you later this summer.

Vendors:
Wedding Planner: Elegant Affairs
Venue: Seattle Yacht Club
Photographer: Michael Good Photography
Officiant: Annemarie Juhlian
Florist: Ravenna Bloom
Cake: Mike's Amazing Cakes
Ice Cream Cart: Smoosh
DJ: Emeriald City Productions
Beauty: Seattle Bride Hair
Wedding Dress: RK Bridal
Bridesmaid Dresses: David's Bridal
Men's Attire: Men's Wearhouse

Real Wedding: Courtney + Elliot

When two mathematicians wed, what else would you expect at their wedding? Math equation table numbers of course and serving Pi.

Planning this wedding was a unique experience as our bride Courtney was focused on completing her Ph. D while her fiance Elliot was finishing his education in Israel. So our goal was to make the planning process fun and as stress-free as possible. But no matter everything that was on her plate, Courtney had her vision and that included making all of her centerpieces, which were paper flowers that truly looked like real blossoms. In addition, along with her mom and a few friends they folded 1,000 black and white paper cranes to honor her Japanese heritage. An ancient Japanese legend promises that anyone who folds a thousand origami cranes will be granted a wish by the gods. Some stories believe you are granted eternal good luck, instead of just one wish, such as long life or recovery from illness or injury.  We hung the cranes behind the bride and groom's table at the reception, which was a great accent to the beautiful tent at Port Gamble.

One of the most touching moments of the day was during the couple's ceremony at the beautiful St. Paul's church. Elliot's father read 1 Corinthians, but what made it that more sentimental was that his wife, Elliot's mother passed away shortly before the wedding. Even though she wasn't physically there, her spirit was very much alive that day as guests took turns wearing her blue hat, the very one that she was planning to wear for the wedding.

We want to wish the best of the luck to our couple as Courtney finishes up her Ph. D program at the University of Washington so she can join Elliot at Ohio State University where he currently serves as an associate professor of mathematics.

This wedding was featured on Borrowed & Blue, to see more photos, click here!

Vendors
Wedding Planner: Elegant Affairs
Photographer: Lindsey Clawson Photographer
Venue: Port Gamble
Caterer: Essence of the Thymes
Florist: Diamond Custom Floral
Cake/Pies: Sweets and Savories
Officiant: Andrew Matsumoto
Wedding Dress: I Do Bridal

For more photos, visit Lindsey Clawson's Blog

Real Wedding: Brooke + Hunter

Planning a wedding could be stressful enough but when you live in Colorado, it could make it harder, but for Brooke + Hunter they took it in stride and just had fun.

As for inspiration, Brooke found a beautiful fabric that she wanted to center the wedding around from the color palette to overall theme. It was a beautiful tartan piece to celebrate their Scottish heritage. From the men's ties to the ring bearer's pillow to the fabric wrapped bouquets, we loved all the ways we found to incorporate it into their big day.

Besides the tartan, Brooke only had one other wish, yellow zinnias, her favorite flower. The only problem was due to the hot weather we had the few weeks leading up to their July wedding, the zinnia crop in the state was literally wiped out, leaving florist Jen of Jen's Blossoms to search for the bride's flower and that she did. Just two days till the wedding, Jen drove all the way down to Oregon and found the most gorgeous zinnias, really saving the day and for that I'm truly grateful we had Jen on our dream team. Besides her huge floral  save, Jen created some magic when it came to designing the ceremony backdrop. From hanging white curtains between two trees with hanging zinnias that wowed the crowed especially as the wind caught it just at the right angle. This proved to be the best backdrop of photos.  This was all in addition to the stunning floral arrangements and garland that lined the deck of their venue.

Now, I have to dish on Brooke's attire for the day, not only did she have two dresses, both of which were shipped to my house prior to the wedding, another EA first, but her silk veil was to die for. We loved Brooke's wedding dress, but it was her sexy reception dress that is in my dress hall of fame. She rocked it in every way possible!

For their truly intimate wedding which was officiated by a longtime friend of the bride, guests watched from the beautiful farm benches of Seattle Farm Tables as the couple exchanged their very beautiful vows along with two great readings by the brides's  godfathers. The most heartfelt part of the ceremony was when the couple did a special ceremony with the groom's children cementing them as a new family. It was just that moment I will never forget for the rest of the my life.

What I loved most about working with our Colorado couple was just how open they were to any and all ideas and were pretty much game for anything I came up with, truly a planner's dream. Ryan Flynn Photography along with his second shooter Andy Shepard beautifully captured the whole day complete with a dress change and a bride + groom photo shoot at sunset on the beach.

Vendors
Photographer: Ryan Flynn Photography
Wedding Planner: Elegant Affairs
Venue: Normandy Pary Community Club
Wedding Dresses: Blue Bridal Boutique
Caterer: Skillet
Florist: Jen's Blossoms
DJ: Tony Schwartz Wedding MC & DJ
Rentals: Cort Party Rentals
Bench Rental: Seattle Farm Tables
Cake: Corina Bakery
Beauty: Jenny Verador + Salon Maison
Men's Suits: Men's Wearhouse
Officiant: Stephanie Allen
Accommodations: Cedarbrook Lodge