A Look Back | Sunset Garden Wedding | Rock Creek Gardens

One of the first questions I ask my couples is that is their vision for their wedding. For Genisha it was simple. She wanted to say her I Do around sunset. With that narrow focus, we were tasked to find that perfect venue for her fairytale wedding to Allen. To accommodate that vision, we also had to change her wedding date from May to September. In our search, I didn't have to look very far from my home in Puyallup than Rock Creek Gardens, all of 10 minutes from my house. Can I say I loved the commute? When I brought Genisha + Allen there, it was love at first sight and it was a no-brainer, and the couple signed on the dotted line.

To ensure a ceremony close to sunset without losing too much light we were blessed with an overcast day. With a color scheme of navy, pink, white, and green, Katrina from Love Blooms really accentuated the venue with gorgeous ceremony centerpieces that we re-purposed for the reception guest tables.

After a beautiful and emotional ceremony, guests made their way over to the reception tent where they wined and dined and danced the night away before a sparkler grand exit.

Vendors
 

Wedding Planner: Elegant Affairs | Venue: Rock Creek Gardens | Photographer: Fred Calma | Videographer: New Focus | Florist: Love Blooms | Officiant: Shirley Lytle | DJ: DJ KUN LUV | Ceremony Musician: Tomeka WIlliams | Caterer: The Ram | Dessert: Love By The Slice | Rentals: American Party Place | Wedding Dress: Romashka Bridal Groom's Attire: Men's Wearhouse | Photobooth: Styron's {Photo Booth}

Want to play a game?

What livens up a party more than a fun and entertaining game that brings everyone together? Wedding games are a perfect way to keep your guests on their feet and laughing the night away.

Here are the top 10 best games to play at a wedding:

1. The Shoe Game—This one will for sure get you and your guests laughing. The object of the game is for the bride and groom to guess which one of them is more likely to relate to certain questions. Take two chairs and sit them back to back in the middle of the dance floor. The bride and groom sit facing away from each other with one shoe from each of them in either hand. When the MC asks a certain question, such as, “who wears the pants in the relationship?”, the bride and groom each answer by raising the corresponding shoe in the air to whoever they believe wears the pants in the relationship. Everyone gets a good laugh and its fun to see your partner’s answers.

2. ISpy- This is a great game to get your guests involved and taking pictures. If guests would like to participate, had out disposable cameras with a checklist of things they need to snag a quick pic of. The list can be as funny or serious as you decide to make it. Examples of pictures your guests need to capture are the wedding cake, first dance, group photo at the table, someone making a funny face, a new friend you met, and a creative selfie.

3. Guess Who, Bride or Groom?- This is a more casual game you can have on the tables at your wedding for guests to partake in. Set out pieces of paper with character traits that the bride and groom can relate to and guess who said or did what first. For example, who made the first move? Who is a better cook? Who spends more money? You can reveal the answers in a fun way later in the night and offer a prize to the winner who got the most correct answers if you choose.

4. Flip Cup- If alcoholic beverages is what keeps your friends entertained this is the party game for you. Separate into two teams, bridesmaids vs. groomsmen or whatever you please and get a long table with party cups filled partially with your drink of choice. One team member from each side of the table start the game by finishing their drink and then placing their party cup on the edge of the table facing up. While using one or two fingers you must flip the cup until it has successfully flipped and is now facing down. As soon as the team member in front of you flips the cup to face down position, the next team member can begin drinking and follow the same procedure. The game finishes when one team has successfully flipped all of their cups before the other team.

5. Wedding Guest Bingo- This game acts as a wedding guest scavenger hunt. Make a bingo sheet for guests to accomplish by going around the wedding reception and finding certain people to sign their name in order to check a category off. For example, one square on the bingo chart could be to find someone who is left-handed, was born in November, or is related to the groom. The first person to complete their bingo chart wins.

6. Wed-Libs- Another fun and lowkey game that can be played by your wedding guests at their tables. Wed-libs is just like mad-libs but wedding edition. Come up with a creative and funny story with fill in the blanks for your guests to write in adjectives, verbs, and nouns to create their own wedding story for you. Get creative with it and everyone will be sure to get a good laugh.

7. Cornhole- If you have a big outdoor space at your wedding, cornhole is a classic game that your guests will be sure to love. It is very easy to get a customized cornhole set with the bride and groom’s initials or last name on it and it will look perfect wherever you put it.

Photo by RC Media

8. Giant Jenga- Jenga is another classic game your guests will love. Big Jenga pieces can also be customized and bought ahead of time to be set outside for guests to play over and over again. This is a great one for adults and kids to play together.

9. Date Jar- This one isn’t so much a game but rather an activity for your guests to be apart of. Set out a jar at the gifts table or bar or some other stand guests will go up to where they can write out date ideas for the newlyweds to complete. It’s always hard to find new things to do but after your wedding, you’ll never run out of ideas again!

10. Photo Booth- An old fashioned photo booth is a great way for your guests to take pictures and have a souvenir from your wedding to take home. Be sure to buy A LOT of film strips, this will definitely get used. Set out some props and make it fun!

A Look Back | East Coast Meets West Coast | Roche Harbor Resort

Wedding Planner: Elegant Affairs  //  Photographer: Caityln Nikula Photography + Second Shooter: Delaney Brown   //  Videographer: Green Attic Films  //  Wedding Venue: Roche Harbor Resort  //  Florist: Bloom San Juan  //  Wedding Dress: Blue Sky Bridal   //  Dessert: Pure Bliss Deserts  //  Beauty: Kat Green Makeup Love   //  DJ: Miked Up Productions   //  Rentals: San Juan Shindigs  //  Transportation: Jolly Trolly  // Bridesmaid Dresses: BHLDN  //  Groom's Tux: Calvin Klein  //  Groomsmen Tuxes: The Black Tux  //  Officiant: Greg Bradley (Bride's Uncle)  //  Ceremony Musicians: Coral Marchant and James Bradley  //  Lighting: Slava Caireac  //  Oysters: kcrookdesigns

For the bride, she grew up in the East Coast, New York to be exact and the groom on the West Coast in Washington State. Their paths finally crossed when the bride trekked out west for college at the University of Puget Sound. It was on the West Coast where their love story started and where they got engaged. Then their story took them to the East Coast last fall for the groom to get his M.B.A. in Boston. But it was their love of the West Coast, specifically Roche Harbor (located on San Juan Island in Washington State) where these two wanted to say their I Dos.

The bride who also is a wedding planner turned her focus to being the bride and start the adventure of her own planning her perfect wedding.

One of the best perks of selecting the Roche Harbor Resort was they went through a major remodel shortly before their wedding and it was a beautiful transformation complete with new floors, added floor space, and our favorite, vineyard chairs.

Our classic bride Jen wanted to keep her wedding simple yet romantic. With the beautiful surrounding of the harbor and the venue itself, the couple opted for a muted color palette perfect for their East Coast Meets West Coast Themed Wedding.

When it came down to the details, the planner turned bride really thought of everything down to the beautiful His & Her Vow Books. For the table décor, the couple opted for long rows of rectangle tables lined with greenery highlighted with a beautiful centerpiece by Bloom San Juan accented with gold candlesticks and glass and mercury votives. For their place cards, the couple wanted to be creative and that was oyster shells (they even had their rehearsal dinner at an oyster farm).

One of the favorite parts of the wedding was when the couple saw each other for the first time at the John S. McMillin Memorial Mausoleum then followed up by reading their vows to one another. We couldn’t have thought of a more intimate moment. Another highlight was when the couple was introduced as husband and wife during the Harbor’s Colors Ceremony.

After dancing the night away, the couple was whisked away the next morning on a seaplane where they honeymooned on Maui before returning home to the East Coast.