The wedding and five tips for future brides
Since Zac Wolf had the chance to post photos from the wedding, I thought I would share a little bit about the day and my insight for future brides.
First, here are my top 5 tips for future brides:
- Let the dream go. You may have had a vision of what your wedding would look and be like since you were a little girl (or boy). Keep some of these details but don’t force the wedding to be what you always imagined. Some of the best things can happen when you just let go — and you’ll be a lot less stressed if you do. Besides, the thing that makes the day perfect is the person you are marrying. You get to spend the rest of your life with them!
- Have a receiving line. So many brides told me they didn’t enjoy their wedding because they were too busy making the rounds. By having a receiving line, you are guaranteed to see each of your guests and can spend the rest of the day dancing and enjoying the company of your new spouse.
- Keep it light. Things are going to go wrong. People will act exactly as you expect them to. None of it matters. This is (hopefully) the only time you will ever get married — go out of your way to enjoy it.
- Make a donation in lieu of favors. It supports a good cause and, for the most part, people don’t really need a trinket to remember your wedding by.
- Look for the magic. I promise it will be all around you and it will be what keeps you calm. The dragonflies were the most beautiful, unexpected part of our ceremony.
My amazing vendors and stylists:
- My good friend, and stylist, Jadie.
- Miss Doe Darling, who did a stunning job with the makeup.
- Nichole at The Willowdale Estate
- Richard Ho, our fabulous florist.
- TJ at The Urban Grape
My wedding? Remember how we had a chat the other day about the word “perfect?” Well, if I could use one word to describe my wedding day, that would be it. It was, barring the day Jay asked me to marry him, the best day of my life.
The weather was perfect and the entire day was filled with magic. Dozens of dragonflies fluttered around us during the ceremony. One landed on the pillow that my sister Caroline held and another landed on Jay. (If you don’t know, I had a dragonfly tattooed on my right arm after I saw one during a meditation.)
My bridesmaids were beautiful. My brother was the best Man of Honor anyone had ever seen. My sisters were stunning. My groom looked impossibly handsome. The groomsmen cleaned up well. My officiant, and best friend, killed it. My cousin and close friend gave amazing readings. The planning and preparation went smoothly. I swear I was the calmest bride you’ve ever seen.
But that doesn’t mean that everything went off without a hitch.
Within the first five minutes of being married, Jay’s guitarist, Jake, dumped a glass of wine on my dress. Thankfully, that wine was white and you never would have known by looking at me (I still love you, Jake). During the meal, we ended up getting carrots instead of string beans (bad batch, but I was uninformed of the change) and our beef was over cooked in several cases (though still delicious).
What you see above is the difference between what the cake looked like (L) and what it was supposed to look like (R). When Konditor Meister arrived early to drop off the cake, they did not lock the legs of the cake table. The table collapsed and the four-tier cake Jay and I had paid extra for collapsed into itself. The appliques they managed to slap onto the cake, which they had pulled out of the freezer, looked nothing like what we had requested. Thankfully, the Willowdale team reimbursed us.
Even though I knew that it wasn’t my cake and the meal wasn’t what I had been hoping for, the day was better than I ever could have dreamed. I loved seeing my father so proud and seeing my husband in happy tears while I was being escorted to him. I loved dancing with my husband and watching my dad and stepmom dance to their wedding song. I loved my brothers speech and watching my cousin Andie dance with her fiance Peter. I loved having all of our family and friends in one place, drinking, dancing and having a good time.
How does that not sound like the perfect day?
