01/07/2012
The Muscastle
Upper Moutere, Tasman, Nelson, New Zealand
Tell us how you got engaged:
A very sensible conversation – at a wake! Nic and I talked about it and decided to get engaged. A month later, Nic rented a house in golden bay, NZ, and proposed.
What’s the overall ‘feeling’ you’re aiming for with your celebration:
It was so important for our guests to have fun. We have had a lot of recent tragedy in our families, and we wanted laughter to be a focus of the day. We also wanted to have a rustic themed wedding, with bits of DIY, and lots of interactive things to do, like a photobooth, chess, and music. We planned as much as we could, but the wedding took on a life of it’s own – and it was FANTASTIC!
Did you add any fun twists on tradition:
We had an engagement ring mini ceremony (a suggestion of our celebrant), I sang to Nic as a surprise before cutting the cake, I had a bridesmaid AND a bridesman, we had loads of friends get up and sing songs, and our dance with our parents was a twist contest!
What was the inspiration for your Glövite and Glösite design? If you made them yourself, tell us how you did it.
It was mainly to do with our colours…rustic looking and interactive too. Guests found it really handy to have all the info about the venue right in front of them.
For our invites, we used a wallpaper sample off a dulux website!
Now show us your Glövites and Glösite
Any good planning tips and tricks for the couples who are just starting to plan?
Glosite is FUN and much more cost-effective than paper invitations. It’s easier to chase people up for RSVP’s.
The Glö-Couple (tell us a fun fact about each of you):
Lillie, a teacher and travel blogger (she’s traveled around the world solo for 9 months straight) and
Colin, a teacher (has completed two marathons and is an accomplished juggler)
I traveled around the world alone for 9 months and thought I would fall in love abroad, but no dice. When I returned to Boston, my friend brought Colin to my Welcome Home party, and the rest is history!
One Wednesday I came home to find a rose petal scavenger hunt! Under the largest petal was a beautiful letter from my beau, Colin, along with the instructions: “Go to the smallest suspension bridge in the world.”
I Googled the clue… and it turns out the smallest suspension bridge in the world is in the Boston Public Garden! I sprinted the five blocks from our apartment to the garden….
What’s the overall ‘feeling’ you’re aiming for with your celebration:
We’re going for a gorgeous sea of Love! Lots of heartfelt speeches (with humor, too), photos, dancing, fun, appreciation, and connection!
Are you adding any fun twists on tradition:
We’ll have a projector screen and each speech will feature a photo, movie clip, or song.
What was the inspiration for your Glövite and Glösite design?
The most important part was the words and photos of us, so the main background is plain, but the far background is a beautiful photo of nature to mirror our love of the world :)
Any good planning tips and tricks for the couples who are just starting to plan?
I LOOOOVE GloSite! It is making me so happy! I also love shared Google Documents and Google Spreadsheets for coordinating plans. It also REALLY helps to consult with one or two friends who have just gotten married, themselves, to get advice!
What are you looking forward to the most about your celebration?
It is such an amazing opportunity to be able to throw the giant party of your dreams to celebrate family, friends, and LOVE!
What’s the biggest “say what?” moment or funny story that’s happened since you started planning?
After trying on a sample wedding dress, I didn’t understand that in fancy stores you order the dress and it’s custom made for you. “Oh sweet, innocent Lillie!” my friend sighed. “So much to learn about weddings!”
The Glö-Couple (tell us a fun fact about each of you):
Liz, Contracts & Grants Associate and Grad Student (she’s an expert in 80’s pop culture and you’ll find her on the OffBeat Bride Tribe as Alainndeoir) & Steven, Writer by night, Program Manager by day (he’s a trained sword fighter and pirate nerd)
The story of our engagement begins with a kidnapping… my own to be exact. After a relaxing morning with my best friend, I was kidnapped by hooligans in masks. I was driven to the middle of nowhere blindfolded and sat down and tied up with rope! The hooligans yanked off my mask and started looking around paranoid to see if they were followed, all the while me noticing that I’m tied to a chair in the middle of a deserted field. Just then, a masked man in black began to climb across the field on a rope, which the hooligans promptly cut. It was terrifying… until he realized he could just walk upright towards them. Afterwards, he was forced to wrestle a rhyming giant, match a genius in a battle of wits, and finally fight a master swordsmanwoman in order to demand my release. Once the hooligans were at sword point they gladly released me while returning the valuables they had stolen from the man in black. Then the man in black dropped to one knee, pulling off his mask to reveal my beautiful Wesley/Steven. He unveiled the ring and soulfully asked for my hand in “mawwiage.” And then we posted the video on YouTube!!
What’s the overall ‘feeling’ you’re aiming for with your celebration:
First and foremost we want a party focused on seeing our families and connecting with family and friends. In doing so we want to be budget and Eco friendly as well as going for a comfortable laid back lawn party feel. We care more about the congregating and meeting of people than the “things” or expectations of a wedding.
Are you adding any fun twists on tradition:
We are getting marred in a Jewish ceremony but we are making it very egalitarian. I will break a glass as well, we will both sign the ketubah (marriage contract) and I will put a yamulke while he “veils” me which are ways to keep Jewish tradition while creating a male equivalent. As for American wedding tradition, I have 2 lady bridesmaids and a male bridesmaid as well as my maid of honor is my gay best friend. We’re having cupcakes, doing a bouquet toss where everyone is allowed to catch, and using Glosite for our electronic invites!
What was the inspiration for your Glövite and Glösite design? If you made them yourself, tell us how you did it.
The inspiration for our StDs, Glovites, and the Glosite is a reflection of our nerdiness as well as prettiness. Our celebration is a reflection of is. What we love, who we love, and ultimately who we are.
The best man is a graphic designer and did an amazing job on designing the postcard style StD. The Glovites will also be designed by him as well as the Glosite.
Now show us your Glövites and Glösite
Any good planning tips and tricks for the couples who are just starting to plan?
The biggest curveball to take is that no matter how much you think your family will accept some of your nontraditional elements, they will always have an opinion as to how it is “supposed” to be done. Bend to compromise where you don’t care and stick to your guns where it matters to you. They will follow if you explain that this is what you want. Second big lesson is money. Budget and money are such shocking and scary things and while you always think you can figure out how to make that awesome 15000 dollar wedding for 5000, there’s a reason that it cost that much. Figure out what it is you want out of your wedding, set how much you can spend to achieve those wants, and be prepared to change your mind if some things don’t fit your budget (which is the big one here, because you’ll be tempted to go over budget when you realize that the flowered and willow branch wedding canopy you wanted costs 500-1000 dollars, which is just one aspect of your wedding).
What are you looking forward to the most?
I’m looking forward to the hanging out before the wedding with family and friends and walking down the aisle with family and friends to be married amongst them. I also really cannot wait for the cupcakes. Mmmmmmm so good. :-)
What’s the biggest “say what?” moment or funny story that’s happened since you started planning?
Two things: my mother called us (my fiance and me) drunks because we want to use wine bottles for our centerpieces. I thanked her for her input but that we liked our centerpieces and are trying to be green, so we’re keeping it as is. Second, my future brother-in-law couldn’t stand that we wanted to do an engagement shoot themed to our favorite show, Firefly. He asked why we didn’t do a Liz and Steven theme. We told him if he wanted to, he can do the Steven and Liz theme for his engagement photos.
I can’t even explain how privileged I feel to introduce our next Real Glöbie couple, who were among the first gay couples to be married at City Hall in New York City on July 24, 2011.
(photos from New York Wedding Day by Liesl Henrichsen from PhotoPink. Photos from “Celebration of Love” party by Jerry Zalez Photography other photos captured by various media outlets to celebrate first day of Gay Marriage in NYC. hooray!)
Photo by: Lauren Colchamiro/Metro
The Glö-Couple (tell us a fun fact about each of you):
Gisela, Studio Manger (I am a Certified Good Time) &
Alena, Executive Assistant (Makes the World’s Best Mac N Cheese)
In April of 2010 while in Miami (we love Miami) I made a custom scratch off card for Alena with the question: Will you Marry Me? Alena started laughing…I was like I am serious! She said yes…we partied like rock stars!
What’s the overall ‘feeling’ you’re aiming for with your celebration:
We wanted an intimate Celebration of Love – that was catered to us. We were not concerned with having the fanciest venue and dresses – but more concerned with how we could be creative and FUN.
Are you adding any fun twists on tradition:
Alena and I baked 150 cupcakes the night before our party, had a stepNrepeat backdrop made, custom m&ms, pens, a slideshow and even a specialty drink menu. We designed a “Celebration of Love: logo and it was EVERYWHERE!
What was the inspiration for your Glövite and Glösite design? If you made them yourself, tell us how you did it.
Nothing to fancy. We wanted it to be sweet and informative – with a tease for what our guests could expect the night of the party. I used photos from the day of our ceremony in New York, combined that with some cool text and VOILA!
Now show us your Glövites and Glösite
Any good planning tips and tricks for the couples who are just starting to plan?
When you are planning your party remember that you will never be able to please everyone. There will be people that can’t make it on a specific date. The party is about YOU. And you don’t need to go broke to prove to everyone that you are in love.
What’s the biggest “say what?” moment or funny story that’s happened since you started planning?
About an hour before our party Alena had a true bridezilla moment about us not being ready…she went to run up the stairs and tumbled UP the staircase! Luckily she didn’t break her neck.
Care to share some of your vendors?
Photo Pink – for being there the day we got married. Jerry Zalez – took pictures day of our party. 9th and Coles Tavern – the local bar that also provided back up for liquor consumption :)
It was 4th of July, 2010. I had taken Paul to my hometown which is known for its spectacular fireworks show. After the show I was freezing and wanting to go inside but he asked me to just sit with him and watch the lights. Then he got down on one knee and asked me. I replied by screaming, “ARE YOU SERIOUS?!?!?” twice…before I believed he was actually proposing. After I was thoroughly convinced I said, “yes” and sealed it with a smooch =)
What’s the overall ‘feeling’ you’re aiming for with your celebration:
We wanted it to be comfortable, not stuffy and a whole lot of fun. I wanted cute kids in the wedding party and we only had one person standing for each of us. We had a schedule and it was loosely minded, it wasn’t stressful and there was a lot of dancing, great toasts and love. It was very important to me to have kids be a part of the day. I didn’t want to be bossing people around or be angry…and I wasn’t! It was beautiful.
Are you adding any fun twists on tradition:
Our choice for a ring bearer couldn’t say ‘bearer’ so when he came running to me announcing that he was going to be my ‘ring bear’ and his mom told me he had bear paws I knew it had to be. My mom raised me until I was 6, when she met my step-dad. I wanted to honor her commitment and sacrifice for me so we had a mother-daughter dance that she LOVED. I think that was the best part of the reception for both of us. Paul and I are big fans of Brandi Carlile and a lot of her music really speaks to us and is part of our relationship. We incorporated some lyrics into our vows as well as used ‘The Story’ as our first dance, complete with the rock out in the second verse.
What was the inspiration for your Glövite and Glösite design?
Classy, simple and beautiful. That’s all we really strove for in our celebration and the Glovite designs really helped us achieve that.
Now show us your Glövites and Glösite
Any good planning tips and tricks for the couples who are just starting to plan?
I would have left earlier than I did to get ready, I only had 1 hour to do: my hair, make-up AND get my dress on. I really missed out on a lot of lady bonding time with all my friends and family.
What’s the biggest “say what?” moment or funny story that’s happened since you started planning?
Oh the stories I could tell… We received a gift 4 mo. before the wedding, and I sent her a thank you note. She emailed me asking why we weren’t waiting until after the wedding to open them. I gently tried to explain to her that 4 months is a long time to wait for acknowledgement let alone a thank you, and assured her that we wouldn’t use them until the ‘deal was sealed.’ I think she then got the idea of how absurd she was being.
Tell us how you got engaged:
On the evening of Friday, April 1st (yes April fool’s day) Anders told me, Michelle, he was going out with the guys for a drink (I was fooled!). I was at home with their roommate and friend, Jill. Around 9:30pm, just as Jill and I were making plans for our weekend night, my phone rang. Anders asked me to meet him at a favorite local spot of ours–a lake in a regional park near our house. My initial reaction is “No! It’s dark and cold.” Then I realized what was happening.
Jill and I got really nervous and excited and then I got in the car to leave. When I arrive at the lake it is dark, but then I saw Anders with a lantern and he led us down a path to the lake-shore. We came to a canoe with more lanterns attached to the ends of the canoe. We got in and Anders paddled us across the lake. Anders recapped some of the wonderful memories we have had together and then we came into view of a huge circle of hundreds of tea-lights. There was also music playing that was coming from the beach. We pulled the canoe ashore and get out to find a picnic that had been prepared with several of my favorite things: Spanish wine, sushi, ice cream and a bouquet of lilies. After we ate, Anders played on the guitar and sang a song he had written for this very moment. The end of the song said, “Marry me.” Then he got down on his knee, and opened the box of the ring that my grandmother wore for 57 years. I said yes and we eventually went home to celebrate with friends.
What’s the overall ‘feeling’ you’re aiming for with your celebration:
The intention behind our planning is to have a beautiful celebration while using our resources wisely. We specifically went looking for venues whose mission we wanted to support, which ended up being a unique old theater and an art gallery that focuses on local and regional art. Our goal is to have a celebration that truly represents who we are and what we care about. For example, we love living in and being part of city life so all of our events will be taking place in Minneapolis. We also strongly value our friends and family so we have found creative ways to get a very large number of people involved in our wedding day.
Are you adding any fun twists on tradition:
Even though we are having our ceremony in a theater, we will still have a pastor facilitate the ceremony. We want to share our belief that spirituality can happen in many places. Additionally, we decided to have a very large wedding party (10 guys and 12 girls). We decided that we didn’t want to feel like we had to cut people out so we included all of our close friends and rather than have them line up in the traditional fashion, we will have each of them doing something during the ceremony. And lastly, we are very excited about the ice cream cake we will have in place of a wedding cake. It’s something we both love so this was an easy selection.
What was the inspiration for you Glövite and Glösite design? (If you uploaded your own design – how did you make it?)
We wanted something artistic, refreshing and that represented us. We both grew up in Minneapolis and love the urban setting. When Michelle couldn’t find the perfect background, she picked up a pencil and paper and started sketching what she was looking for. We both realized that having an original drawing would be really neat so it stuck!
I had looked through dozens of images on the internet of sketches of cities and particularly Minneapolis. I finally found one that showed the specific landmarks with the perspectives I wanted to capture. I used that for my inspiration for my drawing while giving it my own twist. We knew it had to be somewhat simple because we wanted to add a background for some color.
Any good planning tips and tricks for the couples who are just starting to plan?
I would suggest to other couples: discuss your vision of your wedding and what is important to you before you start looking at options. When you start looking stick to your instinct about whether something feels like a good fit. When it comes to the big things (i.e. venues), it is worth the time and effort to find something that really represents you. Don’t just pick something that’s easy. One thing that has really helped us to stay organized is using electronic invites. We can update guests and they can contact us very easily.
What’s the biggest “say what?” moment or funny story that’s happened since you started planning?
A funny moment we have had together so far was with a good friend during our “Pre-wedding preparation.” This friend of ours that offered to facilitate our sessions is a retired professor in his seventies and we know him through Anders’ graduate school work. On this particular occasion we had already had a few really wonderful conversations about how we viewed our upcoming wedding and life together. On this day, however, a certain conversation struck an emotional chord with me. On any other day this wouldn’t have been a big deal, just a simple discussion and we would have moved on. However, it was that time-of-the-month and though I wasn’t actually that upset about anything, I couldn’t stop crying! I didn’t want our friend to feel too uncomfortable so I eventually felt the need to explain that I was fine–I just had PMS. After what felt like an embarrassingly long amount of time (but in reality was just a few minutes), we moved on and had a normal conversation for the remaining time. Anders and I laugh about this situation now! If its something you are open to, I definitely recommend some sort of pre-wedding conversation that can be facilitated by someone you trust…just don’t forget the tissues!
October 2011 Liz’s parents’ home
Northport, Leelanau County, Michigan USA
Tell us how you got engaged:
Hate to burst your bubble and sound lame, but we don’t have a big story. (Editors note: Pretty much NOTHING about this sounds lame to me. It all sounds rather fabulous!) It was just “time”. One day we found a ring we liked on Etsy. Two weeks later we placed an order for it and a custom wedding band. Four weeks after that we told our families because we thought the rings would show up about soon. Turns out US Customs had another idea (goldsmith is in Ireland) and the rings finally arrived 3 weeks later. We then celebrated by having a half-baked flash-frozen deep dish pizza flown in from our fave Chicago pizza place, Lou Malnati’s, and cracking open a bottle of 1999 Dom Perignon we’d been saving. Oh, and some french macaroons.
What’s the overall ‘feeling’ you’re aiming for with your celebration:
We’re laid back & (mostly) casual people, so we hope our celebration reflects us. We love the outdoors and plan to have the ceremony on a little deck overlooking Lake Michigan followed by a reception in a tent in the front yard. We’re looking at the woods as our inspiration – they’re full of birch trees, cedar, and many, many woodland critters.
About our venue… My parents’ started bringing me up to Leelanau County when I was 5 months old to camp. When I was three, they bought property. When I was 9 they built a house on it. And when I was 25 they retired to it full time. Needless to say this is a place ingrained in my soul, and it was the only place Tom and I wanted to have our wedding at. Otherwise, we would have eloped! True story.
Are you adding any fun twists on tradition:
We’re looking forward to a laid-back day that includes our beloved dog as our ring bearer (sporting a bow tie to match his “dad’s”, of course), both of us wearing monogrammed Chuck Taylor All-Star shoes, and after-dinner merriment in the form of a bonfire on the beach and star gazing once it gets dark enough. We even included a “Can you bring a telescope” question on our RSVP!
We’ll also be having pies instead of cake. My mom makes THE BEST cherry pie in the world (Northern Michigan is considered the “Cherry Capital”), and an apple. There may be cupcakes too since I’m a sucker for those. Also, the guests will be standing on our beach below us during the ceremony. The deck we’ll be married on will only fit the two of us plus the officiant. Our attendants (two total) will be on the 5 steps leading down to the beach, and the guests below them looking up at us.
What was the inspiration for your Glövite and Glösite design?
We received a framed silkscreen from family for Christmas this past year that is the tree with our initials featured on the site. It was silkscreened onto burlap (something else that will be prominent in our decor) with the heart stitched and the names hand lettered. As soon as I saw it I knew I wanted it on our website. Interestingly, this family member wasn’t aware of our plan to feature trees and initials in hearts in our decor… she apparently knows us well! We’re doing paper invitations of a somewhat similar design.
Photoshop and I spent many hours together, scanning, clone stamping, and stitching. Taryn also was a huge help in helping figure out how to anchor the tree in place so it won’t drift off the page depending on the viewer’s browser.
Now show us your Glövites and Glösite
Any good planning tips and tricks for the couples who are just starting to plan?
Keep calm. My mother has a saying, “Be cool. Trust the Universe. It’ll all work out in the end.” I tell myself this frequently. Go with your gut too. It usually knows you very well. And read A Practical Wedding. I’ve been a fan of this site since October 2008 (that’s 2 years prior to actually being engaged.) The amount of resources and information on tricky planning/sticky situations is truly awe-inspiring, as are the folks who write it, and those who read it.
What’s the biggest “say what?” moment or funny story that’s happened since you started planning?
I had had my eye on a particular JCrew gown for months, ever since I’d seen it in a featured wedding on 100LayerCake. When it came time to go dress hunting I was STOKED to be able to finally try it on! Then I went to the website and couldn’t find it. Then a misinformed JCrew customer service rep said it was discontinued.
*Commence surprised sadness/insane search for a used gown at 11pm on a Friday while my fiance was asleep on the couch next to me, watching some inane movie like Anchorman or whatever.*
Two weeks later I was flying to LA to try on a used gown I’d found on OnceWed that appeared to be my size. The night before I flew down I found out from JCrew that no, they weren’t discontinuing it and they were actually fully stocked. And, it was 30% off with free shipping. SAY WHAT?! I went to LA anyway. Tried on the used dress and even though I ended up not taking that particular one (hadn’t been dry cleaned and didn’t want to budge on price), I knew it was THE one. My MOH and I went straight to the local JCrew and ordered a new gown.
We had been dating for a little under four years when Evan proposed. He proposed on Valentine’s Day, which provided a good cover for the elaborate plans. Here is how it went down:
Evan had a whole day planned for “Valentine’s Day” full of various activities. I untied a ribbon on the schedule to reveal a special thing that we enjoyed about our relationship, and then we did that thing. For example, I untied “running together” before we ran a Valentine’s day race. While we were eating dinner (another thing we like doing together), I unwrapped the saying, “We can do anything together.” He gave me a photo-frame with two pictures: on the left was a picture of us taken while I was undergoing chemotherapy for a rare type of ovarian cancer, and on the right was a picture of us running in a race a couple months after the treatment. I started bawling. Then, he told me to turn around to see my family walking down to where we were sitting, and when I turned back around he proposed. More bawling from me. And an emphatic, “YES!” of course.
Photo by Katie Vaughan
What’s the overall ‘feeling’ you’re aiming for with your celebration:
Photo courtesy of Bybee BlueBerry Farm
We’re going for a very relaxed feeling (it’s on a farm!), and we’re trying to make decisions that make the wedding very personal for us (the farm is at the base of the first mountain we hiked together). We’re definitely using the skills and talents of our family and friends to pull it off. From pie-baking, to flower arranging, to singing and playing instruments during the ceremony, to simply moving tables and chairs around, our guests will be very much a part of the wedding.
Are you adding any fun twists on tradition:
We plan to serve and toast with smoothies from our most favorite smoothie place instead of serving alcohol (we figure, it’s at lunch, and we’re not big drinkers anyway). We’re also going to play some fun lawn games that are loved by our (rather competitive) families, bake pies instead of serving a traditional wedding cake, and use my dad’s collection of antique jars as part of the centerpieces.
What was the inspiration for your Glövite and Glösite design?
We designed the invitation before the save-the-date or site. We wanted to incorporate the blueberries that reflect the blueberry farm location. We also incorporated our aforementioned love of running (which also hints at the walk/run we’re planning to have the day before the wedding). Finally, we wanted to learn Photoshop, so we used the invites as our first practice project.
How did you make ‘em?
We made everything in Photoshop. We used the “photocopy” filter to create the effect on the blueberries and shoes. We put a texture over the whole thing to make it look kind of like paper.
Now show us your Glövites and Glösite
These two even added a timeline of their relationship…from the FIRST proposal (in high school) to the one that stuck. Below is a snippet…
Any good planning tips and tricks for the couples who are just starting to plan?
For us, with our 1.5 year engagement, we really appreciated being able to plan in spurts and avoid becoming overwhelmed. We worked on a bunch of stuff for a week or two, then we would take a break for a while (up to 3 months) before working on stuff again. It allowed us to have some perspective about what really mattered to us, and what was just a silly detail that wasn’t worth stressing about.
Photo by Katie Vaughan
So our advice is this: think about what matters to you and have fun planning those parts; take some time off of planning when things get stressful and remember how much the details don’t matter. As far as organization, we have been using Google Docs since we can easily share them between us and our families. It’s nice that everyone can collaborate on a spreadsheet or document at the same time, and it’s much easier than emailing attachments all the time.
You might recognize this couple from the Glö homepage and examples page. I just love their story. These two were best friends for 15 years before they fell in love, decided to get married, and then had a beautiful little girl named Ottoline.
One day, Stuart decided that there was no one else he’d rather spend his life with than Fenella. But it was quite a wooing process, complete with a Shakespearean-esque sonnet, candlelit home-cooked meals, and many late night talks about love, commitment, friendship and marriage. Finally a formal proposal came about in the most unexpected of places.
How do I know so much? Because Fenella is one of my closest friends and Stuart is right up with her in my book. To top it all off Fenella and Stuart were among the very first Glö beta-testers, so for me they’ll always hold a special place in our Glö-history and hearts.
The Glö-Couple:
Fenella, a management consultant &
Stuart, a company director
Celebration Date & Location:
August 2010, Pekes Manor, Chiddingly (near Lewes), East Sussex, UK
Courtesy of Pekes Manor
Tell us how you got engaged:
We had just been to a wedding in Texas. We had only been dating for a few months, but we had been friends for 15 years before that. After the wedding (a great weekend affair on a ranch outside Austin) we went to a shooting gallery (as you do). While holding his Magnum .44, Stuart asked me to make his day!
What’s the overall ‘feeling’ you were aiming for with your celebration:
We wanted it to be relaxed with lots of good food and wine and plenty of opportunties for us to catch up with old friends and for them to catch up with each other. We definitely decided that one day would be too short and so tried to find a place where most people could stay on site and we could have events over several days. Instead of getting a wedding catering company, we found some great cooks who lived in the village and gave them our favourite recipes.
Did you add any fun twists on tradition:
We wrote our own ceremony and each had a best man and a best woman – which made for a lot of speeches! The twists were more with what we took out. The focus was on the people, the food, the wine, and the band. We spent little or no time (or money) on table decorations, favours, my dress or the wedding cake. The table decorations were a a candle with some scattered silver stars a friend had in her garage, the dress was a white 1920’s knee length dress from a ‘vintage’ shop (bought 3 weeks before the wedding), the cake was made by a friend (with plain white icing), and we dispensed with favours altogether.
Also, our daughter Ottoline was turning two the weekend after the wedding, so the morning after we held a “Welcome to the World” party for her – we had a child’s entertainer (which the adults absolutely loved…) and a naming ceremony conducted by her fairy god-mother and father (the closest she’ll get to having god-parents.)
What was the inspiration for your Glövite and Glösite design?
We wanted a simple, clean modern design, that was not too over-wrought or ‘wedding-y’. We were hosting the wedding in the countryside so liked the leaf motif.
Any good planning tips and tricks for the couples who are just starting to plan?
1. Ask friends for help from the planning stage and on the day itself – they are delighted to be involved!
2. Nominate someone to be the key person for all the suppliers on the wedding day itself – you don’t need the stress and you won’t have time.
3. The day can go very fast. Plan some time to just be together with your partner to take it all in.
What’s the biggest “say what?” moment or funny story that happened while you were planning?
Work got very hectic a few weeks before the wedding. A friend suggested I get a wedding organiser to help with the last pieces of planning. The first one I called asked me, ‘What’s the one thing that has to be right… the dress, the car, the cake…’ – totally not the sort of wedding I wanted!
I was working late, but my boyfriend was persistently texting me about when I would get home. When I finally got home, he told me he’d e-mailed me a new edition of his company newsletter. I always ask to read his work. I babbled on about my day as he nervously waited for me to open the e-mail. When I did, it was a special newsletter full of sweet stuff about us and photos. When I looked over at him, he had the ring. It was perfect for us because we met working on our campus newspaper and bonded over our love of news.
What’s the overall ‘feeling’ you were aiming for with your celebration:
We wanted to have a fun, casual and eco-friendly night that celebrated our love with all our friends and family. We aimed for an elegant, Southern feel, but still laid back.
Photo by Sarah Kobos.
Photo by Sarah Kobos
Any fun twists on tradition?
Here is one of Liz’s blog posts about the fun details of their wedding day (professional photos by Sarah Kobos):
Since I didn’t have a wedding planner or coordinator, coming up with the details that make a wedding a whole lot more than just a party took a lot of originality. I brainstormed what I liked and scoured wedding blogs. Some of the ideas I liked I stowed away on a Tumblr blog. Since we were tying the knot in sleepy South Carolina, we went for a Southern-esque theme.
So, we had quilts. My mom loves quilts. And hay. Bails of hay are really pretty cheap.
We hung a timeline of photos on a clothesline with clothespins along the wall in the carriage house. We made sure to includes photos of us with each of our guests so they felt a part of our day.
On tables we had ranunculus that I ordered online. They didn’t turn out exactly as planned but I actually really like the look. We put them in cans painted with metallic paint and tied with raffia. And tealights.
I came across a few weddings on blogs that used cotton. I loved the look and was determined to use a lot of cotton. I succeeded. The cotton was free because it’s South Carolina and my sister-in-law has family that lives on/near a cotton farm. She really helped me pull it off.
So we used cotton on some tables in mason jars.
My amazingly creative mother then made wreaths with cotton and tied wooden letters in the middle.
Meanwhile, my handyman father built country road signs.
He also made the chalk board bubbles for the “Faux-to booth.”
Speaking of the photobooth. Here’s how it turned out.
We also had yard games for people to play. One of Chas’ groomsmen got us Bocce and cornhole.
And my most favorite detail — the chairs.
What was the inspiration for your Glövite and Glösite design?
We went with South Carolina pride because it’s where we fell in love. After living far away for several years, we miss the South. We played up the Palmetto Tree to incorporate this. We made both in photoshop using free fonts and free brushes.
Now show us your Glövites and Glösite
If you uploaded your own design(s) – how did you make them?
We made them in photoshop using free fonts and free brushes.
Any good planning tips and tricks for the couples who are just starting to plan?
Think simply. The more you plan, the more you have to do. We should have made it even more casual and laidback, but that’s just us. Just be aware that anything you want, you have to actually pull off.
It has to be about what you and your fiancee want. We were pulled in many directions from everyone, but in the end, you want to be happy on your wedding day. Sometimes this means saying, I just don’t like that. I wouldn’t go overboard and become bridezilla. Know when to fight for something and when to cave-in.
When the day actually rolls around, just go with it and don’t let the little things get you down. My niece, our flower girl, was very sick the day of. So she missed out, but we were more worried about how she was instead of that we didn’t have a flower girl and she wasn’t in our photos. My sister-in-law, and matron of honor, and brother had to leave early to take her to the hospital, so we didn’t have an actual wedding toast. No big deal! (My niece is fine, by the way! No worries.) My mother forgot the pretty decorative and personalized napkins I’d ordered. We now have about 400 napkins left over, but it wasn’t a problem. And no one let anything bother them on that day. It was perfect.
The best advice I heard before was that the day go by so quickly that you have to take a minute to enjoy it. I’ll admit this is tough to do, but I tried. Before you know it, it’s over and you aren’t ready for it.
I let my mother and my mother-in-law login to our Glosite to update guest information. They added addresses and contact info. for people we didn’t know. When it came time to write thank you notes, we had all the addresses in one central location, so we didn’t have to ask for addresses again. The site has just kind of helped us keep track of everything: gifts, addresses, who came, etc. And we can access anywhere, so it’s been way better than a spreadsheet.
photos by: Jason Aldous
moment or funny story that’s happened since you started planning?
