It’s so nice to look back on Marcy and Brandon’s wedding. They were married last June at Gale Woods Farm in Minnetrista. Hard to imagine right now, but it was a warm summer afternoon and the setting was perfect for an outdoor wedding. Their vows took place on the Overlook, with a tranquil view of Whaletail Lake; a beautiful backdrop for a ceremony.
Marcy and Brandon planned this wedding from their home in Portland, Oregon, and from my perspective, they created a very memorable celebration.
Marcy shares a little about their experience:
Brandon and I met at work. He was my supervisor and it wasn’t until Brandon left the company did we actually get a chance to hangout together. On our very first date, we hit it off and it was like we had known each other for years. Since that first date we have been inseparable! Often people tell us that we are in the newlywed stage, but we both know that the way that we see other and treat one another will never change!!
Brandon proposed to me in Boundary Waters, while we were on a canoe trip (we came all the way from Portland OR!) One morning, we decided to go canoeing. The water was perfectly still and we stopped on a island where from any angle you could see the whole lake. Before I knew it, he was down on one knee, asking for my hand in marriage, to which I excitedly said “Yes.”
My favorite part of the wedding planning was coordinating everything for our outdoor ceremony. It was the easiest part of the planning process because we had the view, the weather was perfect, and there were hardly any decorations needed. We wanted our wedding to be very God-centered, unique, and casual; it turned out to be just that. Both of us come from very different backgrounds, so it was important to both of us to show clearly how much the Lord has inspired our lives together. We are still getting compliments from our wedding that took place over 8 months ago.
Brandon and I liked working with our catering company (
Danny’s Catering, Loretto, MN) because they offered to go above and beyond what we needed (we aren’t the most organized planners). When they knew we were stressed out, they calmed us and took care of what needed to be done.
Thank you for letting me share your story, Marcy! It was a pleasure working with you.
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I have long wanted to share photos of Megan and Matt’s wedding, and now, on their first anniversary, I get to share even more: an interview with Megan! The location, style and decor of this celebration were simply stunning, much of it hand-crafted, and I thought it would be interesting to hear how it all came together. I am very grateful that Megan is willing to share in her own words:
Our Story
My husband Matt and I met through my brother. They work together- both are Civil Engineers and both are named Matt. Yes, it can get really confusing at times. My husband is commonly referred to as Matt Two. I know, poor guy (I tell him he’s my #1)! I first met Matt when we played broomball with his co-workers. I just couldn’t get enough of all 6’6 of him in snow pants! Okay, so we weren’t looking our best, but we got over that. Once we started dating, we both knew pretty quickly that we found “the one”. He proposed on our one year anniversary- at my house (where I was planning on asking him to move in) and I was shocked! I still can’t believe my mom and sister-in-law kept this a secret from me! He said some wonderful things, got down on one knee and popped the question. It was perfect. I wouldn’t have wanted it any other way.
The Planning
Throughout the planning process, we kept one thing in mind. We wanted to create a wedding where the guests would have as much fun (or more) than we would.
Everything was based around a wedding where we would want to be a guest. Choosing the date was pretty easy for us. We knew we wanted a spring/summer wedding so we chose June 7th- the earlier the better. My dad was the one that pointed out that the date was 6/7/8. We had no idea, but we went with it! The guest list was fairly small- 160 people or so- just our closest family and friends.
Previously, I worked at an event rental/planning company so I already knew many of the challenges and what you need for an outdoor wedding. There’s a lot more things to think about when you aren’t at a venue. You need to rent everything: tent, chairs, tables, linens, silverware, dance floor, lighting, generators, trash cans, coolers, etc. We even rented a huge restrooms (trailer style) complete with stalls, sinks, and air conditioning for the guests to use.
The Location
We knew we wanted an outdoor and casual wedding so it was an easy decision to have it in my Mom/Step-Father’s backyard on Lake Minnetonka. It is a huge and gorgeous yard with tons of flowers on a quiet bay. Thankfully, my parents were totally on board because their property was completely over taken the weeks before and after the wedding. There were truck loads of people coming and going, delivering, setting up and taking down.
The Details
My background is in Interior Design, so wedding décor was my heaven! I love the shabby/chic and rustic look. My mom and I had tons of fun shopping at antique stores and flea markets for many items. We found old wash bins to use as drink tubs for. My mom spotted a beautiful garden cart that was perfect (after a coat of paint) for our cupcakes- too cute.
We wanted to have each person’s place card to be on individual champagne bottles, so we were ecstatic when we found an old miner’s table (supposedly used for cleaning dishes) that held the mini-champagne bottles and ice perfectly!
I am very lucky that my dad, Gary, is extremely handy. I often come up with these crazy ideas and my dad figures out how to implement them. Well, he outdid himself with our wedding!
Handmade Benches- I was trying to find a place to rent either benches or bleachers for the ceremony when my dad said that his in-laws have made benches out of trees from their property before. Next thing I know, the entire Morris family has agreed to help my dad MAKE benches for our ceremony. I have a newfound respect for log furniture because it is a TON of work! First you cut down the trees- large ones for the bench part, small for legs. Then they have to be de-barked which involves a draw knife and gallons of elbow grease and sweat. Then they are dried for a long time, then they get sanded and the legs are pounded in the holes that were drilled into the bottoms and then they get 400 (or so) coats of stain/weather proofing. My dad and The Morris’ did the majority of the work, Matt and I only helped a little (and that seemed like a LOT). I can’t imagine how many hours my dad spent in his workshop on these babies. Papa Morris even welded a brand for us so they all got an M stamp with the date. They are gorgeous and many of the guests got to take one home. Is that a great wedding favor, or what?
Smores Table- I am a huge fan of smores, so I had this idea of a stand-up height smores table. Once again, my dad came though and built a custom smores table for me. I found an old door that I wanted for the table top, and that’s about all the direction I gave him. He came up with a brilliant smores table using treadmill parts, a gas tank, and some logs. Did I tell you we call him MacGyver?
The Wedding Day
The day of the wedding was busy to say the least. Since the wedding is at the house, the only laborers are us. The day full of manual labor started at 5:30 a.m. Everything had to be done the morning of the wedding since it rained the night (and entire week) before the wedding. We had to put out linens, set the tables, set up the bar, etc. I finally started getting myself ready not even 2 hours before the ceremony. Luckily, we had lots of family and friends helping or it never would’ve been accomplished.
The ceremony was beautiful under an arch of peonies and roses.
The rain held out and we couldn’t have been happier! My favorite thing we did was take a group photo of everyone who was at the ceremony. We took a serious one and a funny one. I have them blown up and look at them every single day. It’s like playing “Where’s Waldo” with your family and friends. Love it- Makes me laugh every day.
The photo booth was another great decision. I couldn’t believe how many people got into it! We got some great photos from that- plus a little blackmail Great investment!
This really was the best day of our lives. I was so happy to be surrounded by all of my favorite people, my wonderful family and friends, everyone we love. I’m very laid back, so it was great to be able to relax and enjoy everyone around me. It was the perfect day. I still can’t believe that people were swimming at 2 in the morning. I’m so glad that everyone felt as relaxed and had as much fun as we did. I just wish I could do it all over!
More Photos! (Click on thumbnails, or on the edge of photo to advance through the images.)
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Our Favorite Vendors
Greg Thompson Photography- great photos that represent us as a couple perfectly. I adore the detail shots he took of all the things we spent months creating. Greg was wonderful to work with and I would recommend him to anyone! (Aww, shucks…. I didn’t make her say that– Greg)
www.gstphoto.com
(612) 868-7617
Skyway Classic Events-most of our rentals came from here and they were wonderful to work with. Our rentals include: the tent, chandeliers, lit-up bar, tables, beautiful linens and more. By far the best place for rentals in my book!
www.skywayevents.com
(952) 346-0102
The Traveling Photo Booth- we had some much fun with this photo booth! Well worth the money. Our guests got a copy and we got a copy that was put into a book for the guest to sign as our “guest book.” Everyone loved it and got really into it!
www.thetravelingphotobooth.com
(612) 605-9203
Rev. Tomkin Coleman- Rev. Coleman was so wonderful. He listened to what we were looking for and completely customized the entire ceremony.
www.mnweddingminister.com
(612) 986-5528
Bachman’s- extremely helpful and knowledgeable. Our flowers and arch were perfect. Looked great for days after the wedding even after sitting in the hot sun all day.
www.bachmans.com
(612) 861-7311
Custom Christmas Lighting- helped make the yard glow at night with thousands of twinkle lights. Gorgeous!
www.customchristmaslighting.com
(612) 695-5390
Jimmy Johnny’s- provided a huge trailer to use as a bathroom. The trailer we chose was much nicer than many restaurant bathrooms. Very impressive as far as restrooms go!
www.jimmysjohnnys.com
(651) 277-5914
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Kevin and Mina were married in Mexico; too bad for me, I wasn’t there to cover their wedding! However, Mina’s grandmother held a reception at her home near White Bear Lake. From her home, we walked to the Lake for some late morning portraits.
Shaina is Kevin’s daughter; it was a special day for her, too.
These were fun portraits to make. Even though they live out of state, White Bear Lake was part of Mina’s childhood. I had a sense this place was special to her. It was really meaningful to me to document this new family, as they interacted with one another around the lake.
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Cristen and Brandon threw a great party to celebrate their wedding at Plymouth Creek Center. They had planned an outdoor ceremony in the Millennium Garden, but the weather thought otherwise. It didn’t seem to phase Cristen, though. She quickly and calmly changed plans and kept everyone inside for the ceremony. Regardless of weather, it really was a beautiful day.
(Click on thumbnails, or on the right side of photo to advance through the images.)
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Photography tip: Overcast skies make for great photos, and as long as it isn’t actually raining, I encourage couples to take advantage of the situation. Colors really pop, you’re not squinting in the bright sun, and the sky can add a dramatic touch to the image. Thankfully, it wasn’t raining after the ceremony, and we had a chance for a quick portrait session in the garden. Cristen’s bouquet and dress seemed a perfect match for the light.
Vital stats:
Cake: Kake Kreations by Kathy
Flowers: Paeonia Floral
Dress: The Wedding Shoppe
DJ: Jukebox Express
Caterer: Medina Catering
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