WEDDING BLOG

If the fall rain has been getting you down lately, cheer up with this sunshine filled rustic barn wedding photographed by Dan Stewart Photography! With a happy color scheme of pale yellow and light grey, this wedding was full of fun details. Claire even arrived in style in an old vintage Chevy truck and Todd got the perfect groom’s cake featuring his proud alma mater, the University of Michigan.

The Couple: Claire and Todd

The Wedding: 7.6.2013 – Crooked Creek Ranch, Cedar, Michigan

The Goals: For us, our wedding was about bringing our family and friends together in a place we both love, Traverse City, Michigan. We knew we wanted to have an outdoor ceremony by the water, so all we had to do was find the right place with enough rustic charm to make everyone feel relaxed and right at home. We also added a lot of small personal DIY touches that made the day feel even more special.

The Design: We both love the outdoors and enjoy being by the water. Once we stumbled upon Crooked Creek Ranch, we knew that an outdoor ceremony on Lake Leelanau and a reception in the beautifully renovated barn fit us perfectly. Since we were having a summer wedding, we decided to make everything fresh, light and airy by choosing a yellow and grey color scheme with small details of hearts and love birds on the cake and stationery. Our ceremony was set up in an open field facing the lake and acoustic guitar played as an old white Chevy helped make a memorable bridal entrance. Our reception followed in the old red barn, decorated with paper lanterns and pomanders, market lights, and an old door with mail slot for cards. We kept our flowers simple with mostly whites and yellows and some greenery and texture, which created just the right balance of sophisticated elegance with easy rustic charm. It turned out to be even better than we expected.

The Look: For the dress, I wanted something simple, elegant and lacy that would fit in with our outdoor rustic barn wedding. I settled on a fit and flare style that was light enough to move around in and have a good time. I loved the horizontal striped pattern of lace running down my dress and the way the pattern swooped onto the train. The little bits of sequins and beading made the dress sparkle in the sunlight without being too overpowering, and mid-length veil was the perfect finishing touch. My husband and I are about the same height, so it was important that I not wear heels for our wedding. My sparkly flats were absolutely amazing and made me feel like a bride. The bridal party wore strapless pale yellow dresses from David’s Bridal. The mix of styles in coordinating color was perfect along with their own shoes and accessories.

The Moments: We both agree that our favorite part of the wedding was our ceremony. We did not see each other before the ceremony, which made that moment walking down the aisle extra special. We also chose to write our own vows. It was a heartfelt and real expression of our love for one another and we’re so happy that we could share it with our friends and family. Lastly, we chose to use beach sand from where we each grew up in our sand ceremony. Our ceremony was so romantic and personal for us, and at the end it was such a huge relief to finally look at each other as husband and wife.

The Advice: With so many opinions to juggle, it’s extremely challenging to keep your sanity while wedding planning and keep the wedding focused on the two of you. My first piece of advice is to pick the top three things in your wedding that you really care about and make sure they are exactly they way you want them. Take the time and energy to be sure they are perfect. My second piece of advice is to trust your wedding professionals. Most have a very good ideas of what will work and what will not work, and might even have new things in mind to make your day even more special (my florist actually added handmade and vintage pieces of lace to my bouquet that were absolutely breathtaking). My third and most important piece of advice is to set aside time for personal pampering during the wedding planning process. Whether it is getting your nails done, or getting massages, take the time you need for yourself away from it all to relax and decompress. You will feel better and everyone else will too.

The Wedding Team:

Photographer: Dan Stewart Photography
Ceremony and Reception Venue: Crooked Creek Ranch
Officiant: Paul Allen
Invitation Designer: Anna Malie Design
Catering: Corky’s Wine Bar & Bistro
Florist: Flowers by Marla Courtney Wood
Cake: Aunt B’s Cake
Wedding Dress: Lis Simon via The White Dress
Bridal Accessories: Benjamin Adams (shoes)
Bridesmaids’ Apparel & Accessories: David’s Bridal
Groom and Groomsmen’s Apparel & Accessories: Captain’s Quarters
Hair & Makeup: Pavlova Salon
DJ: Dynamic James DJ
Live Music: Music by Gael
Favors: Sleeping Bear Farms
Rings: Jared, Rogers and Hollands
Decorator: Sensational Events

Thank you Claire and Todd for sharing your sunshine-filled rustic wedding with us!

See more yellow and gray weddings in our new Junebug Weddings Photo Gallery.