The Couple: Jennifer and Dave
The Wedding: 9.10.11 – Kent, Connecticut at private residence
What three adjectives best describe your wedding? Unique, Elegant, Personal
What inspired your personal wedding style, and how did you incorporate your style and into your big day? Personal style was the name of the game for us! From day one we said we wanted this to be a bit different. I love costume parties, so we asked guests to wear hats and gloves for a little flair without causing a big imposition on guests. Surprisingly, it wasn’t inspired by the Royal Wedding, but was decided when we were first engaged. It made for amazing pictures and gave people something to talk about. I designed my dress, and partnered with Mika Inatome to pattern and produce it. I also designed our invitations that were made out of wood.
We are both in our mid-thirties, so weve been to a lot of weddings at this point and we knew what we cared about and what we didnt. We had an outdoor ceremony, wrote our own vows, and each gave a short toast. We limited our bridal party to siblings which reigned in any drama. We did a very limited number of formal photos, and our photographer did a great job of taking candid shots for the rest of the event. We served a lot of food, but not a formal dinner. It kept everyone on the dance floor the whole time. We don’t really like cake, so we served yummy ice cream sandwiches instead. And finally, we turned the sometimes tedious guest book into a fun photobooth guest book. The guests loved taking their pictures home, and we loved getting notes!
Looking back, what are the moments, decisions or memories that you love the most about your wedding? We actually talked a lot about this on our honeymoon! Walking down the aisle with everyone you know present and seeing your future spouse was incredible. Our ceremony was personal and touching, and Dave’s vows didn’t leave a dry eye in the audience.
The view of the hats as I came down the aisle was surreal! Everyone did such a great job executing the hats and gloves, and looked really sophisticated. I think people were surprised at how much they enjoyed wearing them! People that didn’t wear a hat were actually disappointed that they hadn’t, but we did supply extras for people to borrow.
We had a great time with our first dance, doing “Love is Strange”. Think Dirty Dancing, “Oh Sylvia…Yes, Mickey?”. After all of our practice, we nailed it that night! Everyone was oohing and aahing and laughing. And we loved joining in with everyone dancing and singing at the top of their lungs all night–hours of it!–exhausting, but amazing!
The decision to hold the wedding outdoors at a private residence was a big one, but it turned out perfect. It was touch and go at the last minute because of a hurricane that hit the northeast. It just missed us though, and we had a full moon and great weather.
Wedding color palette? We didnt have a strict color palette. We used the succulents, with their greys and purples as a starting point, and then landed on a very natural outdoor palette.
The Wedding Team:
Photographer: Nathan Smith and Tim Boyd for Ira Lippke Studios
Event Planner: Dixie Todd at Party Resources
Venue: Skiff Mountain Farm, a private residence
Invitations: Designed by bride, printed by Cards of Wood
Florist: Felicity Banford
Catering: The Farmers Wife
Wedding Dress: Designed by bride, made by Mika Inatome
Bridal Accessories: Gloves designed by bride, made by La Crasia; Hat by Leah C Couture Millinery; Wedges by Mika Inatome
Bride’s Ring: Golda Jewelry
Bridesmaids Apparel and Accessories: Dress by Thread Social; Fascinator by Leah C Couture Millinery; Gloves by La Crasia
Groom and Groomsmen Hats: JJ Hats
Hair and Make-up: Kim Burns
Live Music and DJ: Fred Maloney at FME Services
Tent and Lighting: Northeast Tent Productions
Thank you Jennifer and Dave for sharing your fashionable and fun Connecticut wedding with us!
Be sure to check out our Wedding Inspiration Gallery for more gorgeous real weddings!
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