Leah, Baron, and their super-creative loved ones made this entirely DIY St. Augustine beach wedding look as effortless as if it had been put together by a team of wedding professionals! After a surprise morning rainstorm, the couple’s hometown beach was clear, crisp, and secluded for their barefoot ceremony that can be described as nothing less than wildly romantic. Then they and their guests returned to the bride’s parents’ home for an intimate backyard reception that featured furniture and vintage accent decor found around their homes, hand-dyed linens, hand-painted signage, and tons of natural textures that made it feel like a casual and cozy oceanside celebration. Evergold Photography had their work cut out to capture all dreamy DIY details and heartfelt moments of this at-home summer wedding, and they totally nailed it!

The Couple:

Leah and Baron

The Wedding:

St. Augustine Beach and Private Residence, Florida

For me, the wedding planning process was (almost) as fun as the wedding! One of my mother and I’s favorite things to do together is make things. We look like crazy people running around the craft store and getting excited about everything haha. I think the most important part of planning for us was keeping it real and authentic. The wedding industry can make you feel like you need to buy everything, and although we loved getting married in our backyard, it is obviously not a wedding venue. It is full of imperfections, and I think it is important to embrace these aspects and not worry about making everything “picture perfect.”

Although Baron and I did not meet until college, we both grew up in St. Augustine, Florida. My childhood home holds so many amazing memories, not to mention a pretty nice view, making our venue decision an easy one! Setting up lighting, music, and accommodating 80 guests in a house over 100 years old had its share of challenges, but I could not have imagined it anywhere else! Several generations of my family have grown up there and I am so grateful we got to add another love story to its history.

I love hand-lettering, and had a lot of fun painting jackets for my mother and I, creating all the signs for the receptions, crafting bookmark favors that doubled as escort cards, and adding a personal touch to our yard games. We found a lot of the personal details around the house, such as an old typewriter, books, bikes, casual seating, wildflowers, and centerpieces for the tables. 

My bridesmaids and I spent the entire morning setting up the backyard. When it started raining a couple hours before the ceremony and we had to bring everything back inside, I was a little panicked (we didn’t exactly have a plan B) haha. My amazing photographer, Mallory, found the perfect spot in our house to style our portraits, and as soon as it cleared my bridesmaids were sweet enough to dry off everything and put it back in order. Although I wasn’t thrilled about the rain at the time, it may have been a blessing in disguise. The shower left us with some beautiful weather and an empty beach!

The altar was found at an antique shop in our town, and we hung a beautiful piece of stained glass created by Zuni Mountain Art Glass to add something extra without taking away from the already beautiful scenery!

Our photographer was absolutely amazing! When it started raining a couple of hours before the ceremony, she quickly styled a corner of the house into the perfect spot for portraits. She also helped us keep things on track and stress-free considering we did not have a wedding planner or traditional DJ. I was blown away when I got our pictures back, I really feel that she understood my style and captured it perfectly!

I went wedding dress shopping in a slightly untraditional way. I found the Inca gown from Grace Loves Lace online and immediately knew it was perfect, but I was determined to save a little money considering I would only wear to wear it once. I found it used on the website OnceWed and took a risk by purchasing it 2 sizes too big, without trying it (or any other dresses) on. Some people thought I was crazy, but it turned out perfect and was a quick and easy alteration. I paired my dress with simple but elegant earrings that belonged to my grandmother, my mother-in-law’s stunning engagement ring, and bare feet, which is always my favorite shoe choice.

I really wanted to incorporate the ocean vibe into our wedding without a nautical or beach theme. To me, this meant playing with raw materials, textures, and incorporating as many natural elements as possible.

We chose shades of white, blue, and green. These are Baron & I’s favorite colors. I hand died gauze material for the table runners to get the texture and colors that I wanted. They all ended up slightly different colors, but I kind of liked it that way and based our color scheme around them.

Almost all of the details in our wedding were personal to us. We got married at my childhood home on my parents’ wedding anniversary. We are both very laid back, so a small backyard wedding just made sense! Our house is named the sea swan, due to my grandmother’s love of swans. We incorporated swan details on our invitations, centerpiece, and cake topper. We ended up finding most of the details and furniture around our homes and used some of our favorite backyard games. We both love to read, which inspired me to include the books and bookmarks in the reception.

Processional – “Blackbird” by The Beatles
Recessional – “Signed, Sealed, Delivered” by Stevie Wonder
First Dance – “Coming Home” by Leon Bridges

Our biggest congratulations and a special thanks to Leah and Baron for sharing their special day with Junebug! Loving the idea of a cozy backyard wedding? You’ll want to take a look at our ultimate guide to planning a backyard wedding!