Today I’m delighted to share with you the first of two detail-oriented recap posts. These are sort of like recaps of the recap – focused on all the outfits, accessories, DIY projects, decorations, and edible/drinkable pieces of our wedding. Many of you have asked me questions about specific things that we wore, made, or did. Well, these detail posts are the best place to look for all that information, and to see new photos of all the little things that made our wedding day special.

Check it out!

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Filed under: Accessories, Ambiance, Attire, Dresses, Flowers, Hair Styles, Handmade, Here Comes the Bride, Here Comes the Groom, Paper Goods & Favors, Photos, Recap, Rings, Wedding Party on March 25th, 2009 | 1 Comment »

Gather ’round, gals & guys, because I have a feeling you’re gonna love this recap.

Today’s post is chock-full of gorgeous, close-up portrait photography taken by Nicole Tavenner of Piknik Studios. I’ve peppered some of my previous recaps with a few of these photos (particularly getting ready, the bus ride, and pre-ceremony shenanigans), but there are just so many amazing individual portraits that I have to dedicate not one, but TWO posts entirely to them.

This first post will showcase some of our portraits of me and the mister (individually, versus the portraits we took together), and my next post will feature portraits of our guests.

Fabulous portraiture was one of the many benefits of hiring Nicole. She has an impressive online portrait portfolio of families, kids, brides, and seniors, and we were wowed by what she delivered during our 2007 engagement shoot in Glacier National Park. Good portraits are excellent photos for framing, particularly in a series of two or three, and having flattering close-up pictures just makes you feel so glamorous!

I hope these pictures can help convince you to consider a wedding photographer with a talent for portraits, or to add portraiture to your wedding day photo-list. Anyway, enough chatter… let me now allow the pictures to speak for themselves.

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Filed under: Here Comes the Bride, Here Comes the Groom, Photos, Recap on March 12th, 2009 | 1 Comment »

During dessert, we invited our guests to witness our license signing. So, as they sipped on french-pressed coffee and savored the baked goods, we called them to gather round, and then we took one of the final steps toward making our marriage official.

There was no real ceremony to it – we simply set our Flathead County marriage license on the now-empty buffet table, brought over our official witnesses and officiant, and got out a fancy pen. Then, after Cathy filled in the blanks with her lovely, legible printing, we all signed on the dotted line!

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Filed under: Here Comes the Bride, Here Comes the Groom, Photos, Recap on March 10th, 2009 | No Comments »

In one of my recent posts, I mentioned that we were taking photos with our wedding party during cocktail hour. Well, we did, but not before we took some formal portraits together. Nicole took a TON of photos that I absolutely love, and I can’t wait to share them with you. Of course it’s hard to edit them all down, so I’ve broken these portraits up into two categories: pictures of us together and individual “profile” shots.

First things first, I’ll present you with thirty of my favorite bride and groom pictures. Then, tomorrow, I’ll share thirty of our best profile photos. After that, we’ll move on to photos with our families and the wedding party before finally visiting the reception, cutting the cake, dancing, and detailing the little things. There’s lots more to look forward to!

Right after the ceremony, Justin and I sneaked a kiss behind the Half-Moon House (an authentic outhouse, for those just joining us). Then, after canoodling with our guests, we took off with photographer Nicole for some privacy.

Before heading off into the brush by the Polebridge creek, we took this picture next to our ceremony site. We’re in front of a second semi-permanent stage that’s used during Polebridge’s annual Aurorafest. We considered using it to have our band play directly into a large tent, but that would have meant more generators and equipment to rent, when the other stage was already fully loaded.

After escaping the crowds, we took a few pictures in Polebridge’s tiny wedding circle. It’s a beautiful place, tucked away from the town behind some trees and next to the creek. It was far too small and inaccessible for our guests, unfortunately…

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Filed under: Here Comes the Bride, Here Comes the Groom, Photos, Recap on February 25th, 2009 | 3 Comments »

When we arrived in Polebridge, there was still over an hour until the ceremony. I had expected to have maybe half an hour to prepare… a time that I could easily fill with setup and organization. But given all the time we now had, I didn’t know what to do with myself except make sure that Justin didn’t accidentally stumble upon me before the ceremony.

At the end of my last recap, you saw me holding my veil over the bus window to prevent him from looking in as he exited his bus and went into the saloon. I had definitely decided that his “first look” would be have bigger impact if it were as I was walking down the aisle. Unfortunately, we hadn’t exactly planned the logistics of how we’d be sequestered once we arrived at Polebridge.

Playing “hide and seek” like this seemed like fun at the time. But if I had to confess my one major regret of the whole day, it’s that we didn’t spend the hour before the ceremony together. I wish we’d had some quiet time to talk, have a drink, and maybe take a few casual photos. I made him wait to see me because I thought it would make our ceremony feel more significant. In truth, I think it would have been worth it to have had a few minutes with my future husband beforehand.

Instead, I spent my time before the ceremony pacing and preening, and nearly dumping Coca-Cola all over my dress. Here’s how it went down:

As Justin stepped into the saloon with his groomsmen, the bridal party started to unload the second bus. Our arrival was met by family and friends who had come early, and by the better part of Polebridge’s residents. This little girl poked her head out the back door, seemingly to get a better look at the city folk who were storming her country home:

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Filed under: Here Comes the Bride, Recap on February 16th, 2009 | No Comments »

Our wedding day dawned gray and cold. It had rained the night before, and while the sound of the stream outside had convinced me it was still raining, it was actually dry and partly cloudy. Not ideal, and certainly not 75 and sunny like it had been the previous Saturday, but the best weather we’d seen all week.

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Filed under: Here Comes the Bride, Photos, Recap on February 10th, 2009 | No Comments »

For those of you following the saga of my dress, you’ll remember that what was lost was found, and we questioned to V or not to V?

Well, all the drama has passed like clouds on a summer’s day. My dress is done, complete, finis! I went in for my third and final fitting (more an approval than a fitting) on Monday and returned home with a car full of silky goodness…

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Filed under: Dresses, Here Comes the Bride on August 19th, 2008 | 9 Comments »

This Tuesday, I had my second dress fitting at La Belle Elaine’s in downtown Seattle. Due to a hectic work day and stupid scheduling on my part, I was forced to ride my bike to the fitting in 90 degree heat. The trip was only 2.2 miles, which is nothing, but it was still a stupid idea. The salespeople looked at me like I was insane (I don’t think they’ve ever seen a bike commuter bride before) and I had to spend a good 5 minutes toweling off before I felt safe putting on my dress. EUGH.

It was still wicked hot in the fitting room, which at least gave me an idea of what it would be like wearing my dress in some serious heat. The outcome? Very sticky, sweaty inner thighs. YUCK. Good thing I (probably) won’t have to worry about heat like that on my wedding day!

OK, enough jibba jabba. Let’s get on to the pics, which means NO PEEKING PAST THIS POINT, JUSTIN!

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Filed under: Dresses, Here Comes the Bride on August 8th, 2008 | 8 Comments »

After deliberating about the results of my May makeup trial in Montana, I decided that I would just DIY my face on the day-of. Honestly, I feel relieved. I’m confident at doing my own makeup and the money I saved on the day-of application (including hourly fee and transportation for the makeup artist to the hotel) will more than cover the cost of new makeup colors that I can use for months to come.

I want to share what products and colors I’m using. That way, any of you considering doing your own makeup can see that it doesn’t all have to be matchy-matchy high-end products… you can spend in some areas and save in others.

But first, let me explain the look I’m going for. I want a very fresh, “blushing bride” look… I guess this very typical of the All-American blond bride, and I think it will look good on me because that’s what I am! Because our wedding is outdoors in the countryside, I don’t want anything too heavy and dramatic, but I do want to call out my eyes because they’ll really stand out in photos.

Here’s sort of what I’m going for:

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Filed under: Here Comes the Bride on July 31st, 2008 | No Comments »

I hadn’t even really been looking for wedding jewelry… but sometimes, when you’re NOT looking is when you’ll stumble on something wonderful.

In this case, I was shopping for dahlias to make my hanging jar mock-ups, so I wandered into Willow and Bloom, a floral boutique near my office. Besides amazing flower arrangements, Willow and Bloom sells a variety of delightful gifts, party favors, and jewelry.

What first caught my eye was this beautiful necklace by Seattle jewelry designer Christa Hope:

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Filed under: Accessories, Attire, Here Comes the Bride on July 23rd, 2008 | 4 Comments »