In retrospect, I’m not sure that I’d recommend planning a DIY wedding from across the country, BUT I will say that thanks to a HUGE labor of love from family and friends, it was nothing short of perfect… and it was really special to know that everything was touched in some way by people we love.
Details:
venue - The Raritan Inn
centerpieces - we asked friends and family to save flowers they received throughout the year to give to my aunt to dry along with any wine bottles that had been drunk. Each centerpiece was then handcrafted by my aunt, dad and his girlfriend and they were even able to incorporate some flowers my mom had dried years ago
tribute - inside the barn, there was a mantle nailed into the wall. It was the perfect place to honor our loved ones who could only be there in spirit
guest book - we set up the guest book at an old desk. We decided to go with a polaroid book where guests took photos and then pasted them in the book along with a message
table settings - we wanted a laid back vibe that was very community-oriented so we went with long farm tables, plain white plates, champagne cloth napkins (to match our color scheme), mason jars for water cups (which we use at home as well), simple silverware and corks to hold name tags
dessert - we're not huge cake people and know that most times at weddings the cake goes to waste so we had my friend (and incredible baker) Abby make a small cake for our photos and then we had family members bake a huge variety of cookies and small desserts for everyone to pick from buffet-style. There were absolutely zero leftovers!
favors - we chose mugs because they were practical (guests used them for coffee/tea at dessert time) and Tyler and I's favorite dates all involve grabbing a nice cup of coffee
kid's table - I can’t believe we didn’t get a photo of the kid’s table because it was AWESOME! There were crayons to draw on the table (we laid down white butcher paper), mason jars filled with our favorite candy, bubbles, glow sticks and more. I had such a blast putting together goodies for each of the kiddos and they all had so much fun!
signature drinks - we had 3 signature drinks to choose from (aside from beer and wine), "His" which was an old fashioned, "Hers" which was a cosmo and "Duncan's" which was a margarita (we had to incorporate our little man somewhere)!
food - we chose to do buffet-style (we didn't want any waste and that way everyone could get what they wanted and how much they wanted) and we catered Portuguese and Spanish food from Spain Inn II. We couldn't have been happier with the food or the service!
DJ - we decided to hire a DJ as opposed to a band for the versatility. Shoutout to DJ Carl for bringing the party! Total Exposure Entertainment
misc. - we really wanted the vibe to be as if Tyler and I were hosting a party in our back yard. We wanted everyone to feel comfortable and just have a good time and our venue really allowed us to do that. There were horseshoes and corn hole tournaments going, and once it got dark we even had a fire pit going with a s'mores station!
servers - Served with a Twist
Photography Credit to the incredibly talented Elena Vels