Belle Amour: Wedding Ideas Less of the traditional. More of the original.

I absolutely adore the wedding I’m about to show you. It has a healthy dose of colour and craft and many of the details came from Etsy which I think is fantastic (they’re all listed at the end of the post). And remember that post I wrote about incorporating a quilt into your wedding? Well this wedding has a quilt as a guestbook! Amazing! Here’s the beautiful Gina to tell us more…

The proposal

It took about 6.5 years but we finally made it to our happily-ever-after. Joe proposed to me while hiking in La Quinta California on New Years Eve, ring in pocket and I never once suspected.

The wedding

From that moment on, I knew my dreams were actually coming true. We wanted an “untraditional” wedding without the formality of placecards and programs. We mostly wanted a small intimate party to celebrate our commitment to one another and to dance the night away!

We were lucky to find the perfect venue for our informal affair and booked the Morning Glory Inn in Southside of Pittsburgh, a quaint B&B with lots of charm and a fairytale courtyard for our guests to enjoy. Our Catholic ceremony, with hints of Filipino tradition, was performed at St. Paul’s Cathedral in Oakland, our home parish.

The dress had quite a story of its own! I found it among a few sample dresses on sale in the boutiques basement and thought that I could revamp the a-line and badly torn a-symmetrical sash into a more subtle trumpet style with an empire waist and asked for a matching bolero to be made. The antique button and wedding bands were found in a local jewelry store, the Marlene Harris Collection, which is filled with beautifully unique estate and vintage jewelry.

One of our favorite moments of the day was a first dance performed by Joe’s niece Melissa and nephew Daniel who played a slower version of “Sweet Disposition” by the Temper Trap. As a wedding gift, I had someone hand embroider the lyrics onto a handkerchief and it was given to Joe to use as his pocket square. The food was also AMAZING and everyone could not stop raving about it! I even had to loosen my dress a little… we couldn’t have asked for better caterers!

The bridesmaids each wore different dresses from Anthropologie, coordinating but not matching, my style motto. The bridesmaid’s bouquets were each individually designed with the help of The Violet Bouquet. Many of the details were provided by lovely vendors on Etsy including the bridal brooch bouquet, an heirloom to cherish and display forever, a hand made quilt for guests to leave their well wishes and sentiments for the newlyweds (with detachable hearts on the back for signing) and a Royal totebag as a toast to the Royal couple who married on the same day.

We wish we could relive the day over and over again but the memories will always be held close to our hearts.

Debs

Photographer Details:
Jenni Grace Photography website
Jenni Grace Photography blog
Contact Jenni
Phone: 412.266.6770

Etsy Finds:
Brooch Bouquet: HairBowsWonderWorld
Royal Bag: White Apple Threads
Groom Handkerchief: SherAngellCreations
Love is in The Air Quilt: Stuff Stitch and Paint
Custom Bridal Hoodie: Michaelangela
New Romance Bobby Pins: Ililziv
Flower Girl Headbands: Miss Evaline
Custom Rosary Beads: Food For The Soul
Invitation envelope seals and thank you cards: BLJ Graves

Local Vendors’ Details:
Photography: Jenni Grace Photography
Flowers: The Violet Bouquet Flower Shop
Wedding Rings: The Marlene Harris Collection
Music: Jason Kendall Productions
Bed & Breakfast/Reception Venue: Morning Glory Inn
Catering: Yes We Cater
Bridal Dress: The White Orchid