Ella + Jacob
(June 11, 2022 in Spokane, WA)
Planning a wedding can be a daunting task, but with a clear vision and the right vendors, it can be a day filled with special memories. In this blog post, we follow one bride's journey to bring her dream wedding to life. From finding inspiration on Pinterest to collecting all the blue ginger vases from TJ Maxx and Homegoods, the bride shares her tips on how to stay focused and true to your vision. Despite some last-minute mishaps, the day was filled with love and unforgettable moments. She also offers her top three tips to future brides: eat, trust your vision, and don't stress about the things you can't control.
By our real bride, Ella:
What was the vision for your wedding?
I knew from the beginning I wanted a blue color scheme for my wedding but I had no idea where to go from there. After many searches on Pinterest, I fell in love with the blue ginger vases with white hydrangeas in them and based my theme on that! I always dreamed of having peonies in my bouquet (my inner Blair Waldorf) so I thought those would pair well with the white hydrangeas and everything from there became blue ginger and white! It took my mom and I about a year of shopping at TJ Maxx and Homegoods to find all the vases for our centerpieces. I think because I had a year and a half to plan the wedding I had a clear vision of what I wanted, with some minor changes made along the way from attending other weddings and getting ideas of what worked and what didn't.
Choosing vendors was really simple since my venue took care of the catering (best food EVER!), and we went with Complete Weddings to do our DJ, photographer, and videographer. The only vendors I had to search out were the florist, cutting cake, and hair and makeup. For our cake, we found @thefrostyblonde on Instagram. She makes the most beautiful custom cakes but it was also the most delicious cake we've ever had! For a hairstylist, we had a family friend who was coming anyways and had done my hair since I was in elementary school. For makeup, I asked my sister-in-law to do mine and she did an incredible job!
How did it go the day-of?
Our wedding day was a day filled with stress (the weather forecast was not looking good), but also so much fun and so many special memories. My husband and I had gotten married in December 2020 in a small (Covid friendly) ceremony at my in-laws’ house, so there was no pressure of like that "Oh my God I'm getting married" feeling, which honestly I felt like that took a lot of the pressure off both me and my husband. But FINALLY getting to celebrate with all our friends and family was something we were so excited for and had been waiting for for a year and a half. The major thing we were nervous about was reading our vows to each other. During our Covid ceremony, we did the traditional "in sickness and in health..." vows, so to make this one more special, we decided to write our own vows to each other. Jake begged me to do a private reading to each other beforehand but I made him wait until the ceremony.
I started the day having breakfast with all the ladies on my side of my family + my bridesmaids at The Davenport Hotel. This was so special to have all the girls together before we started getting ready and it was also a guarantee to make myself eat something because the day-of jitters are a real appetite killer. From there we loaded up (several) cars and headed to the venue to start getting ready. When we got there, all our vendors were setting up and it was so surreal to see everything come together. The skies were clearing up and it was looking like everything would be able to be held outside!
During getting ready I was trying to help my maid of honor zip up her dress and I broke the zipper..... We tried for 30 minutes to sew her into the thing but just ended up safety-pinning her together!
Our ceremony was short and sweet but super meaningful. I loved getting to hear Jacob's vows for the first time then and there, it made the waiting so worth it. Also, our officiant asked each of us to send him a story of the other that best describes what we most love about the other and that was another fun surprise to hear for the first time during the ceremony!
The weather was beautiful all during the ceremony (the perfect breeze came through as I was reading my vows, making my veil flow in the wind as I was reading) and our photos, but right as we all sat down to dinner the rain came through so we all headed inside under the venue's covered patio. This honestly made the whole evening more intimate and the dances and speeches felt not as "center of attention" as they would have been in the middle of a big dance floor with everyone watching from their seats.
One of the major highlights for me was the surprise Mamma Mia's Dancing Queen performance led by my mom, a few of my bridesmaids, and my cousin and "second" mamma! It was hard for them to try to keep a secret from me so I knew something was up, but when they came out in full costume and props I was so surprised/excited/happy/emotional. When I think back on that dance I felt like I was Sophie dancing with Donna and the Dynamos in the movie! It is something I will cherish for the rest of my life!
What is your #1 tip to future brides?
1. EAT - yeah I know everyone says this but seriously it's hard to have an appetite when you're anxious/nervous but make sure you plan to have snacks that you love in your bridal suite!
2. It's your wedding and your vision, don't let anyone else's opinions get in the way.
3. Don't stress about things that are outside of your control (like the weather, talking to myself mainly here). In the end, your day is going to be great no matter what surprises come your way. You can only control so much, and the rest is what makes it special.
DRESS: TONI BY L’AMOUR
PHOTOGRAPHER: HEAVENLEIGH WITH
VIDEOGRAPHER: RUSS WITH COMPLETE WEDDINGS
VENUE & CATERER: BEACON HILL EVENTS
HAIR STYLIST: JEN RESTAD
CAKE: CHRISTINA MORRISON
FLORIST: ROSE & BLOSSOM
