Sydney + Eli
(July 1, 2023 in Sagle, ID)
Every bride dreams of a perfect wedding, and for our real bride, Sydney, that dream came to life in the form of a trendy black-and-white wedding with white flowers and black accents. In this blog, Sydney shares her wedding journey, from the initial vision to the magical day itself. With a focus on the most important aspects, like the photographer, food, and DJ, Sydney and her husband crafted a day they would cherish forever. Family played a significant role in bringing their vision to life, and Instagram became their ally in finding the perfect vendors. Join us as Sydney takes us through the behind-the-scenes moments, the excitement, and the joy of her wedding day. Plus, don't miss her invaluable tip for future brides – it might just be the key to a stress-free and blissful wedding day. Get ready to be inspired by Sydney's unforgettable wedding story!
By our real bride, Sydney:
WHAT WAS THE VISION FOR YOUR WEDDING?
The original vision for the big day was the trendy black-and-white wedding. We wanted white florals everywhere, with black accents. Our top priorities were the photographer/videographer to capture the day perfectly, the food, and the DJ. Everything else just came together with the help of our families. My grandmother plans a big end-of-summer party every year, so she was jumping at the opportunity to help us bring this day to life—and she did just that! She already had her preferred vendor list for a lot of the planning, so we focused our energy on finding the perfect priority vendors that suited us best.
We took to Instagram to find the majority of our vendors. We researched their websites, looked at portfolios, and reached out to our local friends for advice. We chose our amazing videographer through my husband’s brother’s wedding. He created their wedding video, teasers, etc. and we got to meet him beforehand in action. He was our biggest vendor but we fell in love with his work. He is a Texas-based videographer but travels the world for his couples. Seriously turns your life into a movie.
HOW DID IT GO THE DAY-OF?
Our wedding morning was very peaceful. I stayed in a nearby Airbnb with my bridesmaids the night before, where I read the letter from my groom on the deck with a beautiful view of Lake Pend Orielle. When we arrived at the venue, I felt like a celebrity. There were what felt like hundreds of people walking around and setting things up. Our coordinator checked in with me and gave me the rundown of the morning. The hair and makeup team started at 8 a.m., so while some of us started in the chair, the rest of us had a lobster-baked quiche for breakfast, with mimosas of course, and the beautiful view of the lake. Once our photographers and videographer arrived around 12 p.m., the day FLEW by! My advice here is to schedule enough getting ready photo time in between your photographer arriving, and you getting into your dress. We essentially had to move straight into getting into my dress after they were done with the boys’ photos and empty venue shots.
I HIGHLY recommend doing a first look with your dad. It was one of my favorite moments of the day, and I could tell how much it helped him relax after the fact. Once my mom was putting my dress on, it felt 100% real and all of the emotions hit me so hard. So be prepared with tissues and a makeup touch-up after that moment. I was so insanely nervous leading up to the first look with my groom. There was so much anticipation and I just wanted to see him! Once we had our first look, I took a DEEP breath of relief. I felt so much more relaxed and the excitement could settle in. I can’t describe the feeling after being able to spend the day with your groom/husband other than just pure bliss.
The wedding went perfectly, and the reception was a massive party! First of all, the food was amazing. There was a martini mashed potato bar, and that was the top-mentioned item from our guests hands down! The DJ had CO2 guns!!! A new core memory my new husband and I were on the stage and shooting our dancing guests with CO2 guns. For a late-night snack, we had brick oven pizza because that is our favorite… and it was amazinggg! We then did a boat send-off (ending up faking it to party some more). And then we headed back to the cabin on the property once the party was over. My sister and mom decorated it for us and we really felt like that day was a movie. BEST DAY EVER!!
WHAT IS YOUR #1 TIP TO FUTURE BRIDES?
Hire the coordinator!!! There are a million moving parts on the day of your wedding. I was able to remain blissful on the day of my wedding because she handled everything. I made a detailed binder with notes for how we wanted everything with contact numbers and I was not bothered once. I also gave detailed notes to the DJ for the selected songs and timing, all the announcements I wanted him to make, etc. and he made them all! It was perfect. Do the work in advance so that you can enjoy the day.
