When a creative writer and an industrial designer get married, the result is a lot of fun DIY pieces and parts. We first started with a fun brainstorming and strategy session with our parents and friend Joan, and together, we came up with an overall “theme” plus a few quirks we knew we wanted to incorporate. We’re outdoors-loving travelers and athletes, and we wanted to celebrate the adventures we’d taken over the six years leading up to our wedding. Somewhere along the line, a little underlying “bee theme” inserted itself into the mix too — which was fun because we keep bees, and the wedding was on an organic farm, who has a bee in their logo.
We had so much fun bringing these ideas to life — a caveat I’d add that that is the most important part. Chris and I are incredibly decisive. Our house was the first we saw, our dog is the first we saw when we searched rescues, and our wedding was no different. It helps to not take anything too seriously, stay organized in it all, and if at any point the amount of stuff you want to do becomes too much, then don’t do it!
The result was a customized day that brought out our personalities without being too over the top.
With the exception of the ones taken before our wedding day, all of these photos are by the talented, creative, and brilliant Rachel Joy Barehl. Check more of her work here.
COASTER NAME CARDS
We utilized Chris’ tech shop membership a lot for our wedding, including using their laser to create coasters for our guest’s name tags.
THE HAPPY HOLLIDAYS
We got some metal roofing tin and used the TechShop to design our sign and cut it out on the water jet. It was awesome. Everybody needs a water jet.
ADVENTURE TABLES
Every table was named after a place Chris and I visited while we were dating. We used the laser-printer to make table signs that looked like little postcards and then had postcards of us in each place. My brother, a graphic designer, made icons for each table to match name tags with table signage. My mother-in-law made the little flower boxes out of her old deck wood.
WEDDING BRAND
After working at a design agency, it was important — stupidly important – for all the signage to match with the same font and palette. Just like we take on a client brand project, I did the same with anything I designed for the wedding. I think the result was a little piece of simple, subtle uniformity most people don’t think about. I took the font and colors from our invitations, save the dates, menus and wedding programs, designed by my dear friend Krystal at lettered love studios (check her work out! It’s incredibly versatile, custom, and she’s absolutely brilliant!)
RING BEAR
Had to. My mother-in-law and aunt made our dog Pete the cutest little tuxedo. We had a family friend pick him up from my house before the ceremony and take him back afterward. And everybody needs to get themselves a best friend who is super down to walk your dog down the aisle. He was such a good boy!
SIGNAGE
These banners led guests from the parking lot to the ceremony. They had a number of major events in our relationship ending with “the adventure continues” when you made it. Our friend Bill (at Visionary Signs) printed them on cloth for us.
We also used the same patterned fabric for our ceremony programs and Celtic hand-fasting ceremony (hint: we had a lot of extra).
(sidenote: get ready to see this fabric on anything I ever make in my life for the next forever because we have a ton of it)
MY DRESS, MY MOM’S DRESS, MY MOM’S MOM’S DRESS
I worked with Pittsburgh local artist and seamstress Jen Rocket to turn my mom and grandmother’s dress into my dream. She ended up using just about all of the lace, and adding a new skirt.
Other pieces and parts
Including:
- my childhood dream cake (baked by our Aunt Karen);
- custom floral arrangements;
- little french fry containers for this kids;
- local band from the town we met (and local beers from Pittsburgh and Athens!)
- My mom recruited a bunch of friends to grow a bunch of bright colored zineas to put in watering cans
- an arbor (built and stained by Chris); and more!
And if you like what you see here and are near Columbus, check out our awesome vendors:
Venue: Jorgensen Farms
Invites, programs, menus, etc: Lettered Love Studios
Flowers: Joan McKinney at Aurora
Makeup: Mary Moore
Dress: Jen Rocket Sewing/Design Studio
Hair: Charles Penzone Grand Salons
Sound & DJ: The Wild Path
Band: The Wild Honeybees
Cake: Karen Holliday
this on his own – like pulling up the carpet and filling thousands of carpet staple holes. I did, however, polyurethane the floors on a Saturday at midnight after a show we attended downtown. (Timing is everything with poly, and we kind of cornered ourselves there.)
