Today’s wedding had a “Dude of Honour”, a “Groomsgirl” and the bride and groom reading their vows off  from their Iphones.  With fun elements like that you know that Thanisha and Ian’s wedding was going to be a blast.  200 guests shared their fun filled day at the  Holland Ranch, San Luis Obispo in California.  Bride Thanisha first learned of Etsy from her Bridesmaid who was raving about what she called a “ridiculously awesome crafty site”.

The Details

Giant initial letters and the table numbers by thebackporchshoppe
Custom stickers for the “Thank-you” goodie bags by MAUpromos
Boy and girl robot wedding toppers for the dessert bar by Littlebrownbyrd
Vintage typewriter we used in lieu of a guestbook. Guest could either type us a message or write us a postcard by amyquerin
Fabric squares for reception tables by fabriccloset, fabricpalooza, mimis, fernridgefabrics
Sign to direct guests by TheWoodenOwl

Photography by Jen Rodriguez Photography 

What was your theme/colors and what inspired it?

Our wedding to convey a romantic but rustic chic feel. In San Luis Obispo, there are a plethora of gorgeous locations and we had a lot of out of town guests coming to the wedding so we wanted to showcase how beautiful it is where we live. From the color palette of soft peaches and corals of the bridesmaids dresses to the khaki color of the groomsmen (and groomsgirl). My bouquet and all the flowers were local and what was in season. We had a lot of wildflowers and herbs infused throughout the wedding.

What is the most memorable moment of your day?

Ohhh I can pinpoint just one so here I go:
1. Having my brother walk me down the isle while the theme song from Amelie was playing
2. Seeing my soon to be husband at the end of the isle waiting for me
3. Reading our vows off our Iphone
4. Calling him my husband for the first time

What creative (DIY) or personal aspects did you include in your wedding?

It was important to me to have unique elements in our wedding that our guests would not see at other weddings.  It started out with our invitations. I wanted our guests to get the invitation and say “wow that’s going to be a fun wedding” My bridesmaid Pam (who is a goddess and will be opening up a shop on Etsy in winter) made the invitations and programs. I love flowers and the floral look so my mother in law made different floral fabric squares for every single table. Instead of having my brother on the grooms side I had him on my side as my “Dude of Honor”. My husbands sister was a groomsgirl. My husband is gluten intolerant so we had a completely gluten free dessert bar. My mom even made her famous peanut butter cookies (gluten free of course).

What was your favorite Etsy find?

The Robot Wedding toppers that matched my tattoo. My husband loved this so much when I showed him.

What’s the best advice you have for planning your wedding now that you’re on the other side?

Remember it is about two people in love. Make your wedding personal and something that really reflects both of your personalities. Your guests will enjoy it more if your try to keep it about you two and not a cookie cutter style wedding.

20 close friends and family members traveled to Mexico for Liz and Ben’s destination wedding.

More from Liz:  Technically we were married at Cutter’s Bayhouse in Seattle, Washington a couple of days before we left for Mexico. We had to sign our marriage certificate in the state, so we did it over dinner with our parents. My father was our officiant in Seattle and in Mexico.  The Wedding Ceremony and Celebration took place at Casa Bonita de Isla, Isla Mujeres, Mexico on April 24th.  The Reception was held at the Camano Island Country Club, Camano Island, WA

The Details

Destination Wedding Ceremony and Celebration: 

Bride’s Custom Ivory Petal Feather Hairpiece with Vintage Center Accent by Bethany Lorelle 

Bride’s Pearl Cascade Drop Earrings by Lizardi Bridal 

Bride’s Brilliant Sparkle Bracelet by Miss Joans Hobby 

Iron-On Bride Rhinestone Transfer by Wedding Party Wear (No longer has active account) 

Bridesmaids’ Coral Hair Flower by WeeGardens 

Bridesmaids’ Hand Carved Rose earrings by Crystal Blue 07 

Paper Pom Napkin Rings by Party Poms   

Local Reception: 

Bride’s Teal Satin Flower Hair Pins by Nomsa  

Celebration Flags by PertiFulTings 

Mustaches on a Stick by MaroDesigns  

“Love is Sweet” Banner by Pink Grapefruit Design 

“Must Be Love” Vinyl Decal by Off the Wall Expression     

Ceremony Photography by Claudio for Cecilia Dumas 

Reception Photography by Jamie Dillion 

What was your theme/colors and what inspired it?  

Wedding colors: Coral and Green, inspired by tropical flowers 

Reception colors: Teal, black and white, inspired by vintage seaside 

What creative (DIY) or personal aspects did you include in your wedding? 

I made our wedding and reception invitations as well as cute hand-drawn maps for both events. The wedding invites were message-in-a-bottle style with sand and shells inside with the rolled invite and burlap and ribbon wraps around the outside. 

We had to pack everything that we wanted to bring for decorating into one suitcase when we went to Mexico. We brought our own glass candle holders, vases, papel picado banners, luminary bags, paper lanterns, string lights, paper parasols and all of our Etsy purchases. My mother actually packed and brought all of the ingredients and elements to make our wedding cake! Because we couldn’t fit in personalized toasting flutes, we brought bride and groom wine charms from Etsy instead. Once we arrived on the island I found a florist and we ordered flowers for the wedding day. The groom’s mother did all of the bouquets, boutonnieres, and centerpieces. 

We used bright colored paper parasols to decorate during the ceremony as well as natural elements from the location like white sea urchin shells on the tables and potted palms for decoration. The location itself was unbelievable and presented a gorgeous backdrop for the ceremony and reception. Our dance floor was under a thatched palm palapa overlooking the ocean. 

As for other DIY aspects, I packed welcome bags for every guest including an agenda for the weekend utilizing the skeleton (el dia de los muertos) bride and groom stamp from Etsy. I also designed our wedding programs and tied them to palm fans so guests could keep cool during the ceremony. In place of a traditional guest book, we used a copy of “Mexican Calendar Girls” signed by the author Angela Villalba wherein guests wrote their sentiments. 

For the reception (in Washington) I created my own: circle cake toppers , paper fortune tellers (or cootie catchers) for the tables, paper flag banners, wine tasting table cards, and photo “booth”. In addition to preparing all of the food, my mother also monogrammed and individually packaged a hundred moon pies for our favors. Custom Jones Soda labels also added to the vintage feeling of the reception and the guests loved them! We used vintage black and white postcards with seaside images for guests to write on in place of a guest book. We also featured a sweet bar and used a vintage typewriter for guests to type anonymous answers to the question “What is Love?.” 

What was your favorite Etsy find?  

I loved everything I found on Etsy! I had a hard time limiting myself on my purchases. However, If I have to pick one item, it would probably be the custom ivory petal flower hairpiece by Bethany Lorelle. Bethany was wonderful to work with and the piece that she created took the place of a traditional veil, so it was very important to me. 

What is the most memorable moment of your day? 

The most memorable part of my wedding day was the amazing location. Casa Bonita is a traditional Mexican Hacienda on the ocean with gardens, palapas and a white sandy beach. Having family and friends travel so far to be a part of our celebration was incredible! It felt wonderfully personal as everyone pitched in to bring the whole event together.  The guests were all integral parts in making the day (and the trip) amazing! 

Ben and I also loved the post-ceremony wedding shoot on the dock during sunset…it was stunning. 

Local Wedding Reception

What’s the best advice you have for planning your wedding now that you’re on the other side? 

Start with an inspiration board; collect a variety of images that represent all that you would love to see in your wedding including your colors. Refer back to that inspiration board frequently to help yourself stay on target with items that work together and work with your theme. With so many choices for materials for weddings, it’s easy to end up with things that don’t really fit with your vision. Also, don’t be afraid to do something different, you can still have a “traditional” wedding in a completely unique and personalized way. The most wonderful thing about Etsy is that you can find an endless number of items that are totally unique! 

Today’s lovely wedding was sent in by bride Sando.  She and new husband Kevin were surrounded by 150 friends and family when they married on May 15th in Wilmington, North Carolina.   Sando was introduced to Etsy when a high school friend opened a shop called ApplesModernArt.  “She would post her beautiful creations on Facebook” explained Sando. “ From there I was introduced to the amazing world of Etsy and I was instantly hooked!”

The Details

Brides Anna Double Ivory Hair Flowers  by PrimandPosies
Custom Calendar Ring Pillow by GiggleRoom
Bridesmaids Infinity Friendship Rings by seababejewelry
Ivory Garters by GartersByKristi
Wedding Program Fan by PEAKaBooDesign
Large Wedding Tree with ink pads by lovliday
Flower Girl Basket by luly612
Flower Girl Headband by ApplesModernArt
Brides Pearl and Swavarski Crystal Bracelet by CrystalMBoutique
Custom Mailbox Decal by empressivedesigns
Cupcake Tower by thecupcaketower
Butterfly Table Numbers by TimelessPaper

Photography by Rick Ricozzi

 What was your theme/colors and what inspired it?

 
Our colors for our wedding were ivory and black with splashes of hydrangea green and blue. I guess what inspired these colors was just the timelessness and elegance that ivory and black have when paired together. Our venue was gorgeous by itself, so I knew I did not want to take away from its character.

What creative or personal aspects did you include in your wedding?

 
We wanted our wedding to be simple, elegant, and oodles of fun! So I think going with those attributes, we wanted to add personal touches that were unique and true to our personal style but staying within tradition. My mom and I joked many times while planning our wedding how our wedding was “traditionally untraditional.” We wanted all the aspects of a traditional, simple wedding but with our own twist and personalized details added! We are both teachers so I think our attention to details rained supreme when it came to adding those touches. There’s just something so special about having handmade things that is so personal and feels so carefully crafted. One of my favorite personal aspects that we added to our day was our Wedding Tree. We are so blessed to be surrounded by such wonderful friends and family, that we really wanted to some way to constantly be reminded of those influential people who make our lives so special. I love the idea of a guest book, but didn’t like the idea of closing that book and not seeing those names anymore once the day was done. So lucky for us I stumbled upon the Wedding Tree idea and of course found exactly what I was looking for on Etsy! Now our Wedding Tree hangs proudly on our wall in our dining room!

What was your favorite Etsy find?

 
All of them! Some of my favorites included: the calendar ring pillow, the infinity rings for my bridesmaids, the programs, the personalized handkerchiefs we got for our parents, and the headband we got for our flower girl.

What’s the best advice you have for planning your wedding now that you’re on the other side?

 
Shop Etsy! Etsy really made planning our wedding so easy and so much fun! We live in MD and got married in NC, so being able to sit on our couch and browse gorgeous, custom items for our wedding was wonderful!

And most importantly seriously relax and have fun with all of it! I had such a blast planning our wedding that I think the best advice I could give to anyone is to enjoy each moment of the planning process, and remember that no detail is too little! If it matters to you, it’s important!

What is the most memorable moment of your day?

 
There were so many memorable moments of our day; it’s hard to choose just one! But I guess if I had to choose I would say when Kevin and I snuck away from the reception for a bit and we walked down to the water and everything just sunk in. We were walking up and down the boardwalk looking out over the Cape Fear River at sunset. There was a cool breeze blowing off the water and I remember Kevin turning to me and saying “Hello Wife.” And I remember just the most amazing feeling of happiness wash over me. It’s an amazing feeling when everything that means the most to you all comes together harmoniously. For us it was the simple things, great food, gorgeous day, amazing friends, loving family and the feeling that this was just the beginning.

Today’s couple have such a great story.  Megan and Pete were married last February at the Art Emporium in Knoxville Tennessee.     During their first date they came across a building that was on fire and used that as inspiration for their wedding  theme.

More from Megan on one of her very special Etsy finds.  ”I found Emily’s artwork (The Art of Emily Balivet) on Etsy and fell in love, then I dreamed a crazy idea involving 3 bricks from the building fire my husband and I met at.  Now understand these bricks are charred and have a lot of sentiment… I wanted me in my wedding gown painted on one, Pete in his tux on the other, and our quote “the fire is still burning on the other”. She agreed to do it, I mailed her the bricks and she began to work on them.    She did an amazing job and she didn’t have a picture of me in my gown, just a photo of it on a model, and just a photo of my husband’s tux on a model and two snapshots of each of us — and THEY WERE AMAZING.  They were gifts for my hubby to be at our table for our reception he cried, I cried and I cherish these like no other.  For weeks Emily worked and emailed me daily and man she is just amazing, I just can’t express how awesome she is!” 

The Details

Wooden Wedding Sign by Family Attic  

Hand painted’ Thank You Parasol by I DO Originals 

“Wedding Cake Topper”  by The Snippets  

Stickers for Candy Buffet Bags by MAU Promos 

Brides Shoe clips by MiaVonMinkGarters 

Grooms Wedding Band by Fabuluster  

3 Custom Painted Bricks by The Art of Emily Balivet    

Sculpted Flames “Wedding Cake Topper” (for decoration) by 3EyeStudio  

Grooms Cufflinks  “I will love you till the end of time” by London Particulars

Photography by Cindy and Mike Crabb of Visions in White

What creative (DIY) or personal aspects did you include in your wedding?    

We both love graphic design and designed our save the dates, and our program. I also designed the centerpieces, it was pressed metal with antique wedding photographs from both sides of our family, and last but not least all the flowers were DIY.  However, every single touch was personal, not one thing got “thrown into it”. We planned every single detail down to the toilet paper for the restrooms (bride and grooms on it)    

What is the most memorable moment of your day?    

I walked down the aisle to You Are My Sunshine, and my husband was crying so very hard   

What was your theme/colors and what inspired it?     

Our theme was fire, and our quote was the fire is still burning, Our first date happen to run across a HUGE building warehouse fire  Our colors were Navy and silver perfect for a cold flurrying February day.

What was your favorite Etsy find?    

Are you serious? I don’t want to answer this question. Fabuluster made the ring I placed on my husband’s finger as I united as one with him. Emily Bailvet painted the most gorgeous bricks ever.  Snippets made the cutest bride and groom elephant for a surprise inside joke. Mia Von Minks made matching flowers for a Maggie Sotero wedding gown so I could have the perfect shoes and I Do Originals hand painted a awesome parasol that said “Thank You” which we used to grace the cover of our Thank You Cards — I loved all my Etsy purchases!      

      

What’s the best advice you have for planning your wedding now that you’re on the other side?     

To do list in small chunks, and space it out — don’t go crazy and enjoy every minute of it, because when it’s over you will miss planning so much!