I don’t think I’ll ever tire of ranch weddings. The yellow wild flowers, the horses, the quilts thrown over hay bale seating…what’s not to love? Maybe it’s my nostalgia for my farm-town upbringing, but I think it is just too lovely not to share. Plus, the color palette is such a cheerful one to start your week off with!
Advice for planning couples? Don’t worry so much about perfection. Most people won’t even notice the things you obsess over while planning, so just let it go and focus on the big picture.
I wanted the wedding to feel inviting and casual without losing the importance of the evening. I envisioned a union of vintage/shabby chic elegance with country ease, which I think we actually managed to achieve! And then I added small details that I felt tied my own heritage into the design to make it more unique.
This wedding was quite a DIY affair too. The venue was a family ranch, so we did a ton of prep work the day before, spraying for ants, stringing lights, setting up hay bales, staking in the aisle runner and signs. I had a florist purchase the flowers for the table arrangements but then we arranged them ourselves the day before the wedding. My aunt and her brother catered all the food themselves, but neither of them are professional caterers. I folded 1000 origami cranes (with the fantastic help of my bridesmaids and mothers) and strung them on fishing line, which we hung from the trees. We made all the table signs and seating charts out of scrapbook paper. Our honeymoon was a Mediterranean cruise, so we named each table after one of the stops on our cruise and put fun facts about each city on the table signs. We decorated small mason jars with burlap and buttons and twine to use as votives. We made our own tablecloths from rolls of burlap and table runners straight from bolts of fabric. Some of the men in my family helped us out by making an arch out of cut birch trees for the ceremony.
One last personal touch that I love: My husband is a sheriff, so I wanted to do something special for him and his buddies there. We found a tiered wire basket and filled it with his favorite kind of donut, then topped it with a “cops only” sign. People loved it!
A common theme in these DIY weddings? You need lots of help. If you have generous and talented family and friends who can and want to help you with your wedding day, then a DIY wedding may be for you. But it definitely isn’t for everyone. Congrats to Lauren & Austin! You can see even more lovely images in the gallery.
{Vendors} Bridal gown and bridesmaid dresses: Alfred Angelo / Photographers: Limelife Photography / DJ: Nik with Absolute Event DJs / Catering: family / Rentals: Allie’s Party Rentals / Florist: Liz Barranon & DIY / Makeup: Tara Roller / Bride’s hair: Estella Knoff at Synergy Hair Studio, Escondido, CA / Bridesmaids hair: / Cake: Cute Cakes / Flower hair piece: thehoneycomb on Etsy
One Comment
Loving the bride’s bright bouquet.