Planning a Backyard Wedding
With the Thrasher wedding anniversary approaching, I thought it would be a good time to reminisce about one of our favorite ever September weddings. Elizabeth and Ted are the most down-to-earth couple you've ever met. There were a few things that were important to them when they put together their vibrant wedding on their family property in Chelsea, Michigan. First would be the photos. Our couple knew that photos are one of the few things that stick around after all the party guests have gone home, so they wanted to make sure to get tons of portraits out of the way before the ceremony. The best way to do that is with a first look!
Afterwards we got back together with the bridal party to knock out portraits. Their property borders on a gorgeous lake and is surrounded by trees.
A quick note about Elizabeth's dress: Elizabeth picked out her perfect wedding dress at the Bride Project in Ann Arbor. The Bride project is a nonprofit organization that accepts new or gently used dresses and resells them. All profits go to cancer research, and everyone who works at the shop is a volunteer. It's a cause that was very close to Elizabeth's heart.
Live Music, a Ring Warming, and Harley
Their ceremony was one to remember. Elizabeth walked down the aisle to acoustic guitar music. Waiting for her was her best friend, Ted. Their old girl, Harley, had escorted Ted down the aisle and promptly took a nap near the groomsmen. Before saying I-do, they passed their rings through the rows of guests in a ring warming ceremony. The idea is that family and friends put all their love, their best wishes and prayers into the rings, and it's not only a great way to make it an interactive experience, but it makes them part of the ceremony. The photos of the ring warming turned out so touching, it's now one of my favorite kinds of ceremonies!
Elizabeth planned and executed a lot of the special touches herself, like preparing the dried flower petals for guests to toss at them as they exit the aisle. I love how colorful they turn out in photos!
A Sweet Party (They had an ice cream truck)
Two more things that I think the Thrashers must have put a lot of thought into were the music and the food. On top of being hilarious, Ted is a big music guy. They chose Ralph and Kim as their DJ team because as a couple they really have such a great vibe that makes you want to get out there on the dance floor! After this wedding, we went on to recommend this DJ company as often as we could.
Later in the night, they introduced dessert - a retro gelato truck! This was such a cool experience for guests and was such a cute aesthetic touch. At a traditional venue, sometimes the logistics of hiring a vendor with a food truck can become complicated. One of the best perks of hosting a wedding on your own property is that you can really hire any vendor you'd like!
We went out at the tail end of golden hour for some more portraits. I love taking couples away from the party for a few moments alone together. I think it can really give you both a chance to catch up on the evening so far and decompress for just a minute. We actually went next door to their neighbors house for the gazebo photos! It's such a unique fairytale look and we get asked where they were taken all time time!
Theirs was the first wedding where we did a table photo dash, as it was just starting to pop up around online at this time. It was also the first time we experimented with some shutter drag on the dance floor. It was a lot of fun! These guys really know how to throw a party.
Congratulations to the Thrashers and happy second wedding anniversary!
