Friday weddings can be hectic, especially whenever you have to plan it from several states away and everyone has to fly in. People can be late and details can be lost and, let’s be honest, weddings are fun, but they can also be pretty stressful sometimes. But no matter what was happening, Chrissy and John were so focused on each other.  Throughout the day, they took the time to do little things to make each other happy. I know that sounds like a small thing. But sometimes that means changing plans, and sometimes that means putting everything else on hold while you spend time with each other. Witnessing that, and knowing that they chose me to document something that important to them, was humbling and inspiring.

Just one from John & Chrissy’s wedding downtown at the William Penn Omni… more to come. :)

I got a good hint whenever I went over the timeline with Natasa, about a week before the wedding. I had never been to a traditional Serbian wedding before, so I wanted to make sure I had a good idea what to expect. “Well,” she told me, “it will start with a skup at the house, and it’s party and there will be music and dancing… And then we’ll go to the church, and after there ceremony, there will be music and dancing… And then we go to the reception…”  And my response was, “Let me guess- music and dancing?”

Yes. Yes there was.

The day started in style with champagne and mimosas at Steve’s parents house, for the skup. The skup is a party where traditionally the groom has to barter for the bride’s hand. Many of the family & guests come to celebrate & congratulate the couple before they leave for the church. So Natasa spent most of the morning upstairs with her bridesmaids, preparing and greeting the family, while Steve spent time with the guests and live music downstairs. When it was time to leave, the band and all of the guests crowded into the entrance of the house to sing “The Chapel of Love” to Natasa and paraded her to the limo. (What a great send-off! I wish every wedding had a parade! And singing!) The ceremony took place at Saint Nicholas’ Serbian Orthodox Church in Monroeville- such a beautiful location, which fantastic stained glass.  The choir was amazing and one of the loveliest moments was listening to the bridesmaids singing with the choir as Natasa walked down the aisle…just beautiful.  After the lovely ceremony, it was onto St Nick’s Greek Hall in Oakland, to continue the party… and continue it did. I think we called it a night at eleven, at the party was still going strong. A day that long can easily be tiring and stressful, but Steve and Natasa both bring such a joy & ease that the day flew by. We were so happy to be there to celebrate with them… God grant them many years. :)

I have to say, I love the style that ran throughout the day.  Alisa wore a birdcage veil and a beautiful dress of lace. The girls  dressed in chocolate and classic red, and the guys wore suspenders and brand-new timberlands. They customized Terrible Towels to give away as favors, and used them with abandon as the night went on. Most importantly though, the closeness of their families, the joy of their celebration, and the fun that Alisa & Luke have together. It was a great day.

I loved the literary/school theme that ran throughout the day. Instead of a limo for the bridal party and family, they rented a yellow school bus to ferry them between locations. When the guests entered the reception, they guests found their names listed in a little library card catalog, and each table was named after a favorite author. I heard rumors that all of the books used for the centerpieces came from Scott’s personal library… now there is a man after my own heart!

Emily and Scott had so much fun with their day…  From the groomsmen’s shoes, to all of the dresses (including the wedding dress!) having pockets, to the slightly risque games of hangman played in the basement of the church, to the most adorable last dance I have ever seen… Even though the rains came and it ended up being a grey, wet day that changed our plans, they took the whole day with smiles & laughter.

Sarah and Stephen handcrafted so much of this day to make sure that everything was perfect. Some things were out of their control (like the weather- we had record heat that day! But it was worth it.) Sarah created so many little details- from the vintage lanterns and coke bottle vases, the gorgeous pink & yellow flowers and centerpieces, beautiful banners, and leaf decorations as a nod to the ancient oak tree in their yard.  Their friends and family  played a huge part as well. From the very touching ceremony to the custom homebrews for the reception, they were surrounded by support and love. Although to be honest, Sarah & Stephen could have been standing in the middle of an empty field, and it wouldn’t have been any less beautiful.

This was one of those days when I was standing outside on a gorgeous day, surrounded by happy people; this couple treated me like a friend, and invited me into their home on one of the most important days of their lives. I am blessed and humbled that this is my job.

Thank you for being wonderfully sweet, and many congratulations to you both.

Heather and Dave are just so laid-back- even when things went wrong, they were both so calm and great to be around. And you know, just like every wedding, some things did go wrong. First, the steamer couldn’t be located to get the wrinkles out of Heather’s dress, so the last-minute touches had to be completed after she put it on. The minster was having difficulties with the microphones before the ceremony- luckily my husband is also a sound tech, so he was able to help make everything sound great for the vows. (You’d never believe some of the things a wedding photographer has to be able to do!) Lastly,  it was a very hot day; to start with, the church had little air conditioning, but we survived that pretty well. And then everyone got to the reception hall- and the air conditioning broke. Luckily it ended up being fixed later in the evening. I’m sure Dave & Heather were stressed about it at the time- who wouldn’t be! But they kept the party going and everyone had a fantastic time throughout the entire day. When you’re determined to have fun, not much can stop you.  Dave & his groomsmen even fit in a few minutes to go fishing.

One of my favorite parts about this wedding was getting to watch the interactions of the entire wedding party. We always have a good time, but here were a bunch of people who were absolutely thrilled to see these two married… there were big smiles the entire day. I love that kind of joy, especially shared among friends.