A vintage autumn fairytale wedding (with a bit of parkour!)

Offbeat partner: AnnaMarie, Nanny

Offbeat partner: Corey, Salesman

Date and location of wedding: The Castle at Rockwall, Rockwall, TX — October 14, 2017

Budget: $35,000

Our offbeat wedding at a glance:

The main theme was surrounding the fairytale idea. We got married in a castle, so even though I'm not super into princesses or fairytales, it all just fit together. I also wanted it to feel like a real fall wedding, since fall is my favorite season. It was a little tough since the only season you really notice in Texas is summer! We centered our color palette around autumn tones so that people would just walk in and know that this was a fall-themed wedding.

My favorite part of our theme, though, was the underlying vintage aspect. I am absolutely OBSESSED with vintage stuff, so I knew from the day I got engaged that my wedding had to have a bit of a vintage feel to it. I rented mismatched vintage china, had a Polaroid guest book with ACTUAL vintage Polaroids from my vintage camera collection, and I also rented a vintage car for our getaway.

Tell us about the ceremony:

I had a tough time planning the ceremony, because I really don't know much about weddings. I had only ever been to two weddings before I got married, and one of those I didn't even make it in time for the ceremony! I asked my former youth pastor if she would officiate, and she gladly accepted. She helped us plan 90% of the ceremony.

We wrote our own vows and picked out some readings, but other than that it was all her. I think the most special moment of the ceremony for me was my mom walking me down the aisle, and when she stood in front of all of our friends and family and made a statement on behalf of my dad. My dad died when I was four years old of pancreatic cancer, so it was a very touching moment when she stood up there with me and said that he would have approved of the marriage and the man with whom I had chosen to spend the rest of my life. It was tough not to have him there, since two of the biggest moments in the wedding involve your dad.

Tell us about your reception:

Our reception was SO FUN. We didn't have a first look before the ceremony, so for the first hour we took photos while our guests had a cocktail hour. Most of the people inside during this time took photos in the photobooth or took a photo for the Polaroid guest book.

We also had lots of games outside for the kids to play, as well as custom coloring books I got off of Etsy. My mom made several goodie bags with Play-doh, fidget spinners, a stuffed animal, crayons, and the coloring books in an effort to help the kids feel welcome. I adore kids, so I wanted to incorporate that into the wedding. Our flower girl loved the stuffed animal so much she carried it down the aisle with her.

Another great part of the reception was when we crammed everyone into the room the cake was in so that Corey's sister could sing "Can't Help Falling in Love" by Elvis Presley while playing the ukulele. The best part was the dancing, though. I'm hopelessly awkward and clumsy, but I still got out there and danced!

Corey does parkour, and a lot of his friends at the wedding do, too, so there was quite a bit of flipping and breakdancing on the floor. And when we did the bouquet toss, my bridesman (who's well over six feet tall) caught it! All the girls who wanted it beat him up. It was hilarious.

What was your most important lesson learned?

I've suffered with anxiety and OCD since I was a teenager, so my biggest issue was when I felt like I was losing control of the planning. We had a wedding planner, and she was an absolute godsend. She kept me on track and answered all the questions I had. We had a lot of people who told me who their plus one was, and I had to figure out a way to kindly tell them we didn't give them a plus one in the first place. We also had a few people try to add themselves to the guest list, which was very frustrating.

Another big stress point was when Corey tried to add a bunch of people to the guest list that he had forgotten about AFTER we had already sent out invitations. I'm not gonna lie. I complained A LOT to Corey, and anyone else who would listen. I also got a lot of good advice from my therapist. I think the biggest thing I took away from it all, is that people sometimes just don't know proper wedding etiquette, and you just have to let it go.

Also, some people don't even realize they're offending you. I'm super sensitive, so I took everything personally. Corey was amazing through it all and talked me through it all time and time again. I'm big on talking things through, so obviously this won't work for everyone, but talking really did help me. It made me feel heard, which is a very important thing for me. Ultimately, the wedding was amazing, so none of that stuff mattered in the long run.

Vendors

Dress: The Blushing Bride Boutique • Venue: The Castle at Rockwall • China Rental: Rent My Dust • Videographer: Adams Film Productions • DJ: My DFW DJ • Photographer: Julia Sharapova • Catering: Culinary Art Catering • Hair and makeup: Lashes and Lace • Fitness: Bells and Barbells • Vintage Car Rental: DFW Vintage Cars • Wedding Planner: Tina Dannel • Florist: Wild Rose Events and Floral Design • Bakery: The Cake Guys

Gallery

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