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Offbeat partner: Amie & Brandon
Date and location of wedding: Our Home in Milford, MA — 10/31/2020
Our offbeat wedding at a glance: Although we had originally booked a “gingerbread house” venue in Western MA for a small destination-style wedding of 40 guests, Covid changed our plans. Two months prior to our date we completely rearranged and planned a microwedding in the small yard of our condo for immediate family only.
We had a total of 12 guests. We were determined to get married on Halloween 2020, which was a Saturday and a full moon; it just felt meant to be.
We rented a small tent and several propane heaters; in New England, Halloween can be 60 or snowing. In our case, there was a blizzard the night before which accounts for the layer of snow in our photos!
We canceled our caterer and hired a personal chef who prepared a seasonal menu we collaborated to create. She prepared it all fresh, right in our kitchen. Everything was amazing, but the butternut squash ravioli was really my favorite. Our chef also made a charcuterie presentation that included a little cheese graveyard.
Rather than a formal wedding cake, we opted for her to make seasonal pies and a maple cream crepe cake, in keeping with the feel of the event. She also set out a butterbeer station for guests to mix their own butterbeer, which was a big hit!
We kept with our original colors — burgundy, plum, and pops of black — and tried to maintain the “fall with spooky overtones” aesthetic we had planned with mums, pumpkins, and a large crescent moon arbor. We rented really nice wooden chairs and paired them with antique tables.
Tell us about the rustic Halloween fall wedding ceremony:
My cousin performed our ceremony with a one day designation from the state; we are very close, and she also married my brother to his husband 2 years earlier. We used a playlist of lute music that we often play when we are camping or glamping as a processional, and later as dinner music.
We kept the ceremony very short; our vows were our own and — although we each took time to think about what we would like to say — we did not necessarily follow a script.
We did incorporate our relationship mantra of Love, Family, Adventure, Magic; after we had finished exchanging our personal vows, my cousin asked each of us if we promised to love each other, be a family to each other, adventure together, and make magic together.
This phrase was also featured on the welcome sign to our ceremony, which was a wooden headstone made by my dad for the occasion. The headstone is now part of our Halloween graveyard display.
We had a beautiful, terrarium-style ring box and the rings we exchanged were made from one naturally shed deer antler.
I spent most of the ceremony thinking about how I could not believe my luck that this person — who rolls with all my spontaneity and “You know what we should do?” Flights of fancy — wanted to marry me. My husband says the most magical moment of our ceremony was getting to kiss me as my husband for the first time.
We did livestream the ceremony so that all of our absent loved ones could still attend and participate, and seeing all their well wishes and comments later was warm and comforting.
Tell us about the reception:
Our reception was really a dinner party, which we remained outside for due to concerns about Covid and the presence of immunocompromised guests. I changed into my second look, which fortunately included outerwear, as it was cold!
After dinner, my brother and his husband emerged from seemingly nowhere carrying a small wooden casket with Beetlejuice spray painted on the lid; it was stuffed full of spooky goodies! Our wedding present from my cousin and her husband. The casket is also now part of our outdoor graveyard display.
What was the most important lesson you learned from your wedding?
Flexibility was so important in making this wedding happen; and now, while I regret the circumstances under which the changes were made, I would not alter the wedding itself. It was so intimate and relaxing, and led us to some huge positives like finding our incredible chef — with whom we have remained in contact — as well as saving money we were able to use for a down payment on a house shortly thereafter! Ultimately, it was about marrying my person rather than being married to any of my ideas about weddings.
Vendors
- Photography: Dear Edith and Lily
- Food: Now & Zen Provisions
- Chairs and arbor rental: Refined Rentals LLC
- Rings: Jewelry by Johan
- Bouquet, boutonnière, and flower crown: WoodlandFlowerCo on Etsy
Gallery
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