Summer Virginia Wedding at Loudoun County Farm from Marvelous Things Photography | Washington DC Weddings, Maryand Weddings, Virginia Weddings :: United With Love™

Much to my liking, we’ve been featuring many crafty brides of late who have been DIY-ing personal elements for their ceremony. Well, we have a creative groom here today, too! Howard handcrafted so many elements for his and Stacy’s wedding reception (Did you catch their outdoor wedding ceremony from Marvelous Things Photography?), you’ll just have to keep reading to see! I’m also particularly fond of their strawberry short cake and pie choices in place of a traditional wedding cake. You can’t beat a fresh strawberry dessert on a lovely June day in Virginia!

It’s hard to pick just one favorite detail. Some favorites include the things that Howard designed and made such as: my rings, the flower boxes that held the photographs, the table runners, and the sign post. Howard made a sign post which showed the direction and distances to the ceremony, reception, and other locations important to us. Instead of putting the sign post directly into the ground, we put it inside an old whiskey barrel that my father had converted into a flower pot.

On the gift table we placed a painting of the barn from the farm where I grew up. It was a bridal shower gift from my mother. On an easel nearby was a timeline of our relationship that was made by a friend. We built a cornhole game with the logos of our universities; The University of Washington and Shepherd University.

We made burlap runners for the tables and spray painted our initials on each end. This matched our invitations which had a little H+S tag around it. Howard made flower boxes which we used to string pictures of ourselves (from childhood to present day).

We loved the flowers and decorations by Event Studio. Kelley Truxel did a fantastic job bringing to life my vision for a romantic, rustic look using barnwood boxes, mason jars, and lanterns.

We wanted pies and strawberry shortcake in lieu of traditional wedding cake, and Savoir Fare created both especially for us, and they were amazing!

Stacy’s advice to other DC-area couples:

Try not to get too wrapped up in the details. If you have the time, you can save money by making additional decorations yourself, but remember that projects often take much longer than you initially anticipate. Consider budgeting for a great photographer because the day goes by so fast, your pictures will be what keeps those memories alive.