Mine at Last: All in the Details

We had, what I considered to be, a very traditional wedding.  We married in a church, hosted a sit down reception on a Saturday, and partook of many other traditions (bird seed toss, first dance, cake cutting, etc.).  Our families and Mr. Palindrome thought our wedding was quite different (online RSVPs, red bridal shoes, individual cakes, pictures before the ceremony).  Even though I could have broken the mold more, I think that our details were the expressive icing on our cookie cutter base.

I'll take you on a little tour of some of the details that made our day.

Our semi-DIY invitations were ordered from eInvite.com (invitations, response cards, inner envelopes and outer envelopes).  I cut belly bands, sealed them with a wax seal, lined the outer envelopes, and hand wrote calligraphy on the envelopes.

A dear friend of mine from high school was unable to be with us on our wedding day, but she was there in spirit as she gifted me with a lovely, silk dressing robe.

One detail that isn't captured in too many photographs are my red nails.  I love this photograph because not only does it capture my fun manicure, but it also documents my last few hours as an engaged woman.

I can't tell you how many people commented on my red shoes!  I ended up wearing them the entire day (soooo comfortable!) and the number one question asked was: "What is the significance of the red?"  Our guests obviously don't read wedding blogs with any regularity. 

This photograph captures the feathery details and my something blue brooch on my bouquet.

My DIY birdcage veil featured feathers, a flower, and a sparkly rhinestone pin.

The DIY boutonnieres echoed the themes of winter and feathers. 

Our first look was a little rushed as we were running a half hour behind schedule at that point.  However, it was one of my favorite moments of the day.  Since we were separated all day, I was getting anxious to see him.  We met in a quiet lobby on one of the upper floors of the hotel. Mr. Palindrome lifted my veil (a small nod to Jewish tradition) and we just hugged for a long time.  This photograph shows my DIY clutch and the tennis bracelet that Mr. Palindrome gifted me for the Valentine's Day before his first deployment.

At the entrance of the sanctuary, we set out a vintage dresser tray with sweet vintage hankies.  I printed the sign and added it to a frame that an aunt of mine had given me in college.  Not many people took them, but we made sure that all of the grandmothers, mothers, and I had one before we went down the aisle.

My event designer, Pavaune, executed these amazing feather wreaths.  Using feather boas and foam wreath bases, she glued these wonderfully romantic decorations. She hung them on every other pew down both sides of our aisle.

For the detail shots of our rings, our photographer posed our rings on a small platter that I made by pressing paper doilies and rubber stamps into pearlescent clay.  You can make out part of the engraving on my wedding band, which we also had engraved on Mr. Palindrome's band as well:  01022010 (our palindrome wedding date!).

Rather than spend money on floral arrangements, we decided to utilize the greenery that was already decorating the sanctuary for Christmas.  To add some soft light and warm the space a bit, we lined various size candles on the ledges at the front of the church.  Mirrors underneath the candles also helped to reflect the light.

Our DIY Unity Candles are prepped and ready.  My event designer pre-burned the wicks for easy lighting during the ceremony.  The candle on the far left is the lighter candle that the mothers used to light the family candles.

Since it was such a chilly day, some guests hightailed it to the reception.  A special thanks to those who stuck around and partook of our little DIY birdseed packets.  One of the Palindromaids admitted that since her fingers had gone numb, she couldn't untie the ribbon and ended up chucking the entire packet at us.  She plays softball too, so it wasn't a gentle lob!

Once fingers were warm again at the cocktail hour, our guests exercised their digits on our fingerprint guest book.

Or they exercised their digits picking up some of our delicious appetizers!

The table settings were simple, which let the natural decorations, such as orchids in the champagne glasses shine.

I didn't let myself get too attached to chiavari chairs, but my event designer worked some magic and our long tables were lined with silver chiavari chairs and ivory cushions.

In honor of our meeting place and alma mater, Bucknell, we ordered chocolate bison from a favorite chocolate shop in Lewisburg, PA.  As soon as I received the shipment, I promptly ate one of each kind just to make sure they were as good as I remembered.  Then I ate a few more.  We also enjoyed the leftovers on our mini-moon with a glass of wine.

A friend helped me to wrap them simply in clear boxes.  We laid the bison on beds of green paper grass and finished the boxes with our DIY monogram labels.

Our vintage cake topper from an Etsian vendor was the perfect size for our 8" cakes.  Even though I don't know the story behind it, we now have our own story to attach it to and save for future generations.

These close-ups of our jazz band and variety band woodwind pieces really capture the feel of the music and the energy level that we enjoyed.

During the planning, I wasn't the biggest fan of a large, traditional wedding.  I had succumbed to the romance of eloping under a lighthouse on the Oregon coast or a family-only soiree at a beach house with cocktails by the pool.  However, it wasn't just my wedding.  It was Mr. Palindrome's wedding.  Our families love us and wanted to be involved.  I met people I had never met before at our wedding and they showered us with the same love and affection as if they'd known me from birth.  The big, fat wedding took over and I didn't die from a planning aneurysm.  In fact it was pretty fun (Evidence A: My Boogie Shoes).  However, the details really brought the wedding to a level where I felt that my personality and sense of style could define the aesthetic.  One of the best compliments I received was from a friend who told me that she could see my touches in every aspect of the wedding.  Our big wedding felt like an intimate gathering to me, in large part due to some of these details.

What special details are you looking forward to and planning?