From Seedling to Sachet: Growing Your Own Wedding

mosey

Story by mosey

Published on June 09, 2009 in Read

Photo by Karen Rusten


My husband, Alexander, is a librarian and musician. We met at a show that a mutual friend threw for my birthday and had invited his band, Ponies in the Surf, to play. I remember calling my dad that night and saying, “I met the boy I’m going to marry!” Little did he know then he’d be planting the seedlings that would furnish our entire wedding menu.

I am a crafter of recycled woolens at mosey, but I also have a small line of wedding goodies (cake toppers, boutonnieres, simple dresses), so when it came time to start planning my wedding, I knew I would be obsessing over the tiny details. I have been crafting full time for a few years, and I really wanted to make my wedding a handmade event. Almost everything was handmade, handpicked, handsewn and handcrafted. We rounded up a number of friends who were artists and bakers, farmers and gardeners to help make this our perfect day.

Lucky for me, my mom, a.k.a. thecrystalpansy, is a pretty crafty lady herself. She was there with me the whole way — making and baking and putting the finishing touches on everything. We knew every artisan involved, but our cake decorations were Wendy Kromer‘s “Magical Marzipan Forest Cake Kit & Birds,” our big splurge! Our inspiration was drawn from our location: the rocky eastern coastline, the mossy green woods, and the apples growing in the nearby orchard. We really wanted to make everything as local as possible. Alex works summers on a nearby sustainable farm where most of our produce was picked by friends and all of our lovely flowers grew.


Since our wedding took place close to the fall equinox, traditionally the harvest time, we were very inspired by the the natural color palette of fall. Rosy apple reds and Japanese lantern oranges, bittersweet yellows and ruddy root vegetables. Our flowers were picked the morning of the wedding by the ladies in my family. Ranunculus, larkspur, yarrow, eucalyptus, straw flower, snap dragons, Chinese lanterns, and zinnias. We had a wonderful time getting out there in the misty morning and collecting the finds for the day. It was a great time to relax a bit and literally smell the flowers before the big day really started.

Alex and I got married under a very simple Huppah (Jewish wedding canopy) that was fashioned by our friend, Jared. I stitched up the canopy from duponi silk, and my mom decorated it with bittersweet and crab apples from our yard.



We switched up the cocktail hour for “apple hour,” where all the treats served were apple inspired. Apple cider, apple tartlettes, and candied apples were served. We had reception at the local restaurant and art gallery, Chase’s Daily, where our invitation invited guests to a “feast of locally grown and hand-harvested goodies.” The menu used all local produce and cheeses with handmade breads and seasonal salads. We had three types of tiny savory pies all made in my kitchen. Root vegetable, Blackbird pie, and my favorite, The Boleta Tart with wild mushrooms hand-gathered by the groom’s family. We also put together an heirloom tomato salad with over 30 pounds of farm tomatoes! Guests were invited to share their handmade favorites and to bring pies, tarts, cakes and the like to add to the bounty.

Our place cards were apples picked from a local orchard with calligraphy leaves. We wanted our tables to really bring home the woodland theme and decorated them with moss, Chinese lanterns, acorns and tiny pumpkins. The favors were knitted sachets of rose hips grown in my parents garden.


I decided to make my own veil using simple tulle, and I added a pearl rosette from my great grandma’s wedding dress (something old and blue). My grandmother’s pearls were something borrowed, and my dress was something new. Alexander wore a natural linen suit, and all the groomsmen wore orange ties. The flower girls’ dresses were simple white cotton embellished with satin and grosgrain ribbon. They each wore crowns of vine and vintage millinery of toadstools and crab apples from my shop. My mom made my crown from bittersweet vine and rosemary from my own tiny backyard garden.


Our rings were one of my favorite details. Fashioned from rose gold with a look similar to tree bark, I just loved how they tied everything together.

We were lucky to have our fantastic photographer Karen, who used both digital and vintage analog cameras. She made sure our day translated so lovingly to print!

At the end of it, all it was so wonderful to sit back and see what the hands of everyone we know and love had crafted for us…and to appreciate what our own hands made too!

Further Resources:

For more gorgeous photos of mosey’s wedding, check out the posts on oncewed.
Indie Wedding Guide
Brooklyn Bride
Eco-Chic weddings
Wendy Kromer
Brownmouse Photo

Last year, mosey made a custom wedding dress, and shared the story with The Storque! Pop over to the article here. If you want to share photos of your handmade or vintage wedding, link us up in our flickr pool. For more wedding posts and handpicked items, check out these links:

Handmade Weddings Posts | Weddings Category 

Sponsored Items by Wedding Sellers | Weddings and Celebrations Gift Guide

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