Handmade Weddings: Picture Perfect

missbrache

Story by missbrache

Published on Dec 21, 2010 in Read

Photo by Amber Scyz Photography

As one of Miami’s 2010 100 Creatives, Diane, a.k.a. MissBrache, knows a thing or two about making things with her own two hands. She spends much her time making rockabilly inspired swimwear and dresses with the vintage-loving lady in mind. In addition to her handcrafted ventures, she also keeps a blog. When it came time to plan her October wedding, Diane knew exactly how she wanted to make it happen — in the good ol’ fashioned, handmade way!

Getting married was one of the best and most exhausting moments of my life, but boy, did we have a party! I mean, how many weddings have you gone to where the guests bring fake Samuri swords, zombies are mentioned in the vows, and the father of the groom has a toy squid on his head? Or with vows that end with, “until death or zombies do us part”? Our wedding was definitely a reflection of our tastes, and it was decidedly DIY.

 

HW_Brache_1.jpgWhen I asked Marc where he’d like to get married, he said,”I always imagined having a beach wedding.” I swooned — the ocean is my favorite place. (When I was a kid I would put a straw in my mouth and hang out underwater in the bathtub, simply because I loved the water so much.) We found a hotel terrace with a beautiful ocean view. The hotel took care of the food, but my loved ones pulled together to make the rest of the magic happen.

HW_Brache_3.jpgBreaking out of tradition, I had a bridesdude and Marc had a groomsgal. I made my dress, six reversible bridesmaids dresses and the bow ties for the groomsmen. (None of the boys had ever tied bow ties before and they couldn’t figure out how to do it, even with the help of the concierge and YouTube!) For my girls, I wanted each to stand out but still have some cohesion. I picked a colorful palette of two prints and two solids, allowing each girl to customize their dress with a bodice from my line. They all have a print on one side and a solid color on the other. My dress was made of eight yards of silk duchess satin and was a true labor of love. I put in about three months of late nights sewing in my unairconditioned Miami office.

 

HW_Brache_candy_2.jpgI made some Mexican wedding cakes and collected candy to make a candy bar. We had red whirly pops, chocolate covered gummy bears, jelly beans and peanut butter cups. We used hydrangeas and dahlias for our floral arrangements, which remind me of the time I spent living in Seattle, which is actually where my mister proposed. I found some Trivial Pursuit cards at a thrift store for and added them to the tables as conversation starters.

HW_Brache_5.jpgThe photo booth was by far the best idea we had for our wedding. Marc, with the help of some friends, made the fake wall from fabric and picture frames I found while thrifting. I found a computer program that uses your computer webcam and photo printer to give it a photo booth feel. The computer takes three quick pictures and automatically prints a film strip, while saving a file to your computer. Awesome!

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Handmade Weddings | Weddings Category

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