Handmade Weddings: Seaside Picnic

wildsouls

Story by wildsouls

Published on Jan 21, 2012 in Read

Photo by Anne Yarbrough

On paper, Laura Brooker Manning and her husband Gary’s relationship reads like a joke: What do you get when you take a mega-responsible sports enthusiast, pair him with a whirling dervish of creativity and chaos, and stick them in a 500-square-foot house with three large dogs? Laura splits her time between managing a local coffee shop, shooting random photography gigs for her website, Wild Souls Photography, and selling vintage at her Etsy shop, wildsouls. Her grandmother (510baileystreet ) and mother (cherryvanvintage) also sell on Etsy, so at least Gary knows she came by it honestly.

It was a fateful day on the Ichetucknee River. A a cute boy charmed me by flipping off his sandals so that I could wear them as we trekked over rocky paths. We were 13 when we first met, but even then we had a connection that bonded us for life. Both of our fathers had passed away the year before, five months apart to the day. Since then, our individual paths twisted and turned, occasionally crossing over one another for nearly a decade.

I like to say that I’m the kite, and Gary’s the string: while our core is basically the same, we are different in ways that supply each other with a much needed balance. Planning a wedding that reflected our similarities, as well as our differences, was a little challenging at first. I told myself  I was not going to get stressed and that planning the wedding was going to be fun, and it was. Thanks to wonderful friends, the talented Etsy community and our ability to find humor in any situation, were able to capture a wedding that was distinctly us.

Tricia Shepherd

I always wanted to get married on Georgia’s Jekyll Island, with gnarled oaks and gentle breaking waves. When our friend, Rick, offered his home, we were thrilled. His home is embedded with childhood memories and is a very special place to us as a couple. We loved the idea of a seaside ceremony, but we didn’t want a beach theme. When the idea of a picnic came to mind, everything fell into place.

The master table served as a major source of inspiration. I don’t know how many pounds of shrimp I’ve eaten at that very table, so we outfitted it (and all the other tables) with vintage tablecloths purchased from a myriad of Etsy sellers. When the winds picked up, my friends lovingly taped the cloths to the tables and weighed them down with floral arrangements made by my grandmother.

My mother scoured thrift stores for months to find Mason jars, picnic baskets and other unique items. She made the grapevine wreaths from the woods around our family home. My friend and photographer, Anne Yarbrough, made the thumb-print guest book , along with the photo blocks that sat on our guest table. My grandmother made the jars of strawberry and blueberry jelly for wedding favors.

My wedding dress was my “something new,” but the covered buttons down the back were my “something old” — they came from the dress both my grandmother and mother wore. I made my own headpiece, and my vintage gloves were from my personal collection. My grandmother made my bouquet, which was wrapped in my father’s handkerchief (my “something borrowed”). We purchased our attendants’ attire in lieu of traditional gifts. The ladies wore navy dresses and carried red parasols instead of bouquets. The lads wore seersucker shirts and red ties from meandmatilda (who also made the groom’s tie).

Fifteen minutes before the ceremony, the air was filled with the sound of Tim Atkin’s bagpipes, which calmed me as I sat in my isolated room. Gary and I chose not to see each other before the wedding, a tradition I’m so glad we stuck to. That moment walking down the aisle and seeing each other is one we’ll never forget.

Our nuptials were short and sweet, thanks to my dear friend, Nat Scott, who performed our ceremony.  We wrapped it all up by exchanging bands. Mine came from kyleannemetals; it went perfectly with my sapphire engagement ring (my “something blue”), made by cavaliercreations.

The food was very important to us, so the talented hands of some wonderful friends made our buffet table delicious! Crosby Catering made the best low country boil and barbecue; my friend, Juliana, made her mouth-watering pasta salad; and my grandmother’s friend made multiple white chocolate tortes instead of a traditional wedding cake. After eating, we didn’t have a first dance, cake cutting or anything traditional. Instead, our attendants toasted our marriage and we spent the rest of the night dancing and laughing with our friends and family, which is exactly what we wanted.

All photos by Anne Yarbrough.

Thanks to Laura for sharing her special day! Do you have a handmade wedding to share? Submit your photos to our Flickr group.

Handmade Weddings | Weddings Category

Laura Brooker Manning splits her time between managing a local coffee shop, shooting random photography gigs for her website, Wild Souls Photography, and selling vintage goods at her Etsy shop. Her grandmother and mother also have shops on Etsy — 510 Bailey Street and Cherry Van Vintage, respectively.

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