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Michigan farm wedding: Kristine + Justin

April 24, 2012

We love it when a bride shares a handful of details from her wedding. It puts us right smack in the middle of it all and is the perfect excuse to feel like we were actually invited. Based off the dazzling photos by A Girl in Love Photography, Kristine + Justin’s wedding was totally fun. 135 guests with a few fabulous party crashers in the mix (always a good sign of a happening party) + homemade maple syrup favors + a live concert during the reception + a bouquet so pretty and bright the bride is having it memorialized (kinda)… this was the event where friends and family who didn’t know one another at the beginning of the night left as friends.

Rifle Design Co. Michigan Farm Wedding Invitations

Do you even need us to tell you who designed these adorable invitations? Only the talented Anna Bond from Rifle Paper Co. Billy Balls, Succulents, and Bright Boutonnieres

We know. Most adorable boutonnieres ever right? Succulents, craspedia, dill flowers, celosia, and gomphrena made for a bright little arrangement for the dudes.

Wedding Well Wishes for 1st Anniversary

Fun guest book idea: Leaving out a box with paper and pens for guests to write sweet notes with and not opening the box until your 1st year anniversary.

Rifle Design Co. Michigan Farm Wedding Pins Bright Michigan Farm Wedding Michigan Wedding Welcome Tote

We are crazy fans of guest tote bags! If you have guests traveling far distances for your wedding chances are they’ve planned ahead to make a weekend out of it. Help them get their feet wet by putting together a tote full of goodies that represent your city.

Bright Bouquet of Pinks, Peaches, and Purples

Want to know why Kristine looks giddy as can be here? That’s because she was in LOVE with her bouquet. As she should be. The pincushion protea, parrot tulips, coral charm peonies, dahlias, ranunculus, garden roses, craspedia, cosmos, scented geranium foliage and passionflower vine are perfect together. It was wrapped with lace from Kristine’s dress and affixed with a pendant that her grandmother , who passed away in 2002, wore on a necklace every day.

Cute side note: Kristine loved her bouquet so much that she told Justin that the only thing she wants for future anniversaries is to have her bouquet recreated each year!

Bright Ribbon Details & Ceremony Decor Michigan Farm Wedding Ceremony Decor Michigan Farm Wedding Low Chignon Wedding Hair Peony, Succulent, and Bright Floral Reception Centerpieces

What were in their bright centerpieces: succulents, lady’s mantle, dahlias, ranunculus, garden roses, zinnias, hypericum berries, craspedia, parrot tulips, safflower, celosia, and scented geranium.

Rifle-inspired Illustrated Floral Chalkboard Menu

Instead of having paper programs and menus, they wanted to be a bit more playful and share the information on chalkboards. They purchased easel chalkboards from Ikea for $14.99 and hired Sweet Heather Anne, a local cake artist who dabbles in sign artistry, to create the program, menu, and schedule for the day based off their invitations.

Patchwork Couple's Initials Flowerbox Centerpieces & Floral Fabric Napkins

The story about those handmade napkins: My family called me crazy when I started talking about making napkins for our wedding. While Justin was deadset on the invitations, I was deadset on mismatched napkins. Once Rifle finish the design of our invitations, I started purchasing coordinating fabric and thread at Joann’s. While it was a considerable amount of work, I became a coupon-war vixen snipping Joann’s coupons from their weekly circulars, so we probably spent the same amount of money we would have on rentals. As it turns out, our guests liked the napkins so much that many of them shoved them in their pockets and purses to take home. A few weeks after our wedding, I received a package containing three pressed napkins and a note of apology from my aunt saying that in the moment she just couldn’t help nabbing them. 

Maple Syrup Wedding Favors

Kristine’s dad actually made all the tree slabs that displayed their homemade maple syrup favors that he and his friends tapped, processed, and bottled for the event.

Barn Wedding Band

One of our favorite bands, Scythian, pretty much played a private concert for our guests. We had been to a few of their concerts and knew of their gift for getting people up and going, but we couldn’t believe how their music enticed just about every guest out on to the dance floor until they stopped playing. As the evening went on, their music inspired tambourine dancing, a fiddle off between their lead fiddler and my dad (who was playing a stump fiddle – an old German tradition), chair dancing, and crowd surfing. I kept pulling Justin back on the dance floor when he needed a break, as I knew it would be the last time I could push to the front of the crowd simply because of what I was wearing.

Barn Wedding First Dance Michigan Farm Wedding

These two know how to have a good time and throw one heck of a party! Congratulations Kristine + Justin!

Photographer: A Girl in Love / Day of coordination + partial planning: Viva la Diva /  Flowers: PassionFlower / Caterer: Eat / Venue: Misty Farm Event / Tent & China Rentals: Special Events Rental / Maple Syrup Favors: Sugar Bush Maple Syrup / Invite Calligraphy: Margaret Haas / Desserts: Decadent Delight / Bride’s dress + sash: The Gown Shop / Mink stoll: Vintage (belongs to Mom’s friend) / Shoes: Chie Mihara / Dance Dress: Elizabeth Dye / Dance Shoes: Chie Mihara for BHLDN / Broach: Belonged to bride’s great-grandmother / Bridesmaid Dresses: BHLDN and JCrew / Groom’s Suit: Hugo Boss