The Bride: Ileana, 25, IT and studying to be  a Nurse

The Groom: Evan, 32, IT

The Location: Sayen Gardens, New Jersey

Wedding Colors: Cream, Ivory, Peach, and Orange with a Garden Theme

Budget: $10 - $15k

What made this wedding modern: Ileana says “The modern touch really took shape in the wedding party. The girls had on Jim Hjelm A-Line Tea length Ivory dresses with an orange sash. The dresses were very simple yet had the splash of color that made them pop. The men’s dark chocolate brown tuxes really blended well with the bridesmaids and made the wedding party image very sleek - that is until at any given time one of the 8 wedding party members broke out into horrific party faces - then we were just us!”

Where they splurged: Ileana said hands down, PHOTOGRAPHY. “We felt that 60 years from now as our memories begin to fade it is pictures that will transport us back in time. We wanted to make sure we had a photographer who knew us and knew how to capture key moments. Michelle was amazing. We chose to do a Trash The Dress session with her prior to the big day (with a Forever 21 stand in dress!)* and it really helped build a great friendship with her. We are so pleased with every single picture that the hard part is picking our album shots.”

*We will be doing a post on Ileana’s Trash the Dress session in a few weeks - you can’t miss it, the session was amazing!

Where they saved: Decoration. “Since it was in a garden, we needed limited ceremony decoration and the reception garden house was so cute and antique-y that it need very little to spruce it up. We opted to recycle some decor from my sister’s wedding and replace the flowers with our colors. We also hit up Michael’s for various accents and ALWAYS had our 40% off coupons in hand. The only flowers that were real were the bouquets, lapels & the garden around us.”

*As mentioned in the bio - Ileana and Evan had a budget of only $10k, which to me is pretty unbelievable considering how beautiful everything was!  Recycling decorations from another wedding is a fabulous idea.  Also, making your theme fit the venue rather than vice verse helps too!  Thanks Ileana for your wonderful tips!

Ileana made her theme fit the romantic vintage decor of the Sayen house, rather than the other way around, in order to save on decorations.

Recycling doesn't mean settling for second rate! These centerpieces were used in Ileana's sisters wedding, saved them quite a bit of money on decorations, and looked gorgeous!

How a-d-o-r-a-b-l-e! The gummy bears represented the personalities of the bride and groom - fun loving and silly!

Oranges and whites with hints of pink and yellow made this the perfect bouquet for their garden wedding.

Illeana and Evan wanted to incorporate their three beloved kitties into their wedding day. Since they are housecats, they had to settle for miniature sugar replicas representing them in spirit!

The best part of the wedding:

“The laughter. Everyone was in such a great mood and happy that everywhere you looked people were smiling. We felt so blessed to have such a perfect day with the people we loved. It’s an amazing thing being surrounded by people who are sending you well wishes every moment. When you are immersed in good vibes it is hard not to get on a natural high. We were married and so happy. And that is what it was all about.”

Her Advice:

“Don’t splurge if you are going to feel guilty about it. ENJOY it. Smile and enjoy your man. The day is about the two of you - not just you.”

All photographs are copyright of Michelle King Photography.

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*Remember the post I did a few days ago on those amazing handmade, scrapbook inspired wedding details?  I got the go ahead from Noaillese to do a post of the entire wedding, so here it is!

The Bride: Noaillese, 25, Software Engineer

The Groom: Warren, 25, Computer Science PhD Student

The Location: The Villa Antonia in Austin, Texas

Wedding Colors: Apple Green and Eggplant Purple

What made this wedding modern: A modern color combination mixed with squares, bold flowers, and the use of hand made paper projects made Noaillase and Warren’s big day stand out.

Where they splurged: Once Noaillese and Warren saw the Villa Antonia in Austin, they couldn’t say no, and their biggest splurge automatically became the venue and the food.

Where they saved: Noaillese made all of the stationery herself, including invitations, programs, menus, and table numbers (yes, she’s a crafty gal - complete with her own etsy store!).  She also priced out doing the flowers herself and then found a florist willing to match her calculated price.  This is a bit of wedding vendor negotiation we could all learn from - great idea!

The outdoor ceremony - no wonder they fell in love with the venue!

The best part of the wedding:

“My favorite part of the wedding was sitting down at the sweetheart table with my new husband and just taking a deep breath.” It’s these quiet moments that we remember the most about a wedding.

Looking back, what they would have changed:

Noaillese and Warren had a no regrets wedding -  When asked what she would change Noaillese replied “Nothing really.  I remember spending the whole day smiling and that’s all I could ask for.”

Some of the "negotiated" flowers - wait till you see the rest!

Cymbidium orchids decorated the cake

Told you they were amazing!

Her Advice:

” Enjoy the planning process but don’t worry about it too much.  And on the day of the wedding don’t let anything bother you.  Just enjoy the time spent with family, friends, and your new husband.“

A flower embellishment on one of the many paper projects

To see more of the handmade goodies Noaillese used in her wedding, check out this previous post which mentions quite a few of them.  Also, definitely check out her esty store, Noeys Papers, her stuff is amazing!

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The Bride: Simi, 26, Law Student

The Groom: Prakash, 27, Grad Student

The Location: Bensalem, Pennsylvania

Wedding Theme: Fall

Wedding Colors: Olives, deep red, rust, brown, and tan

What made this wedding modern: Simi and Prakash had a fall wedding with an outdoor ceremony that they celebrated with a large group of family and friends.  They incorporated both hindu and american traditions into their wedding - for instance, during the ceremony Prakash wore traditional hindu garb, but then changed into a chic black suit for the reception.

Where they splurged: Simi and Prakash’s biggest splurge was the food.  The reception hall had an american caterer that they were required to order from, but it was important to them to have indian food for everyone too.  They ended up getting twice as many orders of food as there were guests!  Simi said “A little gluttonous?  Yes.  But it was the only way we could get what we wanted! ”

Where they saved: Because Simi and Prakash had an outdoor wedding while the fall foliage was in full swing, it was already gorgeous outside and they didn’t have to spend much money on flowers.  With the money saved they bought bright fabrics for the mandap (the structure they were married under) and also placed some around the ceremony and reception site.  The lesson here - an outdoor wedding during a gorgeous time of year can save you big bucks in the decorations department!

A view of the mandap from the aisle

The best part of the wedding:

“My favorite part of the wedding was when I was brought in to the ceremony on a doli (a decorated wooden plank), carried by my cousins.  Everyone was so excited, shouting and teasing Prakash and I because it’s supposed to be the first time we “see” each other, as evidenced by the curtain that was held up between us.  The vibe was just indescribable, and I felt like such a queen being carried like that!” (see the picture below!)

Looking back, what they would have changed:

Because of school, Simi and Prakash ended up going on their honeymoon during their winter break, which was 2 months after the wedding.  “Our honeymoon was great, but we really needed some time right after the wedding to relax.  It was so difficult to resume life as usual after such a big event.  If we could go back, we would have taken a few days off following our wedding and stayed at a B&B nearby just to unwind, enjoy each other’s company without all the hassles of life, and let it sink it that we just got married!!”

Simi being carried down the aisle on a lavishly decorated doli to see Prakash for the "first time" :)

Simi hugging the groom's brother. Prakash is in the background waiting for his beautiful bride!

Her Advice:

“Don’t get too stressed out on the days leading up to the wedding day.  On the day of the wedding, you’re not going to care who is sitting where, whether the guests were served at 6 pm or 6:20 pm, or if you are going to remember all the steps to your first dance.  All that you’re going to care about is that you just got married and all your loved ones are there with you blessing you with their good thoughts and best wishes.“

A mix of seasonal flowers were placed on each table.

A stunning portrait of the bride and groom!

Dancing the night away!

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The Bride: Nicole, 27, Social Worker

The Groom: Jon, 26, Visual Arts Teacher

The Location: Linden Hall Mansion in Southwestern Pennsylvania

Wedding Colors: Champagne and white with hints of pink.

Budget: $20-25k

Where they splurged: Awesome food and great entertainment were important to both Jon and Nicole, so they splurged on a great DJ who used a music video screen and had surf and turf for dinner.

Where they saved: Nicole loved her dress, and loved even more that it was less than $500 from David’s Bridal.  The couple also decided to skip the favors, and instead put a “question and answer” game sheet about the bride and groom on each table.  They made the sheets themselves on their home printer and stuffed them into silver envelopes they picked up from Target for an elegant feel.

What made this wedding modern: Jon is Filipino, while Nicole has eastern European heritage, so traditions were incorporated from both cultures to make sure both families felt included.

The girls wore champagne bridesmaids dresses in different styles and carried white and pink roses.

Nicole's gown featured champagne gold embroidery that tied together their champagne color theme

The best part of the wedding:

Nicole and Jon had a blast at the reception and were glad they spent the extra cash on the DJ video screen.  “The main thing Jon and I wanted out of our wedding was to get all of friends together and to have a great time.  We would have done that anyways, but our DJ definitely helped!”

Looking back, what they would have changed:

Nicole said that a lot of vendors that she worked with were not very accommodating.  If she had to do it again, she would have dumped the vendors she didn’t like and gone with vendors that were friendlier and more flexible, even if they didn’t offer exactly what she wanted.  “It just wasn’t worth the stress!”

Her Advice:

“When the wedding day comes, relax, quit worrying, and have a good time.  If you’ve done all your planning, everything will come together.  Even if a few things go wrong, there isn’t anything you can really do about them, so might as well let loose and just have a good time!”

The rain decided to hold out for the ceremony.

The Linden Hall Mansion provided a gorgeous backdrop for the photos and complemented the color scheme.

Gorgeous peep toes completed the look.

The mansion interior went perfectly with the champagne color scheme as well.

The DJ was well worth the splurge!

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