Ten of my favorite things from the Sawicki/Staves Wedding:

Ten. The Venue

This wedding only enhanced my love for National Parks. Not only did they choose a venue that we could hike at when we weren’t working, but they so beautifully incorporated the theme into everything. Instead of numbers, the tables were different parks they’ve visited, and the welcome sign mirrored that you’d see when entering the park. Flawless execution.

Nine. Homemade candles

What started as an idea for a reception activity ended as a lovely favor for all guests homemade by the newlyweds. We handed these out after dinner and seeing the reactions of guests when finding out that Hannah and Eric made them themselves was heart warming. For novice candlemakers, they also smelled fabulous and I was lucky to snag one myself. 🙂

Eight. Gifts from the bride

When Hannah asked us if we could deliver Smirnoff Ices to the groom and groomsmen, the answer was a very quick “absolutely!” – but I wasn’t prepared for how genuine the reaction would be. One groomsman felt the gift and assumed that she brought back olive oil from her travels. How sweet, but not quite.

Seven. Charcuterie Boards

The saga of the creation of these boards for the bridal party was hysterical. For weeks, I talked with them at our weekly meetings and reminded Eric to start working on these gifts. Then finally, our weekly meeting comes around under a month before the big day and he states that he has made upwards of 20 of them in under 7 days. I busted out laughing – his hyperfocus was real! Jokes aside, he also surprised vendors with these and I am obsessed. Such a gorgeous and intricate design and an incredibly thoughtful gift. Check out @breed_street_customs for all of your woodworking needs!

Six. The depth of the ceremony

Many ceremonies that you see nowadays are short and to the point, so I was intrigued by the number of key players included in bringing theirs to life. From the speech by Eric’s friend/former roommate/bartender of he and Hannah’s first date, which brought humor and tears to all who attended, to the outrageously well-spoken reading, and finally, the groomsman/sister-of-the-bride duet wrapping up the formalities with a beautiful song. I could go on and on about how they incorporated their loved ones into their big day, but these few additions truly did spotlight their love for each other and all of their family and friends.

Five. Olive

We all know that I’m a sucker for including dogs in weddings, but Olive was such a precious baby. She was a little vocal at the beginning of the ceremony, but her escort took care of that and held her – I have to assume this gave her a better view of her humans! What an angel.

Four. Haleakala Table

While letting tables go up to eat during the reception, one table, in particular, caught my eye – we had struggled to get one of the candles lit, and I noticed that not only was it now lit, but it was BURNING. Upon paying more attention, I could see that they had gotten brush from outside the tent and lit their fire within the candle’s vase. Not only did they take matters into their own hands, but they also took the bonfire candles to their photo with the bride and groom, then traded them in for regular ones with the table next door when they were busy getting their food. An absolute hoot – 10/10

Three. The fact that most of the bridal party work in theater

This bridal party was easily the most focused and punctual crew that I’ve had. They followed directions flawlessly and each took their roles very seriously. Many of them held additional roles to those within the bridal party, and were extremely meticulous in making everything perfect, while also enjoying themselves and ensuring a worry-free day for Hannah and Eric.

Two. Unity Heart

Within the many discussions of ideas and thoughts, Hannah and Eric brought to me a super fun and unique idea for their unity ceremony. Eric cut a heart out of wood and nail brads into it to create a string art activity for all of their guests as they arrived at the ceremony. During the ceremony, they took this and tied the loose strands together creating one never-ending string which mimicked the impact that everyone at the wedding has had on the couple and their journey. A beautiful sentiment and an example of how much love they were surrounded with. To add more meaning to this genius idea, Eric used poplar to create this, as they were married under a poplar tree. The beauty really is in the details.

One. Photos in the Dinner line

I have never seen any newlyweds not be first in line for dinner at their wedding, so when Hannah and Eric asked if they could eat last, I was in awe. Instead of jumping right into dinner, their main priority was to make sure that they got a photo with every single table, and what better time to do so than when the tables were being separately dismissed for the buffet. So many parts of this wedding showed how caring and grateful that Hannah and Eric are for their loved ones, but they truly showed that through this beautiful addition.

Honorable Mentions:

• The zoom update which allowed them to use fireworks and rainstorms to tell me how they were feeling and bring so much humor to our weekly meetings.
• The fabulous family of geese that graced us with their presence the entire weekend, keeping us very entertained as we set up and tore down.
• Last but certainly not least, the fact that the bride/bridesmaids accidentally took one of our phones back to the hotel with them which caused a bit of chaos and a WHOLE LOT of laughter.