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Katie and Sean at Appel Farm

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Katie and Sean at Appel Farm

Posted on July 10, 2018 by New Jersey Bride

How did you meet?
Sean and I have known each other since grade school. In fourth grade I had a schoolgirl crush on him and wrote his name all over my notebook. Apparently he had a crush on me as well. On our wedding day we wrote letters to each other. In his letter, he confessed that he would write my name all over his notebook as well, but was too afraid to admit his crush. Over the years our paths continued to cross. He was close friends with my cousin so I saw him at their house often. We also played soccer together, and attended the same schools.

It wasn’t until high school when we had several classes together that we started to become closer and more interested in each other. We would meet in the school courtyard between classes, walk each other to class, constantly flirt. I even ended up asking him to prom our junior year. Shortly after that we finally started dating.

How did you get engaged?
Since I’ve been young, visiting the Grand Canyon has always been a fantasy of mine. We planned a trip to visit my grandparents in Arizona and wanted to spend a couple of days in Grand Canyon National Park. Our first day there Sean insisted that we saw all the sights and overlooks the Grand Canyon had to offer so he could get the best photos. He studied photography in school, so this was nothing new to me. We even hiked out to a remote campground on the rim to find what he said would be the perfect location to watch the sunrise. Little did I know he had bigger plans.

The next morning we woke up early and went out to our chosen spot. Sean set up his camera and started taking photos. It’s something he did often, so I gave him space as usual. Just as the sun was making its final stretch over the rim, as the light glistened off the snow and fog rose out of the deep canyon, I walked over to Sean look check out his progress. As I was standing behind him, he turned, kneeled down on one knee, and took out a wooden box that he had carved. In it was my great grandmother’s engagement ring. It was the most magical moment. Perfect in every way!

Details of the day!
Being artists, as well as me being a wedding florist and Sean being a photographer, the details were very important to us. We wanted every inch of our wedding to not only reflect the camp and its unique grounds, but also, we sought to have it reflect who we are as a couple. To us, this meant handling every detail and making everything we possibly could make ourselves. So to start, we narrowed down our color pallet by not narrowing it down at all. The camp was so colorful and playful. We embraced it, and decided to have a fun technicolor wedding that was completely eclectic and pieced together. Once that was decided, every aspect of the wedding had to be just as colorful and mismatched!

I started planning all the details by painting the invitation suite. I went through several different variations that ended with a colorful and eclectic design. On top of painting the invitation suite, I also painted everyone’s envelope differently, as well as all of the signs, seating charts, name tags, and table numbers. Since we did not have any glassware we decided that the favors should be functional and act as glassware. I found clear mason jar mugs and painted/etched each to be slightly different with our initials and wedding date.

We also wanted the escort “cards” to be functional and enhance the camp theme. We chose to use miniature flashlights with a beaded friendship style keychain as a name tag so that our guest could see their way to the bonfire once the sun set. I had a couple crafting parties with all my girls, mom, and grandmother. Together we crafted each flashlight, attached all names tags to the glassware, and folded/tied each napkin and utensil.With the exception of the farmhouse tables and chairs, every piece of furniture and the materials for the tablescapes and centerpieces were from our personal collection or collected specifically for the wedding. We would go to flea markets and thrift stores almost daily to collect everything from serving dishes to votives, napkins to flower pots, anything we thought would fit in. Our centerpieces were highly influenced by our collections and finds. Each table had its own assortment of votives, bottles, dishes, and colored candle sticks. On one of the outings to a flea market we found two matching legs for high top tables.

This sparked the idea of building a bar and some tables to match and go around it. Sean put his woodworking skills to work and designed and built both the bar and tables himself. The end product was amazing! Sean also made all the lawn games as addition entertainment to the dancing and smores at the bonfire. Sean made two sets of cornhole, washers, a tic-tac-toe board, and giant Jenga for all to enjoy.

Why did you choose your venue?

When we started discussing the details of our wedding, we knew that we wanted it to be different, fun, and outdoors. Our dream was to have a relaxed wedding that combined some of our favorite pastimes, which included backyard barbecues, camping, and sitting by the bonfire. It only seemed right to host our wedding at a summer camp. When searching for camps in our area we were lucky enough to discover Appel Farm Arts camp. Being artistic, we were instantly intrigued and had to see it. We fell in love with the camp as soon as we pulled into the parking lot. It was so charming and perfect for us, with its bright colorful murals painted on all the buildings; its spacious yet secluded grounds; and its large covered pavilion that we could DIY and completely design ourselves.

What was on your menu?
Since we were going with an outdoor camp theme we thought it would be fun to have a food truck as our caterer. For research, we went to a lot of festivals to try different trucks, but we really didn’t find many we were crazy about and would also please our guests. I did a quick search on Roaming Hunger in the Philadelphia area and found Farm Truck Philly. We were drawn to this truck because it was painted with murals similar to the camp and the menu sounded amazing. To be honest, we took a gamble and hired them without tasting any of their food. The first time we tried anything from the truck was at our wedding. Thankfully it all worked out and was even more delicious than we imagined!

For cocktail hour, we had flank steak skewers with a chimichurri sauce, lime grilled shrimp skewers, a pumpkin toast with petites and goat cheese, and an arugula pear and walnut salad. For dinner the truck prepared jerk chicken banh mi’s, short rib cheesesteaks, and focaccia grilled cheese with tomato jam plus truffle mac and cheese and an heirloom tomato and fresh burrata salad. In addition to all the food the truck provided, I put together several cheese plates and charcuterie, hummus, fresh veggies and dip, toasted and candied nuts, and mixed marinated olives. My sweet mother made our favorite pasta salad with chicken, cranberries, and cashews, and my wonderful maid of honor made several different dips to go with root vegetable chips. We wanted to make sure our guest had plenty of variety!Variety and pleasing our guest was so important to both Sean and I throughout cocktail hour and dinner. By the time dessert came around there was no exception! I always wanted to have pie at my wedding, but I also enjoyed the idea of having multiple cake flavors so we did both! My grandmother loves baking and offered to make blueberry hand pies, Apple cinnamon hand pies, and miniature pumpkin pies with a pecan strudel on top. My grandmother and my mother also made chocolate dipped pecan sandies, chocolate chip cookies, and snickerdoodles. We also decided to get miniature Apple cider donuts from a local farm. On top of all that dessert we had 4 different cake flavors! A good friend of mine is a pastry chef and wanted to make the cakes for us. Together we decided on a vanilla chocolate chip cake, a mocha chocolate cake, a confetti cake, and a lemon blueberry thyme cake.

All about your gown!
The dress I wore was actually my second wedding dress. Originally, I wanted a simple and plain dress. I didn’t want it to look out of place outside at a summer camp. As the wedding grew closer I started to realize that I put so much work into the detail of the wedding, I also wanted more detail with my attire. I wanted a dress that had more detail and character to it, and one that felt special when I put it on. Two months before the wedding, my mother went with me to David’s Bridal to find a new dress. When I tried on the first dress, I knew instantly that I would be much happier. It was a Melissa Sweet scalloped A-line dress. The skirt was tulle with appliquéd blush flowers that trailed behind with a deep scalloped neckline and delicate double straps. It was ethereal, romantic, and perfect for me!

What was your favorite moment?
It’s hard to narrow down a favorite moment when the day itself was packed with so many happy and unforgettable ones. If I absolutely have to choose I would say my favorite moments would be the time spent putting on my dress and my bridesmaids helping me finish getting ready up until the moment Sean and I had our first look. That span of time was filled with so much emotion. I didn’t think it would be possible, but once my dress was on it all started to feel even more exciting. Each bridesmaid helped me get ready in some way which felt so special. Cait clasped my necklace, Alicia did my bracelet, Alexis buckled my shoes, and Amanda zipped my dress. After that, they all watched me open my gifts and read the most touching letter from Sean. From there we had our first look. Haley, our photographer, had me hide at one point with our dog, Ruby, as Sean got into place. The anticipation and emotion felt at that moment and right before Sean turned around, as well as the seconds after is something that I will always cherish and never forget.

One detail you couldn’t live without?
RUBY! Our wedding would not have been the same if we could not include our border collie. She does almost everything with us and goes almost everywhere we go, so her presence that day meant the world to Sean and I!

Did anything go wrong?
The entire day went surprisingly well for it being such a DIY-driven wedding. We had every little detail written and planned out and everyone involved had specific tasks and instructions. Our amazing group of family and friends did the most wonderful job with making sure everything was set up on time, and by everything I mean EVERYTHING. We did it all, from hanging the lights, setting up the floor plan, the table settings, the ceremony, even cutting up the food and plating it all. My maid of Honor, Amanda, even acted as coordinator when all the vendors started showing up. I didn’t have to worry about a thing and I can’t thank them enough for that!

The only detail that could have been better was the weather, but that is entirely out of our control. It was unseasonably cold and windy for late September. The wind blew some stuff around, and the ceremony set up had to be changed slightly, but it didn’t ruin our day!

First dance song?
Our first dance song was “A Wonder of You” by the Villagers. This song is a cover of the original by Elvis Presley. It took us months to find the right song for our first dance. We both had separate wedding playlist that we kept adding to as we were trying to find a song that fit just right for us. Everytime we drove anywhere together we would play each other the new songs we came across. This lengthy process was so much fun to do together! We shared so much laughter during this part of the wedding planning and it gave us something to look forward to constantly.

Any advice for future brides?
Enjoy every step of the planning process and don’t stress too much. More goes into a wedding, then you ever thought possible, but don’t let the details become overwhelming. If it does take a step back and focus on something else for a while. Also, don’t let others opinions get to you or steer you in another direction. Everyone will have something to say, want to offer advice, or have their own demands. It’s good to listen and take their opinions into consideration, but ultimately the final say will come from you and your fiance. Don’t let anything damped your day or take the fun out of it.

Honeymoon location?
We have not gone on our honeymoon as of yet, but we finally started planning it! Our dream honeymoon is to go to Canada and explore Banff and Jasper National Parks. We want to see the mountains, glacial lakes, hot springs, and wild flowers.

the details

Hometowns

Berlin, New Jersey

Ceremony Location

Appel Farm

Reception Location

Appel Farm

Photographer

Haley Richter Photography

Officiant

Jim Ebesberger-a family friend

Bride’s Gown

Melissa Sweet-Davids Bridal

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Katie and Sean at Appel Farm

the details

Hometowns

Ceremony Location

Reception Location

Photographer

Officiant

Bride’s Gown

Bride’s Shoes

Bridesmaid Dresses

Hair

Makeup

Groom’s Attire

Groomsmen Attire

Flowers

Cake

Invites

Music

Videographer

Favors

Rentals

Wedding Planner

Brides Jewelry