Crushing on this couple's darling nautical wedding day!
Shea Shoemaker
Shea Shoemaker July 12, 2017

DIY Wedding | Cory + Brenna

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What is your favorite wedding day memory?

It’s hard to pick one moment from our wedding day, but if I had to narrow it down to one, I would say that our first look was probably one of the most memorable and special moments. Cory and I had parted ways the night before and hadn’t seen each other since. It was such an exciting and intimate moment to see each other, all dressed up, for the first time {we’re casual people so it’s not often that Cory dons a suit and I a gown with hair and makeup done}. I will never forget the emotions that were felt in that split second. What made it even more special was the setting. We have an amazing community in our CrossFit gym and one of our gym friends offered their gorgeous property for photos when rain {of course – hello, Seattle in October!} entered the forecast and our original picture location was no longer going to work. Everything about our first look was absolutely perfect and full of love!

What did you DIY for your wedding?

Jeez, it’s hard to think of what I DIDN’T DIY for our wedding! It was a complete labor of love, though. I have always loved to DIY and had worked on smaller projects, but our wedding was the first time that I was able to tackle something big and truly unleash my inner-crafter! I have to say that while I did a majority of the projects myself {I have a problem asking for help on these sorts of things}, I did have amazing friends and family that helped put some amazing things together. We have a graphic designer friend who helped us create our save-the-dates, my mother and a good friend of hers helped tackle crafting the 200+ feet of bunting that hung from the ceiling of the venue and my dad, whose major hobby is wood-working, built us the arch we stood under during the ceremony, as well as, all of the lobster buoys that we turned into table numbers! I also need to credit my husband and his father for constructing the “road sign” that we displayed at the front of the venue to show where and how far our guests had traveled to be with us on our special day.

Did you have a something old, new, borrowed and blue?

I did {sort of!} Sadly, I didn’t have something old, but I did have something new, borrowed and blue. My something new was both my dress and the pearl necklace that Cory gave me as a Christmas present to wear on our wedding day. My something borrowed was my veil – my amazing wedding planner {and dear friend} allowed me to wear her veil from her incredible wedding day! It was such a special thing to share. Lastly, my something blue was a sapphire ring that I had created specifically for our wedding. My hope is that it becomes an heirloom piece that gets passed down to all future generations of women in our family so they, too, will have something blue {and something old!} for their wedding day!

Any advice for brides currently in the planning process?

Have a plan with Pinterest BEFORE you start pinning! Pinterest is an AMAZING tool for wedding planning… but it can also be an overwhelming black hole if you don’t know when to stop. It is SO easy to get caught up in the beautiful pictures that either fit your vision perfectly or help you establish your vision. Unfortunately {or maybe fortunately, for some}, with each pin comes even more “recommended” pins and before you know it, you’ve gone down a rabbit hole of pinning just about everything in sight for the past four hours OR you’ve fallen in love with another picture that doesn’t quite fit your original vision and now you feel you have to course correct and start all over with a new theme. It’s an exhausting cycle… and usually iterative if you have a long planning timeline.

Treat your wedding Pinterest board like a living document, rather than a catch-all place for you to tack every little thing that you stumble upon. Limit the amount of time you spend on Pinterest, as well as how many pins you allow yourself in a given category for your wedding. If you set a rule of “no more than 5 wedding invitation suite ideas on my board”, remember to go back to your board if you pinned an invitation suite recently to make sure that you have 5 or less. If you have more, delete the number you need to get back to 5. Not only does this make your board MUCH more manageable and navigable, but it also winds up being a truer reflection of your big day if you ever want to go back and reminisce about the planning and inspiration that influenced your big day! -Brenna, the Bride

Event Credits

Photographer: Salt & Pine Photograhy // Venue: The Landing at TYEE // Wedding Planner: Wedding Wise // Florist: More Paper Than Shoes // Catering: Ravishing Radish // Cake: Morfey's Cake // DJ: Sounds Unlimited // Engagement Ring: Redford Jewelers // Bride's Attire: Watters // Bride's Shoes: J. Crew // Bridesmaid's Attire: Alfred Sung // Hair + Make-up: Parlor Salon // Groom's Attire + Shoes: Nordstrom // Groomsmen's Attire: The Black Tux // Ties: Calvin Klein // Custom Guest Book: Bleu de Toi // Flower Girl Necklace: Caitlyn Minimalist // Monogrammed Pouches for Bridesmaids: Hint of Juniper // Photo Clutch Gifts for Mother's: Murwati // Wooden Vow Books: Lorgie // Custom Straws: Krazy Straws

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