weddings are crafty these days. i am crafty. so my wedding and i got along really well. i had never stalked so many pictures and craft and wedding blogs in my life until last year. i found inspiration. and ran with it. hard. our wedding was absolutely perfect and filled with lots of crafts. josh is a boy and therefore not super crafty, but he does have an eye for detail (he defiantly gets that from his sisters and mom- no doubt) first was the location. a beautiful historic venue with tons of history and charm in a little downtown in the outer banks. the outer banks has always been special for us. our first sparks flew there and some of our favorite memories were there. but a beach wedding- although very beautiful- was not my thing. but this little venue in the heart of downtown manteo was simply perfect. there were no second thoughts. we knew we wanted this place. thanks mom & dad for making that happen. after the perfect venue find- it was time to plan the details. that was an on-going process. the dress, those shoes, the crafts. the ceremony was a trip. we scouted for what seems like forever for an outdoor venue within our price range. there were a few options. i was dead set on the outdoor ceremony. but i think that God knew what was in store for that day (HOTHOTHEAT) and josh did as well. i was convinced that it would be better inside. and it was right. july and outside in suits and ten layer dresses dont mix. josh and i just went to our friends katie & brandon wedding this sunday and it was outside- it was so beautiful at the botanical gardens. the temperature was perfect. but as i look back, it was much better for us inside with the heat. and i dont want to change it one bit. so i continued on to make the invitations, the programs, collect dozens of mason jars, hot glue twine, fabric, jute, yarn, raffia, and pretty much anything else you can think of to mason jars, burlap, and all the other deatils. here are some pictures of my favorite details- captured wonderfully by innovatory photography.

this was an idea i got from the ryders home circa 2008. they had one hanging up and  used it for cards.
i never saw it once they moved but the idea stuck with me.

i used a free monogram download from my favorite wedding blog the wedding chicks and my dads friends printed these. my family and josh and caileigh hole punched these suckers all night and tied the jute.

josh and i built this as our special project. it was a beautiful piece to be married in front of.

i tied extra fabric pieces together to put down the aisle chairs.

my mom and i bought these lanterns from tjmaxx and my dads friend Al built the pedastools for the aisle.

my momma found this little treasure.

108 Budliegh

our dear friend Stef made these for my bridesmaids. they were perfect.

i had to get the Mrs. Henderson hanger of course

heres THE DRESS.

i fell in love with these shoes but not the price. my mom surprised me with them- shes the sweetest. these shoes were the most perfect shoes i have ever seen for a wedding.

pottery barn pitcher & bowl (so happens to be my dinnerware set), grey towel from target, monogrammed for our foot washing.

i had bar menus at the two bars. and i my florist had an array of vases.
i wanted a eclectic flower and vase feel. it was PERFECT.

this little edition was a couple weeks before. i saw it at tjmaxx and the idea popped into my head. the color and style of the frame was perfect and i had the J & A already. so i just glued burlap and glued the painted J & A on there. plus a  little fabric plus sign. this was one of my favorite pieces. 

the straws came from BHLDN. and went perfectly with our soda and arnold palmer bar.

the head table. we sat in front of a fire place adorned with mason jars and our centerpiece was my great grandmothers cast iron tea kettle, a family heirloom given to me from my grandmother. thanks mimaw. the confetti was broken shell pieces and the mugs are from Anthro.

i designed the invites myself from zazzle.com

the stumps on every table were from my dads work. i wanted them but knew it would cost too much to order. but i walked into my dads work one day and there they were. i freaked. the chalkboard is from my dads work too- lots of little treasures to be found there. Home Emporium.

my mom cut the lace from her dress and i used it to wrap my flowers in. perfect. it was really special to be able to do that.

the table settin. perfect. tea lights. shell peices. a starfish. succulent. a mason jar with fabric & twine. and another vase.

this idea came after my bridal shower where libby used bunting. i thought it would be cute to add this to our table. so i cut burlap to make bunting and cut the letters from fabric. it was put across the front of our head table. 

it read "JUST MARRIED"

i forgot to make reserve signs so one of my decorating girls thought of this. i used doilies a lot so i had extra- it was perfect! katie meehan has beautiful handwriting. 

another fire place in the main room. katie meehan painted us that sign and it went perfectly on the brick. 

i used mason jars for everything. one of our favorite summer drinks is an arnold palmer. so i made this suggestion  sign for our guests.

the grooms cake. perfect.

i put family pictures up from family weddings.

the ribbon wall. made the room POP. 

a parting gift for our guests.

gorgeous cake. yummy- the one bite i had.

mad libs and mason jars to write a little note on.

josh and i go back to school tomorrow. we enjoyed our lazy fall break. hoping the weather cools down a bit. hope you like the new background. and that header is one of my favorite pictures from the wedding. 

details.

pictures pictures pictures.

the moment youve all been waiting for. picture time. im gonna post some of my favorites. which ones are your favorites? ill do separate posts because theres lots of pictures and it could get overwhelming. so here goes josh & ally pics plus our "entourage"

** all of these photos were taken by innovatory photography

cutest ring bearer & flower girl duo ever- thanks ash & jason

auntie ally & uncle josh

my personal favorite of our wedding party

those beautiful flowers were arranged by Lucy . they were perfect. all of them.

thanks boys for making josh laugh

josh is legit laughing- i love that. john, are you a 4th grade girl?
 that hand up there makes you all giggly haha

thats mine. hes so handsome.

fellas lookin sharp.

hildy made this face in 50% of our photos. no im not mad.
 i think its actually kinda funny and brings the naturalness to our photos.

not gonna lie- i had HOT bridesmaids.

one of my favs. shes the best... ever.

goin to see my groom for the first time.

one of my favorites.

the hankie reads "josh & ally, july 24, 2011"

i made that starfish... im quite proud of it.

seriously- those flowers are perfect.

blue socks. blue shoes.

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU.

so everyone? what are some of your favorites? more to come of course. enjoy. happy weekend. josh and i are excited to see our all our friends coming in for our friends wedding, katie & brandon. and of course cant wait to get down at the wedding ourselves.

pictures pictures pictures.

a bigger than big thank you.

i need to thank some people. my wedding was absolutely perfect. i mean it. i woke up. was cared for. was beautified. and the scene changed before my eyes- without lifting a finger.

mom & dad- golly. i cant thank you enough. i mean none of it would be possible without your love and support and financially of course too. all my planning and asking. you know- everyone always says the phrase "she said yes" as in the bride says yes to marry the groom. but mom and dad have to say yes too- and more than once. you said yes to pretty much every detail i thought up and backed me up on it. thank you. thank you. thank you.

bridesmaids- caileigh, ashley, katie hardy, katie meehan, jess, & kait. thank you for being calm. and finding what i needed at the drop of the dime. and being there for support. caileigh for endless phone calls and idea searching and that dang ribbon wall construction and for playing nsync that morning. katie m, for my makeup, for your new friendship, and speaking truth into my life and loving me as i am. katie h, for forcing that bagel into my mouth and your endless excitement for me, ups and downs and teaching me reconciled friendship. ashley for your beautiful children who served as the cutest flower girl & ring bearer set anyone could dream of, for 20 years of bickering and playing dress up and all the things sisters entail, kait and jess- my new family of which i couldnt find better sisterinlaws if i tried and for advice and of course for teaching josh how to be cleanly in the bathroom.

support & set up team- katie hackett, libby, stef, alex, & megan. wow i am loved and wow you worked endlessly that day. and it was all perfect. everything. seriously. better than i could have imagined. alex that ribbon wall was a huge task and you tackled that sucker. i didnt see who did what but all i know is that you all loved me in ways i cannot describe. i mean it. and being so calm when asking me questions that day saying "i dont want to bug you but..." and you didnt bug me. at all. i only thought in those moments about the fact that i wasnt down there running around with my head cut off. i was being tended to and cared for. you all were a team- and a really good one at that. all task oriented, crafty, high spirited, and organized women. i couldnt have done it better myself. i cant tell you how thankful i was to have you all there that day sharing with me my ten months of planning and seeing the start of my marriage. i love you girls so much and owe you all so much more than i could give.

boys- groomsmen & friends. for setting up the chairs and tables and providing the man power. and for keeping josh entertained and loved. his bachelor party he still talks about- not too much in detail though- and then that weekend taking him out and loving him and making him laugh. praying for him and setting the tone of the weekend right. for sleeping on floors and keeping the mood light with weird and senseless jokes. you boys mean so much to us.

josh. my leader, my best friend, my love, and now my husband. some weeks i was insane because i plan and craft- this wedding was my thing. and you went with it. you helped in ways i cant tell you. i love you and i am so thankful God ordained us to be together and live and worship together. those ten months were crazy. and sometimes i was (still am too...) but you went with me and planned with me and tried to craft with me. and you are so sweet for that. love you joshua and so excited it all came together- including us.

p.s. josh and i are featured on our photgraphers website- check it here:
innovatory photography

a bigger than big thank you.