Sara & Callie
A small wedding & the unique details
Sara and Callie got married on a beautiful March afternoon at Rust Manor in Loudon County Virginia.
Flower Grannies set the stage for their whimsical nuptials under a large oak tree. An intimate guest list of loved ones made for the perfect celebration.
A few words from the couple
Choosing a small wedding was simple for us. Anytime we talked about our big day, we knew we wanted to be surrounded by only our nearest and dearest —people who have been rooting for us from the beginning and will be part of our lives for years and years to come.
And since our family and close friends were the only ones in attendance, it was easy to forgo bridal parties too. Plus, neither of us were particularly interested in having the traditional bridal party/bachelorette anyway - we preferred our friends and siblings to simply enjoy the day without any extra burdens (or budgets) to worry about. It also kept our morning in the getting ready room calm and focused on us, which was a bonus!
Though we didn't have official bridal parties, we did want to personalize our processional with a few important people. First, my childhood-to-today best friend served as our officiant (and she did an outstanding job!) It makes us so happy to look back and have someone so special standing by us as we said our "I dos." It also allowed us to have the most "us" ceremony that really represented our story and who we are. Next, we both chose to walk down the aisle with both of our parents, because we couldn't imagine leaving our moms out of that once-in-a-lifetime moment. And lastly, we wanted to honor our grandmothers during the day, too - so we asked them to be our "flower grannies" and it was such a hit! They were escorted down the aisle by our siblings and we wouldn't have wanted it any other way.
For any couples wanting a similar experience — a morning focused on you and your partner and a small, intimate celebration that felt more like a dance-filled dinner party than a whole traditional production, we suggest a few things:
1. Hire Unbridled Studio Co. to be your hair and makeup team! Seriously. They went out of their way to make sure we were calm, confident and completely happy with how our looks came out (which, were INCREDIBLE, by the way). As a two bride couple with one who leans feminine and another more masculine, we were really impressed with both their inclusive approach and extreme talent.
2. If you have some extended family or friends who you'd love to invite (if you had an unlimited budget and/or the venue capacity to accommodate them...), but simply can't invite everyone, we get it - we were in the same situation. What we found helpful? Limiting the invite list to only people in our lives we've both met and spent time with. Essentially we made it so we didn't have to meet anyone new on our wedding day! This meant less time saying first hellos and more time making memories with longtime loved ones we both had histories with.
3. Do things your way with no shame! Don't let the "typical" weddings rules make you feel stuck - it's your day, so do it how you want! Micro-weddings, flower grannies, skipping bridal parties - it may not be usual, but it was perfect for us and we encourage anyone to customize their big day (no matter how big or small it is guest-wise haha) to fit them perfectly too. We're sooo happy we did, and we hope you find that same joy too!
