Jess and Joe's Minimal & Intimate Toronto Wedding
An interview with bride #68
Joe and I wanted to keep things simple. We had 85 guests at our wedding which may seem like a lot, but it was hard. We both have relatively large families so it was important to us that we had our closest family and friends surround us on our special day.
I'm a Wedding Photographer by day, so together Joe and I have been to our fair share throughout the years. It gave us a chance to make a mental list of all the things we wanted at our big day over the 7 years we had been together prior to getting hitched. We chose to forgo all the traditions that didn’t mean anything to us and do things our way.
Our style is simple. We wanted to incorporate lots of white, wood and natural light wherever we could. I'm your typical condo-dwelling plant lady and flowers aren’t really my thing, so we went with all greenery which helped soften the edges of our venue.
We chose to do a circle ceremony because I loved the idea that it was something different from the usual tradition. It felt a little more romantic and each of our guests had a unique view from where they were sitting. I think it really set the tone for the night.
Describe your wedding day in 3 words.
Minimalist, intimate, and intentional.
What's one detail your wedding had to have?
A great photographer - Sara! She was our number one HAD TO HAVE. Followed by a beautiful canvas with good lighting and outdoor space for photo ops, a custom balloon installation, and of course, a ping pong table!
Tell us about something you could have done without or wasn’t necessary in the end.
We had a long list of these leading up to the wedding that we ended up cutting out. It was for both cost saving and procrastination reasons TBH.
Tell us about your bridal style.
Modern and simple with a side of polarizing accessory choices. I wanted to do some sort of outfit change without changing my dress, so I tossed my hair into a low bun and added some oversized funky earrings, slipped on the Just Married Jacket (duh, it was my favourite), and threw on some platform shoes that everyone hated up until the day of the wedding - no regrets!
What's your advice for future brides?
Pinterest is a blessing and a curse. There will always be another idea, another DIY, or another theme. Pick what is true to you and then stop looking.
There are some things that just aren’t worth trying to do yourself – know your strengths and outsource the rest to some awesome local talent.
Don’t let people tell you that the details don’t matter, because they do. They just love you and are trying not to stress you out. People will remember the things you put thought into. I can’t remember how many people came up to ask us about the smallest things like custom stickers on our pizza slice trays or the illustration on our signature drink sign. So don’t get too caught up on the big things and remember to add some inexpensive little touches in there for the detail oriented folk like me!
Also it’s your party. So have fun!
Date: Friday July 13, 2018
(Yes it was Friday the 13th. We met, got engaged, and got our puppy on a Friday, and we both have the same lucky number 13.)
Location: Airship 37
List of vendors and URLs:
Hair and Makeup – Nicole Grittani
Dress – Sash and Bustle
Dress Designer – Tara Lauren
Veil – Blair Nadeau
Rings – Custom made by the Bride and Groom at The Devil's Workshop
Suits – Surmesur
Catering - Berkley Events
Photography – Sara Monika
Flowers – Designed by the Bride, made with greens from Bradford Greenhouses
Donut Wall, Sidewalk Sign, and Ceiling Install – Made by the Father of the Bride
Donuts – Tim Horton's
Pizza – Queen Margherita
Stationary – Done by the Bride's sister Megan Keogh
