Wednesday, August 5, 2015

10th Anniversary Project: Laura + John




Laura and John were married nine years ago today.  We loved Laura and John the second we met them.  We found that we had a lot in common; preserving of and appreciation for the past, rescue animals, creativity and crafts being among them.


 So many things about their wedding excited us!  They were getting married where we had been married just three years before and were excited to go back and experience another wedding there. Their wedding was going to be a mixture of vintage romance and diy chic and many of the details and activities were going to be personalized, which we love!


Laura planned to have vintage family photographs on display, vintage-styled decor and accessories and my favorite, her bouquet was a gorgeous recreation of her grandmother's bouquet from the 1940's. Rather than tossing her bouquet at the reception, Laura presented it to her Nana.  It was a sweet and sentimental moment, the ones we love the most!


Another standout moment was when Laura and John read Words of Wisdom. Each table had a floral box in which guests were to write some advice to them for their marriage. Many couples do these types of things, but no one ever gets to hear the advice, so they read a few random cards for their guests at the wedding.  When it came time to edit their film, I asked Laura to send me some of the advice they were given, so I could incorporated a few into their film. They served as a great transition between segments and, in a way, mimicked the activities in each segment. It's still one of our favorite personal details that we put into a film and it's unique to only their film. This is why we love our job so much!


Of course, we have to mention all the crafty details.  Laura spent a lot of time crafting many items for the wedding including pink tissue paper flowers and coasters for the cocktail hour tables, scrolls and escort cards for each of her guests, personalized table names with photos and descriptions of their significance and her programs and invitations. A lot of work and it was all worth it for the personal touch it gave their wedding.


Their vintage theme gave me the opportunity to use black and white during some segments and play with some effects that we don't use very often.  I especially loved the look of the black white and sepia toned shots with the color effect that left her bouquet pink.  Kind of a fun effect that gets really overused now, but these shots are still so pretty and it was a perfect fit for their vintage look.



So what have they been up to since their wedding? We heard from Laura last year when she was looking for another copy of her wedding film. She is very much like us in that she likes to have several back-ups of everything, just in case.  When we saw her, she was as pregnant as she is in the photo below.  Just a short time after we saw her, Laura and John welcomed their daughter, Aliceen, to the world.  She is now 18 months old and cute as a button!!


When we fist met them, both Laura and John were in the beginning of their careers as special education teachers and they were volunteering with dog rescues, both of which they continue to do today.  When they got married, they had a rescued greyhound named Freeda, as in Freed-a Greyhound - yes, they share our sense of humor too. 


Later, they became interested in agility training and adopted two Jack Russel Terriers named Avery and Hidee.  Currently they are working with Russel Refuge in Rhinebeck, a shelter specializing in Jack Russel dogs and puppies that are surrendered or found in local shelters.  In 2014, Russel Refuge suffered a devastating fire, in which 13 dogs Laura and John knew perished. After the fire, Laura and John adopted Tink, an older dog that survived the fire.  She is the latest addition to this big, happy bunch.


Along with the updated photos, Laura sent us her own words of wisdom:
"We believe we all have choices in life and John and I try their best to choose love and happiness each day. It's brought us through 9 fantastic years."


Now, that is great advice! 
Happy Anniversary, Laura + John!



No comments: