Real Wedding: Colleen and Andrew

real-wedding-colleen-and-andrew

As Colleen and Andrew entered into marriage, they did so with thought and reverence. They gave thanks to the past, which brought them to this place, and look forward with hope to what the future will bring!

What was the most memorable part of your wedding day?

The most memorable part of our wedding day was seeing all the small details we worked so hard on, come together. The most special for us, with the video we shot that we displayed on one of the walls as homage to our first date. The restaurant we had our first date at always played old movie footage projected on the walls and it created the coolest ambiance.

Once we started our wedding planning I knew it was a detail I wanted to make happen and our venue had the perfect wall to utilize for it.

Additionally about 3 weeks before our wedding my dad, who owns a jewelry store, acquired the most beautiful tiara that I have ever seen, and I had the honor of getting to wear it, we believe it is from the early 1900s and the moment I put it on, I felt like a true princess, it officially felt like a family heirloom. In just a few short months my cousin will likely wear it for her wedding too!

Colleen, paint us a picture. What was the theme, style, colors, and overall vibe of your wedding day?

Our venue was a lush desert garden area in Scottsdale, AZ. We both had a clear vision that involved clean lines, and a neutral linen color pallet, with a majority of the color coming just from the florals.

We choose maroon and a dusty blue color for our accent/florals so we could play off of the greenery and desert landscaping that was already there.

What was your favorite part of planning your wedding?

Colleen: My favorite part of wedding planning had to be dress shopping, I met my two best friends on a weekend trip to San Diego, to try on dresses and ended up picking the 2nd one I tried on. Then we went to a boozy brunch, because of course.

Andrew: My favorite part of wedding planning was choosing the venue, I was very specific on making sure the venue we choose checked all of our boxes because we knew how important the venue was to a good foundation.

What was the best investment you made for your wedding?

The best investment we made for the wedding was first and foremost all of our vendors, but for a physical item it was definitely our neon sign, it was one of the last things we splurged on and it really did a great job of helping to liven up the dance floor and get people comfortable.

Is there anything you would have done differently?

We both said afterwards there wasn’t anything we would have planned differently, but my amazing bridesmaids did have to step in and make a few last-minute changes to make it perfect.

What was your favorite part of using WedSites for your wedding?

I loved the guest management aspect of WedSites, it was so easy to keep track of RSVPs and meals and the built-in planning checklist really helped me to stay on task and get all the things done.

Wedding planning is notoriously stressful. Now that you’ve gone through the process, do you have any advice or words of wisdom for couples who are currently in the midst of planning theirs?

I think my biggest piece of advice is to remember that you’re hiring the vendors and while yes they have a specific job, ultimately they are executing YOUR vision, remember to speak up and let your vision be the guide, there were a few times where I had to remind myself of that, because I tend to be very go with the flow, so I had to remind myself to speak up.

The amazing team of vendors involved with this wedding:

Venue/Cake: Andaz Scottsdale
Photography: Saje Photo
Dress: The Dress Theory – Rime Arodaky
Tiara/Jewelry: Excalibur Jewelry
Florals: Floralish
Chuppah/Neon Sign/Rentals: Material Girls Weddings
Video: Landon McLeod
Hair and Makeup: Something Beautiful Styles
Planner: McKenna Katherine Weddings
Wedding Website: WedSites