A Wedding in Michigan

My friend and colleague, Beth Mancuso, was married to her husband, Nick Chekaway, in Millburg, Michigan, in late May. Beth is the home department manager at the Anthropologie store in Troy, Michigan. When I saw the photographs of her special day recently, I knew I had to blog about them here. I wanted to share with you some of the whimsical, personal and all-together charming details of this very personalized and very lovely wedding; handmade, hand-painted and hand-crafted details were everywhere in evidence, bringing beautiful touches of character and delight to her special day.

She was married to her husband Nick at The Blue Dress Barn, a beautiful and historic Milburg landmark known for its gardens and quaint entertaining spaces. Below are some of the details that made the day unique and memorable. I hope you find them inspiring! Congratulations, Beth and Nick!

A charming handmade sign with handmade paper decorations greet the arriving guests.More of the beautiful paper decorations are layered in beautiful, bright shades and hang from tree limbs around the grounds.Beth fastened some of the fanned paper decorations at the center with adorable heart-shaped buttons.

The decorations continue along the aisle where the ceremony will take place, dangling from the crisp, white chairs and the iron arbor at the center.
The entrance to the barn.

Inside, Beth decorated the space with hanging paper lanterns and large swatches of patterned fabric.

Straws from Anthropologie and large mason jars for a rustic touch.

Beth handmade each of the place cards, using faux-bois paper.Homemade meringue mushrooms (a Martha Stewart recipe!) were used as favours. They were placed inside these small paper bags, stamped with a mushroom design and tied with yellow yarn.

The succulent centerpieces were embellished with tiny little wooden toadstools, hand painted.

Each centerpiece was slightly unique.

Throughout the barn, Beth scattered lovely arrangements. She used hollowed out birch logs as vases.The tables were numbered with wooden discs with the numbers carved into them. A jar of natural honey was available for each guest.

The cake was a gorgeous three-tier. It was vanilla with raspberry filling made by Dee's Specialty Cakes. It was adorned with Martha Stewart's meringue mushrooms and topped by two owl ornaments which were made by Beth.The cake looks lovely in its rustic setting.The bridal bouquet.Beth inspects the wedding party's bouquets before the big moment.The men's coursages.Her dress was lovely, part of the Diamond Collection by Casablanca Bridal.The first kiss as husband and wife!