Amy + Bryce

(April 23, 2022 in New Bern, NC)

In this blog post, we will be exploring the vision and theme for our real bride Amy’s wedding day. The theme was a whimsical celestial fairytale, inspired by the movie Stardust. The day-of went smoothly, thanks to their wedding planner, and they were able to execute their vision in a beautiful hedge maze ceremony in North Carolina. The couple incorporated non-traditional elements into their ceremony and reception. They even included a unique trivia pub quiz at the end of their dinner. The most important tip the bride has for future brides is to make the day their own and not feel pressured to include every wedding tradition.

By our real bride, Amy:

What was the vision for your wedding?

My fiancé actually suggested the vision and theme of our wedding. One of our first dates was to watch the movie Stardust, based on the book by Neil Gaiman. It’s a whimsical fairytale with a celestial theme and as soon as he suggested it I knew that “whimsical celestial fairytale” would be our wedding vibe.

How did it go the day-of?

Considering that we had to travel across the country to make our wedding possible, things went surprisingly smoothly the day of! We had a wonderful wedding planner who took care of everything we needed the day-of. I really don’t think we could’ve had the wedding we did without a person on-site coordinating things for us in North Carolina while we were home in Washington.

I was so happy that my closest girls had traveled from Washington with me and that we were able to take pics in our Honest in Ivory robes as we were getting ready! My dress made me so happy and I feel like I sparkled in it the whole day through.

The weather was gorgeous the day-of and we go married outdoors in a hedge maze. I walked through our ceremony space on my way to do our first looks and heard the Bridgerton soundtrack playing over this colonial-style garden and was just overwhelmed with a sense of excitement and joy, seeing our vision finally being executed after being engaged for three years (thanks Covid).

Our ceremony was officiated by a mutual friend who kept it nontraditional by quoting E.E. Cummings in her speech. We also had close friends come up to do readings: my friend read a poem by Emily Dickinson, my mom read a traditional Celtic wedding blessing, and my fiancé’s friend read a passage from Carl Sagan about love and the universe. We kept our ceremony short and included some traditional Celtic elements like handfasting, and nontraditional elements, such as having a secular ceremony.

My mom made and quilted all of our table runners to match our theme and they turned out beautifully! Neither my fiancé nor I am really big on dancing, but we fell in love over trivia nights out with friends at a local pub. So we had a trivia pub quiz at the end of our dinner that we wrote ourselves and catered to our interests. It was so much fun and our guests got really into it! We finished the night with dancing and a sparkler exit. Everything went by so fast but it was really a perfect, lovely day.

What is your #1 tip to future brides?

At the end of the day, your wedding is about you and your fiancé and you deserve to do things that fit both of you. Whether that means having a traditional ceremony or not, a large crowd, or a few close friends, it truly doesn’t matter as long as you get to celebrate your love with your partner. You don’t have to include every single wedding tradition if you don’t want to, and you can even make a few new ones if you want. Our planner said she had never done a pub quiz at a wedding before, but our guests all raved about it and many said it was one of their favorite parts of the evening. Make the night your own!

Gown: Jardin by Blush by Hayley Paige

Veil: Estelle by Essense of Australia

Photographer: Adrian Etheridge

Venue: Tryon Palace

Planner: Jennifer Bertling

Photo Assistant: E.K. Dalton

Hair & Makeup: Magnolia Jane Salon

Florals: Blooms by Annie

Bridal Accessories: Twigs & Honey

DJ: DJ Smell Gus

Rentals: The Carolina Refinery

Cake: Mrs. Vingerber’s