From Jaimie
Shannon + Derek had such an amazing, low-key day for their Tower Grove Park Elopement. The weather could not have been more perfect!
Shannon got ready at home, with her friends and family. Since her friends were not part of their tiny elopement ceremony, it made spending the morning with them pretty emotional. Their excitement was palpable as she made her way out to her Jeep to head to Tower Grove Park.
I love morning light. And I got to do Shannon and Derek’s portraits and ceremony in morning light. And the perfect weather was just the cherry on top.
Elopements and small weddings have a rawness that big weddings don’t have. I love that. I love the intimacy and closeness of a super small wedding. I feel like couples and those around them feel more open and vulnerable.
I’m pretty sure there wasn’t a dry eye around during their ceremony, and you know what? It made for some amazing photos.
Their brunch at Seed Sprout Spoon was the perfect ending to a perfect morning!
How would you describe your wedding experience?
I would describe it as … exhausting. Haha! But also super emotional. Because we choose to do a smaller wedding, everyone felt more connected and vulnerable.
What was the biggest obstacle in planning your wedding?
Deciding what kind of wedding we wanted to have. It was either have an all-day event, fund the entire day ourselves and go into debt or have a small ceremony, take a 2 week vacation and pay everything off by the end of the year. Initially there was a lot of push back from family and friends who were offended that they wouldn’t be included. They came around eventually.
What advice would you give to other couples for their wedding day?
Do what makes sense for you. There is so much pressure surrounding your wedding – everyone has an opinion. Put all of those opinions aside and don’t second guess your gut.
Was there anything that surprised you on the wedding day?
The weather. We got so lucky. A high of 85 in the middle of a St. Louis summer is rare!
What was your first thought when you woke up the morning of the wedding?
Shannon’s was “It’s time” … Derek’s was “Am I late?”
Tell me about your dress- where did you find it, how did you choose it, and how did you know it was the one?
I found it browsing online. I didn’t try any other dresses on. I had gone with my sister-in-law and all her friends to try on dresses for her wedding this upcoming fall. Everyone was throwing opinions at her, I had no idea how she was going to be able to make a decision for herself! In that moment I decided against involving anyone in the process. My dress didn’t fit perfectly when it came in and I wasn’t sold on it until the day of honestly. Haha, I’m glad it worked out!
What was the overall theme or “feel” of your wedding? What was your inspiration?
The overall theme for our wedding, I would say, was romantic, soft & untraditional with a touch of whimsy. I didn’t have much to go off of honestly, what I was envisioning had never been done. When we chose the rug, we finally had a color palette – that helped pull everything together.
Tell me about how you each felt when you saw each other for the first time.
When I saw Derek for the first time, I thought: “Wow – he is my everything. My best friend. I will be proud to call him my husband.”
When I saw Shannon for the first time, I thought: “Man, she looks amazing! Her dress is glamorous and clean! Her hair is sleek and cool! Wow, I’m about to cry. This is how our story begins.”
What was your first dance song and how did you choose it?
We opted out of the first dance. We honestly weren’t going to do any dances at all, but Derek’s dad had mentioned that his mom wanted one, so we decided to surprise her! And then of course we couldn’t leave out a father-daughter dance. We were literally looking for songs 2 days before the wedding. Haha
Tell me how you felt during the reception.
During the reception I finally felt at ease. The hardest part was over – the exchange of vows. We could finally relax and enjoy our time with our family. And I could finally cry without fear of ruining my makeup, which I did! Haha
What was your favorite part of the day?
My favorite part of the day was listening to the vows Derek had prepared. They were so meaningful and heartfelt – I was taken aback!
What were you most anxious/nervous/fearful about regarding your wedding day and what was the outcome?
I was most anxious about the ceremony clean up since we were doing it by ourselves and on such a short timeline. I was right to be so anxious – it didn’t go very smoothly! Haha In hindsight I probably would’ve hired a day of wedding coordinator to make sure everyone was where they needed to be. I love my dad, but he is not a man of logistics. lol
When planning your wedding, what photos were most important to you and why?
When planning my wedding, candid photos of Derek and I were most important to me. After doing an engagement session with his mom, I realized that A. We were always posed and looking at the camera and B. You could see our nerves in our body language. You did a wonderful job of capturing just us!
Vendors
Florist: Flowers and Weeds // Hair and Makeup: Carly Leibach for Emily Miller // Dress: BHLDN Katie May Legacy Dress Jewelry: BHLDN // Suit: Macy’s Kenneth Cole // Triangle Altar: DIY by bride’s dad // Brunch Venue and catering: Seed Sprout Spoon
