Melissa & Quinn are calm together; they’re one of those couples who put you at ease when you’re around them because you’re confident that they’re content and happy. They are both fans of simple, organic lifestyles. Their wedding showcased their personalities perfectly with its DIY, rustic, vintage, old school charm. You’ll see that I won’t list many vendors in this blog; that’s because most of these amazing & beautiful details were handmade by Melissa, her mother, Quinn, or their family members & friends. It was a labor of love. . . and it was absolutely lovely.
Melissa was getting ready for the day at her parents’ home in Salem. Two cute Casal Aveda students were doing updos for the bride & bridesmaids.
Here’s their unique cake made by the bride’s aunt. It was sooooo cool.
I was ooooohhh-ing and aaahhhhh-ing over their cute details.
Melissa’s mom made the cookies.
The ceremony took place at the gazebo at The Barn & Gazebo in Salem, Ohio. Their reception was inside the barn. Its rustic charm fit the occasion.
Melissa was a gorgeous bride! Just look at her eyes! And she has flawless skin. Â Quinn’s a lucky guy. 🙂
Josh was with the guys getting ready at the barn.
I love the rustic & vintage feel to this shot.
Quinn has such a winning smile.
The birdcage veil just tied the look together.
Melissa & Quinn decided to do a first look before the ceremony. When we talked to them after their wedding day, they both strongly agreed that this was the smartest decision they made for the wedding (besides the choice of spouse 😉 ) Because their ceremony & reception took place at the same venue & there was not a lot of time in between, the first look allowed them to have an intimate moment together when they first saw each other on their wedding day, permitted them time to enjoy relaxed, fun bridal party photos, and enabled them to have a lot of time together for a creative bride & groom session.
I love the delicateness & sweetness of the glances and soft touches between them during the first look. Swoon!
It was a gorgeous mid-August day.
They’re a stunning couple!
I just love Melissa’s look for her wedding day. She has a simple, low-maintenance style all other days so she didn’t want to be too high-fuss on her wedding day. Her hair, makeup, jewelry, veil, & dress all worked together to complete the stunning (yet simple) look that knocked Quinn’s socks off. 😉
The bridal party was awesome. They were fun & up for anything. We had a lot of laughs with them throughout the day.
“Bridesmaids.” Have you seen the movie?
Because of the first look, we had a lot of time to spend with the bridal party AND with the soon-to-be newlyweds. Awesome!
Melissa pinning on her dad’s boutonniere.
Their ceremony was perfect- the way they looked at each other, the way their voices sounded, their personalized vows, the way the sunlight was shining through the gazebo. . . everything.
The first two photos in the series below require me to tell the cutest story ever. While Melissa & her ‘maids were getting ready for the day, Melissa’s nieces and nephews were hanging out with them. They kept excitedly saying, “Almost Uncle Quinn” when talking about Quinn. Just after the ceremony, the youngest niece, Bri, ran down to Quinn and yelled, “You’re my Uncle Twin now!” (Q’s aren’t in her vocab just yet). She gave him a huge hug. And then she ran away. It was darling.
After some very relaxed family photos in between the ceremony & reception (due to the time wisely allocated for the first look at the beginning of the day), they were introduced to the reception as husband and wife.
Some short, sweet speeches were uttered in honor of the happy couple.
The cake was cut.
And they shared their first dance as husband & wife.
Melissa & her dad:
Quinn & his mom:
Then the party busted loose:
The very best friends that anyone could have. 🙂
LJ the DJ did a great job keeping everyone involved & dancing.
We snuck them away for a few minutes during twilight.
Melissa & Quinn, congratulations again! We couldn’t have asked for two more amazing people to share a wedding day with & we were honored to photograph the love you two share. We wish you a long, lovely life full of laughter and enthusiasm for the uniqueness of each other.
If you’re interested in having Josh & Danielle of Menning Photographic shoot your wedding, please call or email us: 330.651.4849 or info@menningphotographic.com
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