Thanks to Darleene for inviting us to fill in with a guest blog. As photographers in Orange County we are blessed to work with some really resourceful people like Darleene who make our job much more fun. Today we’d like to share some details about an autumn wedding that featured inspiring home-made designs –everything from the guest invitations to the final banner which the couple ran through football-style as they headed off to their new life together.

April and Matt are hip, creative people, so it’s no surprise that they would put so much effort into creating a unique, fun atmosphere for their wedding guests on October 25. Their location was the Newland Barn at Newland House Museum in Huntington Beach, CA. And boy did they hit a home run! From the table centerpieces to the bridal flowers to the catered In-N-Out dinner, the whole evening was designed by the couple to match their casually eclectic personalities.

We were particularly impressed with the do-it-yourself bridal bouquets and boutonnieres. Made of recycled paper, these offered a colorful alternative to fresh flowers – and if April wants to keep them for posterity, they will last much longer!

The decorations were all hand-made as well, including fun centerpieces comprising old books and various pots/vases/bottles with fresh flowers and plants.  The sign-in table featured glittery hand-stamped place cards; instead of a traditional sign-in book, April and Matt offered a Polaroid camera so guests could take a picture to be left in a library book card along with some words of encouragement or love.

As for food, well, who would expect anything less than creative from these lovebirds? They brought in In-N-Out (yes, the big truck with drinks and all) which everyone loved.  After all, there are only so many ways to cook chicken, but who will forget catered burgers anytime soon? And instead of an over-the-top cake (which would have felt out of place) April and Matt opted for delicious mini-cupcakes – including some absolutely scrumptious peanut butter and jelly cupcakes, among other flavors – which were carefully laid out on a tiered vintage cake stand. The mini-cupcakes gave guests a chance to try several flavors, apparently a big hit as there were no leftovers at the end of the night.

This Huntington Beach wedding was a blast. All the hands-on creativity really made this a custom, one-of-a-kind wedding nobody will soon forget. For more photos from this and other creative couples, check out our blog at www.loriandersonphoto.com.