Remembering Our Victorian Wedding
June is the favorite month for weddings, so I thought I'd post some pictures of our Victorian wedding!
We got married in October, almost 14 years ago. I wanted our wedding to be as Victorian as possible, without breaking our budget. None of our friends or relatives are Victorian, so we didn't want to impose our tastes too much on anyone.
We decided to add as many touches as we could that would have a Victorian flair. And when I say "Victorian," I use the term loosely, as my theme was based on the 1906 era. That is my favorite year for women's fashions!
We designed programs that were handed out at the church and reception, describing our themes, listing the music and readings, the dinner menu, the reception musical selections, and some fun facts about us.
After the ceremony, we had some pictures taken outdoors at a nearby gazebo. I loved the idea of a gazebo so much, that a few years ago we had one built for our own garden!
The reception hall was very beautiful and accommodating to our wishes. We set oil lamps wrapped in silk greenery on all the round tables. When the overhead lights were dimmed, the glow from the oil lamps was very Victorian!
Our cake was lovely and very delicious! We chose doves as our decoration for the top, because we both love nature and birdwatching.
We had set up an easel with old-fashioned cards describing the different parts of our reception, such as would have been used between the acts of a Victorian play. Some of the other cards were "Dancing," "Cutting The Cake," etc.
I decided to design and sew my own wedding dress. I scoured old photos and pictures of Victorian fashions until I finally settled on the look I wanted. I also designed and sewed our niece Emily's maid-of-honor dress. Our two youngest nieces, Allison and Elisa, wore cute little dresses I made from a pattern. My dress was white, the girls' were ecru, and our accent color was antique peach. The whole look turned out just as I planned!
Terry wore a black tux with tails, a white shirt, white vest and white bow tie. The groomsmen, nephews Joe and Rob, wore black tuxes with white shirts and black bow ties. Very handsome and dashing men!
Did I mention that we had all our nieces and nephews as our wedding party? Since we were older, we felt most of our friends and relatives wouldn't want to go through the whole wedding party thing, and everyone loved the idea of the kids being involved. Since that day, we've added one more niece and two more nephews to our family!
It was an elegant day, full of wonderful memories we will cherish forever!
33 Comments:
OMGoodness..... Your gown....the other gowns & the setting makes me swoon!! So...so beautiful! You should be so very proud of the job you did. What wonderful memories you both made!!
Love,
Marilyn
xxoo
Marilyn-
Thank you! We often think back to that day. We were so lucky, everything went on without a hitch!
-Pam
Such pretty dresses! And you made them too...wow!
I love the ideas of the programs, the cards on the easel at the reception and the 'oil lamps' on the tables.
I made little programs for our wedding reception tables too, that explained some of the meanings behind some of the symbols and motifs we chose in the wedding (peacocks, the Prince of Plumes design motif etc.)
I like the design of yours! Very Victorian looking; mine were rather plain.
You were a gorgeous Bride, Peautiful couple. I love the colors and the cake is so awesome. Wish I could have been there..
You should put those pictures in a vault. I lost mine in a fire.. Thanks for sharing.
yvonne
I can't believe you MADE that gown. It is gorgeous.
Your whole wedding sounds like it was a very special event, clearly one you have very special memories of.
- The Tablescaper
Katie-
I love your wedding photo in your side bar, and your cake topper had birds like ours! Your toasting glasses are beautiful. It's nice when you have a theme, isn't it?!
-Pam
Yvonne-
Thank you! Ooo, you're scaring me about the photos. It's so sad that you lost yours in a fire. It's probably a great idea to put them somewhere safe. Meanwhile, I'm starting to scan all my older photos. Maybe I should keep a copy of all my scans in a safe deposit box?
-Pam
Hi, Tablescaper!
Thank you for the nice comments! I used to design and sew a lot of my own clothes, but I must say, the wedding dress was my biggest undertaking!
-Pam
Oh Pam, what a beautiful wedding you had.
You know, those ladies that cry in their lacy hanky at weddings, well I never thought I would be one of those after I got married. Looking at your wedding pictures made me emotional because I know how deep and meaningful this was to both of you.
Thank you so much for sharing such an occasion.
Anyes
XX
Hi Anyes-
You are so sweet!
I usually tear up at weddings. I was worried I'd cry at my own wedding, but not a tear was shed (by me anyway!). I must have been too busy smiling to think about crying! :-)
-Pam
You forgot to mention that I sewed my own tuxedo. Seriously, thank you for this post about our wedding. I will remember that wonderful day forever.
Hi Terry-
It was nice looking through all the pictures again. But I know if you knew how to sew, you would have made yourself some kind of 60's rock star costume. So I'm glad you let me chose your look. :-)
-Pam
What a wonderful day for you and not just because you are marrying the man of your dreams! It never occured to me to have my wedding in my favorite style. You are very creative and the wedding was beautiful!!
Machelle
Hi Machelle-
It was a lot of planning, but we managed to pull it off. I can't believe how long ago it was already! Time flies!
-Pam
Dear Pam,
What a beautiful wedding..and you looked stunning. Twas a lovely wedding party as well as a dashing groom. These pictures make a beautiful story. I wish you many, many more happy, blissful Victorian years.
xoxo
Sandra
Miss Sandra-
Thank you for the kind words! My husband made the decision to shave off his two-toned mustache not too long after the wedding, and I think he looks younger now than he did 14 years ago! :-)
-Pam
I am so impressed with your sewing skills! Your gown is stunning. The maid of honor's also... you did a lovely job incorperating the victorian look and style into your wedding. Thanks for sharing.
Blessings~
Gwen
Thanks for sharing your lovely wedding. I'm so impressed with your seamstress skills - your gown was lovely. I loved all the period details - especially the cards announcing each part of the reception. You would be a great wedding planner for vintage weddings!
Cheers,
Leah
Gwendolyn-
Thank you! I began sewing at about age 9 (Barbie clothes, etc.) but I don't do much of it lately. :-)
-Pam
Leah-
I never thought about being a wedding planner, but that would have been a fun job! I'm a stickler for details, to the point of obsessive-compulsive at times ! :-)
-Pam
Oh Pam, this is so lovely to see! Your pictures and the day look just perfect and I love your colors and music selections! I wish I could have been there as I love weddings especially when they are this beautiful and so full of detail.
I thank you for sharing, dear friend!
Terry
Terry-
You are so sweet! Thank you for the kind words. We were really lucky to have such nice weather in October. It can be very nasty here that time of year! :-)
-Pam
This is the most beautiful wedding I have ever seen!
What a TOTALLY perfect day and Wedding...how beautiful your dress was and you were so beautiful in it.
The cake, the hall, the church the program you designed were PERFECT too for your theme.
HAPPY ANNIVERSARY this coming October.
Love, Rose
Bernideen-
What a nice thing to say... thank you! We enjoyed and savored every moment! :-)
-Pam
Rose-
Thank you, you are sweet! The years are flying by. I think time speeds up the older you get. :-)
-Pam
I don't know why I had not seen this blog about your wedding. MY, my, Terry looks like a true English gentlemen in his tux.
Lady Estelle-
Yes, doesn't he look dapper? That day is probably the only time we will ever be that dressed-up again in our lives! :-)
-Pam
Wow, how wonderful the dresses! All the victorian details! How special, and to share it with us...thank you!
Love
Marcie
Marcie, I'm glad you enjoyed seeing it all, and thank you! :-)
-Pam
I don't remember seeing this the first time around so that's why I am commenting 1 1/2 years later. Your dress was gorgeous. Love the little Victorian touches at the reception. My husband and I did the same with nieces and nephews because my sisters and friends were past the point of wanting to put on a frilly bridesmaid dress.
Hi Pam-
Ha! thanks, yeah once you get past a certain age, the whole bridesmaid dress thing seems silly. Thanks for your nice comments!
-Pam
I just discovered your blog. Thank you for posting the pictures of your wedding, it was beautiful!
This had made me realize how much of my own life I have added Eastlake Victorian to.
I'm going to create my own blog, I have a number of photographs to start with - but I am going to follow yours for inspiration.
Cassandra
http://clmts-miniatureworld.blogspot.com/
My miniature Victorian world
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