This couple sure do know how to conquer the streets with their music and romance. Sure, the only symbol of their passion in music is the guitar they used as a prop, but we’ve been told that these two actually has influential backgrounds in the art. Plus, this album totally feels like a music video of two lovers walking around the streets while singing a romantic song with a slow melody and sweet lyrics. But really, look at how in love Barbra and Tom are. Congratulations you two!
What is your story as a couple, how did you meet & fall in love?
We met in college, fell very quickly in love and have been kickin’ it together ever since!
What makes the two of you a perfect match?
We’re a good match because our personality traits complement each other so well. While we have very opposite features, we work extremely well together as a team and have a lot of fun doing it!
How did he (or you) propose?
Tom proposed after 4 years of dating at the Southeast Lighthouse on Block Island (our favorite place) after a truly magical day he planned for me. Best day ever!
What are you most excited about for the future?
We’re so excited to begin this next chapter of our lives. We’ve been together for 6 years so we didn’t expect marriage to feel as different as it does. It’s a truly remarkable and accomplished feeling to be starting a life, and one day family, with someone you’ve worked so hard with to build such a beautiful foundation. Not to mention your BFF.
What did you want to portray in your engagement shoot?
One of the first movies we ever watched together was Walk The Line and immediately felt a connection to Johnny & June. We based our shoot after stills from that movie.
Why did you choose the location?
Honestly, our photographer ended up being from Boston so we used it as an excuse to take a trip out there to take our photos. It was early August and such a gorgeous day in the city. We were trying to find romantic back alleys and grassy areas. Beacon Hill and the Charles River worked out really well.
What inspired your outfits for the engagement session?
The movie definitely inspired our outfits! Overall, we wanted to look and feel natural.
Do the photos give a hint on what will happen on their wedding day? How so?
Not really! Our engagement shoot really had nothing to do with the theme of our wedding – besides me wearing white!
How did you feel at ease with all the posed shooting?
Our photographer really made us feel comfortable. And we also didn’t take a ton of ‘posed’ photos – we wanted to capture the candid moments.
Our lovely bride shared with us a comprehensive rehash of the things that happened before and during her wedding and we didn’t want it to go to waste (really informative!) so you can Click here to access the blog feature of their wedding day as you read through her answers to our wedding questions.How long was the planning process? Did you think it was enough time?
We had a long engagement – a little over 2 years, which we chose to do for financial reasons. At first we thought it was the best decision – but in the end it felt a little too long! You have too much time to make decisions and then change your mind! At least when you’re planning with a tight timeframe, you make a decision and you have to stick to it!
What was the best advice you received when you were planning your wedding?
The best advice we received is that nobody cares about your wedding as much as you. And that’s not to sound negative! But it keeps you in perspective. You tend to get so caught up in the planning and your ‘dream day’ (society doesn’t help that pressure either) and you sometimes forget that your friends, family, loved ones all have their own important things going on as well! Although it feels like it, your wedding is not the center of the universe. We tried to keep steady heads on our shoulders.
What tips & tricks (can we use “hacks”?) can you share future brides that you yourself have learned during and after your wedding?
Our best tip would be to ignore the ‘rules.’ Weddings today are much different than weddings of the past. You can do anything you want. Every aspect of our wedding was personalized to reflect us as a couple from our 4-tier cheese wheel wedding cake (we’re obsessed with cheese) to our ceremony, which we completely wrote ourselves and was performed by my brother. Your guests will attend a zillion weddings in their lifetime. They’re coming to yours, not to just attend another cookie cutter wedding, but to celebrate what you’ve become as a couple. Let yours reflect you!
What were some challenges you faced while planning your wedding & what did you do to address them?
The challenges we faced were abundant! Especially having so much time to plan – it seemed there were constant hurdles. But the biggest was trying to make every family member, friend, loved one happy. We’re both people who like to please and would give up a lot to make another person happy which is how we approached planning at the beginning- but eventually became really frustrated. It’s simply impossible. Your wedding is about the two of you. Literally everyone is going to throw in their two cents and opinion. Just remember to stay grounded and always make the decision based on what’s important to you and your fiancee.
What inspired your wedding décor? Why did you choose the things that you did?
The wedding decor was inspired by our life and how we live at home. We’re serious nesters and love to cook, decorate and entertain. (Seriously, check out our blog haha: saturdaynightsin.wix.com/saturdaynightsin). We wanted our wedding to feel like a large, fancy dinner party that was overall low key and relaxed. We had simple flower arrangements that included all white hydrangeas with herbs. The tables were decorated with a french/tuscan country theme including elements like fresh eggplant, artichokes, lemons, cookbooks, baguettes, olive leaves, candles, etc. We knew we didn’t want to spend a lot on centerpieces that we would never use
again, so that’s why we went with what we did. It was relatively inexpensive, but made a huge impact.
What was the biggest expense?
The actual biggest expense was the venue which was a country estate that we rented for the weekend where guests could stay and everything from the rehearsal dinner to brunch took place. But the biggest splurge was my custom wedding dress (thanks Aunt Paula)!
How many guests were invited in your wedding and what was the final guest count?
We invited 175 guests and had about 110 attend.
How did you narrow down your list?
We were just really picky about who we invited. We tried to only invite guests who had a personal relationship with BOTH of us. Even the friends our parents invited were people that we knew very well as a couple. We got strangely protective over the intimate nature of our ceremony and didn’t want people there we didn’t really know.
What songs did you use during the ceremony?
That’s a loaded question! To walk down the aisle, we used an original wedding song my father wrote for him and my mother 32 years ago. That was our Something Borrowed. Then, as a part of our ceremony, we heard for the first time the original wedding song my father wrote for Tom and I. That was our Something New. Our recessional was “Home” by Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes – a song we’ve loved throughout our relationship.
Where did you go on your honeymoon?
We honeymooned in Tuscany! We did a 25 city self guided city tour of the Italian countryside in our little rental car! Quite the adventure
Do you have advice for couples still in the planning process?
Breathe! Never lose focus on what that day is about. As much as we all love to throw a good party, there are many more opportunities in life for that. Your wedding is really all about the ceremony and the celebration of you as a unique couple. Really take in the special moments from the planning process and wedding day – it flies! Hug your parents, family, friends SO tight and don’t leave your spouse’s side so you can enjoy it all and have memories together to re-live on the trip to your honeymoon! And remember the best part is what’s to come
What do you think is the overall story for this album?
Lots of LOVE!
What inspired the wedding day outfits?
Our engagement photo outfits were inspired by Johnny and June Carter Cash/Walk the Line. A favorite couple of ours! Wedding day outfits were based on our personalities. When I started the process of trying on dresses, I wanted to be like 10 different brides – princess, high fashion, retro – but in the end, a sexier, simple style was what I went with. I wanted to look like myself on my wedding day… but still pack a big punch
What was your favorite part of the day?
Reciting our own written vows to each other. Hands down, the BEST part of the day!
Was there any Do it Yourself (DIY) projects? If so, can you describe them in detail?
There are two reasons to do DIY projects: 1. To save money and 2. To feel closer to your wedding by building pieces of it yourself and with loved ones. But know when to not kill yourself and just pay for something! We did a TON of DIY projects for our wedding, and some took more time, effort, caused more stress and surprisingly cost more money than worth it. And then some others were beyond worth it and rewarding. It’s a balance! They can get really overwhelming – especially with weddings now being SO personalized and unique – you feel a ton of pressure! You’ll want to spend money on a bunch of random things that don’t mean that much at the end of the day. Keep your eye on the prize (your spouse to be)!
What were the highlights from the ceremony & reception?
The whole ceremony was a highlight. The highlights of the reception were seeing the food and dinner we designed come to life, the song my parents, Tom and his best men performed together, and hugging all of our guests for the first time as husband and wife!
Was there a theme for the ceremony and reception?
No specific theme. But the whole wedding included highlights of Italian/French countryside living that we admire.
What part of the ceremonies do you think was the most memorable for you? Your guests?
The written vows and the uniqueness of the ceremony in general got the biggest reaction from our guests. We’re a couple that is often seen as the comic relief, so it was nice to show how seriously we take our relationship and how hard we’ve worked for it to our guests.
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Photographer: Makayla Jade Photography
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