Kelsey + Kagan were married at a lovely little church in Maryland followed by a super fun reception at a local community hall. Kelsey is the store artist for Anthropologie in Annapolis, so it’s no surprise that she completely transformed the space with tons of rad, handmade details. Kagan pitched in big time as well, building all the planters for reception + helping Kelsey craft things like the giant gold heart that hung behind the head table. According to the lovely bride, Everything was made by our hands – and in the end, our wedding felt like a celebration tailor-made just for us.

And you would never know it, but their pre-wedding portraits took place in front of an abandoned insane asylum! Sometimes the places you’d least expect can make a really cool backdrop for your photos.

Big thanks to Sarah Culver for the lovely photos + congratulations Kelsey + Kagan!

Kelsey + Kagan created such a fun environment for their reception. I just love it!

And I’m obsessed with these adorable gold-painted animal cake toppers! (And they’re a super easy DIY, similar to this post we shared recently!)

Hands down, it was sawing a log with my new husband. Just after our engagement, Kagan had said that the only thing he wanted for our wedding was to saw a log together, a German wedding tradition. Now, this didn't exactly match up with all of my picturesque Pinboards, but I hestitantly agreed, hoping he'd forget about it. He didn't, and I am so glad! It was a good reminder that weddings can be beautiful but also fun, silly even.

Prioritize!! Allocate your expenses early on - especially if you're on a budget! I placed photography at the top of my list, followed closely by food and music, with things like wedding cake (we don't even like cake) and my dress (I got lucky - my dream dress wound up being $500) at the bottom. It also made things much easier when I prioritized my time - the things that were most important we tackled early on; this made it much easier to let go of anything that was unfinished or "imperfect" once the rehearsal rolled around (I gave myself a cut-off, and you should too!)

photography: Sarah Culver // venue: Ceremony at St. Paul’s Anglican Church, Reception at Historic Baldwin Hall Millersville, Maryland // floral design + hairpieces : Flowers by Eden // wedding dress: Vera Wang White // shoes: Seychelles “I do” // bridesmaid dresses: Thrifted, Asos, H&M // groom suit: Vera Wang Black // paper goods: Bride, chevron runners from Paper Source // catering: The Main Ingredient // cake: Wegmans Ultimate White Cake // music: Mixing Maryland // cake topper: Sian Keegan

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