Talk about perfect! You will instantly fall in love with this real wedding the way we did and you will be jotting down ideas for your own wedding since this bride seemed to think of several creative ones. One of our favorite design aspects about this wedding was the non-floral wedding centerpieces that this bride created… they are just perfect. This lovely New England rustic wedding took place at a barn wedding venue in Massachusetts called Zukas Hilltop Barn which is just lovely. From the bride: We knew we wanted our wedding to be cozy and relaxed. Nothing too fussy. Again, something that mirrors our personalities. I have always been drawn to Rustic settings and decor and swooned over the many real weddings on your blog. We began searching for venues in New England and quickly became overwhelmed. Weddings are expensive. We couldn’t imagine spending $25,000.00 and upwards on a wedding— not in the budget for a nursing student. I had all but given up on the dream wedding when we stumbled on Zukas Hilltop Barn in Spencer, Massachusetts. It was GORGEOUS and affordable. It was within price range without sacrificing on quality— which I thought I would have to do. We fell in love. The foliage was breathtaking, and it just had the cozy feeling. We had found our venue! Thank you to Photography By Mallory for sharing this wonderful wedding with us today.
We tried to add a personal element to every piece of the day. Instead of an expensive wedding cake, we had a friend of a friend make a small naked wedding cake, so we had something to cut into. For guests we had baskets and baskets of cider donuts with a cran-apple hot cider for dipping. I don’t know a soul that could/would decline a cider donut. We also had a sweet table— courtesy of Beau’s aunt. It included: jalapeño corn bread, chocolate covered pretzels, chocolate covered oreos, s’mores on a stick & whoopee pies (to name a few). She has a small business and she makes favors for weddings, showers, and other events. Guests loved them and still ask where we got the peanut butter cups from! Lastly, the venue has a bon fire outback — how perfect. I honestly don’t know if anyone used it, the dance floor was packed all night! But, if so I’m sure it was cozy as ever, given it was the breeziest fall night.
For centerpieces, we decided on mismatching lanterns for half of the tables, and I asked each bridesmaid to pick one, to add a personal touch to the decor. On the other tables we jumped on the mason jar bandwagon and I wrapped them each with twine. My friend and classmate offered to help with our flowers and did an amazing job. She saw my vision and made it come to life. My sweet uncle is somewhat of a lumber jack and thankfully cut down some birch for our centerpieces— you would be shocked to know how much they retail for! Beau and I also used wood rounds for our escort cards to keep with the Rustic/Woodsy feel. My brother drilled holes in each wood round and I hand wrote all of the guest names. I really love how they came out and bonus, they double as Christmas ornaments (of course)! For our guestbook we went with the self-serve Polaroid station, I loved the idea of a guestbook but something a little unique. I love that we have photos of all of our guests but also have a sweet message to go along with each one— we’ll be reading and re-reading for years to come.
Sources – photography: Photography By Mallory / venue: Zukas Hilltop Barn, a Massachusetts rustic wedding venue / floral design: Eden Floral Design / wedding gown: Madeline’s Daughter / beauty: Vanity Salon of Wakefield Ma, Bella Brides / cider donuts: Charlton Orchards, Charlton, Ma / floral crown: Hillside Florist
No Comments