Rustic Style Engagement Party: Tiffany + George

Leading up to the big day many couples have an engagement party to celebrate the start of the next chapter and a way to kick off the wedding celebrations. This rustic style engagament party was submitted to us by a reader and I think it is perfect to share. From the bride: When my fiancee and I got engaged I knew that we would be a couple that was engaged a little longer than the typical year engagement. My fiancee is finishing his residency in medicine and we need time to save money for our wedding, plan, and give both of our families, many of which will be traveling internationally for our wedding, time to make proper travel arrangements.  Facing the prospect of a longer engagement, both George and I wanted to have a more immediate celebration with our friends and family so we could all share in the joy of our two families becoming one.  We decided an engagement party was the answer and began planning one within a few weeks of our engagement!

We chose St. Stephen Church Hall in South Plainfield, New Jersey because of the very neutral decor.  With lots of windows looking out onto gardens and the forest and hard wood floors, the recently constructed church hall provided a neutral palate that I could deck out to my heart’s desire but still had a rustic and elegant feel. From the beginning we wanted an eclectic vibe and used kraft paper envelopes with our invitations as well as vintage botanical stamps I spent weeks hunting down on Etsy.com! For the event decor, I mixed wood and burlap elements with lace to create a romantic feel, and then added in mixed gold and silver mercury glass votive holders on all of the tables as well as the window sills.  The main centerpieces were meant to carry the rustic theme with a mix of Queen Anne’s Lace and hypericum berries, and next to them was a second table arrangement with deep red spray roses and viburnum- a mix on the table of rustic meeting refined.  We also placed table setting thank you cards, a trend I see emerging at weddings that I love, to express our gratitude to our 90 guests (some of whom traveled a long distance just to join us and celebrate our engagement).  We gave Momofuku Milk Bar NYC cake truffles in the Carrot Cake flavor (my fiance’s favorite!) as our party favors and made the favor bags out of kraft paper coffee tin tie bags and custom labels I made online that said “A treat for being so sweet” on them. We also created little post cards with a sepia tone photo of us and a quote about love for guests to take as a keepsake.

Sources – photography & Design: Meghan Finn Floral & Event Styling / venue: St. Stephen Church Hall in South Plainfield, New Jersey