• Real Weddings

Reilly and Melissa's wedding took place deep in the Oregon woods. It was filled with amazing florals and succulents designed by Passionflower Design and lovely sweet honey wedding favors. You must read on to hear about their wedding story and how they moved in together the very next day after meeting. It truly is a love story. See all the images here captured by Kacy Kizer Photography.

From The Bride:A long time ago there was an India-Afghan man, Sidar Ikbal Ali Shah, who was the son of a very powerful man in Afghanistan. He traveled to Scotland to continue his education. One night he attended a community dinner and met a Scottish girl. She was the daughter of a wealthy Scottish business man, and only 17 at the time. Upon meeting they immediately they fell into a fantastical state of bliss and ecstasy, and that is why they decided to run away together, that night. They knew that this was their chance because their families would never have approved. They went on to live as grand a tale as one can hope to live.

This is us. Reilly and I knew on our first date that if there was some reason why we couldn't be together we would have run away together that night. And that is why we moved in together the very next day. Being together has been like living out the most unimaginable dream. We wake up every morning inspired to live our love story. I am so grateful I feel like my heart could explode with light.

Getting married in the woods was an absolute must, so when we found Deep Woods Events we were thrilled and in awe of the gorgeous backdrop we would be getting married against. Almost everyone who attended the wedding traveled a great distance to be there so I really wanted them to get a taste of how special Oregon is to us. After we were married we walked down the aisle to the Drop Kick Murphy's rendition of Cadence to Arm, it was amazing and really was a great way to go our with a bang.It was a perfect transition from the sweet and calm ceremony to the reception party that lasted all night!

We decided to center our wedding around a honeybee theme because my name means honeybee and Reilly's favorite food is honey. Each guest got a little jar of honey from our local farmer's market here in town, we felt like incorporating our local life into the wedding was essential. That's also why we chose to use many Etsy vendors, we really like supporting artisans. Something cool and unique that we did was have an advice card at each place setting instead of a guest book. I loved it because everyone participated and we feel like we got really genuine answers that we will cherish more than a guestbook entry.

Probably my favorite detail of the whole day were the gorgeous succulent boxes that my dad made himself from scratch. They were a huge hit and it was so special to have something so personal on each table. Lot's of things from the wedding were DIY. I designed, made and hand stamped all the invitation, we made hand stamped "advice" cards instead of having a guest book, we collect twigs and logs from the woods to line the aisle, I planted all the accent succulents in little pots I found around and the list goes on.

Photographer: Kacy Kizer Photography Flowers & Floral Crown: Passionflower Design Venue: Deep Woods Events Cake: Sweet Life Patisserie Caterer: Billy Mac's Dress Designer: Allure Couture from Blush Bridal Boutique Groom's Attire: J.Crew Shoe Designer: Urban Outfitters Stationery: Handmade by the Bride, Paper by BHLDN Prop or Furniture Rentals: Essig Entertainment & Destination Events Cupcakes: The Divine Cupcake