• Real Weddings

Mandie and Colton wanted a wedding that represented them as a whole, and paid homage to their family roots.  By holding their wedding at Colton's family farm, and creating many of the unique and stylish decor on their own, they created their dream wedding that had Mandie and Colton written all over it.
Want to see more? Check out every last one of the fabulous photos of this family farm wedding in pink and gray taken by Kristilee Parish Photography in the full gallery here. Be sure to read on Mandie shares her full budget breakdown with us, so you too can have an idea on how much all of this pretty costs.

From the Bride:After the excitement of the proposal, it was time to start the planning! It was so important to me that my wedding day have meaning and substance to it. I guess you could say I wanted it to be more than the "average" wedding. I had been to far too many weddings that lacked emotion, detail and that "sparkle" that every bride wants and deserves.

So I got to thinking what would make this day that much more special to me and Colten... One day I thought to myself, "Wouldn't it be amazing if we tied the knot on Colten's family farm?" Considering his grandparents purchased the land over 60 years ago and Colten grew up there it just felt right. I got the go-ahead from his parents and began envisioning what the ceremony should look like... rustic, chic, hay bale seating, a hand-made altar, DIY wooden signs and chalkboards, heart hand-punched confetti... As I began the projects, I never imagined they would all compliment each other so well and turn out so beautifully.

Going back to how I envisioned my wedding day, I couldn't imagine a total stranger standing up there with us while we said our "I do's". That's when we asked my Aunt Benny if she would feel comfortable performing the ceremony. Alongside a marriage commissioner my Aunt completed the heart-felt ceremony and it was everything I could have imagined.

It included a hand-fastening ceremony in which the fabric that tied our hands was made out of fabric from both of our mother's wedding dresses. A great deal of my inspiration was found on Pinterest. I took ideas from what other brides had done and I made it my own. It turned out to be a perfect day and I wouldn't change a single thing!

As far as the DIY stuff... We literally made EVERYTHING! Altar, programs, confetti, chalkboard signs, wooden signs, fabric for bales, all of the decorated jars at the hall, every sign at the hall (including the wooden one at the entrance), table squares, chair ties, cupcake toppers, photo cards on tables, frames & signs on back drop, wooden panels on backdrop, wooden boxes at the candy bar.

Each table had these adorable little candy jars that had one of our free wedding printables attached to them to dress them up. You can customize and print your own labels by clicking here.

I was repeatedly warned by my friends that after putting countless hours into my wedding I would wake-up the morning after the big day and suffer from "wedding blues." Well I have to be honest, I felt that everything about my day had gone exactly as planned and was so filled with love and happiness that I would not have changed a thing! The ONLY thing I can think of is that we were having such a good time with our guests that we completely forgot to cut the cake! Oops!

Dress: $1400
Venue: $1500
Caterer: $6000
Photographer: $2000
Videographer: $1500
Flowers: $1800
Live Music/DJ: $1200
Decorator: $900
Bartenders: $200
Our wedding totaled $25,000 when all was said and done.

• Bride's Dress: La Sposa
• Dress Shop: Bridal Debut
• Hair: Kirsten Thorgeirson of The Beauty Parlour
• Makeup: Jacqueline Laine & Ella May Make Up Art
• Photographer: Kristilee Parish Photography
• Second Photographer: Samantha Faye Photography
• Venue: Josephburg Hall