Retro-Vintage Intimate Brooklyn Minimony

Newlyweds share a tender moment in their vintage home

Excited to share this day with you because it really is so special. A super intimate wedding day at the Bride's grandparents' house with just the two of them. Sweet moments captured during the pandemic truly prove that love is unstoppable. Read on to learn how this marvelous day came about. Keep scrolling to see all of the beautiful photos by Ruby Olivia Photography. You can see all the images in the full gallery.

Bride in white dress laughs by vintage suitcase stairs

Bearded man in vintage living room with books sofa

Bride in elegant dress carefully descends the staircase

Man with beard smiles indoors sitting on brown velvet couch

Bride fastens colorful wedding sandal on carpet floor

Groom adjusting shirt cuff in black and white setting

To Grandparents House We Go

Backyard wedding ceremony bride groom officiant flowers

We had been looking for the perfect local wedding venue' that checked all the boxes of being private, outdoors, dynamic and COVID-safe. One morning while both working at home, I had an immediate realization that we could ask to use my grandparents' house in the south of Brooklyn, NY.

Excited bride catching bouquet at outdoor wedding event

The house is currently up for sale and no one lives there. My mother grew up there and I spent countless childhood weekends there with my grandparents, cousins, and other members of the family, even coming for Saturday or Sunday lunches with my grandparents or just my grandfather in my adulthood while living in Manhattan.

Bride and groom exchanging rings at outdoor wedding

My fiance (at the time) agreed that this was our "EUREKA!" moment, and we went forward by asking the family for permission to use the house for our simple-yet-meaningful civil wedding in September 2020. With only three weeks to plan, we enlisted a friend, Alex, to be our officiant, and coordinated a day when both she and our chosen photographer, Ruby Olivia, would be available.

Happy bride and groom laugh in backyard wedding setting

Couple prepares wedding favors with flowers on table

Wedding rings resting near a bouquet of white flowers

RELAXED WEDDING DAY + INTIMATE DETAILS

Happy newlyweds toast in the kitchen on wedding day

Our day was super chilled-out and relaxing, as far as a wedding goes. We also lucked out with the weather, as the forecast had been 100% precipitation all day, and it kept clearing and clearing, giving us a window of 3:30 to 5:30 pm when we had no rain, just a super-humid late summer day.

Bride and groom toasting with champagne at reception

Delighted to be able to incorporate most of my grandparents into our special day, I was blessed to have been given a dress from my father's mother by my mom, who found it in a closet. It's a white lace strapless dress that fit me like a glove, and I was so happy to wear a dress from one grandmother and get married in the house of the other.

Newlyweds toast with champagne in cozy kitchen setting

Bride and groom share champagne in kitchen on wedding day

The other details came from family, which we loved. My mom and dad came to the house the day before to drop off champagne and set out some fancy crystal glasses to use in photos (and use for drinking). My sister surprised us with a homemade gluten-free dairy-free mini-cake, set on a cake plate that was given to us as a wedding gift from a family friend.

Newlyweds joyfully hold hands showing their wedding rings

For other details, I wanted to incorporate our love of travel into what I wore, and I wore handmade earrings from Faire Collection that were made in Ecuador, along with Fiesta Feet, which is a woman-owned company making handmade huarache-style shoes from Mexico. Our wedding bands were bought in a hurry, but were also bought with the intention of our lifestyle -- lots of working out during quarantine and made to be comfortable, so we went with silicone wedding bands to fit the bill.

Intimate kitchen table celebration with cake and champagne