Today's real wedding feature is sweet, sunny, and wonderful! Chelsea and Brian had a summer wedding that was simply and minimal. Their purple and grey color scheme was darling. You will love this Romantic Summer Wedding for $9,000! Xoxo, Jessica

Chelsea + Brian

July 27th, 2019

Bluffton, IN | St. Luke Activity Center

What was your total budget? Please provide a budget breakdown.

Venue: $450

Church: $250

Attire: $600

Flowers: $700

Food: $2200

Decor: $450

DJ: $900

Hair and Make Up: $500

Photography: $2400

Total Budget: $9,000

How did you meet?

Brian and I met when we were 14 years old. We were on a trip with our youth group, and I needed help carrying stuff so I looked for the person closest to me. That was Brian. From that moment on I was hooked and a week later he asked me to be his girlfriend (we were fourteen so that was the norm). From that point on, we've been together.

What is your proposal story?

Brian and I had talked about getting married for quite some time, and it was not uncommon to ask me questions about our proposal. I had been expecting it for a while. I hated surprises, therefore, this time was really hard for me.

On the day of our proposal, we were spending a normal Saturday together. It was the first nice week of the year so we went for a drive, and stopped at a park to go on a walk. We talked about how my parents would react to him asking to marry me and what he would say. Again this was not uncommon, but I still had to convince myself that he wasn't going to propose and I finally did.

Then we kept walking and crossed this beautiful little bridge and I kept walking towards a gazebo, but Brian pulled me back. Brian had given me a promise ring a couple of years earlier and started talking about how when he gave me that ring it was to be a place holder until we were ready to replace it. At that moment I stopped him and asked if he was messing with me. He told me he wasn't got down on one knee and asked me to marry him.

Tell us about your wedding vision.

I wanted a very simple wedding with minimal decorations or uniform. I wanted it to be meaningful though. I included details from both of our families. The location was important to us because it was the church we had met in and were very involved in during our high school years.

Tell us about your attire choices.

I originally went looking for a dress that was a simple lace dress, but I fell in love with a vintage style ball gown with a rhinestone belt. My mom chose this dress randomly out of the blue and I was in love.

Brian wanted to wear a dark color and so we chose charcoal grey. He was very passionate about having fun socks though. The plum color came from the fact that both Brian and I both love purple and the accent colors would be beautiful with it.

What was most important to you two? Was there anything you chose to splurge on or skip?

The most important thing for us was that both families were involved. We had been together for a very long time and knew both families really well. So we wanted to make sure everyone was involved.

What were your favorite parts of the day?

Our favorite part of the day was when we were able to just take some time together. There were many moments when we could just steal away and that was very nice. We also are both very big Star Wars fans and were very excited that we could incorporate this in subtle ways.

Tell us about your wedding flowers.

My wedding flowers were done by an amazing florist that I have known for many years. Her youngest was in my daycare class and class during school. I was excited to look at her and say I trust you completely whatever you think. My favorite flower is daisies and I was very excited I could incorporate them into my bouquet. I did not want an overwhelming rose bouquet and she did it wonderfully.

Tell us about your wedding cake.

We did not have a traditional wedding cake instead we had cheesecake. We chose this because it was unique and we were able to choose something that truly fit us. Our cheesecake was raspberry ( my favorite fruit) white chocolate (his favorite chocolate).

Did you include any family heirlooms or special traditions?

My bouquet was wrapped with lace from my mother's wedding and lace from his mother's wedding. I also used the glasses and cake cutting set from my parent's wedding. We sang the Purdue fight song at the reception.

Do you have any advice for couples planning their weddings now?

Enjoy every moment together that you can throughout the planning process and on the day of your wedding. You are the most important part. Also if you have something that you are passionate about such as family heirlooms or a special song make that a priority because it will be something that you remember.