All right, I promise this is my last wedding-related post.
This is more for me to help remember, I think. I had a whole lot of fun thinking of little details to personalize our wedding – not just for us, but for other people as well. It was a little tricky at times, ordering things online and having things made here but not knowing until the day before the wedding if any of it would match. Thankfully, it was gorgeous. I want to make sure I don’t forget these little details and what they meant. So please indulge me one more time and allow me to walk you through our wedding at the micro level…
Colors
This was an easy one. Turquoise/teal has been my favorite color for a long time – I find myself wearing it almost every day. JCrew makes really cute bridesmaids dresses, and I loved that each of my ladies got to pick a style that suited them. I love how it turned out!
Favorite girls in my favorite color
Flowers
Red was an easy choice for our accent color. It’s bright and cheerful, looks fabulous with turquoise, and happens to be my grandma’s favorite color. After some debating, I narrowed the flowers themselves down to three: roses, gerbera daisies, hypericum berries.
Roses – My dad has always loved growing roses, so our house has been surrounded by bushes of every variety and color for as long as I can remember. They’re a gorgeous flower that is difficult to grow in a rough Montana climate, but my dad patiently coaxed hundreds of them back to life after a long, brutal winter.
The specific variety of rose I chose for our wedding was called a “Freedom Rose.” It was a gorgeous red color but especially paid tribute to both our patriotic dads, who each served in their respective state assemblies.
Daisies – I chose gerbera daisies because my best friends Anna and Kathy both used them in their weddings, so it felt only right that they should carry them in mine.
Hypericum Berries – My wonderful friend Chitra used them in her wedding, and she has the best taste of anyone I know. Because I loved them so much, I ended up using them in Homecoming florals at Grove City every year I worked there.
I ordered all the flowers online in bulk, so each of us got to make our own bouquet. In addition to my bouquet, I also made small bouquets for our moms and Dave’s grandmother Mossy. Anna also did an incredible job on the boutonniers, and my mom and Robbie made every centerpiece a work of art.
Turquoise and red - love the combo!
Vases
I touched on this a couple posts ago, but Dave and I ordered a bunch of vases from a company called Kitengala here in Nairobi. They make unbelievable things out of recycled glass. We began with purchasing two pitchers for our moms and then ended up ordering smaller vases that we used as centerpieces and gifts for our guests.
And here’s how it looked all together…
Finally, here is a quick photo tour through a few of my other favorite details..
The stones in my ring are tsavorite, from the Tsavo region of Kenya. Dave's ring was a disappointing online purchase, so we got him a replacement to this one after the wedding.
These are the earrings my friend Jane gave me in China - long before a proposal or anything. Good thing they ended up looking so great with the dress! The necktie was my wedding gift to Dave - made by Hugo Boss, his favorite designer from his fashion days in NYC.
I ordered a unique piece of jewelry for each bridesmaid, all made by the same artist on Etsy. So they kind of coordinated but also reflected each person's personality.
Had Maasai bead sandals hand made in Kenya for all the special ladies in the wedding. Each girl got a uniquely-designed pair, and most of them fit (sorry Robbie!). Also, we all painted our toes in OPI Red - my favorite polish color!
My sister Maryann made these unbelievable strawberry cheesecake cupcakes for our reception. Also, they were displayed on my mom's lace tablecloth. This tablecloth was used on the cake table for the weddings of all 3 Koopman girls.
Our friends Linda and Susan provided unbelievable cookies for our western Pennsylvania-inspired cookie table. My two sisters also made incredible contributions. So delicious! Maryann even made mini "black and whites," a favorite of my dad's. They were also a tribute the great city of New York - a city my grandma loved, and the place Dave called home for 6 years.
We had this box made in Kenya to carry our rings for the ceremony. My original goal is that we would put love notes to each other in it for years to come. It's where we store our keys.
All images by Lockie Photography
I love re-living this day. Thank you