Rachel and Dan's Wedding at Moraine Farm

On Saturday, October 9th, I was the coordinator for Rachel and Dan's wedding at Moraine Farm in Beverly, MA. It was a crisp, cool day, the sun was shining, and the whole wedding area at Moraine Farm was just beautiful. The reception tent from The Event Co. had been set up the previous day, and caterers had started to set up chairs for the ceremony next to an adorable tea house at the end of the lawn, and the tables for the reception under the tent in the middle of the lawn.

After getting hair styled at Aveda Radiance Salon, and makeup at Rouge Cosmetics, the bridal party got dressed at Moraine Farm. The bridesmaids wore a variety of short and long J. Crew slate grey chiffon dresses and carried simple bouquets of baby's breath wrapped in black satin ribbon. The bride wore shoes by J. Crew, and a gorgeous strapless Christos dress with intricate beading at the top and an incredible skirt that looked like the dress was floating on air.

Rachel and Dan flew in their photographer, Heather España of España Photography, all the way from Oregon just for the wedding day and decided to do a "first look" and portraits before the ceremony in order to spend as much time as possible with their guests later on. Moraine Farm is surrounded by woods, so Heather hid Dan next to a specific tree in the woods and then brought Rachel over to Dan and captured their first moment together. Heather posted one photo teaser so far from the wedding day and it is one of their portraits in the woods. To me, it's pure perfection...

Photo by España Photography
After portraits with the entire bridal party, the family gathered for a Ketubah signing, and then guests started to arrive for the wedding ceremony. They helped themselves to apple cider while mingling with other guests. White garden chairs were set outside, with large white pumpkins along the aisle. A wreath of baby's breath hung on the tea house window and was the backdrop for the outdoor ceremony. There were different versions of programs, with quotes on the back like mazel tov, yay!, and d+r. A friend played acoustic guitar for the processional, and in addition to the bridesmaids and a flower girl, a cousin walked the ringbearer down the aisle: the bride and groom's dog, Beacon!

Following the ceremony, guests enjoyed cocktail hour on the terrace of the main house, which was set right along the water. Family photos and candles surrounded their unique guestbook which was an electric guitar that guests signed with silver pens. After the cocktail hour, guests looked up their names on an escort chart chalkboard, and were invited into the main reception tent where they were greeted with beautifully decorated long guest tables.

There were different sized white pumpkins on the tables, along with some mini silver pumpkins, candles in mercury votive holders, and arrangements of baby's breath. Atmosphere & Floral Design provided all of the florals for the day, including bouquets and boutonnieres. The table numbers were created out of sheet music, and place cards doubled as favors at each place setting. The favors were a variety of jars like blackberry jam, strawberry jam, and even apple butter. Mr. and Mrs. signs were strung between the bride and groom's chairs, and there were lace linen overlays for all of the guest tables. In addition to all of these pieces for the tables, the bride had spent the last year or so collecting over 200 pieces of vintage china for the dinner plates and bread plates for over 100 guests. The variations of color and style for each plate really added to the charm of the tablescape.

The tent was decorated with white lanterns, and was also heated so it was very cozy inside the tent and comfortable for guests, despite the 50 degree weather outside! After a plated salad, guests enjoyed a buffet dinner featuring bbq style food catered by Timothy Hopkins Catering, and then filled the dance floor with music by Felix Brown.

Later on, there was a fantastic dessert buffet which included French macarons from L.A. Burdick, cupcakes from Lyndell's Bakery, cookies and a vanilla wedding cake from Ula Cafe, and a variety of goodies homemade by the bride's family like rice krispy treats, pumpkin pie, and pecan pie. I can't wait to see more photos later on from Heather España, but for now, here are some photos that I took on the wedding day.

It was a day full of love and joy, and a special thanks to my assistant, Celia, for helping me until the very end. Rachel and Dan, thanks so much for allowing me to be part of your special day, and I wish you both all the happiness in the world.

~Emilie