We had a great time photographing our last wedding of the summer season. I was super excited to have 2 fun, diy weddings for the end of the summer…full of fun details, hand made gorgeousness…did I mention fun? Plus…alot of fun. :)

We headed down I-5 to Chehalis….a town, that I thought I had never really been to….but as we followed google maps to our farm destination…we passed a sign for Thousand Trails…and alas…I have spent a few weeks hanging in the trees and at the Thousand Trails pool with the fam at the Crow Family Reunions! :) Anyway…its beautiful down there….lots of amazing barns in amazing fields and I think I decided I wanted to move there….out of the convergent zone that was being rained on when we left home.

I loved all the Ciara & Cody’s fun details. Some of my faves?:

1. A huge dance floor in the middle of a field, with little white lights around the top….they used this for the stage for the wedding…then it came into its full glory about 9pm when sun went down and the dancing started!

2. Um…The most amazing BBQ from Ranch House BBQ. yum-o!

3. The most orange and white paper lanterns that I have ever seen in a tent! It was gorgeous and just about blew my socks when I walked into the the tent!

4.  I love a bride that wears a fabulous dress and cowgirl boots!

5. I loved all of the burlap details and table runners!

6. The cutest pinwheel background for the cutest desert table ! I kind want one of these for my house…in turquoise, of course!

7. The venue itself was a really cool working farm that was 275 acres!  It was beyond huge and had the most incredible creek running through it. I wanted to jump over the rustic bridge and jump right into that water. I would love to have a creek on my property.

It was so cool to be in a huge field, with nothing else around, but a beautiful view and some Dave Matthews Music.

I have to say, when meet with couples who are about to get married, one of my favorite things is to ask them how they met. Usually this puts a sparkle in their eye, they look at each other and…as always, they both have different versions of the story. I love to watch them navigate trying to decided who’s version….and the long or short version…they are going to tell me. I’m a girl, so of course I like the long version…with all the long and drawn out details.  Why do I ask this question? I ask because it helps me see how these strangers work together, it gives me a little peek into their world, their relationship. Usually at this is time in their relationship, newly engaged couples still love to tell the story of how they met,  and it reminds me: Its Good to Remember.

I have been married for over 8 years. I love it. I am so glad that I married my best friend. He makes me laugh…even when I’m irritated. He knows me and can read me…I really can’t hide anything from him. And I like to remember. I like to remember our first non-date date. The night that we first hung out. The night he took me to the Troll under the bridge in Fremont, then we got on 99 and couldn’t get off…and ended up in Alki. We started talking that night, and have continued talking for over 9 years. I like to remember (and remind him) what we first attracted us to each other. It drudges up those first butterfly feelings and all the yummy goodness that go with that time in our lives.

So remember…Its always good to remember!

This was Drew & I’s first project of many that we collaborated on. A 80′s rocker Karaoke Going Away Party for myself. :) It was a blast! We shopped for our 80′s outfits, set up our karaoke machine and our stage…and had a great party. The first of many!

I love accents. I could listen to them all day long.  So when we arrived at Hotel Monaco in Seattle, Richard was talking about “waistcoats” in his english accent and one of his groom’s men was an Aussie…we got our dose of a good accent.  I also just loved this hotel so much! From the huge amazing front doors, to the cool stripes on the wall, to the quirky little goldfish in each room, Hotel Monaco is the place to be! Loved every inch of it!I loved that Katy got all of her flowers from the vendors at Pike Place Market. What beautiful flowers!!

I loved these little gold fishes…named Katy & Richard! I love the quirky and out of the box details at  Kimpton hotels.

When the gals were getting ready, one of the bridesmaids mentioned that Katy had used a classic game of Scrabble as an early test of Richard’s intelligence, I was so hoping that she was using that detail some where in the wedding…and sure enough, she brought out the Scrabble Guest book found on Etsy.com. I loved this detail so much!!:) Brides…never be afraid of adding your own personal touches to your wedding! YOU and your man are what makes your wedding special! Express yourself and your quirks!

Katy also found these lovely peacock clutches on Etsy and had them labeled with each of her bridesmaids names! What a great gift for your wedding party. Love these!

Katy also had Richard’s mother (in England!!) make her dress! It was an amazing silk and lace dress…Richard’s mom had to take 2 dress patterns and put them together! Talk about trust! Katy didn’t see the dress till a few weeks before the ceremony. I loved that the top of the dress was a modified version of Grace Kelly’s Wedding dress.

I loved that that even though they had decided that they wouldn’t be kissing before the cermony, Richard tried to steal a few….and luckily, Katy is very limber!

Oh how I loved the Seattle Public Libary! The books, the aisles, the amazing artwork. It was incredible!

I loved Katy’s Trophy Cupcake Tower…complete with an addition of the Scrabble Dictionary Ribbon used on the tower! So fun!

Wedding Dress: Hand Made by Groom’s Mother

Flowers: Pike Place Market Vendors

Hotel: Hotel Monaco

Ceremony & Reception: Seattle Public Library

Catering: The Upper Crust

Yummy Cupcakes: Trophy Cupcakes

Photography: Kaylee Eylander

OH. MY. GOODNESS!!! I have to say that ever since I met Tara & Robert last….(October??) I imagined what their wedding day would actually be like. They are cool, laid back, yet still passionate about a few things…one being beer. I mean, I shot their engagement session at their favorite Bellingham watering hole, The Boundary Bay Brewery.  It was wonderful.

Anyway…..I have been dreaming about yesterday since I met them…and their wedding day did not disappoint! It was such a personal, beautiful, wonderfully thoughtful wedding, chock full of lovely details that point straight to the fact that these two people are so inlove! I loved every second of it. I just had so much fun, I had to talk about it!

One of my absolute favorite things of the night was the way their crazy guests went nuts in the FunBooth Photobooth! It was great! Manned by one of our new 3rd Photographers, Jen Milham, she helped to capture how hilarious and radical these peeps were!!!

Here’s a taste of the goodness:

If you want to capture the crazy radicalness of your guests at your own wedding, you need a FunBooth! We have a few dates available, so email me at kaylee@eylanderphoto.com for rates and packages! You don’t want to miss out!