Handmade Temple Wedding

I’m utterly in love with this bride’s wedding dress, so imagine my surprise when I found out it was designed and made by — wait for it — her own mother! This wedding has just the right touch of pinks and purples to add a vintage flair and Provençal allure. Be sure to take a peek at the rest of the images in the gallery! Thank you Stacie and Geoff of Lang Photographers for sending this gem of a wedding our way.

From the bride, Amber: It was crazy how it all came together. I hadn’t thought about what theme I’d want my wedding to be until right before Mark and I got engaged and all of a sudden I was stalking all the wedding blogs (Ruffled being my number one site to go). I knew for sure I wanted an outdoor reception and having it in the backyard of the house I grew up in was a no-brainer! My favorite store of all time is Anthropologie and having helped one store with its grand opening, I was inspired with all the do-it-yourself projects.

I grew up doing crafts and sewing, all of which I learned from my mother dear. I just wanted it to be an experience for people when they came to celebrate with us. I wanted it to be magical and for them to think “Oh! That’s so “Amber”!” I didn’t want people to feel that it was so formal but that they could stay and hang out and eat some delectable sweets. I’m extremely opinionated and I’m pretty sure I thought about each tiny minuscule detail for hours! So, I would say the style was vintage with a twist.

Any advice for brides planning their weddings now? I just did as much research as possible so I could make sure everything was what I wanted. When I’d find something I liked online, I would copy the picture and paste it into iPhoto. Then I organized the photos into folders: Bride, Groom, Bridesmaids, Children, Decorations, etc. Oh and before that, I had a wedding ring folder so I showed Mark my top choices and then he made the final decision. Then, once I decided on colors, I went and got paint cards at Lowes, a bunch of each color, and passed them out to family to keep with them and if they saw anything in those colors (fabric, dresses, ties, decorative things) to get them! I did have a few things that didn’t go my way and I worried about it for a while. So, I would suggest to try to let things go, big or small, and just have a blast on the actual day! Oh, and definitely treat yourself with massages, waxing, facials, and spray tans so you feel relaxed and beautiful for the wedding.

See Also

Desert Sunset Soirée: A Phoenix Wedding Fiesta

View all photos from this wedding

Wedding Vendors (Mesa, AZ):

Ceremony venue: LDS Mesa Temple / Reception venue: private residence / Wedding photographer: Lang Photographers / Wedding coordinator: Sandy Hestand / Wedding flowers: Sandy Hestand / Wedding dress: made by bride’s mother / Wedding shoes: Steve Madden / Earrings: Anthropologie / Wedding veil: made by bride’s mother / Wedding makeup: Chelsee Hunt / Wedding music: Justin Nichols: Wedding catering: Sandy Hestand / Wedding invitations: Jenny Stott / Videographer: Lang Photography