Art Gallery Ontario Wedding

The words “streamlined neocraft” come to mind looking at Alana and Rich’s wedding shot by Jayme Morrison. The Art Gallery of Hamilton served as the backdrop for their nuptials, which worked like a blank canvas to build upon pops of color and handpicked vintage elements. So. much. to. love.

From Alana: We decided to hold an evening ceremony followed immediately by a food station reception (in lieu of a sit-down dinner). We filled the menu with some of our favourite foods (grilled cheese sandwiches, tacos, sushi, and a hot dog cart!), and had a Caesar bar (Rich’s favourite drink) during our cocktail hour. Our dessert table was covered in some of our very favourite sweets from a local bakery that we love — we did not have a traditional wedding cake.

The focus of our wedding was on the dance floor. We wanted our guests to dance with us all night, and they did not disappoint!

To keep people entertained when they needed a break from dancing, we had a photobooth guestbook from Snapz set up – everyone loved it, and we now have a super fun guestbook that brings a smile to our faces every time we look at it.

Early on, we decided that we did not want any speeches at our wedding. Instead, we had small brunch on the morning of our wedding day with our immediate families and very close friends where speeches were given. The intimate nature of the meal and the personal, heartfelt words of our families and friends are some of my favourite wedding memories.

Rich actually chose our colour scheme early in the planning process — he wanted to wear a grey suit with a red tie, so we went with red, grey, and white.

We were going for a “vintage woodland” theme, so we spent most of a year collecting vintage ceramic animals and glass bottles from thrift stores. We spray-painted the animals solid white, and filled the vintage bottles with DIY tissue paper flower puffs. We incorporated a lot of real wood and vintage furniture in our decor, including a beautiful old side table from J&J Restoration that we used for our register signing so we could carry our theme out to the ceremony area.

To add a “wow” element to our reception area decor, we had our invitation designer create a large banner graphic to match our invitations and other paper materials. We then worked with a sign manufacturer to have it printed out on 15 feet of red vinyl and affixed to the wall in our reception pavilion. Our guests loved it, and many thought it was painted on!

A favourite DIY project of mine was the “Yay” flags that we created for our ceremony. The gallery prohibits the throwing of rice or confetti, so we made flags out of paper and wooden dowels that our guests could wave instead.

Any advice for brides planning their weddings now? Make special time for you and your fiance in the weeks leading up to the wedding — go on dates, get pampered, and try not to talk about the wedding too much. Enjoy being engaged!

Wedding Songs:

Groom and attendant entrance: “Here Comes Your Man”- The Pixies
Bride entrance: “Just Like Heaven”- The Cure
Register signing: “Time after Time”- Cyndi Lauper
Recessional: “The Good Life”- Kanye West
First dance: “Summertime”- The Rural Alberta Advantage
Parents’ Dance: “Stand By Me”- Ben E King

Wedding Vendors and Venue (Hamilton, Ontario):

Venue: Art Gallery of Hamilton / Photographer: Jayme Morrison / Florist: Dandie Andie Designs / Wedding Dress: “Drew” by Priscilla of Boston purchased at Pearl Bridal House / Veil: Twigs & Honey / Shoes: Kate Spade / Groom’s suit: Le Firme / DJ: Enjoi DJ Outfit / Ceremony Music: Vitamin String Quartet / Caterer: Art Gallery of Hamilton and Willy Dog hot dog carts (905-317-9484) / Dessert: Circles and Squares / Wedding invitations: Ashley at Flakes Paperie