Backyard Carnival Themed Wedding

As soon as I heard the description “festive backyard carnival wedding,” I was sold. How could you go wrong with such a happy theme? Brooke Beasley Photography photographed Elisa and Zack’s wedding, which was all expertly arranged by the bride and Erin Armstrong of Pine Street Events.

From the bride, Elisa: Our style was Festive Backyard Carnival Wedding! We wanted our wedding day to be fun, semi-casual, and stress free yet still feel special and unique. Like most couples, we were on a budget. We cut corners where we could and dedicated a lot of our time — a trade off for saving some money. Although we still ended up going over (just a little bit) in the end, we had such overwhelming feelings of love and accomplishment, it was worth every penny.

Adjectives that best describe the look of our wedding: bright, fun, energetic, home grown, animated and serendipitous. The house was very eclectic which is why the carnival theme worked so well. Anything goes! There were a ton of DIY projects. Zack and I love projects. Luckily, our friends were sweet enough to help us indulge in most of our crazy wishlist. Some projects we tackled were: built benches for the ceremony (which was also later used for dinner seating and given away as thank you gifts), built cocktail tables out of wood pallets, built carnival games: coke bottle ring toss, balloon darts, and corn-hole, repurposed an old door into a chalk board welcome sign, guestbook thumbprint tree was drawn by one of the bridesmaids, wedding cake was ordered plain from a local bakery and then decorated by a friend.

Any advice for couples planning their weddings now? Block out any negative vibes and go with what makes you guys happy. Prioritize what is most important and check those off the list first. Get a good wedding coordinator and enjoy your wedding!

See Also

A Tuscan Inspired Wedding with Pastel Hues at California’s Filoli Gardens

Wedding Music:
Processional: “Into the Mystic,” Van Morrison
Recessional: “Home,” Phillip Phillips
First Dance: “Nothing Can Change This Love,” Sam Cooke
Parents Dance: “You Never Can Tell,” Chuck Berry

Location: San Francisco, CA / Photographer: Brooke Beasley Photography / Second Shooter: Bluella Photography / Wedding Coordinator and Florist: Erin Armstrong of Pine Street Events / Wedding Dress: Galina via David’s Bridal / Wedding Shoes: TJ Maxx / Wedding Earrings, Necklace, Bracelet, Brooch: Family Heirlooms / Bridesmaids’ Dresses: Lulus and Missguided / Bridesmaid Purses: Bags By Jill / Flower Girl’s Dress: Gap / Men’s Attire: Amazon / Taco Cart: Leslie’s Catering (lesliescatering @ yahoo.com) / Wedding Cake: Isa Chu / Appetizers and Help Staff: The Party Helpers / Cocktail Band: Coffee Zombie Collective / Ceremony/Reception DJ: Joshua Chirinos / Photobooth: The Magnolia Booth Co. / Wedding Invitations: My Big Day Designs