Sophisticated Wedding at Moonstone Manor

What better way to start off the week than with a healthy dose of elegant wedding design? Kaila and Ryan’s Pennsylvania wedding at Moonstone Manor was romantic, vintage-inspired, and full of sweet blush tones and mauve — exactly the look they envisioned, thanks in part to their incredible team of vendors including Brooke Courtney Photography, JDK Catering, and Wildflowers by Design!

From the bride, Kaila: We wanted a formal yet relaxed, romantic, vintage feeling to our wedding. The soft blush and champagne hues fit perfectly with the romantic vintage vibe. Adding in touches of deeper mauves and pinks created more of an autumn feel, since the wedding was in September. The vintage seating area along with other vintage furniture touches for the guestbook and ceremony table also contributed to the vintage we were going for. Votive and taper candles throughout created an intimate and romantic atmosphere.

My dad gave me a gift before the ceremony, which was a sixpence for my shoe. I taped the sixpence in my shoe as in the traditional saying “something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue, and a silver sixpence in her shoe”. The tradition is supposed to bring wealth and good fortune to the newlywed couple. I also wore my grandmother’s blue topaz ring as my “something blue” and “something borrowed”, and my veil was the one my mom wore on her wedding day for “something old”. It is a southern tradition to bury a bottle of bourbon upside down at the ceremony site one month prior to your wedding to ward off rain on your wedding day. Ryan and I did this, and the day of the wedding after the ceremony we dug up the bottle of bourbon and shared it with the wedding party.

The whole ceremony was so special. Walking down the aisle and seeing Ryan for the first time as well as exchanging our vows are moments I will never forget. The weather was perfect and as we were taking communion a light breeze swept through the ceremony. I did a “first look” with my dad, which was really nice. Seeing him tear up when he saw me and having that special moment with him was really special. Everyone running out into the field at the end of the night and seeing the wish lanterns floating off into the sky was also something that stands out in my mind. It was so beautiful, like a fairy tale!

See Also

A Bold Berry-Colored Vallejo Wedding

The dating and proposal story: In the summer of 2009, I (Kaila) was on summer break from the University of Richmond, preparing to finish my senior year of college. I was working for my second consecutive summer at The Farmer’s Hope Inn, just north of Manheim, PA, when I first met Ryan. Ryan had patronized the Farmer’s Hope quite frequently in the past, but it wasn’t until one night that summer that he noticed me. He ended up at the Farmer’s Hope a few nights later, for Tuesday night trivia with some friends, when he questioned one of my co-workers about me. He then made arrangements for me to be the server at his table. Ryan returned to the Farmer’s Hope later that week and asked me out on our first date. We continued our long distance relationship for 5 years while I attended my senior year of college in Richmond, VA and 4 years of dental school at Temple Dental School in Philadelphia. The summer before my senior year of dental school, Ryan surprised me with his proposal. He told me we were going miniature golfing and to a comedy club with some friends. I didn’t even notice we weren’t heading toward the miniature golf course until we pulled in to the driveway at Ryan’s aunt and uncle’s farm. Ryan and I had come here on our first date the summer we met where we sat on the dock of the pond, made a fire, and listened to music. That night, Ryan proposed on that same dock with lanterns floating in the pond, candles, a bottle of wine, and a scrapbook he had made of letters we had exchanged leading up to the proposal. After he proposed we released a wish lantern into the sky.

Wedding Location: Elizabethtown, PA / Photographer: Brooke Courtney Photography / Event Design, Planning, and Catering: JDK Catering / Flowers: Wildflowers by Design / Venue: Moonstone Manor / Wedding Dress: Liancarlo via Elizabeth Johns / Wedding Shoes: Angela Nuran / Wedding Cake: The Couture Cakery / Wedding Invitations: Bride and groom / Programs and Place Cards: Designs by Renee / Videographer: Willow Tree Films