THE PLANNING

Rustic Elegance Owner, Kellie, got the pleasure of working with Ellen, Spencer, and their parents! Their meetings mostly took place over Zoom, but the couple and father of the bride did come into our office for an in-person meeting as well. The couple and their parents were so sweet throughout the planning process! We loved working with them to plan their wedding at Almquist Farm for their 130 guests. We also appreciate the trust they had in us when having to switch up the day due to the rain, but more on that later ;) Needless to say, this is definitely a wedding we will remember!

THE MORNING

When the wedding day arrived it was bright and sunny with a chance of rain later in the day. The ladies got ready on site in the beautiful bridal suite at Almquist Farm. 139 Hair by Heidi and Makeup by Mindie worked together to leave the ladies feeling beautiful with their fancy hair and makeup! The guys arrived a little later in the morning, and the RE team helped pin on their boutonnieres. Ellen then slipped into her gown from Che Bella that fit her like a glove. She looked stunning!

The couple made their way outside with Kost Productions who captured their first look with both photo and video. It was so sweet! Ellen and Spencer then traveled around the venue for portraits before having their wedding party join them for a few group shots!

The RE team then pulled the wedding party aside for a quick day of rehearsal. We love doing a day of rehearsal for a variety of reasons, which you can learn all about on THIS blog. We also used this time to chat with the ushers about their duties!

THE CEREMONY (TO BE CONTINUED…)

To our dismay, the rain started right before the ceremony time. An outdoor ceremony was very important to the couple, so we got to brainstorming. We mentioned earlier how much we appreciated the trust the couple and their families had in us regarding the ceremony. This is when we brought up our idea to them. In order to give them the outdoor ceremony they dreamed of, we switched the entire day around and had the ceremony at sunset (8pm). The first look that we mentioned before also wasn’t planned. The couple wasn’t going to do a first look, but in order to switch the day around they decided they were happy to do one! You’ll get to hear all about this epic ceremony later, but for now let’s talk reception!

THE RECEPTION

As guests arrived, they went right into cocktail hour since it was raining. We worked with their caterer, Lake Elmo Inn, and they were able to have the appetizers ready at this time too. It was definitely a team effort to pull this last minute schedule off, but this vendor team was ready for the challenge and stayed flexible in order to give these two the day they deserved! Amy Reisenberg, the couple’s officiant, stayed and ate dinner with us so the couple could get married later in the day. Ashley and Chandler from Kost Productions were so willing to roll with the changes. Berndt, the DJ from Adagio, was so great to work with and willing to change things up. Overall, we can’t express enough how grateful we were from an outstanding vendor team!!

Once cocktail hour wrapped up, we moved dinner up 30 minutes. Lake Elmo Inn worked hard to get the plated meal served early, and it was absolutely delicious! The space looked stunning and we loved the added touch of the linens and glassware the couple rented from Apres! The couple then did their cake cutting which was a yummy cheesecake from Muddy Paws Cheesecake! The father of the bride, father of the groom, maids of honor, and best men all jumped in to do their speeches early. They were all so fun and touching!

Berndt from Adagio had everything set up for the first dances, so we were able to get these done before the ceremony too. These are always so sweet to watch!

CEREMONY (CONTINUED)

At this point, we were ready whenever the rain stopped. We were biting our nails, but it was supposed to let up. Once the first dances wrapped up, we checked and the rain had stopped! The Almquist team worked with the RE team to quickly dry off the chairs. At last, it was time for this couple to get married at their outdoor ceremony!! The flowers from Ergo Floral were the perfect touch to add a pop of color to the overcast day.

Spencer walked in with both of his parents by his side. The couple had 5 attendants on each side, who swiftly made their way down the aisle followed by 3 cute flower girls. The bride made her grand entrance with her father, which felt extra special with the suspense leading to this beautiful moment! The couple had two ceremony readings, shared sweet words, and officially shared their kiss as husband and wife!

THE RECEPTION (CONTINUED)

After the ceremony, it was time for the grand entrance! This was an important aspect of the wedding to the groom, so we had to make sure it didn’t get skipped in the rearrangement of plans. The wedding party entered right into the party part of the dance, which worked out so great! The vibes were high and everyone was ready to celebrate this happy couple!

The night wrapped up with plenty of dancing, socializing, and late night pizza from Domino’s! Ergo Floral returned at the end of the night to pick up their items, and the RE team ensured everything else was cleaned up. Hastings Bus Company provided a safe ride back to the hotel for anyone who needed it.

This day would not have been possible without the collaboration of amazing and professional vendors! We communicated with everyone along the way and worked hard to get everything in the new schedule that the couple wanted. The different schedule was fun and still flowed nicely! Most importantly, the couple was SO happy! They left the sweetest review, which we had to share with you here:

“Kellie and Rachel made our whole day possible. She answered our seemingly endless amount of questions during the planning process while also soothing any nerves. On our wedding day, Kellie was instrumental in keeping everything going smoothly. She communicated with all vendors and kept us updated on anything that came up during the day. We had some crazy weather, and she came up with a plan that kept the day on track while also keeping what we wanted for our day in mind. Due to the rain we were able to flip around our order of events to do dinner, dances, and toasts before having a sunset ceremony outside. I truly believe that Kellie and Rachel were the best people to be with us during this stressful situation. They made the experience fun, positive, and helped us create a whole new vision for our day. We would have been lost without both of them, and we will forever be grateful for all of their hard work. Our wedding wouldn't have been as perfect as it was without both of them!”

Ellen + Spencer, thank you for trusting us to completely change up your day to get your outdoor ceremony. You two were SO sweet and fun to work with. Cheers to you!

Kost Productions, thank you for riding the wave with us and sharing these awesome photos!

VENDORS

Venue: Almquist Farm
Caterer: Lake Elmo Inn
Rentals: Apres
DJ: Adagio
Florist: Ergo Floral
Officiant: Amy Riesenberg
Photographer / Videographer: Kost Productions
Dessert: Muddy Paws Cheesecake
Transportation: Hastings Bus Company
Hair: 139 Hair by Heidi
Makeup: Makeup by Mindie
Bridal Gown: Che Bella
Coordinator: Rustic Elegance, Kellie and Rachel

Creatively written by: Hope Konkol

Ellen + Spencer | Almquist Farm